History AllGirlsWantBadBoys / VideoGames

* ''VideoGame/{{Blazblue}}'': [[LadyOfWar Tsubaki Yayoi]] has a rather obvious attraction to [[AnIcePerson Jin Kisaragi.]] Jin himself is an ArrogantKungFuGuy who barely holds his contempt for those around him. To be fair, they are ChildhoodFriends and Tsubaki is pretty much the only character Jin treats with any sort of kindness.

** Subverted in the female route of ''VideoGame/Persona3 [[UpdatedRerelease Portable]]'' regarding the men the female protagonist can romance. [[TheBigGuy Akihiko Sanada's]] [[AloofBigBrother aloof]] nature has caused him to be pegged as a Bad Boy with plenty of fangirls, while he is in fact a generally all-around nice guy (as well as being [[{{Adorkable}} hopelessly awkward when it comes to girls]]). Ken is quite mature for an [[TokenMiniMoe eleven-year old]] and ''very'' troubled to boot, but much of his social link is about reassuring him that it isn't shameful to occasionally act his age. Ryoji is a LadykillerInLove, [[spoiler:and while he's supposed to bring about [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt The Fall]], he ''really'' [[AntiAntiChrist doesn't want to]]]]. And [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Shinjiro Aragaki]] is not only nice to you from the very start of his Social Link, a good part of said Social Link is showing that he's not really a jerk at all. [[spoiler:His love scene is not only completely optional (available ''after'' maxing his Social Link out), but a rare male case of ButIWouldReallyEnjoyIt; the female protagonist has to be ''very'' persistent with her feelings.]]

** [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] when the [[PlayerCharacter Ryder twins]] talk about [[HowDadMetMom how their parents met]]. If Scott is the NPC twin, the version he was told is that Alec put on the bad boy act to woo Ellen and [[PlayedStraight it worked like a charm]]. If Sara is the NPC twin, the version she heard is that Alec's act [[EpicFail failed miserably]], but it worked out anyway because Ellen thought it was [[{{Adorkable}} utterly adorable]].

%% INSERT NAME HERE in ''VideoGame/StardewValley'': He has some of the bad boy-isms (edgy design, smokes, rides a motorcycle, is in a band, and is a jerk to you in the beginning). However, once you start his Friendship route, it’s revealed that he’s an Adorkable nerd who loves the Dungeons and Dragons Expy in the game; is a programmer; has a strong relationship with his mother, Robyn; and has a textbook case of social anxiety. And if you choose to date or marry him later on, he’s a giant mush.

* ''[[Franchise/ShinMegamiTenseiPersona Persona]]'':

* Slightly inverted in ''VideoGame/StardewValley''. He has some of the bad boy-isms (edgy design, smokes, rides a motorcycle, is in a band, and is a jerk to you in the beginning). However, once you start his Friendship route, it’s revealed that he’s an Adorkable nerd who loves the Dungeons and Dragons Expy in the game; is a programmer; has a strong relationship with his mother, Robyn; and has a textbook case of social anxiety. And if you choose to date or marry him later on, he’s a giant mush.

* Both [[PlayingWithATrope played straight]] and {{inverted|Trope}} with ''VideoGame/TheSims2''. Angela Pleasant, the sweetheart of the Pleasant family, is going steady with Dustin Brooke, who is a rebel, at the start of the game. Lilith Pleasant, who's a bit of a devil, is going steady with a fairly good teen, Dirk Dreamer. Also, a fair number of girls are in love or have a crush on the town Casanova, Don Lothario, when Dina Caliente is dating Mortimer Goth as well, Kayleen Landgrak (One of the towns' maids, mind), is in love with both the aforementioned Don and Daniel Pleasant (whom is married already), and Cassandra is engaged to Don himself. Nina is the only one in the loop who isn't dating or has a crush on anyone else.

* Chillingly deconstructed in ''VideoGame/PlanescapeTorment''. A young, naive girl falls desperately in love with a dark, mysterious stranger covered in scars...[[spoiler:whose every word is calculated to manipulate her into being willing to do anything for him, because he needs a tool to sacrifice herself for him. He feels nothing for her but irritation for using his time. He is, after all, Practical.]] It's not until after she dies that she realizes the kind of guy he really was, ''[[LoveMartyr yet still]] [[MoreThanMindControl loves him anyway]]''...
* ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins''
** [[CasanovaWannabe Oghren]] will bring this up if you talk about his class with him, joking that [[BloodKnight Berserkers]] can get all the women they want because women are attracted to men who are mysteriously angry and sulk in the shadows. (Not that it works in his case...)
** The trope is {{discussed|Trope}} in a conversation between [[NiceGuy Alistair]] and Leliana, where Alistair ponders why [[AnythingThatMoves Zevran]] is so successful with the ladies.
--->'''Alistair''': Do women go for that sort of thing?\\

** In the expansion, ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOriginsAwakening'', Oghren comments that Nathaniel Howe's tall, dark, and broody appearance must make him very popular with women.
* ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII''
** Hawke of either gender can comment on Anders' "sexy, tortured look", upon learning about his experiences with the spirit of Justice; there's also a dialogue option for telling him "I love it when you go all hot-headed revolutionary" (marked "You're cute when you rebel"). There's also a hilarious conversation in the ''Legacy'' DLC where Anders goes into depth about his condition and Hawke's response is literally "Ooh, baby. Tell me more."
** Varric tells Fenris that if he looked any more broody, women would swoon at his feet.
** The Anders romance arc could be seen as [[spoiler: a deconstruction. The bad boy ends up a tragic FallenHero gradually being corrupted from within; he essentially goes insane, manipulates his lover into helping him blow up the Chantry and start a war, and Hawke is eventually forced to either kill his/her own beloved, send him away, or run off with him to spend the rest of his/her life a wanted fugitive, also losing and greatly angering a close friend in the latter two cases (who swears vengeance not only on Hawke and Anders, but on ''everyone in Kirkwall'')]].
** The minor character Emile de Launcet invokes this, as he tells women he's a blood mage in an attempt to seem "dangerous and suave".

** Played straight however with the vampire in space [[OutWithABang Morinth]]. Her [[OffingTheOffspring mother]] [[ThePaladin Samara]] asks you to help draw her out to be killed, but advises Shepard that acting nice and good will turn her off. The only way TheParagon can attract her is by studying some clues on Morinth's musical, artistic and vid preferences. On the other hand, a renegade needn't know these preferences and can browbeat Morinth into taking him home. Then, someone who kills Samara to recruit Morinth plays this trope straight. However, consummating the relationship [[DeathBySex ends badly]]. [[spoiler: Not consummating also ends badly in the third game, as she shows up as a [[BossInMooksClothing banshee]] and tries to [[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice kill you]]]].

** A major part of [[TheLadette Ulala Serizawa's]] jealousy of [[GirlNextDoor Maya Amano]] in ''VideoGame/Persona2: Eternal Punishment'' is Maya's editing job and popularity with men; Ulala has no such luck, and the men she had dated in her lifetime were not only this trope, but have swindled her for money several times (you actually meet one of said swindlers during the game). At the end of the game, [[spoiler:it's implied that she fell for ''another'' "bad boy" - Kaoru Saga, better known as Baofu, a wiretapper, former public persecutor, and another member of the party. However, it's also subverted at that point; both Ulala and Baofu have gone through significant CharacterDevelopment, and at the end of the game, Baofu shuts down his wiretapping trade and opens a missing persons operation, even taking on his old name again.]]

* ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' opens with Benny shooting the PlayerCharacter in the head. Later on, if the player character is female and has the [[ReallyGetsAround Black]] [[FemmeFatale Widow]] perk, they can give this trope as an excuse while seducing him. He is (understandably) {{Squick}}ed out by the offer, but eventually relents.

** GenderInverted trope when it comes to a DS Female Sith Warrior and Quinn. Quinn is a stoic Imperial loyalist who more or less expects you to act like a crazy Sith and is a little rattled if you don't. He's attracted to your power, but very resigned to the fact he (as a {{Muggle}}) is not likely to survive once the Sith bores of him.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Roommates}}'', Anne going for Max fits the trope to a t. She describes him as being the kind of guy her parents warned her about, despite the fact that there were no guys like him within miles of her hometown. Anne's GayOption Isabella ''also'' counts. Flipping the player's gender, Max going for Sally could be seen as counting in a way, as while Sally isn't as sheltered as Anne, she's not nearly as wild as Max, either.

** The game also has an All Gay Guys Want Bad Boys variant. Scott Ryder can potentially show the same interest in Reyes that his sister does, and Gil Brodie mentions if romanced that he previously had a preference for the dangerous type, and that it tended to end badly.
* Tawna, who was Crash's girlfriend and also rescued by him in ''VideoGame/CrashBandicoot'', was met with scorn by MoralGuardians due to her MsFanservice design. She was replaced by Crash's sister Coco in the sequel, who was more kid friendly. To explain Tawna's disappearance, the developers stated that she dumped Crash for Pinstripe Potoroo (a boss from the first game), who was a bad boy with a tommy gun.

* {{Subverted|Trope}} in ''VideoGame/UnderNightInBirth''. [[{{Ojou}} Orie]] developed a crush on [[OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent Hyde]] not long after she first met him. Even though he dresses like a school delinquent, [[SirSwearsALot swears like a sailor]] and his face is seemingly set in a constant scowl, Hyde kindly takes the time out to help her get used to the city and being in a co-ed school, and he is also shown to be a incredibly selfless and brave individual in other events.

* Deconstructed in ''VideoGame/LastWindow''. [[spoiler:Margaret]] fell in love with [[spoiler:her husband George]] knowing fully that he was an evil man. Eventually, [[spoiler:he became a criminal and the only thing keeping them together was their shared guilt of his crimes. When he murdered a friend of theirs, she decided she'd had enough and planned to kill him, only to be beaten to the punch. Her knowledge of his crimes and the fact she allowed them to happen haunts her to this day]]. At one point, she describes herself as alternately loving and loathing him.

* In ''VisualNovel/{{Demonheart}}'', the two men Bright can go for are both evil. Raze is a demonspawn and fan of MurderIsTheBestSolution, and Brash is a foulmouthed corrupt knight and rumored rapist.

** Subverted with the protagonist of ''VideoGame/Persona5''; he's a handsome devil of a PhantomThief with a reputation as an irredeemable delinquent, thanks to a (falsified) assault charge on his criminal record, but the nine women who can fall in love with him do so because he's an endlessly supportive and genuinely compassionate person who actively helps them overcome their problems.

* The former queen of the Night Elves Azshara from ''Franchise/{{Warcraft}}'' entranced everyone around her with her beauty and power. The one man she considered worthy of her? The Burning Titan Sargeras, who is essentially ''the Devil'' in the Warcraft mythos. Many of Azeroth's magic-related problems can be directly attributed to Azshara's twisted desire to bring Sargeras into the world and rule alongside him.

* Slightly inverted in ‘ ‘VideoGame/{Stardew Valley} ‘ ‘. He has some of the bad boy-isms (edgy design, smokes, rides a motorcycle, is in a band, and is a jerk to you in the beginning). However, once you start his Friendship route, it’s revealed that he’s an Adorkable nerd who loves the Dungeons and Dragons Expy in the game; is a programmer; has a strong relationship with his mother, Robyn; and has a textbook case of social anxiety. And if you choose to date or marry him later on, he’s a giant mush.

** Subverted in the female route of ''VideoGame/Persona3 [[UpdatedRerelease Portable]]'' regarding the men the female protagonist can romance. [[TheBigGuy Akihiko Sanada's]] [[AloofBigBrother aloof]] nature has caused him to be pegged as a Bad Boy with plenty of fangirls, while he is in fact a generally all-around nice guy (as well as being [[{{Adorkable}} hopelessly awkward when it comes to girls]]). Ken is quite mature for an [[TokenMiniMoe eleven-year old]] and ''very'' troubled to boot, but much of his social link is about reassuring him that it isn't shameful to occasionally act his age. Ryoji is a LadykillerInLove, [[spoiler:and while he's supposed to bring about [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt The Fall]], he ''really'' [[AntiAntiChrist doesn't want to]]]]. And [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Shinjiro Aragaki]] is not only nice to you from the very start of his Social Link, a good part of said Social Link is showing that he's [[HiddenDepths not really]] [[JerkassFacade a jerk]] [[StoicWoobie at all]]. [[spoiler:His love scene is not only completely optional (available ''after'' maxing his Social Link out), but a rare male case of ButIWouldReallyEnjoyIt; the female protagonist has to be ''very'' persistent with her feelings.]]

* This trope accounts for at least some of [[JerkassFacade Squall's]] appeal to [[RebelliousPrincess Rinoa]] in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII'', although a lot of it also has to do with the fact that Squall is profoundly ''broken'' and Rinoa is strongly motivated to help people. Rinoa also dated [[TheRival Seifer]] in the game's backstory, but considering Seifer's aspirations to heroism and the fact that Rinoa herself was a member of LaResistance, he may not necessarily have come across as a bad boy at the time.

** [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] when the [[PlayerCharacter Ryder twins]] discuss how their parents met. If Scott is the NPC twin, the version he was told is that Alec put on the bad boy act to woo Ellen and [[PlayedStraight it worked like a charm]]. If Sara is the NPC twin, the version she heard is that Alec's act [[EpicFail failed miserably]], but it worked out anyway because Ellen thought it was [[{{Adorkable}} utterly adorable]].

** [[DiscussedTroped Discussed]] when the [[PlayerCharacter Ryder twins]] discuss how their parents met. If Scott is the NPC twin, the version he was told is that Alec put on the bad boy act to woo Ellen and [[PlayedStraight it worked like a charm]]. If Sara is the NPC twin, the version she heard is that Alec's act [[EpicFail failed miserably]], but it worked out anyway because Ellen thought it was [[{{Adorkable}} utterly adorable]].

* Discussed in ''VideoGame/MassEffectAndromeda'', when the [[PlayerCharacter Ryder twins]] discuss how their parents met. If Scott is the NPC twin, the version he was told is that Alec put on the bad boy act to woo Ellen and [[PlayedStraight it worked like a charm]]. If Sara is the NPC twin, the version she heard is that Alec's act [[EpicFail failed miserably]], but it worked out anyway because Ellen thought it was [[{{Adorkable}} utterly adorable]].
** Played with after meeting [[LatinLover Reyes Vidal]] who oozes bad boy vibes. If the player is controlling Sara Ryder, then this trope can be played straight depending on her conversation choices.

* Parodied in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'', when the [[EvilutionaryBiologist evil]] [[MadScientist scientist]] Hojo is surrounded by women at the beach. Played straight when you are told the reasons Sephiroth and Vincent exist. This is especially notable in that Hojo is never shown to be handsome at ALL. In fact, he's as close as you can get to the stereotypical mad scientist look, complete with evil laughs he doesn't even bother to hide.

** Subverted with the protagonist of ''VideoGame/Persona5''; he's a handsome devil with a reputation as an irredeemable delinquent, thanks to a (falsified) assault charge on his criminal record, but the nine women who can fall in love with him do so because he's an endlessly supportive and genuinely compassionate person who actively helps them overcome their problems.

** A major part of [[TheLadette Ulala Serizawa's]] jealousy of [[GirlNextDoor Maya Amano]] in ''VideoGame/Persona2: ''Eternal Punishment'' is Maya's editing job and popularity with men; Ulala has no such luck, and the men she had dated in her lifetime were not only this trope, but have swindled her for money several times (you actually meet one of said swindlers during the game). At the end of the game, [[spoiler:it's implied that she fell for ''another'' "bad boy" - Kaoru Saga, better known as Baofu, a wiretapper, former public persecutor, and another member of the party. However, it's also subverted at that point; both Ulala and Baofu have gone through significant CharacterDevelopment, and at the end of the game, Baofu shuts down his wiretapping trade and opens a missing persons operation, even taking on his old name again.]]

* Avoided entirely in the female route of ''VideoGame/{{Persona 3}} [[UpdatedRerelease Portable]]''. Of the men the female protagonist can romance, [[TheBigGuy Akihiko Sanada's]] [[AloofBigBrother aloof]] nature has caused him to be pegged as a Bad Boy with plenty of fangirls, while he is, in fact, a generally all-around nice guy (as well as being [[{{Adorkable}} hopelessly awkward when it comes to girls]]), Ken is [[TokenMiniMoe eleven]], Ryoji is a LadykillerInLove [[spoiler:and, while he's supposed to bring about [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt The Fall]], he ''really'' [[AntiAntiChrist doesn't want to]]]]. And [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Shinjiro Aragaki]]? Is not only nice to her from the very start of his Social Link, a good part of said Social Link is showing that he's [[HiddenDepths not really]] [[JerkassFacade a jerk]] [[StoicWoobie at all]]. [[spoiler:His love scene is not only completely optional (available ''after'' maxing his Social Link out), but a rare male case of ButIWouldReallyEnjoyIt. The female protagonist has to be ''very'' persistent with her feelings.]]
* A major part of [[TheLadette Ulala Serizawa's]] jealousy of [[GirlNextDoor Maya Amano]] in ''{{VideoGame/Persona 2}}'' ''Eternal Punishment'' is Maya's editing job and popularity with men; Ulala has no such luck, and the men she had dated in her lifetime were not only this trope, but have swindled her for money several times (you actually meet one of said swindlers during the game). At the end of the game, [[spoiler:it's implied that she fell for ''another'' "bad boy" - Kaoru Saga, better known as Baofu, a wiretapper, former public persecutor, and another member of the party. It's also subverted at that point; both Ulala and Baofu have gone through significant CharacterDevelopment, and at the end of the game, Baofu shuts down his wiretapping trade and opens a missing persons operation, even taking on his old name again.]]