10 Most BROKEN Video Game Protagonists

10 Most BROKEN Video Game Protagonists

Welcome to MojoPlays, and today we are getting in the mud, and seeing who we find. One of the most compelling character tropes is someone with nothing to lose, someone who has seen too much, someone who is broken. These are the 10 MOST Broken Video Game Protagonists. Let’s go!

The Dark Urge

“Baldur’s Gate 3” (2023)

The Dark Urge in Baldur’s Gate 3 is easily one of the most mentally broken characters in the entire game, and that’s kind of the whole point. Unlike a normal custom character, you start with no memory of who you are, but you’re constantly hit with violent thoughts and impulses that push you toward doing horrific things. It’s not just flavour text either, you can straight-up lose control and act on those urges, which makes the whole experience feel unsettling. What really makes the character disturbing is their past. Over time, it’s revealed that the Dark Urge isn’t just “a bit evil”, they make evil nervous. They’re a Bhaalspawn, meaning they were created by the god of murder, and their entire existence is tied to killing and chaos. That’s textbook broken.

Cloud

“Final Fantasy VII” (1997)

Sephiroth might be the poster villain of "Final Fantasy VII", but Cloud is honestly just as messed up, just in a very different way. Instead of snapping and burning everything down, Cloud completely breaks mentally and builds a fake version of himself to cope. And we all somehow forget this, the guy is NOT doing well. After everything that happens with Shinra, Zack, and Sephiroth, he can’t handle the truth, so his mind basically rewrites his own life. He starts believing he was this confident SOLDIER hero, when in reality, that identity belongs to someone else. The scary part is how convincing it is. Cloud isn’t pretending, he genuinely believes the lie, and it affects everyone around him. Scary stuff Cloud, go to therapy.

Max Payne

“Max Payne” Series (2001-)

The "Max Payne" trilogy is packed with that dark, neo-noir vibe, mixed with stylish gunplay, it’s also packed with trauma… So much goddamn trauma. What really makes Max stand out as a broken character is what he goes through right at the start. His wife Michelle and baby daughter are murdered, and that moment basically defines everything that follows. The entire game becomes a revenge story, but it’s not clean or heroic, it’s messy, painful, and filled with regret. The nightmare sequences he experiences are especially unsettling, showing just how broken he is mentally. Max isn’t a “likeable” character in the usual sense. He’s bitter, drinks too much, and has a short fuse. But that’s exactly why he works.

Senua

“Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice” (2017)

In Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, players step into the shoes of Senua, a deeply troubled warrior on a journey to save the soul of her lost lover. Set in a world inspired by Norse and Celtic mythology, the game blurs the line between reality and what’s happening inside her mind. Senua believes she’s cursed, and as you play, it becomes clear that a lot of what she’s facing is her own mental state. The game represents this through something called the Darkness, which ties directly into her psychosis. Throughout the journey, Senua constantly hears voices, known as the Furies, commenting on everything she does. Sometimes they help, sometimes they make things worse, and it highlights how fractured her mind, eventually making it difficult to discern what is reality and what isn’t.

Harry Dubois

“Disco Elysium” (2019)

Disco Elysium is one of those games that feels completely different from everything else. Instead of focusing on combat, it puts all its energy into storytelling and character, and that’s where it really shines. You play as a detective who’s so drunk he’s basically wiped his own memory, waking up with no idea who he is or what he’s supposed to be doing. From there, you’re thrown into a murder investigation. Easy to do with a hangover, right? Your character is anything but stable. He’s dealing with addiction, identity issues, and a whole mess of psychological problems that constantly affect how you play. The most interesting part is how the game presents his mind. His thoughts, emotions, and instincts all talk to him like separate voices, almost like characters of their own. It’s not just Harry that’s broken, they all are, it’s an ensemble of broken.

Jacket

“Hotline Miami” (2012)

Jacket from Hotline Miami is one of the most mentally messed-up protagonists in gaming, and the game doesn’t take long to show you. On the surface, he’s just a guy taking mysterious phone calls that tell him to go out and kill people, and for some reason, he just… does it. No questions, no hesitation. That alone already feels off, but it only gets worse the more you play. As the story unfolds, it becomes clear that Jacket isn’t fully grounded in reality. He has strange visions, talks to masked figures that may or may not exist, and experiences events that blur the line between what’s real and what’s in his head. You’re never completely sure what’s actually happening, which makes everything feel unsettling. Why is this happening? Where is the motivation? What the hell is actually going on right now!?

Kratos

“God of War” Series (2005-)

Kratos in God of War is a completely different kind of broken, both in the OG series and the current games. In the original games, his life was already full of tragedy, losing his brother as a child, and then, in one of the worst moments in gaming, unknowingly killing his own wife and daughter. That’s what turned him into the rage-fuelled monster players remember, tearing through the gods of Olympus without hesitation. But by the time we see him again in "God of War" (2018), that version of Kratos is gone… or at least buried. He’s older, quieter, and trying to live a different life. Still, the pain never really left him. Right at the start, he loses his wife again, this time to illness, leaving him to raise Atreus on his own. Can the guy get a break?

Joel Miller

“The Last of Us” (2013)

Joel from The Last of Us is one of those characters who feels completely shaped by trauma, right from the start of the apocalypse where it looks like you’ve made it to safety, a soldier opens fire, and Joel is forced to watch Sarah die in his arms. That moment basically defines who he becomes. Years later, Joel is colder, harsher, and way more guarded. He’s not the same person, and honestly, it makes sense. He keeps people at a distance, doesn’t trust easily, and just focuses on surviving. When Ellie comes into the picture, you can see that internal struggle straight away. And watching this relationship form, my word what a journey.

James

“Silent Hill 2” (2001)

Silent Hill 2 is often called one of the best games ever made, and a big reason for that is its story. The atmosphere is heavy, the horror feels personal, and everything about the town just feels… off. You play as James, who seems like a normal guy at first, heading to Silent Hill after getting a letter from his supposedly dead wife. It sounds simple enough. But as things go on, it becomes clear something isn’t right. The monsters, the environments, even the people you meet all feel tied to something deeper. Then the truth hits. James isn’t just some grieving husband, he’s hiding something from himself. It turns out Silent Hill isn’t just a place, it’s a reflection of his mind, and James didn’t just come to find his wife, he came to face what he did to her.

Martin Walker

“Spec Ops: The Line” (2012)

If you want a story that starts one way, only to unfold into something darker, look no further than “Spec Ops: The Line”. You play as Captain Martin Walker, who’s sent into a ruined Dubai to find survivors and figure out what happened to a missing unit led by Colonel Konrad: Find Konrad, stop whatever’s going wrong, get out, simple right? But things spiral almost immediately. Walker becomes convinced that Konrad has gone rogue and is committing terrible acts, so he pushes forward, making more and more extreme decisions “for the greater good.” The problem is, the further he goes, the worse things get. He ignores his team, crosses lines he shouldn’t, and ends up causing massive destruction along the way. By the end, the truth hits hard, Konrad isn’t even real anymore. He’s just a hallucination, a way for Walker to cope with what HE’s done. Classic reveal.