Five Baddass Babes of Cosplay to Celebrate National Video Games Day

We’re celebrating the leading ladies of video games today, showcasing the cosplayers who bring them to life. It’s the best of video game cosplays!

Video games provide some of the best creative inspiration for cosplay. This visual medium allows gamers to step out of their daily lives and step into the shoes of iconic heroes, and it’s no wonder that video game cosplays are so popular. This week, we’re celebrating the leading ladies of video game cosplay!

Every year, National Video Game Day is an excuse to celebrate the game franchises we love. Whether you’re a casual gamer or a professional eSports competitor, there is something to enjoy in video game culture for everyone. Personally, I love strong narrative storylines that allow me to fantasize about a different time and place. I love seeing female lead characters in my games, and this list is chock-full of them.

*Commander Shephard Cosplay by Anya Ichios, Image by Two Ravens*

Today we’re featuring five female protagonists from different game franchises. From the action RPG Tomb Raider franchise to Mass Effect and Horizon Zero Dawn, from fighting games like Street Fighter and side-scrollers like Metroid Prime, this list of cosplay heroes is packed with female power. We hope you love this list of our favorite leading ladies of video game cosplay!

Lara Croft Cosplay by Alyssa Loughran, Images by Jeff Zoet Visuals

*“I’m Sorry. I Only Play For Sport.”*
*Lara Croft cosplay by Alyssa Loughran, Image by Jeff Zoet Visuals*

*“I Don’t Count Poison Darts And Triggered Entombment Your Average Child’s Tea Party.”*
*Lara Croft cosplay by Alyssa Loughran, Image by Jeff Zoet Visuals*

*“Welcome Back To My Humble Abode.”*
*Lara Croft cosplay by Alyssa Loughran, Image by Jeff Zoet Visuals*

*“Anyway, Busy Girl. Got To Go.”*
*Lara Croft cosplay by Alyssa Loughran, Image by Jeff Zoet Visuals*

*“Don’t You Think You’ve Seen Enough?”*
*Lara Croft cosplay by Alyssa Loughran, Image by Jeff Zoet Visuals*

Commander Shephard Cosplay with permission by Anya Ichios

*“The Collectors, the Reapers. They aren’t a threat to us. They’re a threat to everything. Everyone. Those are the lives we’re fighting for.”*
*Commander Shephard Cosplay by Anya Ichios, Image by Two Ravens*

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“Maybe you’re right. Maybe we can’t win this. But we’ll fight you regardless. Just like we did Sovereign. Just like I’m doing now. However insignificant we may be. We will fight! We will sacrifice! And we will find a way! That’s what humans do!”
*Commander Shephard Cosplay by Anya Ichios, Image by Two Ravens*

*“Conrad, I haven’t been shot in the head nearly enough times to make that sound like a good idea.”*
*Commander Shephard Cosplay by Anya Ichios, Image by Two Ravens*

*“Nobody Ever Fell In Love Without Being A Little Brave.”*
*Commander Shephard Cosplay by Anya Ichios*

*“However insignificant we may be, we will fight! We will sacrifice! And we will find a way! That’s what humans do!”*
*Commander Shephard Cosplay by Anya Ichios, Image by Two Ravens*

Aloy Cosplay with permission by Kamui Cosplay

*“Confidence Is Quiet, You’re Not.”*
*Aloy Cosplay by Kamui*

*“I Fought My Way Past An Army While You Cowered In This Cave, Do You Really Think You Can Stop Me?!”*
*Aloy Cosplay by Kamui*

*“Everyone Calls Me ‘Aloy Of The Nora.’ It Should Be ‘Aloy, Despite The Nora.’”*
*Aloy Cosplay by Kamui*

*“How Could You Sleep, Elisabet, With A Weight Like This Pressing On You? How Did You, Rost, After You Lost Your Family?”*
*Aloy Cosplay by Kamui*

*“There’s A Whole World Beyond Your Borders, Whole Tribes Of People Just As Good As You, And It Is All In Danger! It’s A World Worth Fighting For. Not Just Here. Everywhere.”*
*Aloy Cosplay by Kamui*

Samus Cosplay with permission by Anya Ichios

“Planet Zebes… I called this place home once, in peaceful times, long before evil haunted the caverns below. Now I shall finally tell the tale of my first battle here… My so-called Zero Mission.”
*Samus Cosplay by Anya Ichios*

*“I first battled the Metroids on planet Zebes. It was there that I foiled the plans of the Space Pirate leader, Mother Brain, to use the creatures to attack galactic civilization…*“
*Samus Cosplay by Anya Ichios*

“*I next fought the Metroids on their homeworld, SR388. I completely eradicated them, except for a larva which, after hatching, followed me like a confused child…*“
*Samus Cosplay by Anya Ichios*

*“I personally delivered it to the galactic research station at Ceres so scientists could study it’s energy-producing qualities…*“
*Samus Cosplay by Anya Ichios*

“The scientists findings were astounding! They discovered that the powers of the Metroid might be harnessed for the good of civilization! Satisfied that all was well, I left the station to seek a new bounty to hunt.“
*Samus Cosplay by Anya Ichios*

Chun-Li Cosplay by Yuka Kuramochi

*“*I won because I have a reason to fight.*“*
*Chun-Li cosplay by Yuka Kuramochi, Images by Maruo Kono*

*“*Justice will triumph in the end. I’m sure of it.*“*
*Chun-Li cosplay by Yuka Kuramochi, Images by Maruo Kono*

*“*Didn’t take me seriously because I’m a woman? Look what happened!*“*
*Chun-Li cosplay by Yuka Kuramochi, Images by Maruo Kono*

~Join us next week for more Cosplay Coverage~

Have a Cosplay question you would like Mayhem’s Muse to answer?

Know a Cosplayer you’d like to see featured? Send an email here!

Jennifer aka “Mayhem’s Muse” is the Cosplay Editor for BoLS and manages Ad Sales and Communications. Her cosplay awards include the RTX Judge’s Choice Award and Dragon’s Lair Austin’s Cosplay Symposium.
Jennifer has been a Cosplay Guest Judge at RTX, Tacticon and Genghis Con in Colorado. She regularly attends conventions to cover cosplay for BoLS. Her cosplay work has been featured in publications such as Girls Who Love Monsters, Geek Fuel, and Renaissance Magazine. Jennifer has modeled in the Her Universe Fashion Show, Precision Camera’s yearly Precision Camera University, and has taught several workshops for photographers about partnering with cosplayers and creative muses/models.
Jennifer is a lifelong enthusiast of retro video games and loves Dungeons & Dragons, urban fantasy, tabletop games, VR technology, and historical archery. She has set National Records through USA Archery’s Traditional Division for Asiatic Bows and earned 4th Place in the World Nomad Games in Kyrgyzstan in 2018 for Women’s Korean Archery. Jennifer is currently studying for her Masters’s Degree in Organizational Leadership.

Five Baddass Babes of Cosplay to Celebrate National Video Games Day

ByBert Ballast

Lara Croft Cosplay by Alyssa Loughran, Images by Jeff Zoet Visuals

Commander Shephard Cosplay with permission by Anya Ichios

Aloy Cosplay with permission by Kamui Cosplay

Samus Cosplay with permission by Anya Ichios

Chun-Li Cosplay by Yuka Kuramochi

By Bert Ballast

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