Who are you? Who am I? What is this? How beaten is the dead horse that is amnesia? It’s probably one of the most used tropes that exists in any given medium. And why not? It’s an extremely easy way to work the backstory of a character in. The problem is that it’s often an overused, underwhelming tactic that can be lazy or even nonsensical under the worst circumstances. That said, amnesia is also a good way for other people to find out about a character or for the character themselves to find out and therefore give exposition to a character’s being. It might be a trope, but it’s certainly still a thing that moves the story along in a lot of cases.

Some characters are written well with amnesia, especially in video games. It gives a depth to their character that they might otherwise be without. Sometimes, mechanics in the game are better suited to a character that needs to be a blank slate. Occasionally, amnesia is a door that opens up the way to so many different plot elements and mechanics that exist outside the character with the affliction. There’s a beauty to anything done right and amnesia is no exception. Even as a trope, when employed correctly, it helps to make a character or game memorable or meaningful. These are characters for which amnesia offered a boon to the games in which they existed. These are the 10 Best Amnesiacs in Video Games.

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