Tomb Raider's Lara Croft voted most iconic video game character of all time

The question of who the most iconic video game character is has finally been answered, all thanks to BAFTA.

In celebration of the upcoming 20th BAFTA Game Awards on 11 April, over 4,000 players across the globe bandied together to decide who would reign supreme. Some surprises appear throughout the poll, especially when it comes to ranking, however, one character that didn’t surprise was Lara Croft.

Created during a time when female lead protagonists were hard to come by, Tomb Raider gave girls and women everywhere a sense of belonging that had previously been lacking. Ever since then, this 90s heroine has stolen our hearts on each adventure she’s taken us on. Even during lulls in the franchise, she’s always had an undeniable power.

Not only did Lara make a highly anticipated comeback in Tomb Raider I-III Remastered this year, but our beloved tomb raiding archaeologist is due to make her way to Netflix in the upcoming show Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft.

Join Lara on a journey into the past with Tomb Raider I-III Remastered

“I had no clue when voicing the original Tomb Raider game that it would be such a global phenomenon and neither did Eidos or Core Design,” revealed Shelley Blond, the original voice actor for Lara Croft.

“They had only ever done children’s games before and of course they hoped it would be a success, but I think it went above and beyond any and all expectations. [...] Lara is very special to me purely because she means so much to the gamers. I love hearing stories from people around the world who played the game and channelled Lara to escape their bullies or to help them feel stronger when they wanted to come out to their loved ones.”

Regardless of whether you agree with the results of this poll, they illustrate just how diverse and subjective the medium is. Video games impact us in various ways, leaving a lasting impression we take with us through the years. Each generation finding new and familiar faces to resonate with.

Although nostalgia has clearly played a factor in the BAFTA poll, it’s both refreshing and surprising to see such newly established characters – like Baldur’s Gate 3’s Shadowheart and Astarion – ranking so highly.

Neil Newbon, the actor behind everyone’s favourite camp vampire, had this to say about the role, “Playing Astarion has been a career highlight for me. To be able to spend so long with a character, work with such an amazing company as Larian [...]has been a dream job.”

Joining Lara Croft in the top five is Mario, coming in second, followed by Agent 47, Sonic, and Sackboy (in that order). The top 20 characters are as follows:

• Lara Croft
• Mario
• Agent 47
• Sonic the Hedgehog
• Sackboy
• Pac-Man
• Link
• Master Chief
• Kratos
• Shadowheart
• Arthur Morgan
• Pikachu
• Steve (Minecraft)
• Solid Snake
• Crash Bandicoot
• Cloud Strife
• Astarion
• Kazuma Kiryu (Yakuza)
• Ellie Williams
• Nathan Drake

We don’t know about you, but the 20th BAFTA Games Awards can’t come soon enough. Remember, you can join those attending the Queen Elizabeth Hall event on 11 April via YouTube, Twitch, and Twitter.