Recommend games w/ independent female characters

[leic7]

Hi everyone, I'm currently looking for recommendations for games to try. Platform and genre are not an issue. But, I'd like games with interesting, independent, and progressive-minded main female characters, who are NOT damsels in distress and/or ready to throw herself all over the male lead at first sight.

I know there are a lot of games I've never even heard of, so I'd appreciate any suggestions

Just to give an idea of what I mean by "interesting" by my standards, here are some examples of those characters:

Xiu Ying, Joy - Shenmue 2 (dreamcast)
Hana - Fear Effect (psx)
Jade - Beyond Good & Evil (xbox1)
Nariko, Kai - Heavenly Sword (ps3)
Selvaria - Valkyria Chronicles (ps3)
Tetra - Legend of Zelda Wind Waker (gamecube)
KOS-MOS, Shion - Xenosaga (ps2)
Nel, Clair - Star Ocean Til the End of Time (ps2)
Lara Croft - Tomb Raider Underworld (xbox360)
Liara, Shepard - Mass Effect (xbox360)
Aria "Queen of Omega" - Mass Effect 2 (xbox360)
Jennifer, Wendy - Rule of Rose (ps2)
P.F. the interactive digital assistant - Fragile Dreams (wii)
Elena Fisher - Uncharted (ps3)

And then examples of characters I'm _not_ impressed with:

Fiora - Xenoblade Chronicles
Zelda - Skyward Sword

so hopefully you see where I draw the line at "damsels in distress" and throwing herself all over the male lead.

 

[princefarzan]

*Looks through list and doesn't find "Alyx Vance - Half Life 2"*... *Tries to comprehend this fact*... *faints*

 

[Jax]

Lightning - Final Fantasy XIII
Ayla and Lucca - Chrono Trigger
Alyx Vance - Half-Life 2
Chell - Portal
Samus Aran - Metroid

 

[Tom Bombadildo]

I'M A STRONG INDEPENDENT BLACK WOMAN WHO DON'T NEED NO MAN!

On topic, Alyx Vance from HL2 is a great example of this...umm...I dunno, the ones listed are kinda the ones I think of right away.

 

[lufere7]

Rin - Fate/Stay Night
Tsugumi - Ever17
Shiki - TWEWY
Celes - FFVI

And also samus, shepard and chell which were already mentioned.

 

[Gahars]

Huh. You seem to have some oddly specific tastes in games.

Well, if you like the characters in Mass Effect, then I'm sure you'll be set with other Bioware games like Dragon Age (or KOTOR if you don't mind playing a game that's a bit older). They have plenty.

Beyond that, there's also Bethesda. Their Fallout (And the original games as well, I presume) and Elder Scrolls games also feature a plethora of characters who would fit your description.

 

[TripleSMoon]

I like your style, leic :-)

If you have a ds, try Mega Man ZX and ZX Advent. In both, You can choose one of 2 characters (male or female) as the lead, and both are strong and independent. :-)

Also, try Chrono Trigger for the SNES and DS. 2 out of the 3 leads are female, and the strongest character in the game is female. Also, even the princess character (one of the leads) is take-charge,headstrong, and definitely independent.

 

[leic7]

Thank you for the recommendations everyone! I do look forward to trying them 1 by 1.

The protagonists in Metroid and Portal don't really have any dialogue, though, so they don't have an actual personality as far as I could tell. Alyx Vance from Half Life 2 does have dialogue, but I don't find her character particularly interesting... I'm sorry if you're a fan of hers! >.<

The rest sound pretty interesting, I'll be sure to check them out. Happy gaming!

 

[TripleSMoon]

Thank you for the recommendations everyone! I do look forward to trying them 1 by 1.

The protagonists in Metroid and Portal don't really have any dialogue, though, so they don't have an actual personality as far as I could tell. Alyx Vance from Half Life 2 does have dialogue, but I don't find her character particularly interesting... I'm sorry if you're a fan of hers! >.<

The rest sound pretty interesting, I'll be sure to check them out. Happy gaming!

In that case, you'll definitely enjoy Chrono Trigger. :-)

 

[leic7]

In that case, you'll definitely enjoy Chrono Trigger. :-)

I don't doubt that. lol

 

[Foxi4]

Clarie Redfield - Resident Evil: Code Veronica (Dreamcast, Gamecube)
Jill Valentine - Resident Evil 1 (preferably the remake) and 3 (PlayStation, Gamecube)
Joanna Dark - Perfect Dark series (Lots and lots of consoles, really)
Aya Brea - Parasite Eve 1, 2 and The 3rd Birthday (PlayStation, PSP)
Konoko - ONI (PC, PlayStation 2)
Major Motoko Kusanagi - Ghost in the Shell series (Playstation, PSP)

Just from the top of my head, will add more if I come up with any more female leads.

 

[xist]

Can i add -

Lenneth - Valkyrie Profile
Silmeria - Valkyrie Profile Silmeria
Maria Traydor - Star Ocean 3
Karin Koenig - Shadow Hearts Covenant

 

[prowler]

Ctrl+F 'Nier'. DISAPPOINT.

Kaine, from Nier

Spoiler: The intro really says it all

Not really a spoiler since they said this before the game release I don't know if Kaine could be in the thread though since she isn't a she

 

[Valwin]

Lina Inverse -

Games
Slayers Snes ,Slayers Wonderful , Slayers Royal 1 and 2

 

[thiefb0ss]

Portal 1 or 2.

 

[Hop2089]

I don't know about interesting but Crea from Japan only Little Princess: Marl Ōkoku no Ningyō Hime 2 (the far better sequel to Rhapsody) fits most of the bill, very independant like her adoptive mother Etoile and I'll add Etoile herself, she's very independant, wealthy and progressive woman but she's very egotistical and it rubs off on her adoptive daughter sometimes and it might annoy some who play the game.

 

[Sora de Eclaune]

.....No one has suggested Xena, from the Xena: Warrior Princess games for the GBC, PS1, PS2, and N64.

 

[jarejare3]

Black Rock Shooter : the game .

 

[Just Another Gamer]

Black Rock Shooter : the game .

This. The game is great although its more RPG-esque shooter than an FPS.

 

[BlazeV]

Are there any others?