Who is the most iconic game character of all time? It is a question that has caused heated debates among gamers for decades, and now BAFTA has tried to put an end to all the arguments with a new poll that lists the top 20 characters.
The poll took answers from thousands of gamers, and gave us a list that is quite varied in terms of the types of characters we see and how much history they have with gamers. Coming in at no.1 is none other than Lara Croft of the Tomb Raider franchise.
This is likely to shock a lot of people, as most would expect Mario, Sonic, or even Pac-Man to be at that spot. Mario slots into the number 2 spot, and Sonic can be found at number 4, surprisingly behind Agent 47 of the Hitman games. Sackboy then fills out the top 5.
Check out the top 20 below, and if you want a little paragraph explaining each character, BAFTA's list is here. Prepare for even more surprises, and a whole lot of recency bias, as not one but two Baldur's Gate III characters make it onto the list.
Lara Croft, Tomb Raider
Mario, Super Mario
Agent 47, Hitman
Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic
Sackboy, LittleBigPlanet
Pac-Man, Pac-Man
Link, Legend of Zelda
Master Chief, Halo
Kratos, God of War
Shadowheart, Baldur's Gate 3
Arthur Morgan, Red Dead Redemption 2
Pikachu, Pokémon
Steve, Minecraft
Solid Snake, Metal Gear Solid
Crash Bandicoot, Crash Bandicoot
Cloud Strife, Final Fantasy VII
Astarion, Baldur's Gate 3
Kazuma Kiryu, Yakuza
Ellie Williams, The Last of Us
Nathan Drake, Uncharted