The best video game presidents of all time - ranked

In case you don't know, "Vanquish" was basically "Gears of War" except you had rocket boosters on your knees. That meant you could quickly baseball slide your way around its levels while shooting robots.

"Vanquish" was awesome.

President Elizabeth Winters is a major character in the story, and she's actually a pretty awful president. Her actions play a major role in the conflict at the core of the story, and it goes very poorly for her at the end.

I'm mostly including Winters because I want to tell you to play "Vanquish" if you ever come across a cheap copy of it.

"Metal Gear Solid 2" is a bold game in many ways, including a plot twist that permanently changes the protagonist after the first hour of the game. However, an even bigger twist occurs when new hero Raiden finally encounters the kidnapped president he's been sent in to rescue.

You see, upon meeting President James Johnson, the leader of the free world spends about 45 minutes laying out to the player that everything they've done up to this point was a gigantic ruse by a world-dominating secret society. Even Johnson himself was a pawn chosen by these mysterious benefactors to carry out their will.

It's hilarious to me that the President of the United States exists as nothing more than a plot device to explain a mind-bending twist to the player. What's even better is that Johnson isn't even the best president in "Metal Gear Solid 2."

"Bad Dudes vs. DragonNinja" is a pretty generic arcade beat-'em-up from 1988. Its silly opening message ("Are you a bad enough dude to save the president?") spawned an internet meme decades later, but the message you get at the end of the game is way better.

If you are, indeed, a bad enough dude to save the president, you're treated to a victory screen where the newly-rescued "President Ronnie" invites you to get some burgers before having a grand old laugh.

Depending on your opinion of Ronald Reagan, you may want to pretend this fictional version of him has different politics before you're willing to chow down on some burgs with him. Regardless, Ronnie here seems like a pretty cool guy who's down to party.

In "Saints Row IV," your created protagonist from the past three games ascends from gang leader to national celebrity and all the way to President of the United States. The president is imprisoned within a computer simulation during an alien invasion and given ridiculous superpowers in the virtual world.

That game is ridiculous. The concept of your character from the previous games being elected president is hilarious. The fact that the president then develops superpowers and saves the world is just outstanding.

In "Metal Wolf Chaos" for the original Xbox, President Michael Wilson survives a coup attempt by Vice President Richard Hawk. Wilson decides to take back the White House by piloting a mech to defeat Hawk's forces.

People make such a big stink about which candidates are capable of showing strength in the face of adversity, but I've never seen a real president who would hop into a mech to take back their country. Michael Wilson goes the extra mile for his country.

President George Sears is referred to but never seen in original "Metal Gear Solid." He ends up resigning from office due to the events of that game.

Well, in "Metal Gear Solid 2," he resurfaces as the leader of a terrorist group bent on taking down the entities who are really pulling the strings. You also find out that he's Solidus Snake, the brother-by-way-of-cloning of series hero Solid Snake.

Yes, "Metal Gear Solid" is nonsense.

Anyway, the final boss fight of "Metal Gear Solid 2" has the player sword fight the former President of the United States on the roof of Federal Hall in Manhattan. It's incredible.