Video games are full of people who can get things done and look good doing it. Sure, there are plenty of strong woman characters but they deserve their own list by someone who could do them justice. It’s easier to me to come up with a list of men in video games who d are fountains of courage and bravado. Wether the world needs saved, a rouge political state needs stopped, or you need half a dozen tacos from Taco Bell right now, these are your men to enlist.
On a side note, sorry if this list comes across as lazy. Lost my cat last night and it’s been hard to concentrate on any one task. I had other lists made up ahead of time but they were just kinda crappy. Also, I don’t at all intend for this list to be sexist in any way, if anything I’m just playing up the male stereotype.
5. Nathan Drake
Yeah, there are dudes in gaming who are more physically impressive than Drake but not all of them have the brains. Not only does Nathan Drake take on gangs of pirates and yeti hordes single handily, but he just has that way with the women that any stereotypical video game male has to have. Nathan Drake’s brains and wit put him on this list but the lack of anything that makes him special, in my opinion, keeps him from being higher up. Don’t get me wrong, I really like the character and think he’s really cool, I just think that there’s more impressive specimens.
Nathan Drake’s ultimate challenge: breaking into the Disney vault.
4. Master Chief
I don’t really need to explain why John-117 deserves his spot on this list. The Master Chief was able to stop an alien invasion almost single-handedly, never mind his dealing with a galaxy threatening fungus scourge. Master Chief is like the galaxy pest terminator; just with a battle rifle instead of an insecticide spray. Does Master Chief ever get the woman? Well… technically he doesn’t, but he does have an artificial intelligence that is represented by a half-naked female living in his head. The ending of Halo 4 revealed that, even if Cortana was artificial, Master Chief was still able to form a bond with her.
Master Chief’s ultimate challenge: defeating Deathwing solo.
3. Captain Price
The Price family is a lineage that has stood the test of time, at least until Call of Duty: Ghosts came out. The grandson of another Captain Price from World War 2 who also served in the Special Air Service, Price is a man who does not take insults lightly. If you were to, let’s say, place the blame for World War 3 on this man’s shoulders while killing some of his best friends, you’d have an issue on your hands. Price and Soap (what kind of name is Soap, anyways?) become a dynamic duo worthy of any high budget action film. Price’s manly factor is also increased by the fact that he has one of the most classy beards of all time AND makes his entrance and exit from the Call of Duty series by smoking a cigar. I’m not saying that smoking is cool, but I think you know what I’m getting at.
Captain Price’s ultimate challenge: clear a double-decker aircraft of terrorists in under one minute.
2. Commander Shepard
There’s a reason that his first name is Commander. Shepard has saved the entire galaxy 3 times and has yet to complain about it. When the Council decided that the humans were ready to have their own Spectre operative, is there anyone else that could have done what Shepard did? At the end of his mission Shepard does the most manly thing of all: sacrifice. In fact, Shepard sacrifices himself TWICE! Not only is Shepard one of the most dangerous men in the galaxy, but his epic manliness crosses between species and allows him to hook up with some truly foreign personalities. However, looking past all of this, there is one thing which makes Shepard one of the most manliest men in any fictional material: he’s best friends with Garrus.
Commander Shepard’s ultimate challenge: choosing between Liara and Tali.
1. Mario
Now, let me explain this one. Yes, the majority of Mario’s games are covered in a film of color and happiness but if you peel that back you can find, in my opinion, the manliest man in gaming, Look at it this way, this man can jump truly amazing distances (great at sports), has the muscles to sling the shells of giant turtles at a lethal velocity (crazy buff), and regularly rescues his gal from dinosaurs (courage of a lion). Yet, even with all of these qualities, Mario is still satisfied with the humble occupation of being a plumber. Mario doesn’t have to be a space marine of epic adventurer, he’s just a guy doing whatever he has to do to save the leader of the Mushroom Kingdom. Mario is able to keep the known world from falling into chaos without a special ops team at his back. Also, Mario often rides a dinosaur into combat. CHECKMATE!
Mario’s ultimate challenge: saving the entire video game industry in the 1980’s.
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So, in your opinion, who are some of the paragons of video games (male or female)?
The Short Gamer 