There are many famous libraries that have shown up throughout video games. Often these repositories of great literature exist on their own, a monument to knowledge operated by an unseen staff, or lie abandoned in an apocalyptic future, offering up an insight into the world that has now been lost.

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However, there are rare instances where these libraries do have visible staff, and these librarians become beloved characters in their own right. Instead of telling the player to stay quiet or question why they haven’t returned their books, these librarians are often great sources of knowledge, and may even jump into the action themselves.

8 Librarians (Metro)

Metro 2033 Librarian

The Librarian enemies in the Metro series are not librarians by the usual definition. They’re one of the franchise’s many kinds of irradiated beasts, and these gorilla-like beings call the Moscow State Library their home, hence their name.

Seemingly mindless and aggressive, they have demonstrated signs of intelligence befitting their name, sometimes being capable of uttering basic sentences. It’s also possible to avoid fighting them by staring them down, although this can often be a tense experience as it requires full eye contact and maintaining a reasonable distance.

7 Librarian (Discworld)

Discworld Librarian

Not necessarily a video game character, as this simian librarian made his first appearance in Terry Pratchett’s first Discworld novel, The Colour of Magic, and turned into an orangutan in The Light Fantastic. He has since become one of the more iconic characters in the franchise. So much so, he also made an appearance in the 1995 point and click adventure game based on the series.

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In the game, he acts as a barrier to the protagonist, Rincewind, obtaining a book on dragon’s lairs, and will resort to violence if called a monkey. Despite the librarian’s insistence that Rincewind needs a library card, the mid-90s adventure game logic prevails, and the real solution is to bribe the librarian with a banana instead. Of course.

6 Grace Nakimura (Gabriel Knight)

Gabriel Knight Grace Nakimura

The Gabriel Knight games were a series of beloved point and click adventures released by Sierra in the 1990s, starring the titular character, a man with the power to battle supernatural creatures. However, while the series is named for Gabriel himself, Grace Nakimura is an essential side character assisting him in his adventures.

Acting as Gabriel’s assistant at the bookstore he owns, Grace is a close friend who will frequently do research at Gabriel’s request. In the second and third games, she becomes a playable character too, assisting him more directly in the investigation. It’s here that her research and investigation skills truly shine.

5 Blathers (Animal Crossing)

Animal Crossing Blathers

Blathers is a museum curator more than a standard librarian, but he's so popular he counts for this list. One of Animal Crossing’s recurring cast of NPCs, he will greet the player with enthusiasm, requesting the player bring them sea creatures, bugs, fossils and artwork to build up his collection.

This friendly and knowledgeable owl will often provide facts about the specimens brought to him, and is even able to identify a forged painting upon sight. His love of knowledge even trumps his hatred for bugs, who he will accept into the collection despite being disgusted by them.

4 Popola (Nier)

Nier Replicant Devola Popola

Popola and her twin sister Devola are twins who live in the unnamed village the protagonist calls home in Nier Replicant. While Devola spends her time as the town bard, entertaining others with her songs and tales, Popola acts at the local librarian.

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Together with her sister, Popola is one of the leaders of the village, often keeping an eye out for others, including Nier’s sister Yonah. She also tends to be the person handing out objectives for Nier’s quest. However, much like a lot of things in the Nier series, her backstory may be a little more complex than it initially appears.

3 Mayor Domino (Final Fantasy 7)

Final Fantasy 7 Domino

In Final Fantasy 7, Mayor Domino wasn’t meant to be a librarian. The elected head of the city of Midgar, his role is largely ceremonial due to the Shinra Corporation assuming control of the city instead. He now spends his time in the corporate archives, maintaining the records and helping people find what they need.

He proves himself useful to Cloud and the party, however, as in both the original and remake of Final Fantasy 7, he helps them out due to his resentment for his position being rendered useless. In the original, he hints at the password to access the next floor, and a correct guess can net the player some cool rewards, while in the remake, it’s his meddling with the security system that allows the party to scale the Shinra Building effectively.

2 Lisa (Genshin Impact)

Genshin Impact Lisa

One of Genshin Impact’s starting characters, Lisa is obtained by completing her quests in the prologue of the main story. She is the librarian of the Knights of Favonius, maintaining the vast collection of books found in the city of Monstadt.

Lisa is a great source of knowledge for the people, happy to answer complex questions that anyone may have, and leading a simple life keeping the books in order. However, she possesses great magical ability, learned during her time as a student of magic, and her lightning powers can be called upon in battle as part of the player’s party.

1 Master Librarian (Castlevania: Symphony Of The Night)

Castlevania Symphony of the Night Librarian

Found in the Long Library of Dracula’s Castle, the Master Librarian in Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is in Dracula’s employment but willing to help in defeating him. Acting both as librarian and merchant, the Master Librarian has various items that Alucard might be interested in for the right price. Unsurprisingly, some of these items include typical library fare like spell books and maps, but weapons, armor and potions are also present.

He's so iconic that a character named Orlok Dracule makes an appearance in Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, director Koji Igarashi’s attempt to revive the Castlevania series without Konami. He serves much the same function as the Master Librarian, with a suspiciously similar look and voice to Alucard himself. Curious.

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