Video Game Players Share Their Desire to Romance Non-romanceable Characters

Have you ever fallen in love with a side character in a video game, potentially even more than the game’s main cast? You’re certainly not alone in this regard. Whether the game writers expect it or not, fans consistently fall in love with side NPCs.

Following the successful release of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, players have come online to share their desire for non-party member romances to return. Once a feature in previous installments, the ability to romance non-companion NPCs has been notably removed from Dragon Age: The Veilguard. And yet, that has not stopped fans of the game from dreaming.

At the forefront, The Viper, also known as Ashur, has captured the hearts of many players. Be it the masked face, the deep voice (voiced by none other than the remarkable Matt Mercer), or the cause for which he stands, players have been thoroughly charmed by his character. Likewise, characters such as Viago and the once romanceable Solas have also become top picks among the Veilguard community.

Other games, such as Baldur’s Gate 3 and Skyrim have also had their share of this phenomenon.

In the case of the former, plenty of characters have been captivated by the game’s side characters. Rolan, the begrudgingly helpful Tiefling wizard, soon became a fan-favorite character. Other tieflings such as the bard Alfira or the blacksmith Dammon are top favorites too, leading players to wish for a patch to at least add them to the player party.

Mods, however, have allowed the community to unofficially fulfill these dreams. Especially with Skyrim, whose modding community on the Nexus and beyond remains one of the largest. Where in these mods, mod authors have turned NPCs into follower companions, romanceable characters, and have even fleshed out characters who had either no discernable personality or had little, to begin with.

All this leads to a poignant question. What about these non-romanceable characters makes them potentially more desirable than the romanceable options? Could it be that they are, quite literally, unattainable and therefore more attractive because of it? Or are these characters charming enough to rival the fleshed-out stories of the main cast? Or is it the pure potential that these side characters hold for more?

What is for sure, is that game developers have taken notice — some to the degree of making these side characters into fully fleshed-out romanceable companions. Previous Bioware entries, prove this. Following player feedback from Dragon Age Origins and its DLC, Awakening, Bioware gave Anders a romance storyline in Dragon Age II. It did the same with Cullen in Dragon Age Inquisition. This was much the same in Mass Effect for Garrus Vakarian who became romanceable in Mass Effect 2. In Baldur’s Gate 3, early access fans who fell in love with Halsin were heard by the Larian team who transitioned Halsin into a full-fledged romanceable option.

How this will continue to affect games will be seen in the future. What can be certain now, however, is that there will always be a sub-community dedicated to side characters and their potential.

Sources

https://www.reddit.com/r/BaldursGate3/comments/193oo2b/which_non_companion_do_you_wish_you_could_romance/ | https://www.reddit.com/r/BG3/comments/16vqnnk/ok_what_unromanceable_character_do_you_wish_you/ | https://www.reddit.com/r/dragonage/comments/1gmbglp/no_dav_spoilers_in_another_life_where_we_still/?utm_source=embedv2&utm_medium=post_embed&utm_content=post_title&embed_host_url=https://www.thegamer.com/dragon-age-the-veilguard-wish-romance-certain-npcs/