Summary
Video games about sciencearen’t exactly common in the games' industry. There are some examples, such asKerbal Space ProgramorFoldIt,that attempt to make the scientific side of their gameplay fun, and do so successfully. More often than not though, even games that feature a scientist as their lead character have a tendency to prioritize action over science. They’re usually just more fun that way.
That said, featuring a scientist in a leading role is surprisingly common in video games, and it has been for a long time. Not all of these scientists are activelydoing sciencein their games, but some of them are, and regardless of their access to scientific gameplay mechanics,these video game protagonists are all either accredited scientists, or have earned enough scientific knowledge to be worthy of the title.
8Heaven’s Vault
Aliya Must Discover And Decipher An Ancient Alien Language
InHeaven’s Vault,players take on the role of archaeologist Aliya Elasra as she attempts to decipher the language of an alien race, known only as the Ancients, as she searches for a missing roboticist named Janniqi in a distant Nebula. According to the game’s developers, there are over 1000 words to translate, with the design of the language’s characters taking inspiration from Ancient Egyptian and Chinese calligraphy.
Players must use deductive reasoning, as well as the help of the game’s other characters, to translate the texts they discover.Heaven’s Vaultfeatures a non-linear narrative, meaning Aliya can explore the Nebula in any order that players want. Occasionally, they will also face narrative choices that can impact the direction of the plot, and the extent of their understanding of the language of the Ancients can help guide these decisions toward positive outcomes.
While players would be forgiven if they thought thatHalf-Life 2’sGordon Freeman was a typical gun-toting badass FPS protagonist, there’s a lot more to him than that. While it’s not always obviouswhen he’s swinging around his iconic crowbar,Gordon is a theoretical physicist. He has a PhD from MIT, and wrote his thesis on (in layperson terms) the teleportation of matter via extremely dense elements.
Given that he’s a silent protagonist, Gordon doesn’t get to flex his scientific knowledge all that often. That is, unless players take into account the multitude of physics puzzles that he has to solve throughout theHalf-Lifeseries. Are these puzzles fairly simple from a physics perspective? Definitely, the game wouldn’t be fun otherwise. Yet, when it comes down to it, Gordon is finding these solutions on the fly, and while under immense pressure, which belies his affinity for solving physics-based problems.
Alex Mercer May Not Remember It, But He Helped Design The Blacklight Virus
Prototype
You are the Prototype, Alex Mercer, a man without memory armed with amazing shape-shifting abilities, hunting your way to the heart of the conspiracy which created you; making those responsible pay.Fast & Deadly Shape-Shifting Combat:Reconfigure your body to the situation at hand. From Claws to Blades to Hammers to Whips, choose the right weapon for the situation. Change to a shield or armor for defense, or use advanced sensory powers (thermal vision, infected vision) to track your enemiesOver-the-Top Locomotion & Agility:Seamlessly and fluidly bound from building to building, run up walls, bounce off cars and everything in your path. Adaptive parkour lets you move freely through the open-world environments of New York City.Unique Disguising Abilities:Consume anyone at anytime, take on their appearances and assume their memories and special abilities.Deep, Conspiracy-Driven Storyline:Wake up with no memory of the past…just mysterious powers and a link to a town in Idaho. Delve into the mysteries of your origin, the true nature of your power and your part in a conspiracy 40 years in the making.
In the firstPrototype,Alex Mercer has complete amnesia. All he knows is that heawoke with terrifying shapeshifting powers,seemingly brought on by the outbreak of something called the Blacklight Virus. This virus has spread throughout New York City, turning its victims into hideous mutated monsters, and in Alex’s search for the truth about his own identity and powers, he must uncover the virus' origins as well.
As it turns out, the Blacklight Virus was human engineered, and not just by anyone; Alex himself was the lead researcher on the project. While his credentials are never specified, one can assume he has a history in organic chemistry, microbiology, and/or virology to land himself in such an important and secretive position. His scientist side emerges more inPrototype 2,where Alex takes on the role of the villain, but the fact remains that he essentially gave himself powers via a weaponized virus that he created.
Technically, the Hearthian that players control inOuter Wilds,referred to simply as “the Hatchling,” is a Cadet, and the newest member of the Outer Wilds Ventures, an organization dedicated to exploring the Hearthian solar system. However, throughout their exploration, the Hatchling does a lot of navigating ancient ruins, translating ancient texts, and examining ancient technology, which, for all intents and purposes, makes them an archaeologist.
The Hatchling clearly doesn’t have much in the way of scientific background (they’re still referred to by a child-like moniker despite also being an accredited space explorer), but they have a knack for it nonetheless. The Hatchling shows a talent for quickly grasping complex topics, such as quantum mechanics, orbital physics, fluid dynamics, and basic engineering (they are able to quickly repair their ship, after all). Given the time loop they find themselves in, the Hatchling has plenty of opportunity to learn as many scientific disciplines as they’d like, as long as they stick to 22-minute study sessions.
Almost nothing is known about Ryley Robinson, the protagonist ofSubnautica, prior to his crash landing on Planet 4546B. He is employed by the Altera Corporation as a Non-Essential Systems Analysis Chief, which is presumably why he was on board the Aurora when it crash-landed. He was maintaining non-essential systems. How exciting. This suggests he has some kind of engineering experience, but to call him a scientist at this point is a bit of a stretch.
The thing is, by the time his journey comes to an end and Ryley escapes Planet 4546B, there is probably no human in the universe more qualified to call themselves a Xenobiologist than he is. Ryley hasdiscovered, observed, studied, and cataloged over 40 different alien species. Granted, he had the help of his ship’s on-board computer, but given his situation, Ryley is effectively forced into being a scientist if he wants to survive, and he takes to the work quite well.
Getting lost in the Amazon Rainforest is a distinct possibility for pretty much anyone who wanders into it in the first place. The world’s largest tropical rainforest (more than three times bigger than the world’s second-largest tropical rainforest) is almost unfathomably vast. There are huge swaths that have never been explored by humans. So it makes sense that Jake Higgins might get himself lost while exploring there.
The thing is, Jake is no over-zealous adventurer with a lack of common sense. He’s an Anthropologist who is studying the ancient tribes of the Amazon, specifically the Yabahuacas. He even brings his wife, Dr. Mia Higgins, with him as his interpreter, because of her knowledge of ancient languages. While the gameplay ofGreen Helldoesn’t feature much in the way of Anthropological studies (Jake is a bit too busy struggling to find food, water, and shelter), the two main characters are both gifted scientists with a broad knowledge of the rainforest they are lost in.
Spider-Man isn’t easy to picture sitting in front of a Bunsen burner or peering into a microscope, butPeter Parker fits that image to a T.Long before he donned the red and white spandex, and even before he was bitten by a radioactive spider, Peter was a science prodigy. InMarvel’s Spider-Man,Peter is top of his class at Empire State University, and earns himself a job at Octavius Industries after graduating, working under the supervision of one Otto Octavius, and he does all this while balancing his studies with his responsibilities as Spider-Man.
While Peter’s credentials are never detailed in-game, it’s clear from the gadgets he’s built for his Spider-Man activities that he is at least extremely proficient in chemistry and engineering. There is a modicum of quick-thinking physics calculations he needs to do in order to web swing effectively, and several minigames throughout the campaign have him either dealing with reconnecting electrical circuits, or analyzing substances through a spectrograph, both of which require him to use his scientific knowledge.
Artemy Burakh Learns That Being The Town’s Only Doctor Is Hard Work
Pathologic 2
Pathologic 2 is a narrative-driven dramatic thriller about fighting a deadly outbreak in a secluded rural town. The town is dying. Face the realities of a collapsing society as you make difficult choices in seemingly lose-lose situations. The plague isn’t just a disease. You can’t save everyone.The plague is devouring the town. The chief local healer is dead, and you are now to take his place. You’ll have to look for unexpected allies. The local kids are hiding something. Try playing by their rules.You only have 12 days.
Artemy Burakh never intended to become The Town’s doctor; that was always his father Isidor’s job. Yet when his father is murdered, Artemy must return to the place where he grew up and simultaneously take up his father’s mantle, and solve his murder. Artemy is a trained surgeon, but he’s about to find himself in a situation he could never have prepared for.That is the setup forPathologic 2.
The night after Artemy arrives, a deadly plague sweeps through The Town, something that had also happened five years earlier. Artemy’s father dealt with the last plague by quarantining it in the Crude Sprawl, leaving everyone inside to die but sparing the rest of The Town. This time, quarantine is not an option, and the plague is running rampant before anyone can react. Any character in the game can get sick at any time, even named NPCs, and if Artemy hasn’t discovered a cure, they will die. The goal of the game is just that: find and concoct a cure, save as many people as possible, and if there’s time left, solve the murder of Isidor Burakh.
So technically, for 95% of the time that players are actively playing theAssassin’s CreedRPG Trilogy,they’re playing as one of Bayek, Alexandra, Alexios, or Eivor, the featured Assassins in each of the three games. However, anyACfan will know that controlling these Assassins isn’t just down to the player with the controller. There is a person in the series' near-future setting controlling them through the Animus, and players are effectively controllingthat person,not the Assassin. In the case of the RPG Trilogy, that person is Layla Hassan.
Layla is not a fully-accredited scientist. At the urging of her father, she enrolled in the Electrical Engineering program at Berkeley, but quickly lost interest. However, it was at Berkeley that she met Sofia Rikkin, a recruiter for Abstergo Industries. Intrigued by Layla’s penchant for technology, Sofia offered her a job at Abstergo in Research and Development, and by 2006, Layla had worked her wayup to the Animus project.Players don’treallyplay as Layla in this trilogy; at least, it doesn’t feel like they are, but she deserves an honorable mention because she is both technically the player’s avatar in the games, and is technically a trained and experienced electrical engineer, and by the end of the trilogy, she’s added significant archeology experience to her resume as well.
