Okay just a quick question here.
I recently finished the story mode of audio wizards, and it was obvious who the big bad guy was going to be, since inevitably once sondaman started talking about "the principle" we knew he was going to be eeeeeevil!
This seems to be something of a trope in audiogames. Echoes of Livia, heck even in arcade titles like Q9 and going back as far as pipe 2. If there's going to be a betrayal, its always either the guy in charge, or the person/thing helping you out, (I really hope it doesn't turn out that Shepherd is evil in the vale).
So I thought we could have a bit of fun in this topic suggesting who might be evil next, given general game characters.
Here are some thoughts:
The shop keeper: I remember when watching someone play through Secret of Mana as a teenager. Wots the blacksmith follows you around everywhere, he tells you he's the only person able to unlock the mystical power of your weapons, meaning that every time you pick up a new upgrade orb you need to bring it to him and pay massive amounts to get your upgrade.
I always wondered if at the end when you go to confront the bad guys, you'd return to find that with the massive amounts of cash you've given him throughout the game, bought out the entire world, and enslaved the hole population in giant factories to make yet more weapons to extend his economic empire!
Now an evil shop keeper, that would be a twist. Actually of all places Grizly gulch managed to do this with the black jack dealer being the final boss, albeit just as much of a one shot push over as everyone else in the game.
Damsel's father: I've seen it occasionally that when your tasked to go and rescue the princess (occasionally prince but more often princess), she turns out to either be tough as nails and join you on your adventure, or turn out to be eeeeevil! all the time.
How about though, the princess's father? After all princesses usually tend to be rather bratty, and what better way to get rid of a spoiled child, or maybe if the princess is the tough as nails sort, having her kidnapped is a good way to get rid of a rival, you the hero are a useful token gesture to show people father is actually doing something about getting his daughter back, provided of course you don't actually succeed.
Evil church cleaner: again we've all seen the plot where the holy order of the god of goodness sends you off after the McGuffin, only to reveal the head of the order is really evil!
But really, if an evil god could infiltrate their rival's church far enough to put one of their own worshippers in the highest position, why on earth would they need the McGuffin anyway?
Imagine though, you just make it back into the temple, and there's the random boy/girl cleaning the alter, you saw them on your first trip, maybe you had to get them a random quest object to go and see the high head.
When you enter with the McGuffin, the cleaner offers to take you to the high head, only she/he take s takes you somewhere else and transforms.
Synthesiser: here's one for the arcade games. Almost everyone wants human voicing in games, and synths are just used to read score. Well as we've said, we've seen an evil game voice, but how about an evil score poster?
I'magine, you've just finished the arcade game, killed off the big boss and the voice says "your score is"
Then suddenly: "ha ha ha! zero because your dead!" and your suddenly thrust into another boss battle against your friendly neighborhood screen reader, who turns out to be eeeeevil! all the time .
Any other suggestions for changing things up so that its not always the guy in charge?
Our souls with high music ringing; O men! It must ever be
That we dwell in our dreaming and singing, A little apart from ye. (Arthur O'Shaughnessy 1873.)