Top 20 Greatest Video Game Villains Of All Time

“Monkey Island” Series (1990-) Cutthroat pirate captains can usually make for great villains in any medium. But if they’re also undead, that just adds to the wickedness. Throughout the “Monkey Island” series, players control the unfortunately named and simple-minded Guybrush Threepwood. LeChuck has been trying to put an end to Threepwood ever since the first game where the hero stopped him from forcing Governor Elaine Marley to marry him. LeChuck loves to use voodoo magic and his undead form changes depending on the game: he’s been a ghost, a demon, and a zombie. As the adventure series is primarily comedic, LeChuck is somewhat silly and gullible. But he’s nevertheless a ruthless and iconic baddie.

#19: Dr. Neo Cortex

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“Crash Bandicoot” Series (1996-) The world of video games is full of mad scientists bent on world domination, a few of which have made it onto our list. But not all of them have created their own arch-nemesis. Dr. Neo Cortex invented a device that could turn regular critters into genetically advanced soldiers. Unfortunately for him, one such critter was a bandicoot named Crash. Ever since Crash put an end to his plans in the first game, the Doc has relentlessly pursued other methods to gain as much power as possible. Over-the-top and psychotic, yet cartoonish and amusing, Cortex is always a joy to go up against. Despite having a doctorate, his sometimes foolish mistakes make it clear he shouldn’t rule over anything.

“Undertale” (2015) After falling into a world of monsters, the first character you come across is a talking flower with a welcoming smile on his face. But don’t be fooled; this is one of the most evil plants ever featured in a video game. Flowey craves to see the demise of pretty much everyone in the Underground. He was once the Prince of the monsters before he was killed and had his consciousness transplanted into the flower. The process caused him to go mad and grow increasingly sadistic. A violent flower makes for a unique villain, but Flowey will also stalk you throughout the game and make fourth wall-breaking comments towards the player. Creepy.

#17: Dr. Albert Wily

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“Mega Man” Series (1987-) If you’ve ever wondered what Albert Einstein might be like if he went completely and utterly bonkers, Dr. Wily is pretty close. He wasn’t always a bad person, but jealousy over the successes of his colleague Dr. Light drove him to a career of trying to take over the world. In his first attempt, he corrupted several robots that were invented by Dr. Light to help humanity. Since then, Wily has tried other methods to reach his goals, like building his own robot masters or forcing others to do so. But his plans always fall to ruin thanks to the courageous blue bomber. We’d tell Albert what the definition of insanity is, but it appears he’s already there.

“Wolfenstein” Series (1981-) Frau Engel goes above and beyond her Nazi duty to surpass even Hitler. First appearing in 2014’s “New Order,” Engel took center stage as the driving force against you in 2017’s “The New Colossus.” Vicious doesn’t even begin to cover it. Beyond the expected atrocities of a high ranking Nazi officer, like running an extermination camp, Engel murders one of your closest allies, cuts the arm off another, and berates and abuses her own daughter for being weak. That’s only one of her scenes, mind you. Every time we see her, our skin crawls with disgust and hatred. Although she’s just another villain on a violent power trip, we were ecstatic to bring that trip to an end.

“System Shock” (1994) A murderous AI is just about the most formidable type of foe someone can go up against. The Sentient Hyper-Optimized Data Access Network, or SHODAN, was created to serve a research and mining station based near Saturn. However, when you’re forced to hack the AI, and therefore remove any sense of a moral compass, it goes rogue, either murdering or mutating everyone on board except for you. Essentially omnipotent within the station, SHODAN watches through security cameras, sends her minions after you, and generally discourages you while you attempt to stop her from bringing destruction to Earth. Having the villain basically be with you the entire game definitely put us on edge.

“God of War” Series (2005-) Zeus may be the ruler of the Gods, but he is one awful deity. Driven by fear that came from a prophecy that would see the destruction of Olympus, Zeus made Kratos’ life a living Hell. He kidnapped Kratos’ younger brother, sending him to be tortured by the God of Death, and banished Kratos’ mother to Atlantis. He also murdered Kratos, his own son. Even outside of all the awful things he did to Kratos, he was also shown having no problem ordering his other family members to throw their lives away for the good of Olympus. In actuality, his actions caused his own downfall and innumerable deaths both mortal and non. What a tool.

#13: Dr. Ivo ‘Eggman’ Robotnik

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“Sonic the Hedgehog” Series (1991-) It’s pretty awful to experiment on helpless animals and turn them into soldiers. So too is it to kidnap them and use them to power your deadly robots. Dr. Eggman is a fan of the latter. Essentially Sonic’s version of Bowser, Eggman has appeared in nearly every game in the series, where he is constantly on the verge of taking over the world. His massive mustache and nickname-giving body type make him incredibly recognizable. However, despite a silly nickname and appearance, this mad scientist shouldn’t be trifled with. Every evil plot brings a surprising variety of deadly inventions and machines. Seriously, where does he get the time and resources to build all these!?

“Silent Hill 2” (2001) Although this lumbering behemoth would appear in other installments, his purpose and the fear we felt from him in his first appearance has never been outmatched. “Silent Hill 2” follows James Sunderland, who journeys to the ghost town after receiving a letter from his dead wife. There are plenty of twisted monsters to flee from, but by far the most terrifying is the one who hides his face behind a gigantic, triangular mask. As a manifestation of James’ guilt over euthanizing his wife, Pyramid Head stalks you throughout the game. His stature is intimidating, as is the truly massive blade he carries with him. Getting trapped in a room with him remains one of the most horrifying moments in the series.

“Street Fighter” Series (1987-) Although the maniacal megalomaniac M. Bison deserves some recognition, it’s hard to top the demon shoto Akuma. His name literally translates to ‘Devil’ in Japanese, which is fitting considering that’s what he both looks and fights like. First appearing in “Super Street Fighter II Turbo” as a hidden boss, Akuma’s motives are simple: he fights any tough foe he comes across in an effort to become the most powerful, even giving into darker powers to enhance his strength. However, within the context of a fighting game, it isn’t his motives that make him a worthwhile villain. Various versions of him have resulted in some of the most difficult boss fights throughout the series, which is all the proof we need to hate him.

“Metal Gear” Series (1988-2018) Being a franchise of political thrillers based around spycraft, you’ll meet your fair share of dastardly characters in the “Metal Gear” series. Armstrong, from the spin-off “Revengeance,” is a particularly nasty piece of work. However, it’s the master gunslinger who has appeared throughout the series that deserves the spot. Revolver Ocelot has had quite the journey throughout the series, and that journey has been characterized by double-crosses, torture, and clever battle tactics used to annihilate anyone who gets in his way. He’s incredibly intelligent and makes for a highly gifted combatant, physical or mental. To him, most characters are pieces on a chess board to be used or overcome. Plus, he’s so charismatic that we can’t help but like him.

#9: Vaas Montenegro

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“Far Cry 3” (2012) It’s always interesting to see what each “Far Cry” villain will bring to the table. But the franchise has still never managed to top Vaas Montenegro. Played wonderfully by Michael Mando, this captivating pirate captures your friends, leaving you to brave a dangerous island to rescue them. The best moments of the game come from your encounters with him, all of which are drenched in suspense as he delivers unnerving monologues. Being a violent psychopath, he has also murdered plenty of people, creating a palpable fear among everyone. “Far Cry 3” is often thought of as a high point in the series. And it’s Vaas, who we simultaneously wanted to run from and see more of, that is one of the biggest reasons why.

“Borderlands” Series (2009-) From one charismatic, psychotic murderer to another. First appearing in “Borderlands 2,” Handsome Jack had nearly taken over the planet Pandora in his quest to find the coveted Vault. Literally anyone who got in his way was met with a swift end thanks to his immense power and influence. In his deeds, he is truly awful. But when it comes to his personality, we couldn’t get enough of him. He’ll often pop in to your comms to deliver some of the best comedic tirades and most unique insults we’ve heard in a video game. Fans loved him so much, in fact, that he was brought back for a prequel and two sequel cameos despite his death.

“Devil May Cry” Series (2001-19) Although he’s half-demon, Dante has worked very hard to protect humanity, mostly using his devilish powers for good. His brother Vergil, on the other hand, has done the exact opposite. In similar contrast to Dante’s fun-loving demeanor, Vergil is cold, reserved, and ruthless. The older brother has always sought ways to make the demon part of him stronger. In “Devil May Cry 3,” he attempted to reach the demon world and gain his father’s power by betraying Dante. In “Devil May Cry V,” he separated his human and demon sides, becoming two entities so that his demonic half could thrive and become more powerful. As if his goals weren’t bad enough, he’s also provided some of the toughest fights in the series.

#6: Sephiroth

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“Final Fantasy VII” (1997) Kefka Palazzo certainly left his mark with a long list of terrible deeds. But there’s just something so personally appalling about Sephiroth, and it’s made him the most iconic villain in the long-running series. Once a respected SOLDIER for Shinra, Sephiroth turned on his masters after finding out he was experimented on. In fact, he pretty much turned on everyone, believing he was fated to take over the world. Even the mere thought of him and his misdeeds is enough to send Cloud Strife spiraling. That’s completely fair since Sephiroth essentially murdered an entire city’s worth of people. However, it was his murder of Aerith that solidified him as one of gaming’s best villains.

“Mortal Kombat” Series (1992-2019) Never before has a fighting game boss made us want to so badly destroy him. Shao Kahn is the emperor of the realm Outworld and seeks to conquer all others through immense force. He’s tried some pretty deceitful tactics to defeat Earthrealm’s heroes, sometimes even ignoring the rules of the Mortal Kombat tournament. In all his appearances, he’s a vile brute who’s more than capable at fighting and magic. But what really pisses us off is his unsportsmanlike conduct. When he isn’t tossing his hammer from the other side of the arena or performing an uninterruptible shoulder charge into us, he’ll taunt us by telling us we suck. That’ll get any player’s blood boiling.

“Resident Evil” Series (1996-) It’s one thing to betray your allies, an entirely different thing to betray all of humanity. Albert Wesker fully believes the human race needs to be eradicated. And so, he works with the Umbrella Corporation and others like it to see the furtherment of bioweapon research. In the first game, he lured his S.T.A.R.S. team to a zombie-infested mansion, though that was just the beginning of his treachery. Afterwards, he’d learn to advance his plans by pulling strings behind the scenes. He even gained superhuman abilities to make himself even harder to dispose of. Which is why it was so satisfying to put an end to him in “Resident Evil 5.”

#3: Bowser

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“Super Mario” Series (1985-) The “Super Mario” series may be light on characterization, but it’s heavy on iconicism. Ever since the original “Super Mario Bros.,” this fire-breathing turtle monster has been consistently coming up with plans to bring mayhem to the Mushroom Kingdom. Sometimes, it’s as simple as kidnapping Princess Peach and deploying his minions. In other instances, he’s tried to force her into marriage and even take over space. If you ask someone to name a video game villain, chances are good that Bowser will be the first one to come to mind. And even though he’s threatened the safety of entire worlds, Mario and his pals are still down for some friendly competition whether it be sports or a chaotic Grand Prix.

“Portal” Series (2007-11) SHODAN may have crawled so GLaDOS could run, but man did GLaDOS really take off. When you first awake in “Portal,” the AI merely serves as your narrator and guide. But as you delve further into the Aperture Facility, it becomes increasingly clear that you’re merely part of her own experiment. Her lines grow more malevolent and so amusingly murderous that she’s just as big a part of the game’s legacy as the clever puzzles are. We were thrilled to see her return for the game’s sequel, where we got to explore her fascinating origins. But we were also tipped off that perhaps the Aperture scientists she murdered had it coming.

“Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3” (2008) Well, he’s played by Tim freakin’ Curry, a legend of big screen villainy. So how could we not have Anatoly claim the top spot? No, we’re only joking. Let’s get to our real top pick.

#1: Ganon

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“The Legend of Zelda” Series (1987-) A villain who wants to rule the world? Pretty bad. But a villain who wants to rule the world and is constantly reborn, even across different timelines? You better pray for some divine intervention. Luckily for the citizens of Hyrule, Link usually has some higher powers on his side. Whether he appears as a cunning sorcerer, a Gerudo King, or a horrifying pig beast, Ganon has caused significant destruction over his long career as a video game villain. Like many before him, he craves power and the servitude of anyone beneath him, which he believes to be pretty much everyone. Although some “Zelda” villains have been a bit more nuanced in their methods, Ganon usually brings widespread despair and ruin.