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Zen Hero

Member
Oct 25, 2017
5,652
Is Peach all that popular? She may be well known but I don't know many people that really like her. To me "popular" implies both well known and well liked.

From my perspective Zelda is definitely more popular since BotW, people love BotW Zelda.
 

Deleted member 17388

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 27, 2017
12,994
Is Peach all that popular? She may be well known but I don't know many people that really like her. To me "popular" implies both well known and well liked.
Implies also current relevancy, which everyone saying "Lara Croft" is willfully ignoring.

Most kids don't even know a game called "Tomb Raider", less so about the protagonist.

At least Peach appeared on a well-sold game released this year, even if she isn't that liked Daisy is better!
 

Deleted member 511

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
3,676
Implies also current relevancy, which everyone saying "Lara Croft" is willfully ignoring.

Most kids don't even know a game called "Tomb Raider", less so about the protagonist.

At least Peach apparead on a popular well-sold game released this year, even if she isn't that liked Daisy is better!
Why would kids even be playing modern Tomb Raider? It's full of murder lmao.
 

PtM

Banned
Dec 7, 2017
3,582
It's not a fighting-game character, unless we're talking about Smash.

Croft to me seems to have lost some juice with the repeated redesigns.

It's even worse for Zelda, who is a different person in almost every game.

Peach has a lot of stars aligned for her, in comparison.

Isabelle is in a popular game or two, but cannot stand out that much from other Animals.

Don't know if Alex really steps out of Steve's shadow.

Fortnite girl, I can see that. Maybe even Overwatch girl. But they are in only one game each.

The LoL characters don't get many chances to make an impression (top-down camera), and steal each other's chances.
 

jokkir

Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,198
Probably Peach

Maybe girl from Fortnite since the art style is pretty distinguishable but I still say Peach
 

xir

Member
Oct 27, 2017
12,686
Los Angeles, CA
marquee_comparison.jpg

hubba hubba?
 

zoltek

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,917
Lara Croft, no contest. Or they will call her Tomb Raider.

Those saying Peach are somewhat out of touch with the gaming community at large.
 

MoogleWizard

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,734
Lara.

The premise of using google trends to determine this is flawed, though. Other languages than English exist. "Princess" is a different word in every language, so searching for "princess Zelda" or "princess Peach" will only give you the results in English. "Isabelle Animal Crossing" is pointless, too, because she has 12 different names, one for each of the languages the games are localized in.
 

Joltik

Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,768
Lara Croft, no contest. Or they will call her Tomb Raider.

Those saying Peach are somewhat out of touch with the gaming community at large.
Listen, I think Lara Croft is the most the most popular female character in gaming, however I don't think it's far-fetched to think Peach as a close second due to how mainstream Mario(especially Kart) as a whole is and this character also has some great merchandise game too.

Minecraft Alex is also probably up there.
 

Dolce

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,260
Those saying Peach are somewhat out of touch with the gaming community at large.

I think saying this shows how out of touch you are with the general community, though. We're not talking just hardcore gamers. You can actually buy Peach toys, merchandise and all kinds of things all over. Characters like that are extremely popular with kids.
 

lusca_bueno

Member
Nov 23, 2017
1,472
Lara Croft and Chun Li to me, no contest.

Almost all normal non-gamer people I know don't remember Peach's name, they think Zelda is actually Link's name, and they don't even know Samus is a girl, they don't even know Samus actually lol

But they sure as hell know "Lara Croft from Tomb Raider" and "Chun Li from Street Fighter".
 

Slacker247

Member
Oct 27, 2017
4,068
Lara Croft and Chun-Li. I'm going to say Peach isn't as popular as people think.

Anyone saying Ellie... compared to Lara Croft and Chun Li? Come on now. Similarly for Jill, a few might recognise the RE1 costume but they might even struggle to guess which bloody series the costume is even from.

Think complete average non-resetera person. They are likely to namedrop Lara Croft (Laura Croft) or Chun-Li (Chung Li). I would actually bet Peach comes after these two.

But people suggesting Isabelle might have a point. Same for that Alex character from Minecraft (never played it).

Think about it like this: Show people the Superman S and far more are likely to get it than say, a Spider-Man symbol. Maybe unfair in that the S shield is only one of the most prolific visual icons in history.
 
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Dolce

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,260
What games did Peach have besides that DS game?

She's present in almost every Mario game and present in pretty much every spinoff. Her only "solo" game is Super Princess Peach though she's been playable in stuff like SMB2 and 3D World in terms of the main series titles.
 

El Toporo

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,124
She's present in almost every Mario game and present in pretty much every spinoff. Her only "solo" game is Super Princess Peach though she's been playable in stuff like SMB2 and 3D World in terms of the main series titles.
So she is the most popular female character in gaming and has been around for 35 years, but she has less games of her own than Tingle?
 

Dolce

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,260
So she is the most popular female character in gaming and has been around for 35 years, but she has less games of her own than Tingle?

I mean Zelda is also one of the most popular female gaming characters and she's been playable even less. Part of this comes from decades of sexism in the industry, especially as it is much more rare for women to get solo games than men. But in games she's in, she's usually one of the most popular. In Mario Kart 8 she has multiple forms, even.
 

Wood Man

Member
Oct 30, 2017
5,449
Lara, Peach & Miss Pacman are probably the most well known female characters in games. Most non gamers know who they are.
 

Wrighteous86

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,147
Chicago
Lara Croft and Chun Li to me, no contest.

Almost all normal non-gamer people I know don't remember Peach's name, they think Zelda is actually Link's name, and they don't even know Samus is a girl, they don't even know Samus actually lol

But they sure as hell know "Lara Croft from Tomb Raider" and "Chun Li from Street Fighter".
You're high if you think non-gamers know Chin Li's name. Most probably recognize her but no name recognition.
 

anaa

Unshakable Resolve
Member
Jun 30, 2019
1,562
In 2020 I think it's Aloy. It would've been Ellie last year but now the character is divisive.
lol this is PEAK era bubble.

To everyone saying Lara Croft, I do feel like that is also a bubble, but a more universal '30s male gamer' bubble. People in their late teens now who grew up with the Wii and beyond did not experience 'croft fever' (movie, media permeation). And while the IP isn't dead, I'd really like to see the argument that the mild, modern take is going to have any kind of lasting impact.

As far as most recognizable goes, Peach's look has pretty much been maintained, and they have kept her as a relevant character in most Mario games. There's lots of merchandise featuring her, and probably stands the highest chance of recognition amongst people across demographics. While her role in the series is lamentable, she IS a key part of the Mario brand. And that brand is big.

Personally I'd prefer it was Isabell, but while she IS popular and recognizable, she hasn't been around long enough to really have as wide a reach. She is sort of a mascot for the animal crossing brand though, which is also on the rise.
 

StallionDan

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
7,705
Original Lara Croft by far the most well known. In the 90s/early 2000s she was everywhere and that legacy remains today. I doubt anyone would recognise the new Lara since it a very generic action girl design.

After that is a huge drop off as mainly stuck to videogames.

Chun-Li
Toadstool
Jill Valentine (Was in two RE movies and they were hits, plus RE is very popular).
 

StallionDan

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
7,705
Going with Lara Croft: games, movies and comics. I even remember seeing a Tomb Raider comic in a Paris shop back in early 2000s.

Edit: Wiki says the comics ran for years before they got canned. Then they got rebooted again in 2014 when the Crystal Dynamics games got started.
CD games started with Legend in 2006.
 

Niklel

Prophet of Regret
Member
Aug 10, 2020
4,029
I think it's still Lara, but her popularity fades. The newer games were not too great or memorable and the latest movie was unsuccessful. The fact that they've changed her iconic appearance and weapons of choice (now Lara prefers a bow, I guess?) doesn't help.

Quite possible that among gamers Ellie will soon become the most popular female character. Among non-gamers - idk.
 

Deleted member 17388

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 27, 2017
12,994
Original Lara Croft by far the most well known. In the 90s/early 2000s she was everywhere and that legacy remains today. I doubt anyone would recognise the new Lara since it a very generic action girl design.

I think it's still Lara, but her popularity fades. The newer games were not too great or memorable and the latest movie was unsuccessful. The fact that they've changed her iconic appearance and weapons of choice (now Lara prefers a bow, I guess?) doesn't help.

That higher-up that greenlighted the idea of trying to change Lara's iconic signature weapon, twin pistols, for a bow and arrows: 🤡

Especially during that 2012 - 2013 period

Please click the spoiler below alongside this tune: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mML2fPec7xU

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Bonus - A timely throwback to the lovely times of 2012:
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There is a reason this below has always been the unfulfilled tease in Tomb Raider media all these years:
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Another

Banned
Oct 23, 2019
1,684
Portugal
First couple of posts said it all. Lara, Peach, Ms. Pacman and Chun-Li.

Samus has to be up there.
Metroid is my favorite IP of all time by quite the margin and I love the series passionately.

That said, she is nowhere near being "up there". Newcomers consistently have no idea who she is or even what "Metroid" is when we're playing Smash and this is people who are mostly at least aware of gaming to a decent degree.