Whether your gaming days are long behind you or you’re still an active gamer, there will always be characters that instantly stick out in your memory. Some video game characters have become so ingrained into pop culture that you can buy merchandise with them on and make references that a majority of people will understand. However, if you don’t think that you’ll be able to recall any video gaming characters, this list is here to prove you wrong!
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Mario
The most famous brother out of the Super Mario Bros., leaving Luigi as the lesser appreciated of the two – Mario is the product of Nintendo and was one of their first protagonists in any of their games.
Released first in 1983, Mario was formerly the protagonist of the arcade game Mario Bros., where players could use a joystick to move Mario through levels to try and save his love interest Peach from the claws of the monster Bowser.
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Mario is a likable and approachable character that has now featured in several games, with many of these games still in production – meaning that regardless of your generation, you likely know who Mario is.
Lara Croft
First appearing in the 1996 version of Tomb Raider, Lara Croft is the femme fatale protagonist who navigates hazardous and dangerous tombs across the globe.
The highly intelligent English archaeologist was made an orphan at 11, following her father’s murder and this spurred her into exploring a range of untouched sites in the search for answers to what happened to her father.
Lara Croft’s story has since been developed into Tomb Raider films, casino games like the Tomb Raider Mr play game and is speculated to have an upcoming anime release – so for fans of Lara Croft, 2021 holds exciting times.
Pacman
Everyone’s favourite yellow spherical ball, Pacman is the staple arcade game. First created in 1980 as an arcade game, Pacman has since been developed into console, mobile, and computer editions.
Pacman’s goal in each game is to evade the ghosts who aim to kill him, whilst munching on square-shaped ‘points’ until he reaches the finish. This game has always been a source of harmless escapism and has allowed the game to become a cultural phenomenon due to its simplicity and addictive nature.
With Pacman being a modern staple of gaming, it is likely that you know this character and have played the game yourself!
Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog is an anthropomorphic hedgehog that has immense levels of speed and uses these to evade villains such as Doctor Eggman to help save his furry friends from danger. Famous for his electric blue fur, Sonic the Hedgehog is perhaps a misrepresentation of his name due to his un-hedgehog-like characteristics.
Sonic was developed by Sega in 1991 and has been available across almost every gaming platform ever released, including PS Vita’s, Wii’s, and mobile phones.
With the Sonic film released in 2020, mixed reviews as to the quality of the film have been raised, leaving fans awaiting promising celebratory game releases in honour of the character’s 30th birthday upcoming.
Link- Gaming Characters
Link is the protagonist within the Legend of Zelda series where he is often thrust into a mysteriously dangerous position and has to resolve the danger in order to protect Princess Zelda from harm.
First, appearing in 1996, Link has become one of the most famous characters of all time due to his likability and charm, yet also the way in which characters can play as him and navigate the thrilling and often mysterious journey towards Death Mountain so that he can conquer the monster and protect the kingdom of Hyrule.
With Legend of Zelda games still in regular production, Link has become a cult favourite and will likely continue to appear in games regularly within the coming years.
Scorpion
The mascot character of the game Mortal Kombat, Scorpion is an undead masked ninja seeking his revenge over Quan Chi for his death by fighting with other characters until he reaches his vengeance.
Being one of the original seven playable characters in the first game in the franchise, released in 1992, Scorpion is perhaps the most iconic character within the series. Over time, Scorpion has developed from a pixellated character played through a Game Boy, to a 4K animated character played through a PS5 – Scorpion has seen some of the most design changes throughout his lifetime.
With the release of the upcoming Mortal Kombat film on the horizon, Scorpion will hit the silver screen for the first time – leaving avid fans in anticipation of his presentation.
