10 Incredible Video Game Characters Who Only Appeared In ONE Game
2. Saren - Mass Effect
Mass Effect is littered with fantastic characters, though the way each game flows into one another in the trilogy means most of them pop up in multiple instalments. Saren however, as the antagonist of Mass Effect 1, is one of the their best, and he only gets one game to make his impact.
Saren is the first character to fall victim to the indoctrination techniques of the Reapers, but he’s not the last. He’s such an effective villain because he’s not a diabolical force for evil; he’s a war hero doing what he truly believes is right.
You can even offer him a final dignity, as it’s possible to have him repent and kill himself instead of taking him out in the final boss battle.
By avoiding lazily making him a mindlessly evil figure, Mass Effect elevates Saren to a much more complex level. He embodies so many key themes of the franchise, offers a formidable foe and is a rounded character in his own right.
Seeing this Saren arc with Mass Effect 2’s more polished finish would have been very interesting indeed. As things stand, he gets the franchise off to a blistering start, and is Mass Effect 1’s stand out star.