The High Concept – Mystery Characters: Telling Less to Create More

The Concept

The mystery character is a character that we know very little about, yet many times plays an absolutely crucial role in the storyline of a game. The less we know the more intriguing the character is to the players.

The Benefits

Besides simply being interesting, there is an incredible degree of flexibility with this approach. If you don’t have a complete story, for example one that evolves as sequels are created, your character is not penned in a box. The character has more possibilities for development and the storyline could take interesting turns.

Examples

I’m going to use two of my favorite mystery characters as great examples of this. They both share similar traits. Both seemingly have special, sometimes superhuman powers, and both have mysterious motives and goals in the storyline.

#1 – The “G-Man” (Half-Life Series)

The G-Man

Rise and shine Mr. Freeman, rise and shine…..

The G-Man is a mysterious character in the Half-Life series who with inexplicable powers exerts influence over the protagonist/player Gordon Freeman

The name “G-Man” was created and spread by the players, after some found the character model’s name in the game’s engine. A name for the character has never been given by the developers and no other game characters have stated a name. The phrase “G-Man” is a real term that is used to refer to government agents.

During Half-Life 1, silent protagonist Gordon Freeman (the player) will sometimes catch a brief glimpse of the G-Man as he progresses through the Black Mesa research facility. The G-Man always appears to be watching you, always out of reach, and this created a very creepy effect. One of my most memorable experiences of Half-Life 1 was attempting to follow the G-Man around a corner to only arrive at a dead end with him nowhere to be found.

In Half-Life 1, the G-Man may have intentionally caused Earth to be invaded and conquered by alien forces. However, after completing Half-Life 2, it becomes apparent that the G-Man places Gordon Freeman in the right place (the start of the game) to trigger a series of events that lead to a desired outcome, the partial liberation of Earth from the alien forces. The G-Man’s words at the start of the game to the player/Gordon Freeman come true. “The right man in the wrong place can make all the difference”

So whose side is the G-Man on, or is he on any side? He occasionally makes references to his “employers” but nothing more. He has the ability to teleport, slow down time, and is seemingly omnipotent or at least able to predict certain outcomes. The goals of the G-Man are still unknown.

So who is the G-Man? Is he human, a government agent, an alien, or something else?

Alien theory proponents point to the G-Man’s awkwardness whenever he talks, stating that he is not comfortable with speaking the English language.

Some believe that he is a government agent with access to advanced technology.

Others believe that he is actually the protagonist Gordon Freeman from the future, believing that the word G-Man is another way of saying Gordon Freeman.

Until more is revealed in the upcoming sequel Half-Life 3, the debate rages on.

# 2 – Kane (Command and Conquer: Tiberium Series)

Rejoice Children of Nod! The prophet is here and he brings the technology of peace!

Kane (The Messiah!)

Command and Conquer is a real time strategy game that follows a futuristic war between two factions. On one side is the United Nations Global Defense Initiative or GDI for short. On the other is the Brotherhood of Nod, an army of fanatical followers of a man named Kane who claims to be a messiah.

In the storyline, a meteorite crashes onto Earth, seeding it with a new plant that would come to be called Tiberium. Kane is a charismatic leader who prophesized that it would arrive on Earth. Tiberium emits deadly radiation, and spreads rapidly, however Kane creates technology that harvests it and unlocks its power. GDI views Tiberium as a threat, while Kane views it as beneficial and necessary for humanity.

The entire story is told through wonderfully cheesy live action videos that fans have come to love and appreciate.

Kane makes an appearance in the alternate game series Command and Conquer: Red Alert, where he works as an advisor to Stalin. Red Alert takes place in the 1950s while the Tiberium series takes place between 2000 to 2050. Kane never shows any signs of aging despite this timeline.

Kane is seemingly killed several times throughout the game series, yet always reemerges to lead the Brotherhood of Nod. Also like the G-Man from the Half-Life series, Kane appears to be able to predict certain outcomes in the near future, and Kane never clearly states his end goals.

Who is Kane, or quite possibly what is Kane?

The fans debate on and on…..

Is Kane the biblical Cain? Some of his supporting characters in the game series seem to think so, although Kane never says anything himself to confirm this. The hints might be there. Kane is seemingly immortal, there is the name Nod where Cain goes to live in the bible, and Kane’s enemies seem to suffer greatly (biblical 7 fold vengeance) whenever they “defeat” him.

Is Kane a time traveler who uses this ability to see the future, learn about advanced technology, and seemingly defy death? Time travel was available in the Command and Conquer: Red Alert series where Kane makes an appearance. Time travel would certainly explain his foreknowledge.

Is Kane merely one of an endless series of clones that is created upon each death?

Is Kane an alien? Is this why he has superior knowledge of Tiberium and the technology to unlock its potential? There are aliens in the Command and Conquer: Tiberium storyline.

The interesting thing is, all of these could fit into the Command and Conquer universe and it wouldn’t surprise the player.

The Interesting Results

A simple search of videos of these characters on YouTube will yield pages of video comments of Half-Life and Command and Conquer fans debating on who these characters are and what their real goals are.

You will find the same in many video game forums, consisting of page after page, where people not only state their beliefs, but will cite various parts of the games to back up their arguments. The debate never ends! You know that you have created an incredible character when people spend hours of their free time arguing points of view.

I will conclude with this…..You can’t kill the messiah.

Kane for president 2012!!!!  YES WE KANE!!!!!!

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