Videogames have been around for a long time now, longer than most of the readers reading this article have been alive. Over the years, it has managed to come out as an respectable art form and there has been plenty of masterpieces along the way that has cemented the medium’s position as one.
However, there are games that try to take it all away by coming up with obnoxiously designed female characters that stand out as just being there to provide a stimulating experience to anyone who gets turned on by viewing half-naked animated female models.
We look at some of the worst offenders today in the list below –
Princess Daphne – Dragon’s Lair (1983)
Dragon’s Lair was one of the hardest arcade games around back when it released. The game wasn’t bad and provided decent amounts of challenge for the players. The plot wasn’t anything extraordinary with you needing to save a damsel in distress. In this case, it was a princess named Daphne.
What stood out though was how she was portrayed in the game. Daphne was clothed with ample amounts of her assets popping out and players usually were rewarded with a good view whenever you encountered her in-game. It wouldn’t take a genius to figure out what actually went into the design process for this character.
Amazon – Dragon’s Crown (2013)
Inspired by Golden Axe, this game wasn’t bad by any means and actually was fun to play. However, you couldn’t help but notice the over the top character designs in the game. While the heroes were designed as the definition of being bulky and strong, which would put even the best superheroes to shame, the female characters were made keeping the pervert in mind.
The designs made no sense as although you were supposed to wear armors, all the female characters were scantily clad with their out of proportion assets on display for all. Amazon in particular was the perfect example of objectification of female characters that was apparent in this game.
Cleopatra – Dante’s Inferno (2010)
Dante’s Inferno was based on Dante’s Divine Comedy and followed the protagonist’s through the circles of Hell. The game obviously had its fair share of monsters and oddly designed characters which should not come as much of a surprise considering you ventured through Hell of all places.
However, you can’t help but notice how one of the game’s villains was designed. Once you reach the second circle of Hell called Lust, you encounter Cleopatra, a almost nude, giant-bodied undead female character that takes objectification to another level altogether.
You can’t help but think what actually went into the design process and who came up with this abomination of a design. Not only is this character disgusting to look at, the ample skin show only make matters worse.
The sexiest of all…
Rainbow Mika – Street Fighter V (2015)
Rainbow Mika first appeared in Street Fighter 3 back in 1998. She wasn’t the epitome of objectification of women in videogames back then. Things have changed drastically though with her entry into Capcom’s latest Street Fighter game: Street Fighter V.
Not only has she gone through a drastic makeover which makes her a lot more scantily clad than before but she actually had an animation in the game that sees her executing a butt-slap upon herself. Common sense prevailed in the end and the sequence was chopped off from the final version.
That doesn’t excuse the creators for coming up with this heavily sexualized version of this female fighter. Fighting games are known to feature women who seem to have a knack for wearing small clothes but this is on another level all together.
Quiet – Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (2015)
Hideo Kojima is considered a genius by many. His Metal Gear Solid franchise is counted among the greatest videogame series of all time and not without reasons. The guy has his own way of creating amazing cutscenes and characters that feel believable yet weird at the same time.
However, Kojima outdid himself coming up with Quiet, the nearly naked female companion of Big Boss in Metal Gear Solid V. I know some of you will say “but the game explains why she is dressed that way”. Yeah, I know as per the story she dresses that way since she can breathe only through her skin thanks to a nasty chemical reaction she was exposed to.
This is totally not just a lame excuse to put in a nearly naked female character in a videogame which is otherwise dominated by macho men. I mean, that’s such a in-depth backstory that no one should feel otherwise. Right?
Nariko, Heavenly Sword
I have to admit, having a female character as the main lead of a videogame isn’t easy. When Heavenly Sword released, it’s developers had to make sure she got the attention of gamers to stand out in order for the game to do well.
What better way than to dress her up with a transparent curtain type clothing that just covers enough to leave some things to your imagination. Playing as the semi-naked hero didn’t really help the game as although it showed promise, it never really took off and ended up being a dud. Serves the developers right for thinking that, just by coming up with a half naked female lead, would ensure good sales. If only they had put even half the efforts in coming up with a better game. Things could have been different.
Here are our picks for some of the most embarrassingly dressed female characters in videogames. We know there are plenty more and hope that this idiotic trend ceases to exist soon.
Games have more to them than just scantily clad female characters.