When you load into Donkey Kong on an arcade machine, you are greeted with a simple scene: rows of girders, an angry monkey, the earliest version of Mario (then known as ‘Jumpman’), and ‘The Lady’, a woman in a red dress waiting helplessly at the top of the screen.

She does nothing to stop her captor. Her only role is to reward Mario with a pink love heart once the game is complete.

Donkey Kong is the first example of the damsel-in-distress trope still used in video games today. Critics have linked this trope to the archaic societal views that women as a group need to be taken care of by men.

Whilst the captor may have changed skins every so often, the damsel in distress has not, always being a woman waiting for her heroic male figure.

But is gaming restricted to a single role for female characters?

Since the 1990s, female gamers have often been regarded as a minority. Video games are seen as a ‘boys’ hobby’, but that gap today is smaller than ever.

Many studies show that the split is roughly 50:50 and that everyone enjoys video games regardless of gender.

Still, this equal player base does not make up for the underrepresentation of women in video games, the blatant sexism against female gamers and characters alike, and the largely untapped market of women.

Sexist advertising, the lack of women in game development and persistent social stereotypes are just some of the issues that still need to be addressed.

Video games are not just for men, built by men and played by men; they should be played and made by everyone.

Namco’s Pac-Man was one of the first video games to attract large numbers of female gamers, prompting Midway Games to develop Ms Pac-Man in 1982. They said it was “their way of thanking all those lady arcaders who have played and enjoyed Pac-Man.”

Samus Aran, the protagonist of Metroid, is one of the first ever playable human female characters in video game history.

The original instruction manual for the game referred to Samus as ‘him/he’ so that the reveal of Samus’ gender would be a surprise for those who completed the game.

The co-creator of Metroid, Yoshio Sakamoto, said that during the course of game development, developers tried to express aspects of femininity without sexually objectifying Samus.

Many regard Samus as a breakthrough for feminism in video games, noting that her tough personality, strong backstory, and arsenal of weaponry are typically reserved for male characters.

But others argue this means very little. With the introduction of the Zero Suit in Metroid: Zero Mission, Samus dons a skin-tight, form-fitting jumpsuit complete with height extension boots that look remarkably like high heels.

Though the game itself does not rely on cheap gags and exploitation of her gender, much of the media reception of Samus came from her sex appeal.

Lara Croft is well known for her ability to raid tombs and perform amazingly unrealistic jumps. But great gameplay doesn’t cover up the fact that Indiana Jones doesn’t wear a crop top and short shorts to hunt his treasure down.

Croft has been criticised for her unrealistic body proportions and for going against the ongoing culture clash of gender, objectification, empowerment and sexuality.

In her later appearances, Croft undergoes a major redesign, clearly to make her less sexualised.

This is not uncommon in remasters and remakes, especially with a shift towards better graphics, where both men and women are being portrayed much more realistically than their original counterparts.

It’s not all black and white when it comes to game design, though. There have been many female characters and protagonists who are great examples of how women should be portrayed in video games: as characters.

The best characters are those not written with gender in mind. A character, for the most part, is not strong, intelligent, caring or attractive because they are a man or a woman; they are these things because they are well-written and well-rounded.

Sidekick Alyx Vance is the non-playable character (NPC) that follows Gordon Freeman throughout the game Half-Life 2. She has received high praise for her intelligence, wit, personality and overall design.

Unlike some NPCs, she is not completely useless and really helps out in missions, often taking strategic positions and not being afraid to gun down enemies.

In 2004, Alyx was a rare female character who felt not only necessary to the game but also a huge part of it. In addition, she does not exist solely for the male character; she is just another human in the post-apocalyptic world of Half-Life 2.

Alyx helped demonstrate that female characters could be intelligent, capable and essential to the story. Later games would push this even further by placing women not just alongside the protagonist, but at the very centre of the narrative.

A prime example of the subversion of the damsel-in-distress stereotype is Ellie from The Last of Us series.

Ellie is one of the only known people immune to the cordyceps infection that has turned much of the population into zombies.  Ellie’s relationship with the protagonist of The Last of Us Part I, Joel, is often praised for its realistic father-daughter dynamic. However, the strength and complexity of Ellie herself often receive the most attention.

In The Last of Us Part II, especially, Ellie becomes the central perspective through which the player experiences the story.

The game explores her trauma, anger and moral struggles, portraying her not as a symbol of empowerment but as a deeply flawed and human character. By placing Ellie at the centre of the narrative, the series moves far beyond the traditional damsel trope and shows how female characters can carry complex, emotionally driven stories of their own.

From the helpless ‘Lady’ waiting at the top of Donkey Kong to complex protagonists like Ellie, the role of women in video games has changed dramatically over the past four decades.

While issues of representation and sexualisation have not disappeared entirely, modern games increasingly present female characters as fully realised individuals rather than stereotypes.

As the industry continues to grow and diversify, it is hoped that future games like GTA VI and Death Stranding 2 will move beyond outdated tropes toward richer, more inclusive storytelling.

Image credit: Unsplash