The best friend character

Visual Novel Community Archive, 2000-2009
#1

You all know him, he’s “That guy” who always lends you his porn magazines, makes perverted jokes and unsuccessfully hits on every single heroine in the game. Or maybe he is the cool and collected guy who just kinda helps you out or gives you a push in the right direction when you need him most and is subject to constant jokes and memes about a boy on boy ending. Yes these are the best friend characters and no matter what ending you get, they always get the sad ending. Isn’t it such a shame? It seems like the only time a best friend character ever scores in a game is if he’s raping someone.

It’s obvious the best friend character from games like Clannad, Snow Sakura or even Fukahire from Tsuyokiss are designed as comic relief characters who shouldn’t be taken seriously. But somewhere down the line I came to feel sorry for some of them. I mean wouldn’t it be nice if they could get a girl too? Somewhere down the line the objective of the character was to be someone absolutely terrible in every way, to make you feel better about yourself as the protagonist. Yet somehow, there are times when one can relate to the “best friend” more so than the protagonist and that’s when the game loses some of its fun.

So this is a tribute to all those lost souls out there. Like Fukahire who coudn’t get a girl because Leo and Subaru kept cock blocking him and Yoshimi turned out to be a crazed creepy yandere.

#2

Side note: The protagonist’s best friend in Edelweiss actually got a girlfriend before the protagonist does, regardless of the route you take :stuck_out_tongue:

#3

Yeah, the friends you have in Edelweiss are awesome because they really make you feel like a part of their group stalking girls :stuck_out_tongue:

#4

I liked how G-Senjou no Maou turned around the ‘best friend’ character by making it a girl =P

Meet Eiichi. She likes chasing after older women.

No, I don’t think she’s ever going to get a girlfriend. Isn’t it sad, Eiichi ;_;

#5

I can’t believe I’m saying something good about it, but Amorous Professor Cherry is actually a good game when it comes to this. While I can’t say this for certain since I haven’t obtained all endings for the game (and probably won’t for some time as I am fed up with it currently), it seems that as long as you don’t end up with Kiyoka Yorii, your best friend Yoda Shigeaki will get her.

#6

I play a lot of the REALLY dark ero, so the “best friend” has a bit of a more different role… and that can widely vary if said person is male, female, or not even human. :twisted:

#7

I remember in some eroges the best friend of the protagonist becomes the protagonist’s rival for some girls’ affection, too.

I believe Minoru in Elf’s KAKYUUSEI was like that. Ryo’s best friend (i forgot his name) from CRESCENDO too. In Jellyfish’s LOVERS the protagonist’s best friend was in love with the main girl Rie Kawai, too. When he discover the protagonist was dating her by his back, he beat the crap out of him!

Of course, there’s eroges where the best friend get a girl too, like that guy from Blackrainbow’s FUKOU NO KAMI, were the protagonist’s best friend was having lots of sex with the protagonist’s little sister. :roll:

There’s still that kind of best friend who is actually a homo with the hots for the protagonist, too. Someone remember the old game TRUE LOVE? :lol:

#8

Don’t forget Figures of Happiness, where Rio’s best friend is pretty much different from other pervert loser worst best friends :lol:

#9

Then there’s Matou Shinji, that’s when you start to really hate your best friend haha.

#10

princess waltz will get Sugimoto Kazuhiro
the best friend in Amorous Professor Cherry gets Kiyoka if you don’t

#11

Don’t remind me, that actually annoyed me. I just remember reading for HOURs, just trying to get to the first damn h-scene (I’m a fast reader too), and when I found out about that, I was like >:O

One of the things that bothers me about some games is the fact that you only start “truly dating” them until near or most likely AT the end of the game. I often want to see character relationships when they are dating, and it’s publicly known. It’s the same thing as in manga/anime. Apparently the “cool” thing to do over in Japan is to finish a story right where you started the story. So in other words, if a guy is trying to get this girl, you go through a bunch of chapters/episodes, and when it ends, you get this “heartwarming” moment of being now closer together, but yet still no where further than you were before. Progression is what I like to see.

#12

Edelweiss had the best male friend characters ever.
Well… at least the funniest.

Oh, and that hgame obsessed guy from YMK was pretty cool too.

As far as japanese games go, I cant really tell because I suck at japanese. =/

#13

Agreed, Tsubaki from YMK was really cool. However, I don’t think he qualifies as a best friend character, as the protagonist doesn’t have any true friends in my opinion (they are more like acquaintances). I think the story proves out my opinion, since the majority of the plot revolves around how he has trouble forming close relationships with those around him.

#14

Well, in YMK, Tsubaki is actually a sensai character. He’s the “best friend” sensai type, rather then the “cool master” sensai.

#15