Fighting games havechanged a lot over the years. Traditionally, the characters included in fighting games generally are connected to a single narrative universe (save, of course, for games likeSuper Smash BrosandPlayStation Allstars). In recent years, though, cross-collaboration between fighting games has led to a huge number of characters included in games from totally different companies.
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For a long time, cameo characters were usually secret unlocks or easily obtainable in-game. But now, modern fighting games tend to include cameos from other franchises in DLC packs. Among such cameos, these characters managed to stand out in the games where they appeared.
10Yoda – Soulcalibur 4
Yoda, thewell-recognized Jedi masterfrom theStar Warsseries, was included as a character inSoulcalibur IValongside his polar opposite Darth Vader. The two characters were originally exclusive to the Xbox 360 version of the game, but were later included with all versions.
In the game, Darth Vader and the Empire discover a source of power in theSoulcaliburuniverse through a kind of inter-dimensional portal. Yoda pursues Darth Vader in order to stop the Empire from gaining control of it.
9Link – Soulcalibur 2
TheSoulcaliburseries is rife with these kinds of appearances, with some sort of cameo in just about every entry in the franchise. InSoulcalibur 2, the Hero of Time Link from theLegend of Zeldaseries, is a playable character.
Link travels to the world ofSoulcaliburto track down a source of several disasters in Hyrule, the Soul Edge. He appears as the adult version of Link fromOcarina of Time, including the eponymous ocarina.
8Sonic – Super Smash Bros
Fans long thought that theSuper Smash Brosseries would only ever include characters from Nintendo games. Fans ofSuper Smash Bros. Meleehoped for the inclusion of several characters from other companies, though, owing to their cross-platform appeal.
InSuper Smash Bros. Brawland subsequent entries in the series, Nintendohas been way more relaxedabout including characters from other games. Sonic, Snake, and several others were introduced inBrawl,butUltimatepushed the bar even higher with its inclusion of indie game cameos.
The Spartan-458 (better known as Nicole-458 in-game) is a non-canon character who represents the Master Chief and theHalofranchise inDead or Alive4. Nicole-458 is a female spartan on a mission to investigate a space anomaly, leading her to enter theDead or Aliveuniverse.
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The character is hilarious to play due to her soaring height, which puts her far above every other contestant. Just don’t expect to get any specialHalostory details out of this cameo.
6The Terminator – Mortal Kombat X
TheMortal Kombatseries started includingcameos to other mediapretty early on, butMortal Kombat XandMortal Kombat 11turned up the dial. The Terminator makes a cameo inMortal Kombat Xas a DLC character.
Unfortunately, the character in the game is not actually voiced by Arnold Schwarzenegger. However, the model does have unique interactions and dialogue with every other enemy that references the events of theTerminatormovies.
5Rambo – Mortal Kombat X
Speaking ofover-the-top action heroesbeing brought into fighting games, the crazed Vietnam War vet Rambo was also brought intoMortal Kombat Xas a DLC character. Unlike the Terminator cameo, Rambo is actually voiced by his live-action portrayer. Sylvester Stallone lent his voice for this cameo.
Rambo’s voice lines and dialogues with every other Kombatant are some of the funniest in the game. His fatalities, though, are among the more brutal the game has to offer.
4Kratos – Mortal Kombat 2011
InMortal Kombat2011, the reboot of the franchise from a decade ago, the game included a few characters as optional DLC. Kratos, from theGod of Warseries, set foot into theMortal Kombatuniverse in this game.
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Many fans considered Kratos to be one of the more broken characters in the game upon its release. This was perhaps owing to his god-like might and determination in his own story.
3Box Art Mega Man – Street Fighter X Tekken
The box art for the originalMega ManNES game isone of the worst renditionsof a character in gaming history. Nobody expectedStreet Fighter X Tekkento include yet another crossover in the form of a render of the unnerving Box Art Mega Man.
The box art depicted Mega Man as a muscular adult straight out of the uncanny valley, partly owing to his strange body proportions. The 3D version pays homage to this Crimson Chin-looking version of the beloved character.
2Michael Jackson – Ready 2 Rumble Boxing: Round 2
The most famous pop singer of all time, Michael Jackson, received a cameo in the boxing gameReady 2 Rumble Boxing: Round 2from 2000. Appearing alongside Shaquille O’Neal, the King of Pop himself was motion captured and provided the voice for his character.
Michael Jackson is a playable character inReady 2 Rumble Boxing: Round 2. Furthermore, he also appears in every single version of the game – including the Gameboy Color version.
Battletoadsis a legendary game for its memeability and its incredibly punishing difficulty. In the fighting gameKiller Instinctfrom 2013, Rash, one of the eponymous Battletoads, was included as a cameo character.
The game also features the Arbiter from theHaloseries and General RAAM from theGears of Warseries as guest characters, rounding out a star-studded list of cameos.
