2018 was a great year for gaming, and many defining new titles were released. Among the various critically-acclaimed games of 2018, there were games that featured some tough female characters. In many games released this year, such as Assassins Creed Odyssey and Far Cry 5, players even had the option to play as either a male or a female character. Here are the five best female characters that featured in video games this year.

5 Sadie from Red Dead Redemption 2

Sadie Adler is an outlaw and bounty hunter who joins the Van Der Linde gang in Red Dead Redemption 2. Rockstar Games describes her as "a widow who is hell-bent on taking revenge upon those who killed her husband. Relentless and afraid of nothing and no one. The wrong woman to cross, but very loyal to those she loves." Sadie definitely lives up to this reputation and proves to be a great fighter alongside Arthur throughout many of the game's most memorable missions.

4 Kara from Detroit: Become Human

Kara is an android in Detroit: Become Human who becomes self-aware, and is part of an uprising of androids confronting their owners. Kara is an unconventionally tough heroine, as she is a protector rather than an aggressor, but displays her strength by protecting Alice Williams. Often mistreated by her owner, Todd Williams, Kara attempts to escape and take his daughter, Alice with her.

3 Solveig from Battlefield V

For the first time in the series' history, Battlefield V included a chapter that follows the story of a female soldier, Solveig. Solveig is affiliated with the indigenous resistance movement opposing the German occupying forces in Norway, and despite being young, she is a well-trained and effective soldier during the war. Solveig survives the Norwegian cold and avoids Nazis patrolling the woods during the campaign, as she is in search of her mother. We have not seen many playable female soldiers in the past, and Solveig definitely sets a high standard for female soldiers in future games.

2 Kassandra from Assassins Creed Odyssey

The Assassin's Creed series has featured many notable female characters, such as Evie Frye from Assassin's Creed Syndicate and Aya from Assassin's Creed Origins, but none can match Kassandra, who is canon in the latest game in the series, Assassin's Creed Odyssey. Kassandra has proved to be the toughest female character in the series so far, being the great-granddaughter of King Leonidas of Sparta, who can wield a variety of weapons in the game, including swords, bows, spears, and axes. Kassandra can also perform brutal stealth kills, and she definitely does not let anything or anyone in the game intimidate her.

1 Lara Croft from Shadow of the Tomb Raider

In Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Lara Croft finally becomes the tomb raider, and the game marks the height of Lara's skills and resourcefulness. In this game, Lara is no longer the naive and vulnerable young explorer that she was in 2013's Tomb Raider, but the gameplay allows her to use her surroundings to camouflage and perform brutal stealth kills. Lara also masters all her weapons in this game, including the deadly bow and arrow introduced in 2013. Lara Croft is by far the toughest that she has ever been in Shadow of the Tomb Raider.

What we can look forward to more great games with notable female characters in 2019. Some of the most highly-anticipated games include Gears 5 that will have Kait Diaz as its protagonist, Wolfstein: Youngblood that features twin sisters killing nazis, and the Indie game, Sea of Solitude, that follows the story of a young girl who becomes a monster. These last few years have definitely been female character's time to shine in gaming, and the trend seems to continue for future releases too.