It's the character that is an automaton, the character that is there to be worn like a puppet and dragged around from place to place because the other characters in the game say so. I think developers still use the silent protagonist because they think, on some level, that it makes the player feel like the protagonist. However, it only serves to make the story feel that much less believable, and even empty.
I seem to use Half-Life 2 as an example a little too much, but it's simply too good of an example. It has a great story where every character but Gordon Freeman evolves and changes so that we like them or hate them. With Gordon, he's sort of just, neutral. We don't know anything about him, what he sounds like, what he thinks about, what he likes. We do know, however, that he selflessly embarks on a heroic quest of massive importance, endangering his own life in the process. I suppose that's enough for some people to like him, and while I don't hate him myself, I just don't feel anything for him either.
Then there's the half-silent protagonist. Much like the silent-protagonist, we'll never hear their voice, but they do have the potential to be an individual. When they need to speak, they'll write it down for you. The perfect example is The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Actually, any Elder Scrolls game would do, but Skyrim is the most recent entry in the series, and probably the most popular. The protagonist of Skyrim is the Dovahkiin, or, the Dragonborn. The Dragonborn can give a few lines of dialogue in written form, but it is never spoken aloud. Again, the goal here is probably to make the player feel like the main character, but it only serves to make the story feel empty. You're the Dragonborn, a voiceless, porcelain mannequin. There's this huge potential for a genuinely interesting character to be created all through text dialogue, but character development is kept at a minimum. I suppose the reason behind the lack of character development is that they meant it to be your story, not Dragonborn's.
A game with a silent protagonist doesn't mean that it has a terrible story. I still consider Half-Life 2 to be an amazing example of video game writing. The story captivates me at times, and leaves me in a curious stupor at others. I just think that a main character that could speak would benefit a game much more than a silent character, there's more potential when it comes to a voiced protagonist. Take a moment and imagine that you've never communicated with anyone in your entire life. Now write a memoir about your life (Yes, you've magically gained the ability to write). It seems almost impossible. Now imagine that you've been communicating with people all your life, as per usual I hope, and you write a memoir. Personally, I'd prefer reading the latter, what with all of the detailed conversations it would have in it.
WTMG's Heidi Hawes: "To say I enjoyed my time with Tides of Tomorrow would be an understatement. I’m still obsessing over this game, even after having beaten it. Just like with Road 96, this is a game I’ll be playing many times. There’s so much left to uncover, places to explore, and characters to understand. With seven different endings to unlock (and to truly get the whole picture), Tides of Tomorrow is a game that doesn’t just encourage multiple playthroughs, it insists on it. This is a challenge I’ll gladly take up time and time again. So who’s with me? Let’s see what community or shenanigans we can create together!"
WTMG's Oliver Shellding: "While Saint Slayer: Spear of Sacrilege has incentive to replay in order to find treasures and unlocks (such as additional animal companions), the game itself is very brazen and straightforward from the drop. If you don’t jive with the excessive blood and gore with the combined difficulty levels, then it’s not going to get better at all. If you like what you see and enjoy the pseudo-historical setting juxtaposed with some allusions to time travel and possible sci-fi elements (no spoilers), then you’re going to have a good time and will want to revisit to learn as much as you can. It’s very digestible over a day, has some wonderful set dressing, and it can challenge without ruining your day. It’s still not as glorious as Infernax, but it has some real love for the art, and I can appreciate the execution."
The 7th Guest Remake will launch for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store on June 4, followed by Switch 2 and Switch later in 2026, publisher Vertigo Games and developer Exkee announced.
I actually prefer the silent protagonist, as I can imagine how they sound in my head and I don't have to worry about not liking the voice actor for the character.
I suppose I've gotten used to them over the years though, since the first game I had that actually had speech in it was Double Dribble.
I completely agree. I've never been a fan of the silent protagonist. As you said, it just makes the game feel empty. You're basically just a robot doing whatever the characters around you want you to do. GTA3 is a good example of this. You were an errand boy and Rockstar couldn't do much beyond that because they couldn't explain why your character would do anything, outside of being told what to do, and hoping it would somehow lead to revenge.
Then there was Vice City built around Tommy. The story was so much stronger because Rockstar could actually develop some type of conflict between characters.
I'll admit some games do it well, like Half-Life 2, probably because such a big focus is put on Alyx, but I feel like it could be even better with you playing as an actual character.
That depend of the kind of inmersion you want. Some people like inmersion regarding that it drive you to the world of the game like a movie wich Uncharted and Metroid does, it doesnt matter wether the MC is a man or a woman since what you want is to experience the universe in wich the game develops. Or the inmersion that the silent protagonist gives, in RPGs the definition is "Role" Playing Game but wich role you fulfill when all characters talk? When all characters are themselves and all their actions and opinions are determided even when they give you choices those choices all match with the character fixed personality? The Silent Protagonist fix that, the choices are varied, at least in Growlanser and Persona where the choices all have diferent kind of personalities ike badass choices, dump choices and heroic choices all them give a different ways in wich you to act and the silent protagonist allow that, it doesnt have even a fixed name, letting you choice if you want to go with the cannon name or a different name, all that help me to inmerse in those games that no other game can hope to achieve.
So if is a RPG it must be a silent protagonist but if is another genre i could use both talkative and silent. Personally i love it and i wish more games could be like that.
I think the most remote protagonist I've ever encountered is Master Chief. Petty Officer John-117 was develoepd so well in The Fall of Reach (the prequel novel) but when I eventually got hands on with Halo, he seemed so far removed from the character I'd built in my mind.
I agree with what you said about Skyrim (Though to be honest, I think the entire game is total garbage so Im kinda biased..)
One of my favourite Silent protagonists is Big daddy from Bioshock 2, its cool how without words they show his love for the little sisters and rage at all the splicers. Bioshock 2 rocked lol