Bring Back the Bastards
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A good villain can really elevate a game above its peers. Of course, I'm mainly talking about first-person shooters, RPGs and the like: games that follow a good story. Remember characters like Jon Irenicus in Baldur's Gate 2? Now he was a bastard: someone you developed a real hatred for as he popped up time and time again, doing very mean things to you and your friends.
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That bloke from Fable 2 was quite nasty, but the fact that I can't even remember his name says it all, really. Saren and the massive bastard (and I mean in size and disposition) Sovereign from Mass Effect were a step in the right direction, and it's not often that more than one villain sharing the spotlight can work without them both being a little diluted. But they kind of pulled it off in Mass Effect - Saren being a more recognisable pantomime villain offset by the abstract mega-villain of Sovereign, whose eventual revelation pushes the story and pace of the game into overdrive and provides a genuine threat that changes the atmosphere from exciting space adventure to horror, dread and urgency. It ultimately leads to a finale packed with so much adrenaline that it's burned itself into my memory as one of my all-time classic gaming moments.
