Another Top 10 Memes From Video Games
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Press X for more memes. Welcome to WatchMojo.com and today we’ll be counting down our picks for another top 10 memes from video games.
For this list, we’ll be looking at an additional batch of memes that got their start due to video games and gaming culture. We’ll be including them based on their popularity, longevity, and how clever they are. If you think we left some out, be sure to check out our first list of gaming memes or suggest some for a future list.
#10: The Cake Is A Lie!
“Portal” (2007)
Some memes become so widespread that they become idioms or common sayings. “The cake is a lie,” is a reference to the first “Portal” game which sees the player forced to complete a variety of puzzles by the A.I. Glados, with the promise of the aforementioned confectionary for a reward. However, writings on a wall indicate that the cake is a lie meant to motivate the people in the game. Since “Portal”’s release, the phrase has spread to appear in various images and videos, as well as becoming a shorthand way of describing a fictitious promised prize.
#9: Glorious PC Master Race
PC Gaming/ Zero Punctuation
PC gaming is generally hard to get into for casual gamers, due to the need for technical knowledge and the typically unintuitive controls. This has given it a level of elitism and arrogance that other gaming platforms don’t quite reach. The meme of referring to PC gamers as a “master race” got its beginnings in a “Zero Punctuation” review of “The Witcher,” which also jokingly referred to console gamers as peasants. Since then, the meme has spread, both among those who use the term to criticize elitism in gaming, and by those trolls who revel in it.
#8: Praise The Sun
“Dark Souls” (2011)
There is a multitude of memes surrounding “Dark Souls,” but this one is arguably its most well-known. A pose called “praise the sun” where the player character raises their arms over their head can be acquired in the game from a character named Solaire, whose obsession with the sun and light is notorious. Memes often feature Solaire in the pose or else displaying hilarious, over-the-top enthusiasm for the sun or sun-related things. The pose and the accompanying phrase have become a sort of catchphrase for the “Dark Souls” community too.
#7: Too Much Water
IGN/ ”Pokémon Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire” (2014)
As we’ve seen already, even game reviews can lead to memes. With the release of “Pokémon” remakes “Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire,” IGN released a review rating the games 7.8 out of 10, with one of the games’ downsides being cited as “too much water.” Gamers immediately took issue with the nonsensical criticism of an immutable aspect of games that are remakes and began creating videos and images of other things that they derisively rated to be less than stellar due to “too much water,” such as swimming pools or the planet Earth.
#6: Guile's Theme Goes With Everything
“Street Fighter” series (1987-)
The only musically based meme on our list, this entry is derived from the musical theme of the character Guile from the “Street Fighter” series. The song is played over various videos, usually as a form of Youtube Poop. Although many of these videos feature inappropriate or dissonant subject matter that clashes with Guile’s Theme, in most cases it turns out to be oddly fitting; even elevating seemingly mundane subject matter to epic status simply through its presence. When it can be played over both cats and Rick Astley, it really does go with everything.
#5: Another Settlement Needs Our Help
“Fallout 4” (2015)
A lot of games feature repetitive quests or missions, but few of them have gained the memetic status of the Minutemen quests from “Fallout 4.” The quest giver is Preston Garvey, whose main function in life seems to be doling out an endless supply of repetitive quests to assist settlements under attack from raiders or kidnap victims or whatever. “Another settlement” memes usually feature Garvey telling someone at inopportune times that a settlement needs help, and they’re almost as plentiful as the Minuteman’s quests. Almost.
#4: Falcon Punch!
“Super Smash Bros” series (1999-)
When Captain Falcon, a racing game character, was brought to the “Super Smash Bros” games, he didn’t exactly come loaded with a ready list of attacks to perform like other characters. So the game’s creators had to make some up. Cue the fiery, insanely badass Falcon Punch. The move is so cool and Captain Falcon’s iconic exclamation that accompanies it has become used in memes on everything from tasteless abortion jokes to inserting the audio over other hard-hitting punches in fail videos and famous movies alike.
#3: My Body Is Ready
Nintendo E3 2007
Another meme that has become a common saying, “My body is ready” was originally popularized after the phrase was spoken by current Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé at Nintendo’s E3 press conference in 2007. Since then, images featuring Reggie’s face with a somewhat creepy expression, along with the caption “My body is ready,” have been commonplace, and the phrase is often used as a catchall way to state that you are anticipating something eagerly or that you are prepared for its arrival. Reggie himself has even acknowledged the meme at a later E3 conference, in case you needed further proof of what a fun guy he is.
#2: Ugandan Knuckles
“VRChat” (2017)/ “Sonic the Hedgehog” series (2017)/ Gregzilla
Some of our entries have been weird, but none of them reach the levels of bizarreness of this one. The meme began as a result of groups of players on VRChat using avatars based on a chubby version of Knuckles from the “Sonic the Hedgehog” franchise that was originally drawn by Youtuber Gregzilla. The players then troll others by quoting memes related to Uganda, particularly the no-budget film “Who Killed Captain Alex?”, making this entry a staggering confluence of disparate, strange parts.
#1: Wasted
“Grand Theft Auto” series (1997-)
Unlike most games, the “Grand Theft Auto” franchise’s “game over” screens do not say “game over.” Instead, they say “Wasted.” Beginning with the fourth installment, death causes the screen to turn black and white and enter slow motion. Naturally, with how popular fail videos and other depictions of people injuring themselves are, a marriage of the two concepts was inevitable, and, with a little editing knowledge, easy to pull off. Whether it’s through videos of players in the games or people in real life, the meme of people getting “wasted” doesn’t seem to be going away any time soon.
