Gaming gives us that rare opportunity to be presented with challenges as someone else. I’ve been there since the SNES days, the Megadrive blowing into the cartridge days, and more recently, the waiting for a double disk game to download so I can play it – here’s looking at you, Red Dead. 

But something that has always lured me into to a game is having a female character I can relate to. Why would I want to go on a deadly mission for a character I cannot see myself in?

So, I’m taking a journey through my top playable female characters in games.
Content warning – sweary Joanne. 

Impa – The Legend of Zelda

Playing Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity taught me something… it should be called The Legend of Impa, not Zelda. Impa is a character that gets reinvented over and over for each rendition of Link’s journey. In Ocarina of Time, Impa is the nursemaid of the child Princess Zelda. In Breath of the Wild, she leads the Sheikah as a wise woman. Rewind 100 years to Age of Calamity and Impa is at her finest. Arguably the most powerful playable character in Age of Calamity, Impa is not only as cute as fuck, she is a badass who protects all others, wields a giant bone crushing frog and does it with absolute fucking style. 

Senua – Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice

Released in 2017, scooping a shit tonne of Gaming BAFTAs, HellBlade: Senua’s Sacrifice follows a young pagan woman as she searches Hell for a lost love, battling the forces of her mind to make it there. The psychosis that plagues Senua is weaved into the gameplay. You hear what she hears, feel what she feels. Senua believes the condition to be a curse. She also battles with memories, hallucinations and the trauma of being abused by her father – all on her journey to save Dillion from the Goddess Hela. Not only does Senua show the strength of female courage, she shows the strength of those suffering from mental health conditions. She teaches you that threats can come from inside the mind as well as Hell itself, but the power of self will get you through the darkest days. 

Bayonetta – Bayonetta!

What I love about Bayonetta is her highly feminised design. She is the sexy librarian who moonlights as a demon fighter after she tucks her books in at night. Bayonetta is one of only two surviving Umbra Witches, wields 4 fucking guns and a wicked sense of humour. Bayonetta is also the inspiration for another Joanne… Lady Gaga. Gaga credits Bayonetta in her song “Rain on Me” and it’s not difficult to see how the character inspired the successful artist.

The Last of Us 2 - Ellie

More recently, 2020 saw the sequel to the amazing zombie-killing-end-of-the-world game The Last of Us. The sequel picks up where the first part left off. Ellie, originally a side character in the first game, seeks revenge. A lot of controversy revolves around Ellie being gay but fuck knows why. Early on, the game suffered at the hands of review bombers who pushed its ranking down to 3.4 out of 10 on Metacritic due to them disliking the “social justice warrior politics” but go fuck yourselves. What the game really shows is the human condition from a perspective not explored in much gaming. It gave people like me someone to relate to… and it scooped 10 awards at the Game Awards 2020 so all I can say is haters gonna hate and I’m just gonna shake it off.

Celeste – Animal Crossing

Although not a playable character (yet), Celeste needs a mention. She’s a bit of a change of pace from the blood covered ladies above, but Celeste represents women in science to me. She is Animal Crossing’s answer to Neil deGrasse-Tyson. She is the star-gazing expert in the game and most recently in New Horizons, she helps players by teaching them about star fragments and various DIY recipes to create some great gear – like the Luna Rover, an astronaut suit and the actual Moon.

“So when I look up at the stars, I just wonder...what will they all become someday?” ― Celeste, New Leaf

I always love starting recommendation conversations, so if you have any woman gaming characters, feel free to mention them. We owe it to ourselves to elevate these characters to show the gaming industry that women deserve a role in their plots.

Article by Joanne Askew

Joanne Askew is a Science Fiction and Horror writer. She explores mental health issues, sexual identity, and disability through sci-fi and horror. She often shows weaknesses as strengths at the end of the world. As an LGBTQIA+ activist, she believes that fiction will make our world a better place to come out in.

www.jaskewauthor.com

@J_Askew_Author