28 Best Video Games With Female Protagonists (2024)

There can be no denying that, in the past, women in video games have been overlooked at best and poorly written fan service at worst. Thankfully, though, things are now changing. Developers and publishers are realizing that women actually do play games, are worth writing about, and games with female protagonists do sell.

Female protagonists are part of a growing trend in video games as developers look to branch away from the burly macho men of yesteryear. As always, the indie scene is also doing a fantastic job of providing us with layered and flawed characters. So, with that in mind, let’s take a look at some great games with equally great female protagonists.

Updated on March 14, 2024, by Dennis Moiseyev: As female protagonists continue to evolve across all genres of games in both Triple-A and indie spheres, thanks to their characters and stories finally receiving the justice they deserve from the industry, you now have plenty of options to consider. This list has been updated with even more games that feature some of the strongest, most badass, and incredible women taking charge.

28 Returnal

Selene Vassos

When you think of really good roguelikes, your mind might drift to titles like Hades, Dead Cells, and Slay the Spire. PlayStation and Housemarque's Returnal, however, adds some excellent female representation to the genre, having you play as astronaut Selene Vassos (voiced by Hitman's Jane Perry), who must unfold dual mysteries while on a planet affected by a time loop.

Selene was following a signal known as 'The White Shadow,' which is how every loop starts. Part of that mystery is tied to an accident and a strange home popping up throughout the loops that certainly doesn't belong on the alien planet. Atropos is also filled with alien swarms that attack Selene in bullet-hell-like fashion and has many bosses for her to fight on her quest for answers.

27 Control

Jesse Faden

When looking at the totality of Remedy games, the studio had a track record for creating hard-broiled male protagonists. That changed in 2019 when Control launched and delivered one of the most daring and courageous female characters ever to ascend to the Federal Bureau of Control's Director position and be equipped with some intense gravity-defying powers.

You'll have a literal blast playing as Jesse Faden, using her unique weapon and upgrades to combat the paranatural entities known as the Hiss that are on the loose at the FBC while also hoping to get some answers about her brother Dylan. The game stars Courtney Hope (also Beth Wilder in Quantum Break) and shares many connections with Alan Wake's universe.

26 A Plague Tale Series

Amicia de Rune

Amicia de Rune and Amanda Ripley can really compete for who's better at keeping their wits about them in a stealth horror gameplay environment. Amicia, however, has to deal with unbelievably large swarms of killer rats and Inquisitor soldiers, all while being a big sister and protecting her brother Hugo from harm the entire game.

Both A Plague Tale: Innocence and A Plague Tale: Requiem are stunning and harrowing adventures across the medieval rat-filled landscape, offering some of the best graphics and set pieces for a Double-A title. The story is also one of the most emotional in gaming, rivaling that of The Last of Us, with Amicia and Hugo's performances worthy of taking home Oscars.

25 Alan Wake 2

Saga Anderson

While it still might have 'Alan Wake' in the title, the official sequel to Remedy's 2010 horror game largely focuses on Saga Anderson's role in helping Alan escape from the Dark Place. Saga is as much the heart of the narrative as Alan and his wife Alice, a playable FBI agent investigating Bright Falls and Wake's disappearance while also piecing together her life and trying to save her daughter.

Saga and Alan's gameplay is split up into separate 'Return' and 'Initiation' chapters, following the manuscript design of the story. There are lots of interesting twists and revelations that all connect toward the end. Inspired by Silent Hill, Alan Wake 2's horror atmosphere is not playing around, so you can definitely say Saga gets more than she signed up for when she joined the agency.

24 Oxenfree Series

Riley And Alex

On the surface, Oxenfree might seem like a cute little game with puzzles, branching decision-based dialogue, and a unique watercolor art style, but it's such a deep game that explores many relatable issues in life with two relatable female protagonists. Teenager Alex leads the first game, while a much older and more experienced Riley is the newcomer in the sequel, Lost Signals.

This series is the epitome of showcasing exceptionally well-written female characters. Alex grieves the loss of her brother and struggles with friendships and finding meaning in her life, whereas Riley Poverly has some years on Alex and still feels stuck in life, questioning her career choices and wrestling with her future parental struggles. Even Olivia, the antagonist in the second game, has sympathetic motives that will elicit the emotions of players.

23 Night In The Woods

Mae Borowski

The protagonist of Night in the Woods is Mae Borowski, a 20-something college dropout who finds herself back in her hometown of Possum Springs after struggling with her mental health. Despite the cast of characters being anthropomorphic animals, Night in the Woods explores a variety of important themes and messages, and does so with great care.

Mae in particular has resonated with fans of the game, as her struggles are realistic and relatable. Her character drives the plot as she reconnects with the people of Possum Springs, and discovers just how much has changed since she left home.

22 Final Fantasy 6

Terra And Celes

The Final Fantasy series has treated us to some excellent female party members over the years, but it's rare to see one given a starring role. That's not to say it never happens though, with the Final Fantasy 13 trilogy and the Yuffie DLC for Final Fantasy 7 Remake serving as a testament to that. The pick of the bunch, however, is undoubtedly Final Fantasy 6, which as well as being one of the series' very best entries, features not one, but two female leads.

Terra's struggle to come to terms with the revelations about her lineage and past allows you to get a better idea of her mental strength, while her physical strength is on display right from the beginning of the game. Likewise, Celes' time on the island with Cid also serves as a test of her mental toughness and her ability to move past her depression and reunite the party ultimately serves as the catalyst for Kefka's downfall.

21 Portal 2

Chell

Valve doesn't make new games all that often since the creation of Steam, but, when it does, they tend to be good ones. The first Portal game was a wonderfully written physics-based adventure that captivated gamers everywhere and its sequel was even better. For as enjoyable as the gameplay and puzzles in the titles are, however, the games' biggest strength is arguably the captivating relationship between their protagonist, Chell, and the psychotic AI system, GLaDOS.

As a silent protagonist, it would be easy to discount Chell as a bit of a nothing character, but there's a lot more to her than first meets the eyes or ears. Despite the barrage of barbed insults that GLaDOS hurls at her and the apparent hopelessness of her situation, she just keeps on testing in the hopes of somehow finding freedom. This perseverance eventually pays off in what ends up being a thrilling and fast-paced climax.

20 The Walking Dead

Clementine

She doesn't become the focal point of the Telltale series until the second season, but Clementine is often considered the best part of the games. Even after Telltale closed down, Robert Kirkman helped get a group together to finish the game so fans could find closure for Clementine's arc.

In the first season, Lee takes care of Clementine, and then when he passes away, Clementine has to find her own journey and eventually takes care of a younger kid the same way Lee took care of her.

19 Assassin's Creed Syndicate

Evie Frye

Assassin's Creed Syndicate focuses on two protagonists, Evie and Jacob Frye. Evie is the older twin sister of Jacob. She is a British assassin who was active during the Victorian era.

Evie quickly became a fan-favorite character and has remained one of the most popular characters in the series. While she doesn't have the whole game to herself, she does have a lot of memorable moments and scenes in Syndicate that make playing it worthwhile.

18 Resident Evil 3

Jill Valentine

A remake of Resident Evil 3 followed in the footsteps of the Resident Evil 2 remake, with Jill Valentine taking the lead role alongside Carlos Oliveira. Like Clare, Jill has always been a very popular character in the series. In the remake, you play as Jill after she is attacked in her apartment by an intelligent bioweapon called Nemesis.

The game is about Jill's escape from Raccoon City and the pursuit by Nemesis that almost kills her. Some reviewers have called Resident Evil 3 as strong of a remake as Resident Evil 2, but play for yourself and find out which you prefer!

17 Half-Life: Alyx

Alyx Vance

Half-Life: Alyx is a VR game in the popular Half-Life series that follows Alyx Vance's journey. You control Alyx, humanity's only chance at survival, as she tries to help the resistance take down the Combine once and for all.

The game is set in between the first Half-Life and the second. Alyx will need to team up with her father, Dr. Eli Vance, and many other allies.

16 Bright Memory

Sheila

Bright Memory is a first-person shooter and hack-and-slash game that features a protagonist named Sheila, who works for the Science Research Organization. Her goal is to try and prevent a military organization from reawakening the dead.

It takes place in a riveting and graphically gorgeous location called "Land of Sky," which is home to many ancient beings. The game received excellent reviews upon its launch.

15 Mirror's Edge: Catalyst

Faith Connors

Faith Connors is the protagonist of the Mirror's Edge video game series. She appeared in the original game and its reboot, Mirror's Edge: Catalyst.

Her role in the game is that of a "Runner," which is someone who transports necessary items to groups trying to hide from the controlling government system. She has incredible abilities and complex storylines in the games.

14 Silent Hill 3

Heather Mason

Silent Hill is a beloved survival horror series with some of the most disturbing imagery in the genre. Silent Hill 3 is a direct sequel to the first game, although it is the third overall.

You take on the role of Heather Mason, the daughter of Harry Mason, the protagonist of the first game. As Heather tries to find her father, the world around her begins to shift into something much darker and more sinister, and the reality around her begins to fracture.

13 Resident Evil 2

Claire Redfield

Resident Evil 2 received rave reviews when it launched and it even won multiple Game of the Year awards. This shouldn't come as much of a surprise considering how well-made the game was. It has two protagonists in Leon S. Kennedy and Claire Redfield.

Claire has long been considered an iconic video game character, especially in the Resident Evil series. She's a renowned badass who people can't help but love. In this game, you get to help her escape Raccoon City from the plague of infected.

12 Assassin's Creed Odyssey

Kassandra

Assassin's Creed Odyssey is one of the few games in the series that lets you choose to play as a woman for the entirety of the game. Kassandra is easily the most popular option, too.

While you can choose between her or Alexios, it seems like most players strongly prefer Kassandra. In terms of her character design and the voice acting, she is a very strong choice. Another plus for the game is that it introduces romance options and you can choose to make your character a member of the LGBTQ+ community if you want.

11 The Last Of Us Part 2

Ellie Williams

Where the first The Last of Us game was, for all intents and purposes, a story about Joel as he came to terms with the loss of his daughter and learned to love again, the sequel instead focuses on Ellie's struggles to accept the brutal reality of the new world. She's not the only strong female protagonist in the game though, as you also spend quite a bit of time in the shoes of the game's main antagonist, Abbie.

Some of the events in the game didn't sit well with everyone, nor was Abbie a particularly popular character. Even so, her inclusion allowed the developers to tell a very different type of story than the one found in the first game, with viewers encouraged to reexamine their thoughts about Joel and Ellie. Perspective can sometimes be incredibly important, and that's definitely the case when looking at events through Abbie's eyes.

10 Tales Of Berseria

Velvet Crowe

The first game in the Tales series to feature a female protagonist is also the best Tales game in years. Tales of Berseria tells the story of Velvet Crowe, who grows up in a quiet village that is soon ravaged by daemons brought on by an event known as Daemonblight.

This event causes Velvet to be possessed and mutate into a sort of daemon-eating daemon who hunts daemons. But what allows Velvet to stand out is the fact that she’s your unconventional female JRPG character, taking on the archetypically male role of an aggressive, bloodthirsty, revenge-driven monster slayer.

9 Tomb Raider

Lara Croft

While the original Tomb Raider games did feature a tough female protagonist, she was also skimpily-clad and busty. The newest incarnation of Lara Croft is a well-proportioned, slightly more suitably-dressed young woman who goes beyond simply being the ‘strong female protagonist’ and moves into the realm of being a fully realized character who is flawed, makes mistakes, takes risks, makes judgment calls, learns, grows, changes, and becomes a better version of herself. She is incredibly human.

The game certainly struggles with a lot of narrative dissonance as Lara gets teary-eyed over killing a dear in a cutscene only to then silently mow down several human beings with an automatic rifle 30 minutes later, but that’s a mechanical oversight rather than bad writing. Lara is still excellent.

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