Board 8 > How would you do in a contest? Day 201 ft Raphael, Handsome Jack, Rufus Shinra

(+) Yeah! (+)

This is a topic to rate the contest strength of potential newcomers in the current contest environment.

I will pick the characters to rate and discuss for each day from user nominations - whoever the 3 most nominated characters are at that time. If there are more than 3 I will pick randomly. You can nominate any number of characters at any time, but you cannot nominate the same character twice.

All characters who were present in the 2018 Character Battle will NOT be eligible. Otherwise you can nominate any character that has appeared in video games; even comic book characters. This will exclude real-life athletes who have only appeared in long running sports series, however I will accept those who have their own games such as Shaq. I will accept nominations for iconic gaming duos too, if there is a compelling reason for both characters to be linked (either co-starring in a game ala Banjo & Kazooie, or always appearing together like Callie & Marie from Splatoon).

Each day will have a separate topic, and nominations will carry over. As far as actually rating the character's contest strength; I ask that users rank a characters potential strength with one of the following qualifiers - LAW Fodder, Low Fodder, Mid Fodder, High Fodder, Fodder Line, Low Midcarder, Midcarder, High Midcarder, Near Elite, Elite, LAW Tier (capable of beating Link). I will average all the ratings given to a character to come up with their final ranking. I have included a highlighted entrant from Character Battle X on each tier of the strength rankings below, to provide a baseline for each.

Note that LAW Fodder is meant to be a tier reserved for the weakest possible characters to put into a contest. A character will only be placed there if at least 3/4ths of the voters for that day agree on the LAW Fodder rating, and no ratings above Low Fodder are given. If either of those conditions are not met, the character will not be eligible for the LAW Fodder tier.

Current Character Strength Rankings: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1P1AIhHywBiLd6VAMZMNEGX-HW2td8u1D0Iw_tzHsORw/edit?usp=sharing

Nomination List: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-KnSBDzppzPK5Ug1zmx8_x0bG4tqFDMPPH2k8J3s8sk/edit?usp=sharing

If you feel that a character has been over or under-ranked, or if a new development has come up that would affect their contest strength, you may nominate them for a re-ranking. You may nominate one character per day for this, and 3 votes are needed to get them on the slate. One character with 3 votes will come up for re-ranking today.

Re-ranking Nomination List: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1V6dx-tu-FD1rCxbX69eQwEzE7x1F6nNRNFochYHu1dc/edit?usp=sharing

Results from Day 200:

Anna (Fire Emblem series) is Low Fodder
Reno (Final Fantasy VII) is High Fodder
Kenny McCormick (South Park) is Mid Fodder

Re-Ranking Result:

Ariel (Disneys The Little Mermaid) is now Mid Fodder

Here is today's trio to rank:

Rufus Shinra (Final Fantasy VII)
Handsome Jack (Borderlands 2)
Raphael (TMNT)

Today's Re-Ranking is:

Urbosa (Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild)

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Rufus Shinra (Final Fantasy VII) - Mid fodde
Handsome Jack (Borderlands 2) - Low fodder
Raphael (TMNT) - High fodder

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Handsome Jack - Borderline

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Rufus I say is Mid Fodder. I'm not sure how well-liked he is, but he is a major character in FFVII and remembered for his ruthless method of running Shinra. I don't think his redemption changes much, considering his only significant appearance post-redemption is in Advent Children.

Handsome Jack I think is Mid Fodder. I think he is pretty well-liked, but may get some anti-votes due to how much of an dick he is. I am the fucking hero!

I'm surprised it took this long to get another turtle up for ranking. I will stay consistent with previous rankings and put Raph at Fodder Line. TMNT had their heyday in the 90s; the prime position to get nostalgia votes from the Gfaqs demographic. The series also has a long history of games, including beat-em-up favorite TMNT Turtles in Time. Raph is the "cool" turtle who gets a lot of fight scenes and was often a favorite with kids, but I think his dickish tendencies and short temper will turn some people off - enough to keep him from breaking the fodder line.

Urbosa I say is High Fodder. She doesn't have that big of a role in BotW all things considered, but she probably has some popularity due to her design and personality. And of course, she is from what is likely the Game of the Decade on the site.

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Same votes as half_silver.

I suspect Handsome Jack's not gonna last at mid-fodder; Borderlands doesn't seem like the type of franchise that would keep strength long-term without well-liked new content and Borderlands 3 doesn't seem to have gone over too well. Wouldn't be surprised if he's around the border of mid-to-low fodder, though I'll support him at mid for now. His series at least got a high-profile new game that wasn't outright hated a few months ago; that probably isn't bad for him. Do him again a year or two from now and I might be less generous.

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How would I do in a contest indeed?

Handsome Jack: Low Fodder - Borderlands 3 is closer than you'd think to being outright hated around here, judging by its average rating among other factors. As such, I'm inclined to think any bounce from its release has already dissipated, which leaves Jack with a weak base of popularity.

I agree with the rest of half_silver's votes.

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nominate Tiny Tina

Putting up Day 202 early since I'll be busy later: https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/boards/8-gamefaqs-contests/78288845

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