Your favorite goals for an MC?

Every piece of writing advice will tell you that you don’t really know your character until you know what they want out of life. And a game is no fun unless you know why you’re going to all the trouble of fighting zombies or solving puzzles or what have you.

There are all sorts of different types of goals:

  • Save the kingdom/the world/the universe/the time stream.
  • Destroy the world?
  • Be the best or reach the highest level of accolades at something - archmage, monarch, sports champion, greatest dog groomer in the world.
  • Love, probably.
  • Save or protect one specific person whom you care about, like a spouse or child.
  • ~Forbidden knowledge.
  • Self-knowledge? Like an amnesia game, or an ontological mystery.
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Be the very best like no one ever was, of course. :stuck_out_tongue:

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surviving ? not every story is about being the hero…or the vilain , or being the best .

Some can be just about surviving , you are the center of a hurricane that attract trouble .

being the hero though…never get old lol

revenge stories can be good if done well…

Take Planescape Torment , the whole story is about finding who you were .

Or Shadowrun Hong Kong: finding your step father…

Or Shadowrun Return: Find out who killed your best-or-hated-buddy and pick up the money when done .

Or shadowrun Dragonfall : a heist gone wrong .

So many way , so many lives an mc can lives…:hugs:

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Gotta say, I love a good redemption story. The best example that comes to mind is The Lost Heir series. Additionally, I really enjoy stories, most commonly high fantasy, where the MC has the option to pursue forbidden magic, such as necromancy or blood magic. A good example of this can be found in Keeper of the Sun and Moon where you have the option to practice (illegal) mental compulsion.

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Honestly, it doesn’t really matter what the MC’s motives are on the grounds that sufficient explanation is provided in the plot.

The pitfall for a lot of interactive fiction or just fiction in general for that matter is that the writers usually do a pretty poor job of justifying those motives because they have biases and perspectives the readers do not.

If I had to pick a favorite though, I guess it would be the archetypal story of the dragon( an immense force) destroying the peaceful village( safety and comfort) of the hero which forces him on a quest( maturity and personal growth) to defeat the beast( taking on the responsibility of a great challenge).
Some people might call it generic or cliche but as with all classic tales, the format did not become ubiquitous for no reason

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THIS

Especially when my MC starts off at with next to none abilities, or someone he hates is also trying to be best, or when I can annoy a very annoying character by being the best.

And

This would also be my goal along with being the best but if my mc has to choose between being the best and protecting a loved one he’d protecc even if they lose their shot at being the greatest dog groomer in the world :hugs:

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But what’s your test? What’s your cause? :wink:

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I used to like this but, then I realized it. Never. Ever. Ends. You save the world once you seem to be elected the one to save it again and again

It depends on how I’m feeling and how villainous I want to be. In a good mood only my enemies die. Bad mood: “Kill them all and let God sort them out.”

Love creating an Mc that’s searching for mind-shattering knowledge that can drive you mad in the process.

@KILLSWITCH12314 Hey can you put the forbidden magic in a spoiler blur please ? I understand that a lot of people have played the Keeper of the Sun and Moon but I haven’t been able to because I’m a Steam Player and it seems like you just spoiled a major option and ruined the fun of finding that out for myself and possibly for other people that see this.

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Part 1: Save myself.

Part 2: Help all the friends I met in the quest to save myself.

I also like saving the world from destiny.

Just interacting with interesting characters in general, my motives for each game change the most depending on people around me more so than the plot I’m put in.

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Wait. Do player motivations count here?

Well I meant to say goals, but I guess goals are affected mostly by motive.

Well, I guess I like it more if my MCs goals or motives come out of some personality flaw or out of some selfish reason and during the story maybe even without them actively realising that they changed their goals change to something more noble or at least less selfish.

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I like it when an MC has to try and protect their livelihood, such as they just want a simple life as a woodcutter but are forced to become a survivalist badass or something just to stop their humble abode from being destroyed.

I also like it when the goal of an MC is to live for the sake of another, like an extremely dedicated servant or parent. Those are my favourites due to how I really enjoy viewing something with strong themes of loyalty.

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@CreoleGuy519 Is that a better blur? I’m not a very experienced poster so I didn’t realize that I didn’t blur enough.

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A riff on the last one. I like the way you phrased that — “self-knowledge”.

Except rather than solving some mystery about the MC, I actually enjoy something more mundane. Personal or internal struggles that are overcome during the course of resolving external conflict. Choice of Deathless: City’s Thirst does this well and and the fallen hero series isn’t Fallen Hero series is focusing on this in a heeavy way as well.

Overcoming a quieter kind of trauma or coming into one’s own by the resolution of the grander conflict or even before is something I really appreciate a story giving the time to explore.

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Love probably. What i like in cog games the romance compartment. I will do whatever the story has, as long as someone is there by my side. Whether it’s destroying the world, creating monsters, raising a kid, I want someone there to be with me

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Honestly, goals differ for me; but I know that I’ll read something if it allows for taboo powers. Blood magic makes me read anything; but as for goals I can’t help but love a good ‘get out of a situation and save the world’ scenario.

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For me it’s survival; whatever it is; werewolves, post-apocalypse, supernatural, mobster. First time playing the game, I’m determined to survive until the end. Then when I’ve found the end, I explore other possibilities and shape my MC based on what ending I’d like to achieve. But in the beginning it’s all about survival.

Except for some comedies like Tally Ho!, the goal is just to have a blast.

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Like, be happy. I mean what else could you possibly want?

It also makes for a good history, how far are you willing to go for your happiness

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