Player character: Difference between revisions

[[Image:RedStart.png|thumb|{{ga|Red}}'s [[Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen|Pokémon journey]] is about to [[Starter Pokémon|begin]]...]]

A '''player character''' in the world of [[Pokémon]] is the protagonist of the [[Pokémon games|games]], the avatar of the player. Player characters are usually remarkably silent, only able to answer yes and no to questions. This is so that the player can "fill in" what the character is thinking, feeling and acting, thus immersing the player within the world of the game. In the mainstream games, they are always [[Pokémon Trainer]]s. At the conclusion of their journey, most will have conquered a [[Pokémon League]]'s eight [[Gym Leader]]s and [[Elite Four]], and become the [[Pokémon champion|Champion]].

Those who do the above will most often start their journey in their hometown by getting, or shortly before getting, a [[starter Pokémon]], a Pokémon that appears very early in their native [[region]]'s [[Regional Pokédex|Pokédex]], and is of the {{t|Grass}}-, {{t|Fire}}-, or {{type2|Water}}. The region's native [[Pokémon professor]] will always give them this, as well as a Pokédex.

In [[Pokémon Crystal]], and each game in the [[main series]] which followed it, players were also able to pick the [[gender]] of the lead, more often than not to match their own.

Aside from the standard that many of the games' player characters take in their journey, there are also several other ways in which other player characters complete their journey. [[Wes]] and [[Michael]], for example, must defeat [[Cipher]] and free all of their [[snagged Pokémon]] from their [[Shadow Pokémon|Shadow state]]. [[Solana]] and [[Lunick]], are not Pokémon Trainers, but instead [[Pokémon Ranger]]s. They must use the Pokémon they have captured with the [[Capture Styler]] to help them along the way. [[Todd Snap|Todd]] as well must strive for something different from Trainers. In [[Pokémon Snap]], he must capture all the Pokémon on [[Pokémon Island]]-- on film.

To date, only one player character has reappeared from an older generation. In [[Generation II]], when {{ga|Gold}} or {{ga|Kris}} travels to [[Mt. Silver]] and reaches the deepest point of the cave, {{ga|Red}} is found, utterly silent as he was under the player's control, to challenge to the highest-[[level]]ed [[Pokémon battle]] that has appeared in the series. The [[Pokémon Red and Green|original games]] from [[Generation I]] also got [[Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen|remakes]] in [[Generation III]]. Lastly, if [[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]] is counted as a [[Generation IV]] game due to the time of its release, Red appears in Generation IV as well, as he is a playable character.

{| {{bluetable}} align="center"

|- bgcolor="#ccf"

! Region →

|- align="center"

| valign="bottom" | [[Image:FRRed.png]]<br>{{ga|Red}}

| valign="bottom" | [[Image:Gold.gif]]<br>{{ga|Gold}}

| valign="bottom" | [[Image:Brendan.png]] or [[Image:BrendanE.png]]<br>{{ga|Brendan}}

| valign="bottom" | [[Image:Koki.png]]<br>{{ga|Lucas}}

|- align="center"

! Female

| valign="bottom" | [[Image:Leaf.png]]<br>{{ga|Leaf}}

| valign="bottom" | [[Image:Kris.gif]]<br>{{ga|Kris}}

| valign="bottom" | [[Image:May.png]]<br>{{ga|May}}

| valign="bottom" | [[Image:Hikari.png]]<br>{{ga|Dawn}}

<br>

In the {{pkmn|anime}}, five of the player characters have been given major roles, three of them in the main anime series. [[Ash Ketchum|Ash]] (and [[Ritchie]]), of course, represents {{ga|Red}}, being based on him in appearance as well as basic history. At the beginning of [[Advanced Generation series|Advanced Generation]], {{an|May}} entered the fray in order to better represent [[Generation III]] to viewers, as both [[Misty]] and [[Brock]] are characters native to [[Generation I]]. Likewise, at the beginning of [[Diamond & Pearl]], {{an|Dawn}} joined Ash.

[[Jimmy (Johto)|Jimmy]] and [[Marina (Johto)|Marina]] appeared in ''[[The Legend of Thunder!]]'' special, taking a similar role to Ash and his female companions, fighting [[Team Rocket]] members to protect [[legendary Pokémon]]. While the protagonists of [[Generation II]] were not represented in Ash's party, these two filled the roles as the anime counterparts to {{ga|Gold}} and {{ga|Kris}}.