7 Greatest Video Game Urban Legends
We all have heard of them, swore to have done them or know someone whose cousin has. That’s right, I’m talking about Video Game Urban Legends (VGUL). No, I’m not going to talk about the munchkin in the back of “Wizard of Oz” who supposedly hangs himself from the tree. Not also talking about how there is a ghost in the window in “3 Men and a Baby” who died in that house. Not Bigfoot or Loch Ness. I’m talking Video Games…. I’m talking Urban Legends in Video Games.
I have searched high and low to bring to you, our latest installment of these Urban Legends, and finish up with a wide known but not seen VGUL.
Tomb Raider
The Urban Legend - Lara Croft appearing Nude in Tomb Raider
The System - PSone
This story goes as far back as the game was first launched. It was almost like every video gamer wished this one to be true. I’ve heard it all from, “if you go in the water, you’ll see her nude”. Sorry to tell you folks, this one is a big fat lie.
Street Fighter II
The Urban Legend - Beat every character without losing a round or match let’s you play as the four bosses Balrog, Vega, Sagat, and M. Bison
The System - SNES
Well, this is an urban Legend that I believe all Street Fighter 2 players have tried. Now, while it isn’t that impossible, is was very hard. The rumor of playing as one of the bosses, went cross country. It always seemed that the more you went unbeaten the tougher the opponent got. I recall playing one whole day trying this one out, and after going unbeaten straight through Balrog, Vega became impossible. He would hang off the fence and “huaaahhh” with his blades onto my head. Of course, I used Ken and the timing of a shyruken was hard.
No doubt, once I completed the game unbeaten I realized it was a hoax. With people then saying “You have to perfect every round” back I went to the SNES and 15 years later…
Playstation 2
The Urban Legend - Iraq had purchased 4,000 PS2’s to launch missiles.
The System - PS2
World Net Daily claims that both the FBI and the US Customs Service are investigating the transfer of thousands of consoles to Iraq. According to a secret Defence Intelligence Agency report, 4,000 PS2s had been bought in the US and shipped to Iraq in 2000.
Some US military experts believe that several PS2s could be linked together to form a “supercomputer”, which could control a missile or an unmanned aircraft. They fear that the console, which contains a 128-bit CPU, could provide the power for Iraq to launch chemical weapons at its enemies.
It’s also very unlikely that bundling any number of PS2s together would actually work, as it would be extremely complicated to have a number of processors accessing shared memory and splitting up the computation. The complex software required would take years to develop. Sony refused to say whether it was possible to link PS2s together to form a supercomputer, explaining that it did not comment on speculative stories.
Super Mario Bros.
The Urban Legend - Jumping over the flag pole at the end of the level
The System - NES
In 5th grade, Kevin Diley once told me how he jumped over the flagpole in Super Mario Bros. I’ve called him on the telephone while I tried, he came over to try, I even asked him to video tape it on his VHS camcorder. He was never able to reproduce it. Till this day, I do not know a single person who was able to jump over the flagpole. I’ve heard of mods, and hacks that allow this. But until I see this:
- Cartridge being blown into the bottom
- Popped into an original NES
- Original NES controller used to jump over flagpole
This will not hold true to me and Kevin Diley will continue to be a liar!
Legend of Zelda
The Urban Legend - There is a dungeon level in the Legend of Zelda that is a swastika.
The System - NES
Now although this is not completly an urban legend, it is more of a terrible version of the game telephone. It starts off with one person saying what they say, and it gets turned and twisted into an Urban Legend. So, let me explain. The third dungeon has the shape of what appears to Western audiences as a left-facing swastika. This shape is actually a “manji”, which is a Buddhist symbol of good fortune. In Japan, where this game was initially released, swastikas and similar shapes are relatively benign, which explains why a symbol so offensive to many Western audiences could be included. In the United States, there were surprisingly few complaints about the manji, but years later, when Pokémon became popular in the United States, Nintendo was forced to alter one of the cards due to complaints regarding a manji.
So take a chill pill, it’s just some Manji - Word of the Day.
Mortal Kombat
The Urban Legend - A code that enabled the “Blood Code” instead of a grey smokey splat
The System - SNES
This one is fairly easy to explain because it never existed nor was it an Easter Egg. Nintendo was/is very censored so they never allowed blood in their Mortal Kombat game. It was said that the Genesis version of MK sold better because of the fatalities and blood. Nintendo then tried using Genesis’ decision of incorporating blood as a negative, but that never flew. So now you had those Genesis freaks soaked up to their ankles in Hawaiian Punch and it was cool.
Polybius
The Urban Legend - A government run arcade cabinet was used to collect data. Once played this game would cause seizures, memory loss and people were brainwashed.
The System - Arcade
This game was out for a very short trial run of one month in small arcades in Portland Oregon in 1981. Produced by the company Sinnesloschen ( A German term meaning “sense-deleting,” or “Loss of senses.”), the game gave many players nightmares and many who played it completely swore off all video games afterwards. Others complained of having blackouts and memory loss. Employees of the manufacturer, in black coats came and collected data from the machines as part of a lease agreement. After only one month, all of the machines were removed. ROM’s of this game are rumored to be in the hands of some collectors but at this time they are not generally available. Check out more info here at Polybius Theory.
Game-play: There are two explainations for game-play.
1: Action/Puzzle game. Rumored to have a rotating 3D Puzzle, along with logic puzzles, and mazes resembling the playing style of Pac-Man.
2: You were flying through a tunnel and had to dodge things in your path. Lights flashing at rapid rates to heighten the effect. Said to resemble a pro-type for Atari’s “Tempest.” (Which was a shooter game. In an article about Tempest, it was said that the prototype caused motion sickness after a period of time.) The basis of the game was to get through a maze without being caught in a trap or a mine. Apparently, the further the levels went, to make the game more difficult, the background would start flashing much like a strobe light, and the spinning of the mazes.
My cousin once told me that Mel Brooks was planning on releasing Spaceballs 3, the search for Spaceballs 2!
Any mention of this coming out for the wii? I just love spreading rumors, ahem i mean Legends!
Also I heard that if Glass Joe defeats you, his record actually changes to 2-99! HA!
We can ask Juan that question, I recall Joe putting him away once!
I actually heard about Spaceballs 3.. i think people made it up or something. They did make a reference to Spaceballs 2: The Search For More Air in the film, so who knows…..
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I was told by a kid once that if you put Mortal Kombat 2 for Genesis into sonic and Knuckles, you could fight with the sonic characters in MK2. Bullshit, but I tryed about 300 times.
I don’t have any proof but I’ve done the Mario flagpole thing myself. Nothing to speak of, really. I mean, you can’t go backward at all on the NES so once the flagpole is out of the screen you have to wait for the time to expire and die. What a prize.
@ kezins: As a kid from the 80’s you could jump over the flag pole. I don’t remember what levels it was possible on, but I do remember doing it once or twice. One of those times after spending about an hour trying to beat one level then jumping over the damn flag pole. Just because you didn’t do it doesn’t mean it’s not possible.
Also i think the bringing back Aries myth should really be on this list, that one just won’t die.
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About the whole swastika thing, the actual symbol that the nazis ripped off is called a swastika as well. They flipped it and rotated it 45 degrees and you get the nazi swastika which has forever maligned the actual good swastika..hell ever diwali we paint a swastika and god knows if i did that in the west I would be called a nazi..
I’ve jumped over the flag pole in Super Mario, but it’s like the pole continues invisible to the top of the screen and stops you.
So honest to god i have jumpd over the flag pole once.
[…] We all have heard of them, maybe even some of us swore to have done them or knew someone that had a cousin/uncle/best friend/nefew do it.http://kezins.com/2008/04/09/kezinscom-presents-video-game-urban-legends/” rel=”dc:sourc… […]
My addition to the list: seeing Samus Aran naked when finishing Metroid on the NES. It kind of makes sense, since she actually strips down into a swinsuit if you beat the game fast enough. Combine that with the over sexual minds of teenage boys and you have a perfect urban legend formed!
The “complex software” required to link a zillion ps2s together into a supercomputing cluster exists—its called linux, and it was ported to the ps2 platform ages ago. Just stick one of the many open source (and free) clustering solutions on top of that (all pretty straightforward to install and get working if you’re familiar with clustered environments under linux). But that’s not why it’s not possible. It’s not possible because the ps2 does not have an ethernet port, or any other fast network interface, which is absolutely necessary for that kind of application.
Whoops, I was wrong on that ethernet thing. ps2s DO have an ethernet interface, and for some types of clustering topologies, it is indeed fast enough, which doesn’t make it TRUE that iraq did this (or even wanted to), but it does very certainly make it possible.
And then there’s the ps3.
I have jumped over the flag pole in mario. I forget which level it is, but one of them makes it fairly easy. If i remember correctly if you go to far off to the right, the flag pole goes off screen and youre stuck, unable to finish the level.
Years ago I downloaded a patch for tomb raider on PC that made Lara Croft naked… it was lame and I deleted the game… but it DID happen. Come to think of it, I believe there were many patches available for that… like this one…
{link removed by admin because it was messing up the layout of the site for some reason}
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Excuse me? It’s “Spaceballs 2: The Soich For More Money.” You’re obviously not a Mel Brooks geek.
[…] 7 Greatest Video Game Urban Legends | Kezins.com lol, anybody ever heard of other video game urban legends? […]
you can see Lara Croft nude: you need the pc version and a dl’able patch, i HAVE seen this. and you never mentioned the rape fatality in mortal kombat. i have never even heard of this “grey smoky” effect you speak of and, trust me i would know. n00b
I feel cheated by the Mario Flag Pole Myth. This is definitely not a myth, as I have seen it performed several times, and I’m sure numerous people can confirm. Stop cheating everyone just because you couldn’t do it and put another myth on the list.
Firstly, jumping over the flagpole can be done either in world three or four whichever level that has the pulley before the flag. As for Mortal Kombat for SNES, of course there is a blood code.I don’t have time to look it up but if you do some research yourself I’m sure you”l find the code. I remember holding buttons during the loading rather than punching them but that’s all. I believe I got the code from EGM magazine as a kid. Having blood was a MUST, or else I wouldn’t have bought the game. I do remember that. Oh wait here’s a link… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQyybX_Z1y4. Anyone wanna make a bet on the flagpole?
If you believe that the Mario pole jump is possible without a mod, then you probably think mixing pop rocks with Pepsi will cause a person to explode. lol
I jumped over the flag.
[…] a nude Lara Croft to Playstation 2’s guiding missles; the top 7 gaming myths are a laugh. I personally remember hearing of some of them and am convinced you can get over the […]
I’ve never heard about Lara Croft appearing nude in tomb raider without help. What everyone always talked about was the patch that made her nude… which was real… and really stupid.
I had blood on my snes mortal kombat…..but it was a hacked version playing off a floppy disk copyier
ive 100% jumped over flag pole, the level continued, it was many years ago and i think there were no “bad guys” and the timer went out on me.
trust me, this is no urban legend, ive done it 100%
You can jump over one of the flags in Super Mario Bros. I don’t remember which one, but I did it as a kid. I swear! It takes you to a minus zone or something. You go back levels. I was extremely frustrated.
7 Greatest Video Game Urban Legends…
[…]We all have heard of them, maybe even some of us swore to have done them or knew someone that had a cousin/uncle/best friend/nefew do it.[…]…
The original launch PS2s would have been worthless for guiding missiles. Assuming the clustering comment was “true,” there was no ethernet port- that wasn’t added to the PS2 until later. The same goes for Linux, that wasn’t ported until quite a while after the console’s release. So unless Iraq had a dev kit, they wouldn’t have been running any software. Oh and most important of all, they could do what the rumor claimed with off-the-shelf PC hardware, no need to mess around with the PS2.
The people claiming the Tomb Raider nude cheat is real because they modded the game are, well, retarded. You could download a mod that made Laura’s guns shoot rainbow-colored buttplugs if someone made it available, that doesn’t mean it’s a cheat in the game. It’s a mod, a hack, not an easter egg or cheat.
Nobody remembers the friend who caught Mew?
Lee Oo Lang in Tekken 2 was supposed to take out his guns on a ridiculously complicated combo move
I remember most of the stories you have mentioned. There was at one point some kind of hack patch that allowed you to see Lara Croft nude in one of the Tomb Raider games, but nothing that you could do outside of a patch to make it happen. As for SNES Mortal Kombat, I know for a fact that at least here on the UK version, I did have a blood code (it was in one of those little books of cheat codes that magazines used to give out.) Strangely, I do remember finding a way to unlock the boss in Street Fighter II as well, but I can’t remember what I did to do it.
No, my MK was not a hacked version, and it was first shown “how to do it,” at my local video game store. Oh those were fond memories. Amstrad and Spectrum tapes at 99 pence!
The lara croft nude is only a cheat. it was never anything else. u can search right now and find 100s of sites with the cheat codes.
it was really stupid though. but true non the less!
I’ve jumped over the flagpole and went down the opposite side in Mario, and yes it was an un-modded console. Read the warning labels for pretty much any game made in 1990 or later and you’ll have a pretty good reason to pull Polybius from the shelves, since apparently some people just can’t stand harsh flashing lights and sounds.
Okay , it is possible to jump over the flagpole in Mario.
A version of super mario called Moon Mario. It allows Mario to jump to impossible heights..
i did it on a knock off Video Game system that my friend bought from the grey market..
Video of a guy jumping over the flagpole in mario:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQ9LOCf1bJQ
Google is your friend.
“The “complex software” required to link a zillion ps2s together into a supercomputing cluster exists—its called linux, and it was ported to the ps2 platform ages ago. Just stick one of the many open source (and free) clustering solutions on top of that (all pretty straightforward to install and get working if you’re familiar with clustered environments under linux). But that’s not why it’s not possible. It’s not possible because the ps2 does not have an ethernet port, or any other fast network interface, which is absolutely necessary for that kind of application.”
Yes a PS2 does have a network connection. For the old ones you had to buy the adapter for it that included both a network and modem connection and this was built into the slim versions.
blood code for SNES was for game genie but completely possible…
in SMB you can jump over the flagpole in 3-3 by setting up the linked platforms just right but requires a duckjump.
after you’re over its a recycling background to no where.. lose 1 life.
Laura was nude in PC patched version..
GTFO
dude, the super mario thing is completely doable. there is at least one level where you can do it. i remember there actually being a couple levels where it was possible.
How did you forget that you can resurrect/save Aeris in Final Fantasy VII?
I was really pissed off when Aeris died. It’s been a long time, but if I remember right I had her equipped with some good stuff and it was too far past my last save to go back and unequip her.
I don’t think I’ve ever been pissed off about a character in a game dying before like that. I’d have to say the story in FF7 was the most captivating for me out of any game before, during or since that time.
I once had a friend who could jump Mario over the flagpole about 75% of the time, so I have seen it done with my own eyes. However, even following his instructions with him guiding me, I was unable to ever do it myself. There must be a secret.
It was PS2s that Iraq purchased to build a super computer it was DreamCasts. Get your urban myths right, I think I read that in some mainstream media magazine back in the 90s so it may be true.
Sonic is Smash Bros: Melee anyone?
Please change our background. My eyes are bleeding…
I must say you’re wrong about some of these. Well at least the Super Mario Brothers one. My brother and I DEFINITELY jumped over the flag pole without any mods or any help. Hell, I didn’t even know what a mod was back then (we were about 6 and 10 at the time). Basically what happens is after you jump over, you can just keep running forever and ever and ever and the background keeps repeating. But YOU CAN JUMP OVER THE FLAGPOLE.
It does work, I promise. never did it on a real cartridge because it’s so much easier to load an emulator, but it DOES WORK. I legitimately caught Mew, no Gameshark.
Here’s one that isn’t an urban legend, wondering if anyone else here can back me up on this.
In Mortal Combat 3 for Genesis if you played 250 multiplayer games consecutively then match #250 would come up as a black screen with “MK4″ at the top and then launch a game of classic Pong. I kid you not!
I jumped the flagpole in Mario too. Not a modded game. I swear it.
what about seeing orchids boobs in killer instinct? i don’t know how many times my friends and i tried that.
There’s a Mew under the Truck!
Okay, the Mario thing is true, on a couple levels you can jump over the pole and continue to a warp zone. sorry no proof, maybe check youtube
It’s a shame that the author hasn’t read any of the health warnings that come bundled with video games. Quickly flashing lights, ala strobes, can indeed cause the effects he described as legend with Polybius.
I’ve jumped over the flag pole plenty of times in Mario, it’s not hard.
I’m saddened by the absence of bringing Aeris back to life! All that stuff about going to the church, getting the key of Midgar…and no mention from you? Preposterous.
how does this not mention cow level from diablo 1
YOu can jump over the pole in super mario.
I have done it without any modifications or tricks on a simple old NES.
You can only do it on certain levels, and it is still tricky to do.
concerning the spaceballs thing, in the original theater version the quote was “spaceballs 2: the search for more air” and it was changed to “spaceballs 2: the search for more money” for the dvd
You can link up Playstation systems together to make a supercomputer. I’ve seen people use PS3s linked in parallel for computing problems in astrophysics. Maybe the Hussein thing is a myth, but it could have happened.
Mario flagpole jump is real.
I’ve jumped over the flagpole, used the mortal combat code and loaded the patch to see Laura’s chichi’s. As much as this guy would like to believe he’s right, he’s just not. A little bitter maybe, but wrong none the less.
vid of jumping over the flagpole:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=OQ9LOCf1bJQ
[…] We all have heard of them, swore to have done them or know someone whose cousin has. That
Actually the NCSA built a cluster out of PS2s. It was taken down when they switched buildings just before I started to work there so I never got to see it in action myself. My office set up used a PS2 keyboard and mouse because they had so many of them. Also they never allowed us to use them as a gaming system even though there were PS2s everywhere.
and putting it as a cheat for starcraft
thereisnocowlevel
beauty
I am not going to comment on the MK Blood thing because I’m pretty sure its true (I think I remember physically seeing someone do it on their console copy without a game shark. None of my friends were smart enough back then to ‘hack’ anything).
I do know you definitely can jump over the flag pole in SMB. You can actually do it -theoretically- in any level. The easiest level is the one with the elevator pulley system lift. I have done it once (after watching other various people do it) and I only did it on stage 1-1 and I have never done it since. Its really really really hard to do on 1-1 (you basically have to have enough speed and time it absolutely perfectly) but it is do-able.
The ps2 linking thing is also possible.
Super Mario Bros
Jumping over the flagpole was done with the Game Genie (the pre-cursor to the Gameshark) in which you entered codes to jump higher or other abilities.
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I believe that Ocarina of Time should be on here for the Triforce that I’m sure everyone tried at least once.
Just another confirmation that Mario CAN jump over the pole. I’ve seen it happen on an un-modded NES with an un-modded cartridge. I’m not sure if it was the stand-alone mario cartridge or the mario/duck hunt cartridge, but I have absolutely seen it happen at least a couple of times.
The purchase of Playstations has some truth to it. A friend of mine was working security for a major retailer in the area a few years back. Big bro in the dark suits and glasses came onsite because they had been watching a group of individuals traveling the area buying up PS1’s. They had contacted all the other major retail stores in the area and warned them to watch for said group. These individuals drove up in dark ATV w/ dark windows, paid cash for them and were being watched very closely (retailers limitted the purchase to only 2 units) They may not have been using them for a supercomputer, but it was rumored that the components were shipped back to be used in IED’s.
Wtf, I have jumped over the flag pole on NES Super Mario Brothers.
HTTP://WWW.POLYBIUSLIVES.COM
HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN?
I agree with DapperDan. The triforce in Ocarina of Time was a big legend.
virt311…they drove up on a 4 wheeler? thats what a ATV is bud, maybe you mean SUV.
And I caught Mew or Mewtwo, one of them was in a cave and one you needed the gameshark to catch.
You know what pisses me off about articles like this? How lazy and uninformed the authors are.
1 - The flagpole can be jumped over.
2 - There’s a code to turn the “sweat” into a redish hue, although not very blood looking.
3 - University of Illinois created a super computer with 70 linked PS2’s.
4 - It’s not a “myth” just because people are too dumb to know what the actual shape of a swastika is.
I understand that you dont boast the reputation of a credible source of information, but seriously kids - journalism 101 is ask questions and be accurate with your information less people mock and ridicule you for being just another idiot with a keyboard.
I jumped the flag pole 20+ years ago. Don’t remember what level, but I did it. I remember sometimes if you jump it is will suck you back to the pole, but it is possible to do it!
I jumped over the pole in Super Mario Bros in my SNES.
I remember it perfectly. I was stunned! It seemed to be some minor bug because in the jump Mario got a boost in the air while going through a cloud. Mario landed in the other side of the pole and i tried to keep running but all there was was the castle’s wall infinitly without any end, nothing else. There was nothing to do, i had to reboot.
Sorry but it’s not a urban Myth.
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@ kezins:…”They did make a reference to Spaceballs 2: The Search For More Air…..” It was actually Spaceballs 2: The Search For More MONEY!
What, no mention of General Leo from Final Fantasy III? To this day I have friends who swore they used the Phoenix esper to resurrect him instead of Locke’s girlfriend, making him a playable member of their party. Of course, I’ve never seen proof, but it just won’t die.
[…] Link […]
I heard the General Leo thing before which I am pretty sure was a legend as well. It’s kind of funny how these rumors start and then so many people claim to have done the things described in the tale.
[…] Thanks Juan! […]
Not that anyone has to believe me, since a dude on the internet is no more reliable than “your friend’s cousin,” but I did, at some point circle 1990-1991, manage to jump over the flagpole. I don’t remember where or what level or any specifics. It was nothing exciting. This is what happened:
I cleared the flagpole and landed clean on the other side. So I walked toward the castle but nothing happened (I didn’t automatically enter or anything like that). So I tried to go in the pipe, and still nothing. So I just kept walking and the screen scrolled with me. And it was just nothing for as far as you could run. Just the ground, the sky, and me. I ran until the timer ran out and I had to restart the level.
That’s it. Nothing too exciting.
what about catching lugia or Ho-oh with 99 ultraballs? i tryed for ever.
and beating super smash bros on the hardest difficulty flawlessly to use masterhand?
this article sucked, only thing that made me laugh were the comments
and i never remember being able to beat pokemon stadium in the unlimited lvl. league. maybe i was too young….
yep, i’ve cleared the flag in mario too. and it was just as Dan said.. endless running to nowhere. wooo what fun. :o|
anyway, it has been done, weenis.
[…] 7 Greatest Video Game Urban Legends […]
If I remember correctly, what I´ve heard about the PS2 is that back in the day Iraq had an embargo, kinda like Cuba, they were not allowed to import computer stuff and the rest of the countries are not allowed to sell computers to them. Well, PS2s for obvious reasons were cataloged as toys, the red light turned on when Iraq was buying PS2s like crazy, then the PS2s got halted.
That´s what I´ve heard, what I know is that in the US there was something strange going on with the delivery of the PS2s, the first batch of PS2s came on time, the people that pre-ordered or waited in line got their units (like I did) but then, all the sudden there were no more PS2s, and it took a while for the PS2s to fill up the shelves again. Another thing that I know is that the first PS2s can work as personal computers, you can install Linux on them, they even have a firewire connector and a hard drive bay, usb connectors etc.
AC
http://www.tecartex.com
Definitely the most memorable myth for me has to be getting Mew underneath that truck next to the SS Anne in Pokemon Red/Blue. Everyone knew someone who did that. I went through the whole deal trading a Pokemon with cut so the ship never left and then I finally got to the point to try it and the truck didn’t budge. Most disappointing moment of my childhood.
Acquiring Mew in pokemon was certainly possible. The method i’ve seen requires abusing the game dynamics massively. You can go here to see it:
http://speeddemosarchive.com/PokemonRedBlue.html#PokemonBlueglitch
It is a speedrun of the game. The player abuses several glitches to spawn a level 1 Mew which he then levels to 100 via another glitch. You can read how in the comments of the video.
The fact that some people out there still think that YouTube videos showing Mario jumping over the flagpole exists is ridiculous. Unless someone can submit a video, THAT YOU DID, not a youtube video this will eternally be an Urban Legend (VGUL). Sned it to tips@kezins.com
Street Fighter II: Turbo allowed you to play as those “four bosses” by default.
I dunno about the original NES SMB, but in All-Stars on SNES, you could jump over one of the flagpoles. It was similar to jumping over the last pipe in the Underground level. But I’ve only ever done it once in my life, and it was so long ago I don’t remember anything about it.
Very nice
btw very good tips i will use them. Some of them i did not knew.
If Lara Croft was never naked, then how did you get that screenshot? Was it Photoshopped?
[…] 7 Greatest Video Game Urban Legends […]
I’m sorry to say that you seem to be misinformed. Most of those ‘Urban Legends’ are true to to a point. It seems that in each one you are either making an incorrect assumption or are referencing the wrong version of the game.
Tomb Raider- In the original Tomb Raider game, which was release for PC, through a simple mod changing the hue of Laura’s character is was possible to give Laura Croft a ‘nude’ skin.
PS2- It is possible to cluster PS2’s to make a super computer. When the PS2 was originally released, the hardware it contained was worth a decent deal more than they charged for the console, which is common, as the point is to make up the loss in game and accessory sales. Some people took advantage of this, universities in particular, by buying up many PS2’s and reprogramming them to be able to interface with one another to for a supercomputer.
Super Mario Bros- As I’m sure you know by now, it is possible to jump over the flag. Period.
Legend of Zelda-A manji is a swastika. A swastika is a manji. Two words for the same shape. There are actually several words for a swastika, as it is a common religious symbol.
Mortal Kombat-
The Genesis version still contained relatively little blood compared the the original arcade version. There was a code in the genesis version to restore the blood and gore to that of the original.
PohTayToez, First let me congratulate you as the 100th commentator on my article!
As you’ve noted, some of these Urban Legends are true but only if you twist them to conform to an argument.
1. Tomb Raider - As I explained, for the PSone (without a mod) this is an Urban Legend. I could create a mod for the PC that turns Lara Croft into Mike Tyson. My point was, rumors started, then a mod was created to please the rumors. Like the Street Fighter rumor, in the original Street Fighter II you can not play as any of the bosses, then in the next release they listened to the SF community and inserted them as playable characters.
2. What evidence do you know that PS2’s in Iraq were used to launch missiles?
3. Because of the back and forth of this Mario Brothers topic, I have sent my article to Nintendo Power. Until then this IS an Urban Legend!
4. The Manji they used in the dungeon is not a swastika (a swastika is a backwards manji). To the eye, it looks like a swastika, but it’s a Manji.
5. Again, on the PSone, this was not possible. The Urban Legend is that since the Genesis had a blood code, everyone lied about having blood on the PSone version.
1. Given that i saw the actual nuderaider patch available before I heard of any ‘rumor’ of it, I doubt that the mod was created before the rumors. I have no way of proving this, of course, however I see no basis for your statement of the mod being created to appease the rumors.
2. I have no evidence at all, nor did I say anything to infer that I thought that was the case. I was only correcting you when you said that is was not possible, when the case is that PS2 supercomputing was not only possible, but was relatively common in practice. This was a somewhat widely circulated story based on a leaked DIA report, however as I was not able to find the actual DIA report cited, this story definitely fits the definition of urban legend, lacking the evidence to be either proved or disproved. My point is that it is possible, while you were treating it as compete fiction.
Also, it may interest you to see the original story that started the rumor:
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?pageId=7640
3. The way I see it, even being a skeptic myself, is that there are enough instances of people claiming to do it that it is more or less a well accepted possibility. Everyone that has done it describes the same thing happening, something that wouldn’t happen if they were just making up stories.
4. A swastika can face either way. While the Nazi swastika was always clockwise, that does not mean that a swastika always has to face clockwise. For example, in Hinduism, where the shape is actually referred to as a swastika, clockwise it represents evolution, and counterclockwise it represents involution. In Buddhism where it is known as a Manji, clockwise (as in the Nazi symbol) it represents strength and intelligence, and counterclockwise it represents love and mercy (not good fortunes as you stated). The link between a swastika and good luck is a western notion, one that was mostly abandoned after WWII.
5. My argument here can also be applied the the Tomb Raider issue. While I realize the blood code wasn’t available on the SNES version (ignoring the PSone typo, I know what you meant), my point is that I don’t think that you could really classify this as an urban legend. When I think of an urban legend, I think of a story that sounds somewhat believable, but either has a basis in fact and then was exaggerated, or is completely false. The Tomb Raider and Mortal Kombat urban legends seem to follow the pattern of:
“You can do X in the A version of Z”
But the truth is:
“You can do X in the B version of Z”
This seems to be more of just a plain incorrect statement that might have been voiced by several ill informed people, but is easily correctable, and doesn’t really seem deserving of the title of ‘urban legend’, while the SFII, Polybius, and PS2/missile stories do.
I hope you do not take these arguments as personal attacks, I am only trying to correct misinformation, and I have no problem with you as a person.
Not at all, I appreciate your rebuttle. As a writer my views will always be challenged, which in turn is why I write. I hope to continue hearing from you on all our articles, as you might very well be my favorite critic :)!
When Nintendo Power replies to my email, I will personally come here and apologize for the inaccurate information I supplied. Till then, Mario has only been a lollipop on that pole for me….
I wish people would stop talking about Iraq using PS2s to launch missiles. I was there… they barely had the technology to launch missiles off the backs of camels so the notion that they bought a ton of PS2s for missile launching is absurd. Makes me wonder if someone in the Bush family started the rumor.. it’s almost as absurd as the hunt for weapons of mass destruction.
Well, the articles I read don’t mention anything about any specific application. I’ll agree that the idea of using them for missile guidance is absurd, as I am relatively certain they don’t have the technology for guidable missiles in the first place. However, a super computer could be used for many different applications, military and otherwise.
I am not sure that I can completely understand your comments. Would you be so kind as to expand on your reasoning a little more before I comment.
[…] 7 Greatest Video Game Urban Legends […]
Jumping over the flagpole in Super Mario Bros is possible. It is no hoax! I have done it myself.. ONCE. And I could not reproduce it. I believe it was a glitch in the game because I kept running and the background was just a repeating castle and went no where.
There were other secrets in the game as well.. World -1 (the repeating swimming level), and shooting fireballs while you’re small. Just google Super Mario Bros tricks.
I couldn’t understand some parts of this article est Video Game Urban Legends | Kezins.com, but I guess I just need to check some more resources regarding this, because it sounds interesting.
Jump over flagpole in level 3-3
MDavis, I made quite a few comments and I find it unreasonable to ask me to expand on them without being more specific. If you tell me exactly where you’re having trouble understanding what I am trying to communicate then I would be glad to help.
It’s probably possible for a bunch of linked PS2s to be used for some kind of application. I’m just not sure if missile launching would be on the list. I know they say Iraq was restricted from purchasing certain items (such as high end computers), but we all know that’s a load of crap to a degree. I was on the ground on several occasions and assure you that Iraq was getting all kinds of weapons from northern business partners.. so I’m sure obtaining computers wouldn’t be a challenge for them.
Them not being able to buy computers is like saying you can’t buy booze in the middle east.. which some people think you can’t get there either.. but whenever money is involved, anything is obtainable for the right price.