This is a placeholder, i'm just writing the information I can think of so that someone can format it, and add to it, so don't expect this to be neat or in order! :)

- Most characters in games will either be teenagers, usually with mysterious brooding pasts, but usually someone who was just a normal person and through a chain of events gets thrown into a 'world saving' adventure. This therefore points out, that if you want your character to be original, you should perhaps make him/her older than usual (i'd like to see a game with an old man as the main character!)
- Some games, mainly FPS games or Side scrolling shooters, will have a military team or expert involved, and they usually all have different skills which complement each other (Killzone, Rainbow Six etc). Therefore, perhaps a FPS game or side scrolling shooter would have more original characters and premise by having a group of people who dont get along at all, always end up getting in each others way, making things harder, perhaps even some of the members of the team trying to attack the others sometimes on a random basis, which makes the character rivalry a bit more indepth and original.
- Emotions: Usually, main characters will either have dark and mysterious pasts which we slowly find out about during the course of the game or we never learn of at all, or they are sad and miserable because someone close to them died, is in hospital etc. How many game characters do you know that are constantly happy? Ok, crash bandicoot, and even his girlfriend was kidnapped! But other than that most fit into the 'i want to be left alone' type. Lets have some social, happy characters here people!
- Memorable characters are based on memorable qualities, motivations, and mannerisms. At the same time, to create an original character, you have to give them original motivations, mannerisms and qualities, or maybe just an original combination. Maybe your character wants to achieve his goal in order to help save someone from the brink of death (maybe not an original motivation) but then coupled with some original qualities and mannerisms it can breathe new life into an old goal. Maybe your character is afraid of heights or something, which allows you to develop your character into a more lifelike one, but make sure you capitalize on your characters mannerisms and qualities so that you point out how different he is, no point in saying 'my character will have a stutter' and then not have him stutter once throughout your entire game.

Related Pages

• Character Design
• list of generic character archetypes - oldies but goodies