So, I’ve seen a few games with multiple MC’s, and I’m curious what people think the idea. I’ve always found it a fascinating idea, but I don’t see it talked about much, except in this thread: Games With Two MCS? which seems to just be a list of games that have the option.
I’m more interested in how likely people are to play games with two MCs? What makes them appealing or unappealing? Does it makes a difference if you pick one at the beginning of the game and play them all the way through or if you alternate between their POVs? (I’m mostly curious about IFs, but if you want to include more traditional games that do this feel free.)
One of my favourite games of all time is Telltale’s Tales from the Borderlands, in which the interplay and conflict between two characters and their framing narrative makes it brilliantly sparky.
I think multiple-MCs probably work best when they’re set characters, or where there are at least some set elements, to make sure they can play off each other and avoids them both ending up being too similar, not gelling together well, or just falling flat in some other way.
There is a demo in this forum called Become Mortal which had two MCs that you switched control of as the plot advanced. It was one of the most enticing demos I’ve ever read and I’m disappointed that the author has gone radio silent. So I think a game with two MCs could work
I’ve done it with two of my three games. Can it be done? Of course. Should it? Well, one sold very poorly (the one with much more set MCs, something that is anathema to this place most of the time) and the other placed in the latest Most Underrated poll, which basically means it was neither a colossal bust or an actual hit. So I can’t really recommend it. Offhand, I’m not sure of any multiple MC game here that has had any significant success. As was mentioned above, something like that works best with set characters, and set characters are perhaps the single biggest misstep a dev can make when it comes to publishing here, unless those set characters are someone pre-existing that audiences already know and appreciate, like Sherlock Holmes.
I’ve had an idea for a story that involves 4 MCs and their different perspectives on the same events. I may make it one day, but it sure as heckfire wouldn’t be for here. I’d make more money selling my body than that story on Hosted Games, and that’s saying something, because I am not a handsome man.
I’ve toyed with the idea for a body swap / fugue state / Charles Dexter Ward type story where the MC’s consciousness drifts between two bodies, but I think that’s the only way I’d recommend it (in addition to @HarrisPS’s excellent idea of limiting the player’s freedom somewhat in both characters so the distance between character and player is a little greater).
Most CS games I’ve read have a much closer relationship between player and character, and it’s a very tight 2nd person. Their thoughts are your thoughts. You see the world through their eyes. You don’t know anything about the world the character doesn’t. You invest a lot of time in them. Unless you introduce the two MCs and the flipping very early, I think it would be too jarring and dissatisfying to switch from “your” character to someone else. And what do you do with the information one character learns vs. the other? Imagine both characters share a psychic link?
But however you do it, it would also be pretty complex to code with a good risk of turning players off. So I don’t think the juice is worth the squeeze.
If you’re looking for some reassurance, I can definitely say that I think people would be interested, it just comes down to premise and execution - like anything else. If the two MCs choices affect the other, either making things easier/harder or changing the path of the other by one of their choices, that could be really interesting! Or if they end up working together in some way, I recently played The Past Within co-op and the way that time travel was interwoven into the gameplay with one character interacting from the past and another from the future was so unique and fun. But if it’s just kind of two perspectives on the same events and doesn’t change the story much, then maybe making one of them a regular main character rather than playable would make more sense. I think anything can work, just give it your best shot
I think it can work, Divided We Fall does the best job of it with its four protagonists imo. The fact that you have some pitted against the others - being able to have a protagonist kill another, even! - is what the formula should aim to be. Imo you get the best mileage out of multiple protagonists when they are pitted against each other - games that do that is something I always want to see more of.
I agree with @HarrisPS, IMO multiple selectable MCs or games which switch POVs for playable MCs are generally best done with a reasonable amount of character locking to allow the story to have characters that can play against each other in a meaningful way from different POVs. Unfortunately almost (entirely? I can’t think of one that isn’t underrated at best) universally games which character lock tend to be very poorly received by COG audiences.
In saying that (because I can’t learn from the lessons I already should know apparently) I’m finishing up a game which allows you to replay it with different protagonists and see things/different scenes from the story from different character’s POVs to try and build a more complete storyline so you can do it if you choose. A point though- I expect this game to perform badly . It’s an experimental game I wanted to make rather than an attempt at a best seller. Basically write things that don’t fit the norm if you want to, but have very low expectations to avoid disappointment.
I think an IF with two MCs would be interesting, if done right. I think the best way is for the player to play as one of two options and then have the other make important decisions that shows that either way the character is important. I think playing as both in one play through could be fun, but also a bit complicated.
A WIP that I love but hasn’t been updated in a while is a great example. I can’t remember the name of it, but the player gets to play either a goddess or a prince. And then the two are brought together by fate. It didn’t get very far, but it was adorable.
I don’t hate the concept, but I’m not clammoring for it either. As long as the story’s written well, I don’t mind.
Become Mortal’s already been mentioned, but there’s also this another (dead) WIP, These Reluctant Years that revolves around 2 MCs. Like @HarrisPS said, it works since the MCs were written to be distinct enough, even when they end up on the same side of the war. Also they get to be each other’s ROs, which was cool I guess lol
It’s already been alluded to above, and I agree, I think most people playing this sort of game do so because of being the MC. And I agree that locking down MCs a bit more when they have to have a relationship of sorts (the player isn’t going to be able to carry both without some rails) is essential. So it feels like it would be something of an uphill battle.
What I have personally considered doing is having a single MC but still showing parts of the story from another character’s perspective. Whether that’s through a flashback or recital or what have you. The tricky bit here is that ideally you’d need to do this in a way that makes sense that the player MC would have the same context, or it’d be potentially immersion breaking. And make it feel different enough that it feels like an experience rather than a second MC.
Broken Age has been one of my all-time favorite games since it came out almost a decade ago. A friend who’d followed its development shared it with me when it released, and I don’t think we’ve shut up about it since then Edit: Whoops, hit post before I was finished typing >_< To answer your last question, I love alternating between POVs and I think that’s the appeal for me, seeing two sides of the same situation. Plus I can’t imagine writing basically two games as the creator and knowing one side won’t be used at all in every playthrough.
Outside of ChoiceScript, it makes me think of Front Mission. Several entries in that series had you pick between two MCs, each on opposite sides of the central conflict. That ability to catch the story from each perspective was fascinating. It’s a shame something like that isn’t as well-liked here, where the self-insert rules all.
Both of @Bacondoneright’s published works have set-protagonists, with some essential customization available, and both are well-liked.
As a matter of fact, I believe the predominance of “self-inserts” in the most popular titles is over-emphasized by many.
There are more popular HG titles with MC’s that have set characteristics than “blank slate” MCs that have no set characteristics.
Getting back to the thread’s topic: Execution is the determinate for me if an MC (or two) are successful or not.
I think pulling of a successful MC is one of the hardest, yet most essential things a writer of CS IF needs to do.
So, with that being said, I feel trying to execute two MC stories is that much harder.
Someone above mentioned, Divided We Fall as being well done. For the execution of multiple MCs as well as other reasons, I feel anyone attempting this should look to it for guidance.
If we’re talking about non-ChoiceScript titles then Our Red String (WIP, 18+) is probably the most prominent case of such setup at this point, with two protagonists who interact with each other and the rest of their shared friends, allowing to shape and view often the same events from their respective perspectives. It’s kind of funny to think that this game would be potentially snubbed by IF crowd for having more than one MC, when it’s a slice-of-life virtually all about romances and very little else.
Thank you all for your input! Just to clarify, I’m not actually on an IF with two MCs. I have a vague idea of a concept that I might try in the distant future, but I’m focused on my current project right now. Mostly, I was just curious what the community thought about these types of games.
I agree with this wholeheartedly. They need to feel like different characters to work well.
That’s an interesting thought. Is there a reason you find it to work better when the protagonists oppose each other? Or is it just something you like better?
I agree. A lot of the most popular games in the last year or two have had more set MCs, at least in my opinion.
Edit: Whoops, hit post before I was finished typing >_< To answer your last question, I love alternating between POVs and I think that’s the appeal for me, seeing two sides of the same situation. Plus I can’t imagine writing basically two games as the creator and knowing one side won’t be used at all in every playthrough.