5 best action RPGs with female protagonists

Action RPG games have been around for decades, but titles featuring a female lead found popularity only a few years ago. Other than having little to no female representation, older action RPG games have been accused of featuring extremely impractical and borderline absurd attire and armor options for the fairer gender.

However, times have changed immensely, and having female leads is much more common now. Although some parts of the internet might continue to criticize women in video games, the practice of equal representation has been widely appreciated in present times. In this article, we have listed five action RPG games that have excellent female protagonists.

Disclaimer: This list is solely based on the author's opinions and is not ranked in any particular order.

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5 best action RPGs with amazing female protagonists

1) Horizon Zero Dawn

Aloy is extremely powerful and can take down robot dinosaurs with a bow (Image via Guerrilla)

Horizon Zero Dawn is a fairly recent title. Yet the protagonist, Aloy, is already deemed as one of the most iconic female characters in gaming, alongside Lara Croft, Samus Aran, and Jill Valentine. The developers at Guerrilla did an astonishing job at fleshing out and establishing Aloy's character in both the Horizon games.

During the release of the sequel, Horizon Forbidden West, a small, yet very loud group criticized the game and demanded that RPGs should have conventionally attractive women instead of relatable ones. However, the sequel performed extremely well in the market and is considered both a critical and commercial success.

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2) Hades 2

The "God-like Rogue-like" is back (Image via SuperGiant Games)

SuperGiant Games is known for choosing not to go down the sequel route. However, they chose to break tradition for the Rogue-like action RPG series that made them a household name. In Hades 2, the sequel to Hades, we follow the Daughter of the underworld, Melinoe, instead of her brother Zagreus.

While she is equally as charming and relatable as her brother, Melinoe is a force that shouldn’t be challenged. Apart from being fast and fierce, she channels Magick to perform devastating attacks that can even put down the evil Titan of Time, Chronos, in his own house.

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3) Baldur’s Gate 3

One of the best cast of female characters in gaming (Image via Larian)

Larian’s Baldur's Gate 3, which is considered the game of the decade by many, is a breath of fresh air when it comes to video game representation. Each of the vibrant and addictively lovable origin characters that you control represents almost all factions of people through their themes and backstories.

The cast of Baldur’s Gate 3 features a roster of playable female characters, including Lae'zel, Shadowheart, and Karlach. Each of these characters has an incredible overarching story arc that aligns beautifully with the game’s main story. The intricacies and sheer love that were put into writing these characters truly make Baldur’s Gate 3 a must-play.

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4) Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

The 'canon' protagonist (Image via Ubisoft)

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is one of the modern Assassin’s Creed games that drastically deviated from the established formula of the series. Odyssey is more of an action RPG than a stealth-based single-player title. It offers two playable characters, Kassandra the female main character, and Alexios the male lead.

Although the game treats both of these characters equally, Kassandra is considered the ‘cannon’ main character of the game because she is the protagonist of the Novel. Her character is incredibly well-written, and she is an incredible fighter, despite being compassionate and heroic when the need arises.

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5) Cyberpunk 2077

The female V is peak (Image via CD PROJEKT RED)

There is no discrimination in Night City. As long as you get the job done, no one will question the identity you choose to go by. The main character V, can be played as both male and female. However, a large part of the community loves to play V as a Woman in Cyberpunk 2077 because of her attitude, appearance, and the phenomenal performance of her voice actor Cherami Leigh.

Female V is considered the emotional and genuine iteration of V. Even in a ruthless place like Night City, Female V’s dialogues feel grounded, proving that under all those cyber implants and dried blood there is a human heart.

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