Video games have consistently gained popularity around the world. Some of the most popular video games are filled with violence, sexual scenes, drug use, and other mature situations, earning the game a ban or censoring in several nations. However, some games have received a country-wide ban for shocking reasons. Here are ten video games that are surprisingly banned around the world.

Related: 10 Video Game Secrets We Wish We Never Found

10 Crash Bandicoot 2 (Japan)

It’s hard to believe that Crash Bandicoot would have content that was so unsuitable that it would be banned, but it was in one country. Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back was banned in Japan for a death animation. In the game, Crash is squashed into a stunned, floating head with feet. Seems harmless, but Japan stated that it resembled the Kobe child murders, which was a series of child killings that occurred in Kobe, Japan.

The game was initially banned by Japan, but the developers didn’t want to cause any controversy and decided to alter the animation for the Japanese version of the game. The Japanese version of the game shows Crash redesigned to appear less aggressive and cuter. There were also other small changes to make the game more lighthearted for Japanese gamers.^[1]

9 The Guy Game (United States)

The Guy Game, released in 2004 by TopHeavy Studios, was a trivia game that allowed up to four players to complete multiple-choice questions and mini-games. While all of this is going on, there is filmed live-action footage of bikini-clad women on spring break. Players are trying to accumulate points that go toward the Flash-O-Meter, which progressively removes censorship of women exposing their breasts. Sure, it’s not a game you wanted your mom to know about, but the gameplay is warranted for a ban, right?

Footage for the game was filmed on South Padre Island during spring break in 2003. They went around trying to pay women to expose their breasts for the camera, and the footage was used for the video game. A guy playing the video game discovered his underage sister topless during gameplay, and the discovery led to a lawsuit against the game.

The unidentified woman gave producers a fake identification card and inconsistent information for media release. She sued the developers and publishers for breach of privacy and emotional distress. The lawsuit led to a temporary injunction against any further distribution, which led to TopHeavy Studios ceasing further sales of the video game.^[2]

8 Mass Effect (Singapore)

Mass Effect is a video game about a civilization that is threatened by an advanced machine race better known as the Reapers. The action role-playing game was originally released in 2007 for the Xbox 360. It debuted at #6 on the video games sales chart in the United States, and it also won several awards, including Best RPG at the IGN Best of 2007 Awards and Game of The Year by the New York Times. Even though the game was a huge hit, censorship kept it off the shelves in Singapore.

The video game had an optional subplot that allowed the player to develop a relationship with a non-player character. If the relationship grew stronger, scenes would show sexual activity with partial nudity. Singapore was the only nation that had a problem with the game and banned the game for same-sex love scenes between a human woman and an alien female. The Singapore Media Development Authority later reversed its decision and allowed the game to be released with an M18 rating.^[3]

7 Pokémon Go (Iran)

Pokémon Go introduced a new generation to the popular franchise while bringing nostalgia to old fans. The game makes you a trainer, and you must get out and be active to try to “catch ’em all.” The game was new and exciting in so many ways, but one country had one major issue with the mobile video game.

Iran made the decision to ban Pokémon Go due to unspecified security concerns. Iran’s High Council of Virtual Spaces believed the game’s usage of maps and geolocation data presented a security issue for the people of the country. Other countries and cities around the world have expressed their concerns with the game, but Iran was the first country to place a ban on the game.^[4]

6 Football Manager 2005 (China)

Football Manager 2005 was released in 2004 as a football (or soccer for Americans) management simulation video game. Players take the reign of a professional football team and try to coach them to a championship by managing team finances, signing new players, and giving the team pep talks. The game is supposed to simulate the real-world management of a team. What could be so controversial about a sports management game?

China found out that Taiwan and Tibet were listed as separate countries in the game, which led to a country-wide ban. They believed the game’s content was harmful to the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. SEGA announced that a Chinese version would be released with Taiwan included as part of China. The game went on to earn excellent reviews from most critics and gaming sites, including an 89 out of 100 by both GameRankings and Metacritic.^[5]

5 Animal Crossings: New Horizons (China)

Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a social simulation game for the Nintendo Switch and is the fifth game in the Animal Crossing series. Players live on a deserted island and work to develop a town as they progress. The game is pretty chill as players walk around and catch bugs, water plants, and try to build a peaceful town, but China somehow found a reason to ban the game.

Players in the game have the ability to create custom graphics and meet up with other players virtually. Some banners created by users included images of the Chinese President and phrases such as “Free Hong Kong.” Images such as these are considered offensive and led to the country-wide ban.^[6]

4 Pokémon (Saudi Arabia)

Pokémon took over the world in the ’90s with the hit TV show, trading cards, and Game Boy video games. Their products made their way to store shelves all around the world… except in Saudi Arabia. The country stated that the games promote Zionism and involve gambling. The religious authority claimed that the video game and trading cards contain un-Islamic symbols, including the star of David.

It was compared to gambling due to the competition that involves money being exchanged between card collectors. The franchise has been critiqued by several other countries with partial bans and censoring. Nintendo released a statement saying that they didn’t create any symbols with religion in mind, and they promised to investigate all claims.^[7]

3 EA Sports MMA (Denmark)

MMA can be a brutal sport as two fighters rip into each other, leaving blood pouring into the ring. When EA Sports MMA was released in 2010, Denmark decided to place a ban on the game, but not for the bloody violence.

Denmark decided to not allow the release of the video game due to the marketing of energy drinks. Their law prohibits the marketing of energy drinks. EA decided not to change the product placement of energy drinks on fighters’ shorts and in the ring, but instead, they decided not to release the game at all in Denmark.^[8]

2 The Sims 4 (Uzbekistan)

The Sims 4 is a life simulation game that allows users to create characters, build homes, and live in a world full of imagination. The game features mild violence and gore, mild drug use, mild sexual situations, and some intense scenes, earning it a T for Teen rating in the United States. These features were more than enough to earn a ban from Uzbekistan.

Uzbekistan banned The Sims 4, along with 33 other video games, for distorting values and threatening stability. The games are believed to be used to propagate violence and threaten security. Their government also didn’t want these games to distribute false information about the country’s history and culture. The ban is also a result of their government trying to keep young people away from “destructive” influences.^[9]

1 Mario Kart Tour (Belgium)

The last game you would think to find on this list is a first-party Nintendo game, but somehow Mario Kart Tour found a way to earn a ban. Belgium made the decision to ban the video game due to loot boxes that did not comply with local gambling regulations. Players could spend real money on loot boxes without knowing the contents of the loot boxes, which is associated with gambling in Belgium.

The Netherlands joined Belgium in banning the game unless the company selling them has a gambling license. The Norwegian Consumer Council also called the loot boxes manipulative and exploitative. Nintendo even faced a lawsuit in the United States after a young gamer claimed the loot boxes encouraged addictive behavior just as gambling. Nintendo made the decision to remove loot boxes from Mario Kart Tour in 2022. Who knew that Mario Kart could rev up so much controversy.^[10]

In the heat of video game competition, people will do strange things and may even act violently. Sometimes, they don’t think before they act. Other times, people are already violent and use video games as a means to let out their aggression.

This is certainly not exclusive to video games. But as a relatively new medium, they have come under extreme scrutiny in the media due to the violence portrayed in many games.

However, most media—from books to movies—was analyzed by the public when first introduced. The more unfamiliar something is, the more frightening it can be. In the same way, the more immersive media has become, the more concerned people have felt over its effect on the human mind.

10 Pavel Mateev

A 15-year-old Russian boy named Pavel Mateev was quite fond of video games. Some might say he was addicted to them. Or at least that’s what Russian new sites claimed after Mateev seemingly inflicted fatal wounds to his own head with a chainsaw after losing at a computer game. Apparently, Mateev spent several hours at the computer at a time playing the game that his mother had bought for him.

Russia has several “death groups” that try to convince young teens and children to commit suicide while playing video games. So investigators are currently looking into whether Mateev was goaded into committing suicide. According to reports, he went into his yard, “switched on a chainsaw, and sawed off his own head.”^[1]

9 David Katz

David Katz was a 24-year-old man from Baltimore, Maryland, who was participating in a “Madden NFL 19” video game tournament in Jacksonville. According to the authorities, Katz pulled a gun and opened fire on the other tournament goers after he lost.

He murdered two innocent men—22-year-old Elijah Clayton and 28-year-old Taylor Robertson—and injured several other people before turning the gun on himself. Authorities said that Katz intentionally targeted the competitive gamers because he walked past other patrons without shooting them.^[2]

The tragic event was broadcast on Twitch.

8 Tyrone Spellman

“I’ve been doing this 13 years, and this is one of the few cases that’s ever left me at a loss for words. There’s never a good reason for [murder], but this is just the pettiest of reasons,” said prosecutor James Berardinelli.

Tyrone Spellman was a 27-year-old man living with his children and girlfriend in 2006. He was playing video games when his one-year-old daughter Alayiah Turman was crawling around on the floor and pulled down his Xbox console.

Spellman flew into a rage and beat the infant in the head five times. He cracked her skull in several places, which resulted in her death. Spellman was charged with murder and sentenced to the maximum 22.5–45 years in prison. Initially, he had confessed to the police. Later, he said that his statement was coerced and that he was trying to protect his partner, Mia Turman.^[3]

7 Johnathan Fair

Johnathan Fair was babysitting four-year-old Skylar Mendez for his girlfriend. When Skylar died under his watch, her family had an autopsy done. It revealed that she had been brutally beaten to death.

The 19-year-old Fair claimed that the toddler had just hit her head, but he also admitted to shaking her hard. He took her to the hospital after she passed out. Skylar died a few days later.

Fair was charged with murder and is currently being held on a $5 million bond. Authorities stated that they believe Fair beat the child because she spilled juice on his Xbox. If convicted, he could face 60 years to life in prison. Fair’s defense attorney, Sam Amirante, stated that his client “will be acquitted [when] the real facts come out.”

The family set up a GoFundMe page for Skylar’s funeral expenses. On the page, her family stated, “Our beautiful niece Skyler only 4-year-old had a tragic accident. At her early age, God had called for her. Unfortunately for a tragedy like this, we were not financially prepared.”^[4]

6 Alexandra Tobias

Alexandra Tobias and her three-month-old son, Dylan Lee Edmondson, were living together in Jacksonville, Florida. Dylan started crying while Alexandra was playing FarmVille which caused Alexandra to fly into a rage. She picked up the baby and started shaking him violently. Then she went outside and enjoyed a cigarette before going back inside to shake the baby again.

He was later taken to the hospital for his head injuries. There, he passed away from head trauma.

At first, Alexandra told the police that Dylan had fallen and hit his head after the dog knocked him off the couch. The police didn’t buy it, and Alexandra was arrested. She pled guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 50 years in prison.

The judge presiding over her trial said, “He who is the most defenseless among us was murdered by his own mommy. And why? Because he was crying during a game of FishVille or FarmVille or whatever was going on during Facebooking time that day.”^[5]

5 Chuang

Chuang, an 18-year-old living in Taiwan, had booked a private room at a Taiwan Internet cafe to play the game Diablo 3 for the next 40 hours. He didn’t eat and fell asleep at his table. An attendant woke him. Chuang stood up and took a few steps before collapsing on the ground. He was taken to the hospital and declared dead soon after arriving. It is believed that he had suffered from a blood clot after sitting for so long.

Afterward, a spokesman for the game developer Blizzard stated:

We’re saddened to hear this news, and our thoughts are with his family and friends during this difficult time. We don’t feel it would be appropriate for us to comment further without knowing all of the circumstances involved. While we recognize that it’s ultimately up to each individual or their parent or guardian to determine playing habits, we feel that moderation is clearly important and that a person’s day-to-day life should take precedence over any form of entertainment.^[6]

4 Patricia Waible

Patricia Waible, a nurse’s aide at a VA hospital, was responsible for checking up on Vietnam vet Bill Nutter. He had heart problems that put him at high risk for cardiac arrest. He could barely whisper after a surgery, he had both legs amputated due to diabetes, and he suffered from neuropathy in his hands. As a result, he couldn’t press a call button.

Waible was supposed to look in on him hourly, but she spent hours playing video games instead. She never looked in on Bill even once. After his death, Waible was transferred to a job in the cafeteria. Later, she was suspended with pay. A criminal investigation was opened on the VA hospital after multiple families came forward, suspecting the hospital of mistreating or neglecting patients.

“My dad might not have lived another five months, who knows? But if we could have had another month with him—this lady took that away,” Bill’s daughter stated.^[7]

3 Kim Jae-beom And Kim Yun-jeong

Kim Jae-beom and Kim Yun-jeong were a couple who had met in an online chat room. After the birth of their daughter, Kim Sa-rang, whose name means “love” in Korean, the couple began to frequent Internet cafes for up to 10 hours at a time. During this time, the infant would be left almost completely unsupervised, although the couple would drop by occasionally to give the infant powdered milk.

Kim Yun-jeong began to notice that her daughter was losing weight but didn’t do anything about it. The couple came home one day after a 12-hour gaming session to find Kim Sa-rang dead.^[8]

They reported her death to the police. The officers immediately became suspicious due to the three-month-old’s malnourished body. Kim Sa-rang had weighed 2.9 kilograms (6.4 lb) when she was born. When she died, she was 2.5 kilograms (5.5 lb). The couple was arrested and pleaded guilty to negligent homicide.

When asked if he had anything to say, the father responded, “I think of our baby in Heaven. I will be guilty until the day I die.”

2 Hsieh

In an Internet cafe in Taiwan, a 32-year-old man called Hsieh booked a room in 2015. Hsieh was a regular at this cafe. According to his family, he would disappear for days at a time.

When staff at the Internet cafe saw Hsieh lying down, they initially thought he was sleeping. But he had actually been dead for several hours. He was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. It is believed that Hsieh experienced cardiac arrest caused by exhaustion.

An Internet cafe attendant told reporters: “Hsieh was a regular customer here and always played for consecutive days. When tired, he would sleep facedown on the table or doze off slumped in his chair. That is why we were not aware of his condition in the beginning.”^[9]

1 Malik Terrell

Malik Terrell was a 21-year-old man living in Milwaukee. Terrell’s brothers believed that 15-year-old Dennis King had conspired with another boy to steal their video game system. The siblings questioned King about their missing game system and started beating King to get him to confess.

Malik Terrell beat King over the head with a hammer and stabbed him in the neck.^[10] Then they used a garbage cart to move King’s body to an abandoned house and set the corpse on fire.

The 15-year-old’s family reported him missing. Just a few weeks later, King’s body was found. Malik Terrell had fled from Milwaukee to Chicago but was arrested nonetheless. He was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility for parole.

It’s no surprise that strange video games have hit the market in the past, but some of them are just downright bizarre. From the insane graphics to the unbelievable concepts, there are some weird games that are complicated to describe.

They span the time frame of video game creation—from the earliest days to modern times. A plumber who powers up with mushrooms while trying to save a princess is nothing compared to these odd ones.

10 Toilet Kids
PC Engine

Kids have all sorts of fears that they hope will never become a reality. This game starts off with one of those possible fears—being flushed down the toilet. Toilet Kids is a poo-filled humorous game that starts out with a kid waking up in the middle of the night to take a dump.

While he sits on the commode, the kid’s nightmare becomes a reality. He falls into the toilet, and the shoot ’em up game instantly begins at this point.

The kid begins flying around on some sort of a duck-shaped toilet shooting at poop-related objects. He must fight off attacks of monkeys, spiders, flies, and other animals that are flinging turds his way.

The game features four stages with different themes and bosses that must be defeated. Toilet Kids, released in 1992 exclusively for PC Engine, is full of pixelated keisters, turds, and toilet humor that makes up one weird game.^[1]

9 Sneak ‘n Peek
Atari 2600

Sneak ‘n Peek is simply a computerized version of hide-and-seek. Released in 1982, this Atari game could be played by two players or one player against the computer. One player would cover his eyes while the other found a hiding spot. Once the second person was hidden, the first had a limited amount of time to find the concealed player. When that person was found, the roles would be reversed.

The game is played in an old home with a yard and three rooms. There aren’t many hiding spots, and some of them are a bit strange. Sneak ‘n Peek can be played with fixed hiding places or variable hiding spots that will be moved each time someone enters the room. There are also two levels of difficulty to test.^[2]

It’s probably more enjoyable to just go outside and play the real version of this game.

8 Muscle March
Nintendo WiiWare

Some video games are absurd but hilarious to watch. Muscle March is one of those games. You play as one of a group of seven bodybuilders—five men, one woman, and a polar bear (yes, a polar bear)—chasing down various thieves who have stolen their protein powder. It’s already funny just thinking about it, right?

Muscle March was released on WiiWare, making it an interactive game to be used with the Wii remote and nunchuk. Your bodybuilder lines up behind three others as they chase the thief through the city.

The thief will bust through walls, and it is the player’s responsibility to make the same pose through the wall as the thief in order to continue pursuit through that hole. The other players in front of you will slowly drop out, leaving just you chasing the protein-stealing bandit.^[3]

The gameplay will speed up at this point for added difficulty. If you successfully copy the thief’s holes, you will have the opportunity to tackle the bandit and recover the coveted protein!

7 Seaman
Sega Dreamcast

The virtual pet toy fad was popular in the ’90s and featured handheld games such as Giga Pets and Tamagotchi. There was a much less popular game about virtual pet raising that also hit the market toward the end of the fad.

Seaman was released on Sega Dreamcast in 1999, and a Playstation 2 version was released in 2001 in Japan only. The goal of the game is to keep Seaman, an anthropomorphic fish with a human face, alive by interacting with its environment in different ways.

The creepy fish eventually starts talking, which is voiced by Leonard Nimoy in the English version. Players have to properly take care of Seaman’s tank, grow larvae in a different tank, and feed Seaman to keep him alive.^[4]

The game also required players to use Dreamcast’s microphone peripheral to answer questions asked by Seaman. After a short time of playing, though, Seaman will become bored and tell the user to “go away.” The creator of the game has hinted at a sequel, but no return has hit the market.

6 Sensible Train-Spotting
Amiga

Trainspotting is known as the activity of watching trains and writing down the railway engine’s numbers. It is a hobby that has been enjoyed by people in the United Kingdom dating back to World War II. The hobby is best enjoyed in person, but you also have the option of engaging in it without leaving the comfort of your home.

Sensible Train-Spotting was a simulation game released in 1995 for the Amiga console. A man with a thermos sits on a bench as several trains pass. You must spot the numbers on the trains as they roll by and match them to the numbers you already have.^[5]

That’s it—it’s that simple. The difficulty does increase as you progress through the game, but do you ever really win at a game like this?

5 Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker
Sega Genesis & Arcade

Sega released video games for the Genesis and arcades under the name of Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker. Looking back, it was made up of some fairly strange and creepy concepts. In the game, Michael has to rescue children that were kidnapped by Mr. Big. He uses Bubbles the chimp, moonwalking, and dancing to take down the bad guys.

It gets creepier: When Michael touches the children, it charges up his health. There is even a button to perform the famous crotch grab, although it serves no actual purpose in the game.

When he dances, it makes his enemies break out in a rhythmic dance routine before they die. The game is rather controversial, but you do get to jam out to some of his top hits while playing.^[6]

4 Playboy: The Mansion
Xbox, PS2, PC

Everybody wants to be like Hugh Hefner, right?

Well, you get to play him in Playboy: The Mansion . . . sort of. This game from 2005 blends social simulation with role-playing and empire building, which is similar to The Sims. The goal of the game is to build the Playboy mansion and magazine into a powerful brand.

You hire and fire journalists and photographers along with lining up photo shoots and interviews for the magazine. The quality of each component of the magazine is based on how well each person likes Hef.^[7]

Photo shoots and interviews are also only as good as the relationships those people have with Hef. The whole game really depends on how well everyone likes Hef. It’s a strange model for a game, especially coming from a company like Playboy.

3 Samurai Zombie Nation
NES

In 1999, a mysterious meteorite that crashes into the Nevada desert turns out to be Darc Seed, an evil alien with horrible powers. That’s how Samurai Zombie Nation for NES starts out, but that is only the beginning.

Darc Seed shoots magnetic rays that turn the people of America into zombies and bring the Statue of Liberty to life for his own benefit. He also gained possession of his most deadly weapon, the legendary samurai sword Shura. The great head of the samurai, Namakubi, heard about the sword falling into the wrong hands, and he sets out for the United States to defeat Darc Seed.

Namakubi has a massive head, which is why he is known as the “great head of the samurai.” He is able to shoot projectiles from his eyes and acid spit from his mouth. He also eats zombie corpses for extra points and health.^[8]

This oddly satisfying game is played over four stages with two difficulty levels. Give this strange game a try if you think you possess the strength and knowledge to reclaim the magical sword and free the Americans from evil.

2 Mister Mosquito
PS2

Ever wonder what it would be like to be a mosquito . . . well, wonder no more! Mister Mosquito puts you in the position of an adorable mosquito that must feed and store food and blood for the upcoming winter. To accomplish these tasks, you must terrorize the Yamada family who is trying to enjoy their traditional summer break at their vacation home.^[9]

The game is shown from a third-person perspective as you work to suck blood from the family. You have to be careful trying to extract the blood, though, because the family members can swat you dead.

The mosquito changes colors and size and looks cartoonishly cute, but it’s a strange concept for a game. Try not to let this game suck the blood out of you!

1 Boong Ga Boong Ga
Arcade

We’ve discussed some fairly strange games, but this is by far the craziest on the list. Boong Ga Boong Ga (aka Spank ‘Em), is an arcade game with a basic goal of punishing characters by spanking them. The game features a large screen, a fist with two fingers, and a butt with legs covered with clothes. The game was intended to make the player laugh and relieve some stress.

There are eight different players that you can punish, including the ex-girlfriend, gangster, gold digger, child molester, ex-boyfriend, mother-in-law, prostitute, and con artist. These characters can be punished by a traditional spanking or by using kancho, which is a prank where you poke a distracted person in the butt.

After the game is finished, a card is dispensed explaining the player’s sexual behavior. Small prizes can also be won if the score is high enough.^[10]

I’m just another bearded guy trying to write my way through life. Visit me at www.MDavidScott.com.

Everyone has heard of Vlad the Impaler, the notorious medieval ruler said to be the inspiration for Dracula. Countless tales are told of his penchant for impaling and torture, drinking blood, and ruling with an iron fist. How many of these stories are actual historical fact is highly debated, so this week we’re traveling to Transylvania to look at the real life of Vlad Tepes, the supposed inspiration for fiction’s most famous vampire.

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Discover more wild history on :

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Ancient Rome holds a mythic place in our imaginations. It’s the land of historical epics like Ben-Hur and Gladiator, where men in golden armor ride chariots and emperors are fed grapes in reclining chairs.

Real life in Rome, though, was quite a bit less glamorous. In a time before modern sanitation and medicine, getting through an average day was a difficult task—and far more disgusting than you could ever imagine.

Subscribe to the YouTube Channel, or read the original list here.

Discover more wild history on :

10 Strange Stories That Will Change The Way You See Charles Dickens
10 Dark Secrets Of The Ottoman Empire
10 Crazy Cures for the Black Death
10 Tiny Things That Nearly Changed History

The world of video games is an endlessly fascinating place, especially when you peek behind the curtain and learn its inner workings. Controversy is no stranger to video games, whether it’s attributed to a specific title or the people who made it. In this list, we’ll be running down some fascinating examples of various times the gaming industry was making headlines but for all the wrong reasons. 

10. The Last of Us Part II Leaks

Honestly, we could just mention the title The Last of Us Part II, end this paragraph early, and just assume the comment section is already in flames. Whether you love it or hate it, the follow-up to Neil Druckmann and Naughty Dog’s 2013 smash hit, The Last of Us, is still a point of contention for many fans. 

Not helping matters were the leaks before the game’s release back in April 2020, just two months before the game’s official release. On April 27, a leaker took to the internet and dropped over an hour of gameplay and cutscenes, spoiling some big reveals and moments from the impending sequel. These spoilers not only included the switch to the secondary protagonist of Abby partway through the game but the death of Joel as well! With these rather major reveals let loose on the web, many passionate fans quickly began voicing their displeasure with Naughty Dog’s creative choices. 

Despite Naughty Dog’s best efforts to extinguish the fire, the damage had already been done, casting a dark shadow over the once highly anticipated sequel. Despite these leaks, the game still went on to garner solid critical praise, as well as selling over four million copies in three days.

9. The Mass Effect 3 Ending

If one were to harness the concentrated rage directed at BioWare in 2012, you could probably use it to power a small country for over a thousand years. For those of you not familiar, back in 2012, the hype for the third installment of the Mass Effect series couldn’t have been more rabid. What amplified the anticipation was the “Choose your own adventure” tinted nature of the game’s ongoing narrative. From the customizable appearance of the lead character, Commander Shepard, to the way the player chooses to engage with the plot and characters, the experience is beyond immersive. 

So upon reaching Mass Effect 3’s ending and discovering that their various decisions over the past few years meant next to nothing, people were beyond disappointed and betrayed. For something this underwhelming and lazy to be presented as the finale to such a lauded franchise resulted in quite the backlash to be sure. Bloodthirsty fans look to the web to voice their displeasure, even going as far as to craft petitions for BioWare to change the ending. 

Overwhelmed by the backlash, BioWare opted to release the Extended Cut DLC, to expand on the previously released ending. While this redux did resolve some lingering plot and character threads, it still wasn’t enough to satisfy the fans.

8. The False Advertisement of No Man’s Sky

There have been many instances in the video game industry of a highly anticipated project simply not living up to fan’s expectations. A major example of this is No Man’s Sky, released in 2016, and the allegations of false advertisement thrown at it following its launch. 

For content, the advertisements of No Man’s Sky very much made it look like a next-level science-fiction game experience. Not only did the marking lead players to believe that the game would be teeming with diverse planets, wildlife, and deep exploration possibilities, as well as multiplayer functionality. Needless to say, players were very excited to play the game and explore every inch of its allegedly lavish and diverse world. 

Unfortunately, when people bought the game on its release day, they were met with a game that was a far cry from what was promised. Not only was the promised multiplayer functionality absent, but the planets in the actual game were not as diverse and immersive as initially promised. Hello Games and its founder, Sean Murray, were soon swept up in a tidal wave of backlash and criticism from the gaming community, many of whom felt cheated and lied to. It got to the point where Hello Games needed to publically address the disconnect between the marketing and the disappointing final product.

7. Star Wars Battlefront II Microtransactions

In the world of modern gaming, one of the more frustrating developments has been the genesis of microtransactions within major titles. This refers to a business model where users can purchase in-game virtual goods – such as weapons, skins, and rare items – with micropayments. This means that many players can simply buy their way to a higher level in a certain game without progressing via their skill.

Nowhere was the inclusion of this aggravating trend more prevalent than when it came to Star Wars Battlefront II, published by Electronic Arts (EA). The game was heavily predicated on a loot box system, which effectively hinged the gameplay on a pay-to-win-based mechanic. When beta players realized that buying these loot boxes was integral to progressing in the game, it wasn’t too long before the backlash began. EA even found themselves under investigation by the likes of Belgium and the Netherlands as to whether the loot box mechanic constituted a form of illegal gambling.

Eventually, EA was forced to temporarily remove microtransactions from Battlefront just before its official release. They later reintroduced a revised gameplay system wherein the loot boxes were only for cosmetic upgrades. The whole debacle served as a harsh reminder that the modern consumer, especially in gaming, won’t blindly accept predatory microtransactions in their AAA titles. 

6. The Cyberpunk 2077 Launch

Following the success of The Witcher games, hardcore gamers were ready for whatever CD Projekt Red, the studio behind them, had in store next. So when it was announced that they’d be adapting Mike Pondsmith’s Cyberpunk tabletop RPG series into their next title, fans were ecstatic. 

Despite being announced in the early 2010s, Cyberpunk 2077 wouldn’t arrive on store shelves until late 2022, the release date having been delayed several times. However, when console users, specifically PlayStation 4 and Xbox One owners, popped the game in on launch day the disappointment was almost instant. Players quickly ran into a downpour of technical problems, including crashes, low frame rates, and graphical glitches that made the game borderline unplayable for some. Additionally, players were also dissatisfied with the lack of deeper customization, the shallow NPC interactions, and the incomplete open world.

This couldn’t have fallen further from the mark of what was originally advertised, which made the game out to be a visually stunning and fast-paced gaming experience. CD Projekt Red was severely criticized for putting out a game that, from a programming perspective, was as unstable as a house of cards. Not only that but their stock price sharply plummeted following the launch of the game, even offering refunds to dissatisfied players.

5. Ubisoft Workplace Misconduct

No industry has been untouched by the Me Too movement which picked up steam in the late 2010s, especially the gaming industry. A major example of this was a major scandal in 2020 surrounding allegations of workplace misconduct within the walls of Ubisoft. Things kicked off when numerous reports began to surface regarding the toxic behavior of several high-profile Ubisoft executives and employees.

Before too long, multiple current and former female employees were coming forward with stories of mistreatment and harassment within the company. The stories ran the gamut of heinous actions, ranging from inappropriate verbal comments and behavior to several instances of assault and systemic sexism. These revelations led to the resignation or dismissal of several key figures within Ubisoft, including the chief creative officer, Serge Hascoët. Another key figure who found himself out of a job was the managing director of Ubisoft’s Canadian studios, Yannis Mallat.

Many current and former employees, publically expressed disappointment and ample frustration with Ubisoft’s lack of accountability and transparency. Following this, Ubisoft opted to launch internal investigations, as well as implement changes to foster a safer environment and a more respectful workplace culture. The whole incident stands as a harsh reminder of how grimy the gaming industry can be and what needs to be done to improve it. 

4. Rockstar’s Infamous “Hot Coffee” Mod

When it comes to controversies within the gaming world, you can always count on the Grand Theft Auto franchise to provide more than a few. The irreverent and hyper-violent crime-based action-adventure games have always had a knack for making it into mainstream news headlines. Whenever there’s a discussion about violence in video games corrupting the youth, GTA has more often than not been a poster child for that claim. 

However, the most noteworthy scandal revolving around the franchise came in the form of a minigame found in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. In 2005, following its release, players who dug into the programming made a rather raunchy discovery, a hidden minigame buried in the game’s code. The game, now referred to as Hot Coffee, allowed the player to control the main character, CJ, as he engaged in aggressive sex acts with various women. The name itself is derived from CJ’s girlfriends asking him “Do you want to come inside for some coffee?” before the minigame starts.

While some fans might’ve been entertained by this discovery, it wasn’t too long before Hot Coffee was a source of major controversy. Rockstar Games and, their parent company, Take-Two Interactive were hit with a slew of lawsuits and fines, including a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission.

3. Blizzard’s Hong Kong Controversy

To understand the 2019 Blizzard Hong Kong Controversy, we must first quickly explain the game Hearthstone, one of the company’s flagship titles. Hearthstone is a free-to-play digital collectible card game where players build decks composed of different creatures, spells, and abilities from the Warcraft universe. The game became so popular that many skilled players have gone pro, even showcasing their prowess on highly touted tournament livestreams. 

This leads us to the aforementioned controversy that began when a professional Hearthstone player, Chung “Blitzchung” Ng Wai, used said platform to signal-boost the Hong Kong protests. Blitzchung opted to wear a gas mask, a symbol of the then-ongoing protests, and shout a slogan calling for Hong Kong’s liberation during a post-match interview. This resulted in Blizzard banning Blitzchung from competitive play for a full year and revoking his prize money.

This decision kicked off an influx of outrage from fans, fellow pro players, and human rights organizations around the world. Many were incensed that Blizzard would punish a player so harshly, simply to appease the often stringent Chinese government. Blizzard soon had fans boycotting all of their game titles, as well as their employees staging walkouts and protests within their offices. Eventually, Blizzard relented and reversed the ban they’d placed on Blitzchng, even returning his prize money as well. 

2. Bethesda’s Fallout 76 Launch

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9FGaan35s0

It’s a bit hard to properly summarize just how passionate Fallout fans are about the still-ongoing post-apocalyptic game series. From its retrofuturistic style to its extremely immersive gameplay, when there is some new brewing in the Fallout universe people’s expectations are usually pretty high. So, when Fallout 76 was announced, especially following the success of Fallout 4, the anticipation train was right on track. 

So, when the game finally arrived in November 2018, you can imagine fans’ disappointment when they discovered the subpar quality of the released game. While bugs on a game’s initial launch day are to be expected, players dealt with a staggering amount of bugs, glitches, and performance issues that hindered gameplay. These issues included server instability, frequent crashes, graphics issues, and even side-missions that were broken or just flat-out unfinishable. Additionally, the game itself was just devoid of any real substance, especially compared to prior Fallout games, lacking meaningful quests, NPCs, or storylines.

In response, Bethesda, the game’s publisher, had no choice but to issue an apology, as well as address the technical issues with a series of patches and updates. Regardless of where the Fallout series goes next, this entry will likely always be regarded as its lowest point. 

1. GamerGate

Dread it, run from it, GameGate arrives all the same. Given the subject matter of this list, it was only a matter of time before we discussed one of gaming’s most volatile periods. Several years on, people are still analyzing and unpacking GameGate, the problematic online movement wherein female game developers and players were hit with targeted abuse and harassment. 

The whole thing was spurred on by allegations surrounding Zoe Quinn, a female indie game developer. It was rumored that Quinn had engaged in a romantic relationship with a gaming journalist for positive coverage of her game. Despite these claims being largely baseless, many gamers believed it and went to work on attacking Quinn online and defaming her character. From there, the whole situation only got worse, with more developers and journalists, including Anita Sarkeesian and Brianna Wu, finding themselves the target of harassment campaigns. This harassment even escalated beyond hateful online comments with reported incidents including threats of violence, and even public doxxings of private information. 

The whole thing served to highlight many of the deep-seated issues within gaming culture, including sexism, racism, and homophobia. Even now, people are still unpacking the shameful fallout of GameGate and how gaming culture can move forward and improve.

Life would be dull without the world’s weirdest moments. But sometimes, they exceed our wildest expectations. There are spooky forests that move and footage of the Moon that nobody believes. Things get weird inside a beatboxing throat and when people bite products in stores. But the most terrifying moments happen when clips show what unregulated kill-bots can do and when drones see hundreds of blindfolded people in China.

SEE ALSO: 10 Unsolved Mysteries With Creepy Surveillance Footage

10 Tom Thum’s Larynx

In 2017, Australian beatboxer Tom Thum said “Ah,” and let doctors look at his throat. More precisely, he allowed a camera to slither up his nose and down his throat. Then he made a bunch of noises so that the team could see his vocal cords do their thing. The view was not for kids, lunchtime or anyone with a sensitive stomach.

The footage of the camera going up the nose and past the soft palate was gross enough. However, for those who could keep watching, it became clear how versatile the human larynx really is. Most of the noises created by the tongue’s movements started at the top of Tom’s soft palate against the mouth’s roof. Then, twisting into freaky-looking shapes, the tissues of the larynx also moved to help form different sounds. Some squeezed like mad while others shivered, flattened, lifted or pulled. As remarkable as this design was, the footage remained far from pretty.^[1]

9 A Bite-Induced Explosion

Thanks to one man, iPhone users now know not to bite batteries. Although the logic is obvious, this customer learned his lesson the hard way. In 2018, there was a rush after Apple users realized they had to replace their batteries. Apple was giving a discount to anyone who had an iPhone 6 or any model after that. The offer came after the company admitted to slowing these devices to stretch out battery life.

Since the response was positive – a veritable stampede occurred – some people ended up on long waiting lists. Those who found the idea of waiting for weeks unacceptable turned to third-party providers. The problem with that avenue included fake iPhone batteries. This thought was apparently the main concern of the unnamed man who entered a Chinese store that sold electronics. He eventually found what he was looking for. Like some people bite coins to test their authenticity, he chomped down to make sure he was getting a genuine iPhone part. The battery exploded. Remarkably, the man was unharmed. But his dignity might suffer forever. The whole thing was caught on the store’s security camera and uploaded to the Internet.^[2]

8 Declassified Nuclear Tests

From 1945 to 1962, around 10,000 films were shot of nuclear tests. They recorded the U.S. detonating devices both underground and on the surface. Most of these reels languished for decades in high-security storage. In 2017, 6,500 were recovered by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). For years afterward, researchers battled against time to digitalize the historic footage. All of them were on the verge of decomposing beyond repair.

The Laboratory had several reasons for wanting to preserve the explosions. Apart from being an integral part of human history, some were freshly declassified and available for studies for the first time. The footage also corrected a few mistakes. Back in the day scientists had to use eyesight to measure the explosions’ fireballs and shockwaves. Most of the published measurements turned out to off by about 25 percent. While correct facts are always a joy for researchers, the greatest achievement LLNL is hoping for is that the unsettling films would discourage the future use of nuclear weapons.^[3]

7 The Slaughterbot Warning

A growing number of people, including Stephan Hawking and Elon Musk, have voiced their concern about a future that includes killer robots. They are not alone. Several organizations also exist to monitor the situation and spread awareness.

The Future of Life Institute is dedicated to protecting human life from unsavory inventors and their bots. In 2017, they released a fictional film about killer drones. The footage had a deliberate documentary or news-read feel to make the “event” more real. The 7-minute clip was graphic. It followed swarms of slaughterbots as they were released to eliminate targets like US lawmakers and political activists. The machines needed no human guidance to find these people. The hand-sized robots used real-time data mining and their own intelligence to track down their victims. Once located, the unfortunate individuals received the business end of an explosive charge.

This was not a homemade video that went nowhere. “Slaughterbots” was screened at a convention at the United Nations in Geneva. This particular meeting, called the Convention on Certain Convention Weapons, have already banned lasers designed to blind people. The hope is that the film would raise awareness about just how close we are to creating weapons that can kill on their own. Frighteningly, everything that engineers would need to make them – the desire, technology, and skill – already exists.^[4]

6 A Beached Shark Ate A Beached Whale

In 2018, a crowd formed on Ponta beach, in Mozambique. They were watching a beached whale and those trying to save it. However, all rescue attempts ceased when it became clear that the humpback was too ill to survive and the animal died shortly afterward.

Locals started to gather for their share of the meat but the sharks beat them to it. The whale’s corpse was deep enough for about 60 sharks to tear off a chunk and swim back to safety. However, it was too shallow for one particular customer. A tiger shark, measuring 4 meters (13 feet) long, grabbed a mouthful but beached itself right next to the humpback.

At this point, a diving instructor joined the crowd and started filming. The footage shows the shark thrashing next to the mutilated whale, something that frightened some of the locals so badly that they can be heard shrieking and cursing. After a few minutes, a large wave pulled the shark back into the water and ended the bizarre scene.^[5]

5 A Plane Inside A Hurricane

When a hurricane comes along, people usually get out of the way. Scientists fly into the storms. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has two planes just for this purpose. Called after the muppets Kermit and Miss Piggy, they brave the dangerous conditions to gather more information about hurricanes.

In 2018, Kermit took on Florence. Since this was one of the season’s most powerful hurricanes, the mission was very dangerous. The four-engine Lockheed WP-3D carried onboard an aerospace engineer called Nick Underwood. He managed to capture Kermit’s harrowing flight into the hurricane before the aircraft broke through to the eye of the storm. Unlike the outer chaos, the center was quiet with blue skies. Another researcher, Heather Holbach, was also filming and captured the strange beauty within the eye. The plane was surrounded by a wall of white clouds with the sun overhead.

The center might appear preferable but the real benefits are reaped from the hellish conditions surrounding it. During a flight lasting up to 12 hours, GPS cylinders are dropped into the air. The devices gather an incredible amount of data which allows for better hurricane prediction and management.^[6]

4 A Breathing Forest

[Watch the Footage Here]

In 2018, Daniel Holland shared a video on Twitter. The footage showed a forest in Quebec, with densely packed trees and a carpet of moss. However, the carpet was moving. The rising and falling looked freakishly like the forest was breathing. One of the weirdest responses on Twitter said that the heaving was caused by a giant, hidden turtle.

There was no reptile or even an earthquake tremor. When weather experts were shown the footage, they failed to get excited. This was something that creeped-out locals had already brought to their attention. The “breathing” was a result of natural forces. In particular, wind and water. The phenomenon only happens when the soil is moist enough. Usually, after a storm drops a ton of water on the forest, the tree roots become saturated and disconnected from the earth. When the wind is powerful and persistent enough, the trees are forced to one side. This toppling causes their loosened root web to lift the forest floor.^[7]

3 A Turkey Death Dance

In 2017, a Boston man encountered an eerie sight. There was a dead cat in the middle of the road. What made it so unsettling was the circle of turkeys marching around the corpse. Each bird followed the one walking in front of her. That was the other thing. All the turkeys were hens. During the film, the man can be heard to say, “This is the craziest thing I’ve ever seen.” A lot of people agreed.

At first glance, the performance looked like a creepy display of dominance. However, when bird experts viewed the tape, they came to a different conclusion. The fact that the birds were all female was a strong clue. Hens lack the formidable weight and leg spurs of males. When a predator bounds closer, females have two choices. Run like crazy or flock together with the hope that another hen gets eaten.

In this case, their curiosity got the better of them. The turkeys decided to eyeball the cat but stayed true to their flock defense. Walking around the dead animal, they could look without getting too close. However, people wanted to know why the birds kept circling. It must have clicked at one point that the dead feline was not dangerous. A turkey expert had the unflattering answer. Apparently, in this case, the instinct to follow another turkey was stronger than realizing it was time to go.^[8]

2 Mysterious Prisoners

Drones are changing the way we view the world. These nifty devices can fly over deep-sea whales, mountains and inhospitable terrains, capturing images that would otherwise be impossible or require too much effort. Drones also find things nobody is supposed to see.

In 2019, a video was posted on YouTube. Perhaps fearing retribution, whoever uploaded the footage did so anonymously. The video showed a bird’s view of hundreds of prisoners. They were shackled, blindfolded, wore identical clothing and had their heads shaved. Some clues were immediately obvious. The police offloading the men from a train were Chinese. The fact that China is known for transporting prisoners blindfolded and handcuffed added more certainty that this was happening somewhere within the country.

The captives also appeared to belong to an ethnic minority, most likely Uighurs. Currently, over a million Uighur and other Muslim minorities are held in Chinese internment and “re-education” facilities. Most of this shepherding are due to China’s anti-terrorism campaign which is being heavily enforced in Xinjiang. When experts reviewed the YouTube video, they used landmarks and the sun’s position to identify the location. They believe that the drone captured the sad crowd at a train station in south-east Xinjiang about a year before the footage was released.^[9]

1 The Moon’s Weirdest Video

This footage is so extraordinary that most first-time viewers dismiss the clip as fake. The skepticism is understandable. The video shows a mountain range with tiny human figures. Above them is the Moon, huge and hanging close to the Earth. Worse, it appears to be moving towards the planet. The footage seems fake because, you know, the people are not running away screaming. In fact, they appear oblivious to the Moon’s presence.

The video is real. In 2018, Daniel López wanted to film a “milk moon,” the first full moon in May. On that day, he set up his equipment on Mount Teide in the Canary Islands. López was separated by the people seen in the video by about 16 kilometers (10 miles). He used a powerful telescopic lens to zoom the Moon into focus. This caused the extraordinary illusion that it was moments away from crashing into the hikers below. The speed was real too but not because the Moon was hurtling towards mankind’s doom. This effect was caused by the Earth’s rotation. As the planet turned, the Moon was setting in real-time behind the mountain.^[10]

When it comes to the media we create or consume, the formats we utilize to do so are just as important as the content itself. As the decades have passed we’ve seen video technology evolve time and time again to better suit the needs of the current consumer. This does mean that, as time passes, formats that were once thought to be cutting edge have become defunct and thrust into the scrap heap of history. These are some examples of video formats that, for one reason or another, are now obsolete. 

10. VHS (Video Home System)

When you think of antiquated video formats, among the first that people immediately think of are VHS tapes. When the format first hit the scene in the 1970s, few could’ve imagined how it would change people’s media consumption and even filmmaking. At one time, the concept of watching a full movie in your own home, let alone a copy you could own, was unthinkable but it was now a concrete reality. 

In the 1980s, the home video market exploded, with video stores of all types and sizes springing up all over the place. This only continued into the 1990s, with many films seeing a second wind of revenue from their home video release on VHS. The format also allowed many filmmakers on the independent level to circumvent major studios and self-distribute their work. 

However, as is the case for all the formats on this list, the reign of VHS would eventually come to an end. It wasn’t long before Digital Compact Discs, AKA DVDs, and On-Demand streaming replaced VHS tapes as the dominant home media format. Nowadays, VHS is remembered fondly by those nostalgic for a simpler time when all you had to worry about was rewinding your video rental before returning it.

9. Betamax

Whenever something becomes popular, there will usually be something hot on its heels with the intent of dethroning it. Apple has Samsung, Coca-Cola has Pepsi, and for a decent window of time, VHS tapes and Betamax were lunging for each other’s throats. 

Launching in 1975 by Sony, Betamax hit the market just a year before VHS did, even boasting superior video and audio quality. By the early 1980s, Betamax had carved out a sizable market share for itself, dominating an impressive percentage of the then-booming videocassette market. However, before too long it became clear that, despite their superior audio-visual quality, there was one area in which VHS soundly defeated Betamax. That was the ability to record more content on a single videotape, making it more desirable for home consumers and amateur filmmakers. 

Additionally, while Betamax was solely owned by Sony, VHS had a more open licensing model, meaning that other companies to make their own VHS tapes and players. Compounding matters was the fact that major film studios were shifting their focus to solely distributing their movies on VHS. This all eventually led to Sony shuttering the Betamax format in 1993, officially waving the white flag in their war against VHS. 

8. Video8/Hi8

Keeping with Sony for another entry, let’s talk about another one of their defunct video formats, specifically Video8, later known as Hi8. Over the last few decades, the advent of home movies has only developed in terms of their technology and user convenience. However, long before you could record your child’s first day of school or a family reunion on your iPhone, you needed a consumer-grade camcorder. 

This is where Video8 enters the picture, billed as a compact and affordable option for the average consumer to capture life events on video. Video8 was promoted for having a convenient size, as well as its impressive video quality, both of which were superior to other formats at the time. The format stuck around for a good while following its introduction in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but eventually began a steady decline. Sadly, Video8, as well as its successor Hi8, just couldn’t keep up with the rise of MiniDV and other digital recording formats. 

The switch from analog to digital simply made things easier for video consumers, offering far more convenience and overall quality. Unsurprisingly, by the early 2000s, Sony had discontinued the production of Video8/Hi8 camcorders, making the format officially defunct.

7. LaserDisc

When it comes to disc-based video formats, the first ones people think of are DVDs with many forgetting their original predecessor. That would be LaserDisc, originally released in 1978 and advertised as the next leap forward in home media technology. 

The format resembled a DVD but was the size of a vinyl record and required a special LaserDisc player for people to watch them. This larger size allowed for not only immensely superior video and audio quality when compared to VHS but also additional bonus features and director’s commentary tracks. These factors made LaserDisc a favorite of avid collectors and cinephiles of the 1990s who wanted the best possible version of their favorite films. However, while the format had many advantages, its shortcomings were simply too great to ignore, resulting in its downfall. 

Unlike VHS tapes, the cumbersome size of the LaserDiscs made them rather awkward to store and easy to damage. Additionally, much like a vinyl record, if you were watching a particularly long movie, you’d need to take the disc out and flip it. All of this, plus the heftier price tag attached to them, resulted in the LaserDisc remaining as a niche product, never able to replace VHS. Nowadays, LaserDiscs are remembered only by hardcore video format collectors and by those entranced by the oddities of past decades. 

6. MiniDV

During the late 1990s and early 2000s, the video market was dominated by home camcorders that made use of MiniDV tapes. They were the compact tapes that one would load into a camcorder to record footage, making the video equivalent of audio cassette tapes. A favorite of amateur videographers, filmmakers, and journalists, MiniDV was popular due to its image quality and affordability. 

The early 2000s was by far the peak of MiniDV, with the format being the go-to choice for independent filmmakers and filming family events. It was also one of the first formats that allowed for easy footage transfer to most home computers, making digital editing a breeze. If you dig through your attic or basement long enough, you’re bound to find a couple of dusty MiniDV tapes lying around. 

However, technological progression eventually came for MiniDV, with their major death blow being camera capabilities being built into modern phones. With the like of the iPhone hitting the scene, spending additional money on tapes to film a family event was no longer necessary. Additionally, more modern cameras were pivoting over to using SD cards which could store far more footage than MiniDV. By the mid-2000s, the format’s popularity had declined immensely with the format going fully obsolete by the 2010s. 

5. VCD (Video CD)

It should be clear by now that the 1990s was a pivotal time for the home video market, especially with digital formats quickly replacing analog ones. Various companies were racing to develop the format that would eventually unseat VHS tapes as the dominant format, resulting in some fascinating developments. We already mentioned the rise and fall of LaserDiscs, but around the same time, there was another disc-based format looking to break through known as VCD.

Video CD AKA VCD debuted in the early 1990s and could hold up to 74 minutes of video and audio. The format attained solid success in Asia mostly due to its affordability and compatibility with most CD players. The VCD format also proved to be a perfect way to distribute the music videos of various solo and group performers. 

Sadly, when DVDs made their debut, the days of the VCD quickly became numbers for a litany of reasons. Whereas VCDs could only fit 74 minutes of content, DVDs could hold far more content, as well as boasting vastly superior audio-visual quality. While the format stuck around for a while, particularly in Asia, the advent of DVDs, Blu-Ray discs, and online streaming proved to be the final nail in the coffin of VCDs.

4. D-VHS (Digital VHS)

A big trend on this list has been formats that failed in the pursuit of defeating and dethroning VHS tapes as the dominant video format. Another example of one of these failed formats was Digital VHS AKA D-VHS, which was built to capitalize on the growing HDTV market. The product was predicated on its ability to record HDTV broadcasts, as well as showcase movies, in their desired high quality. Unfortunately, this trait proved insufficient as soon as DVDs, and later Blu-rays, hit the scene and revolutionized the home video market.

Despite the best efforts of those behind it, D-VHS wasn’t able to keep up with the trajectory of the business and the ever-evolving tastes of consumers. DVDs simply offered better video and sound quality, as well as the ability to store more content like commentary tracks and special bonus features. 

Add to that, the lack of movies available on D-VHS greatly limited the format’s appeal to consumers. There was also the high cost of the D-VHS tapes, as well as the video player itself, which made it difficult for the format to break through. Had DVDs not emerged at the end of the 90s, then the format might’ve had more of a fighting chance for prolonged mainstream success. 

3. U-matic

We now turn our attention to professional and broadcast venues to discuss an oft-forgotten video format known as U-Matic. U-Matic tapes were introduced by Sony in the early 1970s and served as the next major step forward in professional video production. Due to its high video quality and portable size, the format quickly became the standard for the television industry. It also helps that the format was extremely user-friendly, as well as compatible with the editing systems of the time which greatly assisted production workflow. U-Matic tapes were also used for dallies on various films, including the first rough cut of Apocalypse Now, with the film’s raw version surviving on U-Matic tapes.

Unfortunately, once Betacam and VHS came around during the mid-1980s, U-matic tapes began their rapid descent into obsoletion. Between Betacam’s superior picture quality, as well as the affordability of VHS, the writing was pretty much on the wall for U-Matic. By the time the 1990s came around, the format had finally fizzled out, no longer the industry standard regarding television production. The U-Matic stands as yet another prime example of a video format that was eventually phased out in favor of a then-superior technology. 

2. DVCPRO

Panasonic, best known for its various electronic consumer products, unleashed DVCPRO back in the mid-1990s. The format offered both high-quality video and audio recording in a sturdy tape format, making it a desirable format for those in professional video production. 

Following its debut, broadcasters, filmmakers, and many others quickly adopted DVCPRO, making it the industry standard for quite a while. A major advantage of the format was how when recording audio it would prevent audio drifting, meaning the sound and viduals would be perfectly synced. Additionally, its durable quality made it perfect for outdoor filming, especially field production when it came to sports like football. 

However, DVCPRO soon had competition in the form of digital recording technologies like P2 and XDCAM, both of which offered very enticing features of their own. They both benefitted from the advent of solid-state media, which is a type of computer storage media that stores data electronically and has no moving parts. This technological leap forward led to both formats boasting faster workflows, and higher capacities, making them perfect for fast-paced video production. By the time the mid-2000s came around, countless broadcasters and video production outlets had pivoted away from tape-based formats like DVCPRO, cementing its obsolete status. 

1. 8mm Film

Our dive into the realm of obsolete video formats concludes by going back to the 1930s and the creation of 8mm film. Introduced by Eastman Kodak, the format’s compact size and user-friendly quality made it the definitive choice for small productions and capturing family events on film. From there, 8mm film became the gold standard, even developing new and improved versions along the way, like Super 8mm.

Subsequent updates like this offered improved sound quality and enhanced image quality, promising only the best for capturing birthdays, vacations, and everyday moments. Bear in mind, this was long before the average person had a camera phone or even a disposable camera in their pocket. However, as we’ve learned throughout the list, no format can remain on top forever, especially as technology evolves and consumer demands change. 

Case in point, when VHS and consumer camcorders came around in the 1980s and 1990s, formats like 8mm were quickly becoming obsolete. It’s not hard to see why, as VHS and other formats simply offered more convenience for users and higher audio-visual quality. When the early 2000s arrived, 8mm was largely defunct, only utilized in niche markets by filmmakers and artists looking to capture an old-school aesthetic.

The world is an amazing place, sometimes more so than we ever imagine. We are living in a Golden Age for those who are interested in scientific phenomena.

See Also: 10 Jaw-Dropping Videos Of Amazing Scientific Phenomena

No longer do you have to get your hands dirty in a smelly lab or trek into unknown regions to witness something wonderful. You just have to start up your computer and watch a video of it. Here are 10 phenomena worth seeing and the scientific theories behind them.

10 Prince Rupert’s Drops

Prince Rupert’s drops have been fascinating scientists for hundreds of years. In 1661, a paper was presented at the Royal Society of London on these strange objects that look like glass tadpoles. The drops are named after Prince Rupert of the Rhine, who first introduced them to his cousin King Charles II.

Made by dropping molten glass into water, they exhibit weird properties when exposed to forces. Hit a Prince Rupert’s drop with a hammer on the bulbous end, and nothing happens. Yet with just the slightest damage to the tail end, the whole drop explodes violently. Charles had an interest in science and so challenged the Royal Society to explain the behavior of the drops.

His savants were stumped. It took nearly 400 years, but modern scientists armed with high-speed cameras were finally able to see directly how the drops exploded. A shock wave can be seen traveling from the tail to the head at around 1.6 kilometers per second (1 MPS) as the stresses inherent in the drop are released.^[1]

When the Prince Rupert’s drop is made in the water, the outer layer becomes a solid while the inner glass remains molten. As the inner glass cools, it shrinks in volume and creates a strong structure by pulling against itself, making the head of the drop incredibly resistant to damage. But as soon as the weaker tail is broken, the stress is released, allowing the whole drop to erupt into a fine powder.

9 See Light Moving

While light is technically the only thing we see, we never see it moving. Moments after you flip a light switch, the light from a bulb has already crossed the room. So fast is light that only on the largest scales would it be conceivable that you could track its movements—until now.

Using a camera capable of taking 1 trillion frames per second, scientists have been able to create videos of light moving across everyday objects like apples and Coke bottles. Firing a laser pulse that only lasts for 1 quadrillionth of a second, the researchers could capture what amounts to a bullet of light as it passes over things.

Other teams have already improved on the techniques used to create the video above. Using a camera able to take 10 trillion frames per second, they can follow a single pulse of light rather than having to repeat the experiment for each frame.^[2]

8 Cloud Chambers

Radioactivity was first discovered when X-rays were found to be fogging photographic plates. Ever since, people have been searching for ways of observing radiation to better understand the phenomenon.

One of the earliest—and still coolest—ways was to create a cloud chamber. Cloud chambers take advantage of the fact that droplets of vapor will condense around ions. When a radioactive particle passes through the chamber, it leaves a trail of ions in its wake. As the vapor condenses on them, you can directly observe the path that the particle has taken.^[3]

Cloud chambers have been replaced today with more sensitive methods of detection, but they were vital in the discovery of subatomic particles like the positron, muon, and kaon. Today, cloud chambers are useful in displaying the different types of radiation. Alpha particles show short, heavy lines, while beta particles have longer, thinner ones.

7 Superfluid

Everyone knows what a fluid is. Well, a superfluid is like that but more so. When you stir a fluid like tea in a mug, you might get a swirling vortex. But within seconds, the friction between the fluid particles will stop the flow. In a superfluid, there is no friction. So, a stirred cup of superfluid will continue to rotate forever. Such is the weird world of the superfluids.

In a similar way, it is possible to construct fountains that will continue to jet upward without adding more energy because no energy is lost to friction in a superfluid. The most bizarre property of superfluids? They can climb out of any container (as long as it is not infinitely tall) because their lack of viscosity allows them to form a thin layer that completely covers the container.^[4]

For those wanting to play around with a superfluid, there is bad news. Not all chemicals can form superfluids. For those that do exist, they only occur within a few degrees of absolute zero.

6 Ice Wave

A frozen lake can be a haunting place. As the ice cracks, eerie pinging noises can echo across the surface. Looking down, you might be able to see animals that have become frozen and trapped. But perhaps the most amazing ability of a frozen lake is to form waves of ice that crash on the shore.

If only the top layer becomes solid when a lake freezes, it is possible for the ice on top to move. If a warm wind passes over the lake, the whole sheet of ice may begin to move. All that ice has to go somewhere.^[5]

As the ice reaches the shore, the sudden friction and stress causes the ice to shatter and build up. Sometimes, these ice waves can be several feet high and travel inland. The cracking of the crystals that make up the ice sheet gives the creation of ice waves an eerie tickling sound like thousands of glasses being shattered.

5 Volcanic Shock Wave

A volcanic eruption is just about the most powerful explosion that humans are likely to see on Earth. In seconds, energy equivalent to multiple atomic bombs can launch thousands of tons of rock and debris miles into the air. Best not to be too close when that happens.

However, some people are inquisitive about these things and will linger near an erupting volcano to record a video of it. In 2014, Mount Tavurvur in Papua New Guinea exploded. Luckily for us, people were there to film it. As the volcano blew, a shock wave could be seen traveling upward into the clouds and outward toward the observer. It broke over the boat like a thunderclap.

The explosion that produced the shock wave was probably caused by gas building up within the volcano as magma blocked its escape. The sudden release of this gas compressed the air around the volcano and produced the wave that rocketed out in all directions.^[6]

4 Volcanic Lightning

When Mount Vesuvius erupted in AD 79, Pliny the Younger observed something strange about the explosion: “There was a most intense darkness rendered more appalling by the fitful gleam of torches at intervals obscured by the transient blaze of lightning.”

This is the first recorded mention of volcanic lightning. When a thunderous cloud of dust and rock is propelled into the sky by a volcano, huge bolts of lightning can be seen dancing around it.

Volcanic lightning does not occur with every eruption. It is caused by a buildup of charge.

In the heat of a volcano, electrons can be easily kicked off an atom to produce a positively charged ion. Electrons can also be transferred by collisions between dust particles. The electrons can then attach to other atoms to make negatively charged ions.^[7]

From the different ways that the ions move due to size and speed, a buildup of charge can occur across the plume of the eruption. When the charge is sufficiently high, it will transfer from one region to another in the blisteringly fast and hot bolts of lightning seen in the video above.

3 Levitating Frogs

Each year, the Ig Nobel Prizes are awarded for research that “makes people laugh and then think.”

In 2000, Andre Geim won the Ig Nobel Prize for levitating a frog using magnets. His curiosity had been piqued when he poured some water directly into a machine with powerful electromagnets around it. The water clung to the walls of the tube, and droplets even began to float. Geim had discovered that magnetic fields could act strongly enough on water to overcome the Earth’s gravitational pull.

Before this, diamagnetic materials—those without an overall magnetic field—were thought not to interact much at all with magnetic fields. Geim moved from water droplets to live animals, including frogs. These could be levitated because of their water content and led to some bemused-looking animals in strong magnetic fields.^[8]

The sting of winning an Ig Nobel Prize was somewhat lessened when Geim won a real Nobel Prize for his part in the discovery of graphene.

2 Laminar Flow

Can you unmix a liquid?

It turns out that you can under certain conditions. If you pour orange juice into water, then it is unlikely that you will ever separate the two. But using dyed corn syrup as shown in the video above, you can. This is due to the special properties of syrup as a fluid and what is called laminar flow. This is a type of movement within fluids where layers tend to move in the same direction as each other without mixing.

This example is a special type of laminar flow, known as Stokes flow, where the fluid used is so thick and viscous that it barely allows any diffusion of particles. The mixture is stirred slowly, so it does not form any turbulence that would really mix the colored dyes together.^[9]

It only appears that the dyes mix because light is passing through the layers that contain the separate dyes. Slowly reversing the mixing brings the dyes back to their original positions.

1 Cherenkov Radiation

You might think that nothing moves faster than the speed of light. Indeed, the speed of light does seem to be a speed limit in this universe that nothing can break—as long as you are talking about the speed of light in a vacuum. When light enters any transparent medium, it slows down. This is due to the electronic component of light’s electromagnetic waves interacting with the wave properties of electrons in the medium.

It turns out that many objects can move faster than this new, slower speed of light. If a particle enters water at 99 percent of the speed of light in a vacuum, then the particle will overtake light, which only travels at 75 percent of the speed of light in a vacuum in water. And we can actually see this happen.

When the particle passes through the electrons of the medium, light is given off as it disrupts the electronic field. A nuclear reactor in water glows blue because it is flinging off electrons at such high speeds—as seen when the reactor is activated above. The eerie glow of radioactive sources is even cooler than most people think.^[10]

As we all know – whether we believe in them or not – there are hundreds of UFO sightings on record over the years. However, these sightings continue to happen all around the world today. And while most of us only hear of some of the better-known and fully investigated sightings from many years ago, some of the most intriguing have happened within the last two years alone. And what’s more, dozens of further intriguing sightings will happen in the years ahead.

Perhaps what is a bonus of the contemporary age is that most people have instant access to cameras on their phones. With that in mind, then, here are ten sightings from recent years, all of which have video footage to back them up. Make of all of them what you will.

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10UFO Caught On Video Flying Past Doncaster Airport, United Kingdom, August 2020

We will start with arguably the most recent UFO sighting on our list. It involves an intriguing piece of footage captured at Doncaster Airport in the United Kingdom. A local father and son were watching arriving airplanes when they began to film one that was approaching. However, unbeknown to the witness, he had the setting on slow motion. This meant the footage, when played, was much slower than it should have been. However, because of this, the pair were able to see a strange disc-shaped object speeding across the screen in the background.

They had not seen it with their naked eye. However, the more they viewed it, the more convinced they were that it was not a bird or a drone. Once the footage appeared online many UFO researchers were quick to state how credible the video likely was. Not least due to the straight-line motion that it moved in and the fact that it moved much too fast.

9Meadow Park Football Stadium, United Kingdom, February 2019

Perhaps what makes a UFO sighting at Meadow Park Stadium during a women’s football match in February 2020 all the more intriguing is that the game was being broadcast on television at the time. Not only did this mean that those at the stadium witnessed it (and quite possibly managed to capture footage themselves) but many witnessed the object from the comfort of their own homes. In fact, it was a viewer in London who happened to be watching the match who first spotted the strange orange orb over the stadium.

As we might imagine, there was much debate as to the credibility of the sighting. Many believed the object was nothing more than a drone in the area. If it was an alien craft, what might the reason be for it seemingly approaching a packed stadium? Might it have been there as part of an alien spying mission?

8Object The Size Of A Bus Captured Near The International Space Station, February 2020

There have been many UFO sightings captured from the live feed of the International Space Station over the years. At the end of February 2020 one of the most recent of those would unfold.

The footage – which appeared online almost immediately – shows what appears to be a “bus-sized object” enter into the frame. What’s more, it seems to be heading toward the space station itself. It would even remain in view for around 20 minutes. As with many sightings of this nature, there is a difference of opinion as to whether the strange object was an alien ship or a top-secret space vehicle of the American military or space program.

Whether it is of consequence or not, there has been no word given by NASA or the space station as to what the object might have been. Perhaps that silence on the matter should tell us all we need to know.

7Resident Captures Two Strange Objects Over New South Wales, November 2019

While on vacation in New South Wales in Australia a witness captured footage of two UFOs in the sky overhead. Some UFO researchers would claim the footage was the “clearest daylight footage” ever recorded.

What is perhaps particularly interesting is that the two UFOs are different from each other. One appears to be a disc shape, while the other is seemingly distinctly triangular. One thing we should perhaps consider – and something which will come up later in our list – is that many people claim to see such UFOs actually changing shape in midair. With this in mind, might it be that as opposed to being two UFOs of a different type they were simply captured each in a different form?

The witness would report that they watched the UFOs for around 5 minutes before they finally disappeared into the distance. The footage will undoubtedly be studied for some time to come.

6Disc-Like Object Circles Small Plane Over Spangdaheim Air Base, Germany July 2020

A particularly interesting UFO sighting was captured over a United States base in Germany (Spangdaheim Air Base) on the evening of 7th July 2020. The disc shaped object was captured flying extremely close to a small airplane making many who viewed video ask if the pilot themselves had also witnessed the strange craft. This would appear even more likely when we see that the disc-like object circle the plane.

There is much to investigate about the sighting. For example, was the plane in the region as part of an intercept mission? If so, what do the US military working out of the base know about the incident? Might it even be that the craft was, in fact, a top-secret military vehicle? Like many of the sightings on our list, there are numerous other similar incidents on record. And UFO sightings over military air bases are in abundance within the records over the years.

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5Metallic Object Hovering Over Shopping Center, Panama, Cuba, October 2019

An intriguing UFO was captured on video at just after 10 am on 9th October 2019 when an unnamed resident noticed a strange, metallic object hovering over a shopping center in Panama in Cuba. The witness, along with a friend, were driving into the shopping complex looking for a place to park. It was as they were heading directly toward it that they noticed the strange craft.

They managed to take in quite a few details of the bizarre aerial anomaly. They would claim as well as being metallic there was a strange white glow to the exterior. What’s more, there appeared to be multiple domes on top.

Many from the UFO community feel confident that this piece of footage is one of the more credible of recent years. We should also note that the video only surfaced online via the witness’s personal social media account. Many “suspect” videos are often pushed on larger and more public platforms in order to earn money from the views.

4Speeding Disc Captured By Volcano-Cam Popocatepetl, Mexico, August 2019

Without a doubt, one of the most intriguing UFO sightings captured on film in recent years took place in August 2019. Volcano-cam watching a volcano in Popocatepetl in Mexico captured what appeared to be a disc shaped object zipping past the screen. Closer examination of the speeding object appears to reveal a black dome on the top, as well as a bright light in the center. Some viewers of the footage have even claimed that the domed part could even be a cockpit of the craft.

It is certainly intriguing footage. And would appear to be something much more solid than a passing bird. As well as much too fast for a drone or other known aircraft.

We have also examined before on these very pages how mountains and volcanoes are claimed by many in the UFO community to house secret alien bases. Whether that is true or not is very much open to debate.

3Rotating UFO Caught Hovering Over The Bristol Channel, United Kingdom June 2020

At some point in early June 2020 a local resident looking out on the Bristol Channel suddenly noticed a strange “rotating object” hovering over the water. What’s more, the strange craft appeared to be near to a ship on the water.

As soon as the footage appeared online there was an abundance of theories as to what it might be. A particular split developed as to the actual shape of the apparent craft. Some who viewed the video asserted that it was most definitely disc shaped. Others, however, were equally certain the craft had triangular dimensions. There also appears to be a white light on the underside of the craft – something also associated with triangular UFOs.

The claims of the craft being triangular are particularly interesting. Many believe triangular UFOs are not the result of alien visitation but of secret military vehicles. Might this have been a case of such top-secret tests?

2UFO Captured “Soaring Away” In Cathedral City, California, January 2020

One of the most intriguing pieces of footage to find its way online in recent years came from Cathedral City in California. The video was captured by a security guard, Douglas Benefield, at a construction site on the evening of 11th January 2020.

When he submitted the video online, Benefield would state that he was merely going about his duties as he normally would do when “everything just felt weird all of a sudden”. Then he noticed something moving in the sky a little way in front of him and reached for his phone. He filmed for several seconds and then immediately watched the footage back. He was amazed to see something enter the frame and hover for a moment. The strange object would then ascend upwards with alarming speed.

He was uncertain of exactly what the object was. However, he was certain that it was a craft that was unlike anything else he had seen.

1Shape-Changing UFO, Monroe City, Missouri, June 2020

Just before midnight on the evening of 30th June 2020 in Monroe City in Missouri, a local resident was going around her home ensuring it was secure before turning in the for the evening. As she walked into her backyard, however, she saw a strange orange glowing object overhead. To begin with, it was completely motionless. What’s more, it was completely silent. After several moments, though, it suddenly began to move in a fast “zig-zag” motion. Even stranger, as it moved, it appeared to change shape.

The object remained in view for around a minute, eventually moving toward the front of the house before finally disappearing back in the direction it arrived. She managed to capture several seconds of footage of the incident, though. Incidentally, the detail of a UFO changing shape in midair is one that surfaces relatively frequently in UFO reports. Whether this is a trick played on the eye or whether it suggests a truly advanced vehicle is open to debate.

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