There is no better way to say that video games are massively dominated by male protagonists. All major video games and franchises have a male lead character. If I were to ask you to name a few good titles featuring a female in the lead, many of you would have a hard time beyond the iconic Lara Croft and, maybe, the modern hit Ellie from The Last of Us series.
While the discussion about reasons behind such a massive difference demands its separate piece, this coverage is about the best video games with female protagonists. We have included titles that feature a female character in the lead or co-lead with a meaningful storyline, character arc, and gameplay. After all, everyone knows what Insomniac Games did with Mary Jane in Marvel’s Spider-Man games, especially in Spider-Man 2.
Note: We have excluded video games that let you choose the gender of the protagonist in the beginning without any major effect on the story or character development. Similarly, games that are too old to be played on modern devices have been left out.
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Video Games with Female Protagonists
Tomb Raider (2013)
Lara Croft is arguably the most iconic female lead character in the history of video games. She made her debut in 1996 and kick-started the Tomb Raider franchise. The series had a reboot in 2013 with the Survivor trilogy. The first game of the trilogy is titled Tomb Raider and tells Lara Croft’s origin story.
It takes our young and adventurous archaeologist, Lara, on an expedition to try to find the lost kingdom of Yamatai, a fictional island in Japan. She finds the island to be inhabited by a violent cult called the Solarri Brotherhood. The group is trying to resurrect the ancient queen of the island, Himiko. You will have to survive the threats, uncover secrets, and rescue your friends in this action-adventure video game.
Available On: PS4, PS3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Windows, and Mac
Rise of the Tomb Raider (2015)
Rise of the Tomb Raider is the second title in the Survivor trilogy reboot. It is set in Siberia as Lara Croft is looking for Kitezh, a legendary and mythical city mentioned in her father’s research notes, said to promise immortality. A shadowy organization, Trinity, is also pursuing her as it wants to acquire the promise for themselves. The game has a good mix of action, adventure, combat, and puzzle-solving to uncover new secrets.
Available On: PS4, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Windows, and Mac
Shadow of the Tomb Raider (2018)
Shadow of the Tomb Raider is the final entry in the Survivor trilogy. It takes place three years after the events of the previous release. Lara Croft has to travel to the jungles of the Americas to look for a hidden city called Paititi. However, she must do it in time to stop the Mayan apocalypse that she triggered accidentally. She once again finds herself surviving and fighting against Trinity as she continues to unearth more secrets related to the Mayan civilization.
Available On: PS4, Xbox One, Windows, and Mac
Horizon Zero Dawn (2017)
Horizon Zero Dawn by Guerrilla Games introduced us to Aloy, a young hunter who is raised as an outcast in a matriarchal society. The game’s story is set in a post-apocalyptic world where humans have diminished significantly and returned to ancient ways of living. Robotic machines dominate the future-Earth and are becoming more and more aggressive. Aloy’s hunger to find answers to her past and desire to rejoin the tribe takes her on a journey to save humanity.
Available On: PS4, PS5, and Windows
Horizon Forbidden West (2022)
Horizon Forbidden West continues Aloy’s journey right after the events of Horizon Zero Dawn. She must travel to the Forbidden West area to find a solution for a mysterious plague killing every living being. The sequel expands on the first release in many ways, like adding new machines, weapons, tribes, threats, and a larger open world to explore.
Available On: PS4, PS5, and Windows
Control (2019)
Control is an action-adventure game with supernatural elements from Remedy Entertainment. It is part of the Alan Wake universe and introduces us to Jesse Faden, the new Director of the Federal Bureau of Control (FBC). This is a secret U.S. government agency responsible for studying phenomena beyond normal reality.
The game starts with Faden visiting the agency’s headquarters to resume her position, but discovers things are not exactly under control. A mysterious entity has corrupted and taken over various workers in the building. Our protagonist’s job is to find the entity’s source, what its true intentions are, and free affected workers among other things. Control is the game to play if you want to experience gameplay that makes you feel spooky at times.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Windows, Nintendo Switch, and macOS
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (2017)
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is a video game set in the 9th century with inspirations from Celtic culture and Norse mythology. Senua, a Pict warrior, is our protagonist who wants to reach Helheim in the hope of rescuing her dead lover’s soul from the goddess Hela. She suffers from psychosis, which makes her see vivid hallucinations. She also hears voices in her head that encourage as well as discourage her.
This means as a player, you will not only have to battle real enemies but also the ones related to psychosis. This game is an experience in itself and gives you a glimpse of what actual people with psychosis feel.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Windows, and Nintendo Switch
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II (2024)
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II is a direct sequel to the previous game. The timeline remains the same, but Senua has a different set of challenges to overcome. She goes on a journey to revenge the attack on her village and the enslavement of her people by the Northmen. The game is inspired by the Viking culture and takes place in 9th-century Viking Iceland. If you enjoyed the first game, you will enjoy playing this one too.
Available On: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and Windows
Also Read: Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 Gameplay Tips You Should Know
The Last of Us Part 2 (2020)
The Last of Us Part 2 is a sequel to The Last of Us game released in 2013 (remastered in 2022). The game has two female protagonists, Ellie and Abby. Both have their life journeys that get intertwined with each other after a major event. We will not spoil that event for players who have not played the first game or have not watched The Last of Us TV show on HBO.
The game is set in a post-apocalyptic United States where everyone is facing a virus outbreak that converts infected individuals into zombie-like creatures. The world has a scarcity of resources, which means you will have to be smart about using what you have and procuring what you can.
Available On: PS4, PS5, and Windows
Resident Evil 3 (2020)
Resident Evil 3 is Capcom’s remake of Resident Evil: Nemesis released way back in 1999. Jill Valentine, a former elite agent, is our protagonist who finds herself in the middle of Raccoon City fighting a zombie outbreak. She partners with a mercenary, Carlos Oliveira, in an attempt to find a vaccine and escape the city. While she does all that, she also needs to survive attacks from a bio-organic weapon, Nemesis.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Windows, Nintendo Switch, iOS, iPadOS, and macOS
Alan Wake 2 (2023)
Alan Wake 2 is a much-awaited sequel to Alan Wake released in 2010. This survival horror video game adds a new protagonist Saga Anderson, an FBI Special Agent, alongside Alan Wake. Players have to take control of both these characters to progress the story. Saga visits Bright Falls to investigate a series of ritualistic murders, where she receives guidance from typewritten papers.
On the other hand, Alan Wake is trapped in the Dark Place for over a decade. This is a dimension where his stories turn into a reality. It is the reason he decides to write a story that could help him escape. Both characters’ journeys get interconnected as you go deep down in this mysterious and spooky world of Bright Falls. Do not miss this game if you are a fan of the survival horror genre.
Available On: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and Windows
Uncharted: The Lost Legacy (2017)
Uncharted: The Lost Legacy is more of a spin-off title in Naughty Dog’s popular Uncharted series. It focuses on a female treasure hunter, Chloe Frazer, first introduced in Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (2009). She teams up with Nadine Ross, an ex-mercenary, to look for the Tusk of Ganesha in the Western Ghats in India. Asav, a ruthless warlord, is also after the ancient artifact so that he can exchange it for a lot of firepower.
Overall, the game offers everything you expect from an Uncharted title. It means great visuals, jaw-dropping action scenes, and amazing puzzles. It is also the last main Uncharted game to be released so far.
Available On: PS4, PS5, and Windows
Returnal (2021)
Returnal is a shooter game where you take control of Selene Vassos, an astronaut. She finds herself stuck in a time loop after crashing on an alien planet, Atropos. The game has roguelike elements, as every time she dies, she gets resurrected at the crash site. The environment around her also gets changed/altered a bit every time she dies. You will have to take on extraterrestrial creatures while adapting to the ever-changing environment. She also has her trauma to deal with while trying to escape the planet.
Available On: PS5 and Windows
Alien: Isolation (2014)
Alien: Isolation is a survival horror video game based on the popular sci-fi horror movie series Alien. Its story is set 15 years after the events of the first Alien movie, released in 1979. Our protagonist is Amanda Ripley, daughter of Ellen Ripley, who is looking into her mother’s disappearance on the space station Sevastopol. During the investigation, you find yourself in a survival battle against a deadly Xenomorph. If you have not watched the movie, we suggest you do so to truly understand how scary and dangerous a Xenomorph can be.
You will have to focus on your stealth tactics and resource management to have a chance at emerging victorious in the fight against the Xenomorph.
Available On: PS4, PS3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Windows, Nintendo Switch, Android, and iOS
Kena: Bridge of Spirits (2021)
Kena: Bridge of Spirits is the story of a young spirit guide named Kena. She can help deceased souls move from the physical world to the spirit world. She is looking for a sacred mountain shrine and reaches an abandoned village during her journey. The village has multiple spirits that can’t reach their destination, and Kena must help them to get the passage to the shrine.
As Kena, you will have to use her magical abilities and spirit companion Rot to help lost spirits, take on enemies, solve puzzles, and uncover the village’s secrets.
Available On: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, and Windows
These are some of the best video games with a female protagonist that you are most likely to enjoy playing. What’s your favorite on the list? Is there a game you like that we’ve missed? Either way, share your thoughts with us in the comments section below.
