Character Popularity Poll Results

[zoned out]

I'm glad Flora, Eponine, Gunther, Benoit, and Zero did as well as they did. Only thing I'm disappointed in is seeing Ignis in the bottom ten.

[Time the Crestfallen]

I'm actually quite surprised Aqua ranked so high (better than the last poll iirc). Yes yes, she's a main character and eternally devoted to the self-insert but she doesn't have the overwhelming sex appeal of Camilla and she only sporadically shows up in the first two routes to be an exposition-bot. Then again, Sir-not-appearing-in-this-story Hinoka ranked right behind her so maybe game utility > writing.

I will admit that her role in the story is absolute nonsense (but then, so is Xander's), but she's right up there with Takumi in terms of character/personality (in my opinion at least). Her trust issues stem from horrible past experiences with pulling, which is very relatable. Then there's all the minor aspects of her personality that crop up in supports (Her trolling/teasing side as well as sarcasm and bluntness, love of horror stories ETC) that all make her feel very human. Her supports are also very good (mostly), with all three with Kamui, the siblings (minus S-Rank for Takumi and Ryoma), Lazwald and Arthur being stand-outs. I honestly think she would've ranked higher (maybe even first) if her role in the plot wasn't a symbol of everything that is wrong with Fates' story.

Edited November 29, 2015 by Phillius

[Abvora]

I will admit that her role in the story is absolute nonsense (but then, so is Xander's), but she's right up there with Takumi in terms of character/personality (in my opinion at least). Her trust issues stem from horrible past experiences with pulling, which is very relatable. Then there's all the minor aspects of her personality that crop up in supports (Her trolling/teasing side as well as sarcasm and bluntness, love of horror stories ETC) that all make her feel very human. Her supports are also very good (mostly), with all three with Kamui, the siblings (minus S-Rank for Takumi and Ryoma), Lazwald and Arthur being stand-outs. I honestly think she would've ranked higher (maybe even first) if her role in the plot wasn't a symbol of everything that is wrong with Fates' story.

Oh my god I canNOT agree with this enough. It boggles my mind whenever people say Azura's bland, because she has one of the most well-developed, non-gimmicky personalities in the game. Does she come off as boring due to all the exposition in the main story? Yes, I won't deny that. But there's so much more to her once you look at her supports, and you don't even have to go digging too deep or desperately to find her hidden depths.

[Time the Crestfallen]

It's partially the exposition. But I think it's mostly about how, while you don't have to dig deep into the supports, you DO have to read supports because none of her character besides 'mysterious' shows up at all outside of them. The whole 'mysterious waif' bit also gets on people's nerves a bit because IS tries to force it. Even on the third route where all the mystery around her from the pendant, to parentage and so on gets explained, her epilogue still mentions that she was 'a mystery to the end' or whatever.

[Sunwoo]

My problem with Aqua is when you try to look at and rationalize her actions across all three routes, she's kind of stupid.

[Abvora]

@Phillius: Good point. Hopefully the localization tones down the mysterious vibes and lets the rest of her personality shine more.

@Sunwoo: Fair enough, although she's hardly the only one guilty of holding an Idiot Ball at some point or other. I think, of all the major characters, Leo's the only one who doesn't.

Anyway, for the popularity poll, I was so happy to see Flora, Kaze, Charlotte and Gunter do well. Especially Gunter, he's such a great father-figure and character, but I was worried his age and Kamuisexual status would doom him to the lower ranks. Orochi being dead last surprised me, though, I knew she wasn't popular, but I didn't think she was that UNpopular either.

And hopefully IntSys will note the low rankings of the kids (especially compared to Awakening's) and realize that they either need to pull them from the game completely, or come up with an actual good reason to justify their existence.

[Sunwoo]

@Sunwoo: Fair enough, although she's hardly the only one guilty of holding an Idiot Ball at some point or other. I think, of all the major characters, Leo's the only one who doesn't.

I'm not sure if even Leon's exempt from the idiot ball, in all honesty, I watched a translated playthrough of Hoshido and something he did just made me go ???, although the problem with Aqua holding the idiot ball is that she likely could've prevented both routes by not holding it.

[NekoKnight]

It's partially the exposition. But I think it's mostly about how, while you don't have to dig deep into the supports, you DO have to read supports because none of her character besides 'mysterious' shows up at all outside of them. The whole 'mysterious waif' bit also gets on people's nerves a bit because IS tries to force it. Even on the third route where all the mystery around her from the pendant, to parentage and so on gets explained, her epilogue still mentions that she was 'a mystery to the end' or whatever.

Fair enough. Maybe I'd like her more as a person if I read more her supports (I did enjoy some of them, tbh) but her forced mysteriousness/expositionbotting in the main game is really frustrating and her role in the plot even more so.

[Time the Crestfallen]

Fair enough. Maybe I'd like her more as a person if I read more her supports (I did enjoy some of them, tbh) but her forced mysteriousness/expositionbotting in the main game is really frustrating and her role in the plot even more so.

My problem with Aqua is when you try to look at and rationalize her actions across all three routes, she's kind of stupid.

Both of your points are absolutely correct, and I can easily understand why you'd feel that way. Hell, I'm probably even more upset by all of that because I'm such a big fan of Azura. I've just seen so many people dismissing her as a character outright because of those facts when those are more flaws with the story than Azura herself (i.e. it'd be easier to count the number of characters that don't grab the idiot ball than the ones that do). Really, I'm just pointing out that Azura might have done better in the polls or even been the top female if her role in the story wasn't...well, what it is.

[Thor Odinson]

Yeah I actually really enjoyed her supports as well. I've been keeping tabs on pretty much every translated support and I've enjoyed a good number of her's. Real shame on her story role, though.

[Faye]

mfw my Hoshido wife and husband placed 27th and 25th place respectively. :< At least my Nohr husband Leo ranked #1, and Flora ranked #8.

[The DanMan]

I think Aqua is the most jarring example of the differences between the supports and the main game.

[Thane]

I think Aqua is the most jarring example of the differences between the supports and the main game.

Really? I didn't care for any of Azura's supports aside maybe the one with Sakura; it's usually just her being withdrawn and super mysterious you guise.

Honestly, for me it's Xander. Xander in the main plot is about as stupid as Azura (albeit with fewer idiotic plans) and with even less of a spine, but comes across as a swell dude in his supports.

Edited November 29, 2015 by Thane

[CyborgZeta]

I think Aqua is the most jarring example of the differences between the supports and the main game.

Personally, I think Xander is a better example of that.

[PuffPuff]

She got a lot more attention than the other Kamuisexuals, though. She's even on the box art.

I was pretty shocked she placed higher than Felicia, though.

She's only higher because of a better VA which hoping that it will change in America. But her, Felicia and Elise brings kawaiiness to this game!

If the reason why Orochi is not liked is that she is pushy and teases people even if they dislike it... what about Mr. Sadistic Night Zero? .-.

There must be more to her unpopularity. I say being a crappy unit does it, then being a mature woman puts the nail in her coffin.

It's disturbing that her Speed and HP grow lousy than most characters.

I'm really glad that Oboro is popular. She's probably my favorite character in the game for having a personality beyond a bad anime trope. Hopefully her popularity inspires IS to make more characters like her.

She's the best Hoshido character too tierwise next to Ryoma. Possibly the best character that I've ever used!

For what it's worth Oboro's outfit is pretty good and I can't find anything to nitpick about it, so there's a counterbalance

Well...she knows about fashion and she is somewhat vain.

I am happy Zero is high because I like him, but let's not pretend he's not a terrible human being.

Zero Best Male Character!

Oboro Best Female Character!

This. I for one sure as hell don't want my mother to be like Camilla. Bottom line, as someone have already said, if Camilla had Hinoka's body and outfit, there's no way she would've gotten second place.

Hmmm, I've always felt like Nohr and its characters got more love from the very beginning and it has stayed that way (especially looking at the results of the three polls).

Even though it is annoying to do that in a fight.

But...it's shocking that Odin and Kagerou are low when they offer fanservice more than most characters in the game!

[Dark Paladin X]

And hopefully IntSys will note the low rankings of the kids (especially compared to Awakening's) and realize that they either need to pull them from the game completely, or come up with an actual good reason to justify their existence.

Well, I wouldn't completely advocate removing the children feature of Fire Emblem games. There are players that want to be rewarded for shipping two characters and bear a child unit that would help them in their gameplay. I would argue, however, that their characterization in Fates is far more bland when compared to Awakening (which can easily explain their low popularity placement). However, I do agree that Intelligent Systems need to come up with a better reason why the said children exist (in Awakening, time travel plays a major role in that game, so having children would make sense), but the children in Fates are simply just there. This is also something the localization team of Nintendo of America need to keep note of if they want to make the children more likable for the western audience.

[Abvora]

@Phillius: No one hates Azura's role in the plot more than Azura's own fans.

@TheDanMan: Jarring in a good or bad way, lol. I think she does have the biggest difference between how she is in the plot and how she is in the supports, but that also extends to the other main characters. They're all just horribly chained down by the story.

@Thane: That's where you're wrong. She's quiet in her supports, but that's due to her emotional detachment, not her mysteriousness--actually, as her supports with Flannel and Asama show, both those things sprout from the same issue: fear of rejection and relying on people only to be let down. Which probably also sprouts from her bullied childhood in the Nohr courts, but that's never confirmed or denied. Hence, she keeps her distance from people she doesn't trust--everyone but her "siblings" and Corrin--which causes her to come off as mysterious. The player and other characters DO learn about her, she just doesn't rely on a gimmick for characterization.

You don't have to like her, but she's not just "mystery girl" in her supports.

Edited November 29, 2015 by Abvora

[NeonZ]

And hopefully IntSys will note the low rankings of the kids (especially compared to Awakening's) and realize that they either need to pull them from the game completely, or come up with an actual good reason to justify their existence.

I don't think the children's ranking is that low, comparatively. Awakening didn't have anything similar to the royals taking up so much story time. That pretty much guaranteed that they'd be taking up a bunch of spots on the top of the ranking. The lack of a large main cast in Awakening allowed more minor characters to get higher rankings in general, and obviously that benefits the 2nd gen in a popularity ranking like this.

Lucina was 1st, but she was a lord and part of the main story, when you look at the optional children, Severa was only the 7th most popular female and then Morgan after her in 9th. There are a bunch of female children in the 10-14 ranking this time which seems pretty close. Now, in the male ranking, Owain and Inigo did much better, in spite of no story presence, but what seems to have happened this time is that there aren't any stand out popular male child characters, comparable to Owain and Inigo. Rather than that, the most popular non-royals are Joker, Zero... and Owain and Inigo again.

[exizel]

but what seems to have happened this time is that there aren't any stand out popular male child characters.

The fact that the children are link to the father didn't help, the female 2nd gen probably got a lot of votes for being daughters of a popular 1st gen characters, people could vote for the father and the daughter at the same time, but voting for your favorite character's son means one less vote for the father(who is your favorite character)

If you look at the poll, the 1st 3 first gen male characters who have a daughter are Zero, Odin and Lazward(not counting Kamui)who are the fathers of the 1st 3 2nd gen female(Eponime, Ophelia and Soleil).

[Ennui]

The fact that the children are link to the father didn't help, the female 2nd gen probably got a lot of votes for being daughters of a popular 1st gen characters, people could vote for the father and the daughter at the same time, but voting for your favorite character's son means one less vote for the father(who is your favorite character)

If you look at the poll, the 1st 3 first gen male characters who have a daughter are Zero, Odin and Lazward(not counting Kamui)who are the fathers of the 1st 3 2nd gen female(Eponime, Ophelia and Soleil).

Good observation! Its funny how Odin and Lazward are 8th and 9th place respectively on the Favorite Male list and Ophelia and Soleil are 13th and 14th place respectively on the Favorite Female list. Perhaps people did do the whole "father/daugher" simultaneous voting as you said. Although I guess it wouldn't be too surprising that they did.

[Dark Paladin X]

The fact that the children are link to the father didn't help, the female 2nd gen probably got a lot of votes for being daughters of a popular 1st gen characters, people could vote for the father and the daughter at the same time, but voting for your favorite character's son means one less vote for the father(who is your favorite character)

If you look at the poll, the 1st 3 first gen male characters who have a daughter are Zero, Odin and Lazward(not counting Kamui)who are the fathers of the 1st 3 2nd gen female(Eponime, Ophelia and Soleil).

Good observation! Its funny how Odin and Lazward are 8th and 9th place respectively on the Favorite Male list and Ophelia and Soleil are 13th and 14th place respectively on the Favorite Female list. Perhaps people did do the whole "father/daugher" simultaneous voting as you said. Although I guess it wouldn't be too surprising that they did.

Come to think of it, I think there might be some correlation between the child's popularity and the father's popularity, but I don't think is universal. If you look at the male popularity charts, Xander and Ryouma manage to land in #2 and #6 respectfully, but their respective sons Shinonome and Siegbert, only landed in #23 and #30 respectfully. Interestingly enough, Leo's son, Foleo is at 11th place, but it's more of the fact that Foleo is considered to be a "trap" character rather than his kindhearted and friendly personality (a male character that either dresses up as a girl, or looks like a girl). Mind you there is a actually a niche genre in Japanese anime and video games that focuses about feminine looking male characters crossdressing. Takumi is ranked #3, but his son, Kisaragi, is ranked #31 in the male popularity list.

But I do see some sort of correlation between the child's popularity and the father's popularity. It is obvious that their fathers will obviously be more popular than their children, but here's a quick summary of the father/child popularity placement:

Leo (#1)/ Foleo (#11)

Female Avatar (#1)/ Male Kanna (#32)

Xander (#2)/ Siegbert (#30)

Takumi (#3)/ Kisaragi (#31)

Jakob (#4)/ Deere ( #18)

Male Avatar (#5)/ Female Kanna (#34)

Azura (#5)/ Shigure (#26)

Ryouma (#6)/ Shinonome (#23)

Zero (#7)/ Éponine (#10)

Odin (#8)/ Ophelia (#13)

Lazward (#9)/ Soleil (#14)

Kaze (#10)/ Midoriko (#22)

Benolt (#13)/ Ignis (#33)

Silas (#14)/ Sophie (#33)

Saizou (#15)/ Gurei (#29)

Subaki (#16)/ Matoi (#26)

Hinata (#17)/ Hisame (#27)

Arthur (#19)/ Lutz (#34)

Asama (#20)/ Mitama (#29)

Flannel (#22)/ Velour (#19)

Nishiki (#24)/ Kinu (#16)

Tsukuyomi (#25)/ Syalla (#24)

From this observation, there seem to be a strong correlation between the child's popularity and the character's popularity, but it's not all universal as there can be other factors that determine the child's popularity. The father/child pair that had lowest differential popularity ranking is Zero/Éponine by 3 point difference while Female Avatar/Male Kanna had the highest differential popularity by 31 points. The only three characters where the children are more popular than their fathers are Syalla (who's mostly based out of Tharja), Velour, and Kinu (since female furries is considered to be "kawaii" by Japanese standards than their male counterparts). Children with similar personality traits from their fathers have higher differential popularity ratings while children who have highlighted difference have lower differential popularity ratings. Gamplay on the unit can also play a role in the child's popularity (for example, Midoriko, Ignis, and Sophie are probably situational units on certain walkthroughs, but Éponine is a solid overall unit for Nohr route if you don't like to make Mozume an archer).

I could argue that the reason Ophelia and Soleil are popular because their designs are mostly based out of Odin's and Lazward's mothers (Lissa and Olivia respectfully). The children characters based direcly the first-gen Awakening characters (Gurei, Matoi, and Syalla), surprisingly weren't as popular in comparison to Ophelia and Soleil

[Thor Odinson]

I wonder how the polls would change if we split the generations. I know I expended all my male votes on Ryouma in pursuit of a chance to get him a nendo or charaform or something, but if, say, there's a gen2 poll split from gen1, Shino would've gotten all my votes there instead of being in direct competition from his dad.

[Sarthanta]

Of course all of my least favorite males get in the top ten.

My boys Gunter and Saizou did great.

Arthur and Asyura are way better than expected.

Izana and Tsukuyomi are fine.

Ignis didn't get last place.

RIP Otacon

Mitama is meh.

[ivanhellsing]

-snip-

You don't have to like her, but she's not just "mystery girl" in her supports.

do not bother wasting breath explaining them stuff, they are too busy riding their hate boner for her and such kusoge taste japan

[Tsuky]

But...it's shocking that Odin and Kagerou are low when they offer fanservice more than most characters in the game!

Odin definitely didn't rank low. He's the 3rd most popular non-royal among the guys; that's really good. And Kagerou is way less "in-your-face" about her body than Camilla; not super great "fanservice" if you ask me.

Fanservice isn't the only factor in a character's popularity, but it's a pretty big factor. In fact, I would argue that for the Japanese fanbase, Elise and Sakura probably offer more "fanservice" than Kagerou, with the whole loli appeal and all.

I wonder how the polls would change if we split the generations. I know I expended all my male votes on Ryouma in pursuit of a chance to get him a nendo or charaform or something, but if, say, there's a gen2 poll split from gen1, Shino would've gotten all my votes there instead of being in direct competition from his dad.

I really wanted them to do this, even in Awakening. I know for sure that my votes would've all gone to Shinonome if they split the polls, but sadly, Ryouma takes priority when they are competing against each other.

Edited November 30, 2015 by Tsuky