TECH: The greatest retro game characters
We remember the gaming greats of old, those retro console and PC heroes who graced childhoods worldwide.
Super Mario, Half-life , Halo and the Legend of Zelda – what do these games have in common?
They all gave life to a supreme breed of main characters from some of the greatest, most iconic retro games to grace the console, device or computer.
Below is our list of the top finest retro game heroes:
Mario
Chances are you remember the 2D side-scrolling game, featuring our favourite little Italian/Japanese plumber. It also helped us foster a love of cute mushrooms.
Master Chief
Everyone loves the hero of the Halo series, from his trademark uniform to the damage he rained down on the Covenant race of aliens. Mostly silent yet deadly, his fight became ours.
Gordon Freeman
In terms of main characters, few compare to the super-suit wearing, crowbar-toting physicist that is Gordon Freeman. Alongside a motley crew of friends, he defines the term ‘silent bad-ass’.
Pac-Man
Small, yellow and round, this guy’s appetite can’t be satisfied! He even takes revenge on the creepy ghosts who hound him – by eating them.
Lara Croft
What makes this intrepid explorer so appealing? Could it be her two greatest weapons (massive handguns) or her seeming ability to escape any dangerous situation?
Sonic the Hedgehog
What’s small, blue and spikey, with a love of golden rings? You guessed it, the cute critter after which a massive series of games were named. Sonic is fast and awesome.
Link
Wielding sword and shield, this mute fellow saves the day and the world a few times throughout ‘The Legend of Zelda’ series. What would Hyrule be without him?
Cloud Strife
Villains of the Final Fantasy universe, beware! His sword is larger than life and his feud with super-villain Sephiroth ended in thrilling video game style.
Pikachu
The advent of Pokemon sparked a global craze, not least for the Pokemon named Pikachu. Shown to possess tremendous courage and electric abilities, this cute munchkin packs a punch.
Ryu
Hadoken and Shoryuken are two moves gamers automatically associated with the Street Fighter series. Ryu himself is a tough son-of-a-gun, and firing off these attacks makes him truly formidable.
