What character gives you the most joy to play as, whether that be from their personality, their gameplay, their story, their design, etc. For me it’s gotta be Niko Bellic from Gta IV.
Really got into the game over this last year, and this guy is one of the main reasons. He’s just incredibly compelling both from a personality standpoint and his story. Being an ex war vet, he’s been through shit, a shitton of shit. He’s a product of war, efficient, ruthless, and willing to do whatever it takes. But what is so interesting is how much he hates being this product, what he did during the war, how he can’t see the world the same way others do anymore. It’s a constant theme in the game of him being this outsider looking into this superficial world that he resents because underneath the bright lights and cars, is the same fucked up merciless world he’s used to. He didn’t want to continue this life, but had to because he really couldn’t do anything else, and his personality reflects this. With people he likes he’s incredibly loyal, always willing to help them out. If he doesn’t hate you, he’s a pretty passive person, down to earth and takes people often as they are. But if he’s not happy to be around you, he will show it, he can be sarcastic, and often just quiet with a grimace while listening to people ramble on. You really do get the feeling he’s seen so much shit before, that dealing with people in liberty city is more annoying than difficult. Plus you have his performance which is amazing, Micheal Hollick really deserved more for his work in this game because the acting work for Niko is top notch. Every insult feels personal, every scream has the pain of 15 years war behind it, each line just feels real coming from him, also he can be really funny(YEEELLLLOOOWWWW CAAAAAAAAARRRR). And finally, while not the most important thing, I absolutely love his look, his face just screams pain and suffering and his outfit is so common yet distinctive that you can always tell if someone is dressing like him, also he makes fingerless gloves cool.
Would love to hear other people’s favorite protagonists.