Extra! Extra!

While living on the streets as an orphan, Janna developed a natural affinity for magic. She was especially attuned to the elemental magic of air, and the mastery she demonstrated earned her a spot in the League of Legends. All of the champions in League of Legends have a number of “skins” to choose from, but Janna’s “Forecast” skin is an especially great fit for her character since it plays off her weather-related abilities. With the skin applied, Janna adopts the persona of an energetic weather girl. A microphone accentuates her charisma, an umbrella makes it easy for viewers to visualize the current conditions, and green screens are used to taunt her rivals. Janna was already one of the most celebrated champions in the League, but she turns her enthusiasm up to 11 when she reports on the weather. She’s a great fit for the role.

When Luka was still a child, he witnessed his father’s death first-hand. Immediately after a witch named Bayonetta emerged from a sealed coffin, Luka’s father was torn apart and killed by unseen forces. Luka deduced that Bayonetta was responsible for the event and became a journalist for the specific purpose of avenging his father. It was Luka’s intent to expose Bayonetta to the world at large, and he relentlessly pursued the sexy witch in the name of truth. He made repeated attempts to catch her on film, but he was routinely outwitted. Bayonetta flirted with Luka and gave him playful nicknames to get under his skin, but this only added to his obsession. When the whole thing turned out to be a giant misunderstanding, Luka became Bayonetta’s ally and used his journalistic talents to gather information for her.

Rex Chance is a disgraced war correspondent who covered the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s. He was revered for his coverage of international events, but his agency fired him for interfering in a conflict. After losing his job, Rex devoted his time to tracking down his long-lost father. By following clues left in letters and newspaper clippings, Rex discovered that his father had been working on a top-secret project that aimed to create hybrid animals. (H.G. Wells explored a similar concept with The Island of Doctor Moreau.) Rex is eventually revealed to be the first attempt to create a human-animal hybrid, and he finds himself fighting for survival while discovering the truth about his own existence. Sometimes you find a story, sometimes a story finds you. In the case of Rex Chance, however, he was the story.

Aya Shameimaru is always on the lookout for a great story, but her shameless reporting style rubs a lot of people the wrong way. She often exaggerates events and has a tendency to editorialize articles rather than simply reporting the facts. Her memory is likely clouded by the myriad of rumors she hears every day, but she makes an effort to pursue the truth even though her newspaper relies on sensational stories. Aya’s incredible speed gives her a competitive advantage as a journalist and photographer. (Her photography skills are especially prevalent in Shoot the Bullet, where she sets out to photograph various Touhou bosses for some unknown reason.) It would be easy to underestimate Aya, but she’s a lot stronger than she looks. She sometimes wins battles by accident while covering news stories.

A feisty redhead from the heart of the Heartland who gets herself into a lotta trouble, Lotta Hart left college to become an investigative photographer after apparently taking a picture of a UFO. Her interest in the paranormal defined her career for years to come, and she later took up interest in lake monsters, ghosts, and strange Godzilla-like creatures. Her tireless efforts landed her a gig as a tabloid reporter, but she also got wrapped up with the law as an unintentional consequence of her investigations. Lotta developed a familiarity with the witness stand during her career, and her photographic evidence played a role in exposing the truth in high-profile cases. She went to great lengths to defend her secrets, but she was generally well-meaning and would usually spill information if the price was right.

A young photojournalist living alone in a bustling city, Madison Paige suffers from chronic insomnia and episodes of paranoid delirium. She occasionally checks into motels, as they are the only place she can properly sleep. While conducting an investigation of a serial killer, Madison finds ample fuel for future nightmares. She’s knocked unconscious by would-be rapists, she’s forced to strip at gunpoint, and her life is held in the balance when she gets caught in an apartment fire. (In what I can only assume was an attempt to make her appear more vulnerable, the game’s designers found a way to squeeze in a gratuitous shower scene and an uncomfortable love scene as well.) Madison’s entire life is defined danger and awkwardness, but you have to admire the lengths she will go to for a good story.

As a video journalist for a low-budget cable news program, Elena Fisher aims to advance her career by accompanying a treasure hunter named Nathan Drake on a quest to find the lost treasure of El Dorado. Needless to say, the adventure is filled with excitement. At one point, she has to parachute from a plane that has been shot down! She also stumbles upon a Nazi submarine, gets kidnapped by a rival treasure hunter, and finds love along the way. Elena is partially defined by her relationship with Nathan, but she proves to be a resourceful ally who can hold her own in any situation. In the second Uncharted game, Elena enters a war zone on her own accord in order to chase down a war criminal. She eventually finds employ as an international news correspondent, but her thirst for adventure cannot be quenched.

A loose cannon who prefers to do things his own way, Frank West is well-suited for the world of freelance photojournalism. He had covered wars and other important events in his storied career, and his natural desire for adventure meant that the next big story is always within reach. After hearing that something big was about to go down in a small Colorado town, Frank takes it upon himself to investigate. When he finds himself in the middle of a zombie infestation, he voluntarily strands himself in a shopping mall in order to gain more information about the outbreak. Frank is trapped in the mall with the zombies for 72 hours, but his natural survival instincts allows him to defend himself and help other consumers escape. He’s a bit of a glory hound, but Frank is willing to lay his life on the line for a scoop.

You’d have to look pretty hard to find a character who is more altruistic than Jade. She spends her days caring for children who were orphaned by an aggressive alien race, and she works as a freelance photographer in order to pay the bills. After being recruited into a resistance movement, Jade uses her journalistic instincts to infiltrate government facilities and obtain evidence of human trafficking. Even though she’s a skilled martial artist with athleticism to spare, her camera proves to be her most powerful weapon. The creators of Beyond Good & Evil intentionally set out to make a realistic character rather than a “sexy action woman,” but Jade proves that these concepts are not mutually exclusive. Her bravery, intelligence, and selfless nature make her attractive even though she wasn’t created as eye candy for teenage boys.

In a future where interstellar television stations fight for ratings, Ulala signed on as a reporter for Space Channel 5. She had been saved by a reporter from the station when she was younger, so it was fitting that she could pay it forward as an adult. When an alien race began kidnapping hostages and forcing them to dance, Ulala was sent in to report on the situation. While relaying the news to viewers across the galaxy, Ulala took the opportunity to save the hostages. Along with her microphone, Ulala was equipped with guns and groovy moves. When she wasn’t engaging aliens in dance battles and rhythmically shooting, Ulala had to contend with a rival reporter who was jealous of her success. Ultimately, Ulala’s groove energy could not be contained. In terms of charisma, style, and sheer sexiness, Ulala has no equal on this list.