User:Kung Fu Man/sandbox

Mirko [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]

Bane (Harley Quinn) [9] [10] [11] [12] [13]

Rachel (Ninja Gaiden) [14]

Manny Calavera [15]

Sharpedo [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21] [22] [23]

Alice (for later): [24]

Rashid (for later): [25] [26] [27] [28]

Sofia reception building

Later, a similar campaign was run by Sega on their website when Toshinden was released for the Sega Saturn, putting "Because Toshlnden's Sofia says so" at the top of a list of reasons to purchase the gaming console.

Sofia was well received since her debut. The staff of Computer Games Strategy Plus described her as "a tall leggy blonde with porn-star good looks and a disarming giggle", and felt she was an example of sex sells for the franchise, her presence in it helping to ensure games would be financially successful. Ultra Game Players featured her in their video game character swimsuit issue, calling her one of the most memorable characters on the PlayStation during it's early years. The staff of German magazine Video Games cited her alongside Mai Shiranui as examples of how female characters in fighting games illustrated an increase in mature content in video games, something they wanted to see more of.

In an article for Game On! USA discussing the similarities between Sofia and fellow blonde female fighting game characters Sarah Bryant of Virtua Fighter and Nina Williams of Tekken, Roger Miller described her as the "prima donna of her game". Regarding her character design, he noted that while some had criticized her for having broad shoulders, he felt it was a welcome change to see more muscular women and femme fatale characters in gaming. He further observed that while her outfit had been criticized by some, it did not feel out of line when compared to how female characters in similar games dressed, referencing Chun-Li's attire directly by stating "At least Sofia doesn't have pom-poms on her head!" Website Kakuchopurei made a similar comparison when they included her on a list of prominent female fighting game characters, describing her as an an answer to Sarah Bryant "but Russian" to compete directly with Virtua Fighter. They furthermore saw her as bringing diversity to the game, and the aspect that made Toshinden as a series truly memorable.

Other outlets offered their own praise. The staff of Video Games: The Ultimate Gaming Magazine cited her as the character they tended to gravitate to the most when playing the game and a integral part of the PlayStation's appeal. Additional praise went to her outfit and characterization, with the staff further describing her as " the hottest videogame character to come around since Street Fighter II's Chun-Li". Complex writer Larry Hester remarked that she stood out as a Russian character in an industry he felt focused exceedingly on "vodka swilling war criminals with fur hats," feeling that she made a significant impact on the fighting game genre.

In contrast, Electronic Gaming Monthly used her as an example of how female characters in video games were often sexualized for the sake of marketing, and how such painted an image of the video game industry as male-dominated. Meanwhile, Honest Gamers writer Joseph Shaffer felt that she was the only standout character of Toshinden's cast, which he felt spoke poorly of the quality of them as a whole when a "sexual selling point" was the standout. Todd Ciolek in an article for Topless Robot considered her a stereotype that presented Russian women as "either babushka-wearing hags or icy blondes armed with predatory sex drives and cackling disdain", and in an article for Anime News Network emphasized that Toshinden was better to distance itself from its old cast, particularly Sofia.

The ad campaigns featuring Sofia for the PlayStation also drew a variety of discussion. The staff of GameFan remarked that female readers of its magazines wrote in to complain about the ad, stating that they themselves felt that it was a bizarre ad that insulted both "mature gamers" and female gamers. Scott Taves of Wired meanwhile noted that while she was an early contender for a mascot for the PlayStation brand, she was quickly replaced with Crash Bandicoot, something he attributed possibly due to "S/M attire". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine in a retrospective felt that the ad campaigns alongside with its design helped paint the PlayStation as a console for more mature audiences instead of a toy for children, helping to make gaming as a whole appear "cool", though pointed out the low resolution of her character model "kept the smut-meter down".

Overwatch GAT project

Soldier: 76 [29][30] [31]

Doomfist [32] [33] [34] [35] [36] [37] [38] [39] [40] [41] [42]

Orisa:

• Dev: [43] [44]

Potential articles

Genji (Overwatch) [45] [46] [47] [48] [49] [50] [51]

Reaper (Overwatch) [52] [53] [54] [55]

Very unlikely

Baptiste (Overwatch) [56] [57] [58] [59]

Since his introduction, Baptiste has been praised as a character. Brando Simeo Starkey in an article for Andscape praised how well Overwatch represented black male characters, and felt of them Baptiste as "perhaps the most alluring" and "perhaps most culturally significant" due to his Haitian heritage and use of his native language. Starkey further emphasized that the culture tended to be overlooked in video games, and stressed the importance of children being able to see themselves represented in such characters.

Hazard (Overwatch) [60]

Illari (Overwatch) [61]

Venture (Overwatch) [62]

Torbjörn (Overwatch) [63] [64]