What makes a character?

Elements of Game Design – Character.

 
Think of the characters you've encountered in books, TV and in films. What are your feelings towards them?

I think the Lord of the Rings is a great way to identify characters, through the series of books and the series of films. I, myself haven’t read much, well any, of the Lord of The Rings books, however I have seen and loved all three of the movies. There are three main characters in the Lord of the Rings, they are; Aragon, Gimli and Legolas, who are the protectors of the main (but somewhat subsidiary character Frodo). First of all these three warriors are very different in terms of their character. Aragon, he must be the best character to watch on screen, purely to admire his brutal skills when killing all those Orcs. However because his backstory is revealed in the later films (2&3), you seem to understand why he didn’t show much emotion or involvement with the other characters, being his family tree is made up of kings and queens of the land, understandingly, putting a lot of weight of his shoulders.  I think this is interesting choice to make in films, books and even games. By having one of the main characters put to the side, in a sense, creates a lot of apprehension and mystery, which makes the viewer, reader or player want to delve deeper into the story behind characters, in this case Aragon. I think games are being left behind with character development and role, because it’s harder to visualise emotion watching some sort of coding input and out of sync speech, compared to someone showing real life emotions in film or by reading about the particular character in a book, which lets your imagination decide on the looks, style and personality of the character.

What techniques do you think are being used to make you respond to these characters?

There is a one techniques which makes the viewer, reader or player connect to the character, but this technique are nearly almost used in each form of media, be it a film, game or book. The best technique is description, if you really go into every detail of how the character looks, reacts, speaks, then you’re in for a good chance that the viewer, player or reader will believe this, thus creating a sense of interaction and believability to what/where/whoever the character is.

 “Chaucer invented a list -- of six ways -- for analysing characters:” This list really explains my point clearly and effectively.

·         What the character said

·         What the character did

·         What the character thought

·         What the character wore

·         What the narrator said about the character

·         What other characters said about the character

So in simple terms;

·         Speech

·         Thought

·         Actions

·         Looks

·         What other characters think of them

How much is dependent on the script? The acting? Appearance?

 

Firstly, the script of the Lord of the Rings, is one of the most compelling but complicated things you’ll see in films, books and games. Having the script balanced between Tolkien’s very own language Elvish and normally spoken English, does create a boundary between realism and fiction.

 

Secondly, the acting throughout the Lord of the Rings, does make all the difference when you’re watching the films. The main actors who play characters like Frodo, for example (Elijah wood), really grasps the movement to play alongside his use of words. He plays a very fragile, scared character, which takes some serious practice to recreate onto the big screen. He only moves when he thinks he needs to, unlike other actors, having hand gesture and lots of movement even when acting out the simplest and most delicate spoken lines.  Although actors need to become the role they play, it can sometimes distract the viewer from the basics of the film, such as; Storyline, action scenes and even the overall cinematic experience. Too much time spent on the characters, doesn’t always pay off, so getting the balance right is key.

Lastly, the appearance of the film. There is a distinct aesthetic element to the trilogy of films. This is probably the most important aspect in the Lord of the Rings, having attire, settings, and actors that relate to the original writings of J.R Tolkien was a definite way of collecting some of the harder audiences (ones that have read the books), because if it’s close to the description, the further  praise it’ll get. The Lord of the Rings appearance was helped tremendously by the amount of artists working on parts, ranging from sculpting weapons through to creating the imaginary sections of the world by using SGI. In my opinion, this is where the money was well spent in the production of the three films. If you imagine the film without any artistic input, it’s like seeing an orc wearing a pair of braces, because without imagination, it’s just a pile of words.

 
What sort of stories do you find completely irresistible? Why?

I find lots of stories irresistible or memorable, it depends on how much effort has been spent on the making of such a title. I don’t read that often, but I do adore watching films, so I’ll list some films that compare to  the Lord of the Rings, they are; James Bond, Star wars, Transformers. These three are also blockbuster films, old and new, but they contain good story and plot, brilliant aesthetics, but overall excellent characters. James Bond, Sam Witwicky and Luke Skywalker are all totally different characters in reference to their personalities, traits and roles within the films.