Hack and slash game characters have always had a very ardent fan following since the PlayStation 2 days. A lot of the video game franchises from this sub-genre that are still surviving today with massive fan appeals are titles from yesteryears.
We have created a list below, specially curating a few of the most iconic hack-and-slash game characters of all time.
Best Hack And Slash Game Characters
Vergil (Devil May Cry)
When we talk about the hack and slash genre, Devil May Cry is the first thing that comes to mind for almost every gamer out there. There are multiple amazing characters in this franchise, but only one who was able to break the internet with his memes and combo videos, that is Vergil.
Primarily introduced as an antagonist to the series, Dante’s brother was one of the coolest characters ever introduced to the franchise. He is so popular that the developers made a fifth game specifically about his comeback to the series.
Without a doubt, the silver haired katana weilding brother far outranks the main character of the series in terms of popularity, no matter which game he appears in.
Dante (Devil May Cry)
The best way to follow up a discussion about one of the greatest Devil May Cry characters of all time is to talk about another character from the same series. We are, of course, talking about Vergil’s twin brother in red, who is the face of the series.
No one can honestly imagine a Devil May Cry title without Dante being in a prominent role in some way or another. Fans are super nitpicky about this aspect, which is exactly what the reboot game made by Ninja Theory failed at.
Developers can’t just expect everyone to accept a game that creates a new and different character, then slaps the Devil May Cry title on it.
Bayonetta (Bayonetta)
If Dante and Vergil are the biggest hack-and-slash male characters ever, then Bayonetta definitely takes that crown for the greatest hack-and-slash female character of all time. In an interesting twist of fate, this is also a character that is in a way related to Dante.
Although there are no direct connections, our favorite Umbral Witch comes from the mind of Hideki Kamiya. He is also the creator of the original Devil May Cry and, of course, Dante. After leaving Capcom, he co-founded Platinum Games.
A company that specializes in hack and slash and other sub-genres of action games. Thus making Bayonetta, in a way, a long lost deisgn sibling to Dante.
Raiden (Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance)
Speaking of Platinum Games, as we said, the company is well known for some of the most iconic hack-and-slash video game franchises. But not only do they work on original IPs, but they are also known for creating some of the greatest spin-off titles based on iconic series.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is one of those games that took one of the most divisive characters in the franchise and brought him back in a way people now remember for years. We are, of course, talking about Raiden, one of the best hack-and-slash game characters of all time.
He keeps the usual Metal Gear humor intact while also slicing and dicing his way through hordes of enemies in some of the most hype inducing action sequences.
2B (Nier Automata)
We are not done with Platinum Games titles yet, which really puts into perspective how influential they were in this sub-genre. Nier is another video game franchise that had a really dedicated fanbase, but it reached new heights with the release of Nier Automata, which gave the world a lot of fan service.
But that aside, Nier Automata propelled Yoko Taro’s character designs to the hack-and-slash fanbase. Especially the Android 2B has become a fan favorite as one of the most recognized action game characters.
Although the credit does not just lie with 2B, since there are other really great characters in the franchise. 2B is definitely the most recognizable face among fans.
Kratos (God of War)
Bringing up Kratos and the God of War only invokes thoughts about the recent Sony Santamonica studio games that revamped the series. While they are absolutely amazing action-adventure games, we feel that the meat of a true hack-and-slash God of War title still lies with the old games.
The panning camera view following a younger Kratos through various platforming segments as he invoked his Spartan rage to slice and dice enemies was one of the most satisfying experiences from the PlayStation 2 era.
Kartos is definitely the face of Sony’s most iconic hack-and-slash game characters ever. The studio has just announced a remake of the old titles, so we will have to wait and see if they are able to properly pay homage to the original style of games.
Ryu Hayabusa (Ninja Gaiden)
Ryu is definitely one of the oldest hack-and-slash characters to show up in the video game scene. We are talking about an era when 3D gaming was not even a thing. Ryu hacked and slashed his way through hordes of generated enemy sprites in the original Ninja Gaiden games.
Moving to the 3D era, Koei Tecmo wanted to revamp the Ninja Gaiden series for newer 3D-capable hardware. What we got was one of the most generational ninja games ever created. Ryu became the iconic face of ninjas, appearing on magazines and promotional materials for years to come.
Death (Darksiders 2)
Darksiders is a game franchise that hack-and-slash fans keep forgetting about because it keeps changing up so much, and there have been so few and far between titles. These games follow a fantasy lore that revolves around the horsemen of the apocalypse.
There is one horseman who stands out far from everyone else in the franchise, and that is Death from Darksiders 2, because of the hack-and-slash-focused gameplay. He may be the least well-known among other prolific hack-and-slash game protagonists, but that does not make him any less important.
Travis Touchdown (No More Heroes)
Travis Touchdown is the kind of character that really should be your rolemodel considering his hallmark of weird personalities. But he can definitely be one of your favorite hack-and-slash protagonists of all time.
Goichi Suda, or Suda51, is well known for his bizarre and artistic video games that may often not make sense, but if you turn off thinking, they can be very fun. No More Heroes is one of his most beloved franchise which is an important example of that.
If you are tired of seeing the same stern hack-and-slash protagonist with perfect precision at everything they do, then Travis is exactly the opposite of that, and that’s why a lot of people love him.
Zagreus (Hades)
Now, this may be a controversial pick because not many would consider Hades a hack-and-slash game. The main focus of these games is the rogue-like combat elements around hordes of enemies.
But level with us here, a lot of you Zagreus fans definitely consider him as equals beside someone like Bayonetta or Raiden because of the very hack-and-slash nature of his gameplay. Our main objective in these games is to clear through enemy swarms, slicing and dicing our way through.
This is why we are inclined to consider that Zagreus stands tall as one of the best hack and slash game protagonists in his unique, isometric way.
