For the first time in video games, players had no choice but to take the role of a female in a major action-adventure title known as Tomb Raider. What happened next seems rather inevitable in retrospect. Video game marketers saw the success Lara Croft, the star character of Tomb Raider, had with players and connected it with her sexy looks. Then came a rash of female characters. Unfortunately, not all the games they starred in were good.
Business people latch on to a concept that sells and compel their designers to copy it.
Over and over. After Myst's success, you saw a hundred games come out that were Myst clones. People in upper management really have a hard time predicting what's going to be the next big thing. It's much easier to make a product based on something that's already successful. Jensen said that ultimately players want depth, and that includes deep characters.