Does it ever bother you that MC’s in adult games are alway….

[Tanwise]

Whether overt or subtle the majority of all adults games that are available on the site and even the web, have you play as a pushover MC. This is done in a variety of ways, but most often by making the MC indecisive, other times pouty and angsty. There is also the partially assertive MC, who comes across as a creep but ultimately bows to other characters purposefully more assertive then the MC. Some game MC’s lecture the player via inner monologue. And when it comes to NPC's there is always at least one, but generally several per game, where from the beginning they insult, despise, and show outright contempt for the MC's existence whether or not the MC's a creep. Yet still come to the MC to make demands disguised as I'll owe you.

I started noticing this a year and a half ago. I don’t know if it’s always been like this with adult games, but to me its disturbing and very confusing. So I created this poll to hopefully understand the mindset of other players and perhaps developers, if they choose to add their input. The poll is in no way meant to be derogatory at all. I know that to some people it's "Either play the games and shut up, if you don't like it leave!" But I'm the type of person who has the need to understand. Besides I have found a few surprising good games here, despite some cringe.

(I needed to condense an essay’s worth of game observations. So the above is to provide a summary of that.)

(I've seen some explain this off as, "the MC is a young adult, they haven't gotten any yet! That's why!" Except it's the same in games where the MC is an adult)

 

[polywog]

The MC has to be pliable or the game wouldn't be playable. The MC does what the player tells them to do.

Imagine if the player told the MC to go to x location, and the MC responded "fuck you, I do what I want" and went to y location instead, or just refused to move at all.

What you're looking for are Visual Novels, where the MC doesn't require input from the viewer, you just "turn the page" of the novel, and watch what happens.

 

[Ying Ko]

I think a significant amount of people like zero to hero/rags to riches/underdog type scenarios because it provides a sense of growth and obvious goals/motivations. Non-player characters will likely underestimate, insult and/or dominate the player character early in these scenarios in order for catharsis to be experienced later when the tables are turned.

 

[Hagatagar]

Imagine if the player told the MC to go to x location, and the MC responded "fuck you, I do what I want" and went to y location instead, or just refused to move at all.

To be honest, that sounds kind of interesting.

The player could play a parasite or alien or something that controls the MC to a certain degree, but the MC experiences it all consciously.
You would have to act according to the personality of the MC, otherwise you mess up his mood and he will respond badly in social interactions (collecting bad flags) or perform poorly in the everyday things he does (maybe even getting fired).

As long as you keep him happy, you can occasionally let him do things he doesn't like because you keep his 'mood indicator' high enough to compensate for the loss of 'mood points'.
And maybe this way you can slowly change the personality and preferences of the MC.
Kind of 'I never thought that flirting with girls in clubs could be so much fun. Thank you player!' or 'Yes, you were right, it was pretty exciting to spy on the woman in the locker room.'

Of course, such a game should not be a typical VN, but rather like an open world game.
I would definitely play such a game.

I know SlutCraft does this in a way, but this aspect is not very complex and it's scripted wherever it happens.

 

[polywog]

To be honest, that sounds kind of interesting.

The player could play a parasite or alien or something that controls the MC to a certain degree, but the MC experiences it all consciously.
You would have to act according to the personality of the MC, otherwise you mess up his mood and he will respond badly in social interactions (collecting bad flags) or perform poorly in the everyday things he does (maybe even getting fired).

As long as you keep him happy, you can occasionally let him do things he doesn't like because you keep his 'mood indicator' high enough to compensate for the loss of 'mood points'.
And maybe this way you can slowly change the personality and preferences of the MC.
Kind of 'I never thought that flirting with girls in clubs could be so much fun. Thank you player!' or 'Yes, you were right, it was pretty exciting to spy on the woman in the locker room.'

Of course, such a game should not be a typical VN, but rather like an open world game.
I would definitely play such a game.

I know SlutCraft does this in a way, but this aspect is not very complex and it's scripted wherever it happens.

True to life. Humans are parasites living within an animal shell. The beast doesn't always obey. Sometimes, if you neglect it's needs it will take control. The trick to life is to listen to your body, and develop a symbiotic relationship... listen here body, we can't just eat and fuck all the time, we need to work a few days a week... so hit the shower.

 

[Korder]

I don't know, I feel like there's an abundance of games out there where the MC is assertive or outright domineering - or where you're given the option of having him/her being like that.

I also only play games like that since I hate playing a submissive character (whether we're talking in bed or in life).

 

[DawnCry]

Overall rather than asserting or domineering MC's what we have as MC's are usually a mental kid that only thinks of boobs and sex.

Personally I enjoy a MC that fights against difficulties and that earns his harem, but unfortunately my thinking is kind of unpopular, something that I noticed is that most people view adult games as almost porn so when the story isn't so simple or they can't be a total badass they start to ignore the game.

I'm the kind of rags to riches with a lot of difficulties to do it . However I think I need to create a discussion to understand a few things...

 

[Deleted member 229118]

Could you give example's?
Just to name a few:
Lab rats 1 and 2: Manipulative main character.
Hentai highschool+ Manipulative Main Character with a talent for blackmail.
Superpowered: Billy is a villian who disiullsion himself a hero while exploited woman without so much as a though of how wrong it is.
Stationmaster: Crualty incarnate.
There are games where the mc is a push over.
But that is why i dont play fendom games.
I mean you could argue sister, sister, sister mc was a pushover but you would be streching the definition to breaking point.

So no it doesnt bother me because 90% of the games i play the mc isnt a puch over.
90% of the time there rapist blackmailers who break there family and friends.

 

[freedom.call]

Let me put it this way, there are very very few MCs I like. Been too long since I was 18 I suppose.

 

[Iramis]

Hmm a few examples would be nice, I'm having trouble thinking of total pushover MC's (went through some pages of most viewed games, nothing jumped at me). Rather than being a pushover the male MCs generally are light on personality so as to make them more relatable or at least ignorable, making them easier to self insert in I guess. The focus is generally on the female characters, that's what most players care about.

If a MC comes of as a pushover to you it's probably not because it's a character trait but rather the way the game developer has decided to provide you the sex scenes, the thing you are here for. You have bitchy older sister who is very high and mighty, and you need a way for her to give the MC time of her day, so engineer a situation where she has to come to the MC for help or a favor. Maybe she's not good with computers or used to the internet and asks for help, maybe she got caught by the police, maybe she needs booze for the party, etc. And you do these things to get in her pants, either she's already in trouble so you know you can use that or you use the errand to take advantage of her in some other way. Rarely would be the case where you do helpful things for the girls out of wellness of your heart, it's usually for a reward, even if MC doesn't know, you as the player know.

Also it's a game, you need the main character to do something, some busywork to pass the time and also to feel like you earned the rewards (lewd scenes). Maybe it could have been written better but that's a general problem in games not specific to adult games. Take for example Darksiders 2, you play as Death, a horseman of apocalypse, and you spend most of the game running errands for other people, it's one of the major complaints I've heard. It's not like he was written to be an errand boy, it's just a result of presentation, you need gameplay. You could make the same complaint about Skyrim too.

And for a final point about girls calling MC creep, pervert, etc, well they generally are. They sneak around at night and enter bedrooms of their family members and jerk off on them, they enter bedrooms and bathrooms and violate the privacy of women, stare at cleavage or butt every chance given, whenever a new girl appears they generally don't fail to mention how hot she is and how they would like to fuck them, even meeting normal people like receptionists, shopkeepers, waitresses, girl walking on street, etc is enough to give them boners, use every opportunity to hold over any favors to get the girls to do something for them, don't follow the bro code, most of the time they are cheating on the girls they express their love for, lie and manipulate people for sex, use minor offences to justify their evil deeds (you rejected me, you are such a bitch, so I'm going to blackmail you for sex and force mental degradation on you, you totally deserve it), the list goes on. How exactly can you feel bad for these guys, they are the scum on earth, if not for being the main character no one would care for them.

 

[ChaosOpen]

You'd be hard pressed to find a Japanese man willing to make a scene to stand up for themselves, to cut off a chain of events through whatever means necessary then retake control to a more favorable direction isn't something you'd commonly see. It might have to do with a mix of Japanese society and otaku's themselves. It is frowned upon to make any sort of scene in public regardless of the reason, drawing attention to yourself is a social faux pas and would take a lot of courage to change, and when you did it, the possibility of being alienated by your peers would increase. It is also where so many misunderstanding tropes come from, in the west it seems ridiculous, but in it makes sense in Japan, because you NEVER shout over someone. I think that MC protags reflect that mindset, that "it sucks but I guess I'll just have to accept it, fighting back might make it worse" is the standard mentality of your Japanese man.

 

[Sphere42]

What you describe sounds like poorly written "gameplay"/gating more than anything else. The "nah, maybe later if you do this for me" reply basically is the "10 bear asses" kill&fetch quest, only the bare asses come later And of course you have to play along because outright rape usually should have SEVERE consequences and other options (like going to the school slut or getting an actual prostitute) are ignored because it's still supposed to be "a game" with rules to make you go out and do stuff.

As others have already said many PCs are written as underdogs, usually for a similar reason if nothing else. But the ones I have encountered come off as manipulative sociopaths with a very active hand in the story rather than passive weaklings. At least if you want to see any sex scenes, some of the games you probably can play just going to school/work every day and enjoying the occasional upskirt and butt rub but if you wanna get laid you need to catch a girl masturbating, film her then blackmail her into becoming your sex slave.

I don't think you specified a gender so for females I kinda share the sentiment, only it's usually a brick wall of virgin purity or prudish stubbornness. The "pushover" part only applies to corruption games where the MC logically should have a better option (a schoolgirl cornered by several adults late at night really doesn't) but is forcibly written to submit to rape or worse just so her "fall" can start. But the opening point still stands: characters tend to be written in any way which makes accessing the sex scenes more difficult even if it's just a grind wall. 1-line summaries for day jobs/school are easy to write, prices of gifts are arbitrary and RPGM comes with a cookie cutter combat system right out the box meanwhile each sex scene needs your own writing, and probably art&sound too which takes a lot of effort.

 

[JuntaCat]

Whenever the MC is a pushover in video game I tend to like them IF they have decent character development in which they learn to grow and become somewhat assertive and not just become a punching-bag for the other characters. Sort of like the ZERO TO HERO trope, its always satisfying for me.