Summary
- Antagonists drive RPG plots, and are often more interesting than the main character.
- Villains have complex backstories; players may hate but must respect them.
- Understanding the antagonist's history makes finishing the game worth it.
Every decent role-playing game is based on a compelling story, and a focused villain always drives the best plot. Often, the antagonist in a video gamme is more interesting than the main character, and understanding their backstory makes the game worth finishing.
Eventually, this villain inevitably takes the form of the game's final boss, and the protagonist has to pursue them and fight their minions to finally reach them. These villains always have either a tragic or tumultuous backstory that drives their actions, so even if the player hates them, they still have to respect them, making the story that much more complex.
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7 Ganondorf
The Legend of Zelda Franchise
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
- Released
- May 12, 2023
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- Rated E for Everyone 10+ for Fantasy Violence and Mild Suggestive Themes
- Developer(s)
- Nintendo
- Genre(s)
- Adventure, Action, Open-World
At the beginning of the The Legend of Zelda franchise, Ganon was the typical big bad, an ambitious and malevolent character who was in pursuit of the Triforce, a magical McGuffin that Link had to find before the evil sorcerer did. When Ocarina of Time launched, some of his past was revealed, along with his full name: Ganondorf. In the more recent The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, the game's director, Hidemaro Fujibayashi, viewed Ganondorf as the main character.
Far from being at a disadvantage in his youth, Ganondorf was the only male born to the Gerudo people in generations. From this position of privilege, he was trained as a thief before he discovered his powers of sorcery. He also appears as a giant pig-like monster, which is an alter-ego of his Gerudo form and is more commonly seen in the earlier games.
6 Sephiroth
Final Fantasy 7
Final Fantasy 7
-
OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 81 /100 Critics Rec: 84%
- Released
- January 31, 1997
- ESRB
- T for Teen: Blood, Fantasy Violence, Language, Mild Suggestive Themes
- Developer(s)
- Square Enix
- Publisher(s)
- Square Enix
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- RPG
Part of why Final Fantasy 7 was such a smash hit was because of the main antagonist, Sephiroth, and the history he shared with the hero, Cloud. The two form a perfect mirror image of each other, with the hero turning to his humanity and friends for his strength, while his evil opponent embraces the alien influence on his ancestry and rejects human empathy.
Sephiroth's journey is a tragic one of betrayal and revenge, seeking his own version of justice for the wrongs done to him before he was even born. His popularity has made him a fixture in the whole Final Fantasy franchise, and he's also a recurring character in high-profile spinoffs like Kingdom Hearts.
5 Revan
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
- Released
- July 15, 2003
WHERE TO PLAY
Revan might be one of the most interesting characters in the whole Star Wars canon, never mind just SWtoR. Because of their past and long-term amnesia, it's a matter of opinion just how evil they really are. Regardless of their personal motives or backstory, they are designed and introduced as the main antagonist.
It's a complicated story that includes the usual conflict between Sith and Jedi, along with getting tangled in the expansive web of galactic politics. Revan began as a Jedi and eventually became a Sith Lord, perhaps the only human being to ever do so. Although they declared war on the Republic, their ultimate goal was to unite the galaxy and bring a lasting peace.
4 Jonaleth Irenicus
Baldur's Gate 2: Shadows of Amn
Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn
- Released
- September 21, 2000
WHERE TO PLAY
Jonaleth Irenicus first appears in the game's introduction as a jailer, conducting painful and seemingly pointless experiments on helpless prisoners, which is one way to show his vicious sadism. As the story and the main character progress, however, their journey goes all the way to the elf city of Suldanessellar, and shows players another side of this villain.
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Jonaleth Irenicus was once a powerful wizard who was loved by Queen Ellesime, but his ambition got the better of him, and he tried to gain the powers of godhood along with his sister Bodhi. His punishment was to be banished from the elven city and stripped of his immortality, which motivated him to seek out a Child of Bhaal and use their immortal soul instead.
3 Onyxia
World Of Warcraft
World of Warcraft
- Released
- November 23, 2004
WHERE TO PLAY
Black Dragonflight has a lot of amazing villains, but the daughter of Deathwing was introduced early in the long WoW timeline and was one of the first raid bosses in what was then a fledgling MMORPG. Deathwing is famous as the former Aspect of Earth who ripped up Azeroth to kick off the Cataclysm expansion, and Nefarion is the lord of his own raid at the top of Blackrock Spire.
Onyxia was the focus of a long quest line that included both Horde and Alliance characters and ended with attunement to her lair and access to the 40-player raid. Lady Katrina Prestor held the reins of power in Stormwind as an influential noble for decades, neatly disposing of the royal family, until she was exposed as Onyxia and pursued to her lair in Dustwallow Marsh.
2 The Arishok
Dragon Age 2
Dragon Age 2
- Released
- March 8, 2011
WHERE TO PLAY
The Arishok is a soldier and a fanatic on a mission. He's not interested in conquest or power, but simply in retrieving a stolen religious artifact, and would prefer to be offworld pursuing the thief than be stranded on Kirkwall. However, his conquering nature gets the better of him. He decides that he would make a better ruler than the current Viscount, whom he murders and replaces.
The protagonist, Hawke, is brought in by Cassandra Pentaghast, Right Hand of the Divine, to help deliver the city state from the Arishok and his military power, but the plight of the Arishok is more than just being stranded. As the story unfolds, it's revealed that they can't return home without the missing artifact. Once Hawke defeats the Arishok, the hero can either kill him or spare him.
1 Molag Bal
The Elder Scrolls Series
The Elder Scrolls Online
- Released
- April 4, 2014
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol, Violence
- Developer(s)
- ZeniMax Online Studios
- Genre(s)
- MMORPG
The Daedra are just one pantheon of gods of the Elder Scrolls franchise. Many of them are notoriously evil, and Molag Bal is one of the nastiest of them all. His methods are often deeply and disturbingly psychological, preying on the deepest fears and desires of mortals, but his quests and backstory are some of the most interesting in the lore of Tamriel. One of Skyrim's most notorious quests in the stone city of Markath is about a haunted house with a secret shrine dedicated to his honor in the basement.
Molag Bal, also known as the Prince of Schemes and the Harvestor of Souls, can be found in the Plane of Oblivion known as Coldharbour when he's not plotting to seduce or destroy some innocent or well-meaning human being. The Dunmer of Morrowind count him as one of the Four Corners of the House of Troubles, and he's an antagonistic force in almost every Elder Scrolls game.
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