30 HARDEST Unlockable SECRET Characters in Video Games

30 Hardest Unlockable Secret Characters in Video Games

Welcome to MojoPlays, and today we’re looking at some of the hardest unlockable characters across video game history!

Liu Kang

“Mortal Kombat: Deception” (2004)

Liu Kang isn’t typically an unlockable character in the “Mortal Kombat” series. But “Deception” is another story. Due to his appearance as a reanimated corpse in this entry, the devs kept his inclusion secret and made his unlock method incredibly obscure. You must first complete the Konquest story mode, which is simple enough. But then, you must head to Edenia and go to Jade’s tent on Square G8, specifically at midnight between Thursday and Friday. A gold chest will appear holding a Krypt Key that unlocks the famed fighter. Of course, only if you looked up a guide would you know this exact method.

T.T.

“Diddy Kong Racing” (1997)

Much like other kart racers, “Diddy Kong Racing” includes time trials for players to test themselves against the clear times of the actual devs. Some of these courses can be pretty tough, requiring pristine knowledge and reaction time to beat each of the staff ghosts. Only if you do this for every single course will you unlock T.T., the talking stopwatch who normally serves as a non-playable ally to Diddy Kong. But seriously, completing these requires a level of perfection that most racers won’t be able to hit without a whole lot of trial and error.

Gogo

“Final Fantasy VI” (1994)

Yeah…be prepared to see Square Enix show up on this list a lot. As a mime, Gogo can mimic the moves of other party members, a very useful skill to have. But he’s one of those characters that can be easy to miss, simply because it requires doing something most players won’t think to do. Once players reach Triangle Island late in the game, you’ll be able to fight a Zone Eater. Naturally, you’ll want to kill this thing. But if you bide your time, surviving until it uses the Inhale ability on your whole team, you can then traverse its insides, where you’ll find Gogo waiting to join the party.

Aunt May

“LEGO Marvel Super Heroes” (2013)

Most LEGO games come with huge rosters. And more often than not, the hardest character to unlock is a joke one. In the first “LEGO Marvel Super Heroes,” that role belongs to Aunt May. To play as her, and gain the ability of whacking bad guys with her handbag, you must first unlock Deadpool, which is where the brunt of the work comes in. The Merc with a Mouth is unlocked after earning eleven red bricks. Not a big number, but most of these are well-hidden within specific levels and cost a TON of studs to reach. You’ll spend millions to unlock Deadpool, and still have to complete his three side quests before you can play as May.

Warthog

“Twisted Metal” (2012)

Similar to Liu Kang, the Warthog from “Twisted Metal” isn’t normally unlockable, or at least is easy to get. But in the 2012 game, Sony chose to make the recurring vehicle fairly difficult to play as. To unlock it, you have to beat Story Mode on Twisted Difficulty, naturally the hardest the game offers, while getting Gold in every single mission. That level of difficulty is already pretty challenging, and only having to do that would be bad enough. But earning Gold, essentially completing everything perfectly, makes it so much worse.

PJ

“F-Zero GX” (2003)

Despite it being over twenty years old, and part of a series that has been dead for quite a long while, “F-Zero GX” has a legacy for being one of the hardest games Nintendo has ever put out. That’s true on Normal mode, so you can only imagine what it’s like on the highest difficulty setting, Very Hard. In order to unlock PJ and his Groovy Taxi, you’ll need to beat Chapter 9 on Very Hard difficulty, which is the final chapter in the Story Mode. Like we said, most people struggle with this game in Normal mode. So, it’s no surprise that many players never got to race as PJ.

Captain Blue

“Viewtiful Joe” (2003)

Capcom knows a thing or two about making a hard game, and locking characters behind ridiculously hard methods. While this action game focuses on the titular Joe, you unlock new characters for beating the game on different difficulty levels. Unfortunately, you have to beat each one to unlock the next. For beating the game on Adults Mode, you unlock Sylvia and V-Rated Mode. For beating that, you get Alastor and Ultra V-Rated. And only once you beat this mode, you’ll get Captain Blue. But be warned, Ultra is in the title for a reason, as this mode will truly test both your skills and your patience.

Sherri

“Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together” (2011)

Joining the ranks of RPG characters with obscure unlock methods, Sherri is easily missable in “Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together.” You have to fight her in the game’s fourth chapter. And it’s likely you’ll think of her as just another boss fight on a first playthrough. Of course, you aren’t allowed to defeat her; only get her to around 10% of her total health before allowing her to teleport away. There are still a few unclear boxes to check off, though. Before progressing too far in the story, you must go to Balmamusa, only while it’s raining, with Sherri’s sister, Olivya, in your party while she’s at medium-to-high Loyalty. Only under these very specific circumstances will you trigger a cutscene with Sherri, allowing her to join your party.

Thanos (Infinite)

“Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order” (2019)

While Thanos appears in the base game of “Ultimate Alliance 3,” a much more powerful version of him with the Infinity Gauntlet was added through the “Shadow of Doom” DLC. Since you paid for it, you may as well try to get him. But clearly, that’s no simple task. You first have to beat the DLC on Superior Difficulty, which may sound like the hardest it offers…but it isn’t. Doing this only unlocks Ultimate Difficulty, which is a gigantic pain to get through. Enemies are obviously on a whole other level, swarming your team with high damage numbers. It’s satisfying to play as Infinite Thanos, with the power befitting the Mad Titan. But your worthiness will be tested.

Elwen

“Radiata Stories” (2005)

“Radiata Stories” is notorious for having some of the hardest RPG characters to unlock, even among Square Enix’s vast library. Of them all, Elwen gives players the biggest hassle. She’s only recruitable while going down the Human Path, and only after you have recruited all other members of the Theater Vancoor Guild, several of which come with their own tedious unlock methods. You can then find her at one of two different locations, during specific times of day, and challenge her to a fight. The battle is no cakewalk, either, as Elwen is at Level 60. But players will have to tough it out in order to add her to the team.

Wolverine

“Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3” (2001)

Most secret characters in the “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater” series don’t require much effort to unlock. Heck, you can easily get away with just typing in the codes that unlock everything in the game. But if you want to do things legitimately for whatever reason, “Pro Skater 3” might give you the most trouble. Unlike the other characters, Wolverine comes with a lengthy, time-consuming requirement to unlock him. You’ll just have to complete the entire game with two separate characters. That’s right - every stunt, every trick, every S-K-A-T-E letter, every combo will have to be done TWICE between two different skaters. Have fun!

Ho-Oh

“Pokémon Colosseum" (2003)

In the mainline games, certain Pokémon can obviously take more effort to unlock than others. But there is no pocket monster that matches the requirements of Ho-Oh in this GameCube spin-off. The story revolves around you purifying Shadow Pokémon, which have been corrupted by the villainous Team Snagem. To even get a shot at adding this legendary bird to your team, you must first beat the game and purify all 48 Shadow Pokémon. Then, you must head to Mt. Battle with a team of your six best, and make it through one hundred fights without swapping any of them out. Only after doing all of this will you unlock Ho-Oh.

Devil

“Tekken 2” (1995)

In most fighting games, unlocking the boss as a playable character only requires you to beat the game with every character. Totally doable in just a few hours. “Tekken 2” is a special case, however, as it kind of pulls the wool over your eyes from the get go. See, the ten characters you see on the Fighter Select screen aren’t the only characters you need to beat the game with. You’re going to need to beat the game with every single unlockable character as well! In other words, you’re going to need to understand every character’s toolkit while adjusting to the game’s archaic controls. Good luck!

Squall

“Chocobo Racing” (1999)

Overall, “Chocobo Racing” is one of the easiest racing games you could play. Although, there is a tiny asterisk over that statement. See, if you just sprint through the story and play for fun, yeah, easy game. But if you want to complete the game and unlock every character, you’re going to need to race Squall on his own course, which is unlocked after beating Story Mode twice. Now, what makes this frustrating is that Squall is the most broken character in the entire game. The hero of “Final Fantasy VIII” is the only character with a power-up equivalent to “Mario Kart’s” Blue Shell. The power-up hits everyone and is completely unavoidable. Yeah, Squall is a filthy cheat.

Morrigan & Nakoruru

“Capcom vs. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000 Pro” (2000)

There are a ton of unlockable characters in fighting games that require you to beat the game with every character. And we’d be remiss to not include “Capcom vs. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000 Pro” because of the sheer size of the roster. Would you believe that Morrigan and Nakoruru are hiding among this huge cast? In order to access these legendary fighters, you will need to beat the entire game with every Capcom character to unlock Morrigan and every SNK character to unlock Nakoruru. Think you have the time to tackle the ladder with more than thirty characters?

Deva

“Baldur’s Gate III” (2023)

“Baldur’s Gate III” hides a wealth of powerful summons to aid you in battle, but there is one summon very few players managed to find during their initial playthrough. Remember how annoying Devas were to fight? Well, you can turn that around by summoning a Deva of your own! In Act Three, there is a fake wall in the vault of Sorcerous Sundries that can only be reached by crossing an invisible bridge. “Baldur’s Gate III” does not hint at this possibility in any way, shape, or form, meaning the only way you would ever acquire the summon is if you were testing every corner of every area you entered. Best to look up a guide for this one.

Stormtalon

“Ghost Master” (2003)

In case you have never heard of this game, “Ghost Master” was a hidden gem of a PC game where you utilized a small troop of ghosts and ghouls to scare the denizens of Gravenville. You can even find special spooks hidden behind puzzles or, in Stormtalon’s case, special events and powers happening at very specific points. To unlock Stormtalon, you’ll have to play a scenario that takes place at Spooky Hollow. Then, summon a storm before you go using your wind and water powers to create the Distant Thunder condition. As soon as you do, Stormtalon will appear to help you haunt residents.

Junkyard Dog

“Fallout 4” (2015)

We all know the usual suspects when it comes to “Fallout 4’s” roster of companions. Piper, Dogmeat, Nick Valentine… But did you know there is one companion very few know about? It’s a second dog, too! See, every time you enter and re-enter the Commonwealth, there is one specific merchant who will spawn in a random spot somewhere in the world. So, it’s already hard enough to figure out where this guy is. Not only do you have to find this merchant, you will also need a high enough Charisma stat to pass the skill check and convince him to let you purchase his dog from him. If you can, try to just max out your Charisma before attempting to track him down and get the dog. It will be worth your time and effort.

Xavier

“Fire Emblem: Thracia 776” (1999)

One of the hardest games in the “Fire Emblem” series also has one of its toughest characters to unlock. Players are able to recruit General Xavier to their team in Chapter 18, but he can only be recruited by a specific party member, Leif. The trickier part is that eight of Xavier’s lieutenants have had their loved ones kidnapped by the game’s villain. You must free the regular folk first, and take them into battle so that they can each speak with the person they’re related to, which stops the lieutenants from attacking you. These civilians can easily be killed during the battle. And once a lieutenant joins your side, it’s also possible they’ll kill one of the others. If any one of these sixteen people die in the fight, the entire process is ruined, and Xavier is lost forever.

Vincent Valentine

“Final Fantasy VII” (1997)

Much like “Baldur’s Gate III” and the Deva summon, “Final Fantasy VII” does not give any sign that Vincent is anywhere in the game. This was one of those unlockables you either had to figure out on your own back in the day or take the word of mouth with a grain of salt. In order to recruit Vincent for yourself, you’ll need to track down the code to unlock Shinra Manor’s safe and defeat the secret boss, Lost Number. Afterwards, you’ll be able to talk to Vincent, but here’s where it gets tricky. You will need to make very specific dialogue choices or else Vincent will end the conversation. And no, you will not be able to try again unless you turn the game off without saving.

Iron Checkpoint Crate

“Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled” (2019)

When Crash Bandicoot’s first racer was remastered for the modern era, it brought together characters from across the entire franchise, including some no one expected to see. Within the main platformers, the iron checkpoint crate is exactly what it sounds like: a checkpoint. But in a post-launch update for “Nitro-Fueled,” the developer included it as a silly unlockable character. In order to earn it, you have to find all 39 hidden Beenox crates, one for each level save for the PS4 exclusive Retro Stadium. That’s already a tall order, but some of these crates are hard to find and even harder to break while barreling through courses at high speeds.

Stefan

“Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance” (2005)

There are some characters whose method of unlocking is not something the average player would ever think to do. In “Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance,” Stefan is one of the strongest fighters you can add to your party. Unfortunately, it’s highly likely that you’ll miss the chance to unlock him. He can only join in Chapter 15, and you have to unlock him on the battlefield. But that’s not the tough part. The player must have either Lethe or Mordecai step on a specific square, away from the fight, in order to speak with him. If it’s any other character, they’ll get his sword but Stefan will forever be lost.

The Forgotten

“The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth” (2014)

Although the story follows the unfortunate Isaac, there are still plenty of other characters to find. Added through an expansion, The Forgotten is a skeleton that fights with a bone club and has a laundry list of tasks in order to unlock. After defeating the first boss in under a minute, you’ll get a broken shovel. You’ll then need to survive as Mom stomps at you from above, though using your shabby prize will at least stop her from attacking in the current room. Eventually making it through a boss rush, you’ll repair the shovel. Then just keep surviving waves of enemies until you reach the Dark Room where you can dig up the Forgotten’s remains. Hope it was worth it.

Skelly

“Chrono Cross” (1999)

As you’ll see, some of the hardest characters to unlock can be found in RPGs. “Chrono Cross” features a surprising 45 possible party members and Skelly is, without a doubt, the hardest to unlock. You’ll come across his lone skull in Fossil Valley, where he’ll ask you to track down his remaining parts. You’ll then have to track down those parts across 6 different locations of its fairly large world. While it’s possible to find some before coming across Skelly, others are pretty challenging to find and hidden in obscure areas. But after bringing them all together, and watching him reunite with his Grandma back in Termina, Skelly will head out on your adventure.

Reiji Kido

“Revelations: Persona” (1996)

These days, players can simply look up guides on how to unlock characters. But in 1996, you had to follow a set of specific, obscure decisions in order to earn Reiji in the first “Persona.” You’d have to know to start the process right at the beginning, heading from the infirmary to the teacher’s lounge. Talking to a certain teacher would lead you to a classroom on the second floor, where you’d meet Reiji. From there, it took following a set path, including finding and talking to his mother only once and declining specific characters when they wanted to join. If you did any number of things incorrectly, one of the best possible party members would be lost for good.

William Bordin

“Urban Reign” (2005)

Going through the process of unlocking a character isn’t always worth it. This beat ‘em up’s story mode follows Brad Hawk, a hired muscle caught in the middle of a gang war. The villain is corrupt politician William Bordin, who is behind the city’s state and craves even more power. Players can unlock him, though it takes a lot of dedication. You have to get an S-rank on every stage, which can be ridiculously tough. There’s a number of characters and difficulty levels to consider to find the right balance so you can earn your trophy. But Bordin sucks anyway, from his stats to his attacks, so you may as well not even bother.

Zero

“Bayonetta” (2009)

In the original “Bayonetta,” you could unlock an additional Hard Mode in the form of a character named Zero. Essentially controlling the same as the main character, Zero can only handle a couple of hits before he goes down. As you might expect, unlocking him is no small feat either. After finishing every Alfheim mission, you can try your hand at a special survival chapter consisting of 51 fights. The first ten are on Normal Mode, the next 20 on Hard, and the next 20 on Non-Stop Climax. It culminates in a clash with Bayonetta herself, who has five health bars and naturally puts up a mighty fight.

The Crystalmen

“FTL: Faster Than Light” (2012)

With a procedurally generated solar system’s worth of encounters, “FTL” provides a ton of possible allies. But the Crystalmen are both the hardest to recruit and the ones most worth doing so. First, you’ll need to be lucky enough to encounter a randomized event where a distress call leads you to an asteroid field. There, you’ll find a damaged stasis pod you must get repaired at a specific facility, which holds your first Crystal crew member. Then you must wait for another random event to happen, which gets you a device that teleports you to a hidden sector. Only then will you be able to recruit more Crystalmen, who have great weapons and one of the best ships in the game.

Cloud Strife

“Final Fantasy Tactics” (1997)

Although he’s arguably the most famous “Final Fantasy” protagonist, Cloud takes a ton of work to unlock in this spin-off. Like several others, it requires following a very specific path within the story. You must have kept Mustadio in your party and completed Chapter 4, after which you must know to return to his hometown. There, you can aid his father in completing his portal device through a lengthy side quest that includes recruiting other party members and a secret boss fight. You’ll also have to have bought a flower from a girl in Sal Ghidos. Afterwards, Cloud will be summoned to this world, and he’ll join your party the next time you return. How anyone could’ve known to do all this is beyond us.

Nordom

“Planescape: Torment” (1999)

Not only does unlocking Nordom take some major outside-the-box thinking, but it takes completing an infamously tough dungeon. First, you have to buy what seems like an ordinary cube from the Curiosity Shop. Turns out this is a figurine of a Modron, one of Nordom’s mechanical race. But you can only find this out by speaking to some real Modrons or Yvana, the Galleria owner. Only then can you get a chance to solve the cube’s puzzle, which will then teleport you to a maze. This labyrinth is one of the most difficult levels the game has to offer, with plenty of strong enemies and shifting parts. Nordom stands as your prize for making it through it all.

What video game characters took you the most effort to unlock? Share your stories with us in the comments!