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* Blaze from the ''MortalKombat'' series. First appearing as a background character under the name "Torch" in VideoGame/MortalKombat2 until his [[DarkerAndEdgier major character overhaul]] in VideoGame/MortalKombatArmageddon, where he wound up becoming not only [[BigBad a towering juggernaut and the Story Mode's final boss]], but also the Elder Gods's trump card in deciding the fate of all the realms from preventing Armageddon..
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* Blaze from the ''MortalKombat'' series. First appearing as a background character under the name "Torch" in VideoGame/MortalKombat2 until his [[DarkerAndEdgier major character overhaul]] in VideoGame/MortalKombatArmageddon, where he wound up becoming not only [[BigBad a towering juggernaut and the Story Mode's final boss]], but also the Elder Gods's trump card in deciding the fate of all the realms from preventing Armageddon..Armageddon..
* Name ''any'' character from ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}}'' that was playable at least once. Chances are [[ImprobablyFemaleCast she]] debut as a boss character you only see in one or two stage. Notable examples include:
** [[AndIcePerson Ice fairy]] Cirno. She starts out as a Stage 2 boss of ''Embodiment of Scarlet Devil'' with no importance to the actual plot at all. Last we heard from her, she gets [[GaidenGame her own game]].
** [[RascallyRabbit Tewi Inaba]]. She debuts as a stage 5 mid-boss with no dialogue in ''Imperishable Night''. She's a playable character in the next game ''Phantasmagoria of Flower View'' and becomes a main character in the GagManga SpinOff ''Inaba of the Moon and Inaba of the Earth''.
** [[CuteGhostGirl Mima]] also counts, before [[ChuckCunninghamSyndrome she disappeared off the face of Gensokyo]]. In her first appearance in ''Highly Responsive to Prayers'' she's just a Stage 10 boss (roughly equivalent to Stage 2 or 3 of later games) and like other characters, have no dialogue. Comes the second game ''Story of Eastern Wonderland'', where she's the BigBad. She also appears in the third and fifth game as a playable character.
** Speaking of Mima, there's her [[EpilepticTree pupil/servant/daughter/henchman/whatever]] [[CuteWitch Marisa Kirisame]]. She first appears as Mima's [[TheDragon Dragon]] in ''Story of Eastern Wonderland''. She proceeds to be the second main character of the entire series, being the one of the few which survive the ContinuityReboot between the PC-98 games to the Windows game ([[RetGone her mistress Mima didn't]])
* Name ''any'' character from ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}}'' that was playable at least once. Chances are [[ImprobablyFemaleCast she]] debut as a boss character you only see in one or two stage. Notable examples include:
** [[AndIcePerson Ice fairy]] Cirno. She starts out as a Stage 2 boss of ''Embodiment of Scarlet Devil'' with no importance to the actual plot at all. Last we heard from her, she gets [[GaidenGame her own game]].
** [[RascallyRabbit Tewi Inaba]]. She debuts as a stage 5 mid-boss with no dialogue in ''Imperishable Night''. She's a playable character in the next game ''Phantasmagoria of Flower View'' and becomes a main character in the GagManga SpinOff ''Inaba of the Moon and Inaba of the Earth''.
** [[CuteGhostGirl Mima]] also counts, before [[ChuckCunninghamSyndrome she disappeared off the face of Gensokyo]]. In her first appearance in ''Highly Responsive to Prayers'' she's just a Stage 10 boss (roughly equivalent to Stage 2 or 3 of later games) and like other characters, have no dialogue. Comes the second game ''Story of Eastern Wonderland'', where she's the BigBad. She also appears in the third and fifth game as a playable character.
** Speaking of Mima, there's her [[EpilepticTree pupil/servant/daughter/henchman/whatever]] [[CuteWitch Marisa Kirisame]]. She first appears as Mima's [[TheDragon Dragon]] in ''Story of Eastern Wonderland''. She proceeds to be the second main character of the entire series, being the one of the few which survive the ContinuityReboot between the PC-98 games to the Windows game ([[RetGone her mistress Mima didn't]])
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** Vincent Valentine in the original game was just a optional player character. In Advent Children, he's one of the main character along with Cloud and Tifa and he finally got his own spin-off game Dirge Of Cerberus.
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Mortal Kombat
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* In the original ''VisualNovel/LittleBusters'' game, Sasami and Kanata exist primarily as {{Satellite Character}}s to Rin and Haruka respectively. In Ecstasy and the later sequels, they're fully-fledged love interests with routes of their own.
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* In the original ''VisualNovel/LittleBusters'' game, Sasami and Kanata exist primarily as {{Satellite Character}}s to Rin and Haruka respectively. In Ecstasy and the later sequels, they're fully-fledged love interests with routes of their own.own.
* Blaze from the ''MortalKombat'' series. First appearing as a background character under the name "Torch" in VideoGame/MortalKombat2 until his [[DarkerAndEdgier major character overhaul]] in VideoGame/MortalKombatArmageddon, where he wound up becoming not only [[BigBad a towering juggernaut and the Story Mode's final boss]], but also the Elder Gods's trump card in deciding the fate of all the realms from preventing Armageddon..
* Blaze from the ''MortalKombat'' series. First appearing as a background character under the name "Torch" in VideoGame/MortalKombat2 until his [[DarkerAndEdgier major character overhaul]] in VideoGame/MortalKombatArmageddon, where he wound up becoming not only [[BigBad a towering juggernaut and the Story Mode's final boss]], but also the Elder Gods's trump card in deciding the fate of all the realms from preventing Armageddon..
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** Likewise, Clunk, Clank's EvilTwin, only appeared for a little bit of ''RatchetAndClankUpYourArsenal'', but in the spinoff ''SecretAgentClank'' he's the BigBad.
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** Likewise, Clunk, Clank's EvilTwin, only appeared for a little bit of ''RatchetAndClankUpYourArsenal'', but in the spinoff ''SecretAgentClank'' he's the BigBad.BigBad.
* In the original ''VisualNovel/LittleBusters'' game, Sasami and Kanata exist primarily as {{Satellite Character}}s to Rin and Haruka respectively. In Ecstasy and the later sequels, they're fully-fledged love interests with routes of their own.
* In the original ''VisualNovel/LittleBusters'' game, Sasami and Kanata exist primarily as {{Satellite Character}}s to Rin and Haruka respectively. In Ecstasy and the later sequels, they're fully-fledged love interests with routes of their own.
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* Sothe from ''FireEmblemTellius''. From just another playable character (who couldn't even promote) in ''Path of Radiance'' to an important supporting character in ''Radiant Dawn''. **Anna, the series mascot is a playable character after twenty two years in Awakening.
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* Sothe from ''FireEmblemTellius''. From just another playable character (who couldn't even promote) in ''Path of Radiance'' to an important supporting character in ''Radiant Dawn''.
**Anna, the series mascot is a playable character after twenty two years of games in Awakening.
**Anna, the series mascot is a playable character after twenty two years of games in Awakening.
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* Sothe from ''FireEmblemTellius''. From just another playable character (who couldn't even promote) in ''Path of Radiance'' to an important supporting character in ''Radiant Dawn''.
Anna, the series mascot is a playable character after twenty two years in Awakening.
Anna, the series mascot is a playable character after twenty two years in Awakening.
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* Sothe from ''FireEmblemTellius''. From just another playable character (who couldn't even promote) in ''Path of Radiance'' to an important supporting character in ''Radiant Dawn''.
Anna,Dawn''. **Anna, the series mascot is a playable character after twenty two years in Awakening.
Anna,
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Anna, the series mascot is a playable character after twenty two years in Awakening.
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* Back in the first ''SamuraiWarriors'', there's one certain generic officer named Honda Tadakatsu who stood up in defense of TokugawaIeyasu during the battle of Mikatagahara, and Takeda Shingen refers him as one of Ieyasu's luxuries. Then Xtreme Legends get announced to have brand new 4 characters, two of them are ToyotomiHideyoshi and Imagawa Yoshimoto who already got unique character model despite being NPC in the vanilla version, one of them is a brand new [[TheArcher archer]] babe called Inahime, whose father is... Honda Tadakatsu, who is the last playable character and ascended so great he practically became SW's answer to [[DynastyWarriors Lu]] [[{{Badass}} Bu]].
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* Back in the first ''SamuraiWarriors'', there's one certain generic officer named Honda Tadakatsu who stood up in defense of TokugawaIeyasu during the battle of Mikatagahara, and Takeda Shingen refers him as one of Ieyasu's luxuries. Then Xtreme Legends get announced to have brand new 4 characters, two of them are ToyotomiHideyoshi and Imagawa Yoshimoto who already got unique character model despite being NPC in the vanilla version, one of them is a brand new [[TheArcher archer]] archer babe called Inahime, whose father is... Honda Tadakatsu, who is the last playable character and ascended so great he practically became SW's answer to [[DynastyWarriors Lu]] [[{{Badass}} Bu]].
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* The main villain in ''RatchetAndClankFullFrontalAssault'' is revealed to be [[spoiler: the Qwark fanboy from ''RatchetAndClankGoingCommando'']]. This character was only featured as a VERY minor NPC that had no relevance to the plot, and could easily [[GuideDangIt be skipped]] on a regular playthrough.
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* The main villain in ''RatchetAndClankFullFrontalAssault'' is revealed to be [[spoiler: the Qwark fanboy from ''RatchetAndClankGoingCommando'']]. This character was only featured as a VERY minor NPC that had no relevance to the plot, and could easily [[GuideDangIt be skipped]] on a regular playthrough.playthrough.
** Likewise, Clunk, Clank's EvilTwin, only appeared for a little bit of ''RatchetAndClankUpYourArsenal'', but in the spinoff ''SecretAgentClank'' he's the BigBad.
** Likewise, Clunk, Clank's EvilTwin, only appeared for a little bit of ''RatchetAndClankUpYourArsenal'', but in the spinoff ''SecretAgentClank'' he's the BigBad.
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* Sheogorath in ''TheElderScrolls'' series had been nothing more than an interested observer who occasionally handed out {{Joke Item}}s or riddles. ''[[{{Oblivion}} Shivering Isles]]'' gave him a larger role and presence than all other Daedra Princes combined.
** In fact, this applies to ''all'' Daedric lords who've gotten larger roles after ''Daggerfall''. Sheogorath (the only Daedric lord who played a part in the main story of ''Daggerfall'', even if it was limited to showing up in the final dungeon for no readily apparent reason and handing out commentary and riddles) got, as mentioned above, an entire expansion pack centred around him and his Realm, Azura played a key role in ''Morrowind's'' main story, Hircine turns out to be behind the Bloodmoon in the ''Bloodmoon'' expansion, ''Oblivion's'' main story was closely connected to Mehrunes Dagon, and now Molag Bal has been pinned as the BigBad in ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsOnline''.
** In fact, this applies to ''all'' Daedric lords who've gotten larger roles after ''Daggerfall''. Sheogorath (the only Daedric lord who played a part in the main story of ''Daggerfall'', even if it was limited to showing up in the final dungeon for no readily apparent reason and handing out commentary and riddles) got, as mentioned above, an entire expansion pack centred around him and his Realm, Azura played a key role in ''Morrowind's'' main story, Hircine turns out to be behind the Bloodmoon in the ''Bloodmoon'' expansion, ''Oblivion's'' main story was closely connected to Mehrunes Dagon, and now Molag Bal has been pinned as the BigBad in ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsOnline''.
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* Sheogorath in ''TheElderScrolls'' ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'' series had been nothing more than an interested observer who occasionally handed out {{Joke Item}}s or riddles. ''[[{{Oblivion}} ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion Oblivion: Shivering Isles]]'' gave him a larger role and presence than all other Daedra Princes combined.
** In fact, this applies to ''all'' Daedric lords who've gotten larger roles after''Daggerfall''. ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIDaggerfall Daggerfall]]''. Sheogorath (the only Daedric lord who played a part in the main story of ''Daggerfall'', even if it was limited to showing up in the final dungeon for no readily apparent reason and handing out commentary and riddles) got, as mentioned above, an entire expansion pack centred around him and his Realm, Azura played a key role in ''Morrowind's'' ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]'''s main story, Hircine turns out to be behind the Bloodmoon in the ''Bloodmoon'' expansion, ''Oblivion's'' main story was closely connected to Mehrunes Dagon, and now Molag Bal has been pinned as the BigBad in ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsOnline''.
** In fact, this applies to ''all'' Daedric lords who've gotten larger roles after
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** In ''Ocarina of Time'', Anju is just some lady from Kakariko Village who lost her cuccos. In ''Majora's Mask'', she (or an alternate-universe counterpart thereof) and her fiancee Kafei share one of the longest, if not ''the'' longest, subquests in the game.
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* Rebecca Chambers, an extra in the [[ResidentEvil1 original]] ''ResidentEvil'', became the main character of the prequel, ''ResidentEvil0''. Unfortunately, she suffered from ChuckCunninghamSyndrome afterwards.
** And then there's Ada Wong, whose offscreen role in [[ResidentEvil1 the first game]] was simply serving as a three-letter name in a memo that provided the solution to a puzzle (a scientist's note mentions that his girlfriend's name is the password). ''ResidentEvil2'' expanded on that bit of trivia to introduce her in Leon's storyline as an important supporting character with a DarkAndTroubledPast, and then ''ResidentEvil4'' elevated her all the way up to a full-fledged DarkActionGirl and Leon's DatingCatwoman adversary.
** And then there's Ada Wong, whose offscreen role in [[ResidentEvil1 the first game]] was simply serving as a three-letter name in a memo that provided the solution to a puzzle (a scientist's note mentions that his girlfriend's name is the password). ''ResidentEvil2'' expanded on that bit of trivia to introduce her in Leon's storyline as an important supporting character with a DarkAndTroubledPast, and then ''ResidentEvil4'' elevated her all the way up to a full-fledged DarkActionGirl and Leon's DatingCatwoman adversary.
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* Rebecca Chambers, an extra in the [[ResidentEvil1 original]] ''ResidentEvil'', original ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil'', became the main character of the prequel, ''ResidentEvil0''.''VideoGame/ResidentEvil0''. Unfortunately, she suffered from ChuckCunninghamSyndrome afterwards.
** And then there's Ada Wong, whose offscreen role in[[ResidentEvil1 [[VideoGame/ResidentEvil the first game]] was simply serving as a three-letter name in a memo that provided the solution to a puzzle (a scientist's note mentions that his girlfriend's name is the password). ''ResidentEvil2'' ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil2'' expanded on that bit of trivia to introduce her in Leon's storyline as an important supporting character with a DarkAndTroubledPast, and then ''ResidentEvil4'' ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil4'' elevated her all the way up to a full-fledged DarkActionGirl and Leon's DatingCatwoman adversary.
** And then there's Ada Wong, whose offscreen role in
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* The ''{{Unreal}}'' universe has a lot of this. First are Malcolm, Brock and Lauren, who were simple skins a player could choose on the first ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament''. Then, ''Unreal Tournament 2003'' showed that Malcolm was the winner of the Tournament, with Brock and Lauren as part of his team. Since that moment, Malcolm is considered the face of the Unreal series. ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament2004'' and ''VideoGame/UnrealChampionship2TheLiandriConflict'' also ascended Gorge and Arclite, (and later, many others, through a patch) from the same game.
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* The ''{{Unreal}}'' ''VideoGame/{{Unreal}}'' universe has a lot of this. First are Malcolm, Brock and Lauren, who were simple skins a player could choose on the first ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament''. Then, ''Unreal Tournament 2003'' showed that Malcolm was the winner of the Tournament, with Brock and Lauren as part of his team. Since that moment, Malcolm is considered the face of the Unreal series. ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament2004'' and ''VideoGame/UnrealChampionship2TheLiandriConflict'' also ascended Gorge and Arclite, (and later, many others, through a patch) from the same game.
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* Nyarlathotep in the ''VideoGame/{{Persona}}'' series started out as merely Kandori/Guido's Persona, and wasn't even a final boss. Come ''VideoGame/{{Persona 2}}'', it's then revealed he singlehandedly is responsible for everything bad in ''2'', both ''Innocent Sin'' and ''Eternal Punishment'', and that everything that happened in the first game, it's his planning as well, promoting/revealing him into the ultimate BigBad in the Persona-verse. [[spoiler:And if he turns out to be the Malevolent Entity in ''VideoGame/Persona4Arena'', then he's still living up to that designation after about 10 years or so.]]
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* Nyarlathotep in the ''VideoGame/{{Persona}}'' series started out as merely Kandori/Guido's Persona, and wasn't even a final boss. Come ''VideoGame/{{Persona 2}}'', it's then revealed he singlehandedly is personally responsible for everything bad in ''2'', both ''Innocent Sin'' and ''Eternal Punishment'', and that everything that happened in the first game, it's game was his planning as well, promoting/revealing him into the ultimate BigBad in the Persona-verse. [[spoiler:And if he turns out to be well. He's MIA during ''{{Persona 3}}'' and ''{{Persona 4}}'', but ''Persona4Arena'' implies that [[spoiler:he's the Malevolent Entity in ''VideoGame/Persona4Arena'', then he's Entity, who's still living up to that designation after about 10 years or so.at large post-epilogue.]]
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* In the Super Famicom version of ''VideoGame/{{Ys}} IV'', Karna is only a minor character that Adol runs into a couple times. However, in the PCEngine CD version, she is a {{badass}} ActionGirl and a major plot driver.
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* In the Super Famicom version of ''VideoGame/{{Ys}} IV'', Karna is only a minor character that Adol runs into a couple times. However, in the PCEngine CD version, she is a {{badass}} ActionGirl and a major plot driver.driver.
* The main villain in ''RatchetAndClankFullFrontalAssault'' is revealed to be [[spoiler: the Qwark fanboy from ''RatchetAndClankGoingCommando'']]. This character was only featured as a VERY minor NPC that had no relevance to the plot, and could easily [[GuideDangIt be skipped]] on a regular playthrough.
* The main villain in ''RatchetAndClankFullFrontalAssault'' is revealed to be [[spoiler: the Qwark fanboy from ''RatchetAndClankGoingCommando'']]. This character was only featured as a VERY minor NPC that had no relevance to the plot, and could easily [[GuideDangIt be skipped]] on a regular playthrough.
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** Not to mention Cerberus itself, who go from sidequest baddies to major players in 2 and 3.
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* 5pb, a DLC-only bonus character from the first ''VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptunia'', joins the party as part of the regular storyline in ''[[VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptuniaMk2 Hyperdimension Neptunia mk2]]''.
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* 5pb, a DLC-only bonus character from the first ''VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptunia'', joins the party as part of the regular storyline in ''[[VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptuniaMk2 Hyperdimension Neptunia mk2]]''.
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** Also, Hurdy (one of the Moogling operators from FinalFantasyXII) becomes a supporting character in FinalFantasyTacticsA2.
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* A number of characters in ''BlazBlueCalamityTrigger'' became {{Ascended Extra}}s in ''Continuum Shift'' - some of them being [[EnsembleDarkhorse quite popular]] certainly helped.
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* A number of characters in ''BlazBlueCalamityTrigger'' ''VideoGame/BlazBlueCalamityTrigger'' became {{Ascended Extra}}s in ''Continuum Shift'' - some of them being [[EnsembleDarkhorse quite popular]] certainly helped.
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* Nyarlathotep in the ''VideoGame/{{Persona}}'' series started out as merely Kandori/Guido's Persona, and wasn't even a final boss. Come ''VideoGame/{{Persona 2}}'', it's then revealed he singlehandedly is responsible for everything bad in ''2'', both ''Innocent Sin'' and ''Eternal Punishment'', and that everything that happened in the first game, it's his planning as well, promoting/revealing him into the ultimate BigBad in the Persona-verse. [[spoiler:And if he turns out to be the Malevolent Entity in ''VideoGame/Persona4Arena'', then he's still living up to that designation after about 10 years or so.]]
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* Nyarlathotep in the ''VideoGame/{{Persona}}'' series started out as merely Kandori/Guido's Persona, and wasn't even a final boss. Come ''VideoGame/{{Persona 2}}'', it's then revealed he singlehandedly is responsible for everything bad in ''2'', both ''Innocent Sin'' and ''Eternal Punishment'', and that everything that happened in the first game, it's his planning as well, promoting/revealing him into the ultimate BigBad in the Persona-verse. [[spoiler:And if he turns out to be the Malevolent Entity in ''VideoGame/Persona4Arena'', then he's still living up to that designation after about 10 years or so.]]]]
* In the Super Famicom version of ''VideoGame/{{Ys}} IV'', Karna is only a minor character that Adol runs into a couple times. However, in the PCEngine CD version, she is a {{badass}} ActionGirl and a major plot driver.
* In the Super Famicom version of ''VideoGame/{{Ys}} IV'', Karna is only a minor character that Adol runs into a couple times. However, in the PCEngine CD version, she is a {{badass}} ActionGirl and a major plot driver.
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** EDI also appears in ''MassEffect1'' as a nameless AI.
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* Nyarlathotep in the ''{{Persona}}'' series started out as merely Kandori/Guido's Persona, and wasn't even a final boss. Come ''{{Persona 2}}'', it's then revealed he singlehandedly is responsible for everything bad in ''2'', both ''Innocent Sin'' and ''Eternal Punishment'', and that everything that happened in the first game, it's his planning as well, promoting/revealing him into the ultimate BigBad in the Persona-verse. [[spoiler:And if he turns out to be the Malevolent Entity in ''Persona4Arena'', then he's still living up to that designation after about 10 years or so.]]
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* Nyarlathotep in the ''{{Persona}}'' ''VideoGame/{{Persona}}'' series started out as merely Kandori/Guido's Persona, and wasn't even a final boss. Come ''{{Persona ''VideoGame/{{Persona 2}}'', it's then revealed he singlehandedly is responsible for everything bad in ''2'', both ''Innocent Sin'' and ''Eternal Punishment'', and that everything that happened in the first game, it's his planning as well, promoting/revealing him into the ultimate BigBad in the Persona-verse. [[spoiler:And if he turns out to be the Malevolent Entity in ''Persona4Arena'', ''VideoGame/Persona4Arena'', then he's still living up to that designation after about 10 years or so.]]
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* 5pb, a DLC-only bonus character from the first ''VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptunia'', joins the party as part of the regular storyline in ''[[VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptuniaMk2 Neptunia mk2]]''.
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* 5pb, a DLC-only bonus character from the first ''VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptunia'', joins the party as part of the regular storyline in ''[[VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptuniaMk2 Hyperdimension Neptunia mk2]]''.
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** Tsubaki Yayoi, Valkenhayn R. Hellsing, and Relius Clover also got the relevance treatment - mere mentions or brief appearances turned into characters with full-blown stories behind them and connections to the plot at large.
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** Tsubaki Yayoi, Valkenhayn R. Hellsing, and Relius Clover also got the relevance treatment - mere mentions or brief appearances turned into characters with full-blown stories behind them and connections to the plot at large.large.
* Nyarlathotep in the ''{{Persona}}'' series started out as merely Kandori/Guido's Persona, and wasn't even a final boss. Come ''{{Persona 2}}'', it's then revealed he singlehandedly is responsible for everything bad in ''2'', both ''Innocent Sin'' and ''Eternal Punishment'', and that everything that happened in the first game, it's his planning as well, promoting/revealing him into the ultimate BigBad in the Persona-verse. [[spoiler:And if he turns out to be the Malevolent Entity in ''Persona4Arena'', then he's still living up to that designation after about 10 years or so.]]
* Nyarlathotep in the ''{{Persona}}'' series started out as merely Kandori/Guido's Persona, and wasn't even a final boss. Come ''{{Persona 2}}'', it's then revealed he singlehandedly is responsible for everything bad in ''2'', both ''Innocent Sin'' and ''Eternal Punishment'', and that everything that happened in the first game, it's his planning as well, promoting/revealing him into the ultimate BigBad in the Persona-verse. [[spoiler:And if he turns out to be the Malevolent Entity in ''Persona4Arena'', then he's still living up to that designation after about 10 years or so.]]
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* Sothe from ''FireEmblemTellius''. From just another playable character (who couldn't even promote) in ''Path of Radiance'' to an important supporting character in ''Radiant Dawn''.
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* Sothe from ''FireEmblemTellius''. From just another playable character (who couldn't even promote) in ''Path of Radiance'' to an important supporting character in ''Radiant Dawn''.Dawn''.
* A number of characters in ''BlazBlueCalamityTrigger'' became {{Ascended Extra}}s in ''Continuum Shift'' - some of them being [[EnsembleDarkhorse quite popular]] certainly helped.
** ButtMonkey Bang Shishigami was treated as a joke by a wide variety of characters, the sole exception being Hakumen. However, an offhand comment by Rachel about an inactive Nox Nyctores turned out to be more than met the ear as Bang [[TookALevelInBadass ground his ass off]] and turned into a MinorMajorCharacter as a result - as ''Chrono Phantasma'' is moving into Ikaruga, the fans are undoubtedly going to be quite pissed if he doesn't get a significant share of the spotlight this time around. He may still be an over-the-top anime ninja pastiche with a loud voice and a scruffy face, but that's why we love him.
** Makoto Nanaya was little more than a bit of Noel, Jin and Carl's memories in CT, but she had significantly changed from the FunPersonified role by the time she arrived in Kagutsuchi in CS. A rumor passed around the internet that she was made DLC in vanilla CS due to plot relevance rather than popularity (not that she isn't popular - far from it), but the full extent came out bit by bit up until ''Extend'' - there are ''reasons'' why ''Slight Hope'' in totality is considered an [[Awesome/BlazBlue episode of badassery]], and with that degree of involvement in the main story, she is clearly not going away.
** Tsubaki Yayoi, Valkenhayn R. Hellsing, and Relius Clover also got the relevance treatment - mere mentions or brief appearances turned into characters with full-blown stories behind them and connections to the plot at large.
* A number of characters in ''BlazBlueCalamityTrigger'' became {{Ascended Extra}}s in ''Continuum Shift'' - some of them being [[EnsembleDarkhorse quite popular]] certainly helped.
** ButtMonkey Bang Shishigami was treated as a joke by a wide variety of characters, the sole exception being Hakumen. However, an offhand comment by Rachel about an inactive Nox Nyctores turned out to be more than met the ear as Bang [[TookALevelInBadass ground his ass off]] and turned into a MinorMajorCharacter as a result - as ''Chrono Phantasma'' is moving into Ikaruga, the fans are undoubtedly going to be quite pissed if he doesn't get a significant share of the spotlight this time around. He may still be an over-the-top anime ninja pastiche with a loud voice and a scruffy face, but that's why we love him.
** Makoto Nanaya was little more than a bit of Noel, Jin and Carl's memories in CT, but she had significantly changed from the FunPersonified role by the time she arrived in Kagutsuchi in CS. A rumor passed around the internet that she was made DLC in vanilla CS due to plot relevance rather than popularity (not that she isn't popular - far from it), but the full extent came out bit by bit up until ''Extend'' - there are ''reasons'' why ''Slight Hope'' in totality is considered an [[Awesome/BlazBlue episode of badassery]], and with that degree of involvement in the main story, she is clearly not going away.
** Tsubaki Yayoi, Valkenhayn R. Hellsing, and Relius Clover also got the relevance treatment - mere mentions or brief appearances turned into characters with full-blown stories behind them and connections to the plot at large.
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** In another branch of the series, you have Alisa, novice priestess to the Harvest Goddess. IN her first appearance in ''Island of Happiness'', she's was merely the cute assistant to GoodShepperd Nathan. In ''Sunshine Island'', she was one of your potential love interests[[hottip:*:Though that turned out to be a cruel fake out on the Dev Team's part.]] In ''The Tale of Two Towns'', she one of two unlockable female love interests[[hottip:*:with yet again another catch - you can't have a child with her.]].
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** In another branch of the series, you have Alisa, novice priestess to the Harvest Goddess. IN her first appearance in ''Island of Happiness'', she's was merely the cute assistant to GoodShepperd GoodShepherd Nathan. In ''Sunshine Island'', she was one of your potential love interests[[hottip:*:Though that turned out to be a cruel fake out on the Dev Team's part.]] In ''The Tale of Two Towns'', she one of two unlockable female love interests[[hottip:*:with yet again another catch - you can't have a child with her.]].
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** In another branch of the series, you have Alisa, novice priestess to the Harvest Goddess. IN her first appearance in ''Island of Happiness'', she's was merely the cute assistant to GoodShepperd Nathan. In ''Sunshine Island'', she was one of your potential love interests[[hottip:*:Though that turned out to be a cruel fake out on the Dev Team's part.]] In ''The Tale of Two Towns'', she one of two unlockable female love interests[[hottip:*:with yet again another catch - you can't have a child with her.]].
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* The excellent FanRemake of ''KingsQuestII'' does this with several {{NPC}}s. Perhaps the best is Valanice, who was rewritten from her original flat, MacGuffin-esque DistressedDamsel portrayal to a character more in line with what's seen in her later appearances in the series, who -- although a prisoner -- is hardly a helpless shrinking violet. Similarily, the vampire (originally Dracula; [[SignificantAnagram Caldaur]] in the remake) is turned into a sympathic character with personality, depth and motives, [[spoiler:who will end up aiding the hero if you help him in return]]. Seeing as his original role was to [[OrcusOnHisThrone hang out in his castle until the hero showed up to kill him]] for no apparent reason (other than needing the key he had), this was a definite improvement.
** In the original versions of the series, Rosella was given her own adventure to star in after appearing briefly in the previous game as the DistressedDamsel, and later on she co-starred alongside Valanice as the heroes of ''KingsQuestVII''. Princess Cassima, meanwhile, was introduced near the end of ''KingsQuestV'' and was later ascended to being a major character in ''KingsQuestVI''.
** In the original versions of the series, Rosella was given her own adventure to star in after appearing briefly in the previous game as the DistressedDamsel, and later on she co-starred alongside Valanice as the heroes of ''KingsQuestVII''. Princess Cassima, meanwhile, was introduced near the end of ''KingsQuestV'' and was later ascended to being a major character in ''KingsQuestVI''.
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* The excellent FanRemake of ''KingsQuestII'' ''VideoGame/KingsQuestII'' does this with several {{NPC}}s. Perhaps the best is Valanice, who was rewritten from her original flat, MacGuffin-esque DistressedDamsel portrayal to a character more in line with what's seen in her later appearances in the series, who -- although a prisoner -- is hardly a helpless shrinking violet. Similarily, the vampire (originally Dracula; [[SignificantAnagram Caldaur]] in the remake) is turned into a sympathic character with personality, depth and motives, [[spoiler:who will end up aiding the hero if you help him in return]]. Seeing as his original role was to [[OrcusOnHisThrone hang out in his castle until the hero showed up to kill him]] for no apparent reason (other than needing the key he had), this was a definite improvement.
** In the original versions of the series, Rosella was given her own adventure to star in after appearing briefly in the previous game as the DistressedDamsel, and later on she co-starred alongside Valanice as the heroes of''KingsQuestVII''. ''VideoGame/KingsQuestVII''. Princess Cassima, meanwhile, was introduced near the end of ''KingsQuestV'' ''VideoGame/KingsQuestV'' and was later ascended to being a major character in ''KingsQuestVI''.''VideoGame/KingsQuestVI''.
** In the original versions of the series, Rosella was given her own adventure to star in after appearing briefly in the previous game as the DistressedDamsel, and later on she co-starred alongside Valanice as the heroes of
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* The excellent FanRemake of ''KingsQuestII'' does this with several {{NPC}}s. Perhaps the best is Valanice, who was rewritten from her original flat, MacGuffin-esque DistressedDamsel portrayal to a character more in line with what's seen in her later appearances in the series, who -- although a prisoner -- is hardly a helpless shrinking violet. Similarily, the vampire (originally Dracula; [[SignificantAnagram Caldaur]] in the remake) is turned into a sympathic character with personality, depth and motives, [[spoiler:who will end up aiding the hero if you help him in return]]. Seeing as his original role was to [[OrcusOnHisThrone hang out in his castle until the hero showed up to kill him]] for no apparent reason (other than needing the key he had), this was a definite improvement.
** In the original versions of the series, Rosella was given her own adventure to star in after appearing briefly in the previous game as the DistressedDamsel, and later on she co-starred alongside Valanice as the heroes of ''KingsQuestVII''. Princess Cassima, meanwhile, was introduced near the end of ''KingsQuestV'' and was later ascended to being a major character in ''KingsQuestVI''.
* He ''was'' TheDragon in ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga]]'', but the [[EnsembleDarkHorse Darkhorse on the rise]] Fawful was, sadly, DemotedToExtra in the second game...and then became the BigBad in the third.
* [[SuperMarioBros Waluigi]] is a mild example. Originally showing up in Mario Tennis as a fill in for Wario's partner and Luigi's rival, Waluigi's shown up in virtually every spinoff since then, and is the only regular character that hasn't ever been in a platformer to do so. He's either [[EnsembleDarkHorse loved]] for being [[CloudCuckoolander insane]] or [[TheScrappy loathed]] as a auxiliary character.
* The hero's main LoveInterest Luna from ''VideoGame/LunarTheSilverStar''. In the original game for the SegaCD, she fought with the protagonist as the WhiteMagicianGirl (with a MagicMusic power) for the first dungeon and returns home, not appearing again until [[spoiler:the BigBad kidnaps her and it's revealed that she is a [[TomatoInTheMirror routine human incarnation of the world's goddess]] and has to be saved.]] In the game's subsqent remakes, starting with the one on the SegaSaturn, she stays with the group [[spoiler:until the mentioned kidnapping]], but it doesn't wholly matter because the player gets three [[BlackMagic far]] [[ShockAndAwe more]] [[WhiteMagic useful]] spell casters along the way, and the main character can also obtain powerful magic later in the game.
* ''WorldOfWarcraft'' does this constantly. Literally every [=pre-WoW=] bit of ''{{Warcraft}}'' material had a lot of lore that may or may not have appeared on screen, and may have had little if any effect on the plot, that end up becoming major characters in a later game or when Blizzard needs material for an expansion pack or raid dungeon. In the most extreme example, Sargeras went from a generic bit-part monster to THE BigBad of the entire universe (albeit a BigBad [[PosthumousCharacter who's long dead]], as such. WordOfGod says his spirit is scattered across the Twisting Nether in limbo, but not gone for good).
** This has also happened in response to the players falling in love with random {{NPC}}s. For example, Hemet Nesingwary was once a minor quest-giver put in as a ShoutOut to Ernest Hemingway. Players either liked or hated him so much that in the first expansion he was moved to Outland and given more quests, and in the second there is an entire faction devoted to fighting him, a third of an area taken over by his crazed former compatriots, as well as yet another group of quests from Nesingwary's hunting party.
*** [[http://aurori.deviantart.com/art/Nesingwary-s-Hunt-64687009 Hemet Nesingwary the Lord of Extinction]].
** High Overlord Saurfang, pre-expansion, served no purpose in the game or the story except to put Nefarian's severed head on a stick and look like a total BadAss. He's since become one of the most prominent [=NPCs=] in the game. [[MemeticBadass Otherwise, he'll Cleave everyone.]]
** And the Alliance equivalent of Saurfang, Bolvar Fordragon, started out as a stand-in for the disappeared King Varian Wrynn and earned some major cool points for fighting off Onyxia's ''entire elite guard''. When Varian came back, Bolvar played a major role in the Dragonblight campaign, pulled a BigDamnHeroes for you, and [[spoiler:[[TearJerker died]] during the Forsaken betrayal at the Wrath Gate.]]
*** You want AscendedExtra? ''[[spoiler:Bolvar is the new Lich King.]]'' ''That's'' an AscendedExtra.
* Similarly in ''VideoGame/StarTrekOnline'', numerous minor characters are revisited, most of whom were mere babies when they were shown on screen. Notable examples include Leonard James Akaar (mentioned above in Television) and Miral Paris, who was born in the last episode of ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'', and Thomas Riker, Will Riker's transporter double whom the writers of ''[[Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine Deep Space Nine]]'' cruelly abandoned in spite of fan outcry. There are villainous examples as well; Gul Dukat's half-Bajoran daughter appears, and one of the more enjoyable boss fights is against Gul Madred, the one who tortured Captain Picard.
* Because of the nature of ''Suikoden'' games all being in the same world, there's usually recurring characters. A number of them are Ascended Extras, frequently as a result of ShesAllGrownUp. Notable examples are Apple, Futch, Luc, Sasarai, Georg, Lilly, Clive etc. Resulted in a lot of EnsembleDarkHorse.
* Once upon a time, there was a game called ''TriangleHeart3SweetSongsForever''. This game had a TokenMiniMoe who had little role to the plot aside from being the adorable little sister of the main character Kyouya. This little sister would later get a [[{{Omake}} mini-scenario of her own in the game's fandisc]] where she becomes a MagicalGirl, and said mini-scenario would eventually [[TheAnimeOfTheGame get turned into a full-fledged anime]]. The name of the little sister and her show? ''MagicalGirlLyricalNanoha'', who ascended so much, [[MorePopularSpinoff she displaced the entire series she originated from]].
* In ''[[VideoGame/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice Sam And Max Hit The Road]]'', the protagonists may optionally enter the convenience store near their office (which has no bearing on the plot or any puzzles) and save its owner, Bosco, from an armed robber. The interior of the store is never seen and Bosco is never seen nor heard. When the sequel was canceled and Telltale Games was formed as a result, due to his not-legally-a-character status, Bosco was the only character from ''Hit the Road'' (besides an appearance of the Human Enigma on a poster, due to an appearance, also on a poster, in the original ''VideoGame/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice'' comic book series) who could legally feature in their new episodic ''VideoGame/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice'' series. Indeed, he became a major recurring character, with appearances in all but one episode in the first two seasons and a backstory that is revealed and resolved in Season 2.
* While he may seem like one of many other characters the player can pick to go with them in ''VideoGame/ManiacMansion'', Bernard arguably fits this trope, becoming the hero of ''VideoGame/DayOfTheTentacle'', which suggests that the canonical trio includes him.
* In the first ''VideoGame/MegaManStarForce'', Damion Wolfe and his FM-ian, Wolf, are just {{Bonus Boss}}es you can challenge anytime you want. In the third game they were promoted to secondary characters, helping our heroes in an occasion or two. In the anime he was also promoted, but to a "villain" (well, he softens up later).
** ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' has Tory Froid, who is nothing more than a generic, nameless NPC but was upgraded to one of Lan's friends for ''MegaManNTWarrior'' and given a unique design. [=IceMan=] is his Navi in the anime but is his father's Navi in the game.
** [[BloodKnight Bass]] in the first ''Battle Network'' was just a BonusBoss, but became one of the villains in the two next sequels. Battle Network 4 and beyond then turned him into an extra again, but at least he gets dialogue. He was important in the anime and manga adaptations, too.
* The weapon salesmen from the first ''{{Spectrobes}}'' game gets redesigned in the second with his own sprite, cutscene, and name. [[spoiler:It's Dave, of all things.]]
* Despite [[AmericansHateTingle immense unpopularity in America]], Tingle from ''Zelda'' saw his role increase consistently from his original debut in ''Majora's Mask'' to the point he's already the star of two games with a third one on the way. [[NoExportForYou But unless you live in Europe or Japan, don't count on ever playing them without importing.]]
** The Skull Kid in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' gives you a heart piece and is part of a very minor sidequest. In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'', he jumpstarts the plot and is set up ([[EvilMask somewhat incorrectly]]) as the BigBad. He also becomes an integral part of the Sacred Woods subquest in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'.
** A more notible example would be the Happy Mask Salesman, who, like the Skull Kid, was only part of a minor subquest in Ocarina of Time. He became an unlikely major, and very popular character in MajorasMask.
* [[Franchise/{{Pokemon}} Charizard, Squirtle]], [[{{Kirby}} Meta Knight, King Dedede]], and [[VideoGame/KidIcarus Pit]] in the ''SuperSmashBros'' series. They first appeared as trophies in ''Melee'', then all became playable in ''Brawl''.
* The CapcomVsWhatever series ascended many minor characters from both Capcom and the rival companies:
** Shuma-Gorath, a minor and obscure ''Comicbook/DoctorStrange'' villain, is better known as a powerful but unorthodox fighter in the ''MarvelVsCapcom'' games. ''"CHAOS DIMENSION!"'' Strange himself did not appear in the series until the UpdatedRerelease of ''Marvel vs Capcom 3''
** [[spoiler:[[Videogame/{{Okami}} Yami]] is the final boss]] in ''VideoGame/TatsunokoVsCapcom'', and the given explanation why all the characters in that game meet up together. Protagonist Amaterasu had to wait until ''Marvel vs Capcom 3'' for her first appearance.
*** On the same vein, Mars People made the cut over [[MetalSlug Marco Rossi]] as a Mid-Boss for ''VideoGame/SNKVsCapcomSVCChaos''.
** Saki Omokane, from a very-obscure Japan-only quiz game from Capcom, gets first an assist role in the first ''MarvelVsCapcom'', and then becomes a full-fledged fighter in ''VideoGame/TatsunokoVsCapcom''.
** Eagle and Maki, two long-forgotten ''VideoGame/StreetFighter'' and ''VideoGame/FinalFight'' characters, ended up appearing in ''[[VideoGame/CapcomVsSNK2MarkOfTheMillennium Capcom vs. SNK 2]]'' as playable fighters, and they, along with Yun from ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'', got ported over to the GBA release of ''VideoGame/StreetFighterAlpha 3'' as unlockable characters. The PSP version keeps them, as well as Ingrid, from ''VideoGame/CapcomFightingEvolution''.
** This also applies to others like Dan Hibiki (who started off as a throw-away character in one piece of artwork) and Sakura (who was originally a JokeCharacter and got her own manga).
** And it even happens in-series: [[VideoGame/GhostsNGoblins Arthur]] and [[TheMightyThor Thor]] were just {{Assist Character}}s in ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcomClashOfTheSuperheroes''. Come ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom3'', and both of them were ascended to the main roster. Thor's case goes farther, as he had a cameo on ''Marvel Super Heroes: War of the Gems'' and was one of the frozen warriors in ''VideoGame/MarvelSuperHeroes'', alongside SheHulk, who also made the cut to the main roster.
* The ''{{Unreal}}'' universe has a lot of this. First are Malcolm, Brock and Lauren, who were simple skins a player could choose on the first ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament''. Then, ''Unreal Tournament 2003'' showed that Malcolm was the winner of the Tournament, with Brock and Lauren as part of his team. Since that moment, Malcolm is considered the face of the Unreal series. ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament2004'' and ''VideoGame/UnrealChampionship2TheLiandriConflict'' also ascended Gorge and Arclite, (and later, many others, through a patch) from the same game.
* After only one showing in one mission set, for an [[ExpansionPack add-on]] to ''VideoGame/WingCommander II'', Jason "Bear" Bondarevski goes on to become a major character in the non-{{novelization}} Literature/WingCommander novels, as do, to a lesser extent, several minor characters seen elsewhere in the games, like [[WrenchWench Janet "Sparks" McCullough]] and Kevin Tolwyn.
* The first ''{{Half-Life}}'' has about three "skins" for all of the scientist models, all of whom exist solely to provide exposition, open certain doors and/or die horribly and thereby show the player how ''not'' to die horribly. Two of these skins were later used as the basis for two of the main characters of ''Half-Life 2'', which has led to interesting arguments about which of the scientists is the "real" one (Eli is explicitly stated to be the first one to talk to Gordon after the Resonance Cascade; Kliener is generally considered to be the only scientist seen wielding a weapon, appearing at the end of the "Lambda Core" level). Barney, a character similarly based on model skins, this time of the security guards (of which there was only ''one'' originally) is more of a MauveShirt however.
* In ''VideoGame/DarkFall: The Journal'', Nigel is basically someone you have to rescue. In the spinoff game, ''The Lost Crown'', he is the main character.
* Before the final boss of ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters '94'', a blonde woman escorts your team to Rugal's chamber. After a number of victories in ''KOF '95'', a brunette woman informs the unseen Rugal of your team's progress. These two otherwise unremarkable secretaries would go on to become playable characters in ''KOF '96'' under the names Mature and Vice, complete with relevance to the Orochi storyline. And even though they were both killed at the end of the game, they still proved popular enough to return in full-cast compilation games and intercompany crossovers, and may even be rejoining the canon cast in recent games.
** Yup. They come BackFromTheDead (well, [[OurGhostsAreDifferent sorta]]) in ''XIII'' (Mature was actually in ''XII'' before that, but that was--[[InNameOnly technically]]--a DreamMatchGame as well).
* ''FinalFantasyIVTheAfterYears'' ''loved'' this trope--numerous party members were minor characters in the original game, and one such party member was so minor as to be an NPC that only appeared in the ending. Meanwhile, TheDragon ascended from being a one-of enemy in a short sidequest exclusive to the original game's Gameboy Advance release.
* Tseng of ''FinalFantasyVII''. In the original game, he is the leader of [[GoldFishPoopGang the Turks]], but you never fought him, and he only appears for a short while. Come CrisisCore, he becomes Zack's Turk partner, and could fight alongside him in a DMW sequence.
* While he's not technically a person per se, the Blue Badger in ''VisualNovel/AceAttorney''. He goes from a little plush toy in the first game, to the police mascot and key plot device in the second game, and by ''VisualNovel/AceAttorneyInvestigations'' he's got an entire family and a stage show as well as being the Gatewaterland Mascot.
** Also, [[spoiler:Gregory Edgeworth]]. Besides being the deceased father of one of the main characters, and the victim in the DL-6 Incident, he doesn't get much fame...[[spoiler:that is, until you play a case as him]] in ''VisualNovel/AceAttorneyInvestigations 2''.
* Johnny Sasaski from the ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' series.
** Revolver Ocelot, who is introduced in [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid the first game]] as Liquid's underling--he is the least memorable boss in the game, and has little impact on the plot. By ''MetalGearSolid4'', he has become the ultimate BigBad of the series, and he is the only character to appear in all four games.
* In the ''TotalWar'' series, when an army goes into a difficult battle without a general to lead it, and comes out victorious, the army's captain (up to that point a non-entity) can ascend to General status and become a valued member of your royal family (and a powerful unit in his own right).
* In the ''VideoGame/{{Ys}}'' series, Dogi the Wallcrusher was at first a minor character who busts Adol out of jail at one point in the first game and disappears until the end of the second game. However, his bravado and infamous wallcrushing skill instantly turned him into a fan favorite and Dogi became the constant companion of Adol who follows Adol in his later adventures, always busting wall at one point to save Adol in each game. Most recently in ''Ys Seven'', he is a playable character.
** Terra originally was a minor character in a bandit gang that harassed Adol in ''Ys V'', but was given a major supporting role in ''VI''. [[TheScrappy Although somewhat annoying]]. Then, like countless other characters, suffered from ChuckCunninghamSyndrome afterwards.
* In ''[[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl Pokemon Platinum]]'', ''[[VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver HeartGold, and SoulSilver]]'', Caitlin just sat in a throne in the Battle Castle, never even battling you. In ''VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite'', she's the third member of the [[FinalBoss Elite Four]]!
* Deekin ascended to party member near the end of ''NeverwinterNights: Shadows of Undrentide'', and played a significant part in Hordes of the Underdark as well.
* Isabela and Merril in ''DragonAgeII''. In ''DragonAge'', the former was a character who taught a Rogue specialization while the latter was a GuestStarPartyMember for the Dalish Warden's prologue. In the sequel, they are both party members and both are love interests.
** Also Anders to a lesser degree, he was a party member in ''Awakening'' as well, but his role was greatly expanded on and his character was fleshed out much more in ''DragonAge2''.
** The entire [[ScaryDogmaticAliens Qunari]] race. We saw two or three in Origins and heard a little about their culture, in DragonAge2 the plot of a third of the game centers around them.
* {{Animated Adaptation}}s of video game franchises seem to be fond of expanding bit players. This was especially common in earlier shows due to the usually basic (or [[ExcusePlot near non-existent]]) storyline and character involvement in the original material, and thus writers relying on creating extra depths for what cast it has (or in some cases [[CanonImmigrant original additional characters]]):
** The ''[=SatAm=]'' ''WesternAnimation/SonicSatAM'' animated series was intended to develop the initial games "small animal" cast (only generic animals that jumped out of badnik enemies in the game itself) into a team of heroes assisting Sonic. Alterations were made to the core cast in the final revision, however the show still used a redesigned Sally Acorn (aka. Ricky Squirrel in the east) who was arguably the most prominant protagonist other than Sonic himself.
** Additionally the ''AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog'' series expanded some of the badnik enemies from the original games and converted them into recurring henchmen for Dr Robotnik. Scratch (based largely on Clucker from Sonic 2), Grounder and Coconuts frequently appeared as comic relief in the show.
*** This position was reversed around with the promotional SEGAGenesis title ''Dr Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine'', that not only includes said recurring characters as opponents, but uses numerous original badnik characters from the show, the large majority of them background characters from the pilot episode that weren't even given a name or speaking role in the show itself.
** Peter Puppy of ''VideoGame/EarthwormJim'' served as a minor assistant ([[WithFriendsLikeThese or hindrance]]) in the original games. In the [[WesternAnimation/EarthwormJim animated series]] he is promoted to Jim's KidSidekick and HeterosexualLifePartner. ''Earthworm Jim 3D'' uses concepts and character traits from the show, and thus Peter has a similar expanded role, acting as a tutorial character.
* Rebecca Chambers, an extra in the [[ResidentEvil1 original]] ''ResidentEvil'', became the main character of the prequel, ''ResidentEvil0''. Unfortunately, she suffered from ChuckCunninghamSyndrome afterwards.
** And then there's Ada Wong, whose offscreen role in [[ResidentEvil1 the first game]] was simply serving as a three-letter name in a memo that provided the solution to a puzzle (a scientist's note mentions that his girlfriend's name is the password). ''ResidentEvil2'' expanded on that bit of trivia to introduce her in Leon's storyline as an important supporting character with a DarkAndTroubledPast, and then ''ResidentEvil4'' elevated her all the way up to a full-fledged DarkActionGirl and Leon's DatingCatwoman adversary.
* Kytes and Filo were named, recurring {{NPC}}s of little importance in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII'' become fully playable characters in ''RevenantWings''. Likewise, Tomaj (another named but unimportant NPC that shows up the original game's tutorial) is promoted to supporting character, and Ba'Gamnan becomes a GuestStarPartyMember and recurring [[QuirkyMinibossSquad Quirky Miniboss]]. Heck, even Vaan goes from SupportingProtagonist to MainCharacter.
* Jiub, a prisoner in ''{{Morrowind}}'', apparently became a Saint after droving the Cliffracers out from Morrowind. This takes place off-screen, however, and is only mentioned during conversations between [=NPCs=].
* Adeleine in the ''{{Kirby}}'' games may count, depending on if she is supposed to be the same character as Ado or not. Ado was introduced in ''Kirby's Dreamland 3'' as a simple boss character, and Adeleine was one of the main characters in ''VideoGame/Kirby64TheCrystalShards.''
** Bandana Dee from ''VideoGame/KirbySuperStar'' was an extremely minor character, appearing only in the Megaton Punch minigame. In Super Star Ultra, he was given a speaking role and a boss fight in the Revenge of the King arc, and he's playable in KirbysReturnToDreamland.
** Gooey from Kirby's Dream Land 2 was originally a simple health restoring item that sometimes showed up instead of an animal friend, but in Dream Land 3 he was promoted to Kirby's partner in co-op mode (or an optional computer-controlled ally in single-player).
* Rick in the ''HarvestMoon'' series. In ''Harvest Moon 64,'' he was just another shopkeeper. In the PS1 ''Back to Nature'' titles, however, he was promoted to being a rival slash LoveInterest, and has retained this position for the rest of the series.
* Thanks the the experience-based promotion system that ''BattleForWesnoth'' uses and the ability to recall units from previous battles onto the current map, any unit with multiple promotion tiers can go through this in the campaigns, going from "just another generic recruit" to a strong, powerful, and pivotal member of your army.
* Sheogorath in ''TheElderScrolls'' series had been nothing more than an interested observer who occasionally handed out {{Joke Item}}s or riddles. ''[[{{Oblivion}} Shivering Isles]]'' gave him a larger role and presence than all other Daedra Princes combined.
** In fact, this applies to ''all'' Daedric lords who've gotten larger roles after ''Daggerfall''. Sheogorath (the only Daedric lord who played a part in the main story of ''Daggerfall'', even if it was limited to showing up in the final dungeon for no readily apparent reason and handing out commentary and riddles) got, as mentioned above, an entire expansion pack centred around him and his Realm, Azura played a key role in ''Morrowind's'' main story, Hircine turns out to be behind the Bloodmoon in the ''Bloodmoon'' expansion, ''Oblivion's'' main story was closely connected to Mehrunes Dagon, and now Molag Bal has been pinned as the BigBad in ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsOnline''.
* In the ''SonicTheHedgehog'' series, Amy Rose was introduced as a DistressedDamsel in ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD'' and then got a few appearances in racing games. After ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure'', she became a recurring support character (even playable in some games, like ''Adventure'' and the ''SonicAdvance'' series).
* Rudy Beagle, a forklift in the PajamaSam series, only existed in the second game to get Sam into World Wide Weather. In the spinoff game ''Pajama Sam's Lost & Found'', he was an actual playable character, albeit [[IHaveManyNames getting his name changed to Mr. Forklift.]]
* The first ''DigimonBattleSpirit'' featured [[OurAngelsAreDifferent Cherubimon]] as a relatively minor character, the seldom-seen evolved form of a SecretCharacter. For the sequel, he became the final boss, in an attempt to vaguely follow the storyline of [[DigimonFrontier the anime series which the sequel accompanied]].
* Cookie Masterson of ''YouDontKnowJack'' was first the sign in host for the first 3 games (Yes ''Sports'' did come before volume 2) then finally gets in the limelight starting in ''Movies''.
* In ''BatmanArkhamAsylum'', [[{{Shapeshifter}} Clayface]] appeared as a cameo shuffling between using three other characters' models, totally unimportant to the story, while Ra's al Ghul showed up as a tagged corpse. In [[BatmanArkhamCity the sequel]], [[spoiler: Clayface is the FinalBoss]] while [[spoiler: Ra's al Ghul is one of three [[BigBad Big Bads]].]]
* Walter Sullivan, a name mentioned in a newspaper in ''SilentHill2'', ascended to be the BigBad of ''SilentHill4''.
* ''MassEffect2'''s EDI was never precisely an extra, being your ever-present SpaceshipGirl VoiceWithAnInternetConnection, but nonetheless receives a major step up in ''3'', [[spoiler: hijacking a Cerberus robot body and becoming a full squadmate]].
* Back in the first ''SamuraiWarriors'', there's one certain generic officer named Honda Tadakatsu who stood up in defense of TokugawaIeyasu during the battle of Mikatagahara, and Takeda Shingen refers him as one of Ieyasu's luxuries. Then Xtreme Legends get announced to have brand new 4 characters, two of them are ToyotomiHideyoshi and Imagawa Yoshimoto who already got unique character model despite being NPC in the vanilla version, one of them is a brand new [[TheArcher archer]] babe called Inahime, whose father is... Honda Tadakatsu, who is the last playable character and ascended so great he practically became SW's answer to [[DynastyWarriors Lu]] [[{{Badass}} Bu]].
* Both ''VideoGame/TheWitcher'' and [[TheWitcher2 its sequel]] enjoy using this trope. Side characters from the books, such as Triss and Zoltan, get upgraded to main characters in the games, with the former even becoming the protagonist's main LoveInterest. Other characters who largely existed as names dropped in the text, like Iorveth, make actual appearances and get fully fleshed out.
* 5pb, a DLC-only bonus character from the first ''VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptunia'', joins the party as part of the regular storyline in ''[[VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptuniaMk2 Neptunia mk2]]''.
* Sothe from ''FireEmblemTellius''. From just another playable character (who couldn't even promote) in ''Path of Radiance'' to an important supporting character in ''Radiant Dawn''.
** In the original versions of the series, Rosella was given her own adventure to star in after appearing briefly in the previous game as the DistressedDamsel, and later on she co-starred alongside Valanice as the heroes of ''KingsQuestVII''. Princess Cassima, meanwhile, was introduced near the end of ''KingsQuestV'' and was later ascended to being a major character in ''KingsQuestVI''.
* He ''was'' TheDragon in ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga]]'', but the [[EnsembleDarkHorse Darkhorse on the rise]] Fawful was, sadly, DemotedToExtra in the second game...and then became the BigBad in the third.
* [[SuperMarioBros Waluigi]] is a mild example. Originally showing up in Mario Tennis as a fill in for Wario's partner and Luigi's rival, Waluigi's shown up in virtually every spinoff since then, and is the only regular character that hasn't ever been in a platformer to do so. He's either [[EnsembleDarkHorse loved]] for being [[CloudCuckoolander insane]] or [[TheScrappy loathed]] as a auxiliary character.
* The hero's main LoveInterest Luna from ''VideoGame/LunarTheSilverStar''. In the original game for the SegaCD, she fought with the protagonist as the WhiteMagicianGirl (with a MagicMusic power) for the first dungeon and returns home, not appearing again until [[spoiler:the BigBad kidnaps her and it's revealed that she is a [[TomatoInTheMirror routine human incarnation of the world's goddess]] and has to be saved.]] In the game's subsqent remakes, starting with the one on the SegaSaturn, she stays with the group [[spoiler:until the mentioned kidnapping]], but it doesn't wholly matter because the player gets three [[BlackMagic far]] [[ShockAndAwe more]] [[WhiteMagic useful]] spell casters along the way, and the main character can also obtain powerful magic later in the game.
* ''WorldOfWarcraft'' does this constantly. Literally every [=pre-WoW=] bit of ''{{Warcraft}}'' material had a lot of lore that may or may not have appeared on screen, and may have had little if any effect on the plot, that end up becoming major characters in a later game or when Blizzard needs material for an expansion pack or raid dungeon. In the most extreme example, Sargeras went from a generic bit-part monster to THE BigBad of the entire universe (albeit a BigBad [[PosthumousCharacter who's long dead]], as such. WordOfGod says his spirit is scattered across the Twisting Nether in limbo, but not gone for good).
** This has also happened in response to the players falling in love with random {{NPC}}s. For example, Hemet Nesingwary was once a minor quest-giver put in as a ShoutOut to Ernest Hemingway. Players either liked or hated him so much that in the first expansion he was moved to Outland and given more quests, and in the second there is an entire faction devoted to fighting him, a third of an area taken over by his crazed former compatriots, as well as yet another group of quests from Nesingwary's hunting party.
*** [[http://aurori.deviantart.com/art/Nesingwary-s-Hunt-64687009 Hemet Nesingwary the Lord of Extinction]].
** High Overlord Saurfang, pre-expansion, served no purpose in the game or the story except to put Nefarian's severed head on a stick and look like a total BadAss. He's since become one of the most prominent [=NPCs=] in the game. [[MemeticBadass Otherwise, he'll Cleave everyone.]]
** And the Alliance equivalent of Saurfang, Bolvar Fordragon, started out as a stand-in for the disappeared King Varian Wrynn and earned some major cool points for fighting off Onyxia's ''entire elite guard''. When Varian came back, Bolvar played a major role in the Dragonblight campaign, pulled a BigDamnHeroes for you, and [[spoiler:[[TearJerker died]] during the Forsaken betrayal at the Wrath Gate.]]
*** You want AscendedExtra? ''[[spoiler:Bolvar is the new Lich King.]]'' ''That's'' an AscendedExtra.
* Similarly in ''VideoGame/StarTrekOnline'', numerous minor characters are revisited, most of whom were mere babies when they were shown on screen. Notable examples include Leonard James Akaar (mentioned above in Television) and Miral Paris, who was born in the last episode of ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'', and Thomas Riker, Will Riker's transporter double whom the writers of ''[[Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine Deep Space Nine]]'' cruelly abandoned in spite of fan outcry. There are villainous examples as well; Gul Dukat's half-Bajoran daughter appears, and one of the more enjoyable boss fights is against Gul Madred, the one who tortured Captain Picard.
* Because of the nature of ''Suikoden'' games all being in the same world, there's usually recurring characters. A number of them are Ascended Extras, frequently as a result of ShesAllGrownUp. Notable examples are Apple, Futch, Luc, Sasarai, Georg, Lilly, Clive etc. Resulted in a lot of EnsembleDarkHorse.
* Once upon a time, there was a game called ''TriangleHeart3SweetSongsForever''. This game had a TokenMiniMoe who had little role to the plot aside from being the adorable little sister of the main character Kyouya. This little sister would later get a [[{{Omake}} mini-scenario of her own in the game's fandisc]] where she becomes a MagicalGirl, and said mini-scenario would eventually [[TheAnimeOfTheGame get turned into a full-fledged anime]]. The name of the little sister and her show? ''MagicalGirlLyricalNanoha'', who ascended so much, [[MorePopularSpinoff she displaced the entire series she originated from]].
* In ''[[VideoGame/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice Sam And Max Hit The Road]]'', the protagonists may optionally enter the convenience store near their office (which has no bearing on the plot or any puzzles) and save its owner, Bosco, from an armed robber. The interior of the store is never seen and Bosco is never seen nor heard. When the sequel was canceled and Telltale Games was formed as a result, due to his not-legally-a-character status, Bosco was the only character from ''Hit the Road'' (besides an appearance of the Human Enigma on a poster, due to an appearance, also on a poster, in the original ''VideoGame/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice'' comic book series) who could legally feature in their new episodic ''VideoGame/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice'' series. Indeed, he became a major recurring character, with appearances in all but one episode in the first two seasons and a backstory that is revealed and resolved in Season 2.
* While he may seem like one of many other characters the player can pick to go with them in ''VideoGame/ManiacMansion'', Bernard arguably fits this trope, becoming the hero of ''VideoGame/DayOfTheTentacle'', which suggests that the canonical trio includes him.
* In the first ''VideoGame/MegaManStarForce'', Damion Wolfe and his FM-ian, Wolf, are just {{Bonus Boss}}es you can challenge anytime you want. In the third game they were promoted to secondary characters, helping our heroes in an occasion or two. In the anime he was also promoted, but to a "villain" (well, he softens up later).
** ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' has Tory Froid, who is nothing more than a generic, nameless NPC but was upgraded to one of Lan's friends for ''MegaManNTWarrior'' and given a unique design. [=IceMan=] is his Navi in the anime but is his father's Navi in the game.
** [[BloodKnight Bass]] in the first ''Battle Network'' was just a BonusBoss, but became one of the villains in the two next sequels. Battle Network 4 and beyond then turned him into an extra again, but at least he gets dialogue. He was important in the anime and manga adaptations, too.
* The weapon salesmen from the first ''{{Spectrobes}}'' game gets redesigned in the second with his own sprite, cutscene, and name. [[spoiler:It's Dave, of all things.]]
* Despite [[AmericansHateTingle immense unpopularity in America]], Tingle from ''Zelda'' saw his role increase consistently from his original debut in ''Majora's Mask'' to the point he's already the star of two games with a third one on the way. [[NoExportForYou But unless you live in Europe or Japan, don't count on ever playing them without importing.]]
** The Skull Kid in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' gives you a heart piece and is part of a very minor sidequest. In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'', he jumpstarts the plot and is set up ([[EvilMask somewhat incorrectly]]) as the BigBad. He also becomes an integral part of the Sacred Woods subquest in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'.
** A more notible example would be the Happy Mask Salesman, who, like the Skull Kid, was only part of a minor subquest in Ocarina of Time. He became an unlikely major, and very popular character in MajorasMask.
* [[Franchise/{{Pokemon}} Charizard, Squirtle]], [[{{Kirby}} Meta Knight, King Dedede]], and [[VideoGame/KidIcarus Pit]] in the ''SuperSmashBros'' series. They first appeared as trophies in ''Melee'', then all became playable in ''Brawl''.
* The CapcomVsWhatever series ascended many minor characters from both Capcom and the rival companies:
** Shuma-Gorath, a minor and obscure ''Comicbook/DoctorStrange'' villain, is better known as a powerful but unorthodox fighter in the ''MarvelVsCapcom'' games. ''"CHAOS DIMENSION!"'' Strange himself did not appear in the series until the UpdatedRerelease of ''Marvel vs Capcom 3''
** [[spoiler:[[Videogame/{{Okami}} Yami]] is the final boss]] in ''VideoGame/TatsunokoVsCapcom'', and the given explanation why all the characters in that game meet up together. Protagonist Amaterasu had to wait until ''Marvel vs Capcom 3'' for her first appearance.
*** On the same vein, Mars People made the cut over [[MetalSlug Marco Rossi]] as a Mid-Boss for ''VideoGame/SNKVsCapcomSVCChaos''.
** Saki Omokane, from a very-obscure Japan-only quiz game from Capcom, gets first an assist role in the first ''MarvelVsCapcom'', and then becomes a full-fledged fighter in ''VideoGame/TatsunokoVsCapcom''.
** Eagle and Maki, two long-forgotten ''VideoGame/StreetFighter'' and ''VideoGame/FinalFight'' characters, ended up appearing in ''[[VideoGame/CapcomVsSNK2MarkOfTheMillennium Capcom vs. SNK 2]]'' as playable fighters, and they, along with Yun from ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'', got ported over to the GBA release of ''VideoGame/StreetFighterAlpha 3'' as unlockable characters. The PSP version keeps them, as well as Ingrid, from ''VideoGame/CapcomFightingEvolution''.
** This also applies to others like Dan Hibiki (who started off as a throw-away character in one piece of artwork) and Sakura (who was originally a JokeCharacter and got her own manga).
** And it even happens in-series: [[VideoGame/GhostsNGoblins Arthur]] and [[TheMightyThor Thor]] were just {{Assist Character}}s in ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcomClashOfTheSuperheroes''. Come ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom3'', and both of them were ascended to the main roster. Thor's case goes farther, as he had a cameo on ''Marvel Super Heroes: War of the Gems'' and was one of the frozen warriors in ''VideoGame/MarvelSuperHeroes'', alongside SheHulk, who also made the cut to the main roster.
* The ''{{Unreal}}'' universe has a lot of this. First are Malcolm, Brock and Lauren, who were simple skins a player could choose on the first ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament''. Then, ''Unreal Tournament 2003'' showed that Malcolm was the winner of the Tournament, with Brock and Lauren as part of his team. Since that moment, Malcolm is considered the face of the Unreal series. ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament2004'' and ''VideoGame/UnrealChampionship2TheLiandriConflict'' also ascended Gorge and Arclite, (and later, many others, through a patch) from the same game.
* After only one showing in one mission set, for an [[ExpansionPack add-on]] to ''VideoGame/WingCommander II'', Jason "Bear" Bondarevski goes on to become a major character in the non-{{novelization}} Literature/WingCommander novels, as do, to a lesser extent, several minor characters seen elsewhere in the games, like [[WrenchWench Janet "Sparks" McCullough]] and Kevin Tolwyn.
* The first ''{{Half-Life}}'' has about three "skins" for all of the scientist models, all of whom exist solely to provide exposition, open certain doors and/or die horribly and thereby show the player how ''not'' to die horribly. Two of these skins were later used as the basis for two of the main characters of ''Half-Life 2'', which has led to interesting arguments about which of the scientists is the "real" one (Eli is explicitly stated to be the first one to talk to Gordon after the Resonance Cascade; Kliener is generally considered to be the only scientist seen wielding a weapon, appearing at the end of the "Lambda Core" level). Barney, a character similarly based on model skins, this time of the security guards (of which there was only ''one'' originally) is more of a MauveShirt however.
* In ''VideoGame/DarkFall: The Journal'', Nigel is basically someone you have to rescue. In the spinoff game, ''The Lost Crown'', he is the main character.
* Before the final boss of ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters '94'', a blonde woman escorts your team to Rugal's chamber. After a number of victories in ''KOF '95'', a brunette woman informs the unseen Rugal of your team's progress. These two otherwise unremarkable secretaries would go on to become playable characters in ''KOF '96'' under the names Mature and Vice, complete with relevance to the Orochi storyline. And even though they were both killed at the end of the game, they still proved popular enough to return in full-cast compilation games and intercompany crossovers, and may even be rejoining the canon cast in recent games.
** Yup. They come BackFromTheDead (well, [[OurGhostsAreDifferent sorta]]) in ''XIII'' (Mature was actually in ''XII'' before that, but that was--[[InNameOnly technically]]--a DreamMatchGame as well).
* ''FinalFantasyIVTheAfterYears'' ''loved'' this trope--numerous party members were minor characters in the original game, and one such party member was so minor as to be an NPC that only appeared in the ending. Meanwhile, TheDragon ascended from being a one-of enemy in a short sidequest exclusive to the original game's Gameboy Advance release.
* Tseng of ''FinalFantasyVII''. In the original game, he is the leader of [[GoldFishPoopGang the Turks]], but you never fought him, and he only appears for a short while. Come CrisisCore, he becomes Zack's Turk partner, and could fight alongside him in a DMW sequence.
* While he's not technically a person per se, the Blue Badger in ''VisualNovel/AceAttorney''. He goes from a little plush toy in the first game, to the police mascot and key plot device in the second game, and by ''VisualNovel/AceAttorneyInvestigations'' he's got an entire family and a stage show as well as being the Gatewaterland Mascot.
** Also, [[spoiler:Gregory Edgeworth]]. Besides being the deceased father of one of the main characters, and the victim in the DL-6 Incident, he doesn't get much fame...[[spoiler:that is, until you play a case as him]] in ''VisualNovel/AceAttorneyInvestigations 2''.
* Johnny Sasaski from the ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' series.
** Revolver Ocelot, who is introduced in [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid the first game]] as Liquid's underling--he is the least memorable boss in the game, and has little impact on the plot. By ''MetalGearSolid4'', he has become the ultimate BigBad of the series, and he is the only character to appear in all four games.
* In the ''TotalWar'' series, when an army goes into a difficult battle without a general to lead it, and comes out victorious, the army's captain (up to that point a non-entity) can ascend to General status and become a valued member of your royal family (and a powerful unit in his own right).
* In the ''VideoGame/{{Ys}}'' series, Dogi the Wallcrusher was at first a minor character who busts Adol out of jail at one point in the first game and disappears until the end of the second game. However, his bravado and infamous wallcrushing skill instantly turned him into a fan favorite and Dogi became the constant companion of Adol who follows Adol in his later adventures, always busting wall at one point to save Adol in each game. Most recently in ''Ys Seven'', he is a playable character.
** Terra originally was a minor character in a bandit gang that harassed Adol in ''Ys V'', but was given a major supporting role in ''VI''. [[TheScrappy Although somewhat annoying]]. Then, like countless other characters, suffered from ChuckCunninghamSyndrome afterwards.
* In ''[[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl Pokemon Platinum]]'', ''[[VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver HeartGold, and SoulSilver]]'', Caitlin just sat in a throne in the Battle Castle, never even battling you. In ''VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite'', she's the third member of the [[FinalBoss Elite Four]]!
* Deekin ascended to party member near the end of ''NeverwinterNights: Shadows of Undrentide'', and played a significant part in Hordes of the Underdark as well.
* Isabela and Merril in ''DragonAgeII''. In ''DragonAge'', the former was a character who taught a Rogue specialization while the latter was a GuestStarPartyMember for the Dalish Warden's prologue. In the sequel, they are both party members and both are love interests.
** Also Anders to a lesser degree, he was a party member in ''Awakening'' as well, but his role was greatly expanded on and his character was fleshed out much more in ''DragonAge2''.
** The entire [[ScaryDogmaticAliens Qunari]] race. We saw two or three in Origins and heard a little about their culture, in DragonAge2 the plot of a third of the game centers around them.
* {{Animated Adaptation}}s of video game franchises seem to be fond of expanding bit players. This was especially common in earlier shows due to the usually basic (or [[ExcusePlot near non-existent]]) storyline and character involvement in the original material, and thus writers relying on creating extra depths for what cast it has (or in some cases [[CanonImmigrant original additional characters]]):
** The ''[=SatAm=]'' ''WesternAnimation/SonicSatAM'' animated series was intended to develop the initial games "small animal" cast (only generic animals that jumped out of badnik enemies in the game itself) into a team of heroes assisting Sonic. Alterations were made to the core cast in the final revision, however the show still used a redesigned Sally Acorn (aka. Ricky Squirrel in the east) who was arguably the most prominant protagonist other than Sonic himself.
** Additionally the ''AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog'' series expanded some of the badnik enemies from the original games and converted them into recurring henchmen for Dr Robotnik. Scratch (based largely on Clucker from Sonic 2), Grounder and Coconuts frequently appeared as comic relief in the show.
*** This position was reversed around with the promotional SEGAGenesis title ''Dr Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine'', that not only includes said recurring characters as opponents, but uses numerous original badnik characters from the show, the large majority of them background characters from the pilot episode that weren't even given a name or speaking role in the show itself.
** Peter Puppy of ''VideoGame/EarthwormJim'' served as a minor assistant ([[WithFriendsLikeThese or hindrance]]) in the original games. In the [[WesternAnimation/EarthwormJim animated series]] he is promoted to Jim's KidSidekick and HeterosexualLifePartner. ''Earthworm Jim 3D'' uses concepts and character traits from the show, and thus Peter has a similar expanded role, acting as a tutorial character.
* Rebecca Chambers, an extra in the [[ResidentEvil1 original]] ''ResidentEvil'', became the main character of the prequel, ''ResidentEvil0''. Unfortunately, she suffered from ChuckCunninghamSyndrome afterwards.
** And then there's Ada Wong, whose offscreen role in [[ResidentEvil1 the first game]] was simply serving as a three-letter name in a memo that provided the solution to a puzzle (a scientist's note mentions that his girlfriend's name is the password). ''ResidentEvil2'' expanded on that bit of trivia to introduce her in Leon's storyline as an important supporting character with a DarkAndTroubledPast, and then ''ResidentEvil4'' elevated her all the way up to a full-fledged DarkActionGirl and Leon's DatingCatwoman adversary.
* Kytes and Filo were named, recurring {{NPC}}s of little importance in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII'' become fully playable characters in ''RevenantWings''. Likewise, Tomaj (another named but unimportant NPC that shows up the original game's tutorial) is promoted to supporting character, and Ba'Gamnan becomes a GuestStarPartyMember and recurring [[QuirkyMinibossSquad Quirky Miniboss]]. Heck, even Vaan goes from SupportingProtagonist to MainCharacter.
* Jiub, a prisoner in ''{{Morrowind}}'', apparently became a Saint after droving the Cliffracers out from Morrowind. This takes place off-screen, however, and is only mentioned during conversations between [=NPCs=].
* Adeleine in the ''{{Kirby}}'' games may count, depending on if she is supposed to be the same character as Ado or not. Ado was introduced in ''Kirby's Dreamland 3'' as a simple boss character, and Adeleine was one of the main characters in ''VideoGame/Kirby64TheCrystalShards.''
** Bandana Dee from ''VideoGame/KirbySuperStar'' was an extremely minor character, appearing only in the Megaton Punch minigame. In Super Star Ultra, he was given a speaking role and a boss fight in the Revenge of the King arc, and he's playable in KirbysReturnToDreamland.
** Gooey from Kirby's Dream Land 2 was originally a simple health restoring item that sometimes showed up instead of an animal friend, but in Dream Land 3 he was promoted to Kirby's partner in co-op mode (or an optional computer-controlled ally in single-player).
* Rick in the ''HarvestMoon'' series. In ''Harvest Moon 64,'' he was just another shopkeeper. In the PS1 ''Back to Nature'' titles, however, he was promoted to being a rival slash LoveInterest, and has retained this position for the rest of the series.
* Thanks the the experience-based promotion system that ''BattleForWesnoth'' uses and the ability to recall units from previous battles onto the current map, any unit with multiple promotion tiers can go through this in the campaigns, going from "just another generic recruit" to a strong, powerful, and pivotal member of your army.
* Sheogorath in ''TheElderScrolls'' series had been nothing more than an interested observer who occasionally handed out {{Joke Item}}s or riddles. ''[[{{Oblivion}} Shivering Isles]]'' gave him a larger role and presence than all other Daedra Princes combined.
** In fact, this applies to ''all'' Daedric lords who've gotten larger roles after ''Daggerfall''. Sheogorath (the only Daedric lord who played a part in the main story of ''Daggerfall'', even if it was limited to showing up in the final dungeon for no readily apparent reason and handing out commentary and riddles) got, as mentioned above, an entire expansion pack centred around him and his Realm, Azura played a key role in ''Morrowind's'' main story, Hircine turns out to be behind the Bloodmoon in the ''Bloodmoon'' expansion, ''Oblivion's'' main story was closely connected to Mehrunes Dagon, and now Molag Bal has been pinned as the BigBad in ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsOnline''.
* In the ''SonicTheHedgehog'' series, Amy Rose was introduced as a DistressedDamsel in ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD'' and then got a few appearances in racing games. After ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure'', she became a recurring support character (even playable in some games, like ''Adventure'' and the ''SonicAdvance'' series).
* Rudy Beagle, a forklift in the PajamaSam series, only existed in the second game to get Sam into World Wide Weather. In the spinoff game ''Pajama Sam's Lost & Found'', he was an actual playable character, albeit [[IHaveManyNames getting his name changed to Mr. Forklift.]]
* The first ''DigimonBattleSpirit'' featured [[OurAngelsAreDifferent Cherubimon]] as a relatively minor character, the seldom-seen evolved form of a SecretCharacter. For the sequel, he became the final boss, in an attempt to vaguely follow the storyline of [[DigimonFrontier the anime series which the sequel accompanied]].
* Cookie Masterson of ''YouDontKnowJack'' was first the sign in host for the first 3 games (Yes ''Sports'' did come before volume 2) then finally gets in the limelight starting in ''Movies''.
* In ''BatmanArkhamAsylum'', [[{{Shapeshifter}} Clayface]] appeared as a cameo shuffling between using three other characters' models, totally unimportant to the story, while Ra's al Ghul showed up as a tagged corpse. In [[BatmanArkhamCity the sequel]], [[spoiler: Clayface is the FinalBoss]] while [[spoiler: Ra's al Ghul is one of three [[BigBad Big Bads]].]]
* Walter Sullivan, a name mentioned in a newspaper in ''SilentHill2'', ascended to be the BigBad of ''SilentHill4''.
* ''MassEffect2'''s EDI was never precisely an extra, being your ever-present SpaceshipGirl VoiceWithAnInternetConnection, but nonetheless receives a major step up in ''3'', [[spoiler: hijacking a Cerberus robot body and becoming a full squadmate]].
* Back in the first ''SamuraiWarriors'', there's one certain generic officer named Honda Tadakatsu who stood up in defense of TokugawaIeyasu during the battle of Mikatagahara, and Takeda Shingen refers him as one of Ieyasu's luxuries. Then Xtreme Legends get announced to have brand new 4 characters, two of them are ToyotomiHideyoshi and Imagawa Yoshimoto who already got unique character model despite being NPC in the vanilla version, one of them is a brand new [[TheArcher archer]] babe called Inahime, whose father is... Honda Tadakatsu, who is the last playable character and ascended so great he practically became SW's answer to [[DynastyWarriors Lu]] [[{{Badass}} Bu]].
* Both ''VideoGame/TheWitcher'' and [[TheWitcher2 its sequel]] enjoy using this trope. Side characters from the books, such as Triss and Zoltan, get upgraded to main characters in the games, with the former even becoming the protagonist's main LoveInterest. Other characters who largely existed as names dropped in the text, like Iorveth, make actual appearances and get fully fleshed out.
* 5pb, a DLC-only bonus character from the first ''VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptunia'', joins the party as part of the regular storyline in ''[[VideoGame/HyperdimensionNeptuniaMk2 Neptunia mk2]]''.
* Sothe from ''FireEmblemTellius''. From just another playable character (who couldn't even promote) in ''Path of Radiance'' to an important supporting character in ''Radiant Dawn''.
