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[viveks86]

2 Pages and no Elena Fisher, you guys disgust me.

also

Agree to both. They aren't really memorable or iconic characters, but that's not the question OP is asking. They definitely are great representations of women in video games.

EDIT: Yeah Echo is a good example too.

 

[Zach]

The Boss (Metal Gear Solid 3)
Ellie (The Last of Us)
Jade (Beyond Good and Evil)

Also, just beat Beyond: Two Souls and Jodie wasn't bad. I feel like I'm forgetting one of my favorites, though... Hmmm...

Edit: Those two above me are both really good, too.

 

[atr0cious]

The Boss will always be better than everyone, male or female.

This is what I believe.

 

[CharmingCharlie]

Excuse me :<

OK I admit I missed your post. I stand corrected and should have said "GAF I am disappoint except for Victrix whom saved the reputation of GAF"

 

[Zach]

This is what I believe.

I think I also agree.

 

[Neiteio]

Bayonetta might seem like a joke answer because her sexuality is so up front, but she's one of the greatest examples of positive female representation in games.

Bayonetta displays incredible power and poise in every situation. She is never at the mercy of misogynistic stereotypes. In fact, her game takes special care to set them up so Bayonetta can shoot them down. She subverts every cliche by playing on your assumptions and then defying your expectations.

The whole story of the game is basically about Bayonetta learning to be the best version of herself by becoming her own role model. Seriously, she is an entirely self-actualized superhero who defies her fated role as a powerless outcast and pawn, and I find that fucking awesome.

Just quoting this awesome post for the new page

 

[Touch fuzZy. get BizZay]

The only game where Samus gets any real characterization is Other M. And it's offensive, misogynistic garbage.

I wouldn't have thought that if I said I like Samus Aran as a great female character, or Metroid in general that I would have to clarify that of course I'm not talking about other M!

Video games are an amazing medium in that you can tell stories and show characters without lengthy CG scenes and painfully stupid monologues, with some skill and subtle, thoughtful direction. The Samus I'm attached to is the cool, resourceful bounty hunter from all of her good games....obviously.

 

[ThatStupidLion]

In other words: Who are your favorite female characters?

no...

I mean characters who are actually respectable, good role models, not silly fodder for the typical male gamer...not "your favorite female character"

characters todays women can enjoy and look up to.

female roles that feminists can't get offended by and are content...

I don't think lara croft (remake) is that great, but i'm sure shes peoples' favorite

 

[TheRedSnifit]

Are you talking about soldiers during sneaking sections or bosses when it comes to dramatic deaths?

Normal soldier deaths are dramatic in MGS2, they blurt out a grunt in agony and bleed everywhere. Shooting them in the gut makes blood spray out and they reach out one last time. Pretty sure its the same in MGS3. In MGS1 its dramatic when it comes to context, since all the soldiers underwent gene therapy to perform like Big Boss, you're essentially killing your own genetic brothers.

You said it's a core theme in MGS that female soldiers die like every other soldier. But this simply isn't true, because every single woman is a Special Snowflake who dies an emotional, dialogue-filled death, whereas the random shmucks you gun down regularly are all men. Maybe you're right and it is a prominent theme, but it's a rather ironic one given the noticeable lack of killable female enemies.

 

[Werewolf Jones]

First reply pretty much nails it to be honest.

 

[Corpekata]

I'm increasingly beginning to think TLOU is a lot of people's first video game.

 

[Mauricio_Magus]

Come on guys, how has Estelle Bright not been posted yet.

She's one of my favorite protagonists of all time, I do like Ellie a lot but I prefer Estelle a lot more as an example of a great female character.

There's also The Boss.

 

[DedValve]

No mention of Marlene in the op come on Marlene was way better than Tess.

Also I agree with Kreia, one of the best antagonists and females of all time. Based obsidian.

 

[Kinyou]

You said it's a core theme in MGS that female soldiers die like every other soldier. But this simply isn't true, because every single woman is a Special Snowflake who dies an emotional, dialogue-filled death, whereas the random shmucks you gun down regularly are all men. Maybe you're right and it is a prominent theme, but it's a rather ironic one given the noticeable lack of killable female enemies.

There are Liquid ocelot's "frogs" an all female special unit that serve as normal canon fodder in mgs4 and die like every other soldier (well okay, their suit instantly turns them into ash, but that's more of a sci fi schtick). Overall you're right though.

Edit: just noticed that you already covered that, my bad.

 

[Admiral Woofington]

Jade from Beyond Good and Evil for me.

 

[TheRedSnifit]

There are Liquid ocelot's "frogs" an all female special unit that serve as normal canon fodder in mgs4 and die like every other soldier (well okay, their suit instantly turns them into ash, but that's more of a sci fi schtick). Overall you're right though.

I said aside from MGS4. There's certainly improvement there.

 

[Disgraced]

 

[urge26]

for fucks sake, can I just enjoy Tess and Ellie for the great characters they are? Jesus..... does it even need to be broken down? christ.

 

[viveks86]

no...

I mean characters who are actually respectable, good role models, not silly fodder for the typical male gamer...not "your favorite female character"

characters todays women can enjoy and look up to.

female roles that feminists can't get offended by and are content...

I don't think lara croft (remake) is that great, but i'm sure shes peoples' favorite

Yeah. To be honest, I don't even think the new Lara Croft is a good example of representation of women in video games. There really is nothing more to her past the inexperienced-affluent-person-turns-survivor narrative. I'd expect such characters to have more depth to be called a great example. Lara was an inoffensive representation of an action heroine at best, but she gets all the attention because of her iconic status.

 

[Monocle]

Just quoting this awesome post for the new page

Thanks!

 

[jtb]

Kreia's also a great female character (as in, she's not just a well written male character that happens to be skinned as a female) because she takes on a role pretty uncommon in video game women: that of a mother, as opposed to damsel in distress or romantic interest.

 

[DedValve]

for fucks sake, can I just enjoy Tess and Ellie for the great characters they are? Jesus..... does it even need to be broken down? christ.

What? These are great female characters that help the representation of females in gaming and this thread serves to commend the positive female tropes in these games, if this bugs you then maybe just post what you think is a positive female or move along? You can totally enjoy Tess and Ellie for who they are, no one is twisting your arm...

 

[DOWN]

Bonnie MacFarlane

Sweet, strong, and independent, but not detached from kindness by any means.


Also, shoutout to OP for a great thread.

 

[TheRedSnifit]

What? These are great female characters that help the representation of females in gaming and this thread serves to commend the positive female tropes in these games, if this bugs you then maybe just post what you think is a positive female or move along? You can totally enjoy Tess and Ellie for who they are, no one is twisting your arm...

I think he's got more of an issue with the whole "Are they the BEST EVER?!" thing the OP started with, implying that we have to rank everything.

 

[Neiteio]

Bonnie MacFarlane

Sweet, strong, and independent, but not detached from kindness by any means.

Yeah, she was a great character in a game full of great characters.

 

[Bardiche]

SNK women.

Vanessa, Leona, Blue Mary, Foxy, King, Yuri, Shermie, May Lee, Chizuru, Hinako.

Yes, SNK women are unique representations especially King, Chizuru, and Shermie.
I would also add Vice and Mature to this list. Mature uses seduction and her slashes to kill her opponents while remaining classy. Vice tells her opponents that she hates their faces before powerbombing them and throwing them across the stage.

 

[jetsetrez]

She never gets mentioned in these discussions I assume because it's such a niche game and you don't meet her until the second one in the series, but without a doubt, the strongest, best representation of a woman I have ever seen in a game is Kaoru Sayama from Yakuza 2. Without question.

She is smarter and more determined than all of the men surrounding her, and has to be ten times tougher because nearly everyone she has to deal with is a womanizer, criminal, brutish mobster type. And she's not just the badass woman archetype either, she is tough, but also has weaknesses and nuance. Her dialog is extremely well-written and the romance between her and Kazuma that develops is some of the smartest, most human drama ever done in games. People think of Yakuza as just a beat em up, but there is more dialog and character building in the series than almost anything else in games.

 

[Forceatowulf]

Ellie, Clementine, and The Boss are the GOATS for me.

 

[HeelPower]

Maria from Silent Hill 2 is one of the greatest and gets too little credit.

Amusing,menacing and confusing character all through the game and "Born From A Wish" only adds more to her character.

She's also strongly related to the protagonist's sexuality yet is never degraded to some kind of eye candy for the player.

Her visual design is also nuanced to a great degree.She's a character that completely stands out when it comes to females in gaming and her execution is perfect.

 

[Mr. X]

The Boss is one of the best characters, let alone "women".

Bayonetta is a great female representative. There's a lot in her details.

 

[SRTtoZ]

Seriously, how is this even a question???

 

[botty]

Aqua from Kingdom Hearts.

If someone disagrees then I will explains why, but since no rational person would I'll just stop here.

 

[REV 09]

Ellie uses a little too much foul language. It's clever at first and builds her character, but at a point in the game she says a "bad" word after nearly every kill...kinda seemed forced. Tess was ok though, but she didn't make a big impact on me.

I really liked Elizabeth from Infinite and Kat from Halo Reach was a another strong female.

 

[casiopao]

I am kinda confused here. Does perfect representation of woman must be woman who is powerful, smart and independent?

Does woman who does not have any of that trait means she is not what true woman is?

 

[Renekton]

OT a bit, should we open a "realistic" male protagonist thread?

It will be interesting to talk about male protagonists that aren't as hypercompetent as Joel, Master Chief, Jason Brody and Leon Kennedy.

 

[Monocle]

Ellie uses a little too much foul language. It's clever at first and builds her character, but at a point in the game she says a "bad" word after nearly every kill...kinda seemed forced. Tess was ok though, but she didn't make a big impact on me.

I really liked Elizabeth from Infinite and Kat from Halo Reach was a another strong female.

(ACTUAL HALO REACH SPOILERS)

Spoiler

Yeah, until she got domed out of nowhere. I was pissed, let me tell you. She should have been the last character standing, not whatshisname with the edgy skull helmet.

 

[Kintaro]

The greatest of all time: Kreia

We are done here. The Boss comes second, but we are done with Kreia. Amazing that no one puts her on a pillar as one of the best character of any gender, in any game. Ever.

 

[REV 09]

(ACTUAL HALO REACH SPOILERS)

Spoiler

Yeah, until she got domed out of nowhere. I was pissed, let me tell you. She should have been the last character standing, not whatshisname with the edgy skull helmet.

That kind of made her even less cliche though. She was really well done and likable in her silent strength.

 

[RMI]

Bonnie MacFarlane

My favorite character in the whole damn game.

 

[viveks86]

I am kinda confused here. Does perfect representation of woman must be woman who is powerful, smart and independent?

Does woman who does not have any of that trait means she is not what true woman is?

Please provide an example to make your case.

 

[Spring-Loaded]

The only game where Samus gets any real characterization is Other M. And it's offensive, misogynistic garbage.

She got minimal characterization in other games, mainly in Fusion, with her data logs. An extension of that Samus would've been great, but it didn't happen with MOM

She never gets mentioned in these discussions I assume because it's such a niche game and you don't meet her until the second one in the series, but without a doubt, the strongest, best representation of a woman I have ever seen in a game is Kaoru Sayama from Yakuza 2. Without question.

She is smarter and more determined than all of the men surrounding her, and has to be ten times tougher because nearly everyone she has to deal with is a womanizer, criminal, brutish mobster type. And she's not just the badass woman archetype either, she is tough, but also has weaknesses and nuance. Her dialog is extremely well-written and the romance between her and Kazuma that develops is some of the smartest, most human drama ever done in games. People think of Yakuza as just a beat em up, but there is more dialog and character building in the series than almost anything else in games.

It's criminal — CRIMINAL — that she

Spoiler

only makes a small cameo in 3 after that.

 

[DOWN]

(ACTUAL HALO REACH SPOILERS)

Spoiler

Yeah, until she got domed out of nowhere. I was pissed, let me tell you. She should have been the last character standing, not whatshisname with the edgy skull helmet.

I don't think she had an unfair

Spoiler

death. It came right after she was the mission lead on coordinating the protection of New Alexandria. She was a huge hero and went out as one. Her death was no less significant than the one's that happened off screen.

damn they need to hurry on that Reach remaster (you know it's gonna happen if you look at the sales figures for each Halo title).

 

[Touch fuzZy. get BizZay]

I am kinda confused here. Does perfect representation of woman must be woman who is powerful, smart and independent?

Does woman who does not have any of that trait means she is not what true woman is?

I think powerful and brave or shy and mild mannered could both work. It's more about the character having depth to them and being likable...

 

[Tidus_Great]

obviously the boss. her speech at the end of MGS3 made millions cry. Beautiful character and the voice acting was just perfect for her.

 

[DR2K]

Basically any female covered up and semi unattractive is a good representation for women.

 

[synce]

It's funny, two of gaming's greatest female characters are from 2013 games and both are based on Ellen Page (TLOU's Ellie and Beyond's Jodie)

 

[Piston Hyundai]

Basically any female covered up and semi unattractive is a good representation for women.

Really?

Anyway, I always thought that Rhonda in Dead Rising 3 was pretty likeable and kick-ass, especially towards the end when

Spoiler

she gets her new arm

.

 

[Hero]

Does anyone know exactly how many video games were released before TLoU? Because it seems ridiculous to even pose this question with any amount of seriousness.

There were plenty of excellent female characters that existed before TLoU and how do either character best represent women? All women aren't the same.

 

[Monocle]

That kind of made her even less cliche though. She was really well done and likable in her silent strength.

I don't think she had an unfair

Spoiler

death. It came right after she was the mission lead on coordinating the protection of New Alexandria. She was a huge hero and went out as one. Her death was no less significant than the one's that happened off screen.

damn they need to hurry on that Reach remaster (you know it's gonna happen if you look at the sales figures for each Halo title).

I completely agree and at the same time I'm sad and disappointed.

 

[InsaneTiger]

Chris from Suikoden III is probably my favorite female protagonist, design and personality wise. She's awesome.

Thank you for mentioning Suikoden. Chris is a great character indeed.