Bounty hunting is a profession that most regard as a cool fantasy. Throughout fiction and real life, there have been many tales of bounty hunters, from swordsmen to gunslingers. As video games continue to develop and put the lives of characters into the hands of players, it’s only natural that upon our journeys we come across a plethora of bounty hunters.
Video games have a lot of bounty hunters, and many deserve the title of iconic for their ability to hunt, track, fight and look good whilst doing it.
10 Silas Greaves, Call of Juarez: Gunslinger
The protagonist for Call of Juarez: Gunslinger, Silas Greaves was a famous bounty hunter in the game who wears an iconic red Mexican poncho, a necklace with an ancient Aztec coin, and a dusty brown cowboy hat with a torn brim. His primary weapons consist of two revolvers, a look that is present in most of the artwork for Call of Juarez: Gunslinger.
He is motivated by revenge after the murder of his brothers, and a righteous sense of justice. Morally good characters like this are always easy to root for because of their coolness, especially when part of this character involves crossing paths with a real-life outlaw, Billy The Kid.
9 V, Cyberpunk 2077
As the player-controlled character and protagonist of the RPG Cyberpunk 2077, V’s gender, appearance, and perks are entirely up to the player’s freedom of choice. As a roleplaying game, you usually start from nothing and work your way through the ranks to become a legend. Cyberpunk 2077 is no different, and you’ll be in desperate need of Eddies for better gear, outfits, and vehicles.
The coolest way to do that is by becoming a bounty hunter through mercenary jobs. These build V’s street cred, and make them a Night City legend, with every fixer in the city wanting them to take someone down for cash. In some missions, it is entirely up to the player whether to take out the target peacefully, or fatally, allowing for each V to have their own unique bounty hunting personality.
8 Calo Nord, Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic
With Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic being set almost 4,000 years before The Phantom Menace; it is no surprise people don’t talk much about Calo Nord. Nord was a famous bounty hunter during the Jedi Civil War, which involved both Darth Revan and Darth Malak, and is proficient with blasters and bombs in KOTOR.
This cold and calculating bounty hunter has no time for anyone, and if the player approaches him at the cantina on Taris, he will simply count down to three, and if the player hasn’t left him alone, prepare to restart from your recent checkpoint. He survives multiple attempts on his life and is eventually hired by Darth Malak to take out the player.
7 Zaeed Massani, Mass Effect
First appearing in Mass Effect 2, Zaeed was notorious as one of the most feared and respected bounty hunters. From his scars and heavy equipment, he is a character in Mass Effect that you would not want to mess with. He joins as a companion motivated by money.
If your Commander Shepherd finds themselves fond of the veteran mercenary Zaeed, then they can complete Zaeed’s loyalty mission with the man still alive, ready for more reaper killing action in Mass Effect 3. If the Illusive Man describes him as “ruthless and relentless”, then you know he’s iconic.
6 Stranger, Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath
The protagonist of Stranger’s Wrath, this Oddsworld character is the latest in the franchise. He seems to be one of the last of his kind: a Steef. The game has this character on quite the emotional journey as he seeks to embrace himself as a Steef, but only after he deems himself fit to be one. His personality is that of a man on a mission, straightforward and razor-sharp.
His outfit takes homage to old western characters, with his worn hat, high boots, and a poncho. His weapons also make him a feared bounty hunter, for his interesting crossbow that fires live ammo, nine different types of creatures.
5 Sadie Adler, Red Dead Redemption 2
One of the most recent characters in gaming, and quickly becoming one of the most iconic, Sadie Adler made her debut in Red Dead Redemption 2. Players first meet Sadie as a recent widower. Rivals of the Van Der Linde gang, the O’Driscoll Boys, killed her husband Jake, and she hid in a cellar for days to avoid a similar fate.
Throughout Red Dead Redemption 2, Sadie becomes stronger over the loss of her husband. She becomes a fierce fighter and becomes part of the family. Her development shines later in the game after her one-woman war on the remaining O’Driscolls. She dons a leather overcoat and becomes a prolific bounty hunter, and goes on to teach John Marston what she knows.
4 Jango Fett, Star Wars: Bounty Hunter
Repirisng the role from Attack of the Clones, Temuera Morrison brings Jango Fett back to life. As the genetic template for the clone army and the father for the notorious Boba Fett, Jango’s stature isn’t given justice at the hands of his death by Mace Windu. Star Wars: Bounty Hunter seeks to show players what made Jango so feared, and acts as a backstory for the events that occur before his demise.
The game reiterates Jango’s status as a bounty hunter, for it had a bounty system itself that was innovated and encouraged level exploration due to being able to find secondary targets that could be captured dead or alive.
3 John Marston, Red Dead Redemption
What makes John Marston an iconic bounty hunter is how well he fits in with the western setting. Simply put, Marston is a gunslinger, and his adventures through Red Dead Redemption show just that. Whether it's Red Dead Redemption's story-centric missions, stranger missions, or putting down the town drunk in a duel, Marston is a force to be reckoned with.
His iconic look paired with the great performance by Rob Wiethoff makes John Marston a legend of the west. The story centers around John tracking and killing the old gang that left him for dead, and in the open world there are a lot of bounties that John Marston can take from the sheriff’s offices all around the map, and it’s up to the player whether to kill them or take them in alive.
2 Samus Aran, Metroid
As an intergalactic bounty hunter, and the protagonist of the Metroid franchise, Samus has paved the way for female characters since 1986. She is one of Nintendo’s most iconic characters and appears prominently in Super Smash Bros.
As a prestigious and famous bounty hunter, Samus Aran’s strength and talents are highlighted by her power suit, which allows for fun gameplay segments, with rolling and exploration. She is a hunter of space pirates and those that threaten humanity. In all the Metroid games, Samus has proven time and time again, that she doesn’t need her suit or the powers with it to be an unstoppable bounty hunter.
1 Geralt Of Rivia, The Witcher 3
As the main protagonist in The Witcher, Geralt of Rivia is nothing short of an expert. His profession and private life directly correlate to make him one of the greatest monster hunters in the world of The Witcher. He was sent to The School of the Wolf and subjected to Witcher trials, trials that only three out of ten survive due to the excruciating pain of mutations. These mutations give Witchers inhuman senses and strengths, as well as cat eyes.
Geralt’s main profession lies with hunting monsters, but he has taken a bounty or two in his life for men that deserve a fate at the hands of a Witcher. His tracking abilities are unparalleled, due to his eyes, ears, and nose being so well-tuned. His combat prowess is something to fear as he wields both silver and steel blades.