It's routine to play a game with a hero who goes out of their way to selflessly save the world. In the past, it was rare for games to have a hero with deep, almost unforgivable flaws in certain contexts. Nowadays, the antihero has become commonplace in video games.
An antihero is a protagonist in a story that lacks the usual heroic attributes. Many video games have taken this turn, but it's hard to get players to fall in love with a bad guy. Luckily, there are quite a few examples of excellent antiheroes throughout gaming history, the best of which can be found below.
Updated May 31, 2022, by Chris Birsner: Video games have evolved a ton over the years as the player has taken on the role of characters of all different backgrounds and personalities. As games continue to come out, though, the antihero still continues to be a trope that many titles lean into. While it could be hard to fall in love with someone who is flawed, it often makes them a much more engaging character than one who is pristine. Because of the sheer amount of antiheroes who have taken the gaming world by storm, it's hard to be limited to just talking about a few of them. However, there are a handful of characters that have the distinction of being the best antiheroes in video games.
15 Carrion (Carrion)
One of the most recent examples of an anti-hero story is Carrion. Dubbed a "reverse horror game," players are a tentacle monster known as Carrion trying to escape a lab it's been trapped in. Scientists had the creature locked away after they found it as dormant biomass and it killed a few colleagues upon waking up.
Along the way, Carrion will murder plenty of scientists and soldiers to escape its prison. On one hand, it is a hideous death monster. On the other hand, it's hard to hate the creature for wanting to get out and be free from experiments.
14 Kane & Lynch (Kane & Lynch)
The Kane & Lynch series was often panned for its bad controls, but the stories of these two former death row inmates are too insane to not try. In the first game, Adam 'Kane' Marcus and James Seth Lynch are on their way to death row when they are both kidnapped by a gang called the 7.
Kane's wife and daughter had been taken hostage after he allegedly stole money from this gang and they need him to get the money back to them. The story gets even wilder, and the game itself is filled with third-person shooting action.
13 Wario (Warioland)
Nintendo has a long list of famous heroes, but even its villains are beloved. Antagonists like Bowser and King Dedede have had their moments to shine as antiheroes, but no antihero from Nintendo has multiple game series like Wario.
The star of both Warioland and WarioWare, Wario's goofy nature and overall gluttony have won the hearts of fans. His games are fun as well, with Warioland being a unique take on 2D-platforming and WarioWare filled to the brim with microgames. Both showcase Wario's desire for power and money, but in a hilarious way.
12 Trevor (Grand Theft Auto V)
If there is one franchise that embraces the antihero, it's Grand Theft Auto. Some of them are genuinely likable, but then there's Trevor, the cannibal psychopath from Grand Theft Auto 5. Some of the things that Trevor says are often hilarious and insane, but some of the acts of violence are hard to swallow.
Still, it's fun playing as someone who has no self-control. There are even side missions in Grand Theft Auto 5 where Trevor is just mindlessly killing people out of pure rage. He does fight back against the corrupt government and police as well, so it's okay to take a ride on the wild side with Trevor.
11 Harrier Du Bois (Disco Elysium)
The best video game antiheroes can sometimes be the ones whom players can take full control of, including how their personality takes shape throughout the game. This is what it's like playing as Harrier Du Bois in Disco Elysium.
Du Bois wakes up with amnesia, not realizing the tirade he went on after he arrived at the scene of a death he is investigating. Players must get to the bottom of the investigation while also dealing with the various thoughts in Harrier's head. Like a tabletop RPG, Disco Elysium requires players to roll dice in-game for some choices to come to fruition.
10 Agent 47 (Hitman)
The Hitman series is one of the more surreal video games to play, thanks to players taking on the role of Agent 47. His name refers to the fact he is the 47th clone from the DNA of five different men. This DNA was combined to create a human that would become the perfect assassin.
Agent 47 is the most successful of the clones and now follows orders to kill whoever his handlers want dead. The Hitman games themselves are a lot of fun, using Agent 47's stealth ability to dissect a situation and execute the perfect hit job. It's ruthless, but it's a fascinating and clever concept.
9 Shadow The Hedgehog (Sonic the Hedgehog)
Sonic has had a handful of villainous characters to deal with over the years, but none are as cool as Shadow the Hedgehog. Shadow was created in a lab and unleashed on the world to help Dr. Eggman with his plans in Sonic Adventure 2. However, over the years, Shadow has become an ally of Sonic despite their inherent differences.
Shadow can be a huge help in Sonic's attempt to save the world despite his edgy attitude and lack of morals. There are multiple Sonic The Hedgehog titles in which Shadow is playable, but he was also the star of his own darker game called Shadow The Hedgehog.
8 Dante (Devil May Cry)
He's not the warmest of characters, but it's hard to not like Dante from the Devil May Cry series. A demon-hunting vigilante, Dante's purpose in life is to seek revenge for his mother's death by hacking and slashing supernatural beings that stand in his way.
In the Devil May Cry series, he has superhuman powers he inherited from his father which have given him super strength and agility, to name a few. He also uses a plethora of weapons, making him a perfect character to play as to unload any built-up anger.
7 Conker (Conker's Bad Fur Day)
Very few characters have gone through such a drastic transformation as Conker The Squirrel did. Once a playable character in Diddy Kong Racing, Conker went on to star in a handful of his own games. However, his antihero turn truly came with the release of Conker's Bad Fur Day.
The game starts out with an older Conker getting so drunk that he ends up getting lost, only to stumble into a kingdom where a series of events unfold that he's forced to tackle head-on. This is all while he continues to act like a complete buffoon, making him one of the strangest, yet one of the best antiheroes in video games.
6 Max Payne (Max Payne)
Very rarely do we see a character transition into an antihero, but Max Payne fits that billing. In the very first Max Payne game, players see a happy man who works for the NYPD as a detective who loves to socialize with people.
That changes after his family are murdered. He turns into an introvert and begins to hate life and the people around him. He turns this hatred into vengeance by becoming a vigilante. The best part of playing Max Payne is hearing his cynical, morbid thoughts while he interacts with the world.
5 Alex Mercer (Prototype)
In Prototype, Alex Mercer is a shapeshifter who is looking to stop plague-spreading monsters while also dealing with conflicts involving the U.S. Military and Blackwatch, a covert operational force. New York City is dealing with a disease called Blacklight, which is turning people into these monsters.
Mercer doesn't have any memory of life prior to waking up in a lab but uses his abilities to find out the truth behind it and the disease. However, what Mercer finds out about himself isn't all good and Prototype goes a step further by making him the antagonist in the next game.
4 Geralt of Rivia (The Witcher)
It's hard to blame Geralt of Rivia for his cold personality in The Witcher series. He grew up training to become a witcher and has generally been treated pretty poorly for being one. However, he is easy to root for, ultimately developing into a character with plenty of depth and more heart than people looking in may realize.
Geralt is one of the best video game antiheroes to play as due to his amazing ability and strength to take down any monsters that stand in his way in The Witcher. The relationships that he builds are also quite compelling as they often penetrate his rather rough exterior, especially those with characters like Dandelion and Ciri.
3 Garrett (Thief)
Not a ton of known about the past life of Garrett is known, but he was molded to be a thief. In the Thief games, Garrett is recruited by The Keepers, a neutral faction in "the City" who tries to maintain a balance between chaos and order.
He learns how to become a thief but later leaves the organization to create his own path, focused on stealing from the rich. Garrett's shady aesthetic easily draws people in, but what's more exciting is the Thief gameplay of figuring out the best strategies to complete missions without getting caught in a fight.
2 Joel Miller (The Last Of Us)
It's hard to be a consistent good guy in a post-apocalyptic world, but Joel Miller of The Last of Us is one of the best antiheroes in video games for being someone that's easy to root for despite being ruthless as he struggles to survive for as long as he possibly can.
As a smuggler, Joel was tasked with escorting Ellie as she was potentially humanity's last hope for a cure. However, Joel grows attached to Ellie throughout the events of The Last of Us to the point where he would do anything to protect her. Part of the reason that Joel cares so much about Ellie is how he lost his actual daughter, Sarah, during the start of the pandemic.
1 Kratos (God Of War)
One of the most iconic video game characters ever, Kratos of God Of War is the epitome of an antihero. A demigod that later becomes a god, Kratos spends the early games embarking on long adventures to enact revenge on the Greek Gods.
During the God of War series, he goes on violent rampages that are morally questionable at best. In the latest game, Kratos is now taking care of his son, Atreus as they continue adventuring. Kratos begins to mentor Atreus and is learning to control his anger, which at times is very hard to do.