I started playing Xenoblade cuz of you and can i just say, the story is so amazing? Like i cant its so beautiful and the characters are so wonderful, thank you for introducing me to that wonderful game! I cant stop playing it and even the grinding isnt tedious! Its so much fun! But i really need to know: who are ur top 3 characters?
Aaah!! I'm so glad you're enjoying it! Thank you for giving it a chance, and just make sure to have fun with the parts of the game that are fun for you!
Favorite characters, though! There'll be very minor spoilers for early-to-mid-game story, but nothing past Chapter 9, don't worry!
First and foremost, I love Shulk. With all my heart.
He's really feeling it!
I'm a simple guy. I see a sweet boy with a tragic start to his story, I immediately attach to him like velcro. Shulk is such a good boy with his wits and stubborn moments. He's been through a lot in his life already, and the catalyst to his story really is a push to his perspective of the world. I sympathize with him constantly throughout the game, being blessed and cursed with visions of his friends dying constantly. That shit's a lot, and I can believe the toll it's taking on him as the game goes on.
Especially because the person who voices him, Adam Howden, does SUCH an incredible job. There's his genuine moments of casual conversation with his party members, and then this sheer power of his screaming during lots of the story cutscenes. Not to mention, battle dialogue loops a LOT when you play the game for a long time. And his incredible performance, along with the rest of the main cast, makes that dialogue so good even after hearing it for the 40th time in an hour.
But I can't get into much more without dumping spoilers, so I'll let you figure out more about him as the game goes on!
My 2nd favorite is BLOSSOM DANCE Dunban.
Where I am in my playthrough of the game, I haven't gotten to him as a part of my party yet. But that is COMPLETELY unnecessary because I KNOW what he does in the late game. This dude is the definitive definition of badass. He isn't even the chosen wielder of the Monado and the dude handled it for YEARS before it finally paralyzed his arm. No special gimmick, no "he might've been something more than us" twist. That is JUST how GOOD Dunban is. What finally did this bastard in was having to fight, nearly to the death, to change the course of one single battle. And he fucking did it, a whole year of peace and rehabilitation to prepare himself for the next front.
And he ROSE TO THE CHALLENGE AGAIN. He fucking used the Monado AGAIN with his OTHER HAND, like a God damn hero!! He's SO FUCKING COOL, I WANNA BE AS COOL AS HIM SOME DAY. And when the camera pans out to show Shulk and Reyn quivering>smiling at his appearance and then it zooms in on Dunban's over-the-shoulder look and he says "Missed me?" WOW MAN, HAVE ALL MY ARTS BOOKS
When he officially joins your party later and starts acting as the Cool Dad of the group, throwing out Obi-Wan oneliners yet still having some of the best judgement calls and dialogue bits of the game. ESPECIALLY WHEN YOURE IN MID-GAME AND SOMETHING WILD HAPPENS, JUST WAIT, IT'S SO GOOD.
It's really hard to pick a third favorite 1) without spoiling mid-to-late-game stuff and 2) because the whole cast is honestly so lovable. But to pick one, I'd say it's Melia.
I adore her character arc. Being what she is, as one of the High Entia and the Emperor's daughter no less, you'd think she would be more stuck-up. But she's genuinely sweet and caring beneath the serious exterior. She does have her moments of royalty, but she's already been humbled by her Homs heritage. She's had to deal with people looking down on her because of her appearance, having to wear a veil and even a mask in public. But as she learns to trust Shulk and the others because they don't actually CARE about that at all, she opens up more. Not quite enough to drop her whole princess vibe, but she becomes so much more of a friend after it all.
I'm also a fan of subverting expectations. When Shulk and the party find her in the forest and she wakes up, I expected Shulk to fall head-over-heels for her, as boys do when pretty girl go brrr. But instead, she SLAPPED him across the face for being NEAR her. And they just became friends after that. No swooning, no excessive compliments. Just a genuine strangers>friends story.
