Video game urban legends have been around since the inception of arcade cabinets and video game consoles. There’s no doubt that you’ve heard some over the years (especially if you ever spent time on a playground as a kid), and not just the “my uncle works at Nintendo” lie that some kids enjoyed tell.
Urban legends are more than just the rumor that there was a secret code to make Tomb Raider more adult-oriented. They’re usually long stories about scary things found within games or haunted playthroughs that take a turn for the worse.
Most originate on the website creepypasta while others have circulated by word of mouth, but one things for sure, they’re spooky.
So if you’re in the mood to sleep with your head under the covers in fear tonight, then here’s a list of creepy video game urban legends. Let’s take a look.
Hell Valley Sky Tree
Mario isn’t very deep on lore or full of frights, so it’s pretty crazy when something like Hell Valley Sky Tree comes out of Super Mario Galaxy 2. This creepy sighting is quite tucked away. You can play the game multiple times and miss it.
When you enter the Shiverburn Galaxy and look to your upper left, you’ll see ominous, shadowy figures that don’t resemble anything ever seen in a Mario game before.
They can never be reached nor are they ever explained, they just watch Mario as he progresses through the stage. What’s weirder is the internal code name their files are given.
The two figures are given the name “hellvalleyskytree” and their models are actually dozens of times larger than Mario. Things don’t end there though. The figures also appear in Super Mario 3D Land under strange circumstances.
In world 4-4, if you stand at the goal post for over 30 seconds, a similar figure will appear in the background briefly before disappearing. Many think that these shadows are meant to be Kodama, Japanese tree spirits, but their origin and purpose still remain a mystery.
