Like most media, video games often focus on young characters between their teenage years and their 30s. The age range pushes the narrative that those years are the ones full of the most drama, romance, and adventure. Also, lets be honest, media fears that older characters would not be attractive enough to win over certain audiences.
All these facts are a little depressing though. In reality, adventure, romance, and drama has no age range. Older characters can be attractive and beautiful in their own ways as well.
Some video games get that, and they have sported older video game protagonists. It is not perfect though, as many of the older protagonists are either inhuman or have unique situations that let them get their youthful looks (there an opposite case in Metal Gear Solid 4, with Solid Snake looking 70 but actually being in his 40s). It really goes to show that looks can be deceiving!
10 Master Chief From Halo (Late 40s)
One of the most famous protagonists in video game history is a man in his late 40s. Even big fans don't really think about his age, especially since they never see under his helmet. However, they would be aware that he has been through a ton. In terms of life experience, he may feel even older than he actually is. He is an incredible war veteran with over 30 years of active duty.
Fans know his age partly because they know his birthday. It is on October 27th, 2511.
9 Joel From The Last Of Us (Late 40s)
Though he is older in The Last of Us 2, Joel isn't a protagonist in that title. In the original game though, he was the main character and was still in the older range. He was born in the mid 80s and the deadly virus outbreak happens in 2013. Then the game time-skips to the 2030s, putting Joel around his late 40s.
For those that are curious, Joel is in his early 50s in the second game.
8 Ezio From Assassins Creed Revelations (52 - 54 Years Old)
Throughout the Assassins Creed series, players get to see Ezio grow up. It is by Revelations that he is at his oldest in-game, which is at 52-years-old in the beginning and 54 towards the end. Players do learn later that he passes away at 65-years-old.
The man was born on June 14th in the year 1459 and died in November 30th, 1524. Players got to see most of his life, even being there to make him wiggle his feet and scream when he is first born. In his 50s, he is just as deadly (if not more so) than he was in earlier games.
7 Geralt From The Witcher 3 (In His 90s)
Geralt marks the beginning of how characters look and what ages they actually are do not match. He does look like an older video game protagonist, maybe in his 40s? However, he is actually way older than he looks due to being a Witcher.
Witchers do not age the same rate as regular humans. Fans learned that Geralt is likely in his 90s from a quote Vesemir says. The man tells Geralt, "You’re not so far off 100 yourself!"
6 Link From Breath Of The Wild (117 Years Old)
Link is an example of a character that cheated their way into the future. He is 17-years-old in every sense except for the length of time between birth date and present. He was placed in the Shrine of Resurrection to heal some gnarly wounds which took 100 years. The situation was basically like fantasy-cryo-sleep.
While he has been a protagonist for many titles, Link's age usually stick heavily between child and teenager. While it would be cool to actually see him as an older man in a future title, we will have to settle for his Breath of the Wild version.
5 Kratos From God Of War 4 (At Least 150 Years Old)
Kratos is a demigod, so he isn't exactly human. By God of War 4, the man has been through both metaphorical and literal Hell. His age is somewhat of an unknown, but fans think he is at least 150-years-old. At most, he could be much older by about 900 years!
This age gap is huge because the evidence for Kratos' age is pretty tangled and often debated among fans that all make good points. For example: Baldur calls Kratos an old man while he himself is at least 150-years-old. Historically-minded fans have even pointed out that the black-figure pottery of Kratos would date back to 7th century B.C. which is around the time of the Peloponnesian War and then do a ton of math based on the likelihood that God of War 4 takes place around 6th century A.D. Complicated indeed! Just know the bottom line is that Kratos is old.
4 The Sole Survivor From Fallout 4 (At Least 210 Years Old)
While from an incredibly different game, the Sole Survivor from Fallout 4 is a lot like Link from Breath of the Wild. However, they were in a state of cryo-sleep for way longer. Also, the world is in a even worse and more depressing state than Hyrule.
The game totally owns the fact that this protagonist is over 200-years-old, as it can make for amusing dialogue at certain points in the story. Usually, the only characters that can reach such an age is ghouls.
3 Bigby Wolf From The Wolf Among Us (At Least 200 Years Old)
Bigby is a lesser known video game protagonist, as he is more known from the original comic book series: Fables. While his age is not outright stated in the game, fans of the comics know is age. He is quite old, as most fables are. Their age often coincides with how far back their folktale goes. Bigby is not just the Big Bad Wolf, but a big wolf of many stories.
That is not even the basis behind his age though, as the concrete information is that Fables were exiled from their homelands 200 years ago. That includes Bigby.
2 Bayonetta From Bayonetta (Over 500 Years Old)
Of course a witch would be one of the oldest video game protagonists out there, and that witch is Bayonetta. She was born in December 19th, 1411. It is common knowledge that she is over 50-years-old because she didn't really live those years. Rather, she was sealed away from 500 years in a coffin at the bottom of a lake.
1 Amaterasu From Okami (Goddess - Tier Old)
Amaterasu stands as the oldest video game protagonist simply due to her status as Goddess of the Sun. Fans do not know her exact age, but still know that she is likely older than dirt. While she is a wolf in the game, it becomes pretty clear throughout the story that a wolf is not even her true form. Based on what a ghost says in the game (and actual Shinto mythology) she is probably a young-looking woman.
While characters like Amaterasu are known to appear in video games, it is rare that they are the protagonist.