Note: Dysfunction Junction applies to pretty much every single character listed here. Of course, it's a Justified Trope, due to the Psitanium, the fact several characters reside at an insane asylum, the social status of psychics... The world of Psychonauts also possesses an Amazing Technicolor Population in about half the cast.The Campers Note: as a general rule, expect Most Writers Are Adults and aversions of Children Are Innocent to apply heavily here, with the exception of Dogen and with special emphasis on Nils and Elka. Also, by default, any and all shipping involving these characters as of their in-game ages or near will be a Toy Ship.
All There in the Manual: His last name, "Aquato," is never officially mentioned in game (it only appears on a poster). The Psycho-Pedia confirms it as his last name, though.
Ascended Fanboy: He'd memorized all of the True Psychic Tales comics before getting a chance to become a Psychonaut himself. He even cites an incident from a specific issue if you go to talk to Coach Oleander about the bear running around the camp.
Awesome Backpack: Whenever he gets a new ability, Raz does his Pstandard Psychic Pstance, and the merit badge flies around before landing on his backpack. It's also able to hold quite a few weird things in it, like a dowsing rod and several large black velvet paintings that are larger than the backpack itself.
Heroes Want Redheads: Seeing as he is red headed himself, it goes both ways with Lili. However, it is inverted, in as much as Lili desires him.
Iconic Outfit: His turtleneck, helmet, and of course, his goggles.
Instant Expert: Despite being a naive, dorky amateur, Raz is able to quickly master any psychic power he learns due to a natural talent for it. This is part of why he's accepted into the camp.
Not only is he able to master all those powers, he's skilled enough with them to cure five people, including himself, with a bit of help from his father, of their psychoses. All in one day!
The Knights Who Say Squee: Ran away from home to become a Psychonaut, and gets to interact with and even save the lives of his heroes. Using Clairvoyance on the senior agents reveals Ford sees him as a Psychonaut already, Sasha sees him as a younger version of himself (and even tells him that outright), and Milla is very fond of him as well. It's implied Lili is very much the same way about them.
Super Drowning Skills: Justified, since his family was cursed by a rival gypsy clan, the Galochios, to die in water. Either Raz has created a psychic placebo, or there really is an external curse.
A veteran of the camp who falls in love in Razputin. She is later kidnapped by the brainwashed Linda and delivered to Dr Loboto in order to extract her brain. Raz rescues her, with help from Sasha and Milla.
Closet Geek: Rattles off an incident from a specific issue of the in-universe 'True Psychic Tales' comic that mirrors what's happening at the camp now, then immediately covers her mouth, as if she's embarrassed.
The camp bully and another veteran of Whispering Rock who dislikes the camp. Has Benny as his Dragon, and goes around organizing protection rackets, beating up other kids and generally being a Jerkass.
Hidden Heart of Gold: True, he's a total ass, but he's in a happy relationship with Chloe, not to mention that he tears up at Ford Cruller's speech in the ending cinematic. He seems to tear up because Ford says that Raz gained his courage from his father, hinting at family issues on Bobby's part when he tears up.
He also has a subtle reaction to Raz reciting the sales pitch of the camp which hints that he relates to the inclusiveness of the camp as much as any of the other kids.
He is also harboring a crush on Chloe, scaring Nils away when he tries to flirt with her. He even plods after her like a puppy when they leave together. They are also seen calling for aliens from Oleander's radio near the end of the game and sitting together in the final cutscene.
Bobby is also shown to have a fear of the GPC when he is shown the red button, reeling back in complete fear and shrieking to not be put back in there. When asked if he is okay from Benny, Bobby slowly regains composure, and he stammers that the button "reminds him of a bad place. That's all."
Victory Pose: A little dance of his that later Raz adapts as his own.
Ungrateful Bastard: He's rather ungrateful to Raz for returning his brain to his body.
Dogen Boole
Functions somewhat like a Captain Ersatz of Ralph Wiggum of The Simpsons in the camp. Raz's as-it-were best friend. Wears a tinfoil hat, since he has previously caused several incidents of Your Head A Splode (one of which was a single person's head exploding four times).
Chekhov's Gun / Cassandra Truth: Early on, he is seen arguing with some squirrels claiming "I couldn't possibly kill everyone!" then blows them up with his mind. When rebrained, he tells Razputin that he killed the squirrels for saying "The little man is going to kill everyone." Turns out they were referring to Coach Oleander, not Dogen.
Cloudcuckoolander: Even by the standards of the rest of the cast, Dogen's not all there.
Everyone in the camp reacts to Raz's claims that Dogen's brain was stolen by saying that "he's just like that".
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Even Milla, one of the counselors, refers to him as an incredibly powerful psychic if she's spoken to after her lesson.
Speaks Fluent Animal: He can communicate with squirrels. It's not made clear if this is via verbal communication, or telepathy.
Your Head A Splode: See above. Also subverted later, as he loses his brain via sneezing powder, not explosion.
Benny Fideleo
The Dragon to Bobby Zilch. Has very large ears and an irritating voice. Later, he gets held upside down in preparation for a "Deadly Nelson" by Mikhail.
Ambiguously Gay / Ho Yay: On his Myspace page, he lists his obsessions as being with "Bullying, Musicals and Bobby".
Non-Indicative Name: Well, nickname. His nickname is "The Nose", while his massive ears go uncommented on.
Smug Snake / The Quisling: He even tries to defect to Coach Oleander's side after he has his brain restored, asking Raz if Oleander has a lickspittle sidekick position available.
Chloe Barge
Strange girl in an astronaut's helmet who believes herself to be the stranded child of an alien race.
To see the cutscene, head back across the GPC after completing Milla's Dance Party, and Chloe will be right outside Ranger Cruller's shack. Talk to her to activate it, and if you're on Steam, you'll get the "Maybe It's The Hair" achievement. In the cutscene, Nils is flirting with her, but Bobby comes by and sneers at him until he leaves. The two are left with Bobby stammering and asking how she is, and she replies, "Bobby, we need to work on you a little" before walking off with him. They are later scene by Oleander's radio before the Auto-Save and in the final cutscene sitting together.
Gondor Calls for Aid: Subverted: she tells Raz after being rebrained that she will use the Coach's radio to call for help, but says after that that she's wired the radio to go into outer space, and to contact her "parents".
Parental Substitute: If her story is to be believed, her human parents are this.
Two strange friends who are preparing for a dual ritual suicide and serve, bizarrely enough, as one of the most cheerful members of the camp, hence their role as its unofficial cheerleaders.
Cheerful Child: Subverted, since they are suicidal, after all.
The message boards scattered around the camp mention that they've been bullied and taunted for years due to their attempts to bring cheer. Clem is the more vindictive of the two, claiming that everyone "will be sorry" in his message.
Interrupted Suicide: They are interrupted by the brainwashed Linda after jumping, when the poison they used to attempt suicide didn't work.
Stepford Smiler: And how. When they speak to Raz, in some cases, it sounds as if they are being passive-aggressive. One case is where Clem tells Raz "good for you!" when Raz tries to fire-start him, and his voice turns to a sour note.
Elka Doom
A boy-obsessed girl who recently broke up with Nils to chase after J.T. Explains her romantic life to a rather confused Dogen Boole, in what may be a Lampshade Hanging of her particular intense example of the campers case of Most Writers Are Adults.
While Rome Burns: They take manicures while Coach Oleander is attempting to conquer the world with an army of brain-operated death tanks.
James "J.T." Theodore Hoofburger
Southern-accented boy in a cowboy hat and outfit who plays the harmonica and has been dating Elka, who has been making him answer to his real name and wear his good chaps more often.
Main target of the camp bullies (especially Bobby and Benny) who is adept at escaping from dangerous situations, and hands Raz his smelling salts for use if he wants to escape a mind and go back to the real world. Later organizes a deal with Mikhail, where Mikhail gets to beat up anyone who tries to pick on Maloof and, as a result, Maloof doesn't get picked on.
Butt Monkey: Rather thoroughly subverted later on.
Disproportionate Retribution / Pay Evil unto Evil / Who's Laughing Now?: As aforementioned, he turns the tables on the camp bullies with Mikhail's help, and has a talk with Mikhail as they're tormenting Benny, learning that he can have Mikhail half kill Benny, as opposed to killing him with a "Deadly Nelson". Later, a far more proportionate retribution comes when he and Mikhail, after being rebrained, start wiring the Coach's jeep's gas tank, presumably to explode.
The Mafia: Ironically, implied to be his parentage. He's no Mafia Prince, though, as when he and Mikhail are wiring the Coach's jeep's gas tank, he says "This is how we do things in my family." Also, if you use Clairvoyance on him, it reveals he sees Raz as a Godfather-like Mob Boss.
Melvin "Chops" Sweetwind
Chops is a nice, cool Canadian kid from Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan who is into acoustic-guitar playing and a friend of J.T. He fears that their friendship would be short lived with Elka striking it up with J.T., and it turns out his fears were well founded, as Elka warned him to stay away from J.T. Luckily for him, J.T. overheard their conversation from a nearby bush and broke it off with Elka to hang out with Chops again.
Canada, Eh?: Although a little more developed beyond a canadian steryotype, using clairvoyance on him reveals that he sees you as a maple leaf.
Funny Afro: Not as extreme as Bobby's, but still...
Jive Turkey: A very mild example, and an ironic one, considering he's Canadian.
Mikhail "Misha" Bulgakov
Boy from a land called Russia where their bears are different. He seeks to wrestle a "hairless bear", which is in actuality Linda. He teams up with Maloof as part of a deal to protect Maloof while getting the benefit of beating up his tormentors.
A girl adept at invisibility who developed this skill due to her mother not wanting to look at her, as it reminded her of Milka's father. Strikes up a romance with Elton, which sometimes uses Invisibility, to Raz's confusion.
Dysfunction Junction: Aside from the aforementioned family situation, she ran away from the camp upon arrival to live in the wilderness for a bit and eat leaves.
Phoebe is the drummer, while Quentin is the DJ in the as-of-yet unnamed band created by the two, a name for which is greatly debated between them. The band also briefly included Chops and J.T. on guitar and harmonica respectively. Both of them had only joined the band as a cover to stay together and, in J.T.'s case, to avoid Elka. They left when Bobby and Benny expressed their desire to join. Kitty has been listed as a vocalist, but it's unknown if she ever got in.
Chekhov's Gun / "Funny Aneurysm" Moment: Apparently, the pyromaniac Phoebe used to burn other kids, but agreed to stop when Milla requested it. It's very likely that this brought out some especially nasty memories for Milla, who watched the children she looked after burn to death.
In a different, more plot relevant and non "Funny Aneurysm" MomentChekhov's Gun, Quentin asks Phoebe if she ever had a nightmare with a bathtub in it. In Raz's (and presumably also Lili's) nightmare, there is indeed a bathtub, which is itself a Chekhov's Gun, as it has "S.S. Oblongata" written on it.
A Good Name for a Rock Band, Take a Third Option: Phoebe prefers "The Firestarters", while Quentin prefers "The Levitators". Raz friendlily suggests "The Whispering Rockers", but his suggestion is ignored.
Hollywood Tone Deaf: Quentin can't sing, though it's not unendearing. "Kittyyy, Kittyyy! She's so pretty! Soon we'll go stitty!"
Hypocritical Humor: Phoebe wants to name the band she's in with Quentin "The Firestarters", and occasionally talks about using her (only semi-controlled) pyrokinetic talents to create pyrotechnic displays. But if someone else talks about fire in any context, she gets extremely offended and claims they're insensitive to her issues.
Kill It with Fire: See above. Phoebe also has some form of psychic dampener installed to prevent her from setting things on fire when she is mad.
Sassy Black Woman: OK, so technically, Phoebe's green. But she has the right voice and ponytails that resemble tiny afros. And she's nothing if not sassy: "OK, because if y'all were gonna make a "drummer joke," I was gonna shove my drumsticks up yo' nose."
Vernon Tripe
A dull, monotonous (both literally and metaphorically) boy with a penchant for telling overly long shaggy dog stories (which may be literal, as many of them involve his deceased dog Lady, who may have been shaggy). He possesses virtually no friends, aside from his one-sided desire for Franke.
The Counselors The counselors who teach at Whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp are all Psychonauts, either current or retired.
Morceau Oleander
The camp's chief counselor, coach and Basic Braining instructor. A short, Mr Potato Head like man in military uniform possessing a baton and pickelhaube, he operates like a modern day Patton, with strong elements of The Napoleon thrown in.
Dueling Scar: He comes complete with dueling scar and pickelhaube despite sounding suspiciously American.
Easily Forgiven: In the game's ending cinematic, he explains that his world domination scheme came as the result of temporary insanity and psychological demons which have now been vanquished, and that a CAT scan has cleared him.
Freudian Excuse: He lived on a bunny farm, where he cared for and looked after the bunnies in their hutches. However, his father (though, Oleander may be an Unreliable Narrator in this matter) thought bunnies were only good for meat, and didn't let young Oleander keep the bunnies, butchering them in front of him.
Miles Gloriosus: A memory vault hidden behind a cobweb in a small cave in his mind, only accessible after The Reveal, shows that he was, contrary to the claims of an earlier memory vault, rejected from all three branches of the US Military and even its cooking service.
Unreliable Narrator: One definite example in the fantasy/false memory you find in Basic Braining, and one possible example in how his mind portrays his father.
Karma Houdini: Received no real punishment for his deeds and is still on the team at the end.
Ford Cruller
The camp's resident Cool Old Guy. Has a variety of personas (due to his mind being destroyed in a psychic duel and the psitanium deposit only keeping his mind together at close distances, such as those within his sanctuary), among which are that of the local docksman, the camp janitor, the camp ranger and the camp salesman/cook.
Big Damn Heroes: When he comes in to help Sasha and Milla combat Coach Oleander at the top of Thorney Towers, and manages to make Oleander sneeze his own brains out with a witty battle line to go along with it.
Eccentric Mentor: He comes quite close to being this, but leans a bit too much to the wacky side to fit. Also, all the other Psychonauts, save for Sasha and Milla, believe him a loon.
A Brazilian party girl known as the Mental Minx, this sexy spy is known for both her levitation skills and being able to throw wild parties. She's also a kind soul who loves working with kids. She's partners with Sasha Nein.
Disco Dan: Her mental landscape overfloweth with psychedelia and lava lamps.
Mama Bear: If she's taking care of a group of kids, do not hurt them, or else.
Ms. Fanservice: Subtly parodied. In her memory vaults, she remembers herself as sexier than she actually is. In reality, she's certainly not ugly, but she's nowhere close to this trope.
Spy Catsuit: In one reel, as a memory of a former mission. She's levitating into a sewer, Mission: Impossible-style, to retrieve the President's stolen brain, which is being protected by angry alligators.
Spy Couple: At least, this is how she sees herself and Sasha. The Psycho-Pedia confirms she has a crush on him, but we don't know for sure if he reciprocates.
Stepford Smiler: Averted. Her past is genuinely terrible, but she's risen above it. While there was some debate about this in the fandom, the Psycho-Pedia seems to confirm that her bottled-up nightmares are there as part of a normal coping exercise.
Son of a cobbler, this German superspy seems woefully mismatched with his partner, the obnoxiously colorful Milla Vodello. He displays almost no emotion, though he seems to have a weird sense of humor buried deep down. He takes an interest in Raz's psychic abilities and offers him special training.
Die, Chair! Die!: Hates Tiffany lamps and encourages their destruction.
This might actually be a Chekhov's Gun/"Funny Aneurysm" Moment. Sasha says there is nothing as horrible as a Tiffany Lamp. There was a Tiffany Lamp next to the bed in which his mother died, or at least that's how he remembers it.
Dirty Mind Reading When he was a boy, Sasha tried to find out what his Missing Mom was like by reading his father's mind. Child-traumatizing ensued, no question about that.
Herr Doktor: In addition to being a superspy, he's also a scientist, although it's unclear under what discipline.
Mad Scientist: A relatively benign example, especially when compared to Dr. Loboto. Doesn't hesitate to experiment on the kids using the Brain Tumbler, and he's usually seen fiddling with equipment in the lab, but true to his role as a camp counselor, he's hesitant to continue testing when it looks like Raz might be in danger.
When He Smiles: At least, according to Milla's second Memory Vault.
Thorney Towers Residents
Dr Caligosto Loboto, DDS
A Depraved Dentist, Evil Genius and Mad Scientist, Dr Caligosto Loboto is the apparent main villain of the game, and the administrator of Thorney Towers at the time of the game. While details on his past are scarce, he had apparently been hauled into another asylum for his depraved dentistry and escaped to the abandoned Thorney Towers, which he took over and used under the directive of Coach Oleander in a plot to build an army of psychic death tanks.
Artificial Limbs: His right arm has been replaced with a three-pronged claw. That doubles as a pepper grinder. Also, his eyes look like a pair of penlights.
Cloud Cuckoolander: Albeit a dangerous one, bringing us such lines as "You have the insanity of a manatee!"
Disney Villain Death: Even less than that. You don't fight him at all. Instead, Raz uses telekinesis to drop Sam/Mr Pokeylope's brain into the tank, which blasts Loboto off the top of Thorney Towers, presumably to his doom.
The Dragon to Dr. Loboto and the orderly of Thorney Towers. Was once an inmate under Fred's orderly station, but turned the tables by driving Fred mad by beating him at a game of Waterloo-o. Is half blind.
A CloudcuckoolanderConspiracy Theorist who once had a job as a department store guard, but was fired, resulting in him going crazy and burning down the store, and being taken into an asylum. Later, he's approached by Coach Oleander to become the Asylum's guard, and the one to potentially destroy the Asylum in his "Milkman" persona to eliminate all evidence of Oleander and Loboto's scheme.
The Unfought: You might expect to fight the Milkman, but actually you fight his Dragon, the Den Mother, instead. The Milkman part of his personality just stands in front of the asylum until the end of the game when he burns down the asylum and apparently leaves Boyd.
Gloria von Gouten
An aspiring musical starlet who was sent by her cruel mother to the Hagatha Home School For Girls, under an Evil Matriarch and numerous bullies who made her life miserable, making her all the more glad to leave the school and rise to her career. She snapped when she received news of her mother commiting suicide by jumping off an apartment roof due to her own fame and success having eclipsed hers, developing a severe case of bipolar disorder and landing her in Thorney Towers.
Gloria: Would you like me to tell you how I won that award? ...Or are you trying to take it from me, because you don't think I deserve it? I never asked to be famous - I just wanted you to love me!
A descendant of Napoleon Bonaparte, who, after repeatedly losing games of Waterloo-o to Crispin in his former job as an orderly, went insane and was possessed by the angry genetic memory of his ancestor, who forced him to become a great tactician (ironically in a mental game of Waterloo-o).
Okay, everybody who's still in my army, raise your hands. Unless you're dead.
The Dog Bites Back: After Raz helps him gain a backbone, he proceeds to assert authority over Crispin and chase him down after Raz makes his way up to the upper levels of the Asylum.
Glory Seeker: What his ancestor wishes him to be. By the end, he's at least a lot more confident.
The Napoleon: Inverted, actually, with Fred himself—he's really tall and has an inferiority complex. Of course, his Napoleon personality fits this better.
Fred: Yeah, this place is for crazy people! And I don't know about you, but I ain't crazy no more! [Twitch twitch twitch.]
Edgar Teglee
Aspiring artist and high school wrestling team captain left heartbroken after his love, Lana Pazoni, a cheerleader, rejected him in favour of the head of the cheerleading squad, Dean LaGrant. As a result, he didn't have it in him to complete the state semi-finals. At some point, he was inducted into Thorney Towers for his obsession with painting and bulls. He tries to paint masterpieces, but always ruins them at the last moment by going into a rage and painting a matador and bull over them.
Bilingual Bonus: El Odio's name is Spanish for "the hate." It represents Edgar's anger issues.
Cool Old Guy: It's suggested that the Memory Reels depicting him as a high schooler take place in the fifties, which would put him somewhere around his late sixties.
Masked Luchador: Himself and the four other members of his wrestling team in his high school days, Tiger, Dragon, Eagle and Cobra. The latter four end up as bosses in his mind. Teglee's wrestling persona himself ends up as El Odio.
Meaningful Name: Everyone in his mind. See the above Bilingual Bonus, while Dingo In-Flagrante and Lampita Pasionado are more obvious. His own name is a Homage - anyone heard of Edgar Leeteg?
Super Strength: Edgar, after finishing his painting, decides it's time for him to leave. He proceeds to easily rip the chain bolted to the floor, the floor itself, and the gas line running underneath the floor out.
Sheegor
A hunchbacked (young?) girl, Dr. Loboto's assistant - not willingly, as she despises what he's doing and yet has to help him, as not only is she terrified of him, he's holding her pet turtle Mr. Pokeylope hostage and will kill him if she doesn't cooperate.
Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Despite her childlike behavior, she's apparently an expert at neurology, which is likely why Loboto has "hired" her.
Linda, the Hideous Hulking Lungfish of Lake Oblongota
An enormous, mutated lungfish who lives in Lake Oblogota, she was a peaceful creature until she was kidnapped, mutated, and turned into an enormous beast by Coach Oleander. She collects children for Dr. Loboto's experiments until being liberated by Raz.
A Day in the Limelight: Around the time of the game's release, several animated "Sharts" were released as bumps for MTV 2 and G4. Linda is featured most prominently in most of them.
Female Monster Surprise: There's no indication at all that she's female until she gives Raz her name. And yes, we are reasonably sure she's a "she," given the secret 100% Completion ending video.
Mismatched Eyes: One red and one green. This seems to be quite common among (initially) antagonistic characters, as Bobby Zilch, Loboto, and Oleander all fit this trope.
Raz's father, and The Faceless for most of the game. He hates psychics, and Raz ran away to escape him. However, Raz is going to have to go home sooner or later, and he'll have to confront his father in the process. And more than that...
Hypocritical Humor: The version of him that exists in Raz's mind seems to dislike the... Um, changes, and tries to kill him, but after he becomes the Two-Headed Dad Monster (Yes, that is his official name), he says he likes Raz and Morceau's mind like that.
Monster Clown: The version of him that exists in Raz's mind.
Papa Wolf: Mess with his son, and you're liable to get a Psi-Blast in the face.
Red Herring: Of sorts. When Raz discusses his father, you get the sneaking suspicion that you'll have to have to face him down, being made out to be an Abusive Dad... Double-subverted. Augustus himself is nowhere close to the "psychic hating" slave driver that Raz makes him out to be, but Meat Circus!Augustus, being everything Raz built up his Dad in his mind to be, definitely is.
Secret Legacy: He was psychic all along, and wanted to help his son learn to control his powers.
The natural defense systems of any mind, doing their best to stamp out dangerous or harmful thoughts such as mania, depression, etc. Unfortunately, they also see psychics as dangerous invaders...
Dumb Muscle: The third type of censor, and the one introduced latest in the game.
Hero Antagonist: They're described as mental antibodies. Like normal antibodies, they're supposed to attack anything foreign, because anything foreign is not supposed to be there. Unfortunately, they lack the ability to distinguish potentially friendly foreigners, which includes you.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: As noted, they tend to attack psychic "invaders". Given that a skilled Psychonaut seems to be one of the most effective paths to mental health...
Paper-Thin Disguise: Taken to extremes, as they're clearly spies in traditional trenchcoats and the only aspect of their disguise is a single prop, which they use hilariously wrong the whole time. The "road crew" makes shoveling motions with their stop signs, the "hedge trimmers" practice sword swallowing with their clippers, and the "grieving widows" do golf swings with their flowers.
Appropriately, they are themselves fooled by Paper Thin Disguises. If Raz grabs one of their props, they see him as one of them.
Raz: "I am on the Road Crew. This is my stop sign."
Too Dumb to Live: Some of them wander around aimlessly in an empty parking lot while their comrades are shot by snipers in front of them.
The Rainbow Squirts
An Ancient Conspiracy of girl scouts designed to protect the Milkman, obfuscate his true nature and help fulfill his mission. They are opposed to the G-Men.
Ancient Conspiracy: Well, not that ancient. Still, they do seem to be about as old as the game-time state of Boyd's mind.
