8 fabulous leading ladies of E3 2017

Credit: Nintendo of America official image

At E3 2017, some seriously cool women took the spotlight as leading characters during the presentations and on the show floor. Here are eight we’re excited to get to know.

Despite the continued preponderance of muscular white guys swinging swords and guns around in the gaming industry, this year’s E3 2017 managed to surprise with women taking the lead in several major franchises on-screen during the press events and on the show floor. Some took the reins from their male counterparts for new adventures in known series. Others have been there all along. Still, others are bringing about the birth of their own new IPs.

Eight leading women especially stood out to me during my time at E3 2017, characterizing themselves immediately as powerful, complex people that I was eager to spend time with. Whether they were shooting guns, driving fast cars, or just trying to survive school drama, these women made a lasting impression both on myself and the audience at large that so badly needs to see more women in roles of leadership and power in their media. Here’s why I’m excited for these specific eight:

Here’s why I’m excited for these specific eight:

Chloe Frazer and Nadine Ross – Uncharted: The Lost Legacy

Chloe and Nadine have both had their parts to play as love interest and villain, respectively, in the Uncharted series past. Though Uncharted has traditionally been about our standard Snarky Heroic Dude for four installments, its excellent storytelling and treatment of characters like Elena in past installments has us hopeful that Chloe and Nadine’s return as partners in crime will be something truly special. It helps that the trailer is two non-stop minutes of them being badass, too.

Chloe and Nadine as the heroines of Uncharted: The Lost Legacy is especially potent because both of them are women taking on a genre usually reserved for men buddy stories or, quite rarely, a man and his female love interest. But in the trailer, Chloe and Nadine banter, barter, and bicker with one another in a way that occasionally borders on friendship but often questions their trust in one another and their history with each other and other characters in the series past. It’s clear that trust will be at the heart of their adventures in India pursuing this new treasure, but in spite of the gravity of their relationship, Chloe will still be around to deliver the quips and sarcasm that we’ve come to love — but in her own way.