I prefer to play good guys, honestly. As others have pointed out, even good guys can stray into the morally gray at times.
But my hunter in WoW, and now this thieving miqo'te here in Eorzea is stealing it from him, came up with an all encompassing statement that applies to how I try to play my "good guys."
"There is good and evil in this world, but it's up to each of us to find the black and white within the gray."
Basically, the world isn't black and white, but it's up to the individual to sift through and find what's right and what's wrong.
There are a lot of ways to play the "good guy" without being boring.
Batman is seen as a darker good guy. You just can't argue that Batman is morally gray or evil. He's driven by justice, he wants to stop crime, he wants to protect citizens, he's arguably obsessed with protecting his city from crime. He will beat a criminal silly, he'll break bones, he'll scare the poo out of them, but he won't kill them. He also alienates those close to him and pretty much forsakes any chance at a stable, normal life or any form of relationship.
Spider-Man's another example of playing a good guy but still having flaws. Spidey does ANYTHING to do what's right. He's the type of character the OP is talking about, the white knight, the Jedi, the hero. But here's the thing that made Spider-Man endearing over the years....he suffers for it. That's definitely something you could play up when playing a heroic character; it's not an easy life.
Peter has money problems, he's had relationship problems, he's disappointed people who care about him, he's sacrificed a better life for himself, and he's been publicly hated in the papers and by half the population of the city he strives to protect. But he keeps doing it without any benefit or "thank you" simply because it's the right thing to do. I thought they made a good move a couple years ago when they added in Pete hitting a breaking point and vowing "nobody dies when I'm around. No civilians, no allies, no villains. NOBODY DIES." Working that into Eorzea.....very difficult. >_>
So you can definitely look at how your character sacrifices in being a good guy as well.
Going further back, there's Robin Hood. Without a doubt, he's a criminal. He was a traitor to his kingdom by breaking the laws of the ruling king (arguable as King Richard wasn't declared dead and John was just steward of the kingdom in the tales of course, but you get the point). But he was a hero because he was a criminal in order to do what's right.
So no...I don't think playing good guys is boring. I think they can be very interesting. Just don't forget they have their flaws and their weaknesses as well.
I need to really finish putting together the details on Wardens of Light and start recruiting to the IC Linkshell and the Free Company. They're meant to be good guys with shades of gray that can cause debate and questions amongst themselves.
But my hunter in WoW, and now this thieving miqo'te here in Eorzea is stealing it from him, came up with an all encompassing statement that applies to how I try to play my "good guys."
"There is good and evil in this world, but it's up to each of us to find the black and white within the gray."
Basically, the world isn't black and white, but it's up to the individual to sift through and find what's right and what's wrong.
There are a lot of ways to play the "good guy" without being boring.
Batman is seen as a darker good guy. You just can't argue that Batman is morally gray or evil. He's driven by justice, he wants to stop crime, he wants to protect citizens, he's arguably obsessed with protecting his city from crime. He will beat a criminal silly, he'll break bones, he'll scare the poo out of them, but he won't kill them. He also alienates those close to him and pretty much forsakes any chance at a stable, normal life or any form of relationship.
Spider-Man's another example of playing a good guy but still having flaws. Spidey does ANYTHING to do what's right. He's the type of character the OP is talking about, the white knight, the Jedi, the hero. But here's the thing that made Spider-Man endearing over the years....he suffers for it. That's definitely something you could play up when playing a heroic character; it's not an easy life.
Peter has money problems, he's had relationship problems, he's disappointed people who care about him, he's sacrificed a better life for himself, and he's been publicly hated in the papers and by half the population of the city he strives to protect. But he keeps doing it without any benefit or "thank you" simply because it's the right thing to do. I thought they made a good move a couple years ago when they added in Pete hitting a breaking point and vowing "nobody dies when I'm around. No civilians, no allies, no villains. NOBODY DIES." Working that into Eorzea.....very difficult. >_>
So you can definitely look at how your character sacrifices in being a good guy as well.
Going further back, there's Robin Hood. Without a doubt, he's a criminal. He was a traitor to his kingdom by breaking the laws of the ruling king (arguable as King Richard wasn't declared dead and John was just steward of the kingdom in the tales of course, but you get the point). But he was a hero because he was a criminal in order to do what's right.
So no...I don't think playing good guys is boring. I think they can be very interesting. Just don't forget they have their flaws and their weaknesses as well.
I need to really finish putting together the details on Wardens of Light and start recruiting to the IC Linkshell and the Free Company. They're meant to be good guys with shades of gray that can cause debate and questions amongst themselves.
