Strong female characters have formed a big part of video game franchises in the recent years. They are powerful, inspiring and courageous. They are not your usual ‘damsels in distress’ because these women have dared to fight, conquer and win. The female game characters in this list are some of the MOST badass women we’ve ever seen.
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Best female characters in video games
Check out the list (in no particular order) of the best female video game characters that we think that kick some serious butt.
Clementine – The Walking Dead
Clementine is an innocent little girl caught in a zombie apocalypse. This situation is rough for any adult, let alone a child. Clementine recognizes that she needs to grow up quickly and fight these zombies head on. She’s loyal, mature, smart and fierce with a hint of vulnerability. She’s the kind of person you can rely on if you are ever in an apocalyptic situation.
Jill Valentine – Resident Evil 3
Jill Valentine is considered one of the most iconic and popular video game characters because of her skills, competence and likeability. She is a brave and highly intelligent heroine with a military background. Jill has a wide array of experience with picking locks, handling explosives and using weapons. All of this makes her a super badass heroine in our opinion!
Ellie – The Last of Us
In The Last of Us, Ellie is a teenage girl who is very resourceful and capable of surviving in the harsh environments of a post-apocalyptic world. She swears, fights and she’s a little rough around the edges but mature beyond her years. Due to her prior emotional trauma, she doesn’t hesitate to pick up a gun and resort to violence. Ellie suffers from survivor’s guilt, often considering herself as a burden. But this doesn’t mean she’s weak! She displays fearlessness and physical toughness while demonstrating emotional complexity. This makes her one heck of an inspirational female game character.
Senua – Hellblade Series
This female protagonist of the game Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is one deadly warrior. In the game, she goes on a spirit quest to find Hela (goddess of the underworld) and get her lover’s soul back. He was sacrificed by Viking invaders on her island and so, to get his spirit back, she carries his severed head as a vessel to his soul. Suffering from psychosis and voices in her head, she braves them all and fights enemies with unbelievable courage. Yup, as you can tell, Senua is no ordinary woman.
Aloy – Horizon: Zero Dawn
Aloy’s skills in hunting are pretty much unmatched. After a deadly plague wiped out life on Earth, Aloy helped to restore life and saved the lives of the humans of the new world created by Zero Dawn. She fights Hades, a merciless rogue AI who has intentions of activating the Faro plague once again. Her heroism is exceptional and frankly, undeniable.
Chun-Li – Street Fighter Series
Chun-Li is one of the most famous Street Fighter characters in the world which has lead to her appearing in almost all installments of the game. She can be considered one of the few characters who paved the path for strong female characters in video games. Her toned body, athleticism and crazy fighting speed all point towards her being one of the best characters for 1 on 1 fighting games. Her cheerful personality combined with her fighting skills make for one amazing heroine.
Tifa Lockhart – Final Fantasy Series
Seen most recently in Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Tifa Lockhart is part of a resistance group against Shinra Corporation. She excels in hand to hand combat as well as displays super human strength toppling monsters left, right and center. Apart from strength, Tifa has exceptional speed and endurance, making her a partner you can count on in battles. Just take a look at all the weapons Tifa uses!
Claire Redfield – Resident Evil 2
Claire Redfield is trained in handling weapons like crossbows, grenade launchers, pistols and even a rocket launcher! She’s supremely athletic giving her an edge over her opponents. Her strong will and confidence has made her an inspirational figure for fans of the Resident Evil series.
Ciri – The Witcher 3
Ciri is one of the playable protagonists of Witcher 3 where she is known as the Lady of Space and Time. With unique teleportation skills, she can move around the battlefield while slashing the heck out of her enemies. She also has the capability to open a portal and travel anywhere she wants – yes, even to different dimensions! Ciri can also manipulate time which means that she can slow down the flow of time for her opponents. All of these qualities come together to create the most powerful magical being in the Witcher universe.
Aerith Gainsborough – Final Fantasy series
Aerith, who recently appeared in FF7 Remake, is part of an ancient race who have magical abilities. She’s a carefree woman who manages to stay upbeat despite the the Shinra Company being after her for her powers. She wields staves and boasts of very powerful magical attacks. Aerith is caring and lifts others up if they are going through any problems. She’s compassionate, forgiving and motherly which makes her an awesome and well-rounded female game character in our opinion.
Bayonetta – Bayonetta
Bayonetta is the lead female character of the video game named after her. She has a ton of powers and abilities such as superhuman speed, strength and reflexes. Her gravity defying capabilities and shape shifting powers can shred any villain to pieces. She’s an Umbra Witch so she can summon demons as well as unleash a wide array of magical attacks on her unfortunate enemies. Her abilities are an amalgamation of many other super heroes which essentially makes her a complete torture machine. Bayonetta is the heroine any villain should be very, very scared of.
Female/Commander Shepard – Mass Effect
One of the main features of Mass Effect games is that you can customize the character however you like in the beginning. So your femshep might look different from others, but that doesn’t change anything about her extraordinary skills. Jennifer Hale has provided outstanding voice acting which brings femshep to life. The character is so strong and charismatic that she brings different races of aliens under her command to fight against the reapers. The fate of the Milky Way galaxy depends on her. Yes, she’s that good.
Emily Kaldwin – Dishonored 2
Emily Kaldwin starts off as a little girl in the Dishonored but in Dishonored 2, she becomes an assassin similar to Corvo. Here are some of her powers:
- Far Reach – She can shoot a long tendril from her hand giving her access to hard-to-reach areas, especially at those at a height.
- Mesmerize – She can put her enemies in a dream state thereby successfully distracting them.
- Domino – Emily can affect multiple foes by just attacking one of them.
- Shadow Walk – She can transform into a shadow-like creature which gives her the ability to go through small openings and makes her difficult to detect.
This just goes to show that Emily is truly one of the BEST female characters we’ve seen in video games.
Sarah Kerrigan – StarCraft
Sarah starts off as a protagonist in the first game of the StarCraft franchise but turns into an antagonist later due to how she was treated. She acquires mind-bending powers which give her complete control of the ‘Zerg Swarm’. The Zerg Swarm is a ruthless bunch of arthropodal aliens and Sarah Kerrigan is their queen. Telekinesis, mass mind control, martial arts skills, strategy skills, regeneration, gravity manipulation, energy blasts, wormhole creation…and this is just one part of her list of abilities. Oh, queen. We bow down to you.
Sadie Adler – Red Dead Redemption 2
Sadie is a bounty hunter, gunwoman and a dependable ally for Arthur Morgan in Red Dead Redemption 2. She is skilled in horse riding, hunting and shooting. She’s out to avenge the brutal murder of her husband and her rage is evident in her actions. After everything that she has gone through, violence does not scare her one bit. Honestly, you do not want to mess with her.
Samus Aran – Metroid Series
Samus Aran is the main lead of the Metroid series who begins as a helpless child but ends up becoming a ruthless bounty hunter eventually. She’s a human but she is infused with alien DNA to turn her into an intergalactic warrior. Her genetic modification gives her superhuman physique, athletic abilities and expertise in combat. Her cybernetic Power suit is equipped with an Arm Cannon that can be upgraded. It also gives her a never ending supply of oxygen. Her superior skills, ability to complete impossible missions and the sense of justice prove that she’s one of the very best.
Kassandra – Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
Kassandra is one of the playable Spartan Misthios in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. She is highly skilled in hand-to-hand combat as well as fighting with different weapons. Kassandra is linked with Precursor artifacts and even wields the powerful Spear of Leonidas. She fearlessly faces monsters from Atlantean times and even famous creatures from Greek mythology like Medusa, Minotaur and Cyclops. She eventually gets her hands on the extremely powerful Staff of Hermes which gives its wielder biological immortality. Her skills and ability to handle weapons make her the most powerful woman in the universe of Assassin’s Creed.
Amanda Ripley – Alien: Isolation
Amanda Ripley is described as a strong personality by many and rightly so. Who else would be able to survive being stuck in a space station with nasty aliens and merciless androids for company? She’s resourceful, stealthy, clever and self-reliant. Although she doesn’t appear in the game initially with all guns blazing, she is still very much a badass. Amanda is the daughter of Ellen Ripley and just like her mom, Amanda has a strong survival instinct. Her cool state of mind often helps her get through difficult situations in the game. Her perseverance, will to live and intelligence are definitely the qualities of a great video game character.
Faith Connors – Mirror’s Edge
Faith Connors is the main heroine of Mirror’s Edge. She is a ‘Runner’ which means that she transports items around the city for revolutionary groups who are hiding from the oppressive government. Faith, as a character, is edgy, approachable and even fashionable. Her family was killed by the totalitarian government which is why she chooses to rebel against it by becoming a Runner. She’s a complete thrill-seeker and a daredevil and we love her for that.
Lara Croft – Tomb Raider Series
This list is absolutely incomplete without the mention of the Lara Croft. She is one of the most iconic female video game characters of all time. She specializes in hand-to-hand combat especially martial arts and also has great knowledge of archeology, ancient history, language and architecture. This combination of intellect and combat skills makes her a major force to be reckoned with in the world of games.
Honorable mentions: Tracer from Overwatch, Quiet from Metal Gear Solid V, Cortana from Halo and Alyx Vance from Half-Life 2. These female characters have also proved themselves to be some of the BEST that gamers have ever seen.
So these were some of the BEST female characters in video games according to us. If you haven’t played any of the games listed above, we urge you to go ahead and play them to experience the girl power in all its glory.