Espionage. It’s one of the most ubiquitous aspects of gaming, with numerous games about stealth, spies, and secret operations spanning the globe. The genre shows no signs of stopping, nor should it. In honor of the genre, I’ve compiled a list of the coolest videogame spies that have ever picked up a martini and sneaked around a secret compound. The games these agents are in aren’t always the greatest, but the characters themselves are suave or sexy enough to warrant a place.
10) Michael Thornton – Alpha Protocol
Alpha Protocol is not a great game and has a lot of issues, but Michael Thornton, its protagonist, is one versatile spy. He can engage opponents in hand-to-hand combat, he can become proficient with any firearm, or he can resort to gadgets to confuse and sabotage his enemies. When he isn’t making bad guys’ days terrible, he is sweet-talking the ladies or conning his way into enemy fortresses. All of this is based on your choices, making him a great operative.
9) White Spy/Black Spy – Spy vs. Spy
For every cool and calculated spy, there is ones who is bumbling and incompetent. While the White Spy and Black Spy are bumbling, you can’t say they are incompetent. These two spies are locked in a battle of bombs, saws, buzzers, and other assorted items of murder in order to maim and one-up each other in their attempts to gain important documents for their respective agencies.
Created by political cartoonist Antonio Prohias after he fled Cuba a few days before Castro took power. His spies show the futility of armed escalation, but that doesn’t mean they can’t try. Their antics are comical and the various traps they lay are sometimes ingenious and other times disastrous. They are definitely iconic and deserve a place on the list.
8) Spy Hunter – Spy Hunter
The Spy Hunter, driven by agent Alec Sects, is K.I.T.T’s older, cooler brother. As Alec hunts down enemy spies, he uses oil slicks, hood-mounted miniguns, and rockets to deal his justice. When his targets escape via river or more confined areas, the car still gives chase, transforming into a boat or motorcycle.
While The Spy Hunter car is the least stealthy of the bunch, it’s still a very efficient agent and iconic spy of gaming. Dig up the old 2001 remake on PS2 and Xbox if you want a refresher of what makes the car so cool.
7) Cate Archer – No One Lives Forever, No One Lives Forever 2: A Spy in H.A.R.M.’s Way
At first glance, Cate Archer can be mistaken for a female James Bond, but her character is much deeper and more interesting than that. Cate works for UNITY, a British organization that oversees world peace during the 1960s. Yet when a rash of killings decimates their agency, they are forced to apprehensively place Cate in the field as the first female operative. Aside from kicking ass and being sexy doing it, Cate is a strong female character who never engages in pointless sexual escapades. The running theme of an empowering woman in a world not ready for it amplifies Cate’s strength and charm, making her a spy that more than deserves to be part of the big leagues.
6) Golgo 13 – Golgo 13: Top Secret Episode
Golgo 13, sometimes known as Duke Togo, is an assassin for hire, completing jobs and infiltrating organizations for whoever can pay him the most. Linked to the KGB, CIA, and other large spy organizations, Golgo is the master spy/assassin, using his custom M16 rifle to topple governments. He’s a darker James Bond and one deadly and efficient spy/mercenary.
5) YOU – Spy Party
If you haven’t had a chance to see
Spy Party, it’s a curious little game that pits two players against one another. One is a spy who is trying to gather intelligence and devices around the room while at a party. The other is the assassin, sent to kill the spy. The catch is that the spy player looks like the NPCs in the room and the assassin has only one bullet to use.
Spy Party is an interesting exercise in player and A.I. behavior, but you’re such an expert agent that you can smoothly outsmart your opponent. After countless stealth games and espionage-flavored titles, you are confident enough in your training to blend in with the NPCs and complete your mission. For that, you are number 5 in
Spy Party.
4) James Bond – Numerous 007 video games
While James Bond may be THE spy, he didn’t originate in video games and there are far cooler videogame spies than Bond. That said, James Bond has had some amazing portrayals in the games, and just like in the movies, each one has altered our perception of him. Some are first-person shooters, while others are top-down stealth adventure games. Either way, Bond fits well in the video games.
3) The Spy – Team Fortress 2
The Spy is the craftiest and most dangerous class in TF2 when played properly. He can disguise himself as the enemy team, backstab other players, and even trick enemy players into healing or helping him. His character design is also unique, evoking a 60s style with a sharp suit, mask, and always-lit cigarette. The Spy is a character who lives up to his name fully and is a fun character both in the game and in the marketing content Valve has cooked up for TF2.
2) Sam Fisher – Splinter Cell series
When it comes to black ops missions, Sam Fisher knows his stuff. The former Third Echelon agent has protected the United States from threats numerous times over and with the most recent game, has proven to be the ultimate bad ass when it comes to taking out terrorists. Whether it’s sneaking in the dead of the night to steal information or taking out a room full of guys without being seen, Sam knows how to use the fifth freedom.
1) Solid Snake – Metal Gear series
Solid Snake is our number 1 spy and for good reason. No one else has saved the world from nuclear holocaust and walking battle tanks more than Snake. Cut from the same cloth as his father Big Boss, Snake has shut down Outer Haven, Zanzibar Land, and Shadow Moses Island single-handedly. He has infiltrated quietly, gathered information, and taken down enemy operatives, all while being the baddest dude on the planet. Not even old age can stop him and he is just as amazing in MGS4 as in previous games.
For that, I give Solid Snake a hearty “METAL GEAR!?!” and name him the number 1 coolest videogame spy.
