Fonnesbech: swapping protagonists risks legal defensibility and splits the fan base
Summary
Christian Fonnesbech, founder of Copenhagen IP consultancy Leverage, ranks the protagonist as a franchise's most legally defensible asset.
He has advised teams behind Dead Island, Metro, Conan Exiles, and Dune Awakening.
Hades 2, Control Resonant, and God of War Laufey all swap leads and risk splitting an existing audience.
"So mess with it at your mortal peril"
01
Character ownership doubles as legal defensibility
Fonnesbech ranks the protagonist above gameplay and world-building as the easiest asset to own in court.
A proven emotional connection functions as evidence a studio can build future titles on.
Most creative teams cannot repeat a hit with a different lead, he says.
"If you found something that connects, you have proof that, hey, this works: it's not just success, it's evidence"
02
Familiarity lowers purchase risk and slows churn
Buyers accept known characters because they already trust the quality and tone.
Switching leads addresses only a subset of the existing audience.
Repeated swaps slice the fan base thinner with each release.
"I think there's a real danger that what you're actually doing is addressing a subset of your original audience"
03
Hades 2, Control, and God of War test the theory
Hades 2 swaps Zagreus for his sister Melinoë, shifting the emotional throughline from rebellion to finding home.
Control's sequel replaces Jesse Faden with her brother Dylan after millions of hours built her IP value.
God of War Laufey drops Kratos despite the 2018 reboot proving a character can be refreshed via fatherhood.
"The problem is that we are coming for Kratos"
04
IP scale decides whether world-first strategies survive
Star Wars shifted from character-driven films to an ecosystem only after roughly a hundred million fans.
Cyberpunk 2077 runs an anthology with no tentpole character early in its life.
Edgerunners viewers returned to the game to kill its villain, showing characters drive engagement.
Halo Wars earned strong reviews but did not reflect why players buy Halo.
"I think it would be stronger if they had a recognisable tentpole character"
What this means
For Publishers & Developers: Treat a proven protagonist as a legal and commercial asset before greenlighting a swap.
For Investors & VC: Flag sequels that change leads as a diligence risk against audience retention.
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