The "tomboy" is an archetype that has existed for decades. Typically, it is a term used to refer to a girl who possesses characteristics more often associated with men: athleticism, scrappy attitude, lack of interest in stereotypically "girly" things. In a broader sense, it's used to define certain female-identifying characters in media who defy societal gender norms, such as appearance and sexuality.
This archetype, naturally, has found its way into many different mediums. One particular place where tomboys are common is in JRPGs. A JRPG (Japanese Role Playing Game) often contains a large cast of characters, who usually fit various character archetypes. These tomboys from popular JRPG games are the most iconic characters from their genre.
10 Elena (Final Fantasy VII)
Elena is a fan-favorite of the Final Fantasy franchise, appearing in the game's most acclaimed title, Final Fantasy 7. She is an employee of the antagonistic Shinra Electric Power Company as a member of their investigation department, nicknamed the "Turks." Elena is the newest member of the group, making her the most clumsy.
Based on the way Elena is dressed, she fits the typical qualities of an archetypal tomboy. She's often seen sporting short hair and a business suit, and takes very masculine postures in the game's artwork. Sadly, her role as a boss character in Final Fantasy 7 keeps her appearances to a minimum.
9 Veronica (Dragon Quest XI)
Dragon Quest XI is a more recent installment to the franchise, first releasing in 2017 for PS4 and 3DS. Since, it has received several ports onto Steam, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox One. In typical Dragon Quest fashion, there are plenty of brand-new characters who join the fray in this game, including the petulant mage Veronica.
As a mage, Veronica allows for some pretty offensive strategies in the popular role-playing series. This is fitting with her personality, as she often shows herself to be more short-tempered and tomboyish than other female characters in the game. For a child, she's very mature, or at the very least she tries to appear as such.
8 Mitsuru (Persona 3)
Mitsuru is one of many playable characters in Persona 3, which originally released on PlayStation 2. For a high school student, Mitsuru is one of the more mature characters in the game, coming off as very confident and strict. It's this adult-like demeanor that makes Mitsuru a quintessential tomboy.
Compared to other characters in the game, Mitsuru also has difficulty expressing her emotions. This especially becomes relevant during the game's story, when Mitsuru's father is killed by former ally Shuji. She's able to come out of her shell a bit, but Mitsuru still embodies a lot of key masculine qualities.
7 Faris (Final Fantasy V)
The Final Fantasy franchise contains many tomboy characters, but the fifth installment in the series has one of the best in Faris. Faris initially appears in the game as an antagonist before later joining the player's party. She is a ruthless pirate captain, and to earn the respect of her crew, she even cross-dresses as a man.
Obviously, Faris displayes many masculine qualities in order to properly disguise herself as a man. However, as she warms up to the party and joins them, she is able to embrace her more feminine side again. This makes her a bit less of a tomboy than other JRPG characters, but she still earns points for being so cool and confident.
6 Kairi (Kingdom Hearts)
Kairi is one of the prominent characters in the Kingdom Hearts series, alongside Sora and Riku. As children who grew up together, their bond is incredibly strong, and only grows even stronger as the franchise progresses. However, Kairi's tomboyishness is not a consistent characteristic in future installments of the franchise.
Many fans were quick to notice in subsequent Kingdom Hearts games that Kairi doesn't possess the same tomboy-like qualities after the first game. While this seems like a mistake by developers, it could also be a case of Kairi growing and maturing. Regardless, she'll always remain a bold fighter and a loyal friend to Sora.
5 Elma (Xenoblade Chronicles X)
Xenoblade Chronicles X is a Wii U-exclusive title that expands on the universe set up by the iconic Wii game Xenoblade Chronicles. Elma is one of the first characters that the player meets in the game. As a colonel of the military organization BLADE, she becomes one of the player's closest confidants and strongest party members.
Due to her military experience, Elma has many classic features of a tomboy. She has a strong sense of duty to BLADE's cause, and often displays an aggressive attitude while fighting. Compared to characters throughout the Xenoblade series like Pyra, Sharla, and Fiona, Elma is a more rugged, tough soldier with experience in war.
4 Marle (Chrono Trigger)
Chrono Trigger is one of the most iconic JRPGs of all time, even thought it's been out for almost thirty years. Marle plays a key role in the story as one of Crono, the protagonist's, best friends and party members. In fact, it's her disappearance that sets off the story of the game, leading to a time-traveling adventure for Crono.
Though players only meet Marle briefly before she vanishes at the start of the game, she quickly establishes herself as tomboyish. She's strong-willed and assertive towards other characters, which is an attitude that lands her in deep trouble. However, as the game progresses, she begins to embody her feminine side.
3 Misty (Pokemon)
Misty is probably better-known by video game fans from her prominent role in the Pokemon anime. In the games, however, she occupies a much smaller role as the Water-type Gym Leader in Kanto's Cerulean City. Even in these brief boss appearances, Misty shows off her iconic tomboyish nature.
In the second generation of Pokemon games (as well as their remakes), Misty's personality is more defined than it is in the first generation. She insults the player by calling them "a pest," and generally has a short-tempered attitude. However, Misty's tomboy personality has always been what fans love about her the most.
2 Kumatora (Mother 3)
Mother 3 is mostly known by Nintendo fans as the game that has yet to be localized. Hopefully, if fan demand works out, western audiences will get a chance to meet Kumatora, one of Lucas's allies in the game. Compared to prior female characters in the Mother series, Kumatora is a tomboy, but this time there's a reason for it.
Kumatora's mother, Ionia, is a strongly feminine character. This means that Kumatora's tomboyish nature is adapted out of rebellion, which makes her much deeper than many other JRPG female characters. However, fans of Mother 3 especially love Kumatora's rudeness, her wily attitude, and her resourcefulness.
1 Lucina (Fire Emblem Awakening)
The Super Smash Bros Echo Fighter made her debut in Fire Emblem Awakening for the 3DS. As one of the central protagonists of the game, Lucina made quite an impression on franchise fans for disguising herself as Marth. In actuality, she's the daughter of Chrom, who travels back in time to save her father from being killed.
Due to the cross-dressing, it's easy to see how Lucina fits into the archetype of tomboy. However, she also inherits a lot of her father's attributes, such as her honor and fighting style. Overall, she's become a welcome character to the Fire Emblem canon, and has gained even greater popularity thanks to Super Smash Bros 4.