We discover the most iconic assassins in video games while waiting for Hitman 3

With the imminent arrival of the stores of Hitman 3 weblog IO Interactive, and the consequent return of the legendary Agent 47, the figure of the assassin is back in vogue in the world of video games. We have seen plenty of characters of this type, from assassins on commission to machines designed to kill, and then to individuals seeking revenge up to characters whose murderous nature is only motivated by a thirst for blood. But who are the most iconic assassins ever in the world of video games? This article will answer this question, analyzing twenty of the characters who have distinguished themselves over the years thanks to their skills as assassins.

We warn you that from here on you may run into some spoilers inherent to some characters and some plot implications that see them involved.

Nina Williams - Tekken

Nina Williams is a character from the fighting game series Tekken di Namco. Cold-blooded Irish professional assassin, Nina made her first appearance in the first chapter of the Tekken saga and is one of four playable characters to appear in all major chapters of the series, as well as being the only woman with this record. The character has achieved such popularity as to allow her to be the protagonist of a game dedicated to her, the spin-off Death by Degrees.

Corvo Attano - Dishonored

After being framed for the murder of the empress from whom he was hired as a guard, Corvo Attano he became a murderer in order to avenge those who conspired against him. He is assisted in his efforts by a resistance group that seeks to reclaim the plague-infested industrial town of Dunwall, but is more than capable of handling things on his own. Corvo's stealth abilities are legendary and his efficiency in battle is unrivaled. If that's not enough, Corvo also has supernatural powers. It can teleport short distances, possess other bodies, summon swarms of deadly mice, freeze time, and take down enemies with powerful gusts of wind. Virtually unstoppable.

Thane Krios - Mass Effect

Defined as the most skilled killer in the galaxy of Mass Effect, Thane is a killer who kills his victims with a close approach, opting for hand-to-hand combat over long-range sniper kills, despite being skilled in the use of firearms as well. He might even be the most "spiritual" killer on this list, but we're not sure if that makes him better or worse than the others on a moral level, given the sizeable pile of bodies he's left behind.

The killer7 - Killer7

At the end of the 21st century, a plan is devised to destroy all nuclear weapons in order to achieve world peace. When a terrorist cell tries to use the event to gain power, an elite group of assassins called killer7 is called to stop them. The group consists of Garcian Smith, Dan Smith, Kaede Smith, Kevin Smith, Coyote Smith, With Smith e Mask de Smith. The reason the killers7 are grouped together as one entry on this list is because they are all physical manifestations of a single wheelchair-bound man named Harmon Smith.

HK-47 - Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic

Many of the characters featured in this article are cold-blooded killers, but none are like HK-47 as it is literally a machine designed to kill. As a killer droid Hunter-Killer, HK-47 is not motivated by revenge or power like many others. It has been built since Dark Lord of the Sith as a means of eliminating perceived threats across the galaxy. HK-47 successfully assassinated countless targets, but its memory core was erased after being captured on one of its missions. Since then HK-47 has passed from owner to owner with different goals but with one constant: the contempt for organic life forms.

Travis Touchdown - No More Heroes

After winning a ray katana in an online auction, Travis Touchdown is hired to kill a killer by a manipulative seductress. He is then classified as the No. 11 by the United Assassins Association. Being classified by the UAA means that he will eventually be targeted by other would-be assassins, so Travis is left with little choice but to kill all the other high-ranking assassins himself. Travis Touchdown is both the king of nerds and the king of assassins. He spends his days watching anime and porn and spends the night murdering. Collect action figures, love wrestling, play video games a lot and love Star Wars. A nerdy killer who hyperbolically represents the stereotype of the average gamer.

Ezio Auditore - Assassin's Creed

As far as we could have cited the whole Order of the Assassins, being the focus of three games belonging to the series Assassin's Creed, Ezio Auditore from Florence he is undoubtedly the most iconic killer of the entire branded saga Ubisoft. After witnessing the execution of his father and brothers at the hands of Templar conspirators, Ezio devotes his entire life to avenge his family and free Europe from Templar control. Ezio spends a lot of time sneaking through enemy ranks to stab his targets with his trusty hidden blades, but he also plays an important role in the Italian Renaissance and effectively rebuilds the Order of Assassins.

2B - Nier: Automata

2B (abbreviation of YoRHa No. 2 Type B) is the protagonist of the 2017 video game NIER: Automata. 2B is a combat android created as part of the squadron YoRHa whose mission is to rid the Earth of hostile machines created by an unnamed alien race. Her type B designation indicates that she specializes in frontline combat and is capable of wielding two weapons and using a wide variety of fighting styles. She disdains emotional manifestations, believing that they are unnecessary and in the way, although she hides trauma and anger at the missions she is forced to complete.

Ayame - Tenchu

Ayame is one of the characters in the stealth game series Tenchu. Introduced in Tenchu: Stealth Assassins in 1998, Ayame is a young killer wunderkind in a historical fantasy version of feudal Japan. Adopted by a ninja master and raised with her partner Rikimaru to serve the lord of a local clan, he is one of the most recurring characters in the series, except for Tenchu ​​Z. Ayame is famous for her quick and lethal techniques, with a very different set of skills than those possessed by Rikimaru, since although weaker, she was able to prove to be more cunning and aggressive than the latter.

Niko Bellic - GTA IV

Niko he is a war veteran from Eastern Europe, where he witnessed some of the worst atrocities that humans are capable of, leading him to develop a very cynical outlook on life. Upon discovering that his unit had been sold to enemy forces, he decides to move to Liberty city to pursue the American dream, inspired by his cousin's tales of luxury and wealth Roman, who had lived there for several years. Upon arrival, however, he discovers that there was nothing true of those stories and, in order to improve his financial situation, he gets involved in the local criminal underworld.

Sam Fisher - Splinter Cell

Sam Fisher is a former member of the Third Echelon, a top secret section within the National Security Agency (NSA), and former member of his later program Splinter Cell. Sam is currently the commander / chief of field operations of the Fourth Echelon, a covert special operations / counterterrorism group. Although he is not a "killer" in the true sense of the term, since he does not kill either on commission or for jubilation, Sam Fisher is one of the deadliest characters ever to appear in a video game. An infiltration agent capable of freeing himself from hundreds of men without ever being discovered, thanks to both his skills and the dozens of cutting-edge gadgets with which he is equipped.

Kitana - Mortal Kombat

Among the most important and recurring characters of the saga of Mortal Kombat, Kitana is the princess of Outworld from the millennial age, despite still appearing as a young woman, For most of her life Kitana believed she was the daughter of Shao Kahn and the queen Sindel. She served for centuries as an elite assassin working alongside her sister Mileena and her best friend Jade, but she eventually found out the truth. Shao Kahn had actually killed his real father, King Jerrod, usurping his throne and claiming Sindel as his wife to rule Edenia. He also put Kitana under a spell to make her a loyal and merciless killer.

Alex Mason - Call of Duty Black Ops

Alex Mason is a former Captain of the Marine Corps and was a member of the Operation 40 secret assassination team, inserted in Cuba during the invasion of the Bay of Pigs in 1961 to perform theOperation Zapata, which involved the murder of Fidel Castro. After believing that he has completed his mission, Mason is captured and brought before the real Castro, who then hands him over to the general. Nikita Dragovich, which, together with the colonel Lev Kravchenko and Dr. Friederich Steiner, turns Mason into a sleeper agent in order to assassinate President John F. Kennedy.

The Origami Killer - Heavy Rain

THEOrigami Killer a serial killer whose modus operandi is to kidnap young boys during the fall season, drowning them in rainwater and leaving an orchid on their chest and an origami nearby. His identity remains in mystery for much of Heavy Rain until, with a sensational twist, it turns out that it is Scott shelby, a private investigator who in his youth had seen his brother drowned because of his father's carelessness. His goal, therefore, was to find a father whose willpower and determination would allow him to find his missing son.

Reno - Final Fantasy VII

Reindeer is a prominent member of the Turks who appears in the series Final Fantasy VII. His first appearance is in Final Fantasy VII, and has since appeared in almost every media of the "Compilation": Before Crisis, Crisis Core e Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. It also appears in Final Fantasy VII Remake, where it plays a more important role than the original chapter of the series. He is often accompanied by his partner Rude, whose personality is diametrically opposite to that of Reno.

Solid Snake - Metal Gear Solid

Solid Snake is one of the main protagonists of the series Metal Gear created by Hideo Kojima. A former Green Beret, Snake is a highly skilled Special Operations soldier engaged in stealth espionage missions tasked with destroying technologically advanced nuclear weapons known as Metal Gear. Just like Sam Fisher we are not talking about a murderer for commission, but about a lethal infiltration agent. The gadgets with which he will have to face the various missions have become as iconic as the character himself.

Sylvanas Windrunner - Warcraft

Sylvanas Windrunner (also known as Queen Banshee, the Dark Lady, Queen of Forsaken and nicknamed "Lady Moon" by Alleria) is the former Ranger General of Silvermoon. He is currently leader of the undead faction of the Forsaken and the Warchief of the Horde thereafter the Battle of Broken Shore. Introduced as a secondary character in Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos, got more and more space over time before with expansion The Frozen Throne and then with World of Warcraft.

Voldo - Soul Calibur

Voldo is one of the characters belonging to the series Soulcalibur, first appeared in the video game Soul edge and later in all the other chapters of the series except for Soulcalibur Legends. Very little is known about his history except that he is obsessed with Soul Edge and that he has Spanish origins (having been born in Palermo). Its signature weapons are a pair of katar called "Manas and Ayus", instruments of death made up of three blades with arms on two shafts connected horizontally by the handle.

Ada Wong - Resident Evil

Ada Wong makes its first appearance in Resident Evil 2 (1998), set two months after the events of the first game. In the aforementioned title he is a spy from an unnamed rival company who is sent to retrieve a sample of the deadly G virus from the laboratory of Umbrella in Raccoon City infested with zombies. He acted covertly against the backdrop of many biohazard accidents and gathered information that became useful to different organizations, while at the same time working to undermine them. 

Mona Sax - Max Payne

Mona Sax is a mysterious professional assassin, living in an abandoned theme park in Coney Island that she used as a base. It is presented in the first game of Max Payne as the "evil twin" of his younger sister Lisa, the abused wife of the mafia boss Angelo Punchinello. In Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne, the tragic love story between Max and Mona is given great importance, and during the game it is revealed that the latter is the assassin of Senator Gates.