We've got plenty of male gaming icons, from Nathan Drake to the more anthropomorphic Crash Bandicoot, Sonic and co. But for a while there the strong female game character was an enigma, a mirage and basically just MIA.

In the gaming industry's illustrious history, there have been some legendary female characters rising above the rippling muscles and testosterone.

So here are our most iconic female game characters of all time, ranked.

And of course, if you disagree with us, feel free to pick a fight with us on Twitter @digitalspygames.

21. LILITH

2K Games

Seen in: The Borderlands series

There's no doubt that there are plenty of Borderlands protagonists, but it's Lilith that really stands out.

Technically she is just another of the gun-toting madmen (and women) in the original Borderlands, but with a rather awesome phase walking ability. But it was in Borderlands 2, where she wasn't a playable character but rather a side story.

Lilith burst into Borderlands 2 like a total badass and made the other characters look rather pathetic in the process.

All hail The Firehawk!

20. ANYA STROUD

Seen in: The Gears of War series

You could have almost missed Anya Stroud in the first two Gears of War games, but in Gears of War 3 this Scandinavian beauty really comes into her own.

That's because developer Epic Games saw the error of its ways and made Anya a playable character in the third instalment of the series.

Thus, one of the most badass and most intimidating female game characters of all time was born.

19. BONNIE MCFARLANE

Seen in: Red Dead Redemption

If it wasn't for John Marston's wife, we think he and Bonnie MacFarlane might have had a little romance. But that's not the reason why everyone loves Bonnie.

She's not the main protagonist of Red Dead Redemption, but she plays a major role in Marston's life – especially when she saves his life.

Bonnie isn't your average Wild West Woman in any way. She's a dab hand with a rifle and dishes out hellfire to whoever threatens her farm, her family or her friends.

18. FAITH

Seen in: The Mirror's Edge series

Faith is such an iconic videogame lady for a number of reasons. For one, she's wearing normal(ish) clothes that cover her body, she's not incredibly buxom and she doesn't need to be saved.

She's a Runner, which basically means she's part of the team trying to keep law and order in the problematic dystopian society portrayed in Mirror's Edge and its successor Mirror's Edge: Catalyst.

17. PRINCESS PEACH

Seen in: The Super Mario series

Although Princess Peach has spent most of her life playing the damsel in distress - the princess is always in another castle - it's quite the testament to the pink-dressed one that she continues to be one of gaming's most iconic ladies.

Of course, she's moved on a bit from the simple damsel in distress. She's got her own line of games and you really don't want to mess with her in Super Smash Bros.

Plus, there's the fact that Princess Peach transcends games. She's an icon even for those not really interested in games and acts as one of Nintendo's main mascots on a worldwide scale.

16. ELENA FISHER

Seen in: The Uncharted series

Aside from Sully and Nathan Drake himself, Elena Fisher is one of the main trio of characters in the Uncharted series.

That alone should make her iconic, but it's not just her presence and eventual title of Mrs. Nathan Drake that makes her included in this list.

She's a brave investigative journalist and foreign correspondent who ends up accompanying Drake on his various, perilous adventures. She actually probably copes with the dangers better than he does.

15. CORTANA

Microsoft

Seen in: The Halo series

One of the central characters of the Halo series, Cortana isn't technically a woman. She's an AI with a female voice and appearance.

But that doesn't stop her from being one of gaming's most recognisable characters. She's appeared in every Halo game to date, working as Master Chief's moral compass, trusted companion and is nearly equal to the Chief himself in every way possible.

In Halo 4 she really comes into her own though. She's malfunctioning and it's up to Master Chief to save her from becoming totally obsolete. It's an emotional journey for sure, especially as you feared you were hurtling towards a farewall to one of gaming's most iconic female characters.

14. ALYX VANCE

Seen in: The Half-Life series

It's been over 10 years since we've seen Alyx Vance, but that doesn't stop her from being one of our absolute favourites.

Not only is she one of gaming's least sexualised women, she also manages to humanise Half-Life 2. As much as we love Gordon Freeman, he's not exactly the Chatty Kathy of games.

She drives the game's story, adds emotional depth and generally bucks most of the women in games' stereotypes.

13. JOANNA DARK

Seen in: The Perfect Dark series

It's funny that Perfect Dark was the game to follow Rare's iconic GoldenEye 007, because protagonist Joanna Dark is the female counterpart to James Bond himself.

She's a down-to-earth super spy who's extremely handy with a gun, full of witty retorts and clever lines. Plus, she gave female gamers of the time someone to have faith in. Just like Lara Croft did with Tomb Raider.

James Bond eat your heart out.

12. CLEMENTINE

Seen in: Telltale's The Walking Dead series

The youngest of our top iconic female game characters, Clementine, is a fierce survivor of the zombie apocalypse.

Not only does she save Lee's life in Season One, but she goes on to be the playable character in Season Two. She's not the leader by a long shot, but you see her develop from the frightened and alone young girl from Season One into a gun-wielding, very intelligent young lady.

Clementine's also just as complex as the adult characters – some may argue more so – which gave her additional credibility not just as a female character, but also for child characters in games.

11. JADE

Ubisoft

Seen in: Beyond Good and Evil

Jade is one of those characters who you might think was lying half the time if she existed in real life.

Not only does she save the world and stop evil, she also manages to have a 9-5 job working in an orphanage helping the victims of the evil she's just defeated. As you do.

We're just waiting for Jade's return in Beyond Good and Evil 2, which is one of those games that's been teased for years without one jot of concrete information as to a release.

10. LIARA T'SONI

Seen in: The Mass Effect series

Although Liara tended to be one of the most popular love interests for Commander Shephard in the Mass Effect trilogy (we were Team Garrus, sorry), there's more to the stunning blue alien than looks alone.

She always seemed to have her own agenda, keeping Shephard grounded and making sure that his/her actions were well motivated.

Liara also provided a way for players to connect with the various alien races on a deeper level with her wisdom and knowledge.

We hope she'll make an appearance in Mass Effect: Andromeda, although we fear we may be disappointed.

9. LIGHTNING

Square Enix

Seen in: The Final Fantasy series

Although Final Fantasy FFXIII wasn't the best game, you can't deny that Lightning is one of the strongest female leads of all time and in the Final Fantasy series.

She puts family first, has awesome pink hair and actually evolved from a narrator to playable character to total boss and main character in Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII.

Lightning – aka Claire Farron – also manages to do all this without shedding half her clothing. We wish the other female Final Fantasy characters would take note.

8. COMMANDER SHEPHARD (AKA FEMSHEP)

Seen in: The Mass Effect trilogy

We know, we know, that's the second character from Mass Effect in one list of iconic female characters. But it's not our fault Bioware is so gifted at crafting such well-written, well-rounded and memorable characters, is it?

Commander Shephard can be male or female in all three of the original Mass Effect trilogy entries, and Bioware's writing is so brilliant that the characterisation and interactions barely change at all.

That means that you suddenly get a female protagonist that feels a lot more human than ever before, but also not bound by her gender. Femshep, as the female version of Commander Shephard came to be known, suddenly became a very inspirational character.

And the subtleties offered by voice actor Jennifer Hale is also vastly superior to whoever voices the male Commander Shephard.

7. ELLIE

Seen in: The Last of Us

Highly regarded as one of the best games of all time, The Last of Us would be nothing without its lead characters – Ellie and Joel. The emotional dynamics between the pair are half of what makes the game so great.

However, we're talking about the ladies of gaming here and Ellie's ferocity, bravery and edginess make her one of the most iconic.

Like Clementine, she develops over the game as the pair manage to survive one treacherous encounter after another in the dystopian world, which all force her to shake off the childlike innocence she starts out with.

Of course, anyone who's played the Left Behind DLC will know that it defines Ellie's character even further, exploring her key relationships and backstory before she meets Joel.

6. ZELDA

Seen in: The Legend of Zelda series

Although it might feel that Princess Zelda is just another damsel in distress, since Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, she's actually taken on a number of different roles.

Whether that's directly fighting the various dark forces that plague Hyrule, rescuing Link dressed up as a pirate or just always having the edge on our green-hatted hero, she's always there to lend a hand with her archery skills.

Although Link is all well and good and we're looking forward to Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, we'd relish a game where Zelda took the lead.

5. BAYONETTA

Seen in: The Bayonetta series

Unfortunately, Bayonetta is one iconic female game character who's very over-sexualised. She's been equally heralded as a feminist icon and an example of the gaming industry's rampant over-sexualisation of female characters.

But at least her super-sexy outfit is creative.

Her hair is many things – the reason to change your conditioner, her weapon and also, strangely enough, her clothing.

She's also one of the most brutal and deadly female game characters of all time – overtaking some of the male ones too.

4. JILL VALENTINE

Seen in: The Resident Evil series

Jill Valentine may be the queen of survival horror because she had a bigger inventory and better, bigger guns than her male counterpart in the first Resident Evil.

But the reputation of the "master of unlocking" has only grown as the number of Resident Evil games has increased. We hated it when she turned up in Resident Evil 5 under Wesker's control.

However, Jill Valentine will always be a hero in our hearts.

3. CHUN-LI

Seen in: The Street Fighter series

Chun-Li broke gaming perceptions because she was the first female fighter in a fighting game. But it wasn't just any fighting game, it was Street Fighter.

This alone makes her a legendary badass, but her moves were equally as deadly as her debut.

She's also a genuine heroine, as she's an undercover Interpol officer seeking revenge on the criminals responsible for her father's death.

2. SAMUS ARAN

Seen in: The Metroid series

We all know that one of the most famous gaming Easter Eggs of all time involves the revelation that Samus Aran – the hero in all the Metroid games – is actually a woman.

After all, god forbid that a powerful, courageous, alien-bashing hero could have a pair of breasts too, right?

Well, ever since then Samus has been named as one of the most iconic female game characters, with her popularity only increasing with every new Metroid title.

1. LARA CROFT

Seen in: The Tomb Raider series

Although Lara Croft might be an obvious choice to top this list, you can't deny that she's always been an icon for women in games – for the good and the bad times.

She started off as a triangular-boobed, hotpants-wearing, over-sexualised bag of pixels, where any male gamers would angle the camera to see her butt. But over time, she's grown up, been smoothed out and has evolved into the feminist icon she deserves to be.

That's particularly true of the 2013 reboot and the follow-up Rise of the Tomb Raider, where Lara really became an icon.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io