Lara Croft voted 'most iconic' video game character of all time

In a poll to mark the 20th annual BAFTA Games Awards, Lara Croft was voted the most iconic video game character of all time.

Tomb Raider legend Lara Croft beat out the likes of SEGA's Sonic the Hedgehog, Nintendo's Mario, and even arcade classic Pac-Man.

The poll, launched on Thursday, saw over 4,000 players worldwide participate in voting for their favourite characters.

Credit: BAFTA

Lara Croft was voted number one by gamers from across the globe, and those featured on the list collectively hold 44 BAFTA Games Awards.

Shelley Blond, the first voice actor behind Lara Croft, said: “I had no clue when voicing the original Tomb Raider game that it would be such a global phenomenon and neither did Eidos or Core Design. They had only ever done children’s games before, and of course, they hoped it would be a success, but I think it went above and beyond any and all expectations."

Lara Croft, the Tomb Raider franchise icon, burst onto the gaming scene in 1996. The character has since enjoyed video game success as well as movies, and even her own live-action escape room experience in London.

Nintendo's Mario, probably the best-known plumber from Brooklyn, snagged the second spot in the list of twenty. Sonic the Hedgehog, who went head to head with Mario in the '90s console wars, grabbed fourth place.

See the top twenty video game characters list, as voted for in the BAFTA poll for yourself below:

1. Lara Croft (Tomb Raider)
2. Mario (Super Mario)
3. Agent 47 (Hitman)
4. Sonic the Hedgehog (Sonic)
5. Sackboy (Little Big Planet)
6. Pac-Man (Pac-Man)
7. Link (The Legend of Zelda)
8. Master Chief (Halo)
9. Kratos (God of War)
10. Shadow Heart (Baldur's Gate 3)
11. Arthur Morgan (Red Dead Redemption 2)
12. Pikachu (Pokemon)
13. Steve (Minecraft)
14. Solid Snake (Metal Gear Solid)
15. Crash Bandicoot (Crash Bandicoot)
16. Cloud Strife (Final Fantasy VII)
17. Astarion (Baldur's Gate 3)
18. Kazuma Kiryu (Yakuza)
19. Ellie Williams (The Last of Us)
20. Nathan Drake (Uncharted)

It's quite an esteemed list for one Ms. Croft to top; seeing competing treasure hunter Nathan Drake from the Uncharted franchise take last place shows that the fans have one favourite archaeologist, and her name is Lara.

Earlier this year, Lara Croft was back in the public eye with Tomb Raider I-III remastered, released on February 14, her birthday. Also, the queen of video games is making a return to TV screens with Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft, which will arrive on Netflix later this year.