America the Beautiful

No cross-section of American characters would be complete without a big-name Hollywood action star. Johnny Cage stands out on a roster filled with martial artists, and the narcissistic actor is way too caught up with his appearance. He often fights with his sunglasses on, and he’s so vain that he had his name tattooed on his chest! Although he helped save the Earth from a full-scale Netherrealm invasion, his primary reason for joining the fight was to find inspiration for a new blockbuster film. On that note, he approaches the Mortal Kombat tournaments as performances rather than serious competitions. He’s surrounded by hardened killers, military operatives, and warrior monks, but Johnny’s content with punching people in the balls and posing for the camera. His fighting style was clearly designed with the silver screen in mind.

No More Heroes exists as both a celebration and a deconstruction of gaming stereotypes, and Travis Touchdown is a reflection of America’s escapism culture. When we first meet him, he has no serious life goals or career aspirations. Instead, he distracts himself with anime, pro wrestling, porn, and video games. Although he sees a future filled with excitement and luxury, he hovers near the poverty line and supports himself with menial jobs. Apathetic, lazy, and downright reckless, Travis represents a lost generation that has become disillusioned from society. He starts to build social currency after he becomes an assassin, but the senseless violence he partakes only reinforces how disconnected he is from traditional values. The possibility of sex is pretty much the only thing that motivates him.

Tina Armstrong is a stubborn and independent woman with her head in the clouds. After becoming famous in the world of professional wrestling, Tina planned to use her fighting skills as a gateway into modeling, acting, and music. Perhaps America really is the land of opportunity. Tina is confident in her abilities and uses her sex appeal as an advantage – much to the dismay of her over-protective father. Her cowgirl outfits highlight her southern roots, and her accent serves as a constant reminder of her upbringing. She routinely changes her career path, but she hasn’t forgotten where she comes from. You can take the girl out of the South, but you can’t take the South out of the girl. Tina is never depicted doing any activities that cowgirls are traditionally known for, but she sure looks good in a cowboy hat.

After gaining fame in the world of professional wrestling, Mike Haggar entered the political arena. (He’s basically the video game equivalent of Jesse Ventura in that regard.) He was plagued by criminals as the mayor of Metro City, and he felt compelled to take matters into his own hands after his daughter was kidnapped. He could have called in the Feds, but he decided to flex his muscles and beat up gang members himself. If nothing else, you have to appreciate his can-do attitude. Politics and wrestling can both be compared to circus sideshows, and this is particularly true in America. There will always be those who value showmanship over substance. Haggar found success in the ring because he was a charismatic, larger-than-life personality. His success in politics could be attributed to the same qualities.

As the only fighter to have appeared in every Fatal Fury game, Terry Bogard is arguably the star of the franchise. He entered the King of Fighters tournament to seek vengeance against the crime boss who killed his father, and his skills as a fighter improved with each battle he took part in. Terry developed a unique, self-taught fighting style that combined boxing, kickboxing, wrestling, and street fighting moves. He became a formidable fighter, and his abilities earned him the moniker of the Legendary Hungry Wolf. Terry’s unconventional training methods and emphasis on brawling make him stand out from his contemporaries, and his choice of clothing paints him as an Americanized version of a martial arts master. Blue jeans, trucker caps, and Chuck Taylor All-Stars are anything but traditional, but Terry makes them work.

It would be easy to mistake Juliet Starling for a typical dumb blonde. She has a short attention span, she has a tendency to go off on tangents, and she talks like a ditzy valley girl. She’s a lot smarter than she sounds, however, and she could be compared to Buffy the Vampire Slayer in many regards. When she’s not busy with her cheerleading responsibilities, Juliet bides her time killing undead douchebags. She’s clearly the type of girl who can find fun in any situation. Whether she’s entertaining fans with energetic routines or decapitating zombies with a bedazzled chainsaw, her athleticism and acrobatic capabilities are put to good use. Sex and violence are two pillars of American pop culture, an nobody embodies these themes more than Juliet. She’s a cheerleader and a zombie hunter. It doesn’t get much more American than that.

The Fallout games are set against the backdrop of a post-apocalyptic world. Incidentally, a Great War between the United States and China left America in ruin. Liberty Prime is a robot that was built by the U.S. Army to liberate Anchorage from Chinese occupiers. The massive robot stands 40-feet tall, it shoots lasers from its eyes, and it throws tactical nuclear bombs around like footballs. Liberty Prime also spouts off anti-communist slogans. He recognizes the failures of communism, he believes that Americans are endowed with unalienable rights, and he insists that democracy is non-negotiable. He’s a bit of an extremist, and he will respond with lethal force if communists are detected on American soil. He’s a tool of destruction and an instrument of propaganda, but no one on this list has more patriotic fervor than Liberty Prime.

Little Mac is a 17-year-old from the Bronx who wants a dream match with an in-his-prime Mike Tyson. Needless to say, the odds are stacked against him. The kid is 4’8″ and weighs only 107 pounds, and he frequently finds himself in the ring with boxers that are twice his size. (Weight classes mean nothing in the World Video Boxing Association.) It’s not like he gets a lot of help from his trainer, either. After Mac gets the crap knocked out of him by a 400 pound Samoan, his cornerman tells him to join the Nintendo Fun Club! The United States is the world’s only remaining superpower, but the American dream has always been about the underdog. The country was founded on the idea that anyone can achieve success and prosperity through hard work and determination. No video game character represents these ideals more than Little Mac.

There was a time when Westerns ruled television, radio, and the silver screen. In a sense, romanticized tales of the Old West were the closest thing America had to their own Iliad or Odyssey. No video game captures the spirit of the genre better than Red Dead Redemption. The game is set during the decline of the American Frontier, and John Martson exemplifies the societal shift that the country was undergoing. This was a time when gunslingers were becoming endangered; an era where men who slept under the stars were now building houses. John had been an outlaw in his younger days, and he committed crimes ranging from robbery to murder. He eventually settled into a peaceful life as a rancher with his loving family. Despite his willingness to embrace the future, he could not escape from his past.

The Street Fighter franchise features a number of American characters, but none are more patriotic than Guile. Anyone can wave a flag in the air and pronounce their love for their country, but Guile went so far as to have American flags tattooed onto his shoulders! On a more serious note, Guile is a quintessential family man and a real American hero. He lives for his wife and child, but he’s willing to die for the sake of his country. A proud member of the United States Air Force, Guile represents his brothers in arms by fighting in his military fatigues. He also wears the dog tags of his fallen CO as a solemn reminder that freedom isn’t free. You can’t talk about America’s place on the world stage without mentioning its military, and Guile is the perfect man to represent the strengths and ideals of his country.