Ezio Auditore da Firenze

It’s almost impossible not to feel like Ezio Auditore da Firenze epitomizes Assassin’s Creed. First introduced to players in Assassin’s Creed II, the suave Italian stuck around longer than any other protagonist in the series. He got not one, not two, but three mainline games. What makes Ezio so enduring as an Assassin’s Creed protagonist is his undeniable charm and transformative story.

He starts as an uncaring rich boy and soon finds himself thrust into the path of the order after his father’s death. Assassin’s Creed II gives us the journey we all wanted from an AC game: the one that takes us from nobody to master Assassin. But Ezio’s story doesn’t stop with that. Starring in a trilogy turned Ezio into a much more complex character that players grew with through different stages of his life. It’s what makes his last outing, Revelations, remain so interesting. Whether an old man weighed down by a heavy life or a young brash kid out for revenge, Ezio is human and exceedingly well-portrayed in the series. There will simply never be another protagonist like him. — Willa Rowe