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With narrative-driven experiences becoming increasingly popular, many now feel that a game is only as good as its characters, which is perhaps why so much time and effort goes into crafting the perfect villains these days. Not every developer has what it takes to create a truly iconic antagonist though, making the best video game villains all the more impressive as a result.
7 General Shepherd (Call of Duty)
A lot of people only play Call of Duty games for their fantastic multiplayer modes, but that’s not to say that they don’t occasionally have strong single-player campaigns as well. The Modern Warfare titles are a great example of this and are packed full of shocking and memorable moments from start to finish.
Other than the infamous “No Russian” mission from 2009’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, one of the series’ more notable twists came in the form of General Shepherd’s betrayal. Having spent much of the game working alongside players, he eventually shows his true colors, which leads to the deaths of both Roach and Ghost.
6 Vaas (Far Cry)
As a franchise, the Far Cry games arguably boast the best selection of villains in all of gaming, though one stands out above the rest. Portrayed by Michael Mando of Better Call Saul fame, Vaas Montenegro is an incredibly complicated and charismatic villain, but also an incredibly compelling one.
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His interactions with Jason Brody throughout Far Cry 3 are perfectly scripted, with the protagonist changing drastically throughout the course of the game as a result of Vaas’ actions. Pagan Min and Faith Seed also deserve a mention here, but neither quite measures up to the psychotic pirate leader.
5 GLaDOS (Portal)
Being psychotic may not be a requirement when it comes to crafting a great video game villain, but it certainly helps. To see the trait applied to an AI is particularly interesting, with GLaDOS seeming to take genuine pleasure from teasing and tormenting Chell throughout the two Portal games.
The thing that makes GLaDOS such a great villain is the fact that players can only actually hear her for much of the games. This places extra emphasis on her dialog, which strikes just the right balance between witty humor and sadism and is all the more effective for having been delivered in her cold, emotionless voice.
4 Sephiroth (Final Fantasy)
The Final Fantasy franchise boasts plenty of great villains. Some will perhaps argue that Kefka is the pick of the bunch, and, while this may well be the case when focusing solely on each villain’s respective game, when looking at the impact that they’ve had on the wider gaming industry, there can only be one winner: Sephiroth.
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The one-winged angel is one of the most recognizable video game villains around, not to mention one of the most intimidating. The way he’s used throughout the events of Final Fantasy 7 is both unique and unusual, which makes him all the more compelling as a villain. His relationship with Cloud, which was inspired by Japanese mythology, serves as the metaphorical icing on the cake.
3 Dr. Robotnik (Sonic)
Dr. Robotnik (or Eggman, as he’s come to be known in more recent years) isn’t particularly intimidating. In fact, when it comes to his appearance, he’s not really that scary at all despite his awesome ‘stache. That’s not to say that he isn’t still incredibly dangerous though, albeit through somewhat unconventional means.
Like Dr. Wily in the Mega Man games, Robotnik’s biggest asset is definitely his brain. It allows him to come up with all kinds of crazy inventions and has even seen him create clones of his arch nemesis Sonic. Granted, none of Eggman’s evil schemes have worked out egg-sactly how he would have wanted, but he remains one of the best and most memorable villains in all of gaming nonetheless.
2 Ganon (The Legend of Zelda)
Every once in a while a Zelda game decides to focus on a new villain, but the series always seems to come back to Ganon after a short while. The Demon Lord first appeared in the original Legend of Zelda game on the NES and has gone on to appear in countless other titles in the years since then.
Like Thanos in the Avengers movies, Demise’s curse ensures that Ganon and his human form Ganondorf are somewhat inevitable, yet each story in which the characters feature still manages to feel unique in its own right. His connection to Link and Zelda through the Triforce is an intriguing one, but it’s perhaps Ganon’s many terrifying forms that really help to set him apart.
1 Bowser (Mario)
If one were to write down a list of all the things that make a great villain, Bowser probably wouldn’t tick off too many of the boxes. He’s not particularly intimidating, he’s incredibly predictable, and he hasn’t really changed all that much since making his debut way back in 1985. Despite this, however, Bowser remains a force to be reckoned with.
As iconic as he is enduring, the Koopa King is one of the first great examples of a video game villain, which in turn has made him ridiculously popular. Just as his arch-nemesis Mario can be recognized by people from all over the world, so too can Bowser, and it’s this, together with his perseverance and dedication, that makes Bowser the best video game villain of all time.
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