Characters that have appeared in the ''.hack'' novels, {{anime}}, manga, and VideoGames. Players of a virtual reality MMORPG called "The World" that keeps [[MindRape mind raping]] them; but they keep playing.
'''Due to the nature of the series, spoilers are inevitable. Continue with caution.'''
-----
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder: Pre-.Hack//SIGN]]
!Harald Hoerwick
-->Voiced by: TakumiYamazaki (Japanese); Creator/CrispinFreeman (English; ''Liminality Only'') Brian Dobson (English; IMOQ only)
''World Identity:'' Numerous [=AI=] avatars in The World's BlackBox areas, cryptic at best, and incomprehensible at worst. It's possible that one or more of them represent his actual living consciousness. Morganna destroys them as she becomes aware of them.
''Real Identity:'' Harald is the original programmer of the game ''Fragment'', later "upgraded" by [=CC Corp=] as ''The World''. He wrote it while studying the human consciousness in order to create Aura, a true [=AI=]: a testament of his love for Emma Wielant, and their daughter in spirit.
''Appears in:'' ''[[DotHackSign .hack//SIGN]]'', the four R:1 ''.hack'' games, ''.hack//Liminality''. What appear to be the very last remnants of him also appear in ''Roots'', before the area he inhabits is deleted... [[spoiler: until its remains come back in the GU games as [[MarathonLevel 100-floor dungeon]]]]
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AIIsACrapshoot[=/=]CreatingLife: Harald's goals: To immortalize his beloved's poetry through The World, to create a true artificial intelligence, and to create the daughter he and Emma would never have. [[spoiler: He unwittingly achieved his second goal as early as the creation of Fragment, and his last was achieved posthumously.]]
* BlackBox: He is the programmer of the black box that ''The World'' and its reiterations run on.
* CrypticConversation: His A.I. copy is prone to engaging into this with players, when it's not rambling to itself.
* EvilutionaryBiologist: The only thing that keeps him from embodying this trope completely is his good intentions.
* DesignerBabies[=/=]ReplacementGoldfish: Wishes to create one to replace a child who wasn't even ''born.''
* DummiedOut: Much of the bizarre elements in The World are partially written code from the original ''Fragment''. The current programmers don't know how to deal with them, and sort of write around them instead.
* LoveMakesYouCrazy[=/=]StalkerWithACrush: His obsession with Emma Wielant - even after his death - has nearly crashed the Internet numerous times, and has placed people into comas.
* [[MadScientist Mad]] [[TheEngineer Engineer]]: The fact that he designed an MMORPG as a front for the creation and fostering of an A.I. child with traits of himself and his UnrequitedLove should be enough of an indication of this.
* TheMuse[=/=]UnrequitedLove: Emma Wielant took inspiration from Harald's work in neurotheory; Harald was interested in her, but she was romantically involved with another man during her and Harald's friendship, and showed no romantic interest in Harald.
* VirtualGhost: Possibly.
!Emma Wielant
''World Identity:'' Emma does not appear in The World, although fragments of her poem appear in places.
''Real Identity:'' A German poetess who wrote "The Epitaph of Twilight", the poem that ''Fragment'' was based on, shortly before her death. It told of the [[{{Gotterdammerung}} end of the gods]] in a battle between the "Twilight Dragon" and "The Cursed Wave." The original text has been lost, leaving only recovered fragments of the original and various rough drafts.
''Mentioned in:'' ''.hack//AI Buster'' ''.hack//SIGN'', the four R:1 ''.hack'' games, ''.hack//Liminality''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* CrypticConversation
* [[GaiasVengeance Gaia's Avenger]] Was a member of an Extremist Eviromentalist group, "Mama", [[spoiler: along with the founders of ALTIMIT,]] dedicated to halting mankind's activity on earth in order to preserve the planet.
* IllGirl: Was prone to this, due to stress and overwork.
* NonIdleRich: As a young heiress to be, Emma worked as a nurse and was involved in enviromentalism.
* TheMuse: The inspiration for The World.
* MuseAbuse[=/=]ObliviousToLove Possible interpretations of her ambiguous relationship with Harald Hoerwick; she was intrigued by his theories of neurobiology, but ambivalent to his affections.
* ShrugOfGod
!Albireo
''World Identity:'' Captain of the Cobalt Knights; a group of system administrators. Albireo is tasked with removing Vagrant [=AI=] and other irregularities that are the result of the previous games. He witnesses Balmung and Orca's defeat of [[BonusBoss the One Sin]] which made them legends. His hunt of a prototype to Aura named Lycoris led him to the discovery that there is far more to the game than he realized; and that the [=AI=] are [[WhatMeasureIsANonHuman people]]. This realization led to his deteriorating health and withdrawal from the game. His distraught assistant later becomes Kamui.
''Real Identity:'' Kazushi Watarai, an employee at Cyberconnect, or "CC Corporation" and head of its debug team, the Cobalt Knights; was blamed for the Twilight Incident and forced to resign.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//AI Buster'', cameos at the end of ''.hack//Legend of the Twilight Bracelet'', ''.hack//Link''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* {{Badass}}
* CrypticConversation: Really, had he just explained things better to his assistant; a lot of problems in ''.hack//Legend of the Twilight Bracelet'' would have been avoided.
* FaustianRebellion: Averted, Albireo was unknowingly given his spear by Morganna, which had the power to delete [=AI=]. Trying to use it on Macha resulted in its destruction. Tried to save Tsukasa during the events of .hack//SIGN, but was prevented by being Data Drained by Macha before he could come close.
* MeaningfulName: "Albireo" is the name of a binary star in the constellation Cygnus the Swan. Many captains are named after stars in ''.hack''.
* MismatchedEyes: His eyes are colored like his namesake.
* TheScapegoat: Kazushi Watarai was turned into this by the higher-ups of CC Corporation to protect the company as a whole from complete blame for "Pluto Again." Despite being hospitalized prior to the [[VideoGame/DotHackR1Games beginning of the Second Network Crisis]], Watarai was held responsible by the company for letting the situation get out hand, leading to his forced resignation.
!Orca of the Azure Sea
[[quoteright:100:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Orca%20Avy13401.jpg]]
''World Identity:'' One of the so-called "Descendants of Fianna", who defeated a supposedly HopelessBossFight called [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast "The One Sin."]] Orca was actually the original person chosen to receive the Key of the Twilight from Aura; but Skeith got to him first and Data Drained him.
''Real Identity:'' Yatsuhiko, a high school boy, and friends with Kite in real life. His going into a coma is Kite's entire motivation for Kite's quest in the games. He just wanted to show Kite a cool game.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//AI Buster'', ''.hack//R1 games'', ''.hack//Unison''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* TheBigGuy
* DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu: He and Balmung, being the Descendants of Fianna, did this to the [[ThatOneBoss supposedly]] [[HopelessBossFight unkillable]] boss, The One Sin.
* LegacyCharacter: The original.
* RightManInTheWrongPlace: He was supposed to get the Twilight Bracelet, but being comatose kinda wrecked that.
* ScreamingWarrior: Yatsuhiko plays Orca like this.
* MentorOccupationalHazard: He's offed in the very first dungeon of ''Infection''.
* TheObiWan: Part of the ForcedTutorial of the first game.
* WalkingShirtlessScene: A trait of his chosen character model.
!'''Balmung of the Azure Sky'''
[[quoteright:199:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Balmung.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:199:Bomb diggity.]]
-->Voiced by: NobuyukiHiyama (Japanese); DougErholtz (English, ''Infection''); Creator/CrispinFreeman (English, ''Mutation'' onwards)
''World Identity:'' The other "Descendant of Fianna," who was rewarded with customized wings on his character model for dealing the most damage to "The One Sin." He takes his status as a legendary player of The World rather more seriously than Orca does.
''Real Identity:'' A high school boy as of SIGN and the R:1 games. Formerly a beta-tester for ''Fragment'', he's been a gamer his whole life. Becomes a system admin for The World between the games and Legend of the Twilight Bracelet.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//AI Buster'', ''.hack//R1 games'', ''.hack//Legend of the Twilight'', ''.hack//LINK''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: In Legend of the Twilight.
* {{Badass}}: YES!
* CharacterDevelopment[=/=]{{Flanderization}}: ''Legend of the Twilight'' sees a complete 180 of his character: he becomes a goofy, fun-loving admin with a penchant for making really ''weird'' events, a far cry from the dead-serious player of the R1 games.
* ChasteHero: Balmung's real-world player apparently has girls all over him, which he can't understand.
* DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu: The aforementioned defeat of The One Sin.
* FeatherMotif: This is due to the wings he received for defeating The One Sin.
* KnightInShiningArmor
* LawfulStupid: In the R:1 games, as his trust is difficult to earn.
* LargeHam: Thank you, Creator/CrispinFreeman, for the support.
* LegacyCharacter: The original.
* PromotedFanboy: By Legend of the Twilight, Balmung's become an administrator for [=CCCorp=].
* TotallyRadical: "This shindig looks like the bomb diggity." Thank you, ''Unison'' dub.
* WhiteHairedPrettyBoy: Why of course! And fangirls are falling for it!
!'''Lycoris'''
''World Identity:'' An [=AI=] prototype of Aura. Looks very similar to Aura, but with shorter white hair (With red accents based on Whooper Looper) and dressed in red.
''Real Identity:'' None.
''Appears in:'' .hack//AI Buster
!!Tropes Associated With:
* CuteMute: [[spoiler:Until regaining her voice.]]
* DrivenToSuicide: Considers herself a failure because she cannot become Aura, and so eventually deletes herself using Albireo's spear.
* FlawedPrototype [[spoiler: Hence the reason why she is a DeathSeeker]]
* [[spoiler:DeathSeeker Once regaining her memory file she remembers how she is still being hunted by Morgana who's omnipotence allows her to continue tracking her down and won't stop till the deed is done. While it is Albireo who is doing the actual work, and his Colbalt Knights brigade around the first time he "deleted" her Morganna "whispers" her location to admins so they'll delete her.]]
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: Survived the first attempt at deletion by scattering various parts of her program. One of the pieces that got lost was her memory.
* MeaningfulName: [[spoiler:After her death, lycoris blossoms begin appearing in the game; it's hinted that her code was recycled into this scenery.]]
!'''Hokuto'''
''World Identity:'' Hokuto is a newbie Albireo meets while he is in Mac Anu with Lycoris. Childish and restless, she gives Albireo a bit of grief as she forcibly tags along with him on his quest. [[spoiler: This personality is eventually revealed as a fabrication; she is actually secondary character of one of the game community's poets and long-time players, W.B. Yeats.]]
''Real Identity:'' Haruka Mizuhara. Due to her behavior, Albireo assumes that she is a young girl roughly around the beginning of her teen years. [[spoiler: She is actually a professional translator several years Watarai's senior who plays online with Hokuto just so she wouldn't get caught by her boss, who knows her main character.]]
!!Tropes Associated With:
* ManicPixieDreamGirl: In a sense. [[spoiler: It's part of the act.]]
* NiceHat
* ObfuscatingStupidity: [[spoiler: Again, the stupidity is part of the newbie persona of Hokuto.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder: .Hack//SIGN]]
!Morganna Mode Gone
-->Voiced by: RieTanaka (Japanese); Valerie Arem (English)
''World Identity:'' [[spoiler: An [=AI=] designed to be Aura's guardian until she was complete, but she becomes resentful of her role and actively resists Aura's development in a bid for independence. She manifests as a godlike being; a disembodied voice and psychic presence. Until Aura's birth she's the core of The World and as a result, as she breaks down, so does the game.]]
''Real Identity:'' None.
''Appears in: .hack//SIGN .hack//R1 Games''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AIIsACrapshoot: She's basically [[VideoGame/{{Portal}} GLaDOS]] with [[MindRape Data Drain]] instead of [[TheAllSolvingHammer Deadly Neurotoxin]].
* [[spoiler: AbusiveParents: On both ends. Harald created her to compile Aura and was willing to let her cease to exist once she finished. Needless to say, this didn't foster positive feelings for either her "father" OR daughter.]]
* BigBad: Of ''SIGN'' and the ''R:1'' games.
* DespairGambit: [[spoiler: Tsukasa's despair is all she needs...]]
* DeusEstMachina: Before the full awakening of Aura as the Ultimate A.I. She is occasionally referred to as the "Old God" of ''The World'' in-universe.
* EldritchAbomination: Good lord, perhaps even more so than Cubia. [[spoiler:She literally WAS The World until Aura took over, and as such is mostly unseen for a very UltimateEvil effect. Her method of doing battle with the heroes is through the Phases, who count as lesser EldritchAbominations themselves.]] The title "Old God" also rings somewhat familiar in tone to something like "Elder God" as well, a usual Eldritch title.
* FalseReassurance: [[spoiler: She gives this to Tsukasa to keep him under her control.]]
* GodIsEvil
* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: WordOfGod has it she was originally based [[Literature/AliceInWonderland the Queen of Hearts]].
* TheFaceless: She lacks a physical form to begin with (unless you count the divided components of her program, the Eight Phases), with the exception of the non-canon manga based on the IMOQ tetralogy.
* MeaningfulName / RuleOfSymbolism: [[spoiler: If you consider Aura as the [[CrystalDragonJesus Christ analogue]] and Morganna as the [[TheOldGods Old God]], [[DeathOfTheOldGods their power struggle suddenly makes a lot more sense]].]]
* LoadBearingBoss
* TheNameless: Never named in series, although the credits do reveal her identity.
* NothingIsScarier
* [[spoiler: SelfMadeOrphan]]
* [[spoiler: OffingTheOffspring]]: Her ultimate goal.
* TheVoice
!'''Macha'''
''World Identity:'' One of the eight Phases (see below) of Morganna. Looks like a humanoid cat wearing a witch's hat and patched clothes, floating in mid-air. [[spoiler:Later appears after getting Data Drained by Morganna as Mia in the R1 Games, where she is now much taller, has a more human-like body, and acts like a Player Character rather than an AI as well as no memory of her time as Macha. Once Kite starts defeating the phases she realizes what she was and turns into her True form as the 6th Phase, Macha the Temptress]]
''Real Identity:'' None.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Sign'', ''.hack//R1 Games''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* CuteIsEvil: Subverted. Sure, she was summoned and shaped by an evil being for an evil purpose, but she is definitely not evil by the end.
* [[spoiler:HeroicSacrifice]]: Macha was simply a tool through which Morganna could manipulate Tsukasa... at first. After Tsukasa shows Macha a bit of kindness, [[spoiler:Macha saves him and is Data Drained by Morganna in the process, prompting her transformation into Mia.]]
* NoPronunciationGuide: In written works, anyway. It is pronounced "Ma-Ha". No, this isn't a misspelling. Obviously, this is less of a problem in the anime and games, although the spelling might still confuse some people at first. Ironically her name was misspelled as Maha in the Japanese Games.
** She's named after an Irish goddess of War and Horses.
* TheTrickster
* TheUnintelligible: Played with. Macha speaks in text-only, which is viewable by characters, not the viewer. [[spoiler: Once she becomes Mia, she gains a voice]]
** Her text becomes readable in some of the novels.
!Aura
[[quoteright:217:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Aura_(Unison).jpg]]
-->Voiced by: MaayaSakamoto (Japanese); Lia Sargent (English)
''World Identity:'' The ultimate artificial intelligence, the child Harald Hoerwick and Emma Wielant would never have, and the entire purpose for The World's existence. She appears as a young white-haired girl in a simple white gown. By the G.U. games, Aura has left The World entirely to exist elsewhere in the worldwide network.
''Real Identity:'' None.
''Appears in:'' Everything but ''Roots''. And she's referred to in that one, too.
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AngelicBeauty
* BigGood
* CrystalDragonJesus: She was even "born" on Christmas Day.
* DeusEstMachina: She becomes the "New" God of ''The World'' after becoming the Ultimate A.I., and her years of overseeing the game are referred to as the game's "Golden Age." The Jun Bansyoya of the Terminal Disc states that her influence extended not only to ''The World'', but to all the net-based technology in the real world as well. When she disappears at the end of the game's Golden Age, problems around the net began to occur as well, with all affected technology returning to their "normal specifications."
* GodIsDead: Seen this way in ''Roots'' and ''G.U.''
* InstantAIJustAddWater: More like Just add players to the game. If Morganna hadn't rebelled she would have been born using data collected from players.
* MessianicArchetype
* OurGodsAreGreater
* TheMessiah
* TheParagon
* ReplacementGoldfish: A unique example as there wasn't an original version, rather Aura was what "could have been."
* WomanInWhite: It's actully a pale lavender as shown in the image. The exact shade varies between media between Lavender, White, Silver and slighty prismatic.
* WhiteHairedPrettyGirl
!Tsukasa
[[quoteright:250:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/b666996832697d40d8d13c95f9ddb490-1.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: MitsukiSaiga (Japanese); BrianneSiddall (English)
''World Identity:'' An antisocial Wavemaster, his only associates being the enigmatic Macha and a Guardian that attacks anyone threatening him. He's the central character of the SIGN series, as his ability to fully experience The World, and inability to leave, is the mystery that drives the plot.
''Real Identity:'' An Shouji, a high school girl who retreats to the game to escape a miserable home life with a deceased mother and abusive father.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//SIGN'', ''Mutation, Outbreak'' and ''Quarantine'', ''.hack//LINK''
Remnant data appears in the fourth Game and is fashioned into an AI by Helba and can be added to the party after the game is cleared. Not the real deal of course. They also appear in ''Ghost Events'' which [[CallBack re-create]] the events of SIGN.
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AbusiveParents: Having a psychopathic daddy is but one of the reasons for Tsukasa's angst. [[spoiler: He even tries to kill her in the real world in the hospital where she's in a coma.]]
** Topped with ParentalAbandonment thanks to her mother's death.
* AsleepForDays: In a coma for at lest 6 months.
* BrokenBird / TroubledButCute: Due to [[AbusiveParents Parental Abuse]]; and then heapings of MindRape from Morganna.
* CrossPlayer: Due to being Data Drained, not only has amnesia, but doesn't remember that TrueSelf is a girl. Data Draining has resulted in Tsukasa's mind "feeling" everything in The World; so for all extents and purposes a GenderBender.
* DefrostingIceQueen
* {{Expy}}: An Shouji, in addition to being subject to a GenderBender, is quite literally a [[GenderFlip GenderFlipped]] Expy of [[Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion Ikari Shinji]]. Though her given name is written with the kanji for ''Anzu'', it is read as ''An'', which can mean either "copy" or "rough draft". Her surname, ''Shouji'', can mean "devotion"... and so can another Japanese word, ''Shinjin''. Add in the abusive parents, the depression, the escapism, and the inability to connect with people, and recall that Yoshiyuki Sadamoto, who worked on Evangelion and .hack, talked Hideaki Anno out of his initial ''female'' character concept for Shinji...
** Also interestingly, her [[http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRVuiFRgolBA5Y7rk0wHe_mmtBt0nE1-HfoaN-nqtIQnNMZPOPlrQ real-life self]] looks remarkably like [[http://distopia.altervista.org/immagini/mana.jpg Mana]] from ''Girlfriend Of Steel''; a spin-off game of Evangelion.
* FingerTwitchingRevival: Happens to Tsukasa within the first two minutes of the first episode.
* {{GIRL}} (Inverted)
* HeroicAlbino
* IfItsYouItsOkay / SchoolgirlLesbians: Tsukasa became the "Most Important Person" to Subaru; "despite being a girl." 10 years later, in the manga of ''.hack//Link'' she is [[LesYay living with her.]] This off-hand comment was [[HideYourLesbians dropped in the commercial translation of the manga.]]
* IneffectualLoner: The entire point of hir character.
* JadeColoredGlasses: Tsukasa is quite rude at first, and it takes a lot to get past the defenses. S/he gets better.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Tsukasa is not very nice, [[CharacterDevelopment at least at the start]].
* LostInCharacter: Thanks to Morganna.
* SugarAndIcePersonality / NotSoStoic
* MindRape: Morganna to Tsukasa when zhe starts misbehaving.
* MyselfMyAvatar: Tsukasa's main problem is this and being TrappedInAnotherWorld.
* SamusIsAGirl See above.
* WhyCouldntYouBeDifferent: Her Dad seems to resent her not only for being a girl, but for being alive: Tsukasa's player's father took severe issue with An (Tsukasa) showing any feelings or even wanting a bra.
* WorldOfCardboardSpeech
!Mimiru
[[quoteright:250:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/resize_6200.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: MegumiToyoguchi (Japanese); [[AmandaWinnLee Amanda Winn-Lee]] (English)
''World Identity:'' A brash, energetic, and happy-go-lucky Heavy Blade, and the first person Tsukasa meets after becoming trapped in The World. Unlike many other characters in the series, she plays purely for the fun of it.
''Real Identity:'' Her name is never given. She's a high school student who we can safely assume is much the same in real life as she is in the game.
''Appears in: .hack//SIGN, Mutation, Outbreak'' and ''Quarantine'' .hack//LINK''
Like Tsukasa an AI appears in the fourth game.
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BFS
* BreastPlate: It's part of her chosen character model.
* CatchPhrase: Fond of "roger that" and "what did you just say?" in the dub.
* CoolSword
* TheDitz: Believes herself to be this, but truthfully isn't all that dim. Bear notes this on occasion.
* FirstGirlWins: Averted; and there are people still bitter about this.
* [[OnlySaneMan Only Sane Woman]]: Seriously, Mimiru is one of the only people who is even remotely normal in the {{anime}}, everyone else is coming from DysfunctionJunction.
!Bear
-->Voiced by: Kazuhiro Nakata (Japanese); Paul Mercier (English)
''World Identity:'' A Blademaster of respectable power who considers himself a friend to n00bs throughout SIGN. He's very much a parental figure (Mimiru has a habit of calling him "Old Man"), giving his adolescent friends sage advice for their personal lives along with help in the game.
''Real Identity:'' Ryo Sakuma, a father, divorcee, and successful author in his late forties. He plays for creative inspiration and to mentor younger players.
''Appears in: .hack//SIGN, Mutation, Outbreak'' and ''Quarantine'' .hack//LINK''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BadassBookworm: In the game, anyway. At one point, he seems to resent that his real-life self is less badass.
* TheBigGuy
* CoolOldGuy
* {{Expy}}: WordOfGod says he was directly based on Creator/MelGibson from ''{{Film/Breaveheart}}''
* GentleGiant: Large as he is, he is one good man.
* IntergenerationalFriendship: With Mimiru. More of a parental figure to Tsukasa.
* ParentalSubstitute: See also Replacement Goldfish below.
* ReplacementGoldfish: Bear makes up for his failed relationship with his son by meeting and helping other young people. He eventually adopts Tsukasa's player and puts her through college.
* TheShepherd
* WalkingShirtlessScene: It's part of his character model.
!Subaru
[[quoteright:270:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ba5dacd0c607c3e8b81003cee1f229ce4ff.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: KaoriNazuka (Japanese); Kim Mai Guest (English)
''World Identity:'' A strong-willed yet waifish and soft-spoken Heavy Axeman who commands the Crimson Knight guild in SIGN. With an unwavering sense of fair play, she and Crim founded the guild to stop player-killers and hacked characters from ruining others' fun.
''Real Identity:'' Mariko Misono, a high school girl whose legs were paralyzed in an accident years before, a secret she's kept from everybody but Crim. She plays the game to experience a sense of freedom.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Sign'', ''Mutation, Outbreak'' and ''Quarantine'' ''.hack//Roots'' (Cameo) ''.hack//Link''
Like Tsukasa and Mimiru, she has an AI copy that appears in the fourth game. Notice a pattern?
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Interestingly averted, considering it's an online game. Subaru's character isn't particularly strong, since she spends so much of her game time governing instead of playing.
* BattleBallgown: Her original R:1 character model that appeared in ''.hack//Sign''.
* ChronicHeroSyndrome: Even in a game, she just has to help everybody.
* LastGirlWins: See below.
* LesYay: Due to IfItsYouItsOkay (or maybe BiTheWay?). Subaru becomes romantically attached to Tsukasa, and the fact that "he" is a girl in real life doesn't deter Subaru in the slightest. It's suggested that after college, they began living together.
* {{Meganekko}}: Mariko, the player.
* NotSoWeak: Subaru. It's considered a major turning point for her when [[spoiler:she disbands the Crimson Knights after putting up with their bull for too long and then getting rid of a stalker fan by herself.]]
* [[QuicklyDemotedWoman Slowly Demoted Woman]]: Subaru starts off as a headstrong leader of the Crimson Knights, but after Crim left as co-leader, she found her grasp of power slipping while Silver Knight slowly asserted himself over the first half of the series. He tells her that she's not cut out for leading the guild and takes control, but she later puts her foot down once and for all by disbanding the guild.
* SexyBacklessOutfit: The in-game persona.
* ShrinkingViolet: Subaru isn't outright Shy, but she begins show the common signs associated with one over the course of the series. She finds comfort and happiness with her friendship with Tsukasa though.
* TheChainsOfCommanding
* YouAreNotAlone
* ZettaiRyouiki
!B.T.
-->Voiced by: AkikoHiramatsu (Japanese); Donna Rawlins (English)
''World Identity:'' A Wavemaster more known for being an information broker rather than an adventurer. She's initially detached and somewhat condescending, treating only older men like Bear and Crim as friends and equals. Of the main characters, she's the last one to fully join in with Tsukasa and friends.
''Real Identity:'' Machiko is the only name given, apparently a single businesswoman in her late '20s, and a former model. Appears to resent her experience in high school, and her attempt at dating Crim's player went poorly.
''Appears in: .hack//SIGN, Mutation, Outbreak'' and ''Quarantine'' .hack//LINK''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BreakTheHaughty
* DeathIsCheap: Justified since [[CaptainObvious this is a MMORPG]]. Doesn't make her being a magnet for PKs any less noticeable. Lampshaded in GIFT when Mimiru mentions she's used to dying.
* DefrostingIceQueen: An entire episode showed her interacting with various characters in the show, as she realizes she doesn't have many-if any friends, online or offline. This realization, combined with Tsukasa showing up to help her when being attacked made her decide to start acting more friendly.
* MeaningfulName: Averted. It turns out "B.T." is the name of her favorite sandwich. Hint, she doesn't like [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BLT_sandwich lettuce]].
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: So much that she turned it into an online handle, apparently. (See MeaningfulName.)
** [[DoesNotLikeSpam Does not like Lettuce]]
* SatelliteCharacter: Somewhat by her own choice.
* SquishyWizard: She doesn't actually level up much, as she uses the game more for gossip. As such she is very very very frequently attacked by player killers.
!Silver Knight
--> Voice by: IsshinChiba (Japanese) Douglas Rye (English; SIGN) Trevor Devall (English; Roots)
''World Identity:'' A Blademaster and Subaru's second in command of the Crimson Knights through much of SIGN. He works relentlessly to identify and hunt down player-killers and hacked characters. His passion for justice and fair play is matched only by that of his role as Subaru's knight.
''Real Identity:'' His name is never given. He works in a video store, and is apparently in his early twenties.
''Appears in: .hack//SIGN, Mutation, Outbreak'' and ''Quarantine, Legend of the Twilight Bracelet, .hack//Roots, .hack//LINK, .hack//Quantum''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BlindIdiotTranslation: Many early fansubs gave him the name "Ginkan." This led to some confusion when his name was officially translated as "Silver Knight," which is what "ginkan" means. Which side is being the blind idiot depends on how literally his name was meant to be read.
* ContinuityNod: Silver Knight (and his player) are the only ones who appear in all three ''.hack'' anime series. In particular, at the end of ''Roots'', he's already familiar with Haseo's situation and sympathizes, possibly referring to his own experiences with data draining and player-killers. This could be extra-interesting if he knows who Haseo's player is.
* KnightTemplar: What he is at first.
** KnightInShiningArmor: What he becomes after realizing what a jerk he's been.
* LawfulStupid: His personal vision of justice has little room for empathy or individual judgment, at least until he stops taking it all so danged seriously.
* UnrequitedLoveLastsForever: Of the "declaration of loyalty" variety. He obviously has it ''bad'' for Subaru, though he apparently never tells her (and if she knows, she never acknowledges it).
!'''Crim'''
''World Identity:'' Crim the Red Lightning is a Long Arm and one of the game's most powerful characters at the time of SIGN. He's a carefree role-player, an over-the-top wandering warrior of chivalry. After helping Subaru, they founded the Crimson Knights, which he later left once it stopped being fun.
''Real Identity:'' No name or age is given, but likely a corporate businessman. He plays purely to blow off stress, and believes in keeping reality and the game separate, though he did try dating B.T.'s player, and gave Subaru his phone number as a gesture of support.
''Appears in: .hack//SIGN, .hack//LINK''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BladeOnAStick
* TheDulcineaEffect: Again, it's the way the character's played.
* HonorBeforeReason: Not that Crim's stupid... but in a game, he doesn't care.
* LargeHam: When Crim's "in character."
* WarriorTherapist: Has a fondness for lecturing people while kicking their asses.
!'''Helba'''
-->Voiced by: Yumi Toma (Japanese); MaryElizabethMcGlynn (English)
''World Identity:'' An infamous hacker, named for one of the principal characters in the Epitaph of Twilight. She plays a heavily-edited Wavemaster, and possibly comes closer than anyone to understanding the secret purpose of The World. Luckily, she uses her talents to help our heroes in the fight against Morganna. Runs a private server known as "Net Slum" which is basically a collection of data deleted from the game proper, it is accessible from the game proper via the proper channels.
''Real Identity:'' Unknown, and for good reason: after the "Pluto's Kiss" incident, hacking has become a capital crime.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//SIGN'', ''.hack//R1 Games''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AmbiguousGender: It's unknown if Helba is a guy or a girl in real life. Or for that matter if the player is even a single person or a group.
* AntiHero / TokenEvilTeammate: She's a criminal hacker working with the good guys. Where she falls depends on which of the other characters is speaking of her.
* EnemyMine: Reason for her team-up with Lios, though they seem to get along fine afterwords.
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: Proof that Helba is as good of a hacker as is claimed? When Helba becomes recruitable (after defeating Corbenik in ''[=.hack//Quarantine=]'', she's at max level and all of her stats maxed (which a player will note isn't possible without hacking). She [[InUniverse literally]] [[GameBreaker broke the game]] and allows the player to break the rest of the game with her.
* PlayfulHacker: She's pretty much like this throughout most of the R1 Games. She gets serious, however, when trouble escalates.
* {{Stripperific}}: Her outfit can be accurately described as a sexy space-pope.
* SquishyWizard: Though given her hacking to max out her stats, her status as "Squishy" is debatable.
* TheFaceless/[[HeWhoMustNotBeSeen She Who Must Not Be Seen]] Her online avatar and real life self respectively. The Upper half of her avatar's face is obscured at all times apart from one non-canon manga. Her player(s?) is (are?) never seen.
* WomanInWhite: Unlike most characters on this page, it's most likely an illegal modification.
!Sora
-->Voiced by: Hiroshi Yanaka (Japanese); DaveWittenberg (English)
''World Identity:'' A Twin Blade player-killer, and the strongest character in SIGN aside from Crim. Wild and immature, he loves nothing more than screwing up other people's plans just because he can, though he's also fond of assaulting female characters and demanding their contact information.
''Real Identity:'' Ryou Misaki, a fourth-grade student. Seven years later, he'll create the character of Haseo in ''The World R:2'', with ironic consequences.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//SIGN, .hack//R1 Games .hack//LINK''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BladeBelowTheShoulder: The only Twin Blade in all of .hack who uses spring-loaded blade gauntlets instead of just holding his weapons.
* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: The obvious and unsubtle way he goes about that eventually reveals to the others [[spoiler:he's not ''just'' an immature jerk. [[{{GIFT}} He's a little kid in a world with no restraints on him]].]]
* HeelFaceTurn: And he suffers for it.
* JerkassFacade: Whaddya expect from a ten-year-old able to thrash teens and grownups, but has no friends?
* LoveableRogue
* TheRival: Eventually seems to regard the "old school" Crim as a nemesis.
* TooCleverByHalf: One of the World's most powerful characters and skilled players, with maxed-out level and attributes, and he's fully aware of how good he is while being insufferably immature about it all.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: .Hack//R1 Games and .hack//Liminality]]
!Kite
[[quoteright:280:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Kite_7135.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: Sayaka Aida (Japanese); MonaMarshall (English)
''World Identity:'' A newbie Twin Blade, and the main character of the R:1 games. He's introduced to The World by his best friend Orca, who soon gets data-drained by Skeith. Kite receives the Twilight Bracelet from Aura before Skeith catches her, giving him the power to fight Morganna and her agents, and save Orca and Aura.
''Real Identity:'' A junior high school boy and best friend of Orca's player. Enjoys soccer and sci-fi literature.
''Appears in:'' .hack//IMOQ, .hack//Legend Of the Twilight (cameo), .hack//Link, .hack//Versus
!!Tropes Associated With:
* {{Badass}}: Literally starts at level 1 in the first game, and rises up to be the number-one combatant against the challenges and threats that occur within R:1 games. There's a reason why he's got the longest-standing legacy in the entire franchise.
* ChickMagnet: [[spoiler:If [=BlackRose=], Natsume and Ryoko Terajima are any indication . . .]]
** [[spoiler: Cello in .hack//LINK shows signs of having a crush on him after he saves her from a monster in X'over mission #3.]]
* ChronicHeroSyndrome: He takes time to help a lot of different people during his quest to save The World. On the plus side, it does get him a small army of grateful allies for the final battle.
* CompositeCharacter: A strange example in that he's composed primarily of ''himself''. In the fighting game .hack//Versus, he takes after various versions of himself across the continuity. His design is based off his original look from the first four PS2 games, and his normal attacks are based off the basic Twin Blade skills from those games. His standard battle pose is based off one of Azure Kite's poses from one of G.U.'s cutscenes, and his Exceed surrounds him in an aura of azure flames. Finally, his special skill during Exceed mode is Sansouenkon, Kite's signature attack from .hack//Link.
* TheHero: In addition to his role in the original games, he's considered to be a legendary hero in The World a decade after his exploits. Constantly referenced in .hack//Versus by Ovan, who has different pre-battle quotes depending on whether he's fighting the real Kite or one of his expies.
* LegacyCharacter: He's the original. So far we have Kite himself, Shugo, Azure Kite, Sakuya, and Kite (Sora).
* TheUnchosenOne: Aura meant to give the Twilight Bracelet to ''Orca''.
![=BlackRose=]
[[quoteright:100:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/BlackRose%20Avy35267.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: MasumiAsano (Japanese); WendeeLee (English)
''World Identity:'' An aggressive and confrontational Heavy Blade. She's new to the game, and after meeting Kite and hearing his story, quickly allies herself with him.
''Real Identity:'' Akira Hayami, a young high school girl whose little brother also went comatose from playing The World. She's exceptionally talented at tennis, which got her placed on a team with jealous upperclassmen who bully her.
''Appears in:'' .hack//IMOQ, .hack//Legend of the Twilight (cameo), .hack//Link, .hack//Versus
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BreastPlate: It's part of her character model.
* {{Expy}}: Of Mimiru, their characters are based on the same MMORPG template. She even shares some of the same lines as Mimiru in an IronicEcho; however the meaning behind them are completely different in context.
** She and Mimiru bicker about their characters ressembling each other in ''Unison''.
* [[HeroOfAnotherStory Heroine of Another Story]]: The point of the "Another Birth" novels in a nuttshell, they show the events of the first four games from her point of view.
* LegacyCharacter: She's the original of which Rena and Mary's characters are based.
* [[spoiler: OfficialCouple: In the G.U. games, Haseo can obtain a copy of a very old e-mail from Blackrose that was sent to Kite, where she confesses her feelings for him.]]
* MeaningfulName: She chose it based on a recurring dream she'd been having.
* PhonyVeteran: [=BlackRose=] tries to pull this on Kite, but gets almost immediately shut down.
* POVSequel: A series of novels known as Another Birth retell the games from her point of view.
* TheLancer to Kite.
* {{Tsundere}}: A ferociously tsuntsun type.
!Elk
-->Voiced by: MitsukiSaiga (Japanese); Brianne Sidall (English)
''World Identity:'' A Wavemaster who looks [[{{Expy}} nearly identical]] to Tsukasa. He is very shy and socially withdrawn, and the only real friend he seems to have is Mia, without whom he is rarely seen.
''Real Identity:'' Kaoru Ichinose, a middle school boy. Just as socially awkward in real life as he is in The World, he mainly plays to make new friends. Later creates the character of Endrance in The World R2.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//R1 Games''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* {{Dandere}}
* {{Expy}}: of Tsukasa
** [[FridgeBrilliance Possibly why Mia is so attached to him]], [[spoiler: given the connection between Tsukasa and Mia's past incarnation, Macha.]]
* GrewASpine: When he [[HeroicSacrafice throws himself]] in the way of Corbenik's [[FinishingMove Drain Arc]].
* TheWoobie: Even more so once you are forced to destroy Macha
!Mia
-->Voiced by: MinamiTakayama (Japanese); Debra Rogers (English games); KariWahlgren (English ''Unison'' and ''End of the World'')
''World Identity:'' A Blademaster who takes the form of an anthropomorphic, purple, female cat. Due to this unique character design, many believe that she is a hacked PC. She is very good friends with Elk, and has a fondness for a completely useless item called "Aromatic Grass". [[spoiler:Is in reality Macha, reincarnated after being Data Drained in Sign.]]
''Real Identity'': [[spoiler: None, as she's an AI disguised as a PC]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//R1 Games''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* [[spoiler:BackFromTheDead]]: [[spoiler:Aura recreates her after the end of Quarantine.]]
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: [[spoiler:she remembers nothing about being Macha. Additionally, after she is reborn at the end of Quarantine, it is shown that she remembers Elk and nothing else.]]
* MindRape: Want to know why she's absent from GU? [[spoiler:She was used as the template for the eight Epitaph PC's by Project GU... which meant that she underwent the digital equivalent of ''vivisection'', and the Mia personality was KilledOffForReal. She still exists in the form of the Avatar Macha, however.]]
!'''Mistral'''
[[quoteright:100:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Mistral%20Avy29340.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: Atsuko Enomoto (Japanese); SandyFox (English)
''World Identity:'' A very cheerful and somewhat childish Wavemaster who likes hunting rare items. Initially ignorant of the real purpose behind the conflict (even after fighting Skeith), she's just in it for fun and for seeing Kite use the Bracelet, by which she is fascinated.
''Real Identity:'' Mayumi Kurokawa, a woman in her late 20s, pregnant with her first child. She and [=BlackRose=] form a friendship in the real world, after [[spoiler:she stops playing out of fear for her baby, the future Mirielle. She returns for the finale but Balmung forces her to the sidelines for the final battle due to said pregnancy. ]]. Her Husband is one of the security guards in Liminelty. By the time of Legend of Twlight, she's quit her unspecified admin job to be a full time housewife.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//R1 Games'', ''.hack//Another_Birth'' ''.hack//Legend of the Twlight Braclet''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* CheerfulChild: Her online persona.
* HiddenDepths: Her offline self is touched upon more in Another Birth, which is a Retelling of the games from [=BlackRose=]'s point of view. The two strike up a friendship and later meet offline, leading to her becoming a mother/big sister type to [=BlackRose=]. She's shown here to be mature and dependable, a contrast to her online persona.
* SomethingOnlyTheyWouldSay: Near the end of legend of the Twlight, Mireille falls asleep, letting Mistral take over the character. Balmung identifies her by "Mireille's" sudden hidden depths and the minor differences in their online persona. She confirms it by calling him "Baltan" her nickname for him.
!Wiseman
-->Voiced by: StevenJayBlum (English)
''World Identity:'' A powerful Wavemaster who is well-known as an information broker and trader of rare items. After getting caught up in Kite's quest, he becomes one of the strategists of the group, often coordinating their plans with Lios and Helba, though he will fight on the front lines if asked to.
''Real Identity:'' Takumi Hino, an elementary school student, in stark contrast with his very mature, knowledgable online self. Plays soccer and collectible card games, and does not like carrots. Later goes on to create ''several'' characters in R2: [[spoiler:Naobi, Yata, and Nala.]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//R1 Games''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* KnowledgeBroker: Has a great deal of information contacts, including Helba, and quite possibly knows more about the Epitaph of Twilight than any other single person.
* TheStrategist: It's him who comes up with the ideas for the group's offensive tactics against the Wave.
* WiseBeyondTheirYears
!Lios
-->Voiced by: TomomichiNishimura (Japanese) BobPapenbrook (English)
''World Identity:'' The head system administrator of The World. His avatar is an NPC shopkeeper, although, being an admin, he has numerous powers unavailable to anyone else, such as the ability to outright delete AI and character data. He is highly distrustful of Kite and especially Helba, but very reluctantly joins them after he's convinced that they are working to fix the problem, rather than aggravate it.
''Real Identity:'' Unknown, although it is known he is an employee at CC Corp.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//R1 Games''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* EnemyMine: Although Lios is definitely on the heroes' side, he sees his partnership with Helba as this, since she is an illegal hacker and exactly the kind of person he's supposed to oppose.
* MeaningfulName: "Lios" is derived from the King of the Light ("Lios"), Apeiron, in the Epitaph. Apeiron and Helba, the Queen of the Dark, team up to oppose the Wave in the Epitaph. The coincidence is noted by an amused Helba when she meets Lios.
** He seems unaware of this meaning until Helba tells him and it is hinted that CC Corp assigned the name to him.
* MyNameIsNotDurwood: Helba seems to take great delight in taunting Lios, often referring to him as "the pig-head". Other characters (including, hilariously, Balmung) start calling him this from time to time as well, to his consternation.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: He's naturally suspicious of anything in the game that isn't under his control, but once he realizes the situation proves to be one of the greatest allies the heroes could ask for.
!Sieg
-->Voiced by: TakahiroSakurai (Japanese) Anthony Pulcini (English)
''World Identity:'' A powerful and popular Blademaster seeking to surpass the "Descendants of Fianna" in fame. While showing the game to his girlfriend, he's attacked and data drained by Skeith.
''Real Identity:'' Tomonari Kasumi, a high school boy. He runs his school's gaming club, and appears to be a fairly ordinary kid. He later goes on to create Kuhn in The World R:2.
''Appears in: .hack//Liminality''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* MeaningfulName: He named his character "Sieg" to express his intent to dominate Balmung - in ''Ring of the Nibelung'', Siegfried is the hero and Balmung is his sword.
* UnknownRival: Balmung's one of the few high-level characters who's never heard of Sieg.
!The 8 Phases
[[quoteright:273:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Morganna_Phases.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:273:Your guess is as good as ours.]]
''World Identity:'' The Eight Phases as spoken of in the Epitaph of Twilight are the agents of the Cursed Wave that threatens all. For whatever purpose Harald originally created them, Morganna has usurped them to serve as her own agents. Each takes the form of an unbeatable game monster, some with literally indescribable appearances. In order, they are:
* Skeith, the Terror of Death
* Innis, the Mirage of Deceit
* Magus, the Propogation
* Fidchell, the Prophet
* Gorre, the Machinator
* Macha, the Temptress
* Tarvos, the Avenger
* Corbenik, the Rebirth
* ''Real Identity:'' None.
* ''Appears in:'' ''Sign'' (Macha, and Skeith, briefly), ''Games'', ''Roots'' (sort of), ''GU'', ''Link''
For tropes associated with Macha, see Macha in the Sign section [[spoiler: and Mia above in this section.]]
!!Tropes Associated With Them All:
* AlienGeometries: As stated above, these are just about the most bizarre-looking things ever. Skeith isn't too bad, looking like a rather thin golem, but Innis is a ''wall'', Fidchell is... sort of... mask-like, and Tarvos is a snake coiled around a spike that is driven through its head.
* BadassBoast / BossBanter: Fidchell likes declaring things like "All will tremble beneath my terrible will!" when he uses his strongest attacks.
* DefeatingTheUndefeatable: Literally, in the games, since all of these guys have infinite HP. Yes, [[DangerousForbiddenTechnique there's a way around that.]]
* EldritchAbomination: Not to the same extent as Cubia, but they're definitely Eldritch when you consider how much they break The World when they're around. Helps that they usually look extremely bizarre, too.
* MonsterOfTheWeek: Aside from Skeith, and to a lesser extent Macha and, ultimately, Corbenik, all the phases are like this.
!!Tropes Associated Specifically With Skeith
* ClimaxBoss: He has the most lead-in of all the phases, and is the final boss of the first game.
* DarkIsEvil: For the same reasons explained down in the NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast example.
* FinalBoss: Of ''Infection'', but for the R1 games as a whole, he's a mere ClimaxBoss.
* DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment: Skeith means "shadow". Taken literally the first line of the epitaph to speak of the eight phases reads: "Riding the wake is Shadow, the Shadow of Death, to drown all that stands."
* HumanoidAbomination: Barely, but he's much more human shaped than the rest of the Phases.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: "The Terror of Death"? And even Skeith's basic name means "shadow".
** He's also known as the "Shadow of Death" in the epitaph. And to go one further, the area he resides in has the keywords "Chosen Hopeless Nothingness." [[SarcasmMode Must be a nice place, right?]]
* PromotedToPlayable: In the R2 games, kinda.
!!Tropes Associated Specifically With Corbenik
* BarrierChangeBoss
* EleventhHourSuperpower: [[spoiler: Supreme Defense and Drain Heart]]
* FinalBoss: Of the R1 games.
* [[spoiler: KaizoTrap: Plot wise, after losing, he unleashes Drain Heart and would have hit everyone, Kite included, and put them all in comas had not Elk intervened.]]
* MarathonBoss: Thought the bosses took long enough? Corbenik is basically three in a row.
* NighInvulnerable: Notably, he averts this trope, unlike every other boss besides Cubia. [[spoiler: Then he puts Supreme Defense up...]]
* SequentialBoss: Three forms.
* [[spoiler: VillainOverride: It's implied Morganna hijacked him after his Supreme Defense was destroyed.]]
!Cubia
[[quoteright:306:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Cubiabeta.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:306:NightmareFuel at its finest.]]
''World Identity:'' An inexplicable destructive phenomenon often taking the form of a massive skull-faced, somewhat shapeless monster. Called an "anti-existence," it's a shadow born of the light of the Key of the Twilight, with proportionate power. Cubia is created from the use of the Twilight Bracelet in the R:1 games, and from Haseo's Xth form with fully-powered Avatar in the G.U. games. [[spoiler:Takes a player-character form in both XXXX and LINK.]]
''Real Identity:'' None, though Cubia's existence wreaks havoc throughout the internet.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//R1 Games'', ''.hack//GU'', ''.hack//XXXX''. ''.hack//LINK''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BiggerBad: In GU.
* DarkIsEvil: Definitely associated with darkness, to the point where it's commonly, and aptly, referred to as a shadow to the Key of Twilight, whatever form it may be in. Not to mention how it seems to really like skulls. Also, some attacks it uses in G.U. definitely seem to [[CastingAShadow revolve around darkness motifs]]. [[spoiler:However, see HeelFaceTurn below.]]
* EldritchAbomination: Cubia, aka Cybernetic Cthulhu, aka D-Reaper on digital steroids. While many things in the .hack// series look bizarre, Cubia has a definite Eldritch feel to it. Just ''look'' at the thing.
** And that there is just one of ''several'' forms it takes. Some are alien, and others are just plain ''wrong''.
* [[spoiler: FinalBoss: Of the R2 games.]]
* [[spoiler:HeelFaceTurn]]: [[spoiler:As his PC form.]]
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: "The Anti-Existence"
* NighInvulnerability: It cannot be killed. Period. Not while the Key of Twilight exists. Problem is, the Key is usually what the heroes are relying on to solve whatever crisis is afoot this time.
* [[spoiler:SinisterScythe]]: [[spoiler:In his PC form in LINK.]]
* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic: Many of Cubia's attacks have religious names, such as "[[ShockAndAwe Jihad]]" and "[[ChaosIsEvil Chaos]] [[MookMaker Gehenna]]". It's main {{Mook}}s are known as Gomorra, as well.
!Junichiro Tokuoka
''World Identity'': none known
''Real Identity'': A former programmer for CC Corp. He decides to investigate The World on the outside when people start falling into comas playing it. [[spoiler:Specifically his daughter - see Carl.]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Liminality''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BunnyEarsLawyer: Was ''very'' eccentric when working for CC Corp: habits included going to sleep and eating whenever he felt it regardless of the time of day (his colleagues dubbed this "Tokuoka Time"), constant smoking, always eating fast food, and wearing Hawaiian shirts. He was also a brilliant programmer, and was almost single-handedly responsible for the success of the Japanese version of The World.
!Mai Minase
[[quoteright:100:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/imagesCAL98LVZ5813_jpg_100.png]]
-->Voiced by: SanaeKobayashi (Japanese); MichelleRuff (English)
''World Identity:'' Sieg(2), a copy of her boyfriend's character (see above) as well as her own unseen character
''Real Identity:'' A high school girl with no interest in videogames, she was nonetheless convinced to give The World a try by her boyfriend. She went comatose along with him while playing, but woke up several days later. She joins Tokuoka as they search for clues about the coma victims in the real world.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Liminality''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* ChekhovsHobby: Her training as a musician allows her to discern a tone that sounds whenever a Phase is about to show up. It was hearing this sound that forewarned her of Skeith's approach and allowed her to avoid the worst of the Data Drain.
* PurpleEyes
[[/folder]]
[[folder: .Hack//Zero and .Hack//Legend Of The Twilight]]
!Carl
''World Identity:'' A female Heavy Axemen who runs into Aura and Skeith/Sora, who eventually Data Drains her for protecting Aura.
''Real Identity:'' Junka Nimura, Junichiro Tokuoka's daughter. She lives with her mother and grandmother and her father is only referred to as "Mr. T"
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Zero''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* GenderBlenderName
* NoExportForYou: The series she was featured in has never left Japan. [[AllThereInTheManual Finished only through supplementary material.]]
!Shugo
''World Identity:'' He retains his real name even in The World; he's only in it for fun...[[JumpedAtTheCall at first...]]
''Real Identity:'' A middle school kid who gets roped into playing the game by his twin sister, Rena. He finds himself whisked into a plot set by by Aura near the end of ''R:1'' after he finds Aura's daughter, Zefie, and is accused of being an illegal player.
''Appears in:'' ''The Legend of the Twilight Bracelet''.
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AscendedFanboy: In his backstory, he ''did'' say he always wanted to be a hero... To Aura. Who set the whole situation up to fulfill this and to keep herself from getting bored.
* ChivalrousPervert
* {{Expy}}: Of Kite, which is obvious since he won Kite's character design.
* {{Flanderization}}: In the manga he makes a one-off comment on how he was uncomfortable that his sister was playing a character in such a revealing outfit. In the anime they make him ''enamored'' with her.
* GotVolunteered: It's not like he ''wanted'' to play the game at first...
* JumpedAtTheCall
!Rena
''World Identity:'' Retains her real name. She plays what appears to be a chibi-fied version of Blackrose She just wanted to spend more time with her brother. And then Zefie came into the picture... Unlike Shugo she's an experienced player, having previously played a Blade Master named Bridget.
''Real Identity:'' A middle school kid who gets her brother to join The World after she wins limited edition costumes of the dot hackers Kite and Blackrose. See Shugo for more details.
''Appears in:'' ''The Legend of the Twilight Bracelet''.
!!Tropes Associated With:
* [[AscendedFanboy Ascended Fangirl]]
* ClingyJealousGirl: In the manga, she seems a bit [[BrotherSisterIncest teed off that her brother's hanging out with Zefie...]]
* DamselInDistress: In the anime adaptation, when she falls into a coma.
* {{Expy}}: Of Blackrose, which is obvious since she won Blackrose's character design
* GenkiGirl
* {{Tsundere}}: Type B, toward Shugo.
!Mireille
-->Voiced by: YukiMatsuoka (Japanese); Sandy Fox (English)
''World Identity:'' She's a wavemaster who takes on her mother's avatar and joins Shugo and Rena on their adventure; she provides the two a hangout for them to meet and discuss in. Because she looks like her mother's avatar, Wiseman mistakes for Mistral on one occassion.
''Real Identity:'' She's the daughter of Mistral. She's actually about 4 years old.
''Appears in:'' ''The Legend of the Twilight Bracelet''.
!!Tropes Associated With:
* {{Expy}}: Of her mother Mistral, which is expected as her character is her mother's account with a name change.
* GenkiGirl
* [[Webcomic/GirlGenius Kid Genius]]: She's a preschooler, but you wouldn't know that if you met her online.
* MobileShrubbery: The first time she's seen, she's following Shugo and Rena while hiding inside a barrel.
* RandomlyDrops: Her hobby; collecting rare items. It doesn't matter if it's useful or not; even if [[AndYourRewardIsClothes your reward is clothes]]; if it's rare, she wants it.
!Ouka
[[quoteright:186:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Ouka1.jpg]]
''World Identity:'' A powerful player who enjoys fighting monsters and believes that people should get stronger the honest, old fashioned way, rather than resorting to cheating. Is famous among other players and called "Ouka the Divine Fist". She plays a "Werewolf" class charcter which is mentioned as a speical class added for high-level players in an expansion pack. Originally she was a un-named fist using class that was added in the same expansion pack.
''Real Identity:'' She's is in fact Mireille's babysitter and Tutor, and is somewhat of a withdrawn mousey woman in reality.
''Appears in:'' ''The Legend of the Twilight Bracelet''.
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BareYourMidriff
* BoobsOfSteel
* GoingFurASwim
* MsFanservice
* OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: Ouka can transform into a straight wolf if she desires.
* ScrewTheMoneyIHaveRules
* SexyMentor: Ouka helps Shugo level up and learn the game along with Mirielle and Rena. She doesn't seem to mind Shugo's developing hormones, and plays along with it.
!Komiyan III
''World Identity:'' A "handsome prince" who goes everywhere accomponied by his loyal Grunty, Oscar. He is obsessed with winning Rena's heart and despises her brother Shugo.
''Real Identity:'' Komiyama, a geeky 14 year-old boy who attends Shugo and Rena's math class. He and Shugo are rivals, though ironically enough, neither of them are very well-liked by others in their class.
''Appears in:'' ''The Legend of the Twilight Bracelet''.
!!Tropes Associated With:
* HeelFaceTurn: He joins Shugo's party in the manga.
* {{Jerkass}}: Though he seems to become a JerkWithAHeartOfGold after his abovementioned HeelFaceTurn, actually defending Shugo and Rena from the administrators at personal risk.
* LargeHam: He loves to make long-winded introductions, giving himself an assortment of titles.
* TheRival: To Shugo.
* SissyVillain
* StalkerWithACrush
* SmugSnake
!Zefie
''World Identity:'' The daughter of Aura; she gets seperated from Aura in ''The Legend of the Twilight Bracelet'' and asks Shugo and the others for help. Despite being so adorable, she can really be a handful, constantly teasing the gang (she even went as far as giving them ''afros'' at one point).
''Real Identity:'' n/a
''Appears in:'' ''The Legend of the Twilight Bracelet''. Link
!Kamui
-->Voiced by: Sakiko Tamagawa (Japanese); Melodee M. Spevack (English)
''World Identity:'' Leader of the Colbalt Knights after Albreio and Lios, and a ruthless AI killer who believes all anomalies in The World should be destroyed, even Zefie and Aura.
''Real Identity:'' Little is known about her real self, except that she worked with Albireo and was upset that he got fired, believing that the AIs were to blame, hence her reason for wanting to destroy them. She serves as the BigBad for ''The Legend of the Twilight Bracelet''. Her real name is Saki Shibayama.
''Appears in:'' ''The Legend of the Twilight Bracelet''. Minor appearance in ''.hack//AI Buster'' but only offline.
!!Tropes Associated With:
* {{Badass}}
* BigBad: Of ''The Legend of the Twilight Bracelet''.
* GenderBlenderName
* [[spoiler:HeelFaceTurn]]
* MismatchedEyes: In the manga, her character has the same-colored heterochromatic eyes as Albireo in homage to him. This does not apply in the anime due to a redesign.
!'''Magi'''
-->Voiced by: Asako Shirakura (Japanese); [[AmandaWinnLee Amanda Winn-Lee]] (English)
''World Identity:'' Kamui's second in command.
''Real Identity:'' A CC Corp Employee named Asako Saito and Kamui's personal assistant.
''Appears in:'' ''The Legend of the Twilight Bracelet''.
!!Tropes Associated With:
* CrossPlayer: Her avatar is a standard male CC Corp avatar. She is known to be female and refered to as such however.
* {{Meganekko}}
* PunchClockVillain
!Reki
-->Voiced by: SoichiroHoshi (Japanese); DerekStephenPrince (English)
''World Identity:'' Balmung's assistant.
''Real Identity:'' A young CC Corp Emplyoee.
''Appears in:'' ''The Legend of the Twilight Bracelet''.
!!Tropes Associated With:
* {{Adorkable}}
* ButtMonkey
* FaceHeelTurn: In the anime; a stark contrast to in the manga.
* [[spoiler:HeelFaceTurn: Not long after the formentioned FaceHeelTurn in the anime, he realizes he made a big mistake.]]
* VitriolicBestBuds: With Balmung.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: .Hack//Roots and R:2 Games]]
!'''Haseo'''
[[quoteright:300:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/13c63e50541ac61238a5ba7f48540ea671615acf.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: TakahiroSakurai (Japanese); YuriLowenthal (English, video games); Creator/AndrewFrancis (English, anime)
''World Identity:'' The main character of ''Roots'' and the G.U. games, an aggressive and self-centered Adept Rogue. He finds a mentor in Ovan and a love interest in Shino, but when Ovan disappears and Shino is [=PK=]ed and put into a coma, Haseo begins a personal quest to find and beat Tri-Edge, the name given to Shino's killer. Holds the avatar of the first Phase, Skeith, The Terror of Death.
''Real Identity:'' Ryou Misaki, a high school student and the same person who played the player-killer Sora back in SIGN. Though he's older, his general personality has changed little.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Roots'', ''.hack//G.U.''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AntiHero
* AsskickingEqualsAuthority: He did this to ALL the Arena Emperors for good reasons.
* TheAtoner: Not on purpose, thanks to his LaserGuidedAmnesia.
* AxCrazy: In Rebirth. Especially after defeating Bordeaux's team in the Arena. Also in the OVA.
* {{Badass}}: There's a reason why he's known as The Terror of Death.
** BadassAbnormal: The only PC with Xth Form [[spoiler:by fusing with Skeith]] throughout the R:2 era.
** BadassDecay: After being Data Drained by Azure Flame Kite.
** BadassBiker: Becomes this when he defeats the Biker Champion Goblins.
* BareYourMidriff: A very rare male example of this trope.
* BattleCouple: With Alkaid in a Quest.
* {{Bishonen}}
* {{BFS}}: His secondary weapon WeaponOfChoice after he got his 2nd Form.
* BladeRun: During his Cutscene Power to the Max.
* BloodKnight: During his PKK days.
* BottomlessMagazines: In the OVA and .hack//Link. Averted in G.U. where he has to reload the guns.
* CallingYourAttacks
* CharacterDevelopment: Haseo has probably seen more character development than any other character in the franchise when you take Sora's personality into consideration. In the R:2 timeline alone, he went from a hopeless beginner to a revenge-obsessed [[{{Jerkass}} jerk]] in Roots, then started the GU games as a DesignatedHero, evolved into a Type 2 AntiHero, and eventually made pure [[TheHero hero]] status by the end of the series.
** More specifically, he goes from being slightly {{emo}} (start of Roots) to being a complete and utter [[{{Jerkass}} asshole]] (G.U. Volume 1) to being a JerkWithAHeartOfGold (G.U. Volume 2) to being a generally nice but still fairly blunt and sometimes [[DeadpanSnarker sarcastic]] guy (G.U. Volume 3). Overall, he becomes much, ''much'' more likable as the series goes on.
* ChickMagnet: Even though the game has RelationshipValues that justifies this, he still canonically has 2 fangirls and 2 [[EvenTheGuysWantHim fanboys.]]
* CombatPragmatist: His team is the only team that can perform Avatar Awakening in The World. Problem?
* CoolDownHug: Give this to AIDA infected Atoli in the OVA.
* CoolGun: They even have blades attached.
* CutscenePowerToTheMax: During the prologue FMV of Rebirth. Awesome.
* DarkIsNotEvil: Yes, he looks all shiny and heroic in the picture over there, but the costumes he wears for most of the story are almost completely black and adorned with things you'd usually see on villains (like [[SpikesOfVillainy spikes]]). [[http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/haseo_3562.jpg For example]]. Not to mention his Meaningful Title...
** Though dark also [[{{Jerkass}} isn't very nice]] for most of GU.
** Here's his evolution: [[http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20080301232952/dothack/images/thumb/e/e1/RebirthHaseo2.jpg/566px-RebirthHaseo2.jpg 1st Form]], [[http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20060924043413/dothack/images/2/21/Haseo2-1.jpg 2nd Form]], [[http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100325171406/dothack/images/thumb/c/c4/Haseo-3rd-Form-Type-2.jpg/601px-Haseo-3rd-Form-Type-2.jpg 3rd Form]], and finally, [[http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110321024638/dothack/images/c/c5/Haseo-XthFormRender132785.png Xth Form]].
* DeadpanSnarker
* DeathOfAThousandCuts: His Twin Blades' skills
* {{Determinator}}: To find what actually caused Shino's death after realize that [[spoiler:Azure Flame Kite was not Tri-Edge.]]
* DifficultButAwesome: His Adept Rouge CharacterClass allows him to switch weapon during the course of battle.
* DualWielding
* TheDreaded: Let's just say he got his nickname for a reason. Most Player Killers are generally terrified at the sight of him.
* {{Expy}}: Gets one in the form of [[VideoGame/AsurasWrath Asura]], another silver haired man with RedEyesTakeWarning and Anger issues. Helps that game is also made by CyberConnect2.
* FacePalm: He does this fairly often, in both comical and serious situations.
* FacialMarkings: Changes everytime he got new Form.
* FlashStep: During his Cutscene Power to the Max.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: You see, in Roots he started out as regular player and totally noob due to his laziness to read the game's manual. Then, after Shino's death he became famous and feared as [[RedBaron The Terror of Death]]
* GlowingEyesOfDoom: Get's these frequently in ''.hack//GU Trilogy'' whenever Skeith is exerting influence over him, i.e. moments of pure '''Rage'''. [[http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lsvz6gfY5X1qceyz5.png it's pretty unnerving]], to say the least, if not pure horror.
* GunsAkimbo
* GunFu
* HeroicAlbino
* HeroicBreakdown: After Shino's death.
* HeyItsThatVoice: Can you believe that [[TakahiroSakurai his Japanese voice]] is [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII Cloud Strife]]? On the English side of things, we have [[{{Persona4}} Yosuke]], [[{{Persona 3}} the main character]] and [[TengenToppaGurrenLagann Simon]].
** [[WesternAnimation/Ben10AlienForce And that transforming guy with the magic bracelet]].
** He is also [[CodeGeass Suzaku Kururugi]] in both languages
* HoYay: If player choose [[GayOption Endrance]]. He's actually straight. Approved when celebration of him being the Arena Emperor, Piros the 3rd wants to kiss him to express his appreciation and making Haseo freaks out and tell him to put him down.
* HotBlooded: "OOOOVVAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNN!!!"... and sooo much more.
* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver: His main color scheme and his personality after he lost Shino and before he got CharacterDevelopment.
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: By Atoli in the OVA.
* JackOfAllTrades: He's an Adept Rogue.
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: Thanks to Skeith's data drain back in SIGN, he remembers nothing about being Sora.
* LargeHam
* LaughingMad: After he got his Avatar and defeat some opponents, in Rebirth. There's plenty in the OVA too.
* LightningBruiser
* LiteralSplitPersonality: In the scene where he achieves Xth Form, [[spoiler:He fuses with Skeith.]]
* LoveMakesYouEvil: After Shino's death, he grinds his level by kill ANY PKs he can find.
* LoveTriangle: Can be between Shino and Atoli or Atoli and Alkaid.
* {{Kuudere}}: Type 2. A male example, for real.
* MadnessMantra: "It's here, it's here, it's here, IT'S HERE!"... and see above.
* MajorInjuryUnderreaction: In the manga.
* MeaningfulName: As a [=PKK=], Haseo is known by the same title applied to the Phase Skeith.
** Haseo itself is a reference to the Japanese poet Matsuo Bashou (via AlternateCharacterReading) who's disciple was named Kawai Sora. In other words, a subtle clue to Haseo's player also being Sora's player.
* MultiRangedMaster: Counts for the strength of each weapon too. Twin blades (small damage) for close range, {{BFS}} (large damage) for mid range, SinisterScythe (mid damage) for long range and Guns (small for each bullets, resulting DeathOfAThousandCuts) for very long range.
* MoreDakka: When he fires his guns.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: After drives Skeith berserk and attack Kuhn's Magus brutally.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast / RedBaron: "The Terror Of Death"
* NotQuiteDead: When PK'ed by Iyoten and Asha, Data Drained by Azure Flame Kite, and after Ovan uses [[spoiler:Rebirth to The World.]] He always thought if he's dead but he's not.
* PersonOfMassDestruction: In his PKK days.
* PintSizedPowerhouse: Not him, but among the Avatars, Skeith is possibly the smallest.
* PowerOfFriendship: Realizes the importance of this and get Silabus and Gaspard back to his side in the Quest to get his [[LevelUp 3rd Form]].
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Haseo delivers an epic one to [[spoiler:Ovan before he goes into a coma.]]
* [[RedOniBlueOni Red Oni]]: To Ovan's Blue Oni.
* ScreamingWarrior: "SKEEEEIIIIIIIIIITH!!!"... and see above. Yet again.
* ScrewDestiny: In the OVA, he refuses Ovan's death and go save him.
* [[spoiler:SecondLove: Atoli.]]
* ShockAndAwe: Together with Atoli when they witness Kuhn's Avatar saving them from AIDA.
* ShutUpHannibal: To Sakaki.
* SinisterScythe: His 3rd WeaponOfChoice.
* SkywardScream: Subverted, still in the Cathedral. OVA only, but still... "SHIIINNOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!"
* SlasherSmile: So many of them in Rebirth towards his opponents. Toned down in Reminisce and completely vanished in Redemption.
* SpinAttack: Reaper's Touch.
* SpikesOfDoom: His B-st Form.
* StormOfBlades: Deliver this insanely to Ovan in the OVA.
* SuperPoweredEvilSide: ''JESUS CHRIST IT'S [[http://safebooru.org//samples/393/sample_6845fb9637993b0e1d50ca21331928bc0e957020.jpg?392846 BST FORM]], GET IN THE CAR!''
** Skeith is '''''a lot''''' scarier, and serves as somewhat of a canon SuperPoweredEvilSide (B-st form was only in the movie, and turned out to be fairly useless anyway).
* RareGuns: No one else in The World has the same gun as his, since he got them by getting his Xth Form.
* ReverseGrip
* TerrorHero: Type 5. By the PKers only with Bordeaux's team as exception. He use his reputation to save Gaspard from being PKed many times.
* TheBerserker: His B-st Form.
* The Sociopath: At first, after having BadassDecay.
* TooManyBelts: 52 belts total in his first form. God ''damn''. That's possibly worse than anything from Tetsuya Nomura.
* TookALevelInKindness: And keep progressing alongside CharacterDevelopment.
* TroubledButCute
* {{Tsundere}}: Male, type A, full stop.
** To be more specific, he's more of a JerkWithAHeartOfGold to most people (and just plain {{Jerkass}} in Volume 1), but when it comes to... whoever is his love interest (Shino or Atoli depending on the time in the story), he has a habit of acting rather... dere. More tsun with Atoli, though he still shows his moments of softness around her.
*** In one scene in Volume 3, he denies ogling Atoli when she notices him staring at her (and he was clearly thinking ''very'' fondly of her). Of course, Atoli's naivete prevents her from noticing, and she just thinks she screwed up again.
* UnstoppableRage: Subverted. His rage is ''very'' stoppable and his SuperPoweredEvilSide is a pushover (albeit a ''freaking scary'' one) compared to his [[SuperMode Xth Form]].
* [[spoiler:UnwittingPawn: To Ovan]].
* WarriorTherapist: Literally. Kind of. He doesn't use it in his battle style, and he doesn't seem to be doing it on purpose, but pretty much everyone with major issues in the game come to him to talk about it.
* WouldHitAGirl: Did this to Midori without second thought. Bordeaux and the others are no exceptions.
* WhatTheHellHero: By giving Ovan NoSell in the OVA.
* WhiteHairedPrettyBoy
* WideEyesAndShrunkenIrises: In the end of Reminisce when he was talking with Atoli in the Cathedral, suddenly Ovan appeared behind him and tell Haseo to become more stronger. In the OVA too, when Shino was PKed right in front of his eyes.
* TheWorfEffect: Level 133, took on a hundred player-killers at once... and yet Tri-Edge [[spoiler:, actually Aura's Knight, Azure Kite who is not Tri-Edge]] hands him his ass without a scratch.
!Ovan
[[quoteright:340:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Ovan.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: Hiroki Touchi (Japanese); JamiesonPrice (English, video games); MichaelKopsa (English, anime)
''World Identity:'' A famously powerful Steam Gunner, easily distinguished by the massive cylinder locked over his left arm. He's the founder and leader of the Twilight Brigade, a guild dedicated to finding the Key of the Twilight, which most other players have long since discounted as pure fantasy. [[spoiler:Holds the avatar of the eighth Phase, Corbenik, The Rebirth, and keeps a powerful AIDA trapped in his left arm, which is the true "Tri-Edge".]]
''Real Identity:'' Masato Indou, a young man, and the older brother of Aina's player. According to one of the Newsbreak segments in the G.U. games, CC Corp has accused him of creating the AIDA "virus," resulting in mass protests by players in his defense.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Roots'', ''.hack//G.U.''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AffablyEvil: He never did unnecessary fights with Haseo and his friends.
* AntiVillain: Ok, so he is going around [[spoiler: manipulating everyone and putting them in comas, but he really doesn't want to, and his intent was to revive Aina.]]
* BadassCape
* BadassLongcoat: A white coat, too.
* [[spoiler: BigBad: Technically so narratively-wise due to being Tri-Edge, though he's an AntiVillain through and through.]]
* BodyHorror: [[spoiler:His AIDA infected left arm.]]
* EvilLaugh: In the OVA.
* GunFu: Notably in Versus.
* [[spoiler:HappyFlashback: Several times in Redemption, about his peaceful days with his little sister Aina before AIDA ruins his life.]]
* RareGuns: [[spoiler: His Lost Weapon, probably. Since the 8th Lost Weapon slot in the specific Lost Ground needed to acquire each of the Epitaph User's Lost Weapon, was empty.]]
* NoSell: In the OVA.
* TheCaptain: In Roots, to the Twilight Guild.
* TheChessmaster: One way or another, almost everything in Roots and the G.U. games was planned or anticipated by him.
* CoolGun
* DeathSeeker: His purpose for getting Haseo to become more stronger. And [[spoiler:it's the only way to get rid of AIDA in The World and by using Corbenik's Rebirth]].
* [[spoiler: GodzillaThreshold: More like an option of last resort, but this is what his plan boiled down to: use the 8 phases to trigger a reset of the internet, wiping out AIDA in the process. It should be noted that Ovan hadn't wanted to resort to this plan in the first place because it was a gamble at best, not to mention the repercussions it could incur. But none of his hacking skills were able to get rid of the AIDA arm, he had failed to find Aura (which was the purpose of the Twilight Brigade), and he was quickly running out of time before his sister's consciousness was completely absorbed.]]
* [[spoiler:GoodAllAlong: He just wanted to save his sister Aina and get rid AIDA from The World.]]
* [[spoiler:HeroicSacrifice: More of an AntiVillain sacrifice, but...]]
* [[spoiler:JekyllAndHyde: The AIDA infecting him sometimes takes over and kills those close to him.]]
* [[spoiler:HeelFaceTurn: To AIDA in his left arm.]]
* LargeHam
* LetsGetDangerous: Not that Ovan's weak ordinarily, but you ''really'' don't want to be around when he unlocks that cylinder...
* ManipulativeBastard
* TheObiWan
* [[spoiler:OneWingedAngel: Both his fights are followed by a tough Avatar battle.]]
* [[spoiler:PerfectPlayAI]]
* RedemptionEqualsDeath: "Become stronger, Haseo. Strong enough to kill me..."
* RestrainingBolt: [[spoiler:Ovan's AIDA arm forces him to act as Tri-Edge against his will. He very much wants it gone.]]
* ThatOneAttack: When he torture Haseo out of the party, ouch.
* TheReveal[[spoiler:: Ovan unlocks his left arm to reveal a second arm made of AIDA, and his identity as the true Tri-Edge.]]
* [[spoiler:UsedToBeASweetKid: Before AIDA took everything from him.]]
* ResetButton: His Avatar's ability.
* ScaryShinyGlasses: The shinier they are, the more scared you ought to be.
* TheStoic
* [[spoiler:UsingYouAllAlong: Haseo for Ovan is UnwittingPawn.]]
* XanatosSpeedChess
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair
* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: To Sakaki after he fails.
!Shino
[[quoteright:250:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Shino_831.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: KaoriNazuka (Japanese); KariWahlgren (English, video games); KellySheridan (English, anime)
''World Identity:'' A Harvest Cleric and second in command of the Twilight Brigade, she's an all-around wonderfully pleasant girl who's almost as affectionate toward Haseo as she is admiring of Ovan. Halfway through ''Roots'', she's [=PKed=] and put in a coma by Tri-Edge. [[spoiler:She was originally the holder of Innis, but it left her and moved to Atoli when she was [=PKed=].]]
''Real Identity:'' Shino Nanao, a seemingly lonesome young college student. She doesn't reveal much about herself, save that she lives in a small apartment with a lot of books and not much else.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Roots'', ''.hack//G.U.''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AndIMustScream: [[spoiler:Shino was lucky enough to get a front seat to Ovan's carnage thanks to her mind being trapped in his arm.]]
* DistressedDamsel
* HappilyMarried: To Haseo if player chooser her ending.
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy
* MagicStaff
* NiceHat
* StepfordSmiler: She might seem composed to the casual observer, but inside her mind is a very depressed young woman.
* SecondLove: Haseo. Actually, she likes Ovan.
* TheChick: Emotional support for Haseo and his reason for LoveMakesYouEvil.
* TheMedic
* WhiteHairedPrettyGirl
* WomanInBlack: During the second half of ''Roots'' until the end of ''G.U.''.
* WomanInWhite: During the first half of ''Roots'' and a few flashbacks in ''G.U.''.
* ZettaiRyouiki
!Sakisaka
-->Voiced by: RyotaroOkiayu (Japanese); Alistair Abell (English)
''World Identity:'' A Steam Gunner fond of mysteries, wordplay, and good old-fashioned adventure. One of the first members of the Twilight Brigade, he becomes increasingly frustrated by their apparently fruitless quest, but remains loyal until its disbanding, and quits the game soon after.
''Real Identity:'' A young man who says he lives in a bachelor apartment with few windows. He quits The World to join his friends in a new online game called Riot Gun.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Roots''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* CatchPhrase: In Japanese, Sakisaka is fond of particular puns and wordplay the Brigade calls "the Sakisaka catchphrase." The translators couldn't (or just didn't) render this in English, so it became "I'm perplexed at X and I'm surprised at Y."
* CoolTeacher: Tabby likes to think so.
* ExpressiveMask: His goggles even flash words or symbols, especially when he's surprised. Possibly by Sakisaka's command, but more likely just a visual gag.
* HiddenEyes: On the rare occasion he's being sincere and serious, we can see regular-looking eyes behind his goggles.
* ImprobableUseOfAWeapon: He always uses his bayonet as a melee weapon, never as a gun.
!Tabby
[[quoteright:280:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Tabby.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: MegumiToyoguchi (Japanese); StephanieSheh (English, video games); MarykeHendrikse (English, anime)
''World Identity:'' A Tribal Grappler designed to look like a Cat Girl, complete with cat ears and a ponytail that looks like a cat's tail due to being a member of Lei Tribe. Tabby is fairly naive and new to the experiences of ''The World.'' Despite her lack of experience, she always tries to find the best out of any situation and is always cheerful and perky. She only uses her "Feline Soul Gauntlets" weapon and nothing else because Shino gave them to her as a gift.
''Real Identity:'' Moe Kubo, age 16. Her parents admit they named her Moe after a "popular anime craze when she was born." Being the younger of the two sisters in her family, she often has to compete for attention. It makes it hard that her sister is smarter and better than her in school. Tabby's encounters in ''"The World"'' soon helped her gain self confidence. [[spoiler: She is studying to become a nurse so that she can help Shino in real life, or others who fall comatose from similar situations.]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Roots'', ''.Hack//G.U. 3: Redemption''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AbsoluteCleavage: Her profile picture
* BareYourMidriff: Complete with a green jewel in her navel.
* BadassAdorable
* BreakTheCutie: Ender PK'ed her.
* BoobsOfSteel: Even though she has a long way to go before she's considered strong by the game's standards.
** She joins in Volume 3 at a fairly high level. Haseo will probably still be much higher than her, but...
* CatGirl: You think?
* CuteKitten
* FacialMarkings
* GenkiGirl: There's a reason why she's so energetic. [[spoiler: It's not like she wants to be. She's medicated in order to deal with depression from family issues.]]
* IJustWantToBeSpecial: Justified. Given her family problems, she thinks that nobody ever believes in her, but Wool and Kuhn helped her overcome that issue when they befriended her.
* [[IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy I Want My Friends To Be Happy]]: She just wants to help Haseo and try and help Shino in any way she can, in the game or out. Naturally, Haseo doesn't care and thinks she just gets in the way. That's ''his'' problem though, and it's usually never her fault for anything.
* PowerFist
* SheFu
!Phyllo
[[quoteright:100:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/imagesCA0EI4MY481_jpg_100.png]]
-->Voiced by: Junpei Takiguchi (Japanese); Russel Roberts (English)
''World Identity:'' A small Harvest Cleric who's almost always seen sitting at the bridge of Mac Anu, simply watching people go by, and striking up conversation with anybody who's interested. Considered an excellent source of advice and wisdom by anybody who knows him.
''Real Identity:'' An old man, widowed and owning two cats who like to meddle with his gaming. As he tells Haseo, he's just there to kill time. [[spoiler:He dies of cancer at the end of ''Roots'']]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Roots'', ''.hack//G.U.: Reminiscence''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BadassAdorable
* CoolOldGuy
* TheObiWan
* [[spoiler: TooCoolToLive]]
!Naobi
-->Voiced by: TakumiYamazaki (Japanese); PaulDobson (English)
''World Identity:'' A hulking Macabre Dancer, and the guildmaster of [=TaN=]. Has a rivalry against Ovan and appears to be using the guild only for its resources, with which he can monitor and oppose the Twilight Brigade, delegating [=TaN's=] daily business to Tawaraya.
''Real Identity:'' [[spoiler:See Yata.]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Roots''
!!Tropes Associated With:
!Ender
-->Voiced by: SanaeKobayashi (Japanese); LisaAnnBeley (English)
''World Identity:'' A Blade Brandier and player-killer, working against the Twilight Brigade at the behest of Naobi. Whatever her motivation is, she ''really'' loves her work.
''Real Identity:'' [[spoiler:See Pi.]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Roots''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* Expy: [[QueensBlade Echidna]]. The way she looks to others (especially her victims) and the way she speaks, minus LesYay.
* FoeYay: To Haseo.
* DeadpanSnarker: Towards the Twilight Guild.
* KnifeNut
!Tawaraya
-->Voiced by: KentaMiyake (Japanese); Mark Acheson (English)
''World Identity:'' A Shadow Warlock dressed as a traditional Japanese merchant. As the public face of [=TaN=], he runs the guild's routine business: trading everything from rare items to information. When the guild is dissolved for illegal activity and his account banned, he later manages to return as Tohta, playing essentially the same character with a different appearance (and trying unsuccessfully not to be recognized as his former self).
''Real Identity:'' A young man in college, eventually getting the opportunity to study overseas. Apparently considers his work in The World as good practice. Even while doing [=TaN's=] dirty work, he takes his role as an honest and ethical businessman very seriously.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Roots''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* CatchPhrase: "Come again!"
* ADayInTheLimelight: The episode ''Return'' takes a break from Haseo and focuses entirely on Tohta.
* MeaningfulName: Both his characters are inspired by the Japanese folk hero they're named after. Phyllo immediately figures out they share the same player because of this.
* SpellMyNameWithAnS: The English dub of ''Roots'' calls him "Tawalaya," probably just because it's much easier for an English speaker to say.
* YouAreTheNewTrend: Intentionally. [=TaN=] must stay on the cutting edge.
!Saburo
-->Voiced by: ShizukaIto (Japanese); RebeccaShoichet (English)
''World Identity:'' An Edge Punisher enlisted by Pi and Yata to observe and occasionally interfere with Haseo. In the end though, she does exactly what she wants to, and nothing else. Very fond of baffling and nonsensical metaphors.
''Real Identity:''
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Roots''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* CrossPlayer
!Kuhn
[[quoteright:243:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Kuhn_GU.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: ShinichiroMiki (Japanese); JohnnyYongBosch (English, video games); Louis Chirillo (English, anime)
''World Identity:'' A member of G.U., Kuhn is a Steam Gunner who is friendly to newbies and fond of hitting on girls at every opportunity. Holds the Avatar of the third Phase, Magus, The Propagation.
''Real Identity:'' Tomonari Kasumi, a 24-year old who has been trying, and failing, to join CC Corp proper. He is the player behind Sieg from the original games.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Roots'', ''.hack//G.U.''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BigBrotherMentor: Silabus, Gaspard ''and'' Haseo.
* BigDamnHeroes: His first appearance in Volume 1.
* BunnyEarsLawyer: His online persona, at least.
* ChivalrousPervert: [[spoiler: There's actually a reason for this behavior. His girlfriend dumped him in between the first games and G.U.]]
** "Girls I like: All kinds! Girls I don't like: None!"
* CoolGun: Look at the picture~
* [[spoiler:FakingTheDead]]
* HeyItsThatVoice: What's [[{{Trigun}} Vash]] doing playing The World?
* TheLeisureSuitLarry: Confesses to Haseo that although his skirt-chasing personality makes him a hit on ''The World'', he has trouble forming relationships offline and hasn't had a serious girlfriend since high school.
* LongHairedPrettyBoy
* MoreDakka: One of his skills.
* NiceGuy: Loyal, kind, and a lot more idealistic than most of his teammates.
* NotWhatItLooksLike: In the sidequest where a girl Kuhn insists on "helping" turns out to be grade-school age. He's thoroughly scorned by Haseo and Pi (though they might have just been teasing), but his chivalrous nature persists nevertheless.
* ObfuscatingStupidity: He's a generally silly person that does a few [[UnsettlingGenderReveal really]] [[{{Lolicon}} stupid]] [[NeverLiveItDown things]], but he actually has a pretty strong will and sense of justice.
** Also, it's a bit surprising that the founder of a newbie assistant guild was formerly the vice-guildmaster for a guild full of [=PKs=] and people who harass newbies. He didn't really like the part though.
** He's also very cool and down to earth and generally cares for the well being of innocent (those unaware of the Avatars and AIDA) players even [[{{Jerkass}} Bordeaux]] and her lackeys. Especially notable when Haseo goes overboard and resorts to cheap out his way to victory by abusing of his Avatar, Kuhn had to teach him ''the hard way'' why Avatars are so dangerous.
* RapunzelHair
* TheMedic: His Avatar, among the eight.
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair
!Yata
[[quoteright:180:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Yata-GU.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: TakumiYamazaki (Japanese); SteveBlum (English, video games); PaulDobson (English, anime)
''World Identity:'' Yata is the mysterious leader of G.U.. He is observing the AIDA phenomenon for CC Corp, but his amoral stance on player safety earns him Haseo and Kuhn's disrespect. [[spoiler: Also plays Nala, an officer of the Moon Tree guild, and Naobi, former Guildmaster of [=TaN=]. Holds the Avatar of the fourth Phase, Fidchell, the Prophet]]
''Real Identity:'' [[spoiler:Takumi Hino returns, having previously played the character of Wiseman.]] In real life he is a 17-year old stock broker who lives on his own in Tokyo.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//G.U.''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: He's a CC Corp staff. He owns the Serpent of Lore which can see EVERYTHING happened in The World. Actually he leave the asskicking to G.U. members. But later goes into the real action in Redemption.
* BulletHell: ThatOneAttack of his Avatar.
* DualWielding: He's a Macabre Dancer and dual-wields fans.
* CrowingMomentOfHeartwarming: After Tawaraya comes back to The World as Tohta in "Return" Yata passes by him and greets him with the voice of Naobi.
* IJustWantToBeSpecial: Yata confesses to Ovan that he spent all of "The World R:2" frustrated that despite his determination and conviction neither AIDA, the invasive god, nor Aura, the absent god, had shown him any favor.
* HeroicBystander: Just sit and watch the events going on in The World, and then leave the cleaning to our heroes.
* ImprobableWeaponUser: The aforementioned twin fans of doom!
* ManipulativeBastard: And he's damn proud of it.
* MadOracle: His Avatar. Goes berserk and then tell prophecy. What?
* TheRedMage: His job allows him to learn many of the spells used by Harvest Clerics and Shadow Warlocks (including debuff/bad status types) but he doesn't gain the high-level spells of either class. He is the only one, however, that gains a ''very'' useful party-wide +50% speed/movement boost spell.
* RefusedByTheCall: The reason he resents Ovan so very much. See above.
* ScaryShinyGlasses
* TheChessmaster: [[spoiler:His user has two PC other than Yata.]]
* TookALevelInBadass: After he joins Haseo for the real fight in Redemption.
* [[spoiler:YoungerThanTheyLook: Though we've never seen his offline self so...]]
!Pi
[[quoteright:140:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Pi_Dot_Hack_GU.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: SanaeKobayashi (Japanese); Jessica Strauss (English, video games); LisaAnnBeley (English, anime)
''World Identity:'' Pi is Yata's assistant, and a field agent of sorts for G.U. Pi is a down-to-earth, no-nonsense woman who is focused on the mission at hand. Unlike Yata, however, she is genuinely concerned for the safety of the players of The World. [[spoiler:She is also the player behind Ender during the events of Roots, working under Naobi (Yata) in the [=TaN=] guild. Their actions during this time are are of questionable morality, as [=TaN=] was shut down and many members banned as a result. It's unknown if CC Corp is aware they were the same player.]] Holds the avatar of the seventh Phase, Tarvos, The Avenger.
''Real Identity:'' Reiko Saeki is 24 years old, and a former programmer. She quit her job suddenly to work for CC Corp [[spoiler: in order to find out information about her half-brother Jun Bansyoya]].
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//GU''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* ActionGirl
* BeamSpam: One of her skills.
* [[spoiler:BigBrotherAttraction (She ''may'' have some form of this trope, although it seems for the most part more like BigBrotherWorship. The fact that she responds to Haseo asking what her "type" is by saying that she follows in the footsteps of her older brother is a bit suspicious, though, especially since that card is generally reserved for asking what kind of person someone is looking for in a romantic relationship.)]]
** [[spoiler:[[InterspeciesRomance She says the only gentleman allowed to ride in her car is her cat.]] Of course, it's likely that that's not what she meant.]]
* TheBaroness - A strange, protagonist version of the trope. She definitely has the dominatrix overtones in her insistence on obedience and her B&D avatar, and she is fanatically devoted to Yata who protagonist status is quite questionable [[spoiler:until Vol. 3]]. Her outfit's pretty {{Stripperiffic}} too, even if it lacks the black leather/vinyl fashion normally associated with the trope, and she's got the coldness and refusal to actual make use of her sex appeal that's common to this trope. Lastly, [[spoiler:she's a villain and TheDragon for Yata/Naobi in .hack//Roots]]. Despite all this, she's one of the good guys.
* BoobsOfSteel
** Pi's Player will give the character's (not her own, her avatar's) measurements if asked. They are 37-22-33. She also lists her height as 5'8" (175 cm).
* CoolBigSis
* TheDragon: To Yata.
* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: [[spoiler: manages to unban a member of TaN that served under her doing black ops, Subaro, unbanned due to her sway as an admin in exchange for some tasks she needed done that "Pi" can't do]]
* LeotardOfPower: Did you see it, in the picture?
* Meganekko
* MsFanservice: Clearly.
* PersonofMassDestruction: Her Avatar. Does the word 'Avenger' ring any bell?
* PowerFist
* RapunzelHair
* SheFu
* {{Stripperiffic}}
* UndyingLoyalty: To Yata.
* [[YouGottaHaveBlueHair You Gotta Have Pink Hair]]
!Tri-Edge/Azure Kite
[[quoteright:255:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Azure_Knight_Kite.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: Saiyaka Aida (Japanese); MonaMarshall (English)
''World Identity:'' A player-killer named for the three-line scars he leaves in the background graphics of places where he's taken victims, who go into comas in the real world. Little is known of him, but most players believe he's a small Twin Blade wreathed in blue fire, who never speaks.
''Real Identity:'' Exactly who or what Tri-Edge is remains a mystery through ''Roots'' and most of the G.U. games... [[spoiler:but it turns out he's an [=AI=] made by Aura to ''protect'' the system. The true Tri-Edge is Ovan.]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Roots'', ''.hack//G.U.'', ''.hack//LINK''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* {{Expy}}: Tri-Edge looks like a zombified Kite. [[spoiler:This is intentional, as he was created from Aura's memories of Kite.]]
* ImplacableMan: ''Nothing'' will stop him. No matter how many times he's beaten in combat, he'll regenerate and return soon after.
* IncendiaryExponent: He's called [[spoiler:Azure Flame Kite]] for a reason.
* OneWingedAngel: His "Azure Flame God" form.
* PowerTrio: Tri-Edge is later joined by zombified versions of Orca and Balmung.
* PowerFloats[=/=]MidairBobbing: [[spoiler: After gaining Azure Kite as a party member, he follows Haseo around like this if you take him with you into dungeons and fields. Presumably he's too [[BadAss cool]] for walking.]]
* [[spoiler: SecretCharacter]]: [[spoiler: After destroying Cubia in ''Redemption'', Aura gives you the member addresses of Azure Kite, along with Azure Orca and Azure Balmung. They can't change equipment but you can raise their affection for Haseo like any of his other party members. Haseo can even do the Promise Ending with them]].
* [[spoiler: ShootTheHostage]]: [[spoiler: Not the brightest or most moral AI, Azure Kite fires a Data Drain straight through Haseo to get Ovan, who had been secretly been hiding right behind him. Of course this doesn't hurt Haseo all that much (compared to the last time where he fell into a Coma), but it does undo his grueling eight months of level grinding by making him go from level 133 to level 1.]]
!Aina
-->Voiced by: AtsukoEnomoto (Japanese); Rachel Hirschfeld (English)
''World Identity:'' A Shadow Warlock, seen on rare occasions. Yata reveals toward the end of ''Roots'' that he'd seen her talking with Phyllo[[spoiler:, because it was through her that Phyllo met Ovan]]. She later appears and spends some time with Sakubo in ''Redemption'', while somehow also attracting the attention of Piros the 3rd. [[spoiler:She was Ovan's first victim as Tri-Edge, and the whole reason he wanted to find the Key of the Twilight.]]
''Real Identity:'' [[spoiler:Ovan's younger sister. Already sick and hospitalized, she lapsed into a coma when Ovan [=PKed=] her as Tri-Edge. After he apparently dies to activate Corbenik's Rebirth ability, she returns to normal, but resents Haseo for separating them, believing it was better to be trapped with her brother than to be apart from him completely.]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Roots'' (sort of), ''.hack//G.U.: Redemption''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BlackMagicianGirl: She is a Shadow Warlock, after all.
* CuteGhostGirl
* ElegantGothicLolita
* [[WomanInWhite Girl In White]]
* IllGirl
!Atoli
[[quoteright:198:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Atoli_GU.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: AyakoKawasumi (Japanese); BridgetHoffman (English)
''World Identity:'' A Harvest Cleric who just wants everybody to get along. She has an obsessive loyalty to Sakaki, her immediate superior in the anti-player-killer Moon Tree guild, but quickly attaches herself to Haseo in order to "fix" him. [[spoiler:Holds the avatar of the second Phase, Innis, The Mirage of Deceit.]]
''Real Identity:'' Chigusa Kusaka, a young high school girl. Being constantly bullied in school and oppressed by her parents - who believe girls should be quiet and unnoticable - led her to browsing suicide websites where she met Sakaki's player, who invited her to play The World.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//G.U.'', ''.hack//LINK''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: She is constantly bullied in real life.
* AnimalMotifs - Bird.
* AyakoKawasumi
* BadassAdorable - [[spoiler:She can fight Haseo on even terms when she awakens her Epitaph.]] Also, out of the mage classes, Harvest Clerics are only outmatched by Macabre Dancers in usefulness, and you don't get another one of either until late in Vol. 3.
* BeneathTheMask
* BewareTheNiceOnes: In Volume 3, you can unlock a series of parody videos based on the spinoff comic .hack//4koma. In one of them, Atoli brutally beats a rather cute-looking monster, and when Haseo restrains her at the end of the video, she's giggling maniacally. Granted, this is an exaggeration of her personality overall, but [[spoiler:this comes into play ''quite seriously'' in Volume 2, when she gets infected with AIDA and turns out to [[{{Emo}} not be]] [[BerserkButton as nice]] [[UnstoppableRage as she seems]], summoning her Avatar to attack Haseo.]]
* BodyHorror: OVA only, after infected by AIDA in the BattleInTheCenterOfTheMind with Haseo.
* BreakTheCutie[=/=]BrokenBird: By being on the receiving end of KickTheDog her whole life.
* [[spoiler:BungledSuicide: In real life, her left wrist has marks from failed suicide attempts, at least as shown in the non-canon manga. She has stopped trying to take her own life after meeting Haseo.]]
* CharacterDevelopment: Not as extreme an example as Haseo, but pretty close. She starts out fairly diminutive, with a naive, sweet, overly trusting and submissive personality that annoys Haseo to no end. Later, [[spoiler:after showing her TrueSelf relentlessly in Volume 2 (and being infected with AIDA),]] she becomes somewhat of a {{Determinator}}, standing up for herself to the point where ''Haseo'' can't tie her down [[spoiler:(to make a point, she summons her Avatar in front of Haseo to try and convince him to let her join his team in the Sage Palace arena tournament, and when he stubbornly refuses to let her in out of concern for her, she basically forces her way onto his team). Even before that, she's still chewing out Sakaki for betraying her (see TheReasonYouSuckSpeech)]].
* CoolDownHug: Given this by Haseo in the OVA.
* CuteMute: She's the only PC to be muted when [[spoiler:The World was moved into AIDA Server where no one can Log Out.]]
* [[spoiler:DrivenToSuicide: She's actually tried and failed a few times to commit suicide.]]
* Expy: Of Shino
* {{Fangirl}}: Definitely towards Sakaki [[spoiler:until he crosses his MoralEventHorizon]]. And quite a bit for Haseo.
* FriendToAllLivingThings: Although her favorites are birds, she apparently likes all sorts of other animals. In The World, this manifests as her finding Lucky Animals and Chim Chims incredibly cute, to the point of restraining Haseo from kicking one in an early quest.
* GenericCuteness / InformedDeformity: One of the reasons she is bullied by her classmates in real life is because she is "unattractive", but when we see her offline self in G.U.+ manga, she's actually rather cute. Of course, it's also possible this is more due to [[GirlPosse who are bullying her]] rather than her being "unattractive" by nature.
* GenkiGirl: A timid one, but definitely upbeat. [[spoiler:On the outside.]]
* HiddenDepths: ...where should I start? [[spoiler:One of her Epitaph's primary abilities is deceit, allowing her to create a ''perfect'' {{facade}} for her TrueSelf. As such, she's probably the best example of this trope ''in the entire series''.]]
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Give this to Haseo when she's infected by AIDA.
* ItsAllMyFault: More or less her mindset after [[spoiler:she is attacked by AIDA and has her Epitaph stolen. And then Sakaki proceeds to MindRape her using this argument...]]
* LoveFreak: To the ''max''. [[DeconstructedTrope Love is all she wants]], partly thanks to bullying in her school and detached home life. Then we find out where she met Sakaki. And then G.U. Vol. 2 happened...
* LoveRedeems: In the OVA.
* HeelFaceTurn: To Sakaki at the end of Reminisce.
* HiddenDepths: Turns out to have many problems in the real world.
* MagicalGirlfriend: In some ways, Atoli is a deconstruction of this. She latches onto Haseo when he's at his nadir and tries desperately to be his friend despite all the anger and abuse he heaps on her. But rather than be some unrealistic saint, [[spoiler:it's more of a manifestation of the incredibly low self-worth that drives her seek to please people in spite of or perhaps because of abuse.]]
* MagicStaff
* MasterOfIllusion: Her Avatar.
* MeaningfulName: Her name is derived from "Atori", which means "brambling".
* [[spoiler:MindRape: That damn Sakaki...]]
** [[spoiler:MindControlEyes]]
* NiceHat
* NiceGirl: But then again, see BewareOfTheNiceOnes.
* ObfuscatingStupidity: Possibly applies, as she ''acts'' rather silly, ditzy and naive, but she can actually be fairly intelligent sometimes (and that's not even taking into account [[spoiler:how she acts underneath the mask]]).
* OfficialCouple: With Haseo [[spoiler: if the ending of G.U., the ending of G.U. Trilogy, the side story Peaco's Story from 4koma & the G.U. mission #19 from LINK are anything to go by.]]
* ReplacementLoveInterest: To the letter. Instead of being the same actress with a different haircut, it's the same character design with a different color scheme. [[spoiler:They even both had the Avatar Innis.]] Justifed due to the setting.
** It's worth noting Haseo was initially repelled by Atoli ''because'' she looked so much like Shino.
* ShrinkingViolet
* StepfordSmiler: As imposed by her parents.
* StockingFiller: She has fairly notable garters. Shino too.
* SupremeChef: One of Atoli's few sources of pride is her cooking ability. She's also a bit of a PickyEater, though.
* TechnicalPacifist
* [[spoiler: TrueSelf]]: [[spoiler: BeneathTheMask she's a mobidly depressed, embittered, occasionally suicidal girl desperate for recognition and acceptance. Her LoveFreak persona is largely her trying to appeal to ''everybody''. Adding a few guilt issues to the mix [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds pushes her over the edge]]...]]
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Yes, she ''actually delivers one of these''. [[spoiler:To ''Sakaki''. Who had just betrayed her and used every method in the book to crush her mind and spirit. And then proceeded to ''[[CrowningMomentOfAwesome whoop his ass]]'' afterward.]] Granted, she did it in her own [[TechnicalPacifist special way]], but it was still awesome coming from ''her''.
* [[spoiler: WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds]]: [[spoiler: Unlike most people under [[HatePlague AIDA influence]], Atoli directs her rampage against the people she perceived as having rejected her.]]
* WhyCouldntYouBeDifferent: [[spoiler:Her parents harassed her for her failing grades and her attitude, as they believe girls should be quiet and unnoticed. Her peers likewise harassed her for not keeping up with the trends or meeting their expectations.]]
* TheMedic: Obviously.
* TheScrappy: No, she's quite {{Badass}} in the game. In the OVA
* TheWoobie: In the OVA.
* TroubledButCute
* ZettaiRyouiki
!Sakaki
[[quoteright:280:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/280px-Sakaki_8737.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: KatsuyukiKonishi (Japanese, PC); JunkoMinagawa (Japanese, player); Creator/CrispinFreeman (English, PC); MaryElizabethMcGlynn (English, player)
''World Identity:'' One of the Seven Council of the Moon Tree guild, and among the most influential of them. He's seen as an inspiration by most of Moon Tree and an annoying, preachy busybody by everyone else. [[spoiler:Becomes a major antagonist in Volumes 2 and 3 after he is given control of AIDA by Ovan.]]
''Real Identity:'' Toru Uike, a precociously intelligent young boy who desires to be taken seriously despite his youth.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//G.U.''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* [[spoiler: AGodAmI: His plan in ''Reminisce'' is to use AIDA to rule the digital and real worlds and make it a paradise under his rule.]]
* AllTakeAndNoGive: Of the controlling giver type. [[spoiler:Oh ''dear lord,'' '''''poor Atoli.''''']]
* [[spoiler:AssholeVictim: It's seriously nice to see him begging Ovan for AIDA seeds on his hands and knees, getting cornered by the Azure Knights, screaming for help like a coward, and being finally killed for good by Azure Kite.]]
* AndIMustScream: [[spoiler:When about to be killed by Azure Flame Kite.]]
* [[spoiler: AxCrazy: Any good intentions he might have had in the beginning are gone by ''Redemption'', as he's been infected with AIDA himself and desires nothing more than to make Haseo suffer for the "crime" of defying him.]]
* BackFromDead: In Redemption and he's getting worst.
* {{BFS}}: Look at the picture.
* BitchInSheepClothing
* [[spoiler:BodyHorror: After being injected AIDA into himself for some period of time.]]
* [[spoiler:BreakTheHaughty: His final scene in Redemption is one hundred percent distilled ''break''. And it is awesome.]]
* [[spoiler:EnfanteTerrible: When infected by AIDA, although this may apply even before he is infected given his relationship with Atoli. In real life, he even orders his classmates to attack their homeroom teacher.]]
* [[spoiler:DrunkOnTheDarkSide: Because of AIDA inside him.]]
* {{Expy}}: Listen to his speeches about the "ideal world" and tell me he's not [[spoiler: channeling [[Manga/DeathNote Light Yagami]]. "I am Sakaki! The god of The World!"]]
* FacialMarkings: Got these when [[spoiler: infected by AIDA.]]
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Atoli. Why? Because you must have to have Atoli in your party to fight him in the end of Reminisce.
* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler:By Azure Flame Kite.]]
* ManipulativeBastard: For God's sake, he recruited Atoli as his personal cheerleader after finding her on a ''suicide site''.
* MindRape: [[spoiler:What he does to Atoli through AIDA, in an attempt to gain control of her Epitaph]].
* NotQuiteDead: In the end of Reminisce.
* [[spoiler:OneWingedAngel: His AIDA infested form, figuratively and literally.]]
* SmugSnake
* WellIntentionedExtremist: What he is [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope at first...]]
* WiseBeyondTheirYears: The issues of morality and ideology he's grappling with are far beyond what most kids his age spend time thinking about.
* [[YouGottaHaveBlueHair You Gotta Have Green Hair]]
!'''Sakubo (Saku)'''
[[quoteright:240:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Sakubo-1.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:240: Bo (left) and Saku (right)]]
-->Voiced by: MegumiToyoguchi (Japanese); ErinFitzgerald (English)
''World Identity:'' Saku is a bratty and aggressive Shadow Warlock who is one of Endrance's most rabid fangirls. She is a member of a rumor-maniac guild called Trifle. She shares her PC with her younger twin brother, Bo. [[spoiler:They hold the Avatar of the fifth Phase, Gorre, The Machinator]]
''Real Identity:'' Sakura Nakanishi is the elder twin sister of Iori, the player behind Bo. They are both 10 years old. [[spoiler: Saku actually does not exist in the real world. The "real" Sakura was stillborn. Saku is Iori's alternate personality that came to be when Iori heard that his mother wished that his sister had lived instead of him.]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//G.U.''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BrattyHalfPint
* ClingyJealousGirl
* CompositeCharacter: Sakubo's role (as a whole), is merged with Silabus and Gaspards's in the G.U. novels.
* HotBlooded: Has shades of this.
* TheNapoleon
* [[spoiler:SparklingStreamOfTears]]
* [[spoiler:SplitPersonality]]
* StalkerWithACrush: '''''ENDRANCE.'''''
-->"[[ClingyJealousGirl Haseo... You...]] [[RevengeBeforeReason You've come here to steal Master En from me, haven't you?!]] [[MostAnnoyingSound Ohhhhhhh]] [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge no you don't!]] [[UnstoppableRage No you don't!]] [[BerserkButton No you don't!]] [[SuperPoweredEvilSide No you dooooooooon't!!!]]"
** It's worth noting that Saku was infected by AIDA during that scene.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Dear Lord, [[CrowningMomentOfFunny she utterly rips Negimaru]] ''[[CrowningMomentOfFunny apart]]'' at the end of a quest.
-->"I'll say it again! Guys who are.. losers offline.. are big losers.. online too!!!!"
** Followed by [[KickThemWhileTheyAreDown brutally blasting the hell out of him]] [[SparklingStreamOfTears as he runs away in tears]].
* {{Tsundere}}
* {{Tsurime}}
!'''Sakubo (Bo)'''
-->Voiced by: MegumiToyoguchi (Japanese); Erin Fitzgerald (English)
''World Identity:'' Bo is a timid boy who shares his character with his sister Saku. In contrast to Saku's outgoing nature, Bo is shy and withdrawn. Through the events of the game, he comes to view Haseo as a big brother of sorts. [[spoiler:They hold the Avatar of the fifth Phase, Gorre, The Machinator]]
''Real Identity:'' Iori Nakanishi is Sakura's younger twin. He is physically frail, often having to stay home from school due to illness. [[spoiler:This is a source of strife for his parents, and it was his frustrated mother's anger that created the alternate personality of Saku.]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//G.U.''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* ChildMage: His temeperment, character model, and class culminate into this.
* CompositeCharacter: See Saku's entry of the same trope.
* CrossPlayer: The in-game character itself is still a girl, regardless of the flattened skirt and hair whenever Bo plays.
* [[IllGirl Ill Boy]]
* MoralityPet: Arguably one for Haseo. Note that when he's still quite a jerk to everyone else, his treatment to Bo is much nicer.
* ShrinkingViolet
* [[spoiler:SplitPersonality: The original half.]]
* {{Tareme}}
* [[spoiler:YouShouldHaveDiedInstead: His mother wishes it was Sakura who lived instead of him, which is why he creates Saku.]]
!Endrance
[[quoteright:218:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Endrance.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: MitsukiSaiga (Japanese); LiamOBrien (English)
''World Identity:'' Endrance is a famous Blade Brandier who is the Emperor of the Demon Palace Arena in the beginning of the games. His beauty and aloof attitude attracts many fans, but he shows no interest in anything but the small cat on his shoulder that he calls "Mia". Fittingly, he holds the avatar of the sixth Phase, Macha, The Temptress.
''Real Identity:'' Kaoru Ichinose is a 20-year old hikikomori who was behind the character of Elk from the previous games. Despite his reclusive lifestyle, he supposedly has the looks of a fashion model.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//G.U.'' Link
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BigDamnHeroes: Once each of the JustInTime and ChangedMyMindKid variety, followed by an awesome put-down.
* {{Bishonen}}
* BrainwashedAndCrazy: He first appears to be TheFightingNarcissist. He's actually a lot less obnoxious.
* DefeatMeansFriendship: Averted. Defeating him ''helped'', but what really [[HoYay bonds]] him to Haseo is the subsequent YouAreNotAlone speech.
* DudeLooksLikeALady: Taken UpToEleven with his Xth Form in ''Link''.
* [[spoiler:FakeDefector / ReverseMole]]: Pretends to [[spoiler:side with Sakaki]] in ''Redemption'', followed by a CrowningMomentOfAwesome.
* GayOption
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: He doesn't care at all whether [[spoiler:Haseo]] returns his affection or not.
* [[LadyOfWar Lord Of War]]
* LongHairedPrettyBoy
* MrFanservice
* PurpleProse: Will wax lyrical about beauty and his love for Mia and [[spoiler:Haseo]].
* SingleTargetSexuality: First Mia (sort of), then [[spoiler:Haseo]].
* SomethingAboutARose
* StalkerWithACrush: [[spoiler:Not nearly as bad as Saku, but he ''does'' appear to scare the hell out of Haseo. Leads to something of an unrequited LoveTriangle in which Saku hates Haseo because she thinks he stole Endrance.]]
* TookALevelInKindness: Acts much nicer to the team, especially Haseo, following his defeat. Being cured of the HatePlague probably helped.
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair
!Alkaid
[[quoteright:231:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Alkaid_GU_8535.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: MasumiAsano (Japanese); Erin Fitzgerald (English)
''World Identity'': The former Emperor of the Demon Palace, before Endrance took the title. She at first hates Haseo for "cheating" to defeat her in the InevitableTournament, but after getting to know him better, she quickly warms up to him and becomes one of his allies. [[spoiler:She is PK'ed and put into a coma by an AIDA-possessed Bordeaux late in ''Reminisce'', and his failure to protect her is something that weighs heavily on Haseo for some time afterward.]]
''Real Identity'': Chika Kuramoto, a high school girl and something of a bookworm. She's highly fond of ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms''.
''Appears In'': ''.hack//G.U.'', ''.hack//Link''
''Tropes Associated With'':
* ActionGirl
* AsskickingEqualsAuthority: She's one of the Arena Emperors.
* Badass: What did I say about being Arena Emperor?
** BadassBookworm: She is this in the real world.
* BareYourMidriff
* CallingYourAttacks
* CherylBlossom: Alongside Atoli and Shino, who both can interchangably be the BettyAndVeronica.
* DemotedToExtra: In the games she's fine however... [[spoiler:both G.U.+ and G.U. Novels she shows up simply to get beat by Endrance and in G.U. Trilogy only to stop Haseo's winning streak in the Arena in either case she never shows up again.]]
* DefeatMeansFriendship
* DualWielding: She's a Twin Blade.
* FieryRedhead
* GenkiGirl: After Haseo manages to befriend her.
* IdiotHair: More a sign of being a GenkiGirl than with being dumb or naive, though.
* LethalChef: Possibly - Haseo is skeptical of her cooking abilities from the start, and she ''definitely'' sucks at cooking ramen. Although, it's not outright proven, considering the lack of information regarding the subject.
* LittleMissBadass: Her height is 153cm.
* LightningBruiser
* LoveTriangle: Subverted. One seems to be forming between her and Atoli (over Haseo, naturally), but the two reconcile and become good friends fairly quickly.
** She fully acknowledges that Haseo likes Atoli more, but that won't stop her from trying to win him over. She still likes Atoli, though - it's more just her competitive spirit.
* PintsizedPowerHouse: She's the tiniest of all the Arena Emperors.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: Certainly acts the part. She's dismissive of anyone whom she considers weak, and absolutely despises cheaters. But earn her respect and she's one of the most loyal and dependable friends you could have.
* [[RedHeadedHero Red Headed Heroine]]
* ReverseGrip
* RomanceOfTheThreeKingdoms: Alkaid's player is a huge fan as revealed if you send her the right greeting cards.
* ShipTease: Holy crap, is there ever. Haseo even ''{{Glomp}}s'' her at one point!
** [[spoiler:If it doesn't make you cry, it will make you laugh. It's a bit [[{{Narm}} narmy]] as well due to the somewhat over-the-top voice acting on Haseo's part. Not quite as bad, though, as it's still dramatic enough to qualify as a TearJerker.]]
*** She also rather openly talks about her feelings for him in Emails if prompted to in a light hearted manner. And the track that plays [[spoiler: When's she's falling comatose]] is entitled "For you my dearest." [[spoiler:She also takes to refering to Haseo as her "Prince Charming" after he revives her.]]
* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou: Delivered straight when you meet her in a quest after your tournament fight.
* {{Tomboy}}
** She admits that it's more just her online persona and she's actually a slightly introverted bookworm offline.
* {{Tsundere}}: (Type A).
!Zelkova
[[quoteright:280:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/280px-Zelkova_1691.jpg]]
-->Voiced by: AkikoKimura (Japanese); WendeeLee (English)
''World Identity'': A young-looking Flick Reaper, and the leader of Moon Tree. Though he is kind and seems carefree, he is actually one of the game's most advanced and powerful players, and is much more aware of what's happening than he lets on. He takes a rather lax attitude toward governing Moon Tree, allowing Sakaki to build up support against him. [[spoiler:When he isn't acting as Moon Tree's leader, he spends his time as the caretaker of the Net Slum, further hinting that he's far more than he appears.]]
''Real Identity'': A complete mystery to everyone. [[spoiler:There are hints that he may in fact be an AI.]]
''Appears In:'' ''.hack//G.U.'', ''.hack//LINK''
!!Trope Associated With
* BadassAdorable
* CuteBruiser / PintSizedPowerhouse
* HiddenDepths: He seems a lot more naive than he actually is.
* NiceGuy
* ReplacementGoldfish: Sort of plays this role for Kaede, [[spoiler:whose son died in a car accident]].
* SinisterScythe: His weapon of choice as he's of the Flick Reaper class. Very, very much a good guy though.
* [[UnusualEars Unusual Horns]]
!AIDA
''World Identity:'' Artificially Intelligent Data Anomalies, appearing as clusters of undulating black spots. How they were created and what they want is unknown, but they've recently become hostile toward humans, infecting players and compelling them to pursue their natural - usually negative - impulses beyond reason.
''Real Identity:'' None. AIDA victims, however, become little more than lifeless drones in reality, serving the will of AIDA and exhibiting superhuman power on one occasion.
''Appears in:''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AlwaysChaoticEvil: [[spoiler:Averted, actually. ''GU Returner'' reveals that the hostile AIDA that were causing all the problems had discovered aggression and went a little crazy with it. The Rebirth didn't wipe out all of AIDA... just the aggressive ones. The rest of AIDA is peaceful and non-interfering, prefering to remain hidden in the background rather than interact directly with humans.]]
* EmotionBomb: AIDA's effect on people. AIDA is curious about human emotion, so it bonds itself to people's consciousnesses to experiment with it. It often amplifies those emotions in the process, to disastrous levels.
* RedRightHand: Or, more specifically, black left arms.
* ThemeNaming: AIDA variants are basic human names (Anna, Helen, Victorian...), and a lot of their attacks are named after programming languages.
!Midori
-->Voiced by: SatsukiYukino (Japanese); SaffronHenderson (English)
''World Identity:'' A "Professional Victim" who lets people fight and killer her in return for payment. Her Class is Edge Punisher and she used to be a [=PKer=].
''Real Identity:'' [[spoiler: Midori was born from a "virtual cell" in a medical computer. The cell was taken from a girl named Midori Shimomura who was suffering from a mysterious degenerative disorder. In an attempt to understand her condition, the doctors used a blood sample from her to create the virtual cell. However, the cell took on a life of its own and escaped into the network, where it grew and became sentient. "She" eventually arrived in The World R:2, where "she" created the PC Midori. With the exception of the blood sample, Midori does not exist outside of the worldwide computer network and the electronic devices attached to it. She is, however, able to use those devices to observe and interact with the real world. The original Midori creates an identical character once she recovers and it is unknown which of them appears in Link]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Cell'', ''.hack//Roots'', ''.hack///Link''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* ActionGirl
* AbsoluteCleveage: In LINK.
* BadassLonghair
* {{BFS}}
* DetachedSleeves
* IceQueen: Subverted, she's not evil.
* ImpossiblyCoolClothes: Her clothes is this in the novel illustrations.
* FlowerMotifs
* {{Foil}}: To Bordeaux.
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: The reason she searches Tri-Edge/Azure Flame Kite.
* LightningBruiser: She's quite fast for being an Edge Punisher.
* MeaningfulName / PunnyName: Midori usually translates to "green", but it's written as "blue" for her case, which is her color scheme.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Not really, but this is the color of her {{BFS}}.
* ShockAndAwe: In LINK, she demonstrate a very destructive attack during her Cross Rengeki with Tokio. Much to Tokio's amazement and fear.
* SugarAndIcePersonality: While she generally displays cool personality, she actually have soft side for PCs like Silabus and Gaspard.
* TheAloner
* TheStoic
** NotSoStoic: See Sugar and Ice Personality.
* TomatoInTheMirror
* ZettaiRyouiki
!Carlos "Salvador" Aihara
-->Voiced by: MasashiEbara (Japanese); DaranNorris (English)
''World Identity'': Kazubolo, a random player who doesn't do much.
''Real Identity'': A reporter well-known for his aggressive "Will not take no for an answer" approach to journalism, he is very interested in finding out the truth of things. He runs a webshow called "Online Jack", during which he investigates the mysterious mental illness "Doll Syndrome" that has recently been spreading worldwide, and his investigation keeps coming back to one topic: The World.
''Appears In: .hack//GU (specifically, the Online Jack section of the News)''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* ButNotTooForeign: He's Japanese, but was born in Brazil... explains his name, at least.
** Which is not that strange, considering that Brazil has the largest concentration of Japanese descendants in the world (outside of Japan itself, of course).
* ChivalrousPervert: Never misses a chance to hit on a woman.
* DistractedByTheSexy: "Samba, samba!"
* GratuitousForeignLanguage: Portuguese
* IntrepidReporter
* LargeHam: Oh, so much...
* NoseBleed: Online Jack Episode 5. Michiru is not pleased.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: .Hack//Link]]
!!Tropes Associated With:
!'''Tokio'''
[[quoteright:340:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/a9724a5d69159f67fafda078b40be73d8ae64dfd.jpg]]
''World Identity:'' [[TrappedInTVLand Himself.]]
''Real Identity:'' OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent
''Appears in: .hack//Link'' (game), ''.hack//Link: Twilight Knights'' (manga), ''.hack//Versus''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AnimeHair: While this isn't a new thing to the series and is also justified due to the MMORPG setting it has most of the time, Tokio is notable for having anime hair in the ''real'' world in a series where most of the actual players behind the characters tend to have more realistic appearances. It's [[http://shoryuken.com/2012/06/07/namco-bandai-releases-hackversus-screenshots-featuring-kite-blackrose-and-tokio-kuryuu/ greatly toned down in .hack//Versus]], however.
* ButtMonkey: Watch the [[CombinationAttack Cross]] [[SuperMovePortraitAttack Rengeki]] with Tokio and his party members. Over half the time, he gets injured or looks like an idiot during the process.
** Some examples: when he gets used as ''a stepping stone'' by Haseo to get to the enemy; gets accidently ''zapped'' (along with the enemy) by Atoli, nearly turned into colateral damage by [[spoiler: Azure Kite]]'s attack, and [[spoiler: B-st Haseo]] turns to ''attack him'' at the end of their "combo" attack.
* CharacterDevelopment: Tokio does start out acting rather stupid, but later on, he matures dramatically. [[FanDumb Of course, the fanbase refuses to look past his initial idiocy.]]
* CrisisCrossover: Brings all of the .hack series characters together. [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters ALL of them.]] Even some of the ones in AlternateContinuity.
** They're all AIs.
* GenreSavvy
* IdiotHero: Hooh, boy.
* InTheHood: His appearance in Versus, under his alias "9".
* InvulnerableKnuckles: Wields twin knuckledusters in Versus tied into his [[TimeStandsStill new powers.]]
* TimeTravel: In game, Tokio is able to and from the different DotHack eras; and bring people with him. Yes, that would include people like Sora and Haseo. At the same time.
** He does so by using the "Akashic Records" built into The World, and he's clearly not actually traveling through time, as a ''lot'' of what happens is completely different from what actually happened (and this is pointed out). Also, Sora isn't playable. Unless you count the EarlyBirdCameo, who is a genderswapped {{Expy}} of Kite and not the same Sora as past Ryou.
* TimeStandsStill: Has this power in Versus.
* TookALevelInBadass: You would have a hard time recognizing his Versus self - different fighting style, different powers, and even a different appearance - until he takes off his hood.
* TrappedInTVLand: Is either a copy of his physical self mentally pulled into the World(s); or has been physically pulled into the World.
!Princess AIKA
''World Identity:'' A mysterious princess in Tokio's dreams who looks like Saika.
''Real Identity:'' [[spoiler: A variants of AIDA that fused with the princess of a different online MMORPG that Tokio once played. It followed him to The World; and wanting to help, took the physical form of Saika.]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Link''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* EverythingsBetterWithPrincesses
!Saika Amagi
''World Identity:'' "Panzer Saika", a heavily armed version of her real self with a really big gun and a German Uniform. (Although, it apparently exists only in the manga.)
''Real Identity:'' Cousin/adopted sister of the man who went crazy and nearly destroyed the World with the Aura Reclamation Project that turned R:1 into R:2.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Link''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BadassNormal (She's completely and utterly awesome in every feasible way. She also doesn't play The World (in the .hack//LINK game, at least) and is not a playable character as a result.)
* MissionControl
* {{Tsundere}}
[[/folder]]
[[folder: .Hack//Quantum]]
!Sakuya
-->Voiced by: KanaHanazawa (Japanese) Trina Nishimura (English)
''World Identity:'' A newbie to "The World R:X", she is a Twin Blade modeled after Kite, who sets out to try and conquer "The One Sin" special Christmas-time event along with her friends Mary and Tobias. [[spoiler: When things start to go wrong for her and her friends, they get chased by monsters and end up accidentally springing traps on other players in the area, they tend to get into some hot water because of it.]]
''Real identity:'' Asumi Aida. Asumi is a bright and cheerful high school student in Aomori Prefecture. She plays ''The World'' with her actual personality. Unlike Eri and Iori, she's bad at studying.
''Appears in:'' ''.Hack//Quantum'', ''.hack//Versus''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* CheerfulChild
* CuriousAsAMonkey: Her curiosity is part of the reason why her and her friends ended up '''ACCIDENTALLY''' setting off a ton of traps on the Yata Raven guild who were also participating in the event.
* {{Expy}}: Of Kite.
* GenkiGirl: Think Sakuya as a hyperactive version of Kite.
* RightHandOfDoom[=/=]TheCorruption: [[spoiler: On a positive note, as her corrupted right hand is the only thing that can delete the Data Bugs that Hermit unleashed.]]
!Mary
-->Voiced by: AyumiFujimura (Japanese) Lara Woodhull (English)
''World Identity: An Edge Punisher modeled after [=BlackRose=]. She is considerably kind to her friends, but she is not to be crossed when you push her too far... Especially considering when she has to clean up the mess her friends make, be it literally or figuratively.
''Real identity:'' Eri Etou. Eri started playing The World after she was invited by her long-time friend Asumi, who she is constantly looking out for. Every morning she comes to get Asumi, who is always on the brink of being late for school.
''Appears in:'' ''.Hack//Quantum''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Her kindness has its limitations.
* {{Expy}}: Of [=BlackRose=]
* TurnTheOtherCheek: Her kindness almost places her at TheMessiah levels.. Almost.
!Tobias
-->Voiced by: MiyukiSawashiro (Japanese) Anastasia Munoz (English)
''World Identity:'' Tobias is a Blade Brandier modeled after Balmung. He is an experienced player of ''The World'' who befriends Sakuya and Mary. He is commonly known as "Tobias the Information Merchant", taking into selling information much like Wiseman did.
''Real identity:'' Iori Ikuta. Iori is classmates with Eri and Asumi. Her sense of fashion in The World is not reflected at all in the real world. Her family owns one of the best and oldest hot springs resorts in Aomori.
''Appears in:'' ''.Hack//Quantum''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* {{Bishonen}}: Only in the World
* CrossPlayer: Yeah, she's a female playing a male character.
* {{Expy}}: of Balmung
* TheInformant[=/=]KnowledgeBroker[=/=]TheRat
!Hermit
-->Voiced by: Yui Ogura
''World Identity:'' A strange character with an illegal appearance modeled suspiciously after both Mia and Macha. Whether Hermit is a PC or NPC is unknown, but it appears to be looking for something... Hermit befriends Sakuya [[spoiler: after she managed to escape some pursuers chasing her through town.]]
''Real identity:'' [[spoiler: Touha Tanagami. Touha Tanagami was an American citizen of Japanese descent, hospitalized as a child with an unspecified disease, possibly some form of immunodeficiency]].
''Appears in:'' ''.Hack//Quantum''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* [[spoiler:BigBad]]
* {{Expy}}: of Mia and Macha.
!Shamrock
-->Voiced By: SanaeKobayashi
''World Identity:'' Shamrock is a Shadow Warlock and the guildmaster of the ''Yata Mirror'' guild. She and Smith try their hand at ''The One Sin'' special event, but end up chasing after Sakuya, Mary,and Tobias after they accidentally spring a bunch of traps on them.
''Real identity:'' [[spoiler: Reiko Saeki, the owner of Pi.]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Quantum''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* {{Expy}}: of Aina
* {{Foreshadowing}}: [[spoiler: The name of her guild Yata Mirror, while seemingly named after one of the 3 treasures of japan, is likely a subtle reference to her identity as Pi due to her obsession with Yata]]
* HugeGuyTinyGirl: With Smith, she is the tiny girl
* TokenMiniMoe
* TronLines: [[spoiler: Data Drain]]
** PowerGlows
!Smith
-->Voiced By: Masami Iwasaki
''World identity:'' Smith is a Lord Partisan and the second-in-command of the ''Yata Mirror'' guild.
''Real identity:'' Shamrock's butler.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Quantum''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* {{Expy}}: of Piros the 3rd and Moonstone
* HugeGuyTinyGirl: He often lets Shamrock ride on his shoulder.
* TheQuietOne: He doesn't talk much.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: .hack//Beyond the World]]
!Kite (Sora)
-->Voiced By: Sayaka Aida (.hack//LINK), Sakuraba Nanami (.hack//Beyond the World)
''World Identity:'' Kite, a new Twin Blade-class character in ''The World FORCE:ERA'', the successor to ''The World R:X'' that was designed to return to the game series' roots in Emma Wielant's ''Epitaph of Twilight''. Her character model, as the name implies, is based on the real Kite from the ''The World R:1''.
''Real Identity:'' Sora Yuuki, an average 14-year-old Japanese middle-schooler.
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//LINK'', ''.hack//Beyond the World'', ''.hack//Versus''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* AllThereInTheManual: All the problems she has with the game can be solved by reading the manual. If only she actually remembers it.
** ReadTheFreakingManual
* EarlyBirdCameo: She appeared in .hack//LINK as a secret guest character before the movie she stars in was officially announced.
* LegacyCharacter: The next to use the Kite model after Sakuya.
* LoveTriangle
!Balder
-->Voiced by: Tanaka Kei
''World Identity:'' Balder, a Paladin in ''The World FORCE:ERA''. His model is based on Balmung's.
''Real Identity:'' Okano Tomohiko
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Beyond the World'', ''.hack//Versus''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* LegacyCharacter: The next to use Balmung's model after Tobias.
* LoveTriangle
!Gondo
-->Voiced By: Matsuzaka Tori
''World Identity:'' Gondo, a Berserker-class character in ''The World FORCE:ERA''.
''Real Identity:'' Tanaka Kakeru
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Beyond the World'', ''.hack//Versus'', ''Thanatos Report''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* LegacyCharacter: He's the second character in the series to use Orca's character model.
* LoveTriangle: Didn't even realize he's in one!
* TheQuietOne
!Yuuki Takefu
-->Voiced By: Ogata Kenichi
Sora's grandpa.
!!Tropes Associated With:
* BadassGrandpa
!David Steinberg
-->Voiced By: Greag Dale
''World Identity:'' Kusame, an anthropomorphic jackal-like character he uses throughout ''Beyond the World'' to keep track of (and later aid) Kite (Sora).
''Real Identity:'' David Steinberg, an American agent for the Network Administration Bureau. ''Thanatos Report'' reveals that [[spoiler:he's an FBI agent working secretly within the NAB in order to retrieve Aura's data and keep it out of Mama's possession.]]
''Appears in:'' ''.hack//Beyond the World'', ''Thanatos Report''
!!Tropes Associated With:
* [[spoiler:ArtificialLimbs: David has at least artificial arms and an eye by 2025, a year after ''Beyond the World''. This is most likely due to Eleanor shooting his actual arms when she betrayed him, combined with David igniting a grenade on himself and the armed men that were about to take Aura's data from his body in order to escape. He uses one of his eyes to store Aura's data, while using its previous location of his necktie clip as a RedHerring to fool Eleanor and her followers. In his dying moments, he transfers the data to his artificial fingertip, which also serves as waterproof data storage.]]
* BadassNormal
* {{Determinator}}
* EgyptianMythology: His avatar in The World is an Anubis-looking character. Fits with his Japanese, which is of an old-fashioned style.
* [[spoiler:KilledOffForReal: He is killed off by Eleanor's men while avoiding pursuit of her and protecting Aura's data.]]
[[/folder]]
----