Top 10 Most Hated Video Game Characters of the Century (So Far)

Script written by Johnny Reynolds

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re looking at video game characters that debuted after the year 2000 and drew near-universal hatred from players. To be clear, we’re not saying we hate all these characters, but a whole lot of players sure do. Also, since some hatred is tied to story reasons, be on the lookout for spoilers.

#10: Resetti

“Animal Crossing” Series (2001-)

While some take issue with Tom Nook, he’s nothing compared to Resetti. First appearing in the GameCube original, this mad mole would pop in whenever the player quit the game without saving. He’d then proceed to lecture you for minutes on in so you’d remember, or even pretend to delete your town. These encounters always went on for far too long. And if you actually did lose something important, you already felt bad enough without this guy kicking you while you were down. Nintendo further trolled us by making him one of the most annoying Trophies in “Super Smash Bros.” Thankfully, with the advent of auto-saving, Resetti was barely in “New Horizons.”

#9: The Adoring Fan

“The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion” (2006)

Even though he’s your biggest admirer, players could not stand “Oblivion’s” Adoring Fan. After reaching the status of Grand Champion in the Arena of Imperial City, you gain enough fame to earn your very own superfan. Something about his always-smiling face rubbed everyone the wrong way. And his constant offers to shine your boots and worship the ground you walk on came off as pathetic. That’s actually quite fitting, as he’s the only Follower you can recruit who won’t fight, instead running away until it’s safe to come out. Useless and creepy, players found a myriad of ways to dispose of him. Of course, he’d simply respawn back at the Arena to await his Champion’s instructions.

#8: Fi

“The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword” (2011)

“The Legend of Zelda” has had several hand-holdy companions, but Fi from “Skyward Sword” was the breaking point for many fans. A spirit created to aid Link on his journey, she’s very robotic in both her demeanor and dialogue. While there were still some great moments with her, her characterization didn’t leave room for much depth. However, what ticked players off the most wasn’t her personality, but her tendency to interject with useless information. She would consistently compile percentages for how likely certain things were, entirely unnecessary in a fairly linear game. Many also grew tired of her telling them that their Wii batteries were running low. It's a good thing Nintendo scaled her back for the HD remaster.

#7: Anabella Rosfield

“Final Fantasy XVI” (2023)

With so many characters across so many games, there are a lot to choose from in “Final Fantasy.” But Anabella from the sixteenth mainline entry makes a strong case for being the absolute worst. Completely manipulative and entirely selfish, Anabella does a lot in the opening acts to make you dislike her. This includes extreme favoritism of her children, one of whom she enslaves, and betraying her entire kingdom. But over the course of the game, she only ever grows more hateable. She doesn’t have an interesting cause or tragic backstory; she just thinks she deserves status and power. And boy did it feel good when she was proven wrong.

#6: The Calypso Twins

“Borderlands 3” (2019)

While players also weren’t fond of Ava and her part in the story, it’s hard to top the obnoxious big bads of “Borderlands 3.” Tyreen and Troy Calypso are looking for the Great Vault like many others. But they’re a sad follow-up to the engaging Handsome Jack of “Borderlands 2.” Always streaming their escapades to their legions of fans, they both try to outshine everyone around them. They only end up coming off as annoying try-hards, though. Even their acts of villainy, which are extreme, only add to the player’s hatred rather than make them captivating. Many fans had issues with the third game’s story, and the twins are at the center of most of it.

#5: Preston Garvey

“Fallout 4” (2015)

It’s one thing to be annoying, another to be annoying and boring. Preston Garvey is a possible companion in “Fallout 4” that many players just like to avoid all-together. The reason many people don’t like him is because he assigns several radiant quests each time you talk to him. These involve helping settlements, but there’s an infinite amount of them due to randomly generated elements. If you don’t want to do this, the quests just sit unfilled in your menu. On top of constantly assigning never-ending quests we don’t want, this is basically Preston’s entire personality. He’s simply a Minuteman, and is as dull as a piece of wood.

#4: Lieutenant General Shepherd

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2” (2009)

Stabbing your allies in the back is a great way to earn the abhorrence of players everywhere. In one of the best “Call of Duty” campaigns, players had their hands full with terrorist Vladimir Makarov. Among the forces for good was Shepherd, who led an elite team in direct opposition to the villain. But it was all a ploy to further his own plans in plunging everyone into World War III. This revelation came bitterly as both Ghost and player character Roach were killed by Shepherd in a shocking twist. “Call of Duty” has a ton of villains, but it’s unlikely any will surpass the wrath players feel for Shepherd.

#3: Ashley Graham

“Resident Evil 4” (2005)

Thankfully, Capcom made Ashley much less annoying in the 2023 remake. But the level of hatred players felt for her in the original “Resident Evil 4” was so intense, that it persisted for nearly two decades. The plot revolves around Leon Kennedy traveling to Spain to rescue the president’s daughter before she can be infected with a parasite and set free in the US. The premise makes you aware she’ll be a giant escort mission, and yet it’s still surprising how much of a pain she is. We already had terrifying undead to fight against. And every time she got picked up and screeched “Leon, Help!,” it was like nails on a chalkboard. It’s a good thing the rest of the game is so fantastic.

#2: Micah Bell

“Red Dead Redemption 2” (2018)

Rockstar has perfected their craft in making hateable characters and Micah Bell is their masterpiece. In a world full of outlaws, murderers, cannibals, and more, Micah still manages to outshine them all. He’s a member of the same gang as the protagonist, Arthur, yet doesn’t follow any sort of code and instead tries to be as vile as possible. Everything he does is in service of himself. He forces you to take on an entire town to rescue him and his precious revolvers, an act you end up regretting when it turns out he’s a rat. Informing for the Pinkertons is his most damning action, but it was all a build-up of horrible we couldn’t wait to enact vengeance against.

#1: Abby Anderson

“The Last of Us Part II” (2020)

No matter how you feel about her, no video game character in recent memory drew as much vitriol as Abby. It began with leaks before the game was released; among the elements spoiled was the fact that fan-favorite Joel would be killed early on. And that players would eventually take control of his murderer, Abby. While the context of the larger story explained Abby’s arguably justified motivation, many still hated her out of loyalty to Joel. The sequel’s polarization was inescapable for months after launch. And while there were other complaints, Abby was by far the biggest one. Laura Bailey, the actress who played her, even received death threats. On top of being horrible, it goes to show how much hate Abby garnered.

What recent video game character do you hate more than any other? Share with us in the comments, and be sure to subscribe for more great videos!