The recent release of Hitman: Absolution has brought the notorious bald-headed assassin back to our consoles in the grittiest and most violent iteration of the series yet. As I watched the review on GameSpot, observing countless victims fall in the path of Agent 47 in the most brutal and gory fashion, an interesting idea dawned on me. Is this a typical hero on a righteous quest? Somehow, I doubt it.

We have seen and taken control of numerous villain-like main characters over the past decade, individuals and beings who do not adhere to the standard motivation of a Good Guy on a mission to do The Right Thing. These are anti-Marios and anti-Snakes, who do not strive to liberate royalty or save the world from a nuclear holocaust, but are driven by selfish, sinister motives that hardly qualify them as Heroes. Their actions are rarely justifiable and their methods are unforgivable.

A few examples from the recent past immediately jump to mind. The ferocious demi-god Kratos who literally tears his victims and innocents apart is driven by wrath and revenge indisputably two of the mortal sins. The absurdly overpowered protagonists of the Prototype series Alex Mercer and James Heller hardly ever use their mutant powers to do good. Even the beloved Niko Bellic, responsible for a rise of crime stats in Liberty City, is pure sin beneath the likable exterior.

And lets not forget the aforementioned Agent 47 a ruthless, merciless killer whose sole talent is to take life, sometimes on orders from the Agency, but more often off of his own volition.

As the bodycount in their wake continues to grow, the time has come, ladies and gents, to nominate your top Dexters of the gaming industy, in this blog Id like to call Gamings Most Antagonistic Protagonist.

Go!