Guinness World Records names top videogame villains of all time

The Guinness World Records has unveiled a list of the 50 top videogame villains - and the winner is a veteran baddie who has kidnapped the same princess eight times over the past 28 years.

Mario's nemesis Bowser landed the top spot with more than 20% of the poll of 5,000 readers of Guinness's Gamer's Edition - narrowly beating sci fi puzzle game Portal's sinister GLaDOS robot.

Bowser first appeared in Super Mario Bros. in 1985, and has been kidnapping Mario's love interest, Princess, ever since.

The Joker from Batman: Arkham Asylum came in third - with Inky, a ghost from Pac-Man, The Legend of Zelda's 'King of Evil', Ganon, and sword-wielding Sephiroth from Final Fantasy VII also in the top ten.

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Kevin Lynch, writer for Guinness World Records 2013 Gamer’s Edition said: “It was really interesting for us to put the vote out to our readers and see who their favourite villain was – Bowser’s top place is no big shocker, but there certainly are surprises in there. 

"I think what this list really reflects is that video game villains tend to be a lot cooler than the heroes they're pitted against.”

A total of 5,699 total votes were cast on the Guinness World Records website, and the list will feature in the Guinness World Records 2013 Gamer’s Edition.

The top 20 villains are below...

20. N - Pokemon
19. Zeus - God of War
18. Alduin - Skyrim
17. M Bison - Street Fighter
16. The Covenant - Halo
15. Andrew Ryan - BioShock
14. Donkey Kong - Donkey Kong
13. Psycho Mantis - Metal Gear Solid
12. Albert Wesker - Resident Evil
11. Vladimir Makarov - Call of Duty
10. Creeper - Minecraft
9. Liquid Ocelot - Metal Gear Solid
8. Inky - PAC-Man
7. The Borgias - Assassin’s Creed II
6. Sephiroth - Final Fantasy VII
5. Gary Oak - Pokemon Red/Blue
4. Ganon - The Legend of Zelda
3. The Joker - Batman: Arkham Asylum
2. GLaDOS - Portal
1. Bowser - Super Mario Bros.