I'm sad that my visual novel experience is so limited, having only played through Tsukihime back when Mirror Moon finished their translation of it years ago; I liked it a lot despite generally finding myself a bit railroaded at times. I also remember being super happy when I found out it had a fighting game spin-off, which, as it happens, brings me my next favorite character! \ ^_^ /
Riesbyfe Stridberg (Melty Blood: Actress Again)
Now if there was one thing I NEVER expected from Melty Blood it was for a character to supplant Warakia as my series favorite, but then Actress Again hit and I saw Riesbyfe. It was love at first sight. That weapon? ADORE it. The outfit? Hells yeah. Combo appearance? Punctuated perfectly. Specials and supers? Best of the best, only topped by some of Warakia's arsenal. Her story? A bit questionable, admittedly, but not so much it hurt anything. And her normals? About my only complaint is that they took some getting used to compared to the rest of the cast, but even then I actually ended up liking the feel of them once I got them down. All in all, she was a late delivered package of excellence to the series for me, and though some characters manage to do some things I like better than her, she still supplants Warakia as my number one in the series.
Up next, from a game I have spent waaayy too much time with . . .
Malzahar, the Prophet of the Void (League of Legends)
Sometimes luck smiles on me. I've been playing League since September of 2010, and I've seen a lot of new characters join the League, yet, somehow, after four years of regular play not a single champion can hold a candle to this guy for me. He was the first character I saved up to buy, and only because he was NEVER on free rotation and no one played him, so I had no idea what to expect. What I got was a character with great AoE damage and scaling, great pushing power, great CC, great passive, great voicework, the versatility to work with most any item build, and a solid mana regen mechanic. Most of all, his skillset allowed me to play more defensively while still farming my lane, something I desperately needed the ability to do when I started playing; it's a play style I still love him for. He certainly isn't the strongest character, or even competitively viable, nor has he ever been near either, but he is still that pick I always happily rely on.
Beeeeeamu
Cynthia (Pokemon D/P/Pt)
I always have a hell of a time picking between Cynthia and Blue for favorite Pokemon character, but, when it comes down to it, the sheer anticipation I had for Pearl, and the fact it fully delivered and EXCEEDED all of my expectations, pushes her ahead of Blue for me. Cynthia's boss music is my favorite in the series, her team is always a joy to fight ( 'Chomp and Milotic), her design is excellent, and Poke Mythology is a pretty nifty area of study, not to mention she gives me a potion to get those Psyducks out of the way, which I infinitely appreciate. I also feel she has more personality and character when you speak to her than Lance, Steven, or Wallace (good reason for this, though) ever did, and she was certainly more interesting than Alder or Iris (not to mention Diantha, but that's territory best left forgotten) ended up being. I was sooooo happy when I found her in that random beach town in Pokemon Black and got to fight her revised team, and then both her AND Blue showed up in Black 2. <3 Oh, and I think Red might have been there too, but who even cares about that guy.
(SPOILER)
GAOH (Samurai Shodown series)
Samurai Shodown has too many characters I love, most with very distinct fighting styles and personalities to them, but this guy takes the cake. Goah is the final boss of Samurai Shodown V and VI, but he's not too unbalanced to use against friends in casual play (unlike, say, Zanuko of the 'lawl, where's your health?' heavy slash), which I greatly appreciate. His spear gives him a lot of zone control, while his combination of high and low knockdowns and command throw make for great mind games. His specials are also fairly satisfying, especially that dash, but the startup/recovery on them are influenced by button strength a lot more heavily than other characters, so care is due to prevent some nasty retaliation. I also really love how he looks (this is becoming a common theme, I'm noticing. <_< ), especially that silly mustache of intimidation and spear. He may lack Tam-Tam's energy, Ukyo's style, and Gen-An's agility, but as a whole package he's solidly my pick for favorite character in the franchise.
Recson left arm (Front Mission series)
Parts come and parts go, but one thing remains the same, and that . . . is every Wanzer I build packing a Recson left arm. For those unaware, the Front Mission series is built around customizing your mechs with different parts, each with different stats and functions, and the arms from these particular machines are notable for their extremely high accuracy modifiers, high weight/power consumption, and low defense. Since I don't often dual wield weapons, opting instead for the survivability offered by shields, this makes them excellent gun arms, as their low survivability is offset by the opposite arm I select specifically to take hits for it. This allows me to score more hits with all of my weapons with no real downside; it's a very simple bread and butter combo that has served me well since the model's introduction in FM3, and, though not a 'character' (that'll be coming later), these arms are easily the MVPs of the series for me, and I felt they deserved some credit for all the battles they've won me.
Anyway, that's it for now, more later.
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