The Game Plan 03.21.08: The Greatest Video Game Anti-Heroes...Ever (Part 1)

Posted by James McGee on 03.21.2008

We're in the home stretch of the "Greatest Characters" series! This week, I begin looking at the best anti-heroes in gaming, starting off with the Ghost of Sparta


What separates a hero from a villain? Does a character's attitude play into the equation, or do actions speak louder than anything? Is it possible to loathe a person, but simultaneously admire his deeds? The days of clear-cut divisions between good guys and bad guys are all but gone, so these are all questions modern audiences constantly ask themselves. I think I've made it clear over the past several weeks that I have a lot of love for those all-or-nothing heroes and villains. But as somebody who values storytelling so much, I have to admit that characters tend to be more interesting when they blend good and bad into shades of gray. So, to wrap up the "Great Characters" series, I'll be looking at four guys that truly embody the spirit of anti-hero.

The concept of the anti-hero has been around a lot longer than some people think. As most literary ideas about heroes date back to Greek poets and their mythology, anti-heroes can be traced back at least as far. Jason (of Jason and the Argonauts fame) was portrayed as a whiny, indecisive prick by Apollonius of Rhodes, circa the third century. Anti-heroes are sometimes referred to as "Byronic heroes," following the works of Lord Byron, who had a fondness for arrogant, shady, generally miserable excuses for humanity. Everyone has a slightly different take on what constitutes an anti-hero, but I basically put anyone in that category who does a heroic deed, but with less than heroic methods or motivation.

Regardless of their illustrious history, anti-heroes in video games are a much newer phenomenon. Having fully developed characters in games at all is a fairly recent trend, so it stands to reason that blurring the lines between hero and villain would take a while. As a result, there will be a much more contemporary flavor to this last set of "Great Character" columns than in either the hero or villain series. In choosing the subjects for these articles, I thought about characters who were unquestionably the protagonist of a game, but at the same time managed to be pretty unlikable s.o.bs. With those criteria in mind, many of you could probably see my first subject coming from a mile away. He may be trendy, but he's also a brutal, miserable cuss and pretty much the poster-boy for anti-heroes in games. I'm James McGee, that was one long-winded intro, and here's The Game Plan.


Kratos may have questionable morals, but he can kill a Hydra single-handed. That's just cool.

For the people who say actions rather than motivation define a hero, Kratos is a practical paragon of virtue. He spends his days slaying all manner of beasties—from Hydra to Minotaur to even Gods of War—that make life pretty unpleasant for citizens of ancient Greece. His adventures also follow an archetypically heroic course. God of War draws heavily (albeit loosely, at times) on Greek mythology, and those stories still shape much of what defines a hero for us. He performs impossible tasks (scaling the walls of Pandora's temple, which all the while moves through the desert on the back of a giant), retrieves powerful artifacts (Pandora's box), embarks on epic journeys (from Sparta to Athens, even to Hades and Olympus), and defeats unbeatable foes (gods themselves). All of these acts are grand, amazing feats, but they also—ultimately—benefit mankind. So, clearly, Kratos is a great hero, right?

Well, here's where those shades of gray start murking up the waters. While many of the ends may be heroic, most of Kratos' means are not. The franchise is defined by his gory, violent brutality, and it isn't just the games' monsters that suffer. In the iconic battle that opens God of War, Kratos slays a Hydra in convincing fashion, displaying all the physical prowess and cunning befitting a classical Greek hero. But after defeating the beast, he rips a key from the boat-captain's neck and tosses the hapless survivor back into the gaping jaws of the monster. This scene comes early in the game for a reason: the writers wanted to prepare gamers for the type of character they'd be controlling for the next few hours. Kratos has certain goals, and he will break out the Blades of Chaos on anyone or anything who stands in the way of achieving those goals. In Kratos' world, you're not innocent or guilty; you're with him or against him.


You can't rock a goatee like that and not be at least a little bit evil.

It isn't just the Ghost of Sparta's methods that come under question, but also his core motivation. Kratos' deeds aren't performed out of a desire to do good. Not satisfied with the conquests afforded by his own skill and brutality, he made a deal with Ares that assured he would never be defeated. Even after his lust for power led him to accidently murder his own family, Kratos continued his service to the gods, hoping that they would simply erase the guilt and memories that haunted him after that day. When he ultimately comes to face Ares himself in combat, the pleasure of revenge may add flavor to his actions, but he has no sympathy for the people of Athens who have suffered at the God of War's cruel, unmotivated destruction. Simply put, Kratos is a violent, selfish jerk who only does that which somehow benefits him. He lacks both the perception to consider whether his action will help others and the compassion to care.

Maybe the ends justify the means. Maybe actions speak louder than motivation. Maybe Kratos is a hero. After all, he does "save the day" for Athens in the end. But stacked up next to Ico selflessly protecting Yorda in Ico, or Link shouldering the burden of destiny and correcting his own mistakes in The Legend of Zelda, Kratos hardly seems like a hero worthy of our praise and emulation. He has no regard for others, his tactics are deplorable, and he just isn't very nice. Still, he manages—almost in spite of himself—to do some good here and there. Kratos isn't just a perfect example of an anti-hero; he might be the reason the term was invented.