Secret characters in fighting games have always been a beloved old-school element of the genre. In many arcade modes, people love to fight the secret bosses by not losing a single time and doing all these ridiculous requirements. The same is true for unlockable characters, with many being well hidden, and they feel great to finally be able to play.
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Unfortunately, since the age of downloadable content, secret characters have become much rarer, but still in various games with a more old-school feel. Some of these secret characters are from other franchises and are so hidden they’re not even mentioned on the game case.
Back in the day,Dead or Alivewas the bigexclusive fighting game on the Xbox brand. You can play the entire franchise on Series X|S, but one awesome element about the fourth game was the addition of aHalocharacter.
After beating Story mode with every fighter, you unlock Spartan-458.
She’s really fun to play as, and her move set would later become Rachel’s in future games. Not only is there a Halo character, but a Halo stage, and even the sweetHalo 2theme is Spartan’s battle music.
With Halo being so massive back then, it’s shocking they didn’t mention the character anywhere on the game case.
9Akuma: Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo
Akuma has actually been a secret character inmany Capcom fighting games, but nothing tops his original appearance. InSuper Street Fighter 2 Turbo, he’s both a secret boss and a secret playable fighter.
His secret boss battle is ridiculous. Unlocking the fight isn’t too bad, but even with save states, he’s brutal and can defeat you so quickly.
This aligns with how powerful he is in Versus mode because he’s actually a banned character. Akuma’s exclusive moves are not balanced toward competitive play and will wreck shop no matter what.
Being the first secret character in Street Fighter makes him notable enough, but he’s continued to be a staple fighter throughout the series.
8Reptile: Mortal Kombat (1992)
While Akuma was the first secret character in Street Fighter, Reptile was the first secret character ever in fighting games. Still one ofthe series' greatest secrets, he appeared in the very first installment.
Fighting Reptile is a bit of a Herculean task as it requires both skill and luck.
On the Pit stage, you need to have an object flying over the moon, which is actually the hardest part because it hardly ever happens. If there is one, though, perform a double flawless victory and do your character’s fatality.
After that, you can fight Reptile, who has the moves of both Scorpion and Sub-Zero. This was incredibly influential to all fighting games afterward, as a secret boss has become a fighting staple.
7Ermac: Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3
Secret characters inUltimate Mortal Kombat 3are handled a bit oddly. To unlock them, you must get a game over, and then you’ll be prompted to enter a kombat code.
This is where you put in the three codes for the three secret characters. These unlocks are tied to your specific cabinet, so you’re good to go once you unlock them all.
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You can play as Mileena and Classic Sub-Zero, which is great, but also the legendary Ermac. Similar to Sheng Long, Ermac was a secret character originally a hoax perpetuated by readers of Electronic Gaming Monthly back in the day.
In Ultimate MK3, Ermac was finally made a reality, and it was great to see.
6Mokap: Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance
Wacky secret characters are always nice to see, and Mokap from Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance was quite funny. To play as him, you need to beat Konquest mode with all the fighters in the game, and then after that, pick Cyrax whole holding Down.
This will allow you to play as Mokap, a motion capture actor.
Nobody was expecting to play as a character with a suit covered in white balls, but it was a welcome addition. It was such a novelty and funny thing back then because motion capture was a new tool in gaming at the time.
5Fred Durst: SmackDown Just Bring It
When it comes toWWEgames, there are several wacky playable characters, but a lot of them are DLC, like Arnold Schwarzenegger. In the PS2 days, though, DLC wasn’t a thing, so you get characters like Limp Bizkit lead singer Fred Durst from SmackDown Just Bring It.
To unlock him, you must beat 15 wrestlers in a slobberknocker match as the Undertaker. This is fitting as the Undertaker used Limp Bizkit’s Rollin' as his theme music during this time.
Unlocking him is quite a massive pain, but it’s worth it for the sheer novelty of seeing Durst throw down with the likes of The Rock and Stone Cold.
4Pepsiman: Fighting Vipers
Certain fighting games have regional differences, and those can be drastic. This includes exclusive characters.
Fighting Vipers is a solid 90s fighter, and still playable todayvia Xbox backward compatibility. That port is great, but it lacks one awesome element.
The Japanese Sega Saturn version has Pepsiman as an unlockable character.
For those unaware, Pepsiman was the mascot of Pepsi in Japan back in the late 90s. The Pepsiman commercials and his own PS1 game released in 1999 have received a cult following in recent times.
He’s great to play, his theme’s cool, and along with his cult status, the Japanese Saturn port is the most noteworthy version of the game.
3Shaq: UFC Undisputed 2010
Shaquille O’Neal isn’t unfamiliar to the world of fighting games as Shaq Fu remains one of the most legendary bad games of all time, and it even had its own sequel. While Shaq has an interesting history with the WWE, he hasn’t been in any wrestling game but has appeared in an MMA one.
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InUFC Undisputed 2010, you may unlock Shaq by entering a button combination on the main menu. He has decent stats, and the Wu-Tang colors of his trunks are a nice touch, considering he’s a big fan of the group.
Still, to this day, he’s the wildest secret character in an MMA title, and it’s surprising he’s not in more games.
2Owen Hart: AEW Fight Forever
Owen Hart hasn’t been in a lot of wrestling games for good reason. After his tragic death at the Over the Edge pay-per-view in 1999, he’s only appeared in a handful of games, though he has appeared in archival footage cinematics.
People thought he would never appear in a wrestling title again, but after nearly 20 years since his last video game appearance, he’s an unlockable inAEW Fight Forever.
You must play 100 exhibition matches to unlock him, which is a bit of a grind. Once unlocked, playing as Owen in a modern game is truly special.
It’s so awesome after all this time and one of the most noteworthy elements of Fight Forever.
1Master Hand: Super Smash Bros. Melee
This secret character isn’t an intended one but was for sure meant to be at some point.Super Smash Bros Meleeis one of the greatest fighting games of all time, if not the best.
The character roster was a huge jump from the N64 original, but one existed that many wanted to play. That is Master Hand, and you may play as him through an exploit.
It’s quite complicated, but it forces you to boot up a game without selecting a character on port three. You’ll play as Master Hand, and he shockingly has his own distinct move list.
It’s so cool to play as this boss and perform all his wild moves, and Melee is still the only game to feature a playable Master Hand in Versus mode.
