Video Game Characters

The act of being a video game character is a bit of an odd one. You spend all day killing things, all night healing from wounds that should have killed you, and there's a better than eighty percent chance that your tomboy female friend is a lost princess. But what's a guy to do, eh?

Playable character types:
Sub-categories: A fat character who can maneuver like a gymnast, sprint like an Olympic runner, or kick your ass like Chuck Norris, despite being... you know... fat. A serious main character coupled with a weird or quirky partner. A description of the class-based systems common to many Role Playing Games. Where the main character has no recollection of who they are. A character who excels in melee attacks without wielding weapons. A type of character who uses the assistance of an animal, force of nature, or just some sort of not-highly-sentient creature to help them fight. Magic-user who specializes in offensive magic. A young female Black Mage with a forceful personality. An older female Black Mage with a more reserved or mature personality. Snarky self-important kid (usually a boy) who's usually the youngest in the party. The main magic user is the youngest in the group. Blank slate characters always get the short end of the stick in adapted works. Although he's the main healer and buffer, he can also dish out damage. The two roles video-game characters often divide each other into when in groups. The various character types in competitive games need to be balanced so no one character is automatically better. A character whose main advantage is their unpredictability. Early game playable character who starts out powerful, but whose usefulness declines. A young girl who has Super Strength. A character who specializes in the use and application of machines and technology. Usually a support unit, but many times quite capable of combat. A character or class that can be very effective, but needs a lot of work or strategy to reach its potential. The most common character classes in a medieval fantasy setting. An Ageless, Faceless, Gender-Neutral, Culturally Ambiguous Adventure Person is you! The player is a general or commander in a strategy game who may not actually even exist. The three most common character classes for Western RPGs. A character typically using bows and tapping the forest he or she protects. A character who's very fast, but can't hit very hard and has low defense. A character of thin build who's nevertheless extremely strong and slow. A character who is strong but can't take a lot of damage. Games that star a protagonist who's actually a god or who has godlike powers. A character type that deals damage over time, wearing the enemy down. Someone who joins your party temporarily as a "guest". A character who has the ability to heal others. A main character who never speaks. A unit, usually in a Real Time Strategy game, that represents the player, or a major character in the game's story, on the battlefield. A character whose skills revolve around using items. A character who has good strength, speed, and defense, but is not great in any category. The Jack of All Stats where the end result is an almost useless character, since their mediocre skills are never useful enough to be chosen over a specialist. Eastern RPG system whereby classes have distinct equipment and abilities but can be changed at any time. Characters, often in the form of Easter Eggs, deliberately unbalanced in the negative sense. A Joke Character who has one or two awesome skills which can lead to him being used very effectively. Slaying dragons and beating down goblins, but he still has a teddy bear when he goes to sleep. A female fighter who retains an air of grace and reserve not usually associated with violence. A character who has very good strength, speed, and defense. A wizard who can also swordfight. A snarky Funny Animal with kickin' powers and improbable jumping abilities. Opening doors is an art, don'tcha know. He's got great strength and defense, and moves about as fast as mould. Summon Mooks to do the job for you! A collection of character-classes or equivalents of such for non-fantasy RPG-settings. Where monsters fight alongside the humans in RPGs. Several party members who, for whatever reason, cannot all be in the same party at the same time. A young girl with a mysterious past who the villains are trying to exploit and the heroes are trying to protect. You're the video game hero. It's perfectly normal for you to go around killing thousands of Mooks. Someone who may not join your party, if you don't fulfil the requirements to get them. A character introduced as being really powerful ends up, statistics-wise, as being weaker than the main character. An adventuring companion in an Action Game who, for whatever reason, is not hindered by the action segments. A character controlled by you, the player. Nameless, personality-less characters that make up your team. An animal (usually adorable) that the main character can ride on and is beneficial in some way. A former Boss or NPC becomes playable. You just sort of popped into being in the first village. She's had enough of being pampered and wants to get down and dirty with the monster fighting! A magician capable of casting spells from two different or even mutually exclusive schools of magic. Someone who you have to have in your group, usually due to plot reasons. The game offers multiple characters to choose from with various backstories, but only the character you choose as your PC ever appears in the game. A bonus character that the casual player may never see. Fighting Game characters that are a challenge to newcomers, but those with experience will easily mop the floor with them. Classes capable of going alone where others are forced to team up. Standard FPS hero: A military man (often in bulky armour), who wields lots of big guns and kills lots of aliens. Phenomenal cosmic power, but teeeeny weeeeny little life bar. A character with extremely high defense but lame offensive capabilities. A party member whose' primary abilities are mostly non-offensive. When a physical fighter and magic user team up. The default mascot of the party and usually the most outlandish of the bunch. An implausibly curvy, twenty-something woman in a Stripperiffic outfit, who obeys the commands of the fellow behind the controller. A character with the ability to summon a stationary turret that attacks enemies or an object that fulfills a similar role. A princess that breaks the mold by not being The Chick. Magic-user who specializes in healing and support magic. The female magic-using co-star of an RPG, who often wields a staff or rod. A usually shaggy, muscle-bound and under-dressed character who looks like he just came out of the jungle.
 * Player Party
 * Boss Battle
 * Acrofatic
 * Adventure Duo
 * An Adventurer Is You
 * Amnesiac Hero
 * Bare-Fisted Monk
 * The Beast Master
 * Black Mage
 * Black Magician Girl
 * Lady of Black Magic
 * Bratty Half-Pint
 * Child Mage
 * Cipher Scything
 * Combat Medic
 * Combat and Support
 * Competitive Balance
 * Confusion Fu
 * Crutch Character
 * Cute Bruiser
 * The Engineer
 * Elite Tweak
 * Fantasy Character Classes
 * Featureless Protagonist
 * Non-Entity General
 * Fighter, Mage, Thief
 * Forest Ranger
 * Fragile Speedster
 * Glacier Waif
 * Glass Cannon
 * A God Is You
 * Gradual Grinder
 * Guest Star Party Member
 * Healing Hands
 * Heroic Mime
 * Hero Unit
 * Item Caddy
 * Jack of All Stats
 * Master of None
 * Job System
 * Joke Character
 * Lethal Joke Character
 * Kid Hero
 * Lady of War
 * Lightning Bruiser
 * Magic Knight
 * Mascot with Attitude
 * Master of Unlocking
 * Mighty Glacier
 * The Minion Master
 * Modern Day Sci Fi RPG Class Equivalents
 * Monster Allies
 * Mutually Exclusive Party Members
 * Mystical Waif
 * One-Man Army
 * Optional Party Member
 * Overrated and Underleveled
 * Platforming Pocket Pal
 * Player Character
 * Player Mooks
 * Powerup Mount
 * Promoted to Unlockable
 * Protagonist Without a Past
 * Rebellious Princess
 * The Red Mage
 * Required Party Member
 * Schrodinger's Player Character
 * Secret Character
 * Skill Gate Characters
 * Solo Class
 * Space Marine
 * Squishy Wizard
 * Stone Wall
 * Support Party Member
 * Sword and Sorcerer
 * Team Pet
 * Third Person Seductress
 * The Turret Master
 * Tomboy Princess
 * White Mage
 * White Magician Girl
 * Wild Man

Fighting Game characters (may or may not be playable):
A non-playable character which asissts somehow a playable one. A character who copies the moveset of the other characters, sometimes with the added catch that the moveset is chosen randomly. A character who shows up in a Fighting Game who has no reason whatsoever to be there and is totally out of place. Is bik, stronk, and dreenks wodka. An AI which continually walks forward, dodges or blocks all attacks, and attacks flawlessly once it reaches its target. Two characters are given equal or similar abilities/appearances, and often wind up as being the main characters for the series. Stock Fighting Game character whose skillset includes a fireball and uppercut and often wear a karate gi.
 * Assist Character
 * Ditto Fighter
 * Guest Fighter
 * Husky Russkie
 * Perfect Play AI
 * Ryu and Ken
 * Shotoclone

NPC types:
Big bad guy is destroying the world? You take care of it. Some dude that sells weaponry, often to the highest bidder. The local authorities, generally swaggering, superior-sounding grunts. If you steal something from a shop, you'll be attacked or zapped instantly. A recurring or sidekick character whose purpose is to fill you in on elements of the interface and your abilities. Where your Exposition Fairy just can't shut up dammit! Whenever an NPC shows up in a monster-infested dungeon, they will always leave him alone. A hero or group of heroes (often oddly similar to your own Player Party) that arose in the hour of need and sealed the Ultimate Evil in its can 1,000 years ago. An NPC designated somehow as someone who will give you a sidequest. A character who just keeps showing up throughout the game, usually thoroughly lost. A researcher who's trying to figure out all those ancient ruins and is invariably pre-empted by the hero. A trainer who can reset a Player Character's skill and ability scores, allowing you to redistribute them. The helpful person at the other end of the main character's earpiece.
 * Apathetic Citizens
 * Arms Dealer
 * City Guards
 * Easily Angered Shopkeeper
 * Exposition Fairy
 * Stop Helping Me!
 * Invulnerable Civilians
 * Precursor Heroes
 * Quest Giver
 * Recurring Traveller
 * Redundant Researcher
 * Skill Point Reset
 * Voice with an Internet Connection

Enemy character types (excluding Boss Battles):
An enemy appears as a single sprite, but turns out to be a whole party of baddies. Dammit! These things can fly? I can't even hit them half the time!!! A creature of significant size that, when killed, splits into several miniature versions of itself. An enemy that employs Video Game Stealing. A monster or other hazard introduced specifically to prevent the player from wandering too far without resorting to the immersion-breaking Invisible Wall. A "normal battle" with an enemy that, as it turns out, can wipe the floor with you. an enemy or hazard that has disguised itself to look like something positive, like a chest. Manages to always appear the second you try to steal something. Once you beat the boss, it comes back as a normal enemy later. Where an enemy or obstacle comes out of nowhere and kills you, generally in a Cutscene. When the elements that are the basic building blocks of the universe get up and come for you. An enemy who casts spells which bring additional enemies into combat, while causing some damage itself. You see that cutesy widdle rabbit? It wants you dead. The helpful and suspiciously toadying assistant to the monarchy whose morality is usually inverse to the head of state. A massive monster of terrifying appearance that's no real threat. Fish that float in the air. And generally try to kill you. A character who fights only with giant hands. Enemies that don't pose much threat on their own, but can frustrate, annoy, and get in your way. Enemies that frustrate you by killing you in unfair ways, which make them innately more dangerous than other normal enemies. Enemies that knock you back in the middle of jumps, often to your death. A monster that appears and runs away very quickly, is hard to hit, and gives very good rewards. Monsters that lurk within the environment and never fully appear until you walk close to them, at which point they suddenly lunge out and try to grab you. An enemy who will always be encountered in the first level, has a simple movement pattern, and is reassuringly easy to beat. A normal henchman who's lazy, unmotivated, or otherwise unwilling to do his job. An ordinary mook, but with hard steel accessories. When the basic mook is an unstoppable killing machine, you know you're in a difficult game. A weak enemy who is nevertheless completely impossible to harm in any way. You can't see them, but they can probably hurt you. Any monster that's far more dangerous than it looks. A slang term for the hordes of standard-issue, disposable bad guys whom the hero mows down with impunity. Even sadder than regular Mooks. A Mook that can teleport you to a specific location whenever they touch you. Zombies, skeletons, mummies, oh my! Enemy that eats your stuff (and might eat you as well). A monster who grabs onto you and must be shaken off. An enemy target or victim in a video game sought out by the player because they are (relatively) easy to kill and have a very high cash payout. Dead animals coming back to life and moidering you. Finally you get to the adventuring part! But first, fight some rats. An enemy which appears randomly under various circumstances. An enemy which is made up of lots of mostly identical segments, and moves like a worm or snake. A mook with a shield to protect against frontal attacks. A big, strong enemy that does nothing but smash you with straight physical attacks. A Platform Game enemy that will damage you if you try to jump on it. Those generic baddies seen in nearly every FPS you've every played. Those generic baddies seen in nearly EVERY RPG you've ever played. Whenever you take something important, a slough of new enemies suddenly rushes in. Exactly the same as a regular monkey - but underground, and therefore has better stats. A major antagonist who you just never get to tussle with. An enemy that only shows up once in the whole game but is otherwise fairly unremarkable. A stock monster that resembles a colored oval with eyes and feet. You see lots of holes in the ground: you know you're going to have to fight a bunch of monsters that pop up, attack, and pop back in.
 * Actually Four Mooks
 * Airborne Mook
 * Asteroids Monster
 * Bandit Mook
 * Border Patrol
 * Boss in Mook Clothing
 * Chest Monster
 * Clairvoyant Security Force
 * Degraded Boss
 * Drop in Nemesis
 * Elemental Embodiment
 * Enemy Summoner
 * Everything Trying to Kill You
 * Evil Chancellor
 * Fake Ultimate Mook
 * Flying Seafood Special
 * Giant Hands of Doom
 * Goddamned Bats
 * Demonic Spiders
 * Ledge Bats
 * Metal Slime
 * Wall Master
 * The Goomba
 * Halfhearted Henchman
 * Heavily Armored Mook
 * Incredibly Durable Enemies
 * Invincible Minor Minion
 * Invisible Monsters
 * Killer Rabbit
 * Mook
 * Slave Mooks
 * Mook Bouncer
 * Night of the Living Mooks
 * Mooks Ate My Equipment
 * Personal Space Invader
 * Pinata Enemy
 * Raising the Steaks
 * Rat Stomp
 * Roaming Enemy
 * Segmented Serpent
 * Shield Bearing Mook
 * Smash Mook
 * The Spiny
 * Standard FPS Enemies
 * Stock Monsters
 * Teleporting Keycard Squad
 * Underground Monkey
 * The Unfought
 * Unique Enemy
 * Waddling Head
 * Whack a Monster

Unclassified:
The game forces you to choose different characters. A character shown on the Game Over screen. A sexy female in a game's promotional material who's not actually in the game itself. A character or creature that the game treats as an item. A video game character whose existence is due to a Good Bad Bug, rather than being deliberately coded into the game. An interface in which you are given a sidekick, usually a pet, that acts as a guide/virtual pet of sorts in the world. An enemy which can only be dealt with temporarily. A character, creature, etc which is heavily associated with a fictional universe, to the point of being the (official or unofficial) Mascot. An iconic Mook which can also double as a Series Mascot. Some (usually) immortal character that you can return to, to practice your moves on. The main character and his Rival Turned Evil spend most of the game fighting over the girl (who owns a mysterious amulet or something). The game starts off with the hero, his or her childhood friend, and another person, often a girl, from out of nowhere who needs his help.
 * Character Select Forcing
 * Game Over Man
 * Lady Not-Appearing-In-This-Game
 * Live Item
 * The Missingno
 * Pet Interface
 * Reviving Enemy
 * Series Mascot
 * Mascot Mook
 * Training Dummy
 * Two Guys and a Girl
 * With a Friend and a Stranger