You've Come A Long Way Baby

Female game characters have come a long way since the days of being trapped in another castle and baking cakes for the triumphant hero. True, the improved gaming technology of today can sometimes just mean enhanced bra sizes and advanced jiggle physics, aimed towards a predominantly male demographic (I'm looking at you DOA). But times they are a changing and video game girls are becoming smarter, stronger and more than just well-rendered eye candy. And I for one welcome our new virtual overlords.

So heres a tribute to, in my opinion, two of the most memorable female characters from gaming today. Alyx Vance, supporting character in Half-Life 2 and indispensable companion from HL2: Episode 1 and Jade, intrepid reporter and protagonist from the brilliant but often overlooked Beyond Good & Evil (which desperately needs a sequel, Ubisoft).

As well as sharing a number of similarities (rebels against an oppressive alien force, athletic and intelligent, headbands!) they represent both the PC and the NPC, so I thought it was a good pairing to use for the drawing. I did think about adding other characters to the piece (namely Mona Sax from Max Payne 2) but threes a crowd and all that. Very pleased with how it came out - I'll admit I used Karl Moline's excellent art from Marvel's The Loners as a point of reference for the shading but I'm still stoked with the result.



Alyx Vance (Half-Life 2) is the property of Valve
Jade (Beyond Good & Evil) is the property of Ubisoft