Today is International Women’s Day, and considering all that’s happened in the past few years, from Gamergate to the #metoo movement, I think it’s important to recognize that while things seem to be changing for the better, there’s still a lot of work that needs to be done.
But we’re a video game board, and women in video games have been paving the way for decades now, both as stars of the games and behind the scenes. Maybe more than ever, we need to look at positive representation of women in gaming, so… Let’s talk about some of our favourite ladies!
Samus Aran - First appearance in Metroid, 1986 (Famicom Disk System)
Samus is probably my favourite female character. She’s a bounty hunter, which is a completely badass profession, and in the first game, there’s absolutely no attention drawn to her gender. Later games would explore the idea of Samus as a surrogate mother, which is a very neat twist in way that further empowers her, and results in a great payoff in Super Metroid. The less said about her characterization in “Other M”, the better.
Rosella Graham - First appearance in King’s Quest III - To Heir is Human, 1986 (PC, Apple, Amiga, Mac)
Despite first appearing as the typical “Damsel in Distress” in King’s Quest 3, Rosella got a starring role in the followup. Roberta Williams, a pioneer in video games, wrote the game which sees Rosella off on an adventure to save her father from a mysterious illness. What’s particularly telling about this game is that before the adventure begins, Rosella is warned that her trip to a faraway land to find the fruit that will save her father is almost assuredly a one way trip: nevertheless she agrees despite the near impossible task before her. Unfortunately, Rosella’s next starring role in King’s Quest VII would see her character reduced from the strong selfless young woman she was, to a whiny narcissistic “valley-girl” stereotype.
Terra Branford - First appearance in Final Fantasy VI, 1994 (Super Nintendo)
The first female protagonist in the Final Fantasy series, FF6 starts with an empire that is terrified of the power that Terra possesses, so much so that they’ve controlled her mind. A powerful magician, Terra would go on to join forces with one of the best ensemble casts in video games, but it’s always clear who’s the driving force behind the struggle against Kefka.
Lara Croft - First appearance in Tomb Raider, 1996 (PC, Sega Saturn, Sony Playstation)
Lara Croft is an interesting one: one could argue that she became famous outside of gaming circles because of her appearance, but that shouldn’t take away from the fact that Lara is an accomplished character in her own right. Not only is she fearless when exploring ancient tombs, but even in the earliest games, she’s shown as extremely intelligent, a fact that some people tend to forget when seeing pictures of her. Alicia Vikander, who is playing Lara in the new Tomb Raider reboot movie releasing this month, mentioned recently in an interview that as a 10 year old girl, she was blown away when she saw boys her age playing an action video game starring a female character.
Jill Valentine - First appearance in Resident Evil, 1996 (Sony Playstation, Sega Saturn, PC)
Another 1996 appearance, this time from Capcom. Jill Valentine is one of two main characters in Resident Evil. From a strict gameplay point of view, she’s the more capable of the two protagonists, being able to carry more items and pick locks (Sure Chris is stronger with the knife). The Resident Evil series would go on to feature a series of strong female characters, both heroes and villains, but the “Master of Unlocking” started the trend back during the first game.
Aloy - First appearance in Horizon: Zero Dawn, 2017 (Playstation 4)
Okay, so this is RETRO Game Boards, so I’m cheating a bit here, but I absolutely loved Horizon Zero Dawn, and in particular Aloy. She starts the game as a strong willed and defiant character, but really grows into something more (Trying to avoid spoilers here). Interesting enough, more is told about Aloy’s character through how other characters view her throughout the game. There’s been a lot of criticism of Aloy since the game released: she’s Unlikeable, too generic, not cute enough (I wish I was making that up), but I was extremely impressed by her writing and acting.
So, there’s a bunch of words about some of the pioneers of Video Game Ladies… Who’re some of your favourite characters and why?
