I haven't done one of these articles in a little while so I figured it was about time I put one together. This time instead of doing villains, monsters, bosses or even heroes I thought I would do a more ignored aspect which are the best antiheroes within video games. Why do antiheroes over just doing a normal hero you might ask? Well, because screw those chump ass heroes. There are plenty of good heroes in video games, but there's no where near enough good antiheroes. I find antiheroes to be so much more interesting than almost all of your hero characters to be found in video games, as they usually tend to have more depth/substance to their character and backstory. They also usually have a much more likable personality overall. So, lets get into what I think are the top 10 best antihero characters in video game history, suckah!

10. Alex Mercer (Prototype/Prototype II)

Alex Mercer is one of the more troubled and sociopathic characters to be on this list, but definitely one of the coolest at the same time thanks to his awesome set of powers. He grew up in foster care and then was later taken by his abusive mother, which led to his dark, paranoid nature. As he continued growing up, he began isolating himself from friends and others and focusing all of his attention into his scientific work. He was the lead researcher on a project involving a radical new virus, until he was betrayed by his own employers who deemed it necessary to have him killed.

After forcing him into a corner, he throws a sample of the virus down on the ground breaking its container in a fit of rage beginning an event that was basically apocalyptic in nature to the whole city of New York. Awakening with no memories, he begins slowly unraveling his past and learning about what he can do with his viral powers. While Prototype wasn't the most popular game around, it was one of my favorites from the Xbox 360 area, and Alex Mercer will go down as a great antihero in history for me.

9. Agent 47 (The Hitman series)

Agent 47 definitely needs to make his way on this list, as he's probably one of the best known antiheroes of all time. Agent 47 is a cloned, enhanced human being trained to do one thing and one thing only, eliminate his targets at all costs. He has 47 chromosomes letting his strength, agility, stamina and intelligence go well beyond that of what a man should be able to have. While he is a man devoid of basically all emotions who lacks mercy more than anything, he spends almost all of his time taking out big bad guys, so you can still root for him. This silent assassin has such of a rich backstory and lore to him, that you can't help but find him fascinating. Combine that with his skillset and intimidating appearance and he makes for a great character.

8. Max Payne (The Max Payne series)

Max Payne's journey has been an interesting roller coaster throughout the years. He started out as a hellbent revenge driven detective taking out any and all criminals that have ever brought harm to him or those he loved, and found his way into being an alcoholic, drug addict fallen avenger. He is one hell of a fighter, and even though he borderlines on being crazed and suicidal, he'll annihilate anything in his way that aims to take him out. While he is always motivated by a more noble cause than most, he'll find dark, terrible things along the way which seemingly just pile up on his soul. His character is one of the most interesting within the action genre of games, and watching his journey throughout the series has been an entertaining, enjoyable ride.

7. Conker (Conker's Bad Fur Day)

This choice might be one of my favorite from the post, as this is one of the most hilariously unexpected antiheroes to ever make his way into gaming. Conker started out as a child friendly character that appeared in a Diddy Kong Racing and some other E rated games afterwards. Eventually he found his way into the N64 console where he showed his beautiful, true colors of being a mean, alcoholic and perverted squirrel. He treats his helpers like dirt, and finds them annoying throughout the game. Often times he sacrifices innocents to get past an obstacle without any remorse. Though it's always in entertaining ways. He's constantly shown to be greedy and self centered as he battles his way through the panther kingdom. However, he is a hilariously goofy character that you can't help to like as he makes his way through his journey. Even if it ends on a depressing note with him being left alone forgetting about his dead girlfriend and surrounded by those people he found so annoying.

6. John Marston (Red Dead Redemption)

John Marston was one of the best antihero characters I've ever seen in a game, and definitely one of the most well used/done. Red Dead Redemption was probably my favorite game to be released in 2010 I would reckon, and he's a big reason why. John will forever be stained with blood on his hands, labeled as an outlaw. That doesn't keep him from trying his best to get on the right side of things though. Sadly, that path usually takes him back into carnage and bloodshed. John might be one of the unluckiest characters in video game history, and I would say he is certainly one of the unluckiest on this list. With an engaging, entertaining character that has depth to him he definitely belongs on this list.

5. Alucard (Castlevania series)

A classic example of what an antihero looks like, Alucard is the son of Dracula and he is one of the coolest characters on this list. Born between the prince of darkness and a human woman, Alucard has enhanced abilities and powers that put him far above any normal human beings. He is a pessimistic man who always seemingly has a plan for everything, he is bitter towards humans due to the death of his mother but chooses them over the darkness that his father wants to spread over the land. His name is the opposite of his fathers to show that he has the opposite beliefs and stands against him. While he suffers from a blood curse that agonizes him, he continues to push forward and fight without breaking his own beliefs. He's definitely a great character that had to be on this list.

4. The Wanderer (Shadow of the Colossus)

The Wanderer from Shadow of the Colossus might be one of the most dickish main characters of all time. On the words of some shadowy figure that you don't know, you begin hunting these large creatures which are basically just animals minding their own business. They aren't evil monsters, they're doing nothing wrong and just living their life. But, to try and revive your loved one due to what you're told me an otherworldly force you go around slaughtering the things. As you progress through the game, you slowly start returning life to the maiden who'm you seek to bring back to life. And, while the goal to bring her back is a somewhat noble and relatable one, the price it costs is far too much. You basically almost bring about the end of the world by returning power to a dark monster, and the wanderer suffers for his misdeeds. While his character definitely does wrong things, he does show compassion and determination for the person he cares for. And, I think he deserves a spot on this list.

3. Dante (Devil may Cry series)

Dante is no doubt one of the most iconic antihero characters to date within video games. He is the son of Sparta the demon, and is one of the most stylish and engaging characters to be shown in a hack and slash. While also being a demon hunter vigilante, he does side jobs as a private investigator into paranormal and supernatural events. He also happens to have an obsession with pizza that borderlines on being unhealthy. Who am I kidding, you can never have enough pizza. His smack talk abilities, awesome weaponry and skills to match make him one of the most fun to play characters ever. Add in a cool backstory with a lot of different paths for him to explore between the demon and human world and he definitely walks his way onto this list.

2. Kratos (God of War series)

I'm sure most of you knew this guy was going to make it on the list. Though, at times he honestly borderlines on being an antagonist more than being a protagonist. Kratos is a revenge fueled beast seeking to devastate the gods with the marvelous abilities of raining down chaos and destruction upon them. He literally tears apart the entire world just to fulfill his lust for vengeance, sacrificing no small amount of innocent people along the way. Eventually he realizes the wrongs he has committed along the way and attempts to make amends for his actions, but he is certainly no hero and is much closer to being a villain. His awesome combat skills and unrelenting personality make for a great antihero, and he had to be towards the top of this list.

1. Jackie Estacado (The Darkness/The Darkness II)

Now, this might not be what everyone was expecting. But, this character is so near and dear to my heart and I've read the comic series along with playing the games and he just means a lot to me. Jackie is the human host to a demonic entity known only as The Darkness. He is a young member of an Italian crime family and was a contract killer that worked for his Uncle Paulie. That was until one day when his uncle decided to try and kill him by setting him up. Unfortunately for his uncle it was on his 21st birthday, where he inherited the dark being that his father passed onto him. This character literally tears through hundred of men eating their hearts to gain more abilities hell bent on revenge not only for the hit against him, but for the terrible events he has to witness throughout the game such as his girlfriend being murdered in front of him.

He suffers so much but continues to press forward and he is truly one of the most damaged characters that is driven by love to use an ancient, evil power. He goes through some of the most bizarre and terrible environments trying to help those that have suffered at the hands of the darkness in between his quest of vengeance. Even into the second game, he is haunted by hallucinations of his loved one while trying to save himself and his people from a shady supernatural organization after his powers. In the end to keep the darkness at bay and stop everything from going to shit, he casts himself into hell where he is seemingly trapped, only to find out that his girlfriends soul is to be used for the next host of the Angelus, leaving him powerless to save her. I definitely loved this character so much between all of the media, so maybe I am a bit biased. But, I had to put him as my number one, even if people disagree with me. There's a lot of depth and substance to him beyond his torment and suffering, and I really wish they would have made a third game to tie everything up.

Well, anyways, there's my top 10 list of antiheroes in video games. What do you guys think? What would your list look like? Feel free to leave anything below in the comments and I'll check it out! I enjoy rewarding genuine discussions, so what do you have to lose?