Promotional art from the 2011 Duke Nukem Forever game, featuring Duke and the celebrity pop star Holsom twins
So many girls of video games that I not only have my Top 10 Girls of Video Games, but I’m also spoilt for choice for my usual twenty special mentions.
ART & COSPLAY
But first my usual note on the visual images used in this top ten. Given the copyright in such images, I only use a visual image as fair use for the purposes of comment and review in each entry – an iconic feature image to identify the character, either in general or in their most iconic version as I review it to be (or both), sourced from the published game cover or promotional art, or occasionally captured from gameplay or trailers.
I also include a special section in each entry under the subtitle of art and cosplay – not for any actual art and cosplay as such but instead where I nominate my favorite artists and cosplay models depicting the character, which you can look up for yourself. For art, I award a special ranking for any art by my two favorite artists – the two freelance digital artists Sciamano and Dandonfuga. For cosplay, I award a special ranking for any cosplay by my holy trinity of models – my favorite model Yummychiyo with her insane figure in top spot, followed by Hane Ame and Helly Valentine.
As for the iconic feature image I’ve chosen for this page itself and girls of video games in general, there could only be one choice – the promotional art for the iconic 2011 Duke Nukem Forever game, featuring the Holsom twins (yes – adapted from the Olsen twins), Duke’s celebrity pop star girlfriends with a penchant for schoolgirl outfits.
Iconic screenshot of Tifa and Aerith from Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth
(1) GIRLS OF FINAL FANTASY (1997 – for Final Fantasy 7 which introduced Tifa and my girls of Final Fantasy thereafter)
I couldn’t resist Tifa and Aerith in their swimsuits at Costa de Sol in the Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, revamping the original 1997 game in 2024, as representative of the Girls of Final Fantasy for special mention in my Girls of Video Games.
Tifa as my top girl of Final Fantasy is also second place in my Top 10 Girls of Video Games, but there’s so many more girls of Final Fantasy – who not only get this special mention but also get their own top ten (in which I also feature the art and cosplay for individual entries).
ART & COSPLAY
What else for iconic feature image for the Girls of Final Fantasy but this now iconic screenshot of Tifa and Aerith at Costa del Sol in the Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth game? It’s even a GIF on social media!
RATING: 5 STARS*****
S-TIER (GODDESS TIER)
Promotional art for the game’s Race Queen “limited skins on sale” in 2018
(2) GIRLS OF AZUR LANE (2017)
Ahoy!
Or ara ara!
Yes – the ‘ship girls’ of Azur Lane get their own special mention. Atago, my top girl of Azur Lane, is also third top girl in my Top 10 Girls of Video Games (where I deal with the game and its premise – essentially WW2 naval ships as anime girls – in more detail) but the girls of Azur Lane are so prolific as to get their own special mention and top ten (in which I also feature the art and cosplay for individual entries) as well as quite a few ancillary lists.
- Top 10 Atago Skins
- Top 10 St Louis Skins
- Top 10 Prinz Eugen Skins
- Top 10 Taihou Skins
- Top 10 Enterprise Skins
- Top 10 Belfast Skins
Top 10 Girls of Azur Lane (Special Mention: Race Queens)
ART & COSPLAY
There could only be one choice as iconic feature image – the game’s characters that feature in Race Queen ‘skins’ or game designs, depicted here in the promotional art for the “limited skins on sale in 2018”. It was through fan art and cosplay of Atago in her Race Queen skin that I was introduced to the girls of Azur Lane – and it’s never been far from my heart since! Only a select few Azur Lane girls have Race Queen designs, but all those that do automatically earn either a place in my Top 10 Girls of Azur Lane or at least special mention – and with all but one exception their Race Queen design is my favorite design.
RATING: 5 STARS*****
S-TIER (GODDESS TIER)
Asuna (left) and Karin (right) in their bunny girl game design art (from the Blue Archive fan wiki)
(3) GIRLS OF BLUE ARCHIVE (2021)
“Wait – it’s all Asuna and Karin?”
“Always has been”
Well, mostly. Art and cosplay for Blue Archive – yet another game recruiting literal teams of girls for combat or similar missions – is overwhelmingly predominated by Asuna and Karin, the two signature girls of the game. As per TV Tropes, Asuna and Karin are “Blue Archive’s poster girls for it being fetish fuel best known for the fanservice”. Of course, the bunny costumes help so much.
Asuna just edges forward of Karin to claim a place in my Top 10 Girls of Video Games, although Karin comes a close second and ranks after Asuna in this special mention entry. (Quick guide – Asuna is the blond while Karin is the brunette in my feature image). Like Azur Lane however, Blue Archive keeps releasing new girls and they’re prolific enough to earn this special mention as well as their own top ten (in which I also feature the art and cosplay for individual entries).
ART & COSPLAY
Okay, it’s not quite ALL Asuna and Karin in art and cosplay but close enough – and certainly enough that there could only be one choice as iconic feature image, their bunny girl design in promotional game art.
RANKING: 5 STARS*****
S-TIER (GODDESS TIER)
Promotional game art – flagship character Rapi is front and center but it also features a number of iconic characters
(4) GIRLS OF NIKKE (2022)
Special mention for the girls of Goddess of Victory: Nikke (or Girls of Nikke for short) – who jiggled on to the scene in a big way of 2022 and have continued to do so with new characters (or Nikkes as they are called) at prolific frequency, indeed probably the most prolific of any video game for new character releases. I feature the game in more detail with my entry for its original flagship character Rapi in my Top 10 Girls of Video Games but there’s enough girls of Nikke for their own special mention and top ten (in which I also feature the art and cosplay for individual entries).
ART & COSPLAY
For my iconic feature image, I went with this promotional game art showcasing some of their more iconic characters – of course with the game’s flagship girl Rapi front and center.
RATING: 5 STARS*****
S-TIER (GODDESS TIER)
Street Fighter Masters: Chun Li 1 variant cover E art by Reiq for the comic published by Udon Entertainment
(5) GIRLS OF STREET FIGHTER (1991)
Video games – and girls of video games – don’t get much more iconic than Street Fighter, so of course the girls of Street Fighter get their own special mention and top ten (in which I also feature the art and cosplay for individual entries).
The Street Fighter franchise essentially defined the genre of fighting games – it “gave the genre depth, popularity, and, most importantly, legitimacy” and “even modern fighting games cling tightly to the features and tropes innovated by this series”. The game’s playable characters originate from different countries around the world, each with their own unique fighting style.
And from its first flagship duo of female fighters featured in 1991’s Street Fighter II gaining mainstream recognition, its female fighters have been an iconic part of that franchise – as well as a staple in art and cosplay, even three decades later, albeit with new and revamped game editions.
ART & COSPLAY
My iconic feature image is the variant cover E art by artist Reiq for the Street Fighter Masters: Chun Li 1 comic published by Udon Entertainment. Yes – there are Street Fighter comics. This art has a number of iconic elements which prompted my selection as fair use to represent the girls of Street Fighter. Firstly, although it’s a toss-up between her and Cammy for the original female duo of Street Fighter, I think that Chun Li wins out as the iconic girl of Street Fighter. Secondly, it features her in her iconic original costume – she’s had a number of different costumes through versions of the game but her first costume remains as the classic one. Thirdly, the arcade game machine as background is a nod to the game’s classic arcade origin – and fourthly, the machine even has Street Fighter II consistent with the game version as her (and Cammy’s) debut. The whole design thus invokes her most classic and iconic features, while also doing so in a cute and playful way. That is characteristic of the work of Reiq as regular commissioned cover art for Udon Entertainment – Reiq deserves special mention here as the standout artist for the girls of Street Fighter in general, as does Udon Entertainment for the standout art of their comics.
Top 10 Girls of Street Fighter
RATING:
A-TIER (TOP TIER)
Jill Valentine and Ada Wong as they appear in their game design
(6) GIRLS OF RESIDENT EVIL (1996)
Who knew a zombie apocalypse could be so…hot!
It may not be Street Fighter but Resident Evil and its girls are almost as iconic – as well as having the advantage of a more successful cinematic franchise.
So the girls of Resident Evil get their own special mention and their own top ten, with my favorite art and cosplay noted for individual entries.
The plot of the Resident Evil game series (and media franchise) revolves around that familiar trope of zombie apocalypse, engineered by the evil Umbrella Corporation has one of the worst business plans in fictional evil corporate history, essentially along the lines of the Underpants Gnomes in South Park:
STEP 1: MAKE ZOMBIES
STEP 2:???
STEP 3: PROFIT!
(Of course, this seems to be a recurring feature of evil fictional corporations. Weyland-Yutani in the Alien franchise is similar. STEP 1: GET ALIENS. STEP 2??? STEP 3: PROFIT!)
ART & COSPLAY
For their feature image, I went with the top two girls of Resident Evil – Jill Valentine and Ada Wong – as they appear in their game design.
RATING:
A-TIER (TOP TIER)
Kasumi, Nyotengu & Honoka as they appear in-game – character profile images from the fan wiki
(7) GIRLS OF DEAD OR ALIVE – KASUMI, NYOTENGU & HONOKA (1996)
The “big, bouncy 3D fighting game franchise” iconic for its Jiggle Physics – and its beach volleyball spinoff series to give their Jiggle Physics a real workout.
Dead or Alive is similar to other tournament fighting games in my special mentions – with the same convoluted backstory as pretext for the fighting that people are there to play.
Despite the male characters outnumbering the female characters, at least in initial game versions, “it’s the women who are the real stars of the show” – so the girls of Dead or Alive get their own special mention.
And by girls, we’re talking its star – one of those ninja girls (or kunoichi) I so enjoy in games, the redhead Kasumi hailing from Japan. It is Kasumi who consistently steals the show – as well as the art and cosplay – helped no doubt by her measurements of 35-21-33 (of course) and more than a passing resemblance to Mai Shiranui.
Close runners-up are Nyotengu and Honoka, both introduced in Dead or Alive 5 and also hailing from Japan in-game.
Nyotengu – or Miyama no Nyotengu – is as her name indicates a tengu princess, hence her wings. Tengu are supernatural beings in Japanese folklore – although she looks much hotter than tengu are typically depicted.
Honoka is close runner-up because she amuses me as a literal Japanese schoolgirl thrown into a martial arts tournament where the stakes reflect the title – where you can end up dead or alive. Also just look at her game design.
There are other girls – which I might well compile into a top ten Girls of Dead or Alive – notably fellow Japanese ninja Ayane, American Tina Armstrong (played by Jaime Pressly in the film adaptation), and English Christie (played by Holly Valance in the film adaptation).
ART & COSPLAY
For iconic feature image, I’ve compiled a collage of screenshots of them as they appear in-game – from their character profile images in the fan wiki.
ART – DANDONFUGA
Sadly no Sciamano ranking but Kasumi and Nyotengu more than make up for it with a Dandonfuga ranking with some knockout art of them. (Dandonfuga has also done knockout art of Tina Armstrong, Christie and Nyotengu). Kittew has also done some nice Kasumi artwork.
COSPLAY – HELLY & HANE
Kasumi scores a Helly ranking for sensational cosplay of her by Helly Valentine. Katyuska Moonfox is a close runner-up for Kasumi cosplay.
Nyotengu scores a Hane Ame ranking for her cosplay of Nyotengu.
RATING:
A-TIER (TOP TIER)
League of Legends K/DA Popstars promotional game art – featuring (from left to right) Akali, Ahri, Kai’sa, and Evelynn
(8) GIRLS OF LEAGUE OF LEGENDS (2009)
Special mention has to go to the Girls of League of Legends.
League of Legends (or LoL – lol) is a multiplayer online fantasy role-playing game in a similar style to World of Warcraft, although it has surpassed the latter in popularity since its release in 2009. The game’s popularity has also extended into merchandise and other media. The game mechanic is essentially that players control a character or ‘champion’ with distinctive abilities in the fantasy world of Runeterra, who then battles against other champions – “the champions and setting blend a variety of elements, including high fantasy, steampunk, folklore, and Lovecraftian horror”.
This insanely popular game has an insanely massive backstory or ‘lore’ to match – it has evolved from the original titular League of Legend (a magical battle arena used used to settle disputes between the competing fantasy factions) to the aptly named Universe, an extensive encyclopedia website (as well as written stories, artwork, comics, animations and other media).
There’s a plethora of Champions, including female ones – enough for their own special mention and top ten (in which I also feature the art and cosplay for individual entries).
ART & COSPLAY (MEDIA)
For my iconic feature image – and for my favorite media adaptation of the girls of League of Legends – I went with the promotional game art of K/Da popstars, featuring four of the game’s female Champions, including Ahri as arguably the most iconic of the game’s female Champions, as a Kpop girl group with their own animated music videos.
RATING:
A-TIER (TOP TIER)
Three of the game’s most iconic female characters (as well as my personal favorite) in an iconic screenshot or image from the promotional video for the Overwatch crossover with Fortnite (fair use)
(9) GIRLS OF OVERWATCH (2016)
Nerf this!
Overwatch was huge as a “team-based multi-player first person video shooter game developed and published” in May 2016 by Blizzard Entertainment, the same people behind World of Warcraft, at least in art and cosplay, but seems to have been eclipsed in popularity and profile since by other games.
However, its female characters remain iconic, not only for the game but for the girls of video games in general, and still feature in art and cosplay. Hence, the girls of Overwatch are yet another game’s female cast of characters to earn themselves their own special mention and their own top ten – with the latter featuring my favorite art and cosplay for individual entries.
ART & COSPLAY
So for my iconic feature image of the girls of Overwatch, what else but three of the game’s most iconic female characters (as well as my personal favorite) in an equally iconic screenshot or image from the promotional video for the Overwatch crossover with Fortnite.
RATING:
A-TIER (TOP TIER)
Official promotional Stellar Blade art for the game’s 2nd anniversary – from the Stellar Blade fan wiki (fair use)
(10) GIRLS OF STELLAR BLADE (2024)
Eve may have exploded onto the scene in such a way as to eclipse the rest of Stellar Blade but there are other girls in the game. Interestingly, these came to my attention not through Stellar Blade itself but through the recent crossover with Nikke: Goddess of Victory. Foremost among those girls is Raven – featuring along with Eve in the crossover – but she led me to dig deeper into the girls of Stellar Blade and there’s enough for their own top ten, although I should at least mention Tachy here as close runner-up to Raven.
And now there’s a new protagonist Evie in the upcoming (as of 2026) Stellar Blade: Blood Rain…
ART & COSPLAY
For my iconic feature image, I’ve chosen the official promotional Stellar Blade art for the game’s 2nd anniversary, featuring (from left to right) Lily Artemis II, Raven, Eve (holding the cake front and center of course), Tachy, and Kaya.
Sadly, the other girls of Stellar Blade have received nowhere near the same attention in art and cosplay as Eve, but I’ll feature it for their entries in my top ten.
RATING:
A-TIER (TOP TIER)
Samus wearing her zero suit as depicted in promotional artwork for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
(11) SAMUS ARAN –
METROID (1986)
“The Cosmos. In the vast depths of the Universe, the history of humanity is but a flash of light from a lone star. The life of a single person should be lost in space and time. But among the stars, there is one light that burns brighter than all others. The light of Samus Aran. Her battles extend beyond her life, and etch themselves into history.”
Samus Aran is one of the first female protagonists in a video game and certainly the first major such protagonist, with the debut of the Metroid series of games in 1986 – in the words of TV Tropes, “Samus Aran created history in 1986 by being the first video game hero (or in her case, heroine) to be a female”
Of course, the big twist of the first game, revealed at the end of the game, is that she is female, which was effectively hidden by her exoskeleton Power Suit – a twist that has earned its own trope, Samus is a Girl.
And what a girl! In the words of TV Tropes, “underneath her armored suit, she’s also drop dead gorgeous, and regularly recognized as one of the sexiest females in video games”, although that was somewhat hard to tell in her original pixellated art.
Interestingly, she was modelled on SF cinematic heroines, particularly Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley from the Alien films (which accounts for her brunette hair in her pixelated appearance, as opposed to her subsequent blonde appearance). Her appearance is much more evident in her zero suit (with heels to match), the skintight jumpsuit she wears under her Power Suit – so much so that her appearance in it is dubbed Zero Suit Samus.
That girl is also one of the galaxy’s greatest heroes, fighting space pirates and the eponymous Metroids, which resemble space jellyfish (with teeth), only much more dangerous. In the words of GameDaily, she was “the first dominant female” in video games, “a femme de force that didn’t rely on a man to save her” and her iconic popularity has endured, not least in some sensational art and cosplay.
ART & COSPLAY
What else for her iconic feature image but the zero suit that is the staple of her art and cosplay? Hence here we have Samus Aran wearing the zero suit, as depicted in promotional artwork for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
ART – SCIAMANO & DANDONFUGA
Samus has been a favorite subject of artists, scoring both Sciamano and Dandonfuga rankings for their art of her. Here’s my Samus art top ten on the spot.
1 – Sciamano (for my Sciamano ranking)
2 – Dandonfuga (for my Dandonfuga ranking)
3 – Kikol Draws (Samus is one of Kikol’s specialties and best subjects – with multiple artworks of her, including some of my favorite)
4 – Artgerm (one of the few professional comics artists I know to feature her in his art – at least as far as I know)
5 – Neoartcore (for some cute Samus art)
6 – Logan Cure (for multiple artworks of Samus)
7 – Prywinko (for multiple cute artworks of Samus)
8 – Dakka (for some cute casual Samus art)
9 – Aroma Sensei (for some of the best Samus artwork outside her canonical costumes…in characteristically compromising positions)
10 – Kittew (for Samus art in a similar vein to Aroma Sensei)
SPECIAL MENTION
1 – Magion02
2 – Ispyn
3 – REIQ
4 – Olchas
She’s a favorite among AI – shoutout to Naughty Neurals and End of Line.
COSPLAY
Sadly, her cosplay is not as prolific as her art, at least among my favorite models. Octokuro and Kato have my standout favorite cosplay for Samus.
RATING:
B-TIER (HIGH TIER)
Morrigan in iconic art from Darkstalkers Resurrection as featured in the Darkstalkers fan wiki
(12) MORRIGAN AENSLAND –
DARKSTALKERS (1994)
Darkstalkers was a fighting game series, with the twist that the game’s characters were based on classic literary or film monsters (although its Little Red Riding Hood character was the “biggest psycho of the bunch”).
Yet despite its large cast, the “most recognizable, prominently featured and iconic character” of the series – and video games in general – is its bat-themed succubus, Morrigan Aensland, which is only fitting as succubi just don’t get the attention they deserve.
Of course, a large part of that is due to her appearance – “one thing that video game babes have over the real–life variety is that it’s much easier for a girl who’s made of pixels to rock an absolutely ludicrous outfit and still look hot … her appearances across the Capcom fighting franchises prove that the company has an excellent eye for the female form”.
Her iconic appearance is as a beautiful young woman (belying her actual demonic age of centuries), with that aforementioned female form and long green hair, although the shade of green varied between art styles or artist. Her “absolutely ludicrous outfit” is essentially a black bustier leotard with purple nylons and black boots. She is described as 172 cm (or 5’8″) and 58 kg – and of course the game also has her measurements (86-56-83).
As for her bat theme, she out-bats the Batman. Her nylon tights are emblazoned with bats. She has bat wings – from her back of course, but also, more inexplicably from her head. And her outfit as well as her wings can themselves transform into swarms of supernatural bats.
And as for her backstory, she IS a succubus (with all the demonic sexiness that entails), but apparently of demon aristocracy – the adopted daughter of the demon king Belial – and born in Scotland (in 1678) of all places, although it doesn’t show in her game accent.
ART & COSPLAY
For her iconic feature image, it’s her classic art pose from Darkstalkers Resurrection (used as her profile image in the Darkstalkers fan wiki).
ART – DANDONFUGA
Sadly no Sciamano ranking but she does score a Dandonfuga ranking.
And she also features in surprisingly prolific art from my favorite artists – my Morrigan top ten art on the spot:
1 – Dandonfuga (for my Dandonfuga ranking)
2 – Kikol Draws (for one of my favorite Morrigan art works)
3 – Neoartcore (one of his most recurring art subjects)
4 – Artgerm (again – this professional comics artist is a dependable source of art for video game girls)
5 – Nathan Szerdy (I was surprised as normally this professional artist sticks to girls of comics but his Morrigan rocks)
6 – Elias Chatzoudis (Morrigan is popular among professional comics artists)
7 – Warren Louw (another professional comics artist taking on Morrigan)
8 – Magion02 (one of his best art works)
9 – Inhoso (striking Morrigan art)
10 – Logan Cure (okay – it may actually be League of Legends’ Sona cosplaying as Morrigan but I’m counting it)
SPECIAL MENTION
Rangko usually specializes in, ah, kinkier art – but his Morrigan rocks.
Also AI shoutout to Naughty Neurals, Matrixias, and Sakura.
COSPLAY – HANE & HELLY
Sadly no Yummychiyo ranking (alas!) but she scores my Hane and Helly rankings for some surprise cosplay by them.
As for my other favorite models – By0ru surprised me with perhaps the most striking cosplay in versimilitude to her art design, with runners-up Uri, Kalinka Fox and Vampy Bit Me.
RATING:
B-TIER (HIGH TIER)
Ciri, Triss & Yennefer as they appear in-game (from the profile images in the fan wiki)
(13) GIRLS OF THE WITCHER – CIRI, TRISS & YENNEFER (2007)
Technically the girls of The Witcher originated as a girl of (literary) fantasy as The Witcher franchise originated in a series of fantasy novels. However, despite a cult following in their native Poland and other European nations (as well as adaptation into various media), the franchise only received widespread attention in the English-speaking world upon its adaptation into series of video games (and television adaptation on Netflix)
The protagonist of the franchise is Geralt of Rivia, who is of course a witcher, or dare I say it, the Witcher. Witchers are monster hunters, imbued with supernatural powers through alchemy and other magical modifications – all the better to hunt their supernatural adversaries, including werewolves and vampires. The franchise itself is set on the blandly named Continent, formerly inhabited by standard fantasy races (elves, dwarves, halflings and so on) which have since been largely displaced by incoming humans . The humans themselves are predominantly divided between the Nilgaard Empire and the Northern Kingdoms, warring against each other…and we’re not here for the plot but our fantasy girls for special mention!
And when it comes to the girls of the Witcher, there are the big three – Ciri, Triss and Yennefer.
Ciri – Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon – is one of the primary protagonists of the game, princess and adopted daughter of Geralt, best known as a platinum blonde badass with a sword.
Triss – Triss Merigold – is a redhead sorceress from the Lodge of Sorceresses, and one of the corners of a love triangle with Geralt and the third of our big three girls of the Witcher…
Yennefer – Yennefer of Vengerberg – is another of the primary protagonists of the game and love of Geralt’s life, as well as adoptive mother to Ciri.
ART & COSPLAY
For their iconic feature image, I’ve composed a collage of the top three girls of the Witcher as they appear in-game, excerpted from their profile images in the fan wiki.
ART – SCIAMANO & DANDONFUGA
Triss at least scores a Sciamano ranking, while all three earn a Dandonfuga ranking.
For other artists, there’s art of Ciri by Neoartcore and Kittew – the latter one of my favorite, albeit slightly naughty, depictions of her.
Triss has perhaps received the most love from my favorite artists – apart from both Sciamano and Dandonfuga, there’s art of her by Neoartcore (in a few artworks) and Logan Cure.
All three of them have also been depicted by Prywinko in one of their best artworks
COSPLAY – HELLY
Triss earns her Helly ranking from some standout cosplay by Helly Valentine.
Ciri and Yennefer don’t score any rankings from my top three cosplay models but at least have excellent cosplay by Kalinka Fox.
RATING:
B-TIER (HIGH TIER)
Juliet in one of her iconic promotional images for the game
(14) JULIET STARLING –
LOLLIPOP CHAINSAW (2012)
Juliet Starling has it all – she’s the top cheerleader at San Romero High School in California, she has her boyfriend Nick and she’s celebrating her eighteenth birthday after school.
There’s just the “minor matter of a zombie apocalypse tearing through San Romero High”, which is the premise of her “comedy horror action hack and slash video game”, Lollipop Chainsaw.
Among the victims of the zombie apocalypse is Juliet’s boyfriend Nick, after he saves her from a zombie and is bitten in her place. But what’s a little zombie death compared to true love? Fortunately, in a line of inspiration drawn from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Juliet is a zombie hunter – with enough knowledge of magic to separate Nick’s head from his infected body, while keeping it alive and hanging from her belt as her companion through the game (to voice his displeasure about his predicament).
Armed with her magic chainsaw of the title – and with her ‘health’ fueled by lollipops that are the other half of the title – Juliet sets out to stop the overlords of the zombie apocalypse.
In the words of TV Tropes:
“Armed with her magical chainsaw to keep any grope-happy zombies at bay and aided by the support of her family and utterly bewildered disembodied boyfriend, Juliet becomes the last line of defense against disgruntled classmate/emo-goth-wannabe Swan and the Dark Purveyors, a group of Rock’n’Roll Zombie Lords who want to rip the entire world’s collective head open and gnaw on the brain matter therein.
And if that happens, who’s going to help Juliet celebrate her birthday?”
Go, San Romero Knights!
ART & COSPLAY
For my iconic feature, I went with one of her classic promotional images for the game.
ART – DANDONFUGA
Of course, she scores a Dandonfuga ranking for Dandonfuga art of her. I’m just surprised there’s no Sciamano art as well, but there is Neoartcore art.
AI shoutout to Naughty Neurals.
Sadly no cosplay from my holy trinity or favorite models.
RATING –
B-TIER (HIGH TIER)
Quiet as she appears in the game – front view only as her g-string in back view is a little spicy (fair use)
(15) QUIET –
METAL GEAR SOLID (2015)
And then there’s the Metal Gear franchise, spanning three decades or so from its debut in 1987 and apparently in development (hell) for a live-action film – the franchise that was the origin of the stealth-based game genre where avoiding your enemies is the theme (born out of original programming necessity that couldn’t show more than a few enemies at a time). You know – spy or special operations stuff.
In the words of TV Tropes “the plot is far too complicated (and occasionally batsh!t crazy) to write here in any detail”. It was confusing just reading the plot synopsis. It seems to revolve around special operations (or ‘black-ops’) during the Cold War and afterwards, fighting the usual secret global conspiracy that rules the world and following the adventures of outlandishly code-named figures, notably various protagonists code-named Snake – Solid Snake (the primary protagonist of the series), Naked Snake (which sounds naughtily euphemistic), Liquid Snake, Venom Snake.
So it’s not too surprising to find a female character like Quiet in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain – or that she gained a certain notoriety with the game’s debut in 2015. Astute viewers noticed that there was certain something missing from this mute female sniper. (Hint: her clothing)
However, there’s a totally valid reason for Quiet’s lack of clothing, other than being a female in a video game. She has been treated by “parasite therapy” after a chemical fire attack that effectively destroyed her lungs – organisms, presumably genetically engineered or something, that give various enhancements or superpowers, but in this case, also give her the ability to breathe through her skin, requiring her to wear as little clothes as possible as covering her skin would suffocate her.
So you see – parasites! Of course, breathing through her skin would suffocate her in any event – one reason insects, that DO breathe through their skin (or more precisely openings in their skin called spiracles) are limited in size, is because their respiratory system can only breathe enough at smaller sizes. Of course, they don’t walk around in bikini and fishnets either. And I’m not sure that explains various scenes like the rain or shower scenes, although I understand that she may drink through her skin as well.
Parasites also explain why she earns the codename Quiet because of her muteness or silence – she apparently was also infected with an English language strain of vocal chord parasites. So she can talk but deliberately does not to stop the spread of the parasites. Now I just need someone to explain that explanation (as in what exactly are an “English language strain of vocal chord parasites” that apparently spread if you speak English?). Also, so the game designers deliberately designed a female character who has to wear as little clothes as possible AND doesn’t speak because…parasites?
Anyway, the character herself is modelled on her motion capture and voice actress, Stefanie Joosten, a Dutch-born model resident in Japan. (Voice actress, you say? Well the character doesn’t speak, but she does make non-verbal noises and hum).
ART & COSPLAY
For my iconic feature image, I’ve made fair use of her appearance in-game art (extracted in an online feature about that appearance).
ART – DANDONFUGA
Quiet scores my Dandonfuga ranking for some awesome art of her by Dandonfuga. There’s also art of her by Neoartcore. AI shoutout for popping up there, notably by Matrixias.
COSPLAY
Sadly no cosplay by my holy trinity – all of whom would rock Quiet cosplay – but Kalinka Fox and By0ru make up
RATING:
B-TIER (HIGH-TIER)
From left to right – A2, Commander, and Kaine – as they appear in game promotional image excerpted from their game profiles or the fan wiki
(16) A-2, COMMANDER & KAINE –
NIER (2017)
Special mention for everyone’s favorite post-apocalyptic platinum blond combat androids. 2B is of course eighth place entry in my Top 10 Girls of Video Games but that leaves a few more from the Nier game franchise – most notably A2 and the Commander from Nier Automata, and Kaine from Nier Replicant.
First – A-2 is both prequel and sequel to 2B. Prequel in that she was the prototype unit used to create newer models like 2B. Sequel in that she is the successor to 2B in gameplay.
Second – the Commander is the superior officer of the combat androids, commanding them from her control bunker – and looking good while doing it.
Third – Kaine is a swordswoman accompanying the game protagonist. Apparently she has something of a complicated backstory in the game about her gender – a little like Poison in Street Fighter – but I don’t play the games, I’m just here for the art and cosplay.
Speaking of which…
ART & COSPLAY
For their iconic feature image, I’ve compiled a collage of their game promotional art excerpted from the game or fan wiki websites.
ART – SCIAMANO & DANDONFUGA
A-2 and Kaine are almost as popular subjects of fan art as 2B.
A-2 scores both Sciamano and Dandonfuga rankings for their art of her – she also has art by Kikol Draws and Logan Cure.
Kaine scores a Dandonfuga ranking for art – she also has art by Neoartcore, Kikol Draws. and Magion02.
The Commander doesn’t fare so well but came to my attention through art by Neoartcore.
AI shoutout to Naughty Neurals (A2)
COSPLAY – HANE & HELLY
A-2 scores a Helly ranking for sizzling Helly Valentine cosplay of her. Close runners-up are Katyuska Moonfox and Lupinus Rando.
Kaine scores both Hane and Helly rankings for some standout cosplay by Hane Ame and Helly Valentine. Runners-up are By0ru and Katyuska Moonfox (again).
RATING:
B-TIER (HIGH TIER)
Melina, Ranni and Marika as they appear in-game, from their (facial) profile images in the fan wiki
(17) MELINA, RANNI & MARIKA –
ELDEN RING (2022)
Special mention for the girls from the 2022 dark fantasy role-playing game Elden Ring, which seemed to be wildly popular in that year at least according to all the references I’ve seen to it. Apparently, George R.R. Martin was involved in writing it, instead of, you know, finishing A Song of Ice and Fire. I don’t know much about the story or gameplay – as usual, I don’t play the game, I’m just here for the art or cosplay.
Once again, there’s a big three – Melina, Ranni and Marika.
Melina is one of the main characters of the game – Maiden to the Tarnished (the Tarnished being you, the player character).
Ranni is probably the leading female character I’ve seen in fan art – the demigod witch Ranni. Not that I know much about her (non-player) character, except that she’s blue-skinned with four arms (although I also understand that’s not her original physical body but some weird sort of doll’s body).
Wait a minute! Blue-skinned? Four arms? Ranni is the Hindu death-goddess Kali?! (Probably not – but I suspect her design might have been influenced by Kali)
Marika – Queen Marika the Eternal – essentially drives the plot or at least the premise of the game:
“Chosen of the Erdtree and God-Queen of the Lands Between, Marika was the ruler of an empire spanning the entire continent. The shattering of the Elden Ring and her disappearance in the aftermath directly led to the Shattering, a succession crisis of her demigod children that tore the land asunder.”
Also, she’s hot – well, when she’s not stuck in a tree…
ART & COSPLAY
For their feature image, I chose how they appear in-game, excerpted from the (mostly facial) profile images in the fan wiki.
ART – SCIAMANO & DANDONFUGA
Melina and Marika score hot Sciamano rankings, while Ranni and Marika sizzle with their Dandonfuga rankings (Melina too, but not as hot as Ranni and Marika). I mean, really, both artists were smoking in their depictions of the girls of Elden Ring. Sciamano had a cheeky caption for his art of Melina, wearing a lot less than she does in-game – “this was not part of our accord”. Surely it should be though – there should be some game option for it!
As for other fan art by my favorite artists, all three have art by Kiko L and Pyrwinko. Neoartcore has art of Ranni. Kittew and Magion02 have art of Marika – AI shoutout to End of Line.
COSPLAY – HELLY
Sadly no Yummychiyo or Hane ranking – but Marika scores a Helly ranking and also has cosplay by Kalinka Fox.
RATING:
B-TIER (HIGH TIER)
Shadowheart in default armor – game appearance
(18) BALDUR’S GATE III (2023) – SHADOWHEART
The Baldur’s Gate series of games is a fantasy role-playing game in the Forgotten Realms setting adapted from Dungeons and Dragons. Baldur’s Gate III is the latest instalment of the game, based on the current edition of Dungeons and Dragons (5th edition). The premise of the game sounds interesting – the player character is one of the unlucky individuals captured by mind flayers, that iconic monster of Dungeons and Dragons (up there with beholders) which essentially resembles a humanoid version of Cthulhu or squidy thing (for their squid like heads). The player character has escaped from captivity, having crashed the mind flayer ship they were being transported on…but had been implanted with a mind flayer ‘tadpole’ that will slowly turn them into a mind flayer unless removed. So they team up with several other survivors of the crash, all likewise implanted with tadpoles, to attempt to do just that – remove the tadpoles.
There’s a few female characters but Shadowheart is the standout, particularly in art and cosplay. She’s one of the six ‘pre-made’ origin characters that can be selected for the player character or accompany them – a half-elven cleric of Shar, the infamous goddess of darkness and loss (or is she?), and who seems to switch between raven and silver hair.
ART & COSPLAY
Yes – I’ve simply used a screen capture of her in-game appearance as the most definitive iconic feature image for her (from the fan wiki).
ART – DANDONFUGA
Yes – she gets a Dandonfuga ranking, with Dandonfuga’s fan art easily my favorite art of Shadowheart (and much more sizzling than the screenshot of her in-game appearance).
Kikol Draws, Neoartcore and Inspyn are runners-up,
AI shoutout to Naughty Neurals.
COSPLAY – HELLY
And she gets a Helly ranking, as Helly is the only one of my holy trinity of models to cosplay her.
Runner-up is Kalinka Fox.
RATING:
B-TIER (HIGH TIER)
Nicole Demara from the Cunning Hares (left) and Jane Doe from the Criminal Investigation Special Response Team (right) as they appear in the Zenless Zone Zero fan wiki (fair use)
(19) GIRLS OF ZENLESS ZONE ZERO (2024) – NICOLE DEMARA & JANE DOE
Not quite up there with the holy trinity of Azur Lane, Blue Archive and Goddess of Victory: Nikke – and by holy, I mean incredibly prolific in new character releases or designs – but certainly prolific in art and cosplay, eclipsing previous gacha games (except of course the aforementioned holy trinity).
“Zenless Zone Zero…otherwise known as simply ZZZ, is an urban fantasy roguelike action RPG gacha game developed by miHoYo of Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail fame, first announced in May 2022 and officially launched on July 4, 2024.
In the city of New Eridu, humanity has successfully implemented technology that allows ordinary people to live safely alongside Hollows — black, abnormal spherical dimensions that appear out of thin air, swallowing everything they touch and mutating any intelligent life caught within them…they are raided by individuals known as Agents who possess both the resistance to Hollow corruption and the combat skills needed to fight, survive, and carry out various odd-job commissions in the supernatural space – ”
Look – I don’t play these games, I’m just here for the art and cosplay so that’s as much of the plot summary or premise as you’re going to get. Essentially as I understand it the Hallows are like dungeons in an urban fantasy Dungeons and Dragons, where the Agents are player characters.
Nicole Demara is the leader of the Cunning Hares, the Agent faction introduced with the game’s launch – the flagship girl of the game and still its most popular female character, for very obvious buxom reasons.
“She even shoves her cleavage into the camera in her character trailer…in the character select screen, she’s also very eager to twist and turn into classic pin-up poses”. I mean, seriously, just check out her character demo trailer video on Youtube.
While Nicole might be their flagship character, at least in volume of art and cosplay (although her team the Cunning Hares are also one of the original teams of the game), Jane Doe is close runner-up in volume of art and cosplay.
I wouldn’t have picked a rat-girl as so popular – oka she’s not literally a rat-girl but has a rat animal motif – but she rivals Nicole as the fan service girl of the game.
ART & COSPLAY
For her iconic feature image, what else but the character profile images from the game?
ART – SCIAMANO
And how! Yes – Nicole scores a Sciamano ranking, as Sciamano was ahead of the curve(s) on her soon after the game release.
Sadly no Dandonfuga art as far as I’m aware
My other favorite art of Nicole is by Kiko L.
As for Jane Doe, she too scores a Sciamano ranking but not any Dandonfuga ranking as yet. She also scores art by Kiko L, Neoartcore, and Kittew.
COSPLAY – HANE
And yes – Nicole scores a Hane ranking for outstanding cosplay of her by Hane Ame. Close runners up are Uri and By0ru.
Jane Does has no ranking from my holy cosplay trinity (Yummychiyo, Hane Ame, and Helly Valentine) but she does score cosplay by Uri and By0ru.
RATING:
B-TIER (HIGH TIER)
Character design from the fan wiki, showcasing her full superhero costume (fair use)
(20) GIRLS OF DISPATCH (2025) – BLONDE BLAZER
Rounding out my special mentions are the girls of the video game Dispatch – or rather the girl, Blonde Blazer, as my other girl of Dispatch, Malevola, is presently my wildcard tenth place entry in the top ten. Blonde Blazer is the superheroine manager of the dispatch organization – the blonde superheroine persona of brunette Mandy, as her hair color changes with the pendant that is the source of her superpowers.
ART & COSPLAY
I’ve gone with her character design from the fan wiki, showcasing her full costume for my iconic feature image – the image itself is her character profile from the game wiki.
RATING:
X-TIER (WILD TIER)
