The 25 Best Video Game Characters of All Time
Best Game Characters Ever
In a medium with thousands of memorable pixelated and polygonal protagonists and antagonists, it might seem like an impossible task to narrow down the pool to the very best 25 characters to ever grace the medium. Yet somehow, we've done it. Naive believers in democracy that we are, this list was calculated via a large, large officewide poll with well over 80 candidates. To those great characters who could not make it onto the list, we'd like to press "F" to pay respects: Adam Jensen, Kirby, Ness, Andrew Ryan and the trio from GTAV (& Knuckles).With those honorable mentions out of the way, let's dive in and find out which characters are the crème de la crème of video gaming.
Credit: Capcom
Aloy (Horizon Zero Dawn)
From unspoken outsider to humanity's savior, Aloy's attitude was anything but refined and it was amazing. This hard-headed, stubborn teenager gives sass, strength and even a little bit of empathy as you play through the amazing world that is Horizon: Zero Dawn. The game gives equal parts mechanics and equal measures of story and character development, allowing you to grow with Aloy as you progress through the main plot. Although Aloy may not be at the top of this list, she's earned a place in my tribe. — Catherine Strachan
Credit: Sony
Ezio Auditore (Assassin's Creed)
Ezio Auditore da Firenze has seen it all. This Italian Renaissance nobleman-turned-Assassin lost his family in a conspiracy, hunted down magical artifacts from a primeval civilization, got into a fistfight with history's most evil pope, took a ride in Leonardo da Vinci's flying machine, broke the Borgia dynasty's stranglehold on Rome, built a network of operatives in Constantinople, faced off against the scheming Şehzade Ahmet and even trained Chinese protégé Shao Jun to unseat a tyrant in her homeland. Over the course of three fantastic games (and one decent animated tie-in movie), Ezio cemented his well-earned position as the face of the Assassin's Creed series. — Marshall Honorof
Credit: Ubisoft
Pac-Man (Pac-Man)
What even is Pac-Man, anyway? Our own Henry T. Casey interprets Namco's legendary mascot as "a Planters Cheez Ball come to life haunted by the hungry spirits of his past." That sounds about as canonical as whatever Pac-Man's actual origin story entails, but the simple fact is, it doesn't matter; Pac-Man consumes ghosts, makes a really satisfying noise when he repeatedly opens and closes his mouth, has a timeless, universally recognizable design and bears arguably the coolest moveset of any fighter in Super Smash Bros. In fact, Smash never really felt like a true gathering of gaming's most legendary characters until Pac-Man lent an air of legitimacy to the battle. — Adam Ismail
Credit: Namco
Cloud Strife (Final Fantasy VII)
Depending on whom you ask, Cloud Strife is either a compassionate warrior on an impossible mission, or an aloof jerk who doesn't realize how much he leans on his companions. But either way, this spiky-haired former SOLDIER operative (or was he?) acted as a whole generation's introduction to the iconic Final Fantasy series. Although Cloud starts off as a simple mercenary, his assignment to stop a corrupt megacorporation becomes a quest to track down his oldest and bitterest enemy to the far corners of the world. Cloud's stoic demeanor and cool design won over a lot of fans, as did his surprisingly complicated backstory and ultimately warm heart. — Marshall Honorof
Credit: Playstation
Master Chief (Halo)
Master Chief may seem like the typical soldier with no face or personality that casually saves the day from aliens, but… well, all of that is true to an extent. We don't get much screen time with the Chief's personal thoughts, but that's mostly because he was trained to complete his mission, without question. John (Master Chief) was kidnapped when he was a child and forced into the UNSC's Spartan-II program, where children were experimented on to be created into super-soldiers. Throughout his childhood, John lost many friends in and out of the program's exercises, and was basically brainwashed to serve the military. But even after the program, his instinct to protect and lead is why he became who he is. Master Chief's personality shined in the Halo books and finally revealed itself in Halo 4 and Halo 5, where he deals with the trauma of losing his best friend, Cortana. Master Chief is an iconic character, known for reinventing the FPS genre by kicking alien butt; however, there's a much darker side of him behind the visor. — Rami Tabari
Credit: Microsoft Studios
Sarah Kerrigan (StarCraft)
Sarah Kerrigan started off interesting enough. As a black-ops Ghost, Sarah's personal cloaking field, powerful sniper rifle and flirtatious jabs at leading man Jim Raynor made her an immediately likable companion in the first few StarCraft missions. Everything changes, however, when she gets left behind on the contested world of Char. Overwhelmed by the Zerg, Kerrigan transforms into the insectile race's Queen of Blades — or, as she describes herself, "The Queen Bitch of the Universe." Kerrigan's arc over the rest of the StarCraft saga is undoubtedly the most interesting subplot in the whole series, as she tries to hold onto her humanity while fighting to win an impossible war. — Marshall Honorof
Credit: Blizzard Entertainment
Nathan Drake (Uncharted)
Imagine Indiana Jones as a wisecracking everyman rather than a heartthrob professor, and that's pretty much Nathan Drake. An affable treasure hunter with a father-figure sidekick, Nathan Drake won over fans in his first pulpy adventure, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. It wasn't until Uncharted 2 that Nathan really came into his own, though. Over the course of the next few Uncharted games, fans began to understand that this globe-trotting adventurer wasn't just a men's magazine stereotype; he was a conflicted individual with a complex upbringing, and a great deal of negative personality traits standing between him and feeling fulfilled. Nathan Drake isn't just fun; he's also uncomfortably relatable.— Marshall Honorof
Credit: Sony
Fox McCloud (Star Fox)
Leadership. It's the quality that separates the ragtag factions of space pilots from the legendary ones. Just look at the Star Fox crew that he leads into battle. Falco Lombardi, a cocksure bird with too much confidence, is balanced by the wisened wabbit Peppy Hare, but Slippy Toad — what the heck? Who let this nervous nelly into an Arwing? Oh, and Fox isn't just an ace in the cockpit, he's also nimble at hand-to-hand combat, as he exhibited in Star Fox Adventures with a Bo-staff, before posting yet another win over Andross, the foolish genius. — Henry T. Casey
Credit: Nintendo
Jill Valentine (Resident Evil)
When you think of Resident Evil, you think of Jill Valentine. She's played an integral role in Capcom's iconic horror series since the beginning, surviving the undead-infested Spencer Mansion in Resident Evil 1, taking down the seemingly unkillable Nemesis in Resident Evil 3, and even taking a short turn as a mind-controlled villain in Resident Evil 5. No matter which game she's in, Jill's tenacity, combat mastery, loyalty to teammates and fearlessness in the face of grotesque bioweapons remains a constant. The "master of unlocking" is responsible for some of the best one-liners and most memorable memes in gaming history. And with the Resident Evil series currently going stronger than ever, it's only a matter of time before we see her again. — Mike Andronico
Credit: Capcom
Chun-Li (Street Fighter)
One of Chun-Li's most famous win quotes is "I'm the strongest woman in the world," and she ain't kidding. Street Fighter icon Chun-Li is most notable for being the first playable female character in a fighting game, using her incredible athleticism and deadly lightning legs to remind gamers that, yes, women kick just as much ass as men do. While Chun-Li opened the door for decades' worth of memorable female fighters, she remains the genre's most iconic, having appeared in nearly every core Street Fighter game since her 1991 debut and influencing all corners of pop culture. (Heck, Nicki Minaj just named a song after her.) Many copycats have tried to take her place, but this fast-kicking police officer and martial-arts expert always reappears to remind us who the true queen of digital fisticuffs is. — Mike Andronico
Credit: Capcom
Dante (Devil May Cry)
Son of Sparda, and ultimate half human and demon badass, Dante is your friendly neighborhood demon slayer for hire. During the events of the first Devil May Cry, we got a taste of Dante's charming and cocky personality when he's hired to stop the demon king from entering the mortal realm. After slicing and dicing a bunch of demons in a nightmare-fueled mansion, we dove deep into a tear=jerking emotional roller coaster when the villain, Mundus, uses Dante's family to get into his head. It proved that there was more depth to this character than his cool anime-guy persona.
Even toward the end of DMC 3, Dante and Vergil's final fight was, despite being hard, incredibly depressing because he had to stop his own brother to save the world. Dante may affect a nonchalant attitude, but he cares deeply about humanity. The whole motto in DMC is that "devils never cry," but because he's half human, he can cry. The humanity inside him feels the pain of the family he’s lost, and, yes, that makes me cry, too. The iconic white-haired devil will reappear in Devil May Cry 5. — Rami Tabari
Credit: Capcom
Luigi (Super Mario Bros.)
Sure, the Super Mario Bros. game franchise is as iconic as any, but it must suck to be Luigi Mario, the supporting actor to Mario Mario, his brother who gets his name in the title. Yes, if you didn't see the Super Mario Bros. movie, where John Leguizamo played Luigi and Bob Hoskins played Mario, they're the Mario brothers because that's their last name. Not only does Luigi always get second billing, and get left out of one-player solo adventures, but he has to share his more-famous sibling's surname.
But why does Luigi have to fall 12 spots below Mario? I don't remember when Mario rid a whole mansion of ghosts, or when Mario's angry side-eye became an iconic meme. Also, doesn't Luigi get any credit for staying slim while his brother has stayed forever plump? — Henry T. Casey
Credit: Nintendo
Ellie (The Last of Us)
Ellie might not have been the star of the PS3 classic The Last of Us, but she shines in the apocalypse survival game brighter than Joel, its burnt-out protagonist. More relatable than helpless, Ellie defies the tropes of the characters whom you spend a game protecting. Sure, she gets scared, but who wouldn't in this terrifying horror ride? Furthermore, Ellie's character development in The Last of Us: Left Behind, the DLC that gives us more of her backstory, provides depth to her humanity with a short, yet emotionally impactful tale that left us excited for her starring turn in The Last of Us Part 2. — Henry T. Casey
Credit: Sony
Garrus Vakarian (Mass Effect)
Garrus is a well-written wingman with one of the best voices in gaming, plain and simple. He's not on here because he's a better character than Mordin or Legion. He's on here because he's ever-so-slightly more memorable. Hearing his soothing voice whisper sweet nothings into our ears during Mass Effect's romance sequences is definitely a uniquely sensual experience, and since we're not going to see Mario contribute something like that to the gaming medium, Garrus has to be the one to keep us all nice and calibrated. — Robert Carnevale
Credit: Electronic Arts
Geralt of Rivia (The Witcher)
Although Geralt of Rivia didn't originate in a video game (he was introduced in a Polish short story back in 1986), The Witcher games do an admirable job of portraying the same Geralt fans got to know and love in the books. Geralt is a witcher: a genetically mutated monster hunter, who wanders the world in search of people to help and money to earn. Geralt's dry wit, philosophical attitude and disillusionment with politics are entertaining — but his unshakable sense of right and wrong, his devotion to his friends and his spontaneous moments of kindness are endearing. Wielding two remarkable swords and slinging a handful of killer spells doesn't hurt, either. — Marshall Honorof
Credit: CD PROJEKT RED
Lara Croft (Tomb Raider)
Lara Croft has endured for more than two decades since the first Tomb Raider game was released in 1996. This kick-ass heroine has been credited with sparking an era of strong female characters in video games, many of which are featured on this list. Her legacy was cemented when superstar actress Angelina Jolie portrayed her in the successful 2001 film Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. Strong, intelligent and driven, the treasure hunter, who went from sexualized icon to empowering role model, is much more than a female version of Indiana Jones. — Phillip Tracy
Credit: Square Enix
GLaDOS (Portal)
It's difficult to think of another final boss battle that elicits as many laughs as bouts of controller-crushing frustration quite like the face-off with GLaDOS in the first Portal. Addictive as the puzzles were, it's the passive aggression of Aperture Science's snarky AI brought to life by Ellen McLain's incredible voice-over work that ultimately kept gamers coming back for more. Chell's nemesis managed that impossible feat of character design, somehow managing to be paradoxically loathsome and beloved. And when the sequel came around, Valve gave GLaDOS even more to do, confining her to a potato battery at one point — which probably ranks as the most pathetic and hilarious fate to befall an antagonist in the history of the medium. — Adam Ismail
Credit: Valve
Bayonetta (Bayonetta)
Bayonetta both embraces and dismantles the idea of the stereotypical video game heroine. Yes, she's sexy. Yes, she wears skin-tight clothing. And. yes, she practically gets full-on naked when performing her deadliest finishing moves. But Bayonetta wields her sexuality like a weapon and is never once a damsel in distress, as she seductively dodges bullets in slow motion, slices and shoots hellspawn with the grace of a ballet dancer and uses her hair to summon literal demons that tear through enemies. She's also just incredibly cool, with a sharp wit and cocky British accent that masks the much more caring and complex individual underneath. Bayonetta proves that being sexy doesn't mean being shallow, and that's what makes her one of the best protagonists you'll find in a modern action game. — Mike Andronico
Credit: SEGA
Kratos (God of War)
Kratos has had quite a life. Calling on Ares in a moment of desperation, this Spartan demigod was forced to murder his own wife and child as part of the God of War's terrible bargain. Over the course of seven games, Kratos slaughtered his way through the Greek pantheon, becoming ever more vengeful and implacable. Kratos' single-mindedness and conviction alone might have put him on this list, but it wasn't until God of War (2018) that the character gained a third dimension: a love for his new son, Atreus, and a gargantuan struggle — not only against the creatures of Norse myth, but also against his own unquenchable rage. — Marshall Honorof
Credit: Sony
Sonic the Hedgehog (Sonic the Hedgehog)
Sega's blue blur may have lent his name to more than his fair share of polarizing titles, but there's a reason why enthusiasm for Sonic persists. In an era dominated by Mario, Sonic was the alternative punk, the protagonist that kids actually wanted to be, rather than just play as. In his 16-bit heyday, it's reckoned that Sonic was more recognizable among children than Mickey Mouse. With his infectious attitude, his strength of conviction and his cute but mischievous design, Sonic embodied the spirit of the '90s, inspiring a generation of fans as well as a litany of half-hearted pretenders. And while missteps may have sullied the brand a bit, the hedgehog's highs — from the time-traveling thrills of Sonic CD, to the awe-inspiring speed of Unleashed's daytime levels — remain right up there with the greatest in gaming. — Adam Ismail
Credit: SEGA
Big Boss (Metal Gear Solid)
Big Boss is one of the most complex and developed characters in video game history. He was first introduced to the world as a villain in the first Metal Gear game. It wasn't until Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater where we were introduced to the man, Jack (code name: Naked Snake), behind the "legendary soldier" persona. After the Snake Eater operation, Big Boss left the country that betrayed him and his mentor to create something worth fighting for — Militaries San Frontieres (Soldiers Without Borders).
The events of Snake Eater and Peace Walker highlighted Big Boss' development from a patriotic spy with an idealistic outlook to a bitter soldier with a hard take on the world. Despite his demons, Big Boss created MSF to help countries around the world without military support. Whether the power of his unmonitored organization with nuclear capabilities was a threat to the world is up to debate. But the most interesting thing about Big Boss is how philosophical and controversial his ideals really are. — Rami Tabari
Credit: Konami
Mega Man (Mega Man)
Starting off as a cute Astro Boy homage more than 30 years ago, Mega Man jumped, dodged and blasted his way through a collection of evil Robot Masters, picking up his powers as they went. The games were tremendously entertaining, and Mega Man's can-do, optimistic attitude made him an instant favorite among gamers of all ages. But the great thing about Mega Man is that he's been just as good in almost every iteration, from the hardened freedom fighter Mega Man X, to the adventurous pirate-hunter Mega Man Volnutt, to the observant hacker MegaMan.EXE. Even better: The franchise's complex continuity ties a lot of these disparate plot threads together. — Marshall Honorof
Credit: Capcom
Samus Aran (Metroid)
With her first appearance in Metroid (1986), Samus Aran broke barriers as a strong female hero in a male-driven domain. Her popularity only increased over the years as the Metroid series grew into one of Nintendo's most beloved franchises. She is now a mainstay in the popular Super Smash Bros. series and has been featured in more than a dozen other titles.
With her powerful exoskeleton, Samus has enjoyed a successful career as a Space- Pirate-defeating bounty hunter. Not only did she dismantle the Space Pirate base of Zebes, Samus also exterminated the Metroid species and destroyed the deadly X Parasites. The mysterious character overcame a tragedy-riddle childhood to become a compassionate, thoughtful and fearless hero. What's not to like about this intergalactic warrior? — Phillip Tracy
Credit: Nintendo
Mario (Super Mario Bros.)
A man of many hats, Mario's lived a long, complicated life ever since he saved his first princess from Donkey Kong. Along the way, we've seen him go through every phase a man can, even donning multiple animal costumes — both the fox-like Tanooki suit and a frog outfit — in Super Mario Bros. 3. If you're wondering why Mario ranks so highly, though, it's arguably because of his timeless endurance. From his days as a mere stack of sprites climbing girders, to his recent voyages as a super-clearly rendered ex-plumber, Mario has always been a hero the public can see itself in. He might be a little too loved (I'm sure his brother Luigi would say so), but as a noble Everyman, nobody reigns higher. But there's a certain Hylian whom he couldn't best…. — Henry T. Casey
Credit: Nintendo
Link (The Legend of Zelda)
Tri-forcing this guy off the list, we dare you. Let's be clear, though: Link isn't the best video game character of all-time in and of himself. There are plenty of characters with more personality, substance and individual merit, some of whom are on this list. But perhaps it's what Link symbolizes that makes him the best, in our eyes. It's less about the Hylian with the sword and shield and more about his status as the face of one of gaming's very best franchises. When you see Link on the cover of a game, he instantly puts your heart and wallet at ease, assuring you that you're about to receive a gaming experience of the highest caliber. It's that old Nintendo charm at work, arguably effective to a greater degree than even Mario or Samus can provide. Link is an icon, after all, and as with any true gaming icon, he doesn't need justification to warrant his popularity. Memorable character design, a little bit of globally held nostalgia and some great games will do all the work for him. — Robert Carnevale
Credit: Nintendo
