Your ideal female character?

[FFIX Choco Boy]

I feel like one of the few people who... don't really care if a character is male or female. Sure, I like a little eyecandy from time to time, and I do get a little bit uncomfortable when it comes to same-gender couples in video games, but that's just something I have to get used to. Other than that, I judge characters on their motivations, convictions, personality, etc etc. That's why Princess Garnet Til Alexandros XVII is one of my, if not THE, favorite characters ever, female or no. The others being Sylvannas Windrunner, Arthas Menethil, Minato Arisato, and Fuuka Yamagishi.

Now, having said that, if the topic were to be what I find ATTRACTIVE in a female character, I'd be extremely opinionated. It would be more women like FFXIII's Lightning, RWBY's Yang, or... Well, Sylvannas Windrunner.

[Ayen]

Every other character brings the baggage of representing groups with it, and by proxy, the writer's view on that group as a whole.

That makes it hard to get creative. "If I go this direction with the character, I may offend this group, but if I go that directions I might offend that group instead."

Or they over-analyze your work so much they accuse you of being a misogynist homophobe.

Not. Even. Kidding.

But that's just an extremist example I wanted to share for its sheer WTFness.

I can think of some incidents in my own writing where if I had real TV time I would probably offend the very groups you're talking about depending how nitpicky they are. "Why is it the woman is the one hesitant to jump over the building?" She's afraid of heights... "Why is it the woman is raped by zombies!? What the smurf is wrong with you? Do you hate women or something?" The zombies are being controlled by a little girl "You sick bastard!" Okay, that didn't really help my case any.

That wouldn't stop me, though.

[BlackFire]

I would say a good female character has to be able to carry the weight of the role on her shoulders well. Especially if she is the main character. It has to be believable that she is capable of not just holding her own in a fight (if need be), but also capable of being more than a girl who can kick your ass. She has to be more than one dimensional, she has to be smart and have a vulnerable side. Being pretty is not a bad thing, but there's more to a pretty face than you see.
Lara Croft from the 2013 Tomb Raider game is a good example.

[Pumpkin]

I can't really peg down an answer. I love female characters and I love all kinds of female characters. It depends on the game, their history and story, and a bunch of other things.

For example, I really love Totori from the Atelier Arland series. I really love Fran from Final Fantasy XII. I would not like Fran at all if she was in the same game as Totori. I think overall I prefer the sweeter, nicer types, but not always