Top Ten Video Game Moms

Okay, I know this might be coming a bit late but in light of last Sunday being Mother’s Day, I thought that this would be a perfect time to take a look at the best (and worst) mothers in video games. Before we get to the list, there is one rule that I feel should be addressed. For this post there will be only one mom per series. I always find it to be a bit of a letdown when half of a top 10 list is dedicated to the authors favorite game/show/anime/etc. With that said, get on with the list.Cooking_Mama

10 – Mama (Cooking Mama)
I’ve only played the series less than a handful of times while passing time in a waiting room but it’s hard to forget about Mama. With furious passion and almost limitless energy, Mama is more than happy to relate countless recipes in her kitchen. Yet, what makes her memorable is how she encourages you every time you succeed and when you make a mistake, even with bold red text saying “failed,” she reassures you and lets you know that Mama will help. She’s very kind and nurturing, always pushing you to be “even better than Mama.”Night_Mother

09 – The Night Mother (The Elder Scrolls)
While not a mother by traditional definition, the Night Mother has protected those of us who joined the Dark Brotherhood in The Elder Scrolls. Through her, contracts are passed down to us and we carry out her will. It’s unclear whether the Night Mother are regional leaders of the brotherhood or one guiding figure but one thing holds true, she looks out for the murderers and assassins of Tamriel. I’ve wasted many hours in her service, creeping in the darkest corners of The Elder Scrolls series. What I found is safety in the Dark Brotherhood and love with the Night Mother herself.

BoI_Mom08 – Mom (Binding of Issac)
The main antagonist of the Binding of Isaac game doesn’t make it on this list due to her kind heart and compassion. She is compelled to murder her son by order of her lord and savior. Yet, thanks to the Game Theorists, Mom might not be as terrible as we think she is. They suggest that the game might be entirely of Isaac’s imagination. No matter what she is though, villainous interpretation or loving saint, Mom is obviously important enough in Isaac’s mind to warrant a tale of her murderous intentions and multiple forms as the final boss on subsequent play through’s.

Jenova07 – Jenova (Final Fantasy VII)
The calamity from the skies and mother to Sephiroth, Jenova is an extraterrestrial being that travels from plant to planet, destroying all life and consuming energy from the planet itself only to do it all over again. Lather, rinse, repeat. She lingers on the planet for 2,000+ years, slowly infecting the population in order to eventually get a crack at the planet’s gooey center. Though she isn’t much of a maternal figure let alone a good mother all around, Sephiroth is still obsessed with her and determined to carry out her will.Flemeth

06 – Flemeth (Dragon Age)
A powerful shapeshifter with legends of her reaching to the far corners of Ferelden, Flemeth is a feared mage known to many as the witch of the wilds. Though the legends of the terrible witch are far more gruesome when looking at her role as a mother. Flemeth has been known to have countless daughters throughout the years. Yet, these children don’t exist in the legend beyond that there are many of them. Where do they all go? Flemeth possesses them, using them to continue her already lengthy lifespan. Yet, putting that aside, she can shift into a dragon. That’s got to count for something, right?

Mom_pokemon05 – Your Mom (Pokemon)
It really doesn’t matter which version you play, it’s almost always the same. You’ve hit the ripe age of twelve and it’s time to leave home, backpack cross country, and become a pokemon master. Not only does your local professor enable you by giving you your very own pokemon, your mother can’t stop telling you how proud she is. That is, as long as you remember to eat healthy, launder your socks, and always have an extra clean pair of underwear. It must be nice to have such a cool mom that she’ll just let you wander from town to town, fighting wild pokemon, and taking on evil organizations while trying to be the very best.Motherbrain

04 – Mother Brain (Metroid)
A wrathful AI created by the Chozo, Mother Brain is a frequent adversary of the bounty hunter Samus Aran. Though she may not have any children of her own (unless you consider the Metroid clones), she is tasked with controlling the systems on the planet Zebes. With Ridley and an entire army of Space Pirates at her disposal, she seeks to bring balance to the universe by bringing everything back to zero. What really shows the potential power of this organic supercomputer other than being a glorified brain in a jar is in Super Metroid where she breaks out the giant mechanical body in the final showdown. You best be careful not to make her mad.Moxxi

03 – Mad Moxxi (Borderlands)
Alluring and quite dangerous, Moxxi is sweet and flirty but know that she has a hunger for violence. While she’s no longer close with her two children, she’ll always be there for you between managing the Underdome and searching for her fourth husband. Yet it’s not her relationship with her kids that makes her awesome, it’s her determination and sass that makes her memorable. Dahlia_GillespieNot to mention that she’d likely riddle you full of holes before you can draw your gun.

02 – Dahlia Gillespie (Silent Hill)
Likely the receiver of the “Worst Mother Award” on this list, Dahlia not only tried to sacrifice her own daughter in order to birth the Order’s dark god and bring about Paradise, she seems to lurk behind nearly every terrible thing that happens in Silent Hill. She even has part in shapng the serial killer, Walter Sullivan, leading him to believe that room 302 of South Ashfield Heights is his sleeping mother. Ultimately, all the power and mystery behind Silent Hill stems from Dahlia and what she did to her daughter.

Eva01 – Eva (Metal Gear Solid)
Matka Pluku, or Big Mama, is the surrogate mother of the twin snakes, clones of Big Boss via the Les Enfants Terribles project. While she didn’t have much involvement in the lives of the two boys, it was many years later that she helped war hero, Solid Snake, in a mission to free the world of the control imposed by the shady group known as the Patriots. It’s her involvement in a rather convoluted story of secret organizations, black ops, and world domination that makes her stand out. It’s only a bonus that she rides a Soviet motorcycle with style and flaunts her mastery over her Chinese made Mauser pistol.

Thus concludes my list of awesome moms in video games. What do you guys think? Any video game moms that should have been on this list?

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