PlayStation Game Creators Discuss Favourite Characters Of 2017

Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice’s Senua

As chosen by…

"That has to be Senua, or better yet the actress playing Senua, Melina Juergens. She has done a tremendous job in bringing the character to life." Hermen Hulst, Co-founder, Guerrilla Games (Horizon Zero Dawn)

"She's a massive leap forward in characterisation, executed very thoughtfully, very skilfully. I've definitely never played a character like her before – and I want more!" Gavin Price, Creative Lead, Playtonic (Yooka Laylee)

More about the game:

Set in the Viking age, a broken Celtic warrior embarks on a haunting vision quest into Viking Hell to fight for the soul of her dead lover. Created in collaboration with neuroscientists and people who experience psychosis, Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice will pull you deep into Senua's mind.

Uncharted: The Lost Legacy’s Chloe Frazer

As chosen by…

"Aside from being an extremely cool individual, she felt like a very real person – they weren't merely depicted as female characters created to serve as eye candy." Fumihiko Yasuda, Director, Team Ninja (Nioh)

"The more you play, the more you understand the different nuances that defines her; rough on the outside but way more complex on the inside." Damien Kieken, Game Director, Ubisoft (For Honor)

"I was already a fan of Chloe since Uncharted 2 and I was so glad when I heard Naughty Dog had decided to make a spin-off based just on her. After Horizon: Zero Dawn, The Lost Legacy, Hellblade and Battlefront II's main campaign, it's good to see that female leads are finally getting the attention they deserve in AAA productions. It's a bold move, really, and I appreciate the studio for giving us more of Chloe's adventures." Román Echevarrena, Producer, RecoTechnology (Numantia)

More about the game:

In order to recover an ancient artifact and keep it out of the hands of a ruthless warmonger, Chloe must enlist the aid of renowned mercenary Nadine Ross and venture to India's Western Ghats to locate the Golden Tusk of Ganesh. In Chloe's greatest journey yet, she must confront her past and decide what she's willing to sacrifice to forge her own legacy.

Horizon Zero Dawn’s Aloy

As chosen by…

"A smart, realistic new gaming heroine." Steve Goss, Director of Design, Supermassive Games (Until Dawn: Rush of Blood, Hidden Agenda)

"In a world with games and movies that feature superheroes and powerful characters that face extinction-level threats all the time, it's always interesting to play as characters like Delsin (Infamous: Second Son), Nathan Drake (Uncharted) or Aloy – characters that have to discover what it is they're good at, improvise when thrust into dangerous situations, and handle threats that exist more on a personal level than a global one.

"The thing that makes Aloy so interesting is that she's not only discovering herself, she's starting out from a much lower point than some other characters – from a place of exile, as an outcast from birth, and for reasons she's never even been told. It's not a story that gets told so well very often, and it makes you think about the real places in our world where a story like Aloy's — being an outcast solely because of tradition, superstition, or caste — might not be fiction." Jeramy Bergerson, Associate Producer, Arkane Studios (Prey)

"Horizon's Aloy was just a genuine surprise for me, the game intro really created a very strong bond between her and the player." James Valls, Senior Producer, Rebellion (Battlezone)

"Aloy is such a great character; warm, compassionate, motivated and capable. Ashley Burch gives her such depth in her performance. Every interaction was a treasure in a game already full of them." Brad Davey, Lead Designer, Sumo Digital (Snake Pass)

"It's nice to see a female character done well." Mark Healey, Creative Director, Media Molecule (Dreams)

Nier: Automata’s 2B

As chosen by…

"Video games often struggle conveying subtle emotions in their human characters. Nier: Automata is a game about fighter androids who are not allowed to have feelings or even their own name. Yet 2B ends up displaying a wide range of believable emotions throughout the many twists and turns of the story. I was expecting a kick-ass action game, but 2B took me on a deep dive to the depths of the human soul. All the while kicking ass left and right!" Joona Heinikoski, Gameplay Engineer, Housemarque (Nex Machina, Matterfall)

More about the game:

Humanity has been driven from the Earth by mechanical beings from another world. In a final effort to take back the planet, the human resistance sends a force of android soldiers to destroy the invaders. Now, a war between machines and androids rages on... A war that could soon unveil a long-forgotten truth of the world.

And runner ups for top picks includes Crash Bandicoot, Playdead, and more:

Yakuza's Kazuma Kiryu and Goro Majima

As chosen by…

"The chemistry between these two is just something else. I think it captures this idea of true rivalry perfectly. Plus, if there ever was an award for best bromance, theirs is one for the ages." Michał Dobrowolski, Senior Game Designer, CD Projekt Red (The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt, Gwent)

N. Sane Trilogy's Crash Bandicoot

As chosen by…

"I bought the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy, and even though I had completed all the original games, I had forgotten everything this time round and am having a lot of trouble progressing through them. I play intensively for around 30 minutes each day." Hiroaki Kato, Producer, Square-Enix (Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age)

Playdead's Arnt Hensen

As chosen by…

"I suppose I'd have to say it was actually Arnt Jensen of Playdead – the company who developed Inside. He appeared on stage at the Tokyo Game Show and was so shy and so quiet that he left quite an impression on me. There are a lot of people from abroad who would stand on that stage with tons of confidence, so I was rather charmed by the very different figure he painted." Yoko Taro, Director, Platinum Games (Nier: Automata)