Gamespot’s most patriotic video game heroes bleed red, white, and blue
For July 4 this year Gamespot posted its list of the top 9 most patriotic heroes. Here they are, in no particular order, along with their respective games and my own humble commentary.
- Mike Haggar (Final Fight): Mike Haggar is a pro-wrestler-turned-Mayor from way back in 1989, when Arnold’s governorship was just a twinkle in his eye. Haggar returns to the streets to put the kibosh on the evil gang which has kidnapped his daughter and perverted the American dream.
- Tom Brady (Madden NFL Football): Star of the New England Patriots, Tom Brady epitomizes a sport which everybody else uses to mean “soccer.” In contradiction to that sport’s hands-off rule, Brady and his crew tackle, rush, and maul on their way to the endzone.
- Guile (Street Fighter II): In the tournament of hard men that is the Street Fighter tournament, Guile is one of the greatest. A soldier with a flag tattoo on each shoulder, Guile also represents the American values of justice and loyalty, as he tracks down M. Bison, killer of his best friend Charlie.
- Captain America (Marvel Ultimate Alliance): Steve Rogers (aka Captain America) multimedia star of comics, games, animated films, and soon of his own live-action film. His outfit is a stylized red, white, and blue, and his primary antagonists are the Nazis. Seems like a shoe-in.
- Minuteman (Freedom Force): Although Minuteman was developed after Captain America, his design harkens back to the American Revolution. Otherwise, they’re pretty much the same.
- Bad Dudes (Bad Dudes): These mild-mannered heroes of this game are street-fighters called upon by an Arnold Schwarzenegger-lookalike to rescue the president from ninjas. Of course, they don’t have to be asked twice.
- Liberty Prime (Fallout 3): The only non-organic patriot on the list, this character looks like The Iron Giant but talks like he was raised in the Reagan-era Cold War, espousing his opposition to communism at every guise.
- Duke Nukem (Duke Nukem 3D): I’m iffy about the inclusion of this hero, since as Gamespot notes he never acts particularly patriotic. Nevertheless, he is a pastiche of every ’80s action star ever, so I guess he counts.
- The Boss (Metal Gear Solid 3): This hero is responsible for the program which led to the Special Forces of the main character, and gives up everything for her countryincluding her life.