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Top 15 Most Influential Video Game Heroines

Being a woman in the world of video games can often be a daunting and intimidating experience, but sometimes you have to send in a chick if you want the job done right. This list of Video Game Heroines covers the most influential and inspiring, female protagonists in the history of gaming. These ladies have an ongoing role in shaping the positive perspective of gals in games and I just happen to think that deserves some appreciation.

(#15) Kate Walker, Title: Syberia
Kate Walker is the main character in this PC puzzle/adventure game, released in 2002. The game boasts a stylish story, using elements of art nouveau and steampunk fiction. As a pure graphical adventure game it is impossible to die or fail at any moment in the game, leaving the user free to explore Syberia's universe freely and with no fear of mistakes. This visually superior and well written game had a sequel released in 2004. Plans for the third installment have become delayed and an updated release date is still a mystery due to negotiations with the games designer and a recent takeover by Anuman (initial release date was May of this year). With Microids asking fans to send emails of support for the game, we all hope that Syberia III will eventually make it to market and deliver an interesting continuation of an already creative story.

(#14) Sophitia Alexandra, Title: Soul Edge/Soul Blade (Soulcalibur Series)

The Soul series, consisting of 7 games including Soul Edge and several Soulcalibur releases, features many very different, but memorable characters. This multi-platform favorite has been praised for its interesting and well-thought out game play, in addition to its wickedly evil villain. Sophitia's story is interesting and honest, making it hard to see her as an antagonist later in the series when she is forced to choose between saving the world and saving her daughter. Besides Taki, another fierce, female character, Sophitia is the only female character that has been in every Soulcalibur release to date. While she may look dainty or fragile at first glance, after playing the game you will realize she is most certainly a force to be reckoned with.
(#13) Alice, Title: American McGee's Alice

This popular PC game has sold over 1.5 million copies and was EA's first M-rated game. The story follows Alice and takes place in an alternative universe parallel to that of Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. With her parents dead and suicidal thoughts lingering, Alice has been institutionalized until she is once again summoned by the White Rabbit. This visually striking and imaginative game has a sequel due in 2011 that takes place 11 years after its predecessor. (Coincidently the same amount of time that's passed since the games release in 2000) Not only is Alice coming back to PC, she will also be making a platform jump to PS3, as well as XBOX360, setting up the continued success for this original take on a familiar character.
(#12) Jade, Title: Beyond Good and Evil
Jade, the main character in Beyond Good & Evil, is not only good looking, she is a smart and talented reporter trying to get to the bottom of a world-wide alien conspiracy. With flawless game effects and character animations, this multi-platform favorite will have a chance to reach even more audiences with a fully re-mastered, HD version, set for release in 2011. New achievements, trophies and online leader boards are planned to accompany the release, and though the original BG&E was not a commercial success, we hold out hope that this time around it will get the attention and praise it deserves, with better marketing and a larger audience.

(#11) Joanna Dark, Title: Perfect Dark

With record times and immaculate test scores, Joanna Dark has absolutely earned the nickname "Perfect Dark". An eager bounty hunter turned special agent, Joanna is recruited by the Carrington Institute for Industrial Espionage. This first-person shooter has received mostly positive reviews, and though the newest XBOX 360 installment "Perfect Dark Zero" didn't live up to some expectations, it sold over a million copies. Plans for Perfect Dark Zero 2 were announced in 2007, but by 2008 all plans had been cancelled. With her propensity for tight clothing and big guns it's a good possibility that Joanna Dark will keep us coming back for more.

(#10) Nariko, Title: Heavenly Sword
Heavenly Sword follows th e story of Nariko, a doomed heroine out to avenge her people. Prophecy tells of a Heavenly warrior that will lead the clan to a gl orious future, had she only been born a man. Pfft...Man-shman. The game has been praised for its graphics and combat system, while criticism has stemmed from the short length of the game and lack of online capabilities. Overall, the game maintains fairly high scores from publications such as GamePro, with 5 out of 5 and Editor's Choice Award and Game Informer, scoring 8.75 out of 10. Rumors of a Sequel have been shot down by developer Ninja Theory, even though original plans had included a trilogy. Hardcore fans will never say never, but just be happy that we got play as this fierce, red-headed warrior even if it was for just one title.

(#9) Faith Connors, Title: Mirror's Edge
Beautifully developed and with a refreshing new perspective, Mirror's Edge was easily one of the most interesting and original titles of 2008. This first person action-adventure game follows Faith, a free-running courier that is working for various revolutionary groups throughout the city. When her sister is framed for murder, Faith has to get behind the conspiracy and bring down the totalitarian regime backed by "Project Icarus". Although, it was tagged with a short campaign, inconsistent game play speed and other minor flaws, Mirror's Edge is definitely a game of its own. While not as financially profitable as anticipated, this unique title has the capability of being an absolute success with a sequel. "With some extra content and better shooting mechanics, a Mirror's Edge 2 could really ignite the industry as we know it." says Jonathan Leack from PlayStationLifestyle.net in an article earlier this month. "Here's to hoping the creative guys over at EA can take advantage of the potential"

(#8) Jill Valentine, Title: Resident Evil Series

Jill Valentine, a game character in the Resident Evil survival horror series, is a protagonist from the original Resident Evil. She's introduced as a member of the fictional U.S. police force Special Tactics and Rescue Service (STARS) sent in to investigate strange murders in the Arklay Mountains. After becoming trapped in a mansion outside of Raccoon City they soon realize it's occupied by dangerous mutant zombies, giant spiders and the game's ultimate adversary known as the "Tyrant". With a successful series of novels, comics and most recently, films the Resident Evil series is here to stay. Jill will make a comeback and appear in the latest installment of the main series, Resident Evil: Revelations announced for the Nintendo 3DS. In total, according to Capcom, the original Resident Evil has sold almost 3 million units, over 5.3 million copies of RE5, and overall the series has sold almost 40 million games. Earlier this year she was found on Maina.com's list of the "13 Video Game Women That Kick Ass", commenting that, "You have to give her credit for surviving through the first game, beating Nemesis in RE3, returning in RE5, and being a zombie summoning, rocket launching, 2-D fighter in Marvel vs. Capcom 2."

(#7) April Ryan, Title: The Longest Journey

Parallel universes, Arcadia and Stark, are as opposite as 2 different worlds could be. While Arcadia is a world of magic, Stark is a world of science and technology and it's up to you to bring the two back together. April Ryan, an 18 year-old art student living in Stark, discovers her ability as a Shifter, with the ability to walk between the two worlds. IGN and Gamespot both named the title Adventure Game of the Year, and it was later followed by the sequel Dreamfall which featured another female protagonist Zoe Castillo. With the combination of an interesting storyline and its high production values, the smart and edgy PC game was a perfect example of how a female lead could capture the attention of a diverse audience.
(#6) Tifa Lockhart, Title: Final Fantasy VII

Square Enix is no stranger to the world of video game success, but the favorite Square Co. vixen has to be Tifa Lockhart. IGN claims, "Tifa helped drive a tradition of tough, independent RPG heroines." If this list were more aesthetically focused, Tifa could have won on pure sex appeal. It's her unmatched personality and ass-kicking abilities that put her in at #6. Though we do appreciate the other female candidates from the Final Fantasy series, including Yuna, Lulu, Lightning and the other awesome fems, Tifa takes the cake. The newest chapter in the series, Final Fantasy XIV, is coming to PS3 March of next year, while the PC version was released last month and has already sold over half a million copies worldwide.

(#5) Chun-Li, Title: Street Fighter II
First introduced in Street Fighter II: The World Warrior, Chun-Li has been a playable character in nearly every Street Fighter release since. On a mission to avenge her father's death, Chun-Li must enter the fighting tournament as an undercover Interpol agent while investigating M. Bison's involvement. After fulfilling her revenge and winning her tournament story she returns to an ordinary life. She was brought back a few years later for Street Fighter Alpha (2 and 3 as well), several Marvel vs. Capcom games and has been confirmed as a playable character in the upcoming title Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds. It has also been rumored she will appear with Ryu in the crossover fighting game Street Fighter X Tekken which would make them the only street fighter characters to appear in every Capcom crossover game. This "First Lady of Fighting Games" has been showing us for nearly two decades that there's always room for a chick in a man's world.
(#4) Samas Aran, Title: Metroid

When Metroid was first released in 1986 it was not actually revealed until the end of the game that Samus was a woman. Pretty good twist, right? In fact, before Metroid: Other M was released in 2010 she had never spoken in the entire Metroid series other than Metroid Fusion and an opening cut scene in Super Metroid. So how does a silent video game vixen gain notoriety? Well, having a battle suit comparable to that of Master Chief probably doesn't hurt. Although it's changed throughout the years, her current look is definitely the most feminine gamers have been treated to. This ex-marine, bounty hunter was one of the first dominant female characters in a game that certainly wasn't going to wait around for a man to rescue her. Samas Aran comes in on the list at #4 proving that even if we have to fool you into playing as a girl you'll eventually thank us.

(#3) Lara Croft, Title: Tomb Raider series

One of the most well-known female protagonists in video game history, Lara Croft is indisputably a badass female lead. Intelligent, athletic and definitely sexy, Lara Croft is not your average damsel in distress. This third person action-adventure follows archaeologist Lara Croft, through a series of tombs and other locations in search of treasures and artifacts. She's a video game and cultural icon, boasting such records as "most recognized female video game character" and "most official real life stand-ins". It probably doesn't hurt to have the live-action role played by Angelina Jolie. Lara Croft has helped redefine gender roles in video games by showing that anything boys can do girls can just as well, or in this case better.

(#2) Princess Peach, Title: Super Mario Bros. 2

Probably the most kind-hearted and well mannered lady in the countdown, Princess Peach has been evolving since 1985. Though she started out as a repeat kidnap victim in Super Mario Bros. she was quickly upgraded to a playable character with the release of Super Mario Bros. 2 in 1988. Nintendo has included her in many titles including Mario Kart, Super Smash Bros. Brawl and several of the Mario "sports" games. In 2007, she was found on Forbes Wealthiest Fictional People List, with an estimated fortune upwards of $1 billion. From her fragile beginnings as Bowser's kidnap victim, she has grown to become a strong and independent character on her own. This influential icon is a veteran of console gaming and will continue to develop with Nintendo. (Maybe with the help of a couple plumbers)

(#1) Ms. Pac-Man, Title: Ms. Pac-Man

The pioneer of females in gaming, Ms. Pac-Man has been rocking the arcades since 1981. Said to be one of the most popular video games of all time it has progressed into many platforms including several Atari, NES and Super NES versions. More recently, Ms. Pac-Man has even made an appearance in the Xbox live arcade, including online leader boards and 12 new achievements. In 2009, Game Informer put Ms. Pac-Man 10th on their list of "The Top 200 Games of All Time", saying that it "trumped [the original Pac-Man] in nearly every way." Who ya gonna call? She ain't afraid of no ghosts and topping the list, she takes the crown as the most influential female video game icon of all time.

Did I miss your favorite Heroine? Tell me about it, and comment!



Honorable mentions

• Dixie Kong and Tiny Kong, Title: Donkey Kong Country
  
• Bayonetta, Title: Bayonetta
  
• Tyris Flare, Title: Golden Axe: Beast Rider
  
• Alyx vance, Title: Half-Life 2
  
• Lilith the Siren, Title: Borderlands
  
• Cate Archer, Title: The Operative: No One Lives Forever
  
• Mai Hasegawa codename: Konoko, Title: Oni
  
• Eve, Title: Parasite Eve
  
• Thyra the Valkyrie, Title: Gauntlet

Growing Female Market is Obvious

With the release of Call of Duty Black Ops this week the advertising pretty much tells it all. It doesn't matter what your race, gender or profession is, you will want to play Black Ops.

Jimmy Kimmel and Kobe Bryant have also brought more attention to the commercial than usual. "In the commercial, men and women of various races and professions are shown tossing grenades and taking down helicopters in a realistic war scenario. The aim is to show that the game appeals to people from all walks of life." Jezebel reports. Trying to appeal to the female market the commercial features several women wielding automatic weapons. It has also recently been dubbed the most "disappointing game-related ad". So why the harsh review?

So far the commercial hasn't received much attention for its inclusiveness, and on The Atlantic's website, Sam Machkovech complains about the campaign, calling it "twisted." He writes:

"I couldn't have asked for a more disappointing game-related ad. These aren't the video games I play. Even at their highest levels of action and violence, video games play like sophisticated games of Cops & Robbers. They're silly; they require colorful, funny-shaped controllers; they stay decidedly in the domain of detached fiction."

"This ad equips people with real guns and simulates real-life, no-CGI combat. The thud of recoil, the screams of rockets, the dust of explosions... and the look of exasperation on that little, shotgun-wielding girl. The only things missing are the dead bodies on the receiving ends of each bullet and blast."

What's your opinion?

Personally, I love this ad. Being acknowledged as an actual market is a big step for us women gamers. And we are starting to get a lot more attention. Last week while being interviewed, Epic Games design director Cliff Bleszinski noted that the critically praised PS3 title Heavy Rain missed out on a golden opportunity: marketing to women. "Because women love true crime! I don't know what it is. I've said it before – they love two things in life: queso dip and true crime," Bleszinski commented. Man this guy is a doucher…

What does Cliffy B know about advertising to women? Well his 3rd installment of Gears of War, due out next year, has reported at least one playable female character. (the number of females actually playing as that character will most certainly be less than the number of teenage boys) I will be interested to see if he takes his own advice and cashes in on the female market.

Bleszinski may well be right, but Quantic Dream's highly-regarded adventure sold pretty well just to the male half of the world's gaming population. Earlier this year creator David Cage announced it had moved 1.5 million units to date, but how many more units could have been sold to us women?

One thing is for sure, with advertisements and video game hot shots giving us the "honorable mention" the industry is starting to realize that we are a large and diverse group. And it doesn't take a man to appreciate a good explosion, even if it isn't pink.

Configuring A Room For Kinect: A Tale of Two Homes

Kinect needs a lot of room, more room than any video game control device before it. But where there's a will to move furniture or rotate TVs, there is a way. This is how we made room in two homes.

From Stephen Totilo, deputy editor, based in Brooklyn: Space is tight in my Brooklyn condo. The living room is long and narrow, with the TV and game consoles just far enough from my couch to allow me to play a game, seated, using a controller wired to a game console under my TV.

I was able to play some Kinect games, like the single-player in racing game Kinect Joy Ride or everything in the fun Kinectimals, standing in front of my couch. That set-up, which required no moving of furniture had me standing under seven feet from the Kinect. At this range, though, I was barely at an acceptable distance for Kinect Sports, which spat back a sort of shrugged-shoulders message saying I might enjoy the game more if I was further away. Sorry, Kinect Sports, not if I have to stand on my couch!

That range didn't leave me enough room to play two-person, same-room games on Kinect nor to try more heart-racing experiences like the workout game Your Shape: Fitness Evolved. For that, initially with reluctance, I had to swivel my TV and move my Kinect. I needed at least eight feet to be in Your Shape's sweet spot.

Thankfully the Kinect sensor is smart and recalibrates automatically once it is moved. I don't love the idea of having to turn my TV for multiplayer — it's certainly more hassle than is needed if I have three friends over to play four-player Wii Sports (like that ever happens anymore -sniff-), but it's not the end of the world. I just want to warn people living in non-palace housing that you probably will need to make adjustments.

From Brian Crecente, editor-in-chief, based in Denver: I've got wide open spaces here in Colorado. The room where I have my video game consoles set up was designed for this space and it's pretty big. The couch is about 9-feet from the edge of the built-in entertainment center where my television sits. But there is also a huge coffee table in front of the couch.

I was able to use the non-gaming features of Kinect without having to move the couch, though I ended up needing to sit up in the couch to get the camera to recognize me. Playing between the coffee table and the couch was problematic for most games, not because of the distance, but because there wasn't a lot of room to move back there and the camera couldn't see below my calves.

I thought that once I moved the coffee table out of the way I'd have plenty of space, but it turns out that the front of my couch is only about 8 1/2 feet from the television. That may sound like a lot of space, it certainly looks like a lot of space, but Kinect wasn't always thrilled with what it had to work with. For instance, Kinect Sports grid put me in the front third of the play space when I stood eight feet from the TV.

Fortunately, I was able to make that big square of empty space work for all of the games, including Dance Central, which really does need a lot of room to move around in. Unfortunately, I rarely if ever move that coffee table, so the future of Kinect gaming in the Crecente household looks bleak.

The author of this post can be contacted at tips@kotaku.com

Gears of War 3 Demo - E3 2010 Microsoft Conference

XBOX banned? really?

Okay....I am still not in a frame of mind to be speaking openly to the public but I am livid to the point of a mild heart attack at this moment and I need to vent. I understand the importance of keeping the XBOX live community free of evil-doers. Piracy is a big problem and should be met with harsh consequences. But why is it that they decide to screw a good portion of there customers that did absolutely nothing wrong?!? I recently bought a used console, yes I know, shame on me I should buy new. But all the accesories I purchsed to go along with that made up for it times 10. Including a year long subscription to XBOX live that is now useless with this console. I do not mod consoles, I do not even know how to open a console other than dropping it from a building but that can be counter-productive. I also do not play pirated games, I have no need to when I can rent them just as easily and know that I will not get banned. (since I have heard the stories) The only thing that I can come up with is my console was modded in some way to play pirated games, which sucks monkey balls! I had 3 glorious days of online play only to have it ripped away! So I get it, cheaters should be banned, but calling up XBOX and being told there is absolutely no way that anyone, anywhere can do ANYTHING about it is heart breaking. I was even willing to send the XBOX in and pay to have the devils removed from the system but was quickly told that no banned consoles would be accepted for repair. So, alas, I am stuck selling this hunk-o-junk on ebay for a fraction of what I paid, hoping that I can scrounge up enough to buy an arcade to use with all of the accessories I just bought. I don't know whether to break something or cry, but I've done both at this point. Major Nelson, you son of a bitch, I hope PS3 outsells XBOX this holiday season. Oh thats right, I said it.