Video Game Rivalries

The Best Rivalries In The World Of Video Games

by Ghost Wing

Throughout the years, there have been some amazing clashes and rivalries between characters in video games. Below is a list of what are possibly the best in history so far.

1- Coming in at number one is the players versus the mobs in Minecraft. All mobs from creepers to spider jockeys, every player’s plans have been thwarted at one time or another. The reason that this pairing comes in at number one on this list is because of not only the ways mobs can cause frequent respawns, but also the destruction of structures, causing you to possibly backtrack in means of game progress.

2- Coming in at number two is GlaDos and Chell from the Portal series. To put it simply, GlaDos is an AI that runs the Aperture testing laboratories, and she wants Chell to be her labrat. Chell on the other hand prefers freedom over running through deadly test chambers for the rest of her life. While GlaDos promises a celebration and cake at the end of the test, Chell knows that the cake is a lie. GlaDos is cruel to Chell every chance she gets, from mocking Chell for lack of parents, to taunting her about not being able to leave Aperture due to defenses and tripod live ammo.

3- The rivalry that started it all… The left paddle versus the right paddle in 1972’s PONG! PONG was not only considered the first video game by many people, but also pretty much started multiplayer. And fighting games.

Therefore we have PONG to thank for all of the fights we and our friends have gotten in over video games.

4- The Imperial Legion and The Stormcloaks in Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. The Stormcloaks (The one with the blue flag as pictured below) is a group with many revolutionary thoughts and believe that Skyrim should have political independence, since it would allow the natives of Skyrim to determine the fate of their homeland. On the other side of the spectrum, The Imperial Legion (the red flag guys) believes that as a province of the Empire, Skyrim must abide by its laws and customs. Therefore it can be seen why each group opposes the other.

5- There have been many clashes in the Super Mario franchise, but the biggest one has to Mario and Bowser. Mario and Bowser have faced off multiple times in the series, as Bowser is the game’s primary antagonist. At first it was just Bowser, but then he took things to a whole other level by bringing his kids into the scene. The main thing that brings this grouping onto the list, is Bowser’s creativity and persistence to find new ways to tick off Mario and his allies, from karting to tennis.

6- Vanitas and Ventus from the Kingdom Hearts series is coming at number six. To understand this pairing though, you will need to understand part of their back story. Vanitas is Ventus’s dark side that was extracted from him, thus making Ventus a being of pure light. From this it became Vanitas’s only purpose to defeat Ventus and forge the x-blade, because it could only be formed by a clash of pure light and darkness. The fact that these two were fighting in all the games they appear in makes this one of the more powerful entries.

7- Runners vs Kruger Security/ Pirandello Kruger in the Mirror’s Edge series is the next one to arrive! As with Vanitas and Ventus, this requires some background information. First of all, runners and K-Sec/PK are organizations, not people. Mirror’s Edge takes place in a dystopian city controlled by the Conglomerate, a syndicate of 13 nationwide (and corrupt!) Corporate Houses. Runners are a group of messengers that specialize in parkour. Their primary purpose is to deliver messages and packages to clients without detection from the government. The second group, Pirandello Kruger (The name was changed to Kruger Security in Mirror’s Edge: Catalyst) is the law enforcement in the metropolis.Their job is to enforce the law (again, corrupt) against any who don’t follow. Almost everything about The Runners is illegal according to the government, therefore PK/K-Sec are the enemies of the runners, catching them every chance possible.

8- Sonic the Hedgehog and Doctor Ivo “Eggman” Robotnik is the star clash of Sega’s Sonic the Hedgehog series. As with Bowser, Eggman is extremely persistent in his means of destroying Sonic. In 1991’s Sonic The Hedgehog, the player encountered Eggman at the end of almost every level as an in game boss. Between Bowser and Eggman, you would think that Sonic and Mario would be fed up by now and lock them away for good. Apparently not.

9- The S.T.A.R.S. and The Umbrella Corporation from the Resident Evil series. The Resident Evil series is famous for it’s survival horror antics. In the first installment for playstation one, you play as either STARS (Special Tactics And Rescue Squad) members Christopher Redfield or Jill Valentine. The first game takes in the zombie infested spencer estate mansion, in which the STARS were sent in to find the missing BRAVO team, another branch of racoon city police department. However, the team is chased inside the mansion by a pack of zombie dogs. From there the player uncovers the secrets behind the incident, one of which is that the structure contains a secret facility for the Umbrella Corporation. They were the ones who created the zombies (as well as the other horrors in the mansion) as well as the fact that the rescue mission was a setup. Instead of turning to their will though, the characters rebel against them and fight umbrella as a group, even after the STARS is corrupted by umbrella. The level of hatred between these two groups alone qualifies it for this list.

10- Possibly one of the most ancient rivalries of all… The Pac Man Family Versus The Ghosts! Every since the fateful day in 1980, the ghosts have been trying to catch pacman. Of course pacman doesn’t seem to care the least about the fact that he has ghosts hunting him and his family down. Just that he has a craving for yellow crumbs.