Legacy Characters in video games.
- Ace Combat:
- The games span some forty or fifty years, yet we get to see multiple versions of Kei Nagase, the apparent twin sister of Ridge Racer's Reiko Nagase, and who is always callsigned "Edge". Apparently the same woman had served as a mercenary in 1997, a pilot for a passenger liner around 2005, a rookie fighter pilot in 2010, then defecting in the 2040s, to say nothing of the various alternate universes, where we see three different Edges between a brief cameo as a NATO pilot in Assault Horizon, the leader of the 19th Task Force in the Ikaros in the Sky novel, and as Number Two of the Ridgebacks in Infinity.
- The Scarface squadron of the first two games also plays this; same squadron name, same role of crushing coup d'etats, even the same area of operations (the first game's Skully Islands were later stated to be but one part of the Usea continent the second game took place over), but with no indication that any of the pilots in it from the first game are still a part of it in the second.
- A clone named Enah appears in every game in the Alphadia series. The character between the first game and Alphadia 2 is definitely the same, but it's ambiguous if the character is the same between the original and Alphadia Genesis titles.
- Anarchy Reigns has one, with Blacker Baron being a copycat of Black Baron from MadWorld.
- The Assassin's Creed series runs on this trope, with Desmond Miles being the descendant of Altaïr Ibn La'Ahad and Ezio Auditore da Firenze, both of whom were legendary Master Assassins (and eventual Grand Masters) of the Assassin Brotherhood in their day, and Desmond himself being trained to be an Assassin by immersion in Ezio's memories. There are also numerous Assassin Brotherhoods (Old World, New World, Caribbean, etc.).
- The Atelier Series of games sometimes re-uses concepts and names across multiple titles, such as a bald blacksmith named Hagel Boldness and a cute ghost girl named Pamela Ibis. In DLC for the Massive Multiplayer Crossover that is Nelke and the Legendary Alchemists: Ateliers of the New World, it is even possible for various Pamelas and Hagels to meet each other, proving that they are all different individuals.
- Ragna "the Bloodedge" of BlazBlue gave himself that title to honour the memory of Bloodedge, an unsung hero who fought the Black Beast to a standstill for an entire year to give humanity enough time to invent Ars Magus and defeat it. Ragna's signature red jacket and weapon Blood-Scythe formerly belonged to Bloodedge, and were gifted to him by his master Jubei, who told him of Bloodedge's exploits. But this trope ultimately ends up subverted upon The Reveal that Bloodedge was really a time-displaced, amnesiac Ragna, thus setting up a Stable Time Loop.
- Bloody Roar has Bakuryu (nee Ryuzo Kato) and his successors, Bakuryu (nee Kenji Ogami) and Kohryu, a robotic imitation with 30% of the original Bakuryu's genetic material as a result of the former's gooification incident in his ending from the first game.
- The Breath of Fire series has an incarnation of Ryu and Princess Nina for each of its six installments.
- Champions Online has "Black Mask", the first of whom had apparently fought in the American Revolution. The current "Black Mask" is the tenth one, and the first woman to bear the title. One mission even has you fight all of the Black Mask's previous incarnations when they get revived as zombies.
- The Chibi-Robo! series has a strange version of this trope. The titular character is a mass-produced product, so each game stars a Chibi-Robo that is owned by a different person.
- City of Heroes has an in-universe Legacy Character in Manticore, the Alternate Company Equivalent of Batman, who took up his father's mantle after watching his murder by one of his enemies.
- Dark Souls:
- At the end of every cycle within the Dark Souls universe, a new chosen undead appears and sets out on a quest to become the new monarch.
- Every game has an unseen giant talking crow (two in the case of the second game) who will exchange items with the player. Even Spiritual Predecessor Demon's Souls has one.
- The Crusader class in Diablo III is this; each dead crusader passes their rank, equipment and identity to their apprentice, who takes on a new apprentice for when they die, who takes on a new apprentice, who... for two hundred years.
- The version of Donkey Kong that first appeared in Donkey Kong Country is the grandson (or possibly just son, depending on who you ask) of the giant ape who antagonized Mario in the original arcade game. And, in fact, the original Donkey Kong appears in that game as "Cranky Kong", an elderly ape complete with long white beard and cane.
- In Dragon Age II, the Legacy DLC reveals that due to the Malcolm Hawke aiding the Grey Wardens in reinforcing the seals of an ancient prison, the key to unlocking it resides within their bloodline. Due to the death of Malcolm, the Carta attempt to abduct both Hawke and their sibling, hedging their bets that one of them has to be "The Hawke". This leads to the bizarre situation where all three are referred to interchangeably by this title; Malcolm was "The Hawke", Hawke currently is "The Hawke", and Carver/Bethany might be "The Hawke" should anything happen to their elder sibling. Bethany, however, is more often called "Lady Hawke."
- The Elder Scrolls:
- Umbra is a very dark version of this. The name is actually that of a recurring Legendary Weapon enchanted by a witch to be able to devour souls. Unbeknownst to most who take up the blade, it also slowly devours the soul of its wielder, causing them to call themselves "Umbra" and develop Blood Knight traits. This benefits the sword by causing the wielder to seek out powerful foes. If the wielder wins, Umbra gets a new soul. If the wielder loses, the foe takes up Umbra and begins the process anew. Only a few Umbras are known, but many more are implied to have existed. (It also comes with a dose of Gameplay and Story Segregation, as the Player Character can use the sword with no ill effects.)
- M'aiq the Lair is a recurring Easter Egg Legacy Character who has appeared in every game since Morrowind. According to the dialogue of the M'aiq in Skyrim, they are all related. Each has the same traits of being a Meta Guy Author Avatar Fourth-Wall Observer (and Leaner and sometimes Breaker) who is fond of deadpan sarcasm, is untrustworthy, and who seems very detached from the game world. Based on the appearance of a M'aiq in the prequel The Elder Scrolls Online, which takes place in the mid 2nd Era, they've been at this for centuries.M'aiq: "M'aiq's father was also called M'aiq. As was M'aiq's father's father. At least, that's what his father said."
- Oblivion:
- The Gray Cowl of Nocturnal, a cursed Daedric artifact which erases the identity of anyone who wears it and replaces it with that of the notorious master thief, The Gray Fox. The Cyrodiil Thieves' Guild has been led by several people wearing the mask for at least three centuries. The player character can break the curse eventually, making it a nifty free ticket to unprosecuted crimes.
- At the end of the Shivering Isles expansion, the Champion of Cyrodiil becomes a Daedric Prince by taking on the mantle of Sheogorath. This is lampshaded in Sheogorath's appearance in Skyrim, where he makes several subtle references to various events of the previous game which he witnessed firsthand as the Champion.
- Skyrim: While the name Ysmir is often mistakenly attributed to the Nordic aspect of the god Talos, it's revealed by the Greybeards to actually be a title bestowed on those recognised as Dragonborn, marking them as the "Dragon of the North". This sheds new light on a legend in which Tiber Septim (Talos) met the spectre of an ancient king also named Ysmir, suggesting that he too was an ancient Dragonborn.
- The Elder Scrolls Online:
- There is a new Silvenar and Green Lady of the Bosmer once per generation. Part of the Almeri Dominion plot involves helping the new ones to be crowned.
- There is always a Wilderking/Wilderqueen in Valenwood — a mortal with an innate connection to the land that becomes essentially the spirit of the forest, with the memories of their past life fading away. A questline involves the Wilderking dying and a new person taking up the mantle.
- Jack of Blades in Fable is not one man, but a series of men who have all been deceived into wearing Jack's Mask and becoming possessed.
- Fallout:
- Throughout the franchise, four different dogs (thus far) have been named "Dogmeat" and become the companion of a main character.
- In the Lonesome Road DLC of Fallout: New Vegas, Ulysses talks about how Lanius is a mystery and since no one has seen the man under his mask (his personal slaves being blinded), it's possible that it's not even the same person underneath the mask. The fact that you hear several conflicting backstories about him while talking with members of the Legion only contributes to this idea.
- Faith Seed of Far Cry 5 is not actually the Seed brothers' real sister, but rather a role that Joseph chooses a girl to play. The current girl, Rachel Jessop, isn't the first, the others having been disposed of for various reasons.
- Final Fantasy, over its long history, has a few examples of this.
- Most of the summons (... most of them) share names and appearances over the series.
- In Final Fantasy XIII, almost all of the fal'Cie are named after and share appearances with previous Final Fantasy summons, often relatively obscure ones like Bismarck and Kjata.
- The most famous one is Cid. Every mainline game (and even some of the spin-offs like Tactics) has a Cid, and he always has something to do with the games' airships — to the point that he was retconned into the first game itself by the remakes mentioning him (Cid of the Lufaine) as the creator of the Airship. In fact, some games (like XII and arguably XV and XVI) even have multiple Cids. And as shown by Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin, they don't even have to be human; that Cid — one of the few who isn't an engineer, mechanic, or researcher/inventor of some sort or even associated with airships (instead serving as a blacksmith) — is a Tonberry! For bonus points, the Cid of SoP states he was named by someone who is implied to be the aforementioned Cid of the Lufaine.
- This is made explicit in the Freemium spin-off Final Fantasy Brave Exvius: Dirnado is a city of engineers that tries to overall stay neutral in world affairs, and the best engineer in Dirnado takes "Cid" as a title to show that they're the best, all in honor of the original Cid, who built the first airships. Soon after the story takes the main characters there, they recruit the current top candidate for Cid — a girl named Lid — and run into the original Cid, who is Really 700 Years Old.
- Final Fantasy XVI has Cidolfus Telamon, a man who shelters Bearers from the threats of persecution and Dominants who are forced to become pawns in a political power scheme. He ultimately dies and Clive, the protagonist, takes up his name "Cid the Outlaw", marking the first time that the name "Cid" belongs to the main character.
- Likewise, Cid's grandson Mid from Final Fantasy V had his name carried over to more than a few characters associated with their game's Cid, usually their son or grandson. The list so far?
- Minwu from Final Fantasy II has proven to be startlingly popular, with the result that many later games make reference in their lore to a legendary sage of great power named Minwu.
- There is only one aversion everyone agrees on: Gilgamesh, who started out as The Dragon in Final Fantasy V. Since then, he's been traveling across dimensions looking for weapons and has been frequently getting involved in the other games, even remakes of games that came out before his original game. Unlike almost any other character with the same name, it is confirmed to be the same guy in nearly every appearance.
- Kain Highwind of Final Fantasy IV fame takes his surname, class, and general appearance from Final Fantasy II's Ricard Highwind, and is established to similarly come from a long line of Dragoons. Starting with Dawn of Souls, remakes of FFII name Ricard's adopted son Kain. This came full circle when later remakes of IV have Kain mention that his father was named Ricard and that he died fighting an evil empire — a direct nod to Ricard's fate in II. However, it's unlikely this is anything more than a Mythology Gag: Kain tells Cecil's son Ceodore he was about the boy's age (17) when his father died, whereas the Kain in II is a much younger child. There's also the general non-linear nature of the series to consider, though a 1991 Japanese-only guidebook (Final Fantasy IV Settei Shiryou Hen) states
the events of IV are set about a century after II... which would therefore make it impossible for both Highwinds to be father and son. - There have been at least six main series games which include a pair of minor characters named Biggs and Wedge.
- Final Fantasy XIV:
- The Adventurer is secretly tasked by Limsa Lominsa's second-in-command Slafyrsyn with retrieving a coffer belonging to the legendary pirate lord Mistbeard. When the player returns, Slafyrsyn opens the coffer to reveal Mistbeard's mask, as well as the fact that "Mistbeard" is a title that has been borne by many pirates. He further implies that he himself was the last incumbent to bear the name of Mistbeard, and that his goal in retrieving the mask is to ensure that the Mistbeard persona is retired for good, having decided that the persona is out of touch with the new, more civilized direction that Admiral Merlwyb wishes to impart to Limsa Lominsa.
- The Ascians are this, being named after the Scions of Light from Final Fantasy XII (with Elidibus being named after the Optional Boss from Final Fantasy Tactics). Shadowbringers reveals they're also this in-universe: Each of the Ascians' names is actually a title referring to the job they performed in their ancient society, the titles themselves implied to be the names of the original Amaurotine who held those positions. This is especially true for the "broken" Ascians, whose original souls were separated into 14 pieces by Hydaelyn. The "unbroken" Ascians can elevate these shards of their original soul back into power, though they lack the memories and personality of the original.
- Special mention goes to Azem, the holder of the fourteenth seat of the Ascians' Convocation of Fourteen. The role of Azem was to wander the world, learn all that the can, and take up arms to defend the star and its people when necesary. Both known holders of the office were infamous among the Ascians for completely going against convention, and constantly defying the Convocation's rullings in pursuit of a better outcome, all the way up to the Final Days, where the current Azem opposed the creation of Zodiark and left their office in protest. After the world was sundered, the fragments of the last Azem's soul would go on to reincarnate, and each incarnation would end up continuing the duty of the original of wandering the world and defending the shards and its inhabitants. The latest incarnation of Azem is the Warrior of Light. As for the other known and previous holder of Azem's office, Venat, who similarily opposed Zodiark's creation, would become Hydaelyn.
- Halo has the Arbiter, a title with a legacy of at least several thousand years among the Elites. While the original Arbiters were effectively warrior-kings who ruled their entire species, the rank's prestige would fall after the Elites' incorporation into the Covenant; after Arbiter Fal 'Chavamee's failed rebellion, it would be given solely to distinguished yet disgraced Elites who would only be able to regain their honor by undertaking important Suicide Missions (with the expectation that they would both succeed and die at the same time). After the collapse of the Covenant, current Arbiter Thel 'Vadam has brought the rank closer to its original role.
- The indie game I Wanna Be the Guy has a ridiculous example of this; the titular "The Guy" that your character wants to be is a mantle that was handed down through several well-known 8- and 16-bit video game characters... and whose latest proprietors include your character's father and grandfather, the former of whom killed the latter for the title, and who you have to kill to acquire it.
- Knights of the Old Republic:
- It's stated in Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords that the name Darth Traya is a title passed down to Sith Lords who "[have] been betrayed in their heart, and will betray in turn." In the version of the game we got, it's more of a leftover reference to cut content than anything else, specifically that it was possible for either Kreia to retake the mantle, as she does in the finished game, or for Atris to properly take it for herself. Also, and somewhat amusingly, nothing of the sort has ever actually happened despite betrayal being the defining characteristic of the Sith - the closest any Sith Lord in Legends ever came to sharing a name with an earlier one is "Darth Rivan", a mostly-background character from about 2000 years after KotOR who apparently took his name from a corrupted manuscript with a misspelled reference to Revan.[[/note]]
- Likewise, the title of Mandalore is also this. Spelled Mand'alor in Mando'a, translating to "One Ruler" in Basic, the first Mandalore was Mandalore the First, the warrior who conquered the planet of the same name more than three thousand years before the game. The comics of the same name feature Mandalore the Ultimate, the one who waged war on the Republic in the game’s backstory, and the immediate predecessor to the Mandalore in KOTOR II, Mandalore the Preserver, also known as Canderous Ordo from the first game. Star Wars: The Old Republic features two more, Mandalore the Vindicator and Mandalore the Avenger. In the "modern era" of Star Wars, figures such as Jaster Mereel, Jango Fett, Pre Vizsla, and Boba Fett have also held the title, though the old tradition of being referred to only as Mandalore with a descriptive word following it has seemingly gone by the wayside.
- Given that Boba doesn't seem to consider himself a Mandalorian in canon post-Disney buyout, it's unlikely he’ll regain the title as he did in Legends, though the second season of The Mandalorian ends with new character Din Djarin in possession of the Darksaber, possibly setting him up to become the next Mandalore.
- Legacy of Kain has the Circle of Nine. The names of the previous Guardians aren't known, but six of the ones that Kain meets have at least two predecessors. Kain himself was chosen from birth to be a Legacy Character, but he has yet to assume his role.
- In The Legend of Heroes: Trails from Zero, the legendary Calvardian assassin Yin wears a cloak and mask to cover up the fact that his seeming immortality stems from the mantle being passed down from parent to child for generations, with the Yin of the story's present day being Rixia Mao.
- The Legend of Zelda:
- Link and Zelda in every game are usually the reincarnations or descendants of the original Link and Zelda from The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. While Zelda is born in her own bloodline and has the blood of a goddess, Link can be anyone, though somehow he always looks similar to his predecessors. That said, some Links are related by blood. Link and Zelda are always born at about the same time, and inevitably draw Ganondorf or another evil force to attack Hyrule or a neighboring region. Thankfully, most of their incarnations also wield the Triforce of Courage and Wisdom respectively, so they are usually (but not always) strong enough to force the evil back. While their personalities can varynote , all Zeldas can expected to display a lot of wisdom, while all Links... well, what do you think?
- The book Hyrule Historia makes note that "Link" is often just a name that the storytellers of series' "legends" give to the hero after the fact, regardless of their real name: probably as a reference to the fact that while Link is his Canon Name, you can name the hero in each game except for Four Swords Adventures, Breath of the Wild, and Tears of the Kingdom. Even games which note that the new Link has the same legacy clothes, legacy weapons, and legacy soul as his predecessor never mention whether he has the same name as the previous hero, or what that hero's given name was, only that he was the Hero of Time, Winds, Men, etc.
- Apparently, while it had always been common to name Hylian princesses "Zelda" in honor of the one from Skyward Sword, it wasn't until much later when the name became mandatory (in that particular branch of the timeline at least). The brother of the Zelda from The Adventure of Link grew jealous of her mystical abilities, but his plan to take her power resulted in her entering an "eternal" sleep. Feeling guilty, he made a royal decree that all princesses of the Hyrule line shall be named "Zelda."
- Ganondorf is the only character in the series to be the same individual in almost all of his appearances. The exceptions are the one from Four Swords Adventures; who is the reincarnation of the original one after his death in Twilight Princess; and the one from Tears of the Kingdom; who has a different backstory than the other Ganondorfs. Meanwhile, Word of God has stated that he's dead for good in The Wind Waker timeline. That said, even he serves as the reincarnation of a previous villain, Demise (meaning every single instance of Hijacked by Ganon is also a hijacking by Demise).
- Hyrule itself is a Legacy Country in Spirit Tracks, where New Hyrule is the country founded by Tetra and Link from The Wind Waker in memory of King Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule's sacrifice.
- Multiple recurring characters (Impa, Malon, Tingle, Beedle, etc.) are an example of Generation Xerox.
- Link and Zelda in every game are usually the reincarnations or descendants of the original Link and Zelda from The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. While Zelda is born in her own bloodline and has the blood of a goddess, Link can be anyone, though somehow he always looks similar to his predecessors. That said, some Links are related by blood. Link and Zelda are always born at about the same time, and inevitably draw Ganondorf or another evil force to attack Hyrule or a neighboring region. Thankfully, most of their incarnations also wield the Triforce of Courage and Wisdom respectively, so they are usually (but not always) strong enough to force the evil back. While their personalities can varynote , all Zeldas can expected to display a lot of wisdom, while all Links... well, what do you think?
- Mass Effect:
- In Mass Effect 2, after the Normandy SR-1 is destroyed during the prologue, when Cerberus reveal they've built a larger and more powerful frigate based on the original's design, it's no surprise to anyone when Shepard and Joker decide to christen it the "Normandy SR-2". Despite several Normandy-class vessels being mentioned as having been built (suggesting there's already an official SR-2 on the books), the Alliance appear to have kept it's numerical designation after taking possession of the vessel in Mass Effect 3.
- The Shadow Broker is revealed to be one in Lair of the Shadow Broker, the original having been killed and his identity stolen, although his predecessor is hinted not to have been the first either. The dossier about the Shadow Broker hints that he also stole the identity of "Operative Kechlu", the individual sent to kill him after he became a threat to the previous Broker. Finally at the end of the DLC, Liara T'Soni assumes the role of the new Shadow Broker.
- According to a comic tie-in, Maya Brooks from the Citadel DLC for Mass Effect 3 is actually the name of the Cerberus agent that saved "Maya's" life as a child, who she repaid by murdering her and stealing her identity.
- Mega Man:
- Throughout its 20+ year run, there has been one Mega Man for each of the seven series. The only exception is the eponymous character from Mega Man Zero despite popular belief. Mega Man ZX and ZX Advent make up for it by having "Mega Man" as an actual title used by other characters (including the Big Bads!).
- There's also Steel Massimo, from Mega Man X: Command Mission, who takes on the title of Steel Massimo after the real one is captured as a POW and killed.
- Metal Gear:
- The Snakes, specifically the two that appeared as playable characters throughout the series: Solid Snake (the original playable Snake since Metal Gear) and Naked Snake (the young version of Big Boss introduced in Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater), who are both addressed simply as Snake by other characters in the games they appeared in. Liquid Snake and Solidus Snake (Big Boss's two other "sons" from the Les Enfants Terribles cloning project introduced in the original Metal Gear Solid), despite also inheriting the "Snake" codename, are simply referred by their adjectives (Liquid and Solidus). This is particular egregious with Big Boss, who still prefers to go by Snake in the later prequels (Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker and Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes), despite having already been awarded the "Big Boss" codename by the end of Snake Eater and is even referred as such in promotional materials and character introductions.
- Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain introduces Punished "Venom" Snake, who seems to be Big Boss undergoing another codename change (similar to the switch from Solid Snake to Old Snake in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots). He is ultimately revealed to be a body double who was brainwashed and surgically altered to look and act like the real Big Boss, essentially serving as the previously unknown fifth Snake. Big Boss ultimately decides that Venom Snake was also the "real" Big Boss, because he contributed so much to their collective legacy.
- Mortal Kombat:
- The original Sub-Zero from Mortal Kombat (1992) (given the Canon Name Bi-Han in the 2011 installment) was killed off by his rival Scorpion and replaced by his younger brother (Kuai Liang), who would assume the Sub-Zero mantle from Mortal Kombat II and onward. Mortal Kombat: Deception would later retroactively establish that Noob Saibot, a character who also debuted in the second game, was the original Sub-Zero all along, now an undead wraith without any traces of the morality he had as a human.
- Mortal Kombat 11 reveals that "Nightwolf" is a mantle that designates the Great Spirit's Chosen One, and that the current Nightwolf is the last in a long series.
- In Mortal Kombat 1, the Scorpion identity is taken by Kuai Liang, the second Sub-Zero in the previous two timelines, rather than Hanzo Hasashi, who was Scorpion in all the previous installments. Meanwhile, Bi-Han is Sub-Zero for first time since the very first game.
- A borderline example in the case of the Chosen of various gods in the Neverwinter Nights fan module Tales of Arterra. Your character is revealed to be the Chosen of the God of Death in the second module, and you meet several of your predecessors in the third.
- The Overlord games follow different Evil Overlords in each game, with the second game following the son of the one from the first game while Overlord: Dark Legends follows one of his predecessors.
- Overwatch has Doomfist, which is both the name of the weapon and the title of the wielder. There have been three bearers of the mantle: Adhabu Ngumi, the Savior; Akinjinde Adeyemi, the Scourge; and the current wielder, Akande Ogundimu, the Successor. There may also be a case of You Kill It, You Bought It/Klingon Promotion here, since Akande killed Akinjinde to take the mantle from him.
- PaRappa the Rapper: The sequel game has Instructor Moosesha, who acts as a counterpart to Instructor Mooselini from the first game. They're even sisters, as indirectly revealed by Moosesha quoting Mooselini's "boom boom boom, bam bam bam" line from her song.
- Hoxton in PAYDAY 2 was this on the game's release. The Hoxton from the first game had been imprisoned between the events of the two games, and Dallas's brother took up the name and mask in his place. Eventually defied when "Old" Hoxton was broken out of prison and immediately demanded the name back. "New" Hoxton complied, becoming "Houston" instead. Even after the name change, it's still a semi-example, since Houston never returned Hoxton's old mask.
- Lutz in Phantasy Star. Although Lutz has been dead for ages, his successors inherit his will and memory and become the next Lutz, which is a very important secret role in Esper society, and extremely confining. This is why Rune is gallivanting around Motavia when you first meet him; he's Number Five.
- In Phantasy Star Online 2, two of the Trio Of Heroes, the warriors who took down Dark Falz Elder, play with this trope. The Cacera you meet is the second taking up the name. He’s a clone of the first, the Photoner Luther having stole his body. The Klariskrays lineage is sadder. The first was killed sealing Elder. The second, Matoi, was created by Xion to fix the wrongs she wrought, only for her to nearly become the Profound Darkness. The current one is a clone made by Luther based on a girl who held onto Klariskrays’ weapon to save her life.
- Every character in Rogue Legacy is the descendant of the character you last played that died.
- The Shin Megami Tensei spin-off series Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha has an in-universe example; the player character, who can be given any name, is known by almost everyone in-game as "Raidou Kuzunoha", and he is the fourteenth person to take up the mantle of the eponymous Devil Summoner. There are four families of Devil Summoners with such a system in Japan, all using the surname Kuzunoha: Raidou, Geirin, Kyouji, and an unnamed fourth Summoner lineage.
- SNK: If Buriki One, Fatal Fury: Wild Ambition, and NeoGeo Battle Coliseum have anything to say about it, Mr. Karate is a legacy character, in this case the title of the current master of Kyokugenryuu Karate (Takuma Sakazaki in AOF, his son Ryo later on).
- The Soul Series features a few examples, many of which first appear in Soulcalibur V.
- Nightmare became this at least twice. In Soulcalibur and SCII, Nightmare is Siegfried under the control of Soul Edge. Once Siegfried finally breaks free of Soul Edge's influence in time for SCIII, enigmatic newcomer Zasalamel comes along and uses a spell to bind Inferno (the spirit of Soul Edge) to Nightmare's discarded armor. Then, sometime after this Nightmare was Killed Off for Real by Siegfried at the end of SCIV, Soul Edge obtained a new host known as Graf Dumas (implied, though not directly stated, to be Raphael), who has also taken up the Nightmare identity. Siegfried even says at one point that "Nightmare" is the name given to the current wielder of Soul Edge. With Sophitia's daughter Pyrrha being goaded by Tira into briefly wielding Soul Edge after she becomes malfested and is abandoned by her brother Patroklos, it can be argued Pyrrha Omega is the fourth incarnation of Nightmare, even if she never officially assumes the title.
- The Astaroth of SCV is one of many clones that were created using the original Astaroth's heart after Maxi killed him sometime during the events of Soulcalibur IV.
- The Yoshimitsu seen in V is a new man who took on the identity after slaying the original Yoshimitsu (their namesake sword only recognizes one bearer of the Yoshimitsu name at a time) and became "Yoshimitsu the Second." In turn, this retroactively cements the idea that the legend of the Manji clan leader abides by Legacy Immortality, extending all the way down to their successor in Tekken (see below).
- Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions featured Serena Patel, the new Doctor Octopus from the year 2099. She idolized the original Doc Ock, and modeled her villainous identity after his as a tribute.
- In Third Super Robot Wars Z: Tengoku-hen, King's family has traditionally always been Chrono's King, and his son, Carlos Axion Jr. was supposed to be the next one, but he died in Z2: Saisei-hen.
- In The Swords of Ditto, the title of "Sword of Ditto" is given to a long line of Chosen Ones (usually a teenage child, but sometimes also a Funny Animal) who is charged with protecting Ditto Island from the evil sorceress Mormo. When one is defeated or completes their quest, a new Sword is chosen exactly 100 years later.
- As confirmed in the web comics of Team Fortress 2, each of the game's nine mercenaries/character classes are this to the older, more professional mercenaries from Team Fortress Classic, the latter working for Gray Mann and facing off against the current, more wackier team. In fact, the TF2 Engineer is implied to be the son of the TFC Engineer.
- Tekken has many instances of Moveset Clone characters, though the majority of them don't count as this trope due to being explicitly different characters with different names. Still, there are a few examples:
- Every canonical game has a new iteration of Jack robot that is an update of the previous one. Each game usually only has one iteration, though the first two games also have Prototype Jack fighting alongside the main one. The sole exception to this rule is Tag Tournament, which features three Jacks (Jack-2, Gun Jack, and Prototype Jack).
- The King who appears in the first two games is killed by Ogre shortly before 3. One of the orphans he took care of trains in wrestling and subsequently adopts his mantle as King from 3 onwards.
- Heihachi Mishima has two pet bears with the name Kuma (which just means "bear" in Japanese). The first one dies of old age sometime after 2, but he has a son, who is the Kuma appearing from 3 onwards.
- The games always feature a "Law" character, and in nearly all of them, it's always Marshall Law. However, the one who appears in 3 and Tag Tournament is Forest Law, Marshall's son. Since both appear in Tag Tournament 2, they are credited with their full names to prevent confusion.
- Yoshimitsu is highly implied to be a descendant or at least a successor to the Yoshimitsu of the Soul Series.
- Armor King is stated to have died in 4, but 5 brings him back. 6 reveals that he is the original's younger brother.
- Master Raven from 7 is the boss of the Raven from 5 and 6. This only sticks for one game as Raven is back as of 8.
- The Kunimitsu who appears in 7 is the daughter of the original Kunimitsu from the first two games.
- The Garrett in the 2014 game from the Thief series is not the same Garrett that was the protagonist in the previous games.
- Turok features a Navajo Warrior in the first game named Tal'Set Fireseed. Turok 2 takes place hundreds of years later and features Joshua Fireseed, Tal'Set's great-great-great-great-great-great grandson; a modern day teenager; who is then replaced by Danielle Fireseed, his great-great-great niece in the third game.
- The Cool Cars of the Twisted Metal series reappear quite often throughout the series, but very few of them keep one driver throughout all of their appearances. Drivers come and go otherwise, which may or may not be due to the character survival rate when having their wish twisted by Calypso.
- The player character in Vermillion Watch is a Legacy Character. You play as the nephew of a long-time member of the Watch; after your uncle dies at the beginning of the first game you're basically told you've inherited his place as one of the Watch's main investigators.
- In A Witch's Tale, this is seen in the first playthrough's ending. Liddell is forced to become the new Alice after the current one is killed... whether she wants to or not.
- There appear to have been at least three people known as Wonder Boy in the video game series of the same name: Tom-Tom from Wonder Boy, Bocke Lee Temjin from Monster Land and The Dragon's Trap (who may or may not be Tom-Tom); Leo from Monster Lair, and Shion from Monster World.
- Zig-zagged in Yakuza 6. Before setting off for Hiroshima, Date warns Kiryu about the region's mysterious yakuza boss, Takeru Kurusu, who has ruled undisputed over the Chugoku underworld for over half a centaury despite never being seen in public, and suspects that the real Kurusu probably died decades ago and his subordinates have been using the name to maintain power. Nope, it turns out that "Takeru Kurusu" really has been just one very old, very powerful, very well-connected man this whole time, though the name itself is just an alias he uses to keep his respectable public persona separate from his life as a yakuza kingpin. Double Subverted when "Kurusu" is killed and usurped by his son, who takes up the name to make the transition smoother; although nothing comes of it as Kiryu crashes his coronation ceremony to deal with him, it does give Kiryu a great Pre Ass Kicking One Liner:Sugai: We've been expecting you. You are to be the entertainment for the succession of our second Takeru Kurusu.
Kiryu: You'll need a third Kurusu soon enough. - In Zettai Hero Project, the title of Unlosing Ranger is passed along from person to person, often done very shortly after the previous Unlosing Ranger is killed. After giving up the title to the main character, Pirohiko (the previous title holder) stays with him as a Spirit Advisor of sorts until he is able to fulfill his mission and defeat Darkdeath Evilman.
