When it comes toBaldur’s Gate 3’s Wyll, we are really talking about two characters. On one side, there is the Wyll that is presented to the world, the kind, heroic, suave hero who defends those in need of defending. But there is another side to Wyll. One that drips with hypocrisy laced with naivete. There is no Wyll without acknowledgingbothsides of him.
But if you are big on Wyll, where else can you find a character that embodies those aspects? What games feature the best righteous heroes with charm? What are some other examples of morally compromised champions of decency? Well, I’ve listed a few choice games that will satiate your hunger for this archetype!
WHERE TO PLAY
Dragon Quest 11 features a number of likable characters, but Sylvando stands out as being the most outwardly brave. Similar to the ‘Blade of Frontiers’, Sylvando has already earned quite a reputation before he joins you in your quest. While Sylvando is a little more sassy than Wyll, he walks the walk, and his intentions are pure.
The biggest strike against Sylvando is that he is the real deal. You may think that he has ulterior motives, but hetrulyis the hero he presents himself as. If heroic heroes are what you are into,Sylvando is the real dealand willlikelyingratiate himself with you quite quickly.
Xenogears is one of the most celebrated RPGs of its era. A great deal of that comes off the back of itsexcellent, nuanced characters. Chief among them is Citan Uzuki. Citan is a kind, intelligent, noble doctor. He lives his life serving the people of Lahan Village to the best of his abilities. Though much like Wyll, Citan is concealing an aspect of his history.
At the end of the day, Citan really does care for others, but he also has loyalties to others. This gets squared away further down the line. Citan is at least partly to blame for certain atrocities, and appears to rationalize it away as being a ‘for the greater good’ situation. They aren’t the same character, of course, Citan has a more take things as they are approach to life than Wyll, Baldur’s Gate 3 fans will most certainly see some similarities.
Chrono Trigger
Chrono Trigger is a legendary RPG from Square, originally launched on the Super Nintendo in 1995. As Chrono, you must band together with a motley crew to travel through time, ultimately battling the alien entity Lavos.
Back to the unambiguously heroic, Frog is Chrono Trigger’s unflappably noble hero. He does everything in his power to walk the path of a knight. You canalsodraw comparisons between the two when you look at their past. Both have been cursed and disfigured by dark magic. Both alsostart their journey in pursuit of a foe, and can be subsequently convinced to stay their blades, allowing you to recruit them in the process.
That being said, Frog’s motivations are far more sound here, while Wyll’s speak to his inexperience and well-concealed arrogance. But if nobility, morality, and justice are what you seek, then Chrono Trigger’s Frog will almost certainly give you what you are looking for.
Final Fantasy 9
Considered one of the greatest RPGs on the original PlayStation, Final Fantasy 9 follows Zidane’s journey - from kidnapping a princess to the escalating war that follows.
Final Fantasy 9 has you playing as a group of misfits and rogues. The odd man out is very clearly Adelbert Steiner, the noble knight who becomes entangled with your band of Ne’er-do-wells. That setup probably seems pretty familiar to any Wyll fans reading this piece. However, the Steiner similarities go a little deeper than that. Steiner also happens to have asimilar type of tunnel vision.
He’s obsessed with being the very picture of the noble knight. So much so that he’s constantly criticizing the behavior of his comrades. Sound familiar? In fact, Steiner’s so single-mindedly focused on doing things the ‘right way’ that he is blind to Queen Brahne’s corruption. Initially, at least. Like Wyll, Steiner’s journey is one of coming to terms with his failings. A journey that helps him become the man he has always aspired to be. Steiner doesn’t have Wyll’s silk tongue, of course, but his journey of self-discovery parallels Wyll’s to some degree.
Outside of Sylvando, the heroes on this list just feel a touch too rigid. They embody a number of core aspects of Wyll, but the one thing they don’t represent as well is how much fun Wyll can be. When he isn’t moralizing, Will is capable of being rougish and dashing. That is very much who Alisaie Leveilleur is. She is a free-spirited, brave, altruistic warrior who fights solely to do what she thinks is right.
As an added bonus, Alisaie even uses a rapier like Wyll, and features a repertoire of magic. There aren’t many rogueish, heroic, magic users, so they are in a fairly exclusive group in that respect. While Allisaie matches the more adventurous aspects of Wyll, she doesn’t have as much baggage. However, she certainly nails the fun part of his character. She’sa fan favoritefor a reason!
This entry comes with a massive caveat: I am specifically talking about the Alisaie that joins our quest in Stormblood. Much like her brother, she is nothing like she was in A Realm Reborn.
If there is one character more than any that can be like Wyll, it is Geralt. Although this may feel like cheating, as you choose what flavor of Geralt you are playing, Geralt is, to some degree, fixed. You can only move his character so far in one direction. If you play the most noble version of Geralt, you will often be able to refuse payment for hunting down monsters, walking a very Blade of Frontiers-esque path.
Additionally, Geraltcan be remarkably funny and has quite a sharp tongue, as does Wyll, of course. Lore-wise, they match as well, both having sacrificed some of their humanity in order to gain the strength they require to battle monsters. I’d say that Geralt often drifts a little closer to being sullen and cloistered, while Wyll is more outgoing and preachy. Additionally, while Geralt grapples with his past, Wyll does everything in his power to ignore it. Yet, at the end of the day, the two can, at times, mirror each otherratherclosely. Geralt feels like a more seasoned version of Wyll. One that has moved past his self-deception.
