Many video game characters are fixed in their ages, with their stories taking place in short time periods or their games keep them fixed at the same age no matter how many games exist in the series. However, sometimes a larger, more epic story needs to demonstrate the passage of time, and this is effectively done by aging the protagonist.
Whether it’s taking a child protagonist and growing them into adulthood, or showing a young adult gradually become more rough around the edges as they reach middle age after years of hard battles, these games all feature protagonists who age up as the game progresses.
8 Final Fantasy 15
Final Fantasy 15 is a tale about a young prince named Noctis who ventures out to formalize a union of two nations. However, while he's away he finds out that the empire has killed his father and seized the throne. The rest of the game sees Noctis and friends seek out the power they need to reclaim the crown.
During the final chapters of the game, there is a time skip as Noctis leaves his friends on his own journey, before returning a decade later. He and his friends are noticeably older, now in their early 30s and sporting more facial hair, allowing for a more grizzled party to take on the final battle.
7 Uncharted 4
Uncharted 4 was always designed to be the end of Nathan Drake’s story. After three hugely successful adventures, Naughty Dog made the decision to give him a final fanfare as he steps away from adventuring for good. While Drake is noticeably older than in previous titles, this aging process happened between games.
However, at the end of the game there is a time skip, and the game puts the player in control of Drake and Elena’s teenage daughter for the final epilogue. Since they didn’t have a child during the rest of the game, that indicates a significant time skip, and this shows as both of them are clearly now settled into their new life in middle age.
6 Horizon Zero Dawn
Horizon Zero Dawn is an exciting open world game about hunting down robot dinosaurs in a post-apocalyptic world. However, players loading up the game for the first time don’t get to jump straight into that action, as the prologue shows the childhood of protagonist Aloy.
When the game starts out Aloy is seen as a baby, being adopted by Rost, an outcast from their tribe. Over the next hour or so, she grows into a little girl, taunted by other kids and being taught how to hunt and survive in the wilds. Eventually a training montage sees her age into adulthood, which is what leads us into the main game.
5 Metal Gear Solid 4
In Metal Gear Solid 4, protagonist Solid Snake has noticeably aged since the second game. This is down to quirks in his genetic code added during the process to create him as a clone of Big Boss. However, while there are moments where we see a younger Snake contrasted against his older self, through both a disguise and through flashbacks, much of his aging occurred between games.
While much of the rapid aging happened off-screen, Snake does show frequent signs of the aging process throughout the game, as his health and fitness decline, causing him great distress. This becomes a major plot point as he increasingly struggles his way through missions.
4 Telltale’s The Walking Dead
The first season of Telltale’s episodic Walking Dead game saw players take control of Lee Everett, an escape convict who finds himself caring for a young girl named Clementine in the wake of a zombie apocalypse. The first season focuses on their relationship as they try and survive.
Later seasons saw Clementine assume the role of protagonist, with each season moving time forward gradually. As the story progresses, players witness her grow from a young girl into a young woman, ending the games at the age of 17. Her journey is one of the main things fans love about the series.
3 Assassin’s Creed 2
Assassin’s Creed 2 opens with a tutorial where players control a baby Ezio Auditore di Firenze, fresh out of the womb. After briefly learning how to use his limbs, time skips ahead to Ezio as a young man, putting the player in full control of him.
This is only the start of witnessing Ezio age as the game then follows his life as he becomes an Assassin, with the adventure taking us through his life from the age of 17 to 40, noticeably aging as the game progresses. The game’s two direct sequels see Ezio age further, becoming noticeably weathered by the time of Revelations.
2 Sifu
While most games have characters age as part of their stories, seeing time skips or the gradual passage of time, 2022 indie game Sifu shows its main character aging in its mechanics. If the player dies, they are brought back to life, but older than they were before. While this does have the advantage of wisdom from age enhancing the protagonist’s skills, it also makes them weaker and less able to withstand damage.
The amount that the protagonist ages depends on how many deaths the player has experienced. Starting at age 20, the game will add the current death count to this age with each death – the first death skips to 21, the second skips to 23, then 26, and so on. Much of the game’s challenge lies in being able to get through the game without dying after age 70, as this requires a full reset.
1 The Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time
One of the most famous examples of a game’s protagonist aging is Ocarina of Time. Players start the game as a young boy named Link, who sets out on instructions from the Great Deku Tree to seek out Princess Zelda and warn her of the threat that Ganondorf poses to Hyrule. Part of his mission requires him to retrieve the Master Sword, the weapon that can destroy evil.
However, upon retrieving the sword, seven years pass, and Link is now no longer a child but now a young man. This affects a few gameplay elements, such as him now being able to properly wield the Hylian Shield and use a bow, but it also shows an older Link dealing with a ravaged world that he was unable to help for the time he skipped.