Part-way through coding the original Metroid, a member of Nintendo's development team wondered how players would react if they discovered that the bulky, heavily-armoured character they'd been controlling for the past 10 hours was actually a woman. And after a quick vote in favour of toying with gaming conventions, the first major female protagonist in a videogame was born. The star of a classic series of atmospheric space adventures that took their lead from Ridley Scott's Alien and put more focus on exploration than alien blasting, Samus Aran has become an enduring heroine on the gaming scene.
Uniquely, many observers have heralded Samus as a feminist icon in a male-dominated industry, who's able to save the day and slaughter the bad guys without needing to slip into sexy shorts or a bulging tank top. But whether you see her as a breakthrough for feminism or just another faceless sci-fi warrior, 1986's unexpected reveal that showed women could be more in gaming lore than eye candy for geeky boys was a refreshing and unforgettable moment.
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