Whenever you're playing a game and you see a character inside from a different game, it really gets your juices flowing. After noticing how many celebrity cameos have been seen in games over the last 20+ years, we noticed that there are even more cameos from other video game characters. Cue the second part of our issue.

Welcome back to the second part of Crazy Video Game Cameos. Earlier, we covered movies and celebrities which appeared in a multitude of video games. In this issue, we will be taking a look at all the video game characters that have appeared in other video games!

Duke Nukem - Blood & Bulletstorm: Full Clip

The Duke, and his developers 3D Realms, have pulled no punches when they decide to make fun of other video games, so it's only fitting that the Duke cops some insults of his own. Play long enough into 90's shooter, Blood, and you'll find a secret entrance. Continue down this path and there's poor, old Duke. Hanging upside down and horribly mutilated but it's him, no doubt. Hit him enough times and your character will steal Duke's line, "Shake it baby!"

For another (current), weird cameo, the Duke is appearing as a playable character in cult classic, Bulletstorm: Full Clip. Check out the trailer below!

Mega Man- Dead Rising Series

Capcom love to throw characters from other universes in their games. Evident throughout all the Dead Rising games, every protagonist can eventually find Mega Man's outfit and become the titular hero himself. Sure, it may just be a costume that you put on but we still get to act like Mega Man, arm rockets and all. Poor guy... it seems he always finds himself in apocalyptic situations. I'm pretty sure you can find a Blanka outfit too (from the Street Fighter series).

Creepers - Borderlands 2

Borderlands 2 is a great game full of inside jokes and some very crude humor. With the success and popularity of Minecraft (even so many years later), the developers must have thought, "Ah, f**k it. Let's throw a creeper in as a bad guy." Either that or they were running out of enemy creation ideas. While making your way through some of the mines in this game, you will eventually come across a few block built, familiar characters. A nice little touch. A least they didn't throw griefers in there...

Jill Valentine & Nemesis- Under the Skin

Body snatching sim, Under the Skin, is a novel little piece to play. Similar to Destroy All Humans, this game has you playing as a blue little alien sent to cause as much chaos on earth as possible. At a certain level, you'll notice that it is called Raccoon City. Well, you get to play as Jill and the Nemesis in this level, set with locales from the first two Resident Evil games. Suffice to say, this was enough to get me to play the game.

Claire, Leon & Zombie Cop- Trick N' Snowboarder

Yes, another game that sees cameos from one of the biggest franchise of video game history. Look, it was the 90's and Resident Evil was a global smash, with everyone talking about Raccoon City and the T-Virus. It only makes sense that not so great games tried to pick up on their success, by including certain characters as unlockable players. Claire Redfield and Leon Kennedy reporting for snowboarding duty, dude. The developers even threw a zombie cop from Resident Evil 2 in there, just for good measure.

Doom Marine - Duke Nukem 3D

One of those moments in a Duke Nukem game where 3D Realms just couldn't help themselves. With Doom being much more successful than Duke Nukem 3D, they decided to take a jab at the shooter that started all shooters. Get far enough into Duke Nukem 3D and you'll come across a hell-like portal, complete with inverted crosses. At the base of this portal, you'll find the torso of a mauled Doom marine. Guess he didn't have the guts...

Chun Li - Breath of Fire

Timeless RPG, Breath of Fire, by Capcom threw in yet another one of their famous characters somewhere they don't belong. During one of your quests, you meet a master who talks about an amazing fighter. Someone who can kick at the speed of light. Sound familiar? If you thought of Street Fighter alumni, Chun-Li then you'd be correct. Sure, you can't play as her and it's only a 10 to 20 second cameo but it still counts!

Lara Croft & TMNT - Shadow Warrior

Doom and Duke Nukem rip-off, Shadow Warrior, is your average cult classic, FPS. Run around, kill some monsters, blow s**t up. Pretty simple, until you come across a cameo from Tomb Raider's very own, Lara Croft. The protagonist actually mentions that, "She won't be raiding anymore tombs." Nice touch but continue further on into the game and you can find another cameo from 90's sensations, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Dead, but still a cameo.

Spider-Man - Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2

The Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series has always had fun with including random cameos in their games but none stands out more than the web-slinging, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Neversoft could have just used a normal character dressed as the titular hero but I love them for going the extra mile. Definitely the best skater in the game, Spider-Man web slings, flips, and does whatever a spider can while racking up hundreds of thousands of points. I might jump back on after writing this article...

Donkey Kong - Wii Punch Out!

 In the Wii remake to Super Nintendo's, Super Punch Out!, there's a new boss character that you have to take on and boy, is he one of the most difficult! In Wii Super Punch Out!, you don't have to take on Mike Tyson anymore. Now you have to take on a 900 pound gorilla with boxing gloves. Don't be fooled as Donkey Kong is the hardest character to fight in the game. Good luck, it was nice knowing you...

Wesker, West, Marcus & Dom - Lost Planet 2

Mega cameos are starring in Capcom's sci-fi, 3rd person action-shooter, Lost Planet 2. An average game when it was released and unfortunately lost the test of time, this entry had a few cool cameos as unlockable players. Up to four different universe characters appeared to play with, being Marcus Fenix and Dom Santiago from the Gears of War series, Albert Wesker from the Resident Evil series, and Frank West from the Dead Rising series. The game didn't change much but being one of these bad-asses sure made me think so.

Scorpion, Reptile, Sub-Zero & Raiden - NBA Jam

Not content with throwing in one of the most powerful, political couples of the time (Bill and Hillary Clinton), Midway decided that they wanted to see what b-ball skills some of the Mortal Kombat roster has. Including Raiden, Reptile, Sub-Zero and Scorpion into the fold made for some pretty awesome basketball games. The only problem was arguing with your friends over who would play as Team Netherealm.

Tanner - GTA III

One of the biggest franchises of the time, Grand Theft Auto, decides to take the mickey out of another large franchise of the time. Everyone remembers Driver,  one of the best driving games to ever come out on the original PlayStation. Well so do the developers at Rockstar, when one of your missions has you dealing with a detective who 'runs funny' and also drives a muscle car. Now they don't ever say his name but the running funny and muscle car part? Definitely a rip on Tanner and his later installments when he has the ability to get out of his cars.

Heihachi & Xiaoyu - Smash Court Tennis Pro Tournament 2

Heihachi has appeared numerous times in a number of different games but who knew the billionaire CEO could use a racket? It seems that when he isn't planning on killing his son and ruling the world in Tekken, he's working on his serves. First time cameo for Ling however, which makes me wonder why they included her and not, say, Kazuya or Jin? The Mishimas could put their rivalry to the side for a few doubles games...

Solid Snake - Evolution Skateboarding

One of the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater imitation rip-offs, Evolution Skateboarding was pretty much a simple, skateboarding game. Complete with challenges, time limits, decent graphics, and an amalgam of different tricks to pull off, this game wasn't so bad when you got into it. Unfortunately, the THPS franchise completely overshadowed any skateboarding game that tried to release. One way to put your game on the map is to include a cameo as a playable character. None other than 90's stealth-hero, Solid Snake from Metal Gear Solid.

Samus & Link - Super Mario RPG

In the 90's, RPG attempt at putting Mario in a genre he definitely didn't belong, Super Mario RPG was a surprisingly great game. Taking on RPG roots, a level-up system, and turn-based battles, this game happened to also include some cameos from other Nintendo icons. In one part of the tavern/inn, Link can be found sleeping in one of the beds. Approach him to try and talk and he will just sing one of the iconic Legend of Zelda songs. Samus from Metroid is also sleeping in a bed but this time it's in the Royal Mushroom Castle, where she lets you know that she is "Resting for Mother Brain." We'll just leave you both there until your game time comes around.

Altair Ibn-La'AHad - The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings

You wouldn't expect to see it in a serious RPG like The Witcher 2, but it does give you a small hint in the game's title Assassins of Kings. Approaching one of the destroyed barns in one of the towns will have you come across a broken hale bay cart. You even notice a dead person in a white, hooded outfit, so you move in for a closer look. At this point, it's 100% clear who the developers are trying to mock. It seems Altair (from Assassin's Creed) was attempting to assassinate one of the kings in the game but failed to land one of his famous eagle drops correctly. Oh yeah, you know he's dead.

----

Proving that video games and cameos are a fantastic mix, even when it doesn't make sense at all, cameos are the stuff of much conversation. I hope you enjoyed and probably even learned about some cameos you didn't know where there. Thanks for reading our latest listicle!

So what did you think? Did I miss any major video game character cameos you think should have been included? Don't forget to leave a comment below!

There’s a new Mega Man cartoon coming out in 2018 on Cartoon Network. To really understand why this is so questionable we have to look back at how Capcom has handled the franchise over the last decade.

Recent Releases

Is it Still Considered “Recent” if Obama Wasn’t President Yet?

The last new Mega Man game, Mega Man 10, was released in 2010, over 7 years ago. Recent years have only seen ports. 2010 also saw a solid port of the Mega Man Zero series to the DS. 2015 saw the release of the Mega Man Legacy Collection, which featured the first 6 games in the classic series. Reviews were generally good for these collections.

At the beginning of 2017, we received the same 6 classic Mega Man games as ports onto iOS and Android. Not only does Mega Man’s control scheme not work well on touchscreens, but these ports also had choppy framerates, which were even visible in trailers for the game.

This is the environment Capcom had decided to release a Mega Man themed cartoon into. The environment where most of the kids watching it have never had a new Mega Man game released in their lifetime. And where all the parents that LOVED the franchise throughout their life are seething with rage at how Capcom has treated the series for the last decade.

20XX, I mean 2011

A Year of Cancellations

So you might wonder why exactly Capcom has decided to stop making new Mega Man games. It all started on October 29, 2010, when longtime Capcom producer, Keiji Inafune, who many consider being the creator of Mega Man, decided to leave Capcom. At this point, several different Mega Man games were in development, most notably Mega Man Legends 3.

Mega Man Legends 3 was set to become a huge landmark in game development history, as Capcom had invited fans to take a huge role in the game’s development. They helped select designs for several characters in the game, submitted the designs for other characters, selected voice over’s for some characters, etc. In return, the game’s developers were extremely transparent about the game’s development.

A fan-made boss featured in the Mega Man Legends 3 Prototype. Source.

Capcom had promised that a prototype version would be released alongside the Nintendo 3DS’s e-shop and that this would be used to gauge fan interest. However, the service launched while the prototype was delayed; the game and prototype were eventually canceled. Chris Hoffman of Nintendo Power was the only journalist to play the Prototype and said “the Prototype Version seemed ready to go,” after having spent ~3 hours with it and playing all of the missions.  

Canceling the game seemed like an odd business decision for Capcom as they could have released the Prototype and been the only 3DS exclusive title on the e-shop for almost 6 months. This was made worse by a couple tweets from Capcom Euro that seemingly blamed a lack of fan support for the game’s cancellation. (Damned fans, not carrying their own weight around here. You know, I have to say I get what they mean. My commenters almost never write my articles for me!)

Capcom also canceled Mega Man Universe after only a year in development, which was basically Mario Maker except for 5 years earlier. During previews, the art style and controls were both critiqued. The game was said to have undergone significant changes prior to being canceled; however, these were never shown to the public. (Indeed, not existing anymore is a pretty big life change.) 

Around the same time, they also canceled a gritty FPS reboot, called Mega Man Maverick Hunter, that featured developers from the acclaimed Metroid Prime series before it had ever been announced.

A Korean-made MMO, Mega Man Online, was also canceled. (Although not before releasing 2 amazing animated trailers. If the new TV show looked that awesome, I think a lot of people would be pumped.).

The second trailer can be found here.

The Cartoon

The Next Timeless Classic. Trust me; I've got a nose for these things

Alas, we know our voices have been heard because we have been treated to this beautiful cartoon. It is everything fans have wanted from Mega Man and more! Screw all that convoluted button pressing and boss beating.

Let's face it; he's more Mega Boy than Mega Man now... 

Just look at how close it is to the source material. Mega Man is a normal robot boy, named Aki Light, who figures out that he can turn into Mega Man. He then has to hide his alternate identity and balance being a hero with being a normal boy! Wait, that’s not Mega Man, that’s Spider-Man. Damn it!

At least when Sonic got the cartoon treatment, Sega acted like they remembered where Sonic came from by making some DAMNED games. The fact that they were shitty cash grabs is sorta beside the point. They didn’t HAVE to be shitty cash grabs; they could have been good games.

Make no mistakes, Capcom is also trying to use this cartoon to get parent’s money.

”We believe Mega Man’s incredible heritage and proven popularity also positions the brand extremely well for longer term consumer product opportunities,” said Ken Faier, who helps manage distribution and licensing for the new cartoon as DHX Media’s executive producer of content, in the same press release that announced the show’s impending arrival on Cartoon Network next year.

Capcom doesn’t listen to us when we say,”Megaman is popular and beloved. He will sell products!” Yet their business partners use the same argument. This is a double slap in the face.

Don’t get me wrong, I hate Capcom for the way it has treated Mega Man over the last decade, especially since Keiji Inafune left the company. But all I want from them, all any of the fan base wants from them, are new Mega Man games (preferably quality ones).

I want them to be successful in their Mega Man related endeavors, I really do. However, I don’t particularly want a cartoon after 7 years without any new games, especially if it is a shitty cartoon. Although I am harsh concerning preliminary details concerning the show, I am holding final verdict until I actually get to watch it.

Star Vs. The Forces of Evil's OST is ripe with bit music. 

That being said, Steven Universe, Star Vs. The Forces of Evil, and Adventure Time all represent a template for a show influenced by video games that feature quality writing that is enjoyable by audiences of all ages. (Just imagine what you could do with a show actually based on a video game!) I certainly hope Capcom has been taking notes, but I am almost 100% sure they haven’t. I guess this cartoon can’t be any worse than the original Mega Man TV series from 1994.

Interest Lingers

And hope hangs on by a thread

In the meantime many people have been hankering for a new Megaman game, myself included. The developers of the excellent Megaman Zero series, the solid Megaman Advent series, and the well-regarded Mega Man 9 & 10 releases have gone on to create the Azure Striker Gunvolt series (Note: Mega Man is called the blue bomber. Azure is a shade of blue. Striker is a synonym to bomber.) Both of these entries have fared relatively well, both critically and commercially.

At least we have Azure Striker Gunvolt for now.

Keiji Inafune also kickstarted Mighty Number 9, which was similarly a “technically not a Mega Man game, but totally is a Mega Man game”. Despite it not actually being a great game, the Kickstarter raised over $3 million dollars. Fans put money where their mouth was and told Capcom,” if you are not going to give us the Mega Man game that we want, then we will go elsewhere,” in this case, it just happened to be to one of the franchise's creators. 

Between Azure Striker’s moderate success, Mighty Number 9’s high profile pre-release success, fans’ continued demands for new Mega Man titles, and DHX Media's executive producer of content there is one thing that is clear: there is a market for the blue bomber yet.

Of course, these are only six options out of the large number of platformers -- from the decade of slap bracelets and boy bands -- which could return. Hopefully we'll get to see games like these and others like them return to the limelight in the years to come.

But are there any you REALLY want to see comeback? Let us know in the comments below!

Mr. Nutz

This is the most obscure title on this list, but there's a great reason why this relatively unknown character should make a comeback.

Mr. Nutz was created in 1993 by Ocean Software -- now known as Atari, Inc. -- for the SNES, Sega Genesis and Sega Mega Drive, Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance. The game starred the titular red squirrel, another 90's mascot which just a touch of attitude. Mr. Nutz was a standard 2D side scrolling platformer with no unique gameplay elements, yet was still able to get several games and a remake.

Mr. Nutz could be an interesting title for an up and coming indie game studio to revive. They could even add several distinct features which help make the game stand out among its competition, including giving Mr. Nutz himself a more fleshed out personality.

The return of Mr. Nutz may be necessary, since another brightly colored squirrel hasn't been looking too great these days.

The Disney Movie Collection

This one is kind of cheating since it's four games in one, but there's a good reason for that.

With The Disney Afternoon Collection releasing soon, much to the joy of fans around the world, this should be the next step. This new collection would include: The Lion King, Aladdin, The Jungle Book, and Pinnochio.

Similar to how games in The Disney Afternoon Collection were all made by Capcom for the NES, these games were all made by now defunct company Virgin Interactive Entertainment for both the SNES and the Sega Genesis, with the Genesis versions being commonly credited as superior to their SNES counterparts.

The hypothetical collection would also include similar additions to The Disney Afternoon Collection, such as  a concept art, a rewind function, boss rush and time attack modes, music, and online leaderboards.

Croc

You may have noticed a trend of reptiles on this list. That's purely a coincidence.

Croc and its sequel were developed by a now defunct company, Argonaut Games, for the original PlayStation, Microsoft Windows, and Game Boy Color. The games starred the adorable titular crocodile, who was found and raised by tiny furry creatures called Gobbos.

The two games in the Croc series were relatively standard 3D platformers, and when first pitched, Croc actually started as a Mario spin-off starring Yoshi, which was rejected by Nintendo. This may explain their exceptional quality and why Croc has a drop smash move similar to Mario in Super Mario 64.

Croc would be an interesting platformer to make a return, but if done right with some unique gameplay elements thrown in, could be a great addition to the modern platformer genre.

Gex

Similar to Poochie of Simpsons fame, and actually voiced by comedian and former Simpsons writer Dana Gould, Gex was a smooth-talking, sunglasses wearing product of the 1990s created by Crystal Dynamics. Gex was also the company's former mascot.

Due to his unhealthy obsession with television, Gex's adventures primarily take place in the "Media Dimension," a world that exists inside of a TV, adventuring through areas based on different movie and TV show genres while making plenty of 90's pop culture references along the way.

A modern take on Gex would be a welcome addition to the increasing yet still somewhat small amount of humorous games played today. Gex could even explore more modern pockets of the media dimension, based off of services like Netflix, YouTube, and Twitch.

It's unknown how likely the gecko's return would be, but now with how much entertainment has changed it would be the perfect opportunity for the green lizard to make a comeback.

Spyro

With the upcoming return of fellow former PlayStation mascot, Crash Bandicoot, it would only be fair to give this purple dragon the HD remake treatment as well.

Spyro has had a bit of a hard time since his original PlayStation days, with later games in the series featuring the dragon having being less popular than their older counterparts; getting an unnecessary reboot starring celebrities like Elijah Wood and David Spade; and most recently taking a backseat to all the other characters in the Skylanders game series.

The flying reptile deserves to be in the spotlight again, and an HD remake collection of the three original PlayStation game, similar to the Crash Bandicoot N-Sane Trilogy, would be a great way to put him there.

Mega Man X

There has been an absence of new Mega Man titles in last few years, and with the release of the Mega Man Legacy Collection -- which compiles Mega Man 1 through 6 -- almost two years ago, it's time Capcom brought back this maverick hunting incarnation of the blue bomber.

The Mega Man X series has had eight main games starting with the release of the first game in 1993 for the Super Nintendo. The series also had an RPG spin-off, Mega Man X Command Mission, and two Game Boy spin-offs, Mega Man Xtreme and Xtreme 2. Megaman X7 was the first game in the series to transition to 3D and and had the worst reception out of all the games in the series.

A Mega Man X collection, which contained the first six games in the series, as well as Mega Man: Battle & Chase, was released for PlayStation 2 and GameCube in 2006.

A PSP remake of the first game, titled Mega Man Maverick Hunter X, was also released in 2006. and Maverick Hunter X contained updated graphics, as well as additional features not present in the original game.

With his guest appearance in the upcoming Marvel Vs Capcom Infinite, now would be a great time for Mega Man X to make his return. Recent spiritual successors to series in the Mega Man franchise, such as Mighty No. 9 and Azure Striker Gunvolt, just haven't been able to properly match the feel or quality Mega Man games are known for.

A Mega Man X Legacy Collection on modern consoles containing either Mega Man X through Mega Man X8 -- or also including the spin-offs -- would be a good start. If it sold well enough, maybe Capcom would consider making a brand new game for the series.

Platform games, a genre that dates all the way back to the earliest days of gaming. There have been a ton of different platformers over the years, both 2D and 3D, big budget and indie. From fondly remembered games like Super Mario Bros. to some of the worst games ever made like Bubsy 3D, platform games have been an important staple in video game history.

As video games have evolved over time, platform games have become one of the most well known video game genres, with plenty of games in other genres borrowing common elements platform games are known for.

With the success of games like Shovel Knight and Inside, as well as nostalgia trip games like Yooka-Laylee (reviewed on GameSkinny) and The Crash Bandicoot N-Sane Trilogy, here are some platformers from the 1990's we'd love to see come back.

Mega Man Legacy Collection arrived on Nintendo eShop for 3DS today (Feb 23). Capcom's latest celebration of the Blue Bomber features the original six games. New ways to enjoy and experience the iconic franchise are also included. 

Mega Man Legacy Collection was released digitally for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Windows (Steam) last August. Today, along with the eShop release, the collection is available physically for all platforms. The collector's edition of the 3DS version comes packaged with a golden Mega Man amiibo. If you didn't pre-order, this edition is still available through several retailers.

The biggest additions to the classic games are Challenge Mode and Museum Mode. Challenge Mode remixes segments from all six games. Experienced players will enjoy scaling difficulty levels. This same scaling difficulty makes challenge mode good for beginner players as well.

Using your Mega Man amiibo activates eleven remix challenge levels for you to conquer. Museum Mode is a collection of production art and concept sketches. Rare history pieces such as the original NES cart design are found here.

There have been several collections of the classic Mega Man games over the years. But this is the first time on current generation consoles that Rock Man, Mega Man or Blue Bomber has appeared. No matter what you call him, this collection is his legacy. Have fun rediscovering one of the most iconic characters of gaming.