The Good King / Video Games

• King Alteon of Swordhaven in the Artix Entertainment games, but especially AdventureQuest Worlds.
• Dark Souls
  • The Burnt Ivory King in Dark Souls II stands out as the only truly benevolent ruler in the game, which especially stands out since one of the themes of the game is "What makes a good king?" The Burnt Ivory King set up his kingdom around an ancient evil to contain it, then put his throne at the very threshold of that evil just so he could be the first line of defense. He took a creature of darkness as his bride and loved her so genuinely that she was redeemed and abandoned her purpose of bringing ruin. When his strength finally faded from age, he cast himself into Chaos to stave it off one last time. Compared to the cruel and hedonistic Iron King, the foolishly fanatic Sunken King, the paranoid king of Olaphis, and well-meaning but short-sighted Vendrick, the Burnt Ivory King stands out as an example of a true monarch.
  • Dark Souls III: For a guy who ruled over a city called "The Profaned Capital", Yhorm the Giant is suggested to have been a benevolent and much-loved ruler in his day. While his family had, in times past, brutally conquered various nations, when he came to the throne, his country was facing dire threats from outside, and the people petitioned him to protect them. Yhorm did so, personally fighting on the front lines to defend his people, keeping the kingdom safe by his own hand. When things calmed down, he assured his people of his devotion by giving them a weapon to which he has a fatal weakness, so that if he ever failed in his duty, they would have the means to wrest him from his throne. There is no indication the weapon was ever used against him.
• Disgaea: Hour of Darkness has King Krichevskoy, ruler of The Netherworld. All of his vassals speak fondly of him long after his passing, Etna holds him in extremely high regard after he had saved her life and took her in, and the Krichevskoy Group sees Laharl as an Inadequate Inheritor of his father's position. He even fulfilled the Heroic Sacrifice part of this trope by sealing away Tyrant Overlord Baal at the cost of his life.
• Dragon Age:
  • Dragon Age: Origins:
    • King Maric, who died before the events of Dragon Age: Origins, is said to have been a Good King. He was also one of the leaders of La Résistance during the Orlesian Occupation. His son, King Cailan, is a lesser example as from all indications, he was indeed a brave and reasonably good ruler, who unfortunately let his own need for glory cause him to relegate much of the actual ruling to his wife and her father. And as it turns out, he ended up being horribly wrong about being a Warrior Prince after all!
    • Alistair, despite his strong reservations, may become this if the player makes the right decisions during the game.
    • Bhelen Aeducan will become this if you choose him as King of Orzammar. In his rule, he'll abolish the caste system and give the casteless basic civil rights, even allowing them to become soldiers, which gives him the manpower enough to put the war against the darkspawn in, for the first time ever, Orzammar's favor. But he'll also become a ruthless king, mercilessly assassinating and executing his political rivals.
  • In Dragon Age II, Viscount Dumar is one of a few people who actively tries to prevent war with the Qunari in the city, but unfortunately his unwillingness to upset the nobles lead him to be less than successful at this and eventually leads to his death.
    • During Act 3, many nobles seem to believe Hawke would be one of these, and if Hawke supports the Templars at the end, they actually do end up begging him/her to take the throne. Hawke only rules for a short time, however.
    • If the Exiled Prince DLC is installed, Hawke's companion Sebastian is conflicted about this. He's the only surviving member of the recently-murdered royal family of Starkhaven, which makes him the ruling prince by right; but he's also a priest who has taken vows. He admits to having wanted the crown when he was younger, but certainly not at the expense of his family's lives, and notes that now that he "might be decent" as ruler, he's not sure it's the right path. Hawke ultimately can push him in one direction or another, but in the next game, it's confirmed that he's on the throne; supplemental material, such as the Knight Errant comic books, suggest that he's at least trying to be this.
  • As of the end of the Trespasser DLC for Dragon Age: Inquisition, Kirkwall's viscount is Varric, Hawke's best friend. He gets the job in part because he was funneling so much money into the reconstruction and revitalization of the city-state even before getting a crown, so he's almost guaranteed to fall into this trope as well.
• Dragon Quest:
  • Par for the course in most games. The king who sends you on your quest is usually good.
  • Dragon Quest: From what is seen in the game, King Lorik seems to be popular among the people of Tantegel. He also helps the Hero out by giving him items and money and saving his progress.
  • Dragon Quest V:
    • King James is well-beloved by his subjects and does his best to be a fair and wise ruler.
    • Played with Prince Wilbur. While he's not a particularly competent king, Wilbur is a kind man who wants the best for his people but understands that he is incapable of giving it to them.
• The Elder Scrolls has several examples.
  • In general throughout the series, Emperor Uriel Septim VII serves as one up until his death in Oblivion. He's a fair and balanced ruler who keeps the Cyrodiilic Empire whole through multiple crises and intervenes directly to kick off the plots of Daggerfall and Morrowind.
  • Imperial propaganda claims that this is the case for Tiber Septim, founder of the Third Cyrodiilic Empire. For the most part, he played it straight, uniting all of Tamriel within one empire for the first time in history and generally being a benevolent emperor. However, he did make some morally questionable moves during his reign, such as demanding that his bastard child with the young Queen Barenziah of Morrowind be magically aborted because it would be inconvenient to his legitimate heirs, and claiming that he was betrayed by his Imperial Battlemage, Zurin Arctus, when Arctus did exactly what Septim wanted him to do — if anything, Septim betrayed Arctus. Following his death, Septim ascended to godhood as the deity Talos. Part of Talos's realm of influence includes being the "God of Good Governance", essentially making him the god of the trope.
  • Ysgramor, the ancient Atmoran hero and Founder of the Kingdom of Skyrim, is considered the standard of what a king should be by the Nords. He was a wise Genius Bruiser and Papa Wolf who led a Badass Army in conquering Skyrim from the hated Falmer (Snow Elves). Obviously, the elves have a very different opinion...
  • Morrowind:
    • Duke Vedam Dren. As Duke, he exercises the empire's authority over the Vvardenfell district (where the game takes place) and is genuinely interested in protecting and helping the people there. He makes you swear an oath to do so before he'll give you permission to build a stronghold and, if you are in House Hlaalu, will give you quests in this vein.
    • On the other hand is the actual King of Morrowind, Helseth, who averts this by being a Magnificent Bastard who lies, cheats, and murders his way to power. Despite this, he is still the Gray to Almalexia's Black in the Tribunal expansion.
  • In Oblivion, Uriel Septim VII's son Martin. He was a well Hidden Backup Prince turned a very Unexpected Successor. However, he comes to embrace the role and later sacrifices himself to defeat Mehrunes Dagon and stop Dagon's Legions of Hell from bringing about The End of the World as We Know It.
  • Skyrim:
    • Various Jarls (read: kings of individual counties within the province of Skyrim) provide examples. Most noticeable is Jarl Balgruuf of Whiterun, whose first desire is to protect his people, regardless of the cost. The other Jarls run the gamut from corrupt and idiotic to fair and benevolent.
    • An even stronger candidate is Brunwulf Free-Winter, who takes over as Jarl of Windhelm if the player helps the Empire win the Civil War. Within hours of being made Jarl, he pardons and retains most of Ulfric's court staff, offers lodgings for the deposed pro-Stormcloak Jarls, and meets with the Dunmer of the city to discuss renovations with the slum in which Ulfric forced them to live. What a Nice Guy.
• Duke Edmun Dragonsbane from Dragon's Dogma, while not a king per se, still plays with the trope. At first he seems like a benevolent duke who was a previous Arisen but as the game progress, he is actually quite insane. In one sidequest, you catch him as he strangles his young wife while screaming "Lenore," the name of his previous wife; afterwards he locks her in the manse for her behavior (mainly flirting with you). In the end, it's revealed that rather than slaying the dragon, he agreed to his offer to leave Gransys in exchange for power and glory (as shown in one ending). After you slay the dragon, he loses his immortality and youth, believing that you must have made the deal with the dragon and makes you into a fugitive, forever banning you from the Noble's Quarter.
• Fable III portrays the Player Character's father (the Hero of Fable II) as this. The PC may also fit this trope, if the player so chooses.
• Final Fantasy:
  • Final Fantasy, the good kind is the one who originally sends you on your quest.
  • Final Fantasy IV, the unnamed King of Fabul, and King Giott of the Dwarves. As well as the true king of Baron. At the end of the game, Cecil, Edward, Yang and Edge become kings of their respective countries.
  • Final Fantasy V, Galuf is revealed to be the king of Bal. There's also King Tycoon, who is the only monarch that takes the threat to the crystals seriously — Walse admits the problem but continues to exploit them because of public opinion, and Queen Karnak is suffering Demonic Possession already.
  • Final Fantasy VI, Edgar plays this role with the kingdom of Figaro. He insists on paying for goods when castle shopkeepers protest, and he's secretly providing aid and intelligence to La Résistance against The Empire.
  • Final Fantasy IX, Regent Cid is the affable leader of Lindblum (unfortunately, he doesn't seem to be able to keep it in his pants.)
  • Final Fantasy XV, Noctis' father, Regis Lucis Caelum, is a compassionate and even-tempered man, who at the onset of the game is slowly sacrificing his own life to maintain an evil-deflecting barrier over the capital of Insomnia. Noctis himself develops into the trope over time, as he inherits the power of Kings and saves the world from the Starscourge.
• The Fire Emblem series is rife with these, though more often than not they tend to be killed off rather early to set the protagonist on their journey. The Hero of each game traditionally becomes this at the end.
• Galaxy Angel II: King Soldum of planet Seldar, despite having apparently been a bit of a womanizer in his youth, exemplifies an incredibly kind-hearted and stalwart king who seeks to protect his planet and people above all else. While his planet's authority in NEUE was established through warfare, Soldum is more than willing to seek a diplomatic solution to problems regarding the planetary alliances. He is also never overly proud of his position and frequently bids others to speak casually with him.
• King Arthur of Guenevere, much like his mythical inspiration.
• The Hero of Sparta duology have you playing as King Argos of Sparta, on a conquest to save your kingdom from assorted monsters from Greek mythology. In the second game, you even forfeit your throne and chose not to return to Sparta to prevent an apocalypse from befalling your beloved kingdom!
• All three kings in the Hero of the Kingdom series are this, and also Reasonable Authority Figures who are willing to trust the heroes on the grounds that they are a source of good in the kingdom.
• Kingdom Hearts:
  • The series portrays Mickey Mouse as this, with some Warrior Prince mixed in for good measure.
  • The real Ansem is revealed to have been this in II, ruling Radiant Garden with such wisdom that he was nicknamed "Ansem the Wise". While he did do some dubious experiments involving Hearts and the Heartless, he immediately pulled the plug on it when he realized the dangers inherent in such research. Too bad he had Xehanort as his apprentice.
• King Graham of Daventry, naturally. His son, Alexander, also becomes this for the Green Isles in the sixth game.
  • King Edward, Graham's predecessor, was known as "King Edward The Benevolent".
• Played with quite a bit in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain. Much of the second half of the game involves Kain being drawn into a war against the Nemesis, a Tin Tyrant with armies clad in red armor and Spikes of Villainy. At one time the Nemesis was King William the Just, a kind ruler who eventually let his power go to his head. Kain travels back in time to assassinate him and prevent the war entirely, but he does so during the era in which William was still well-loved by his people...resulting in a vampire purge that leaves Kain the last of his race.
• Kirby: King Dedede, the King of Dream Land, is a downplayed case. While gluttonous and at times selfish, several of his actions are noble and he doesn't usually hesitate to aid Kirby in his adventures. He is also very protective of his subjects, such as the Waddle Dees. If you dare lay a finger on them, may god help you.
• In Legend of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse, Goofy and Donald are both shown to be noble kings of their respective kingdoms, Goofstein and Duckingham Palace, especially near the end of the game, when they stand up for Mickey when the evil King Pete attempts to arrest him for impersonating a king.^note Not wanting to go on a quest to find the water of life himself, Pete had made Mickey the temporary king and sent him on the quest, only to find out from his advisor that whoever does recover the water will be made the new king. At the end of the game, after fulfilling his quest to recover the water of life and defeating Pete, Mickey becomes the new king of the Kingdom of Pete, and renaming it the Kingdom of Mickey, where he is beloved by his royal subjects.
• Zelda's father in The Legend of Zelda games, where he always puts the needs of his people first. King Dorephan in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is the Zora king that not only looks out for his own people but also the safety of the Hylians when he expresses worry that the dam bursting would affect them and not his people. He has no objections to his daughter proposing to Link, presumably on the grounds that such an arrangement would bring her happiness. The king also is said to have defeated a Guardian by himself by tossing it off a cliff.
• In Mass Effect, if he survives the first game, Urdnot Wrex returns to his homeworld and begins forcefully taking control of the krogan race, sometimes diplomatically, other times with (necessary) force. With the krogan on the path to extinction due to a combination of a Depopulation Bomb and their own self-destructive tendencies, Wrex introduces massive reforms to curb his race's bloodlust and bring their numbers back from the brink. By the time of 3, Wrex has become arguably the most powerful krogan in the galaxy and, with Shepard and Mordin/Wik's help, Wrex is on the path to leading the krogan into a new golden age and cultural renaissance.
• Neverwinter Nights: Lord Nasher Alagondar fits the trope, even though he's technically not a king but the ruling lord of a city-state. He cares deeply for his subjects and is quite willing to personally take the field in their defense.
• The New Order Last Days Of Europe: "King" Rurik II (in reality former-Red Army Major-General Nikolai Krylov) is this trope despite his apparent insanity. He listens to his advisors, develops the kingdom in a rational manner, and enjoys good popularity with his people. He maintains the best parts of the defunct Soviet Union (like the trade unions so his subjects enjoy good working conditions and workplace democracy) but fuses it with Kievan and Muscovite aesthetics. As he lies dying of old age shortly after reunifying Russia, he admits with his last words to his children that it was all an act he put on to get people behind him and fix his broken country.
  • The path of Alexei II if Sergey Taboritsky reunifies Russia is remarkably similar. The man once known as Michał Goleniewski was a former Soviet officer (in the NKVD) and also masqueraded as a long-dead royal, though his awareness of his not being the real deal is apparent from the start and he remains a cryptocommunist throughout his supposedly monarchistic reign. In sharp contrast to the Holy Russian Empire on which Taboritsky, unleashes a series of disastrously nightmarish horrors in the name of hastening the real Alexei's return, Goleniewski's Russian Empire is a beacon of relative calm and freedom in the chaos and misery that is Russia, shattered after Taboritsky's death. This leads to Goleniewski enjoying the same massive popularity as Rurik, to the point that the many among the public who know that he is a false Tsar simply don't care.
• Queen Gwendholyn of Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords is, to all appearances, a just and benevolent ruler who wants to protect her people. The player character is deeply loyal to her.
• In Shin Megami Tensei IV has several. They're all the same person, each in different timelines.
  • King Aquila of Mikado was by all accounts one, having built Mikado Castle and founded the Samurai Order to protect the kingdom from invaders. Even in the present, the Samurai are reluctant to break his laws.
  • Akira, the local Reasonable Authority Figure, is the de-facto leader of the surviving citizens of Tokyo, which was glassed over twenty years ago. After hiring the party to kill the demon plaguing them, he ensures that they would never be forgotten by rebuilding the country under the name of their country, the Eastern Kingdom of Mikado. Jonathan realizes that this would make him King Akira of Mikado.
  • Although he drags the party into killing the his predecessor for the throne, the newly crowned King Akira of Tokyo wants nothing more than to make the strong and weak equal, which goes against everything his world stands for. His subjects notice that quality of life has improved dramatically since he took power.
• In Sonic and the Black Knight, King Arthur WAS one of these, but became corrupted by the malevolent scabard of Excalibur and Sonic is then tasked with killing him before he destroys the entire realm. By the end of the game, not only is King Arthur revealed to be a fake but the true King Arthur is revealed to be Sonic himself due to Caliburn accepting him as his master. This makes his involvement in the story a retroactive case of this.
• In the Super Mario Bros. franchise, the King of the Mushroom Kingdom is a swell guy... even though we don't see much of him.
  • Bowser also shows shades of this trope, despite being a self-professed tyrant, in the RPGs where he's portrayed as a Benevolent Boss who commands his troops through respect and admiration rather than fear.
  • The Origami Craftsman wanted King Olly to be this in his message on him, but Olly took offense to the message on his body and inverted the trope, leading to the events of Paper Mario: The Origami King.
• In Tales of the Abyss, both Emperor Peony of Malkuth and King Ingobert of Kimlasca are this, though they may dip into Jerk With A Heart Of Gold tendencies now and again.
• Hamilicar Barca from Tears to Tiara 2 at first very much planned on refusing the crown with his own life. But once he's king he fits the trope to a T, liberating Hispania from The Empire, forming alliances, encouraging trade, technology, and learning.
• Lord British of the Ultima games is intended to be this, though some disagree.
• ULTRAKILL: According to a book in level 2-2, Death at 20,000 Volts, King Minos was considered a fair ruler by his people back when he was alive, and when Gabriel killed him, Minos' people mourned for his death. According to the lore of Minos Prime, Minos felt that eternal suffering for love was an unfair punishment, so he turned the Circle of Lust into a thriving paradise out of kindness for the sinners. Even after his death, his legacy as a benevolent king is still fondly remembered by his people.
• Undertale: The King of Monsters, Asgore, is a much beloved figure by his subjects. The player hears conflicting accounts about him: some monsters say he is dangerous and the player will inevitably have to kill him to escape, others call him a "big fuzzy pushover". He is in fact an extremely kind and caring person who is friendly with all his subjects and enjoys gardening and making tea in his spare time. However, he did declare war on humanity (after humans murdered his son) in a fit of rage, and he is also the most powerful monster in the Underground (though this title is possibly challenged by others, including Sans, who display exceptional Medium Awareness and Glass Cannon skills when he fights you)... and as much as he hates himself for it, he does believe he has to take the player's soul. His compassion is best shown before the final battle when he tells the player to take all the time they need to get ready to fight him and assures them that he isn't ready either.
• Warcraft/World of Warcraft:
  • King Terenas Menethil was the beloved ruler of Lordaeron for untold decades, the primary figure in the formation of the original Alliance of Lordaeron which led to their victory in the Second War, and also helped rebuild Stormwind after its destruction at the end of the First War once the Second War had ended. Unfortunately, his son Arthas ends up being corrupted by the Scourge and murdering him, and the absence of his leadership was likely a large part of the reason Lordaeron fell so easily to the Scourge. Obviously, the "newly crowned" "King" Arthas is not nearly as benevolent to "his" people and lands. However...
  • Arthas in World of Warcraft is a rare villainous example. He's a Good King to the Scourge. Even though they are undead he can rather easily replace, he values his troops and doesn't like to waste them. He even forms genuine friendships with his more powerful subjects, such as Kel'Thuzad and Anub'Arak. It's bitterly ironic that he's applying the very advice his father (whom he murdered) gave him about how to be a good king in his leadership of the Scourge.
  • According to the lore, King Llane Wrynn of Stormwind was one. His one flaw was that he was too trusting, resulting in Garona murdering him during a crucial time, resulting in Stormwind's fall during the First War. His son Varian eventually assumes the throne and appears to be this as well, although he is, at first, distrustful of the worgen of Gilneas. After Varian's death, his son Anduin returns to the throne (he was previously the King of Stormwind during Varian's disappearance). Hopefully, he will be like his father and grandfather.
• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt has an unconventionally played example. As Skelligans are basically Scottish Vikings, their idea of what constitutes a good king can be summed up as "awesome warrior who's favoured by the gods and will lead us to victory and glory in battle". Hjalmar An Craite fits up to this description exceedingly well, just like Bran before him. Even though he ends up neglecting Skellige itself due to leading men on big raids against Nilfgaard, the Skelligans don't mind because he's leading them to bigger and bigger battles and filling the longships with plunder. Hell, he even manages to unite the clans of Skellige and lead them to kick Nilfgaard's black-plated arses back down to the south in some possible endings. Cerys also qualifies as she's considerably calmer, more diplomatic, and a much better administrator than her brother, and even though her reign is less popular with the Skelligans because she's not as much of a badass warrior, she does a better job of running the isles and allowing them to prosper.
• In World Neverland, each kingdom starts out with either a Good King or a High Queen who rules with fairness and kindness. They can even become your friends if you talk to them frequently. It's even possible for the player to become the King or Queen, though it takes a while — and you can be not so nice if you wish.
• Yes, Your Grace puts the player in control of a small kingdom's King. Making him act as benevolently as possible is encouraged by taxes received by a happy population being higher.

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