The Best NPCs Who Became Major Characters

Everybody loves to get promoted at work, aside from all the extra responsibility that comes with it. But one time that’s no problem is when video game characters are elevated from mere NPCs to major figures or even full-on playable characters in subsequent games. Sure, they get more responsibilities, but that’s not your problem.

Oftentimes, fan-favorite characters get that magical glow-up from the developers in response to positive reception and/or waves of new fanfic. It’s always fun to see a more minor character you liked in one game shoot up to a main cast member in the sequel, and there are a fair few examples of this.

10

Chloe Frazer

“Just An Active War Zone. Nothing You Can’t Handle.”

Many likely weren’t quite sure what to make of Chloe when she first showed up in Uncharted 2: Among Thieves. A mysterious wisecracking woman who has a history with Nate despite never appearing in the previous game? Sounds suspicious.

And suspicious it was, seeing as Chloe appeared to betray Nate and Sully halfway through the game. It’s cool, though. She played the long game and ultimately did the right thing. So despite the initial uncertainty, many fans were delighted to see her as the playable protagonist in arguably the best game in the series, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy.

9

Robert MacCready

“I’ve Got To Be Honest With You, I Feel More Comfortable With A Rocky Ceiling Above My Head.”

Have you ever been cursed out by a child and thought “I’d love to hang out with him”? At least someone at Bethesda seemed to have that brainstorm when deciding who to bring in as your followers in Fallout 4. Robert MacCready started as the foul-mouthed mayor of Little Lamplight, a settlement entirely run by children in Fallout 3, but he matured… mostly.

In Fallout 4, he’s all grown up and working as a mercenary in the Commonwealth. Hey, Boston isn’t all that far from Washington D.C. even in the apocalypse. By the time you recruit MacCready, he’s got a kid of his own he’s trying to provide for and is one of the most romantic romance options in Fallout 4. Talk about a glow-up (and not the nuclear kind).

8

Billie Lurk

“Back When I Lived In Dunwall, I Did Things That I’m Not Proud Of.”

Billie Lurk serves as your second in command in Dishonored‘s The Knife of Dunwall DLC, in which you play as one of the major antagonists from the main game. So there’s already some baggage there. She also betrays you at the end of the DLC, likely matching the dramatic twists per minute of your favorite soap opera.

But while you can choose to kill or spare Billie during that DLC, she canonically survives and shows up in Dishonored 2 as Meagan Foster, helping your chosen protagonist along their quest before ultimately revealing her true identity. Later, she finally earns her spot as the playable protagonist of the Dishonored: Death of the Outsider standalone expansion, completing her arc from subordinate to star.

7

Isabela

“They Don’t Know Me. I Know Me.”

When you meet Isabela in Dragon Age: Origins, she can teach you a new class specialization and… maybe a few other things depending on how secure you are with your chosen romantic partner. But that’s the extent of her role in that particular game.

Even so, she made enough of an impact to work her way into the main party of Dragon Age 2, and BioWare put a little extra focus on the latter part of her personality this time around. Isabela is still a master with her daggers, but there’s always that undertone of proud nastiness. She’s a great character with hidden depths, and fan appreciation has ensured that Dragon Age 2 wasn’t her final appearance.

6

Serah Farron

“So I Swallowed The Words I Wanted To Say And Hid My Fear. It Was The Hardest Thing I Ever Did.”

It’s not often that a character mostly seen in flashbacks claims a leading role in the sequel. That’s where Serah stands in Final Fantasy 13. For most of that game, she unfortunately serves as little more than motivation for her sister and fiance, Lightning and Snow, to keep going. Classic fridging, almost.

But after she’s freed from her fate at the end of that game, she goes on to serve as the main protagonist of Final Fantasy 13-2, standing at the head of a game that many argue completely fixed most problems they had with 13. Now, it’s her turn to be the hero, and she nails it.

5

Goro Majima

“Kiryu-chan!”

Perhaps one of the most incredible instances of a rather minor character possibly eclipsing the main star of a series, Goro Majima has come a long way from his humble beginnings as a loose-cannon antagonist voiced by Mark Hamill. His role in the Yakuza/Like a Dragon series has become far more special in the decades since, and the gaming world is all the better for it.

Nowadays, Majima is not only a staple of the series and regular foil for long-time lead Kiryu, he also serves as a playable character himself from time to time. Players get to experience his tragic backstory firsthand in Yakuza 0, then later go along on his pirate adventures in Hawaii. You can’t claim this series doesn’t boast variety.

4

Zack Fair

“Embrace Your Dreams, And Whatever Happens, Protect Your Honor, As SOLDIER!”

Final Fantasy 7 is that gaming smorgasbord that seemingly never runs out of courses. Even long before Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth brought it back into squishy gamer brains everywhere, the story and characters of the original game had already been developed and embellished like a trust fund kid’s resume.

Perhaps few got more retroactive attention than Zack Fair, the SOLDIER First Class you may have even completely forgotten about if you only played the original Final Fantasy 7. But his own story beyond his death while saving Cloud (spoilers) got its own time in the spotlight with Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 and he’s seen a resurgence of importance to the story in the remakes.

3

Cullen Rutherford

“Inquisition! With The Herald! For Your Lives! For All Of Us!”

Here’s an elevated character instance that kind of still baffles some people. In Dragon Age: Origins, Cullen is briefly seen during the mage origin prologue and under terrible torment when you return to the mage tower during the main story. As a Templar, he’s there to keep the mages in check (and run away if a female player character flirts with him), so not a great start.

Nevertheless, he appears again in Dragon Age 2, where he now serves in his Templar duties in Kirkwall. Once again, he bears witness to disaster. Finally, in Dragon Age: Inquisition, Cullen serves as the commander of the titular organization’s armed forces and surprise surprise, he’s facing down another cataclysm. It’s kind of unclear why he keeps returning, but apparently, BioWare just doesn’t want the poor guy to rest.

2

EDI

“I Enjoy The Sight Of Humans On Their Knees… That Is A Joke.”

Mass Effect 2 saw the introduction of EDI, an artificial intelligence installed on the new Normandy ship to help it be better at all those shippy things. But her creators at Cerberus got a little too ambitious with her design, eventually resulting in her gaining a will of her own and ultimately helping the Normandy’s crew make a clean break from the human supremacist organization.

While her appearance in Mass Effect 2 keeps her confined to the ship as a hologram, Mass Effect 3 elevates EDI to levels with much more agency and NSFW Tumblr tags. Early in the game, she takes control of a particularly… exaggerated robot body and can join your squad. The body also helps her get together romantically with Joker, but you know full well he’d be into her in ship form too.

1

Emily Kaldwin

“It’s A Funny Thing, Ambition. It Can Take One To Sublime Heights Or Harrowing Depths. And Sometimes They Are One And The Same.”

Emily Kaldwin is already a clever and intelligent kid in the original Dishonored, but she’s still just a kid. She’s next in line to serve as Empress of The Isles, which makes her a target for the conspiracists who murder her mother. So, naturally, you (as player character Corvo) must rescue her in the first game.

But by the time Dishonored 2 comes around, she’s fully grown and has been training with Corvo. So she can handle herself well enough to serve as one of the two possible playable characters. Finally playing as Emily with her newfound powers as she fights to retake her throne as Empress after the latest coup just feels right. Well, maybe the coup doesn’t. Coups rarely feel right, to be honest.