Note: This list was originally published in November 2016 as the “Best Video Game Presidents” to coincide with the United States’ Presidential election. I figured I’d resurface it to celebrate today’s holiday.
You might be thinking that there’s not much to celebrate on Presidents’ Day, and I honestly wouldn’t blame you. I’m not really feeling overly festive about it either. However, video games offer an escape, and they’ve also had quite a few characters that wound up being the President. After all, talking virtual politics is more fun than the disaster zone that is the current political climate.
So, let’s celebrate some of them instead. I’ve come up with a list of 10 of the most memorable video game presidents. The only rule was that the characters had to appear in a game that released on PlayStation consoles, since we are a PlayStation site after all.
So, without further adieu, let’s celebrate Presidents’ Day in style by taking a look at our list of the most memorable video game presidents!
We hope you enjoyed our look at the most memorable video game presidents. While we only showed off 10 people who have served as commander-in-chief, there are even more memorable characters from good and bad games. We hope you enjoy your Presidents’ Day!
Let us know in the comments who your favorite video game president is, and what games you’ve enjoyed that have had virtual presidents in them!
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Video Game Presidents
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10 Best Video Game Presidents
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Adam Benford
There isn't much from Resident Evil 6 that is memorable for the right reasons, but Leon's campaign starts off with a pretty cool scene as he witnesses the president, Adam Benford, turn into a zombie. This leads to Leon killing Adam's reanimated corpse, and joining the small group of people that can say they killed the commander-in-chief. We may not know a ton about Benford, but he sure went out with a bang.
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Bill Clinton
NBA Jam has always featured novelty teams, and few are funnier than the Presidential teams. While the 2010 edition of the series had more recent presidents such as Bush and Obama in it, Bill Clinton will always be associated with the game due to him serving while the game reached its peak popularity in the 90s.
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Howard T. Ackerman
Why is Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3's president so good? I'll let this quote from Howard T. Ackerman speak for itself. "Political attack ads? I don't think we need them. Sure, you can attack me on T.V. but would you attack me in person? I say 'bring it on.' I got a steel cage in my basement and we can go toe to toe whenever. You can twist my words, but I'll twist that knee until it pops! Vote for me if you want to live."
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Abe Lincoln
While I may have skipped this chapter in the book since I don't recall seeing honest Abe in Fight Club, there's no denying that he appeared in the poorly done video game tie-in. While the game he's in isn't worth your time, it's still undeniably awesome to see Abraham Lincoln in an underground club. Who knew he was such a talented bare-knuckle brawler?
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President Huffman
Destroy All Humans' President Huffman may have died for his country, but his brain lives on. In fact, his brain is used to control Robo-Prez, a giant mech equipped with homing missiles. That's not a president that I would vote against!
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President Max
The Sam & Max series made its triumphant return in 2006's Sam & Max Save the World. In the episodic series, Max is eventually elected president after quite the misadventure. I probably would've elected Sam instead, but I can't argue with the choice.
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President Winters
Vanquish may not have the most memorable story, but it does have some compelling imagery. Without going into spoiler territory, one of the game's most iconic scenes features the female president. It's definitely a scene that sticks with the player, even if the action takes precedent over the story here.
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Solidus Snake
Personally, I can't think of a cooler president than Solidus Snake. The eyepatch wearing villain from Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty is one of Big Boss' clones, and offers up an awesome final boss fight against the player.
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The Boss
Somehow Saints Row IV manages to be even more ridiculous than its predecessors. This starts from the very beginning as it's revealed that the player is actually the United States' president. Things only get even more silly from there after an alien invasion shakes things up, but the opening sequence is certainly one of the game's many highlights.
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Vice President of the World
While the star of Citizens of Earth might not actually be a full-fledged president, he is the vice president of the entire world. That has to carry some weight, more than leading just one puny country. Either way, the vice president is a likable momma's boy who becomes an unlikely hero.