History Main / ViralTransformation

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* In ''{{Neverwhere}}'', spending too much time with people from London Below -- or if they "go too fast" around a [[{{Muggle}} normal]]-- will make the person go out of sync with people in London Above, making them InvisibleToNormals.
* In Jeff [=VanderMeer's=] ''[[{{Ambergris}} Shriek: An Afterword]]'' a fringe historian Duncan Shriek is the only human to discover a safe method to enter the underground realm of the Graycaps under the city of Ambergris, but this involved getting an esoteric fungal infection, which would in the course of the years transform him into [[BodyHorror a man-fungus hybrid]] who could only retain human shape through constant mental effort.
** The novel also features common people getting less extreme, though still bizzare-looking fungus infections out of the fungus bombs used during the civil war. And the sequel, ''Finch'', has Partials, people who voluntarily go through this process to become akin to fungus cyborgs.

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** ''The Waters of Mars'' sees people touched with infected water turned into zombie like creatures that spray more infected water to spread the virus further.

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* In ''LostSoulsMUD'', a local implementation of NetHack's "eating a mind flayer makes you smarter" makes it so that eating the neural tissue of the vlekthid (read illithid) or gogtzul (read Star-Spawn of Cthulhu) races results in that neural tissue colonizing your own nervous system, making you smarter and less emotional, and giving you both psionic powers and often-crippling mental disorders.

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** And said nanites that can mutate anything at any given time? They're omni-present and only the titular character can effectively cure aforementioned E.V.O.s.

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->"Hey, Doctor Luce - this proteus nanovirus - isn't it supposed to, you know, go out of control infecting and transforming everyone, and like that?"
->"Of course not. Not unless you design it to. Here's how."
--> -- ''{{GURPS}}: Bio-Tech''

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* ''{{Cybergeneration}}'', a sequel to {{Cyberpunk}}, is run on the premise that a nanite infection will kill anyone over the age of 16. If you're under 16 you survive... or change.

* ''WorldEmbryo'': The process of transforming and hideously contorting into a Kanshu as both your memories are wiped away and the memories of every single person who ever knew you are wiped away is not a pretty process.
* Used in the Manga series Dragon eye, when the villains are created when the D-Virus changes them into a monster known as a Dracule. Anyone infected loses their identity and goes on a killing spree. Only a few, (about one in a hundred/thousand) have the antibody resistance that changes chance of infection from 100% to 10-0.1%.

* The "Monstar Virus, pretty much ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin, in the AmoryWars. [[spoiler: Used to turn Coheed and Cambria into "The Monstar" and "The White Ruineer" respectively.]]

* ''{{District 9}}'' This happens [[spoiler: to the main character after being sprayed with the alien "Fluid."]]
* In ''The Cave'' [[TheSymbiote symbiotes]] create [[LovecraftianSuperpower lovecraftian]] [[FlyingBrick flying bricks]].

* Rakghouls in ''KnightsOfTheOldRepublic''. They're almost a mix between zombies and werewolves - bitten people who become infected eventually transform into mindless, ravenous rakghouls. A sidequest involves finding a cure for the virus.

* Happens with necromorphs in ''DeadSpace'' hideous alien abominations whose objective it is to kill as many people as they can so that special creatures called infectors can inject the virus into their bodies and make them into more mindless necromorphs.
* ''{{Left4Dead}}'''s special infected

* Redlight and Blacklight from ''{{Prototype}}''. Played totally straight with Redlight, which transforms people into braindead, malformed husks serving [[HiveQueen Elizabeth Greene]], while somewhat subverted with Blacklight. [[spoiler:The player character, Alex Mercer is essentially a corpse reanimated by Blacklight, and although he is a {{Jerkass}} AntiHero with horrifying powers, he's significantly less evil than the real Alex Mercer was in life.]]
* The cataclysm that turned two entire towns into monsterlands in ''{{Odium}}''. Of course, the transformations into {{Humanoid Abomination}}s are a little ridiculous sometimes (apparently, one of the boss monsters used to be... two guys in a police car) and suffer from FridgeLogic (just where did these monsters get guns, anyway? Did their hands spontaneously mutate into sleek chrome miniguns?)

* The {{Paradise}} setting involves a "reality virus" that transforms humans into FunnyAnimals at a rate that doubles every year.

* In GeneratorRex when someone's (or something's) nanites activate they almost certainly become mindless killing monsters(called E.V.O.s) that try to attack anything and everything. You can also expect said monsters to be nightmarish and have a good bit of BodyHorror thrown in. And the rare E.V.O.s that retain their mind/personality/human appearence are people who you probably don't want to hang around with.(except Rex)

* {{Ravenloft}} gave us magical viruses that had symptoms like turning to stone, spontaneously combusting or developing a killer phobia.
* {{Cybergeneration}}, a sequel to {{Cyberpunk}}, is run on the premise that a nanite infection will kill anyone over the age of 16. If you're under 16 you survive... or change.

* The Eclipse infection in ''[[MagicalGirlLyricalNanoha Magical Records Lyrical Nanoha Force]]''. The good news is that, when infected, you gain powerful magic, HealingFactor, AntiMagic, [[PlotPoweredStamina inexhaustible endurance]], and a whole buttload of other stuff. The bad news is that, if you want to keep your life and sanity, [[HorrorHunger you need to keep on killing to keep the infection in check]].

Common examples of this include most forms of [[WolfMan Lycanthropy]] and [[OurVampiresAreDifferent some forms of Vampirism]]. Expect those affected by a Viral Transformation to be tempted to help friends or loved ones with an EmergencyTransformation. See also VirusVictimSymptoms.

* In ''QuakeIV,'' it's revealed that Stroggification results in ViralTransformation via cybernetic replacement of limbs. Then the subject is {{brainwashed}}.

* In ''{{Quake}} 4,'' it's revealed that Stroggification results in Viral Transformation via cybernetic replacement of limbs. Then the subject is {{brainwashed}}.

* The "Monstar Virus, pretty much ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin, in the AmoryWars.

* Towards the end of ''[[MaddigansQuest Maddigan's Quest]], it's revealed that [[spoiler:Timon was injected with a virus based on [[BigBad the Nennog's]] DNA before being sent into the past. Once activated, it begins the job of turning him into the heir to the Nennog, granting him superhuman abilities, turning him evil and making him... less than entirely attractive (but, oddly, also more flirtatious than before).]]

** ''StargateUniverse'': [[spoiler:Chloe was infected with a virus by some aliens which appears to be turning her into one of them, or something close. At first it was mental, but then ItGotWorse]]

Not related to [[TengenToppaGurrenLagann that guy named Viral]]. See also WarmBloodbagsAreEverywhere. Compare TheCorruption. A type of FaceMonsterTurn.

* In Jeff [=VanderMeer's=] ''Shriek: An Afterword'' a fringe historian Duncan Shriek is the only human to discover a safe method to enter the underground realm of the Graycaps under the city of Ambergris, but this involved getting an esoteric fungal infection, which would in the course of the years transform him into [[BodyHorror a man-fungus hybrid]] who could only retain human shape through constant mental effort.

** ''StargateUniverse'': [[spoiler:Chloe was infected with a virus by some aliens which appears to be turning her into one of them, or something close. It's mental at the moment, but the trailers show it will get worse.]]

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* ''An American Werewolf In Paris'' has both good and bad werewolves, the former being the American, the latter are "eat all humans" Parisian werewolves.

There are forces, be they biological, mystical or technological, that can infect and change a person into something-- ''[[OnceAMan else]].'' These tend to be highly contagious, spreading easily via physical contact, bite, ritual, or other means. The changes are seldom subtle, and often [[TomatoInTheMirror quite a shock]] for the victim, who will likely [[WhatHaveIBecome wonder what they have become]]. On the plus side, the Viral Transformation is usually CursedWithAwesome, giving the "victim" {{Stock Superpower}}s ''and'' [[SuperEmpowering the ability to give them to others.]]

There are forces, be they biological, mystical or technological, that can infect and change a person into something-- ''[[WhatMeasureIsANonHuman else]].'' These tend to be highly contagious, spreading easily via physical contact, bite, ritual, or other means. The changes are seldom subtle, and often [[TomatoInTheMirror quite a shock]] for the victim, who will likely [[WhatHaveIBecome wonder what they have become]]. On the plus side, the Viral Transformation is usually CursedWithAwesome, giving the "victim" {{Stock Superpower}}s ''and'' [[SuperEmpowering the ability to give them to others.]]

Not related to [[TengenToppaGurrenLagann that guy named Viral]]. See also WarmBloodbagsAreEverywhere. Compare TheCorruption.

* The Eclipse infection in ''[[MagicalGirlLyricalNanoha Magical Records Lyrical Nanoha Force''. The good news is that, when infected, you gain powerful magic, HealingFactor, AntiMagic, [[PlotPoweredStamina inexhaustible endurance]], and a whole buttload of other stuff. The bad news is that, if you want to keep your life and sanity, [[HorrorHunger you need to keep on killing to keep the infection in check]].

Common examples of this include most forms of [[WolfMan Lycanthropy]] and [[OurVampiresAreDifferent some forms of Vampirism]]. Expect those affected by a Viral Transformation to be tempted to help friends or loved ones with an EmergencyTransformation.