Masculine Girl Feminine Boy / Video Games

• The Alliance Alive has this as a theme: the female protagonists are adventurous and forthright, the male protagonists are staid and observant. It's especially pronounced with Azura, who persuades the more cautious Galil to help her break into the Museum so she can fulfill her shonen-esque dream of seeing the world.
• The Wright siblings from Alice in the Mirrors of Albion downplays this. Jane is a police officer while her brother Jeff is a chef who would usually cook her lunches. But Jane is a Tomboy with a Girly Streak who is still interested in jewelries, romance and fortune telling. And despite his profession, Jeff isn't exactly too feminine.
• The BlazBlue series have Luna, a bratty girl who is ready to throw punches at the slightest provocation, and Sena, a polite boy who usually tries to be civil and calm Luna down. They are an unusual example as they are two of the three souls that share the same body as Platinum the Trinity.
• Childhood Friends Sarna and Loka play this straight in Chronus Arc as, when visiting the forest they would play at as kids, she talks about how he would always cry easily as a kid while he talks about what a tomboy she was (and still is) while denying that he cries easily.
• Butch bouncer Yuiran and sensitive brother Yuiren from Daraku Tenshi: The Fallen Angels.
• Dragon Age:
  • Dragon Age: Origins: While not a couple, Morrigan and Alistair (the first two full-time companions the Warden recruits) have this dynamic. While class-wise she is a squishy mage while he is a stone wall warrior, Alistair is much more sensitive and emotional while Morrigan comes off as much more cool, aloof, and even aggressive. Morrigan also frequently mocks Alistair for letting his emotions dictate his actions over logic and reason, while Alistair frequently snipes at Morrigan for being so callous and unfeeling.
    • A Grey Warden who romances either Morrigan or Alistair could easily have this dynamic in their relationship as well.
  • Dragon Age II: Certain conditions of an Old Save Bonus can lead to this being true offscreen for Alistair and the female Warden. Specifically, a Human Noble warden who made Alistair King of Ferelden and married him.
• In Dragon Quest IV, Princess Alevna is a tomboyish, impetuous martial artist, and her bodyguard Kiryl is a quiet, passive, physically fragile healer.
• Final Fantasy XIII devotes a chunk of the story to the pairing of Claire "Lightning" Farron, a no-nonsense soldier with a short fuse and a chip on her shoulder, and Hope Estheim, a sensitive teenaged boy mourning the recent death of his mother. This pairing is not romantic, however, but more of an older sibling/younger sibling or Parental Substitute dynamic (at least in this game; the game's two sequels then ramp up the Ship Tease to the point of them being Implied Love Interests).
• Fire Emblem:
  • Genealogy of the Holy War has Brigid, an assertive sniper raised by pirates and sensitive, submissive horseback archer Midir as a predestined pair; to a smaller degree she has these dynamics with her other predestined lover, the archer Jamke, who is similar to Midayle but more reserved. Another one would be Tailtiu, the Tsundere Black Magician Girl, and her shy childhood friend and local Badass Adorable Azelle. And then in the second generation we have gentle, sensitive Long-Haired Pretty Boy Seliph and his Childhood Friend the determined, tomboyish and short-haired Larcei, who form one of the game's most popular ships.
  • In The Blazing Blade, we have Ladette Vaida and gentle, honorable Heath. Kent and Farina are a borderline case; Kent isn't exactly feminine but he's somewhat shy and very reserved compared to the outgoing, tomboyish Farina. (Who says he, personality-wise, reminds her... of her older sister Fiora.)
  • The kind and gentle Monk Artur and the Sugar and Ice Black Magician Girl Lute in Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones. Their ending says that Artur managed the household while Lute was the main breadwinner.
  • Radiant Dawn includes Rafiel, prince of the heron laguz, a race too emotionally and physically fragile to attack enemies. The woman who saved his life, to whom he is now wholly devoted? Nailah, the wolf Laguz Royal (read: absurdly badass Crutch Character). One of them wears an elaborate robe, sings like an angel, and has ankle-length golden tresses. Guess which?
  • Of the many possible pairings in Fire Emblem: Awakening, there's Sully/Libra (foul-mouthed Lad-ette and feminine War Monk) from the first generation and Kjelle/Brady (strength-obsessed female knight and a priest who's very in touch with his feminine side) from the second. Hilariously, Kjelle is Sully's daughter and Libra can be a potential father for Brady as well... Like mother like daughter, huh?
    • Sully also has these dynamics with Stahl (her fighting partner and pretty much a House Husband off battle) and Virion (the local Agent Peacock and Chivalrous Pervert.)
  • Fire Emblem Fates includes Forrest, a kind-hearted Wholesome Crossdresser who is also an Action Fashionista and a mounted White Mage. His pool of potential girlfriends include very straightforward girls like Soleil, a plucky Cute Bruiser with No Sense of Personal Space, and Ophelia, a very loud and theatrical Magical Girl Warrior.
    • Hana is a Tomboy with a Girly Streak with an aggressive and straightforward personality and no brain-to-mouth filter, while her partner Subaki is a playful and girlish-looking dandy who always tries to be in control of himself. Naturally, they can fall in love.
  • In Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, Celica and her older brother Conrad were like this as children. She was a plucky and straightforward little girl while he was shy and a bit cowardly, so she'd often comfort and protect him if he messed up. The siblings were tragically separated after the massacre of the Zofian Royal Family: years later, a much stronger and more mature Conrad returned to Celica's life, determined to return the favor.
  • Fire Emblem: Three Houses has Leonie and Ignatz. While Ignatz isn't exactly girly, he's also sensitive and interested in art, while Leonie is a brash, no-nonsense tomboy. The two also have a paired ending where they end up Walking the Earth.
  • Three Houses also has Edelgard and Dimitri. Edelgard is stoic, uses a traditionally masculine weapon (axes), is driven mostly by logic, has a masculine title (Emperor) in the English version, and is a member of a traditionally-male archetype. Dimitri, while not conventionally girly, is sensitive and empathetic, more emotionally-driven, has an interest in sewing, and views his Super-Strength as more of an annoyance than a blessing as it keeps interfering with delicate work.
  • Fire Emblem Engage has the twins Clanne and Framme. Clanne is a soft-spoken and uncertain mage who enjoys cooking and cleaning, while Framme is an outgoing Genki Girl who fights with her fists and prefers exercising to boring domestic tasks. There's also Merrin, a dashing Bifauxnen, and Rosado, a self-proclaimed adorable Wholesome Crossdresser; naturally, their support line features them arguing over which is better; coolness or cuteness?
• Galaxy Angel II has this dynamic if Kazuya picks Lily as his romantic partner. He's shy and meek by nature and easily flustered, and before joining the military he'd attended a culinary school where he learned to make desserts and confectionary. She on the other hand is the least girly of the Rune Angels, blunt and straightforward, physically stronger and a more experienced combatant, as before joining the Rune Angel Wing she was the Captain of the Seldar Royal Guard. Naturally this is played for comedy all it's worth as both are quite inexperienced in love matters.
• Guilty Gear has Baiken, the Fiery Redhead Action Girl who revels in combat, and Anji Mito, the fan-wielding Dance Battler who has a Bodyguard Crush on her.
• In Haunted Museum and its sequel, Chris Wilds is the more assertive of the two playable agents and appears to be the leader. Akira Nakata is generally depicted as a Lovable Coward who reluctantly follows Chris into danger.
• From The Idolmaster, we have the Wholesome Crossdresser Ryou Akizuki of Dearly Stars teamed up with Bifauxnen Makoto Kikuchi.
• The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky has Estelle and her adopted brother Joshua. Estelle is a plucky Tomboy with boundless amounts of energy. By contrast, Joshua is a soft-spoken, quiet young man who is androgynous enough that he can crossdress without issue (much to his embarrassment).
• Lost Odyssey. Possibly Seth and the husband who encouraged her to settle down and have a child. Whether or not he was an 'Action Guy' himself, we don't find out.
• Super Mario Bros.: Luigi and Princess Daisy fit this trope well whenever they're paired up. Daisy being the energetic and excitable Tomboy Princess while paired with the comparatively shy and reserved Luigi. In Daisy Circuit in Mario Kart Wii, there's a statue of Baby Daisy dancing with Baby Luigi. Or, rather, Baby Daisy swinging Baby Luigi around her head. Also in Mario Superstar Baseball, she has a higher batting stat than Luigi, while in Mario Super Sluggers, they have an equal batting stat.
• Mass Effect:
  • A Female Shepard and either Thane or Kaidan can come across like this, especially if Shepard is a hardass renegade. Shepard has to be the strongest human in existence, can drink anyone under the table, headbutts krogan like it's nothing, and generally is a stoic character. Thane and Kaidan meanwhile are sensitive and fairly soft-spoken, very moral, and the former waxes philosophical every so often. As a bonus, at the beginning of Mass Effect 2, Shepard will be clad in black N7 armor, whilst Kaidan is in the pink and white Phoenix armor.
  • Paragon!Shepard and Jack tend to look like this; while Shepard may be no slouch in the badass department, he's still a calm, polite, and rule-abiding guy stacked up against the general insanity that is Jack.
  • Kaidan and Ashley have something of this dynamic as well. The best illustration comes from the Citadel DLC, even though only one of them is alive at that point. Regardless of gender or romance, Ashley and Shepard have a drinking contest that turns into a bar fight while Kaidan and Shepard have a quiet evening in while Kaidan cooks, though they also drink heavily.
• Meryl and Johnny in Metal Gear Solid 4. When he proposed to her, she declines. Because she wanted to do that and proposes to him half a minute later.
  • Meryl and her partner Dave in Policenauts also qualify.
• Lucas and Kumatora in Mother 3. They're not exactly a couple, but they are in the same party for half the game. Lucas has been described many times as a crybaby, and even when he seems to man up a bit later on, he still comes across as sensitive (especially with Love being his favorite thing). Kumatora is the tomboy of the group, and even has Boyish Short Hair and hates wearing dresses. And then there's her tough attitude and willingness to fight.
• OMORI has Aubrey, a tomboyish Alpha Bitch who has (fairly justified) anger issues and pummels her foes with a nailed bat, and Sunny, a shy, withdrawn NEET who dabbles in reading, poetry and playing the violin.
• Persona 4 has Kanji Tatsumi (master tailor) and Naoto Shirogane (Bokukko and Sweet Polly Oliver) The fact that the former has a crush on the latter both before and after the reveal makes his Ambiguously Gay nature much worse, or better, or whatever.
  • Also played straight with the protagonist Yu and Chie. In the game and anime Yu is generally a polite quiet dude who hides his inner fears, while Chie's a brash Tomboy who's loud and quick to aggression.
  • Deconstructed in Yosuke and Chie's Social Links as it's shown that both of them are massively insecure with themselves, especially regarding them trying to be more feminine/manly, and said feelings of inadequacy caused them to subconsciously resent Yu and Yukiko respectively before growing out of it.
• Pillars of Eternity:
  • Calisca and Heodan, the two very first companions the Watcher encounters, have this dynamic. Calisca is a very stoic, gruff, coarse, aloof, hard-boiled, outdoorsy loner type who often scouts on her own, sleeps on the cold hard ground with neither a sleeping bag nor pillow, and is a Stone Wall warrior. Heodan, by contrast, is a very gentle, quiet, polite, soft-spoken merchant from a fairly well-off family who hasn't gotten used to the hardships on the road, asks to rest when injured instead of powering through it like Calisca, and is a Glass Cannon rogue. Not that it matters, as they both die by the end of the prologue anyway.
  • Aloth and his Literal Split Personality Iselmyr, full-stop. The former is an Elfeminate Squishy Wizard who is frequently mocked by other companions for being so frilly, delicate, easily injured, and for "wearing a skirt" (actually wizard robe). Meanwhile, Iselmyr is Hot-Blooded, foul-mouthed, easily provoked, and loves drinking and brawling in rough-and-tumble taverns.
• In Pokémon, the catlike Pokemon Meowstic has a different appearance and moveset depending on if it's male or female. The male has big, sparkly blue eyes and is mostly support-oriented in its moveset. The female, on the other hand, has more angular amber eyes and learns more attack-based moves.
• Saints Row IV has Matt Miller and Asha Odekar. He is a nerdy, shy, somewhat cowardly teen hacker (though somewhat of a Troll in his first appearance in Saints Row: The Third) and Nyte Blayde fanboy, with somewhat Adorkable qualities who wears make-up and Guyliner. She is a sarcastic Anglo-Indian MI6 agent who wears her hair in Braids of Action, joined the military at a young age, and snarks at her teammates in the Saints constantly. Despite this, Matt works as Asha's handler after retiring from the Deckers gang, and by the time of Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell, they're confirmed to be in a relationship.
• Scarlet Nexus: The co-protagonists Yuito and Kasane. Yuito likes cooking, sewing, and a cutesy product mascot. While Kasane is a Defrosting Ice Queen, with Hidden Depths of being a Tomboy with a Girly Streak.
• Shining Resonance inverts the Lady and Knight dynamic by having its lead female character, Sonia, as the bold and courageous knight. Whereas Yuma is them meek effeminate one, in constant need of protection from the Lombardian Empire, as well as constant reassurance that he's stronger than he gives himself credit for.
• SLAMMED!: If the PC is female and Ecstasy male, this trope comes into play, with her being the athletic wrestler and him being the charming singer.
• The titular character of the Sly Cooper series is a swave, calm, calculating, Gentleman Thief, whereas his love interest and lawful counterpart, Interpol policewoman Carmelita Fox, is a Hot-Blooded, aggressive, Knight Templar.
• In Spyro: Year of the Dragon, there is a level that references Tomb Raider. There is a mouse named Gus and his girlfriend Tara. Tara boldly goes and raids the tomb, while Gus stays outside because of all the "scorpions and stuff".
• Star Wars: The Old Republic: This comes up in a few romances. To whit:
  • The Female Bounty Hunter and Torian Cadera. While they're both powerful mercenaries who can kick all kinds of ass, her demeanor is typically very gruff, coarse, and (potentially) temperamental, while Torian is extremely quiet, polite, patient, and soft-spoken. In combat, she's also implied to be a Hot-Blooded combatant, while Torian is (in theory) The Strategist and Cold Sniper. She's also implied to mostly just buy and stock up on ammo in her spare time, while Torian knows his way around the galley. Not to mention Torian is a Distressed Dude for the female BH to save at one point. Best exemplified when they're invited to a fancy party:
    Fem!Hunter: (abruptly) Torian! You're my arm candy.
    Torian: [Greatly Approves] Ma'am.
  • The Female Sith Warrior and Malavi Quinn, full stop. As the class title suggests, the Sith Warrior emphasizes the combat side of being Sith, with most quests involving the SW wreaking carnage everywhere she goes; frequently being mocked by less-than-friendly NPC's as a "savage," "brute," and "beast" even if female. While a Military Brat himself, Quinn is a very polite, soft-spoken, impeccably dressed Combat Medic who delegates more than he typically fights, and is In Love with Your Carnage. The female Warrior also flirts very aggressively with Quinn, with Quinn taking on a more passive and receptive role to said flirting.
  • A male Imperial Agent with Kaliyo Jannis, as she's very much a Blood Knight to the Agent's (typically) more restrained covert ops approach.
  • On the Republic side, The Female Smuggler and Corso Riggs. The Smuggler is none too ladylike, with a love of drinking, gambling, brawling, and (potentially) one-night stands. Corso is a Dogged Nice Guy farmboy with old-fashioned values, an excitable and sweet nature and really can't hold his liquor.
• String Tyrant: The main character's two companions fit this trope. Jessie is a brash athletic tomboy, Lauren is a nervous little kid.
• Tales of Xillia. Jude is the Feminine Boy to Leia's Masculine Girl. They're a mild example of the trope, but the game brings it up once when Jude comments on Leia's untidy handwriting. She retorts by insulting his neat handwriting, likening it to that of a little girl. A flustered Jude then defends himself ("There's nothing wrong with a guy having neat handwriting!") and accuses Leia of being sexist.
• This happens in Time and Eternity for the tomboy side of the Tomboy and Girly Girl split personality of the heroine and the hero. It's most evident in said tomboy side's normal ending when it re-enacts the page image.
• Battle for Azeroth - the 7th expansion of World of Warcraft - gives us Sal Atwater, a svelte, kindly man who nurtures those around him, and his wife, Dorian Atwater, a burly, irritable boatswain who only comes out of retirement at the behest of her husband, who urges her to "go on an adventure" while he takes care of the house while she's gone.
• Toby Fox:
  • In Undertale, Undyne is Captain of the Royal Guard and is one of the toughest bosses you fight in the game. She's a Hot-Blooded fish woman who loves fighting so much that when on a Pacifist Run, you cannot spare her, no matter how long the fight goes, and the only way to win against her is by running away. Papyrus, on the other hand, is a sweet and cheerful, if not rather vain, skeleton who is relentlessly optimistic and sees the good in everyone. He makes sure not to kill you, even if you're doing a Genocide Run, and have murdered literally everyone else before coming to him because he sincerely believes you can change for the better. Undyne even comments that she's reluctant to let him join the Royal Guard, even though he is actually super tough, because, since he's so innocent and nice, he would "get ripped into little smiling shreds." Regardless of their differences, they're very close friends.
  • In Deltarune Susie is a punch-first think-later, voracious tank, who eats pretty much anything and scares everyone around her. Ralsei is a mild-mannered, pacifistic healer who also specializes in singing and baking cakes, and who serves as The Heart of the group. This is mirrored in their appearances as well; in the Dark World Susie wears clothing that wouldn't be out of place at a punk concert, and checking the closet in her room in Chapter 2 reveals that the clothes inside are so spiked they're ripping eachother to shreds. In contrast, Ralsei wears a soft green robe with a pink scarf and big, round glasses, and after taking his hat off at the end of Chapter 1, you can see he's got pink horns, pink accents in his fur, and pink Blush Stickers when he's flustered.
• Homer and Edy from Valkyria Chronicles qualify, with the former being a meek, pretty little masochist and the latter a Hot-Blooded Idiot Hero who can't sing. Likewise Karl and Lynn. Although they have similar temperaments, Karl is an engineer supporting the troops while Lynn is in the front lines as a shock trooper.
• Xenoblade Chronicles 3 has Eunie and Taion. Eunie is a brash and aggressive Ladette with Tsurime Eyes and little in the way of proper manners, while Taion is a somewhat feminine-looking bookworm with Tareme Eyes whose reserved demeanor is a cover for his emotional sensitivity and lack of confidence. Relatedly, Eunie tends to take the reins as the more dominant member of their Ouroboros fusion. Likewise, they react very differently to the subject of children and babies, with Taion experiencing Cuteness Overload, while Eunie seems to perceive them as a quirky commodity.

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