When it comes to political speeches, there are few video
games I can think of that do it anywhere near as good as the Killzone games.
Hello and welcome everyone to our special edition blog: video game antagonists.
This will also be our very first character spotlight. I will however apologize
for posting out of date. Circumstances played against me.
Anyways, yes Killzone. Releasing on the PS4 in the year
2004, Killzone is one of the few first person shooter games I fell in love
with. No offense to the other first shooter games. In it you play as the ISA, a
faction being invaded by the Helghast.
Now the Helghast were the original settlers of the planet
you’re fighting on. They were kicked off the planet and forced to live on
Helghan after losing to the ISA in a rather large scale war. Needless to say,
the Helghast didn’t take it well.
Image: gaminghistory101.com
Today’s man of the hour is Jorhan Stahl, a leading member of
the Helghast political party.
Skills: Leadership,
Cunning intellect, Access to advanced technology and soldiers
Appearing in Killzone 3 in 2011, Stahl was one of the
primary antagonists. His second appearance in Killzone: Shadow Fall (2013),
while not nearly as present in story, was still significant to the overall
story.
Now what makes Stahl a great villain is just how ruthless he
is. He is a driven and charismatic leader when he wants to be, able to rouse
the people with his fiery speeches, and had access to some of the highest level
tech in the universe.
Stahl makes the perfect antagonist in Killzone because he is
willing to go to the extreme in every single way. In his inflections, in his
mannerisms, and in his actions. He is entertaining because of how full of
himself he seems to be and how flippant he is of the enemy and those who oppose
him. He is entertaining to watch, while also being frightening. Because even
though he is full of himself, he has the resources and manpower to back it up.
Even willing to go so far as to destroy Earth to win the war.
Of course, Stahl isn’t exactly what you would call a
patriot. A lot of his actions, when not rousing the populace and army, come off
as self-centered. Whether this is for his own goals or those of his race
overall, he is not heartbroken to kill his own people just to prove a point
about his new features and how sure he is of victory.
Stahl is a antagonist you want to defeat, but can’t stop
listening to. Malcolm McDowell did a perfect job voicing the character and fit
what needed to be done to a T. Stahl is an antagonist I don't see a lot of video games as he plays what I would like to call 'the political foe' as it were.
The political foe is someone who contends with others conventionally, such as straight warfare and threatening the lives of others. They also contend with others politically through tact and subversion. This can be seen with his contention with other Helghan, such as Admiral Orlock. This political squabble adds more depth to the Helghast and we get to see more of their interworkings through Stahl's actions. He is vitally important in continuing the story, even into its sequel where the Helghast still try and attempt his dream of being on top.
At the end, it seems he really did believe in Helghast superiority as he died.
Stahl is an antagonist others, not just those of video games, that wish to write antagonists should take note.
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