History GeniusBonus / VideoGames

* Similar to a reference further down, ProfessorLayton happens to have a colleague called Dr. Avogadro. Not only is the latter named after a famous Italian physicist, but the name sounds similar to "Abogado", which means Lawyer in Spanish and Filipino.

* ''VideoGame/{{Diablo}} II'': The first game featured a type of high-level demonic enemy called the Balrog. That is, there were several {{palette swap}}ped variants, and the most powerful ones were called Balrogs, but the type they all belonged to was also called Balrogs. That's just an obvious Creator/JRRTolkien reference. But in the next game, while some enemies are still called Balrogs, the broader type they belong to is now "Megademon". Since "bal" in Sindarin means something like "might" (Quenya: "vala", cf. the Valar, Tolkien's "gods"), and "rog" means demon, "Megademon" is a stylistically odd but direct translation of "Balrog".

** When [[spoiler:Legion]] hacks a rocket turret during their loyalty mission, one of the possible random comments is "Executing sudo command." 'Sudo,' short for 'superuser do,' is a {{Linux}} command that allows an admin to give certain users temporary admin privileges. (Even more hilariously, in the early stages of that mission, [[spoiler:Legion]] informs us that [[spoiler:Geth]] do not use windows.)

* The music for one of the nastier dungeons in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'' uses a slowed-down version of the opening of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dies_irae "Dies irae,"]] the best-known of Gregorian chants, as its bass line. Since it's an ominous chant about the Day of Judgment, it's rather appropriate.
** Some secondary villains on the first disk are called The Black Waltzes. Zidane guesses there are only three of them because of the name. The Waltz is performed at three beats to the measure.

* ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' gives Snake some baffling dialogue during Sniper Wolf's death scene - first, telling her that the reason she's called Wolf must be because she is a Kurd, and second, apparently randomly informing us of the Yupik word for 'Wolf'. This only makes sense if you know that the Turkish words for wolf (''kurt'') and Kurd (''Kürt'') are extremely similar, though nothing else in the game informs us of this - by telling her the Yupik word for "wolf" (which is completely different from "Kurd"), he's trying to suggest that as she is dying in Alaska, Yupik territory, she is dying as a ''wolf'' rather than as a Kurd. If you don't know this, it comes off as complete nonsense.

** There are other music bonuses in ''Abyss'' on top of that. In ''Franchise/TalesSeries'' games you're normally limited to carrying around fifteen of each healing item. In ''Abyss'' it's extended to sixteen. Why? In everyday life, we like things rounded into fives and tens. But in music, it's (usually) simplest when things are in four - 4/4 time, for example. So the game rounds it to a multiple of four instead of a multiple of five. Another one occurs when you open the menu and realize it's decorated with musical staves.

* The English translator for ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'' is also a writer for Website/SomethingAwful. So for fun, he subtly slipped in a few references that a meme-savvy gamer might catch, such as the line "[[http://www.amazon.com/My-Tank-Fight-Zack-Parsons/dp/0806527587 My Pokemon is fight!]]".

* One of the Adjab Dunes puzzles in ''Main/ScribblenautsUnlimited'' is a reference to Zeno of Elea's "Achilles and the Tortoise" paradox.

** The phrase "Bunch of taffers in this city" is used in multiple missions in ''Thief 2''. Since "taffer" is the [[UnusualEuphemism all purpose curse word]] in the series, and the city is always referred to as [[CityWithNoName "The City"]], this hearkens strongly to the oft-repeated "Bunch of savages in this town" line from {{Clerks}}.

* One early puzzle in ''Hidden Expedition 6: Smithsonian Hope Diamond'' involves putting the correct heads on a collection of "American Legend" bobblehead dolls. Alongside such better-known figures as Washington, Lincoln and Eleanor Roosevelt, we have one [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harriet_Quimby Harriet Quimby]].

* ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' gives Snake some baffling dialogue during Sniper Wolf's death scene - first, telling her that the reason she's called Wolf must be because she is a Kurd, and second, apparently randomly informing us of the Yupik word for 'Wolf'. This only makes sense if you know that the Turkish words for wolf (''kurt'') and Kurd (''Kürt'') are extremely similar, though nothing else in the game informs us of this - by telling her the Yupik word for "wolf", he's trying to suggest that as she is dying in Alaska, Yupik territory, she is dying as a ''wolf'' rather than as a Kurd. If you don't know this, it comes off as complete nonsense.

** Oboro's crab is pointing to a just-so story among the IJN sailors that the ship's funnel was often invested by crustaceans. So does Bismark with a certain black cat.

* The codes contained in the readme file to ''VideoGame/SpookysHouseOfJumpScares'' which allow you to skip to a particular room are written in binary. Luckily, the same file also contains an URL to decode these codes. [[AdvancingWallOfDoom Specimen 7]], the area leading up to it, and the cat's CrypticConversation is simply full of MindScrew, but it starts to make sense once you realize it's all references to [[UsefulNotes/CarlJung Jungian psychology]].

* In ''VideoGame/LegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky'', a particular character has a pet gyrfalcon. Only people knowledgeable in falconry and/or medieval history will understand the symbolism of this: [[spoiler:gyrfalcons were traditionally given to kings. Or, in this case, a princess in disguise.]] Rarely is foreshadowing so subtle.

* General Pepper from the ''VideoGame/StarFox'' series. Think about it. If you don't get it, here's another clue for you all: in the ''ComicStrip/StarFox comic in ''Magazine/NintendoPower'', Fara asks why Pepper didn't do something. His answer? "I was [[Music/TheBeatles only a sergeant then...]]"