History WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes / VideoGames

* Porcelain (porcophobia?) -- [[VideoGame/MonkeyIsland Guybrush Threepwood]]. Speculated to have been caused by being hit over the head with a porcelain vase in the [[VideoGame/TheSecretOfMonkeyIsland first game]]. The developers have said they added this just as a gag - after all, who is scared of porcelain? Referenced in ''VideoGame/TalesOfMonkeyIsland Episode 1: Launch Of The Screaming Narwhal'', when you have to pick up a porcelain action figure. Guybrush grits his teeth and reassures himself "Calm down, Guybrush, it's only a little porcelain..."
* AGAIN [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid Emma Emmerich]] shows up on this list: she doesn't like sea lice at all. We also have Big Boss himself, scared of [[TheUndead vampires and zombies]]. This is a subversion in terms of the 'recurring obstacle' trope - vampires ''are'' in the series ([[NotUsingTheZWord in a]] [[OurVampiresAreDifferent form, anyway]]), but Big Boss never encounters one.
* Bald people: [[CuteBruiser May]] of ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear'' has an extreme fear of bald men, and can even sense when someone is bald, as shown during the Story Mode in XX when she runs into Dr. Faust (who, under the paper bag, is bald).
* ''VideoGame/ASeriesOfUnfortunateEvents2004'' combines several phobias at once. Violet doesn't like rats or toads and Klaus doesn't like spiders. As such, Klaus has to clear out any rats or toads he encounters and Violet has to be the one who takes care of the spiders.
* ''VisualNovel/UminekoWhenTheyCry'': Battler Ushiromiya is terrified of any vehicle that shakes when it moves, as was his late mother Asumu.
* In ''VideoGame/TheOuterWorlds'', the player can elect to take on flaws in exchange for additional skill points, many of which are phobias that inflict penalties when confronted by certain enemies or situations, including (but not limited to) acrophobia, raptiphobia, and robophobia.
* Flora, Layton's ward in the ''VideoGame/ProfessorLayton'' games, is afraid of being left alone (monophobia).

* [[ShrinkingViolet Florina]] from ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBlazingBlade'' isn't only afraid of insects, but is terrified by bows ({{justified|Trope}}, because as a flying unit, she is vulnerable to them) and suffers from a mild case of [[DoesNotLikeMen androphobia]].

* In addition to fearing sexy women (see above), [[VideoGame/DisgaeaHourOfDarkness Laharl]] is also horrified by declarations of love and positive thinking (claiming that "Eternal Love" is the worst of all. He's mostly over it by the end of the game.
* Parodied in ''Deadfall Adventures'', where James Lee Quatermain's nonhuman archnemesis is... ''[[EverybodyHatesMathematics math]]''. Naturally, he comes across not one, but two puzzles involving math -- in the Mayan numeral system, no less.

* After reaching the Empty Room in ''Maze: Subject 360'' the villain appears out of nowhere and asks which is the main character's greatest fear. You get to pick from a list which consists of nyctophobia, claustrophobia and fear of injury.
* In ''VideoGame/BaldursGateII'', the elf Aerie is claustrophobic. When the party finds that the BigBad has fled through a magical portal, one character speculates may very well lead into the Underdark, an underground world evil enough to compete with hell itself. If Aerie overhears this, she immediately freaks and makes it ''very'' clear that she doesn't want to go there. Guess where the whole of the next chapter takes place...?
* ''VideoGame/{{Evolve}}'': Bucket seems to suffer from chapodiphobia (fear of octopuses), judging by how utterly ''terrified'' he is by [[{{Cthulhumanoid}} the Kraken]], the only monster to get such a reaction from him:
-->Kraken engaged! NOT LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS!
* [[PlayerCharacter Sam]] from ''VideoGame/DeathStranding'' is afraid of [[HatesBeingTouched touch]]. He will recoil if somebody extends a hand to greet him, or even tries to sit next to him. Due to Sam being a [[BackFromTheDead repatriate]], certain touch causes him to develop rashes. With that being said, he works as a [[{{Courier}} porter]], and his job forces him to traverse the territories of ghosts called [=BTs=], that will try to grab him and pull him under the tar they produce to kill him.
* ''VideoGame/DragonQuestV'': Madchen is afraid of heights, and extreme darkness to a lesser extent. Despite this, she soldiers through all the towers and dungeons with little more than asking Daddy to hold her hand a few times.

* ''VideoGame/IHaveNoMouthAndIMustScream'': Ellen has claustrophobia and is also terrified of the color yellow. She's repressed the memory responsible for those phobias, so she doesn't know why she can't bring herself to pick up the yellow items that litter her scenario. A while into her scenario, you learn that it stems from an incident where [[spoiler:she was trapped in an elevator and raped by a man dressed in yellow]]. Shortly after you learn this, Ellen manages to overcome her fears.

* Alister, Lara Croft's NonActionGuy partner from the ''Franchise/TombRaider'' series, does not like heights. At all. They make him "positively nauseous," as he comments at one point in the Japan mission of ''Tomb Raider Legend'' where Lara is making a dangerous climb up a really tall office building.
* Blaze the Cat from the ''VideoGame/SonicRush'' series is often implied to have a fear of heights, especially when they reach [[FloatingContinent Sky Babylon]].
* Emma, Hal's sister in ''VideoGame/{{Metal Gear Solid 2|SonsOfLiberty}}'' doesn't like heights when asked about it by Raiden, but stated it's preferable to Water.
* Bartz Klauser in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyV'' has a fear of heights ever since he almost fell down from the roof of a two story house while playing hide and go seek. He reveals this the first time the party rides the wind drake, and Galuf physically hurls him onto its back. Later on, he hesitates before jumping off the relatively low height of Bal's drawbridge into the moat.
* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake'' Barret's got a fear of heights, most notably when traversing the Sector 4 underplate, which has been left in disrepair and leaving a lot of treacherous terrain dangling just over a drop hundreds of feet down. Related to this, he also dislikes ladders, not just because of the heights but the difficulty in climbing them with one arm.
-->'''Barret''': I see a console on top of that ladder. Um... a really tall ladder...
* As part of its many {{Call Back}}s to earlier ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' games, Vivi Orunitia from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'', just like Bartz, has a fear of heights stemming from falling from a great height when he was young (specifically [[spoiler:falling out of the cargo ship]].)

* Leo in ''VideoGame/AWayOut'' fell out of a tree when he was eight and has had trouble with heights ever since. As a result, whenever there's a choice involving heights (going over or under a bridge, skydiving vs walking through a jungle, etc), he'll always prefer the option that requires him to be near ledges as little as possible. [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration It even affects his side of the screen, as his depth perception gets distorted the further off the ground he gets.]]
* Margaret in ''VideoGame/RuneFactory4'' is terrified of heights. Ironically, her house exits out onto a wooden boardwalk bordering a cliff. In one event, she trips on the boardwalk and remains where she is for a time because she was too afraid to move.

* Heather in ''VideoGame/SilentHill3'' is afraid of fire. She comments that "it's scary somehow..."
** Alessa has a fear of fire for a very similar reason.

* In ''VideoGame/Diablo2'' when the Druid enters the Claw Viper Temple, he mentions he hates snakes.

* Blaze the Cat from the ''VideoGame/{{Sonic Rush|Series}}'' series is often implied to have a fear of heights, especially when they reach [[FloatingContinent Sky Babylon]].

* ''VideoGame/BornUnderTheRain'': There's the "Paralyzing Fear Of Snakes" StatusEffect, that prevents the character from acting on the party's turn. Dor when a certain character is fighting snakes. [[spoiler:Rashida]].

* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' has a shout out in the form of an NPC with a strong fear of snakes who's named Harrison Jones, which takes Franchise/IndianaJones's last name and [[Creator/HarrisonFord his actor]]'s first name.
* The last line of a journal entry in ''Vesuvia'' that mentions the discovery of a charred snakeskin is "Snakes - anything but snakes..."

* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'':
** Luigi is afraid of a lot of things, but most of all, he's deathly afraid of ghosts, Boos especially. Despite this, he has to fight ''hordes'' of them in ''VideoGame/LuigisMansion1'' to save his brother, Mario. He finally, if only mostly, overcomes this fear at the end of ''VideoGame/LuigisMansionDarkMoon'', even going so far as to [[spoiler:adopt the Polterpup as a pet]].
** Yoshi is afraid of ghost ''houses'', so he stays out of them while Mario and Luigi explore them. In spite of this, two bosses in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld2YoshisIsland'' and one in the remake are ghosts. Also in both games, one Yoshi's relay leg consists [[BornUnlucky entirely of fortresses]] while another has [[BornUnlucky all castles]].
* Yukari Takeba from ''VideoGame/{{Persona 3}}'' is also afraid of ghosts.
* When [[TheStoic Roxis]] was still a freshman during the early parts of ''VideoGame/ManaKhemiaAlchemistsOfAlrevis'', he was, er, ''traumatized'' (he was ''foaming'' at the mouth!) by Pamela, the school's resident CuteGhostGirl. Since then, [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration he would have a hard time searching for items anywhere that could possibly be haunted (ranked as Super Hard for him), which, incidentally, are ranked Super Easy for Pamela]].
* Tifa in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake'' is shown to be afraid of ghosts when the party visits the Train Graveyard (in the [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII original game]], it was just a short level but in the remake, it's a full chapter). Aerith even beckons Tifa to get behind her and hold her for comfort. Even badass former [[SuperSoldier SOLDIER]] Cloud admits "Ghosts aren't my thing" and displays reluctance to go into Train Graveyard, having to be encouraged by his female companions [[ALadyOnEachArm holding onto both of his arms]] and guiding him in.
* Luso from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTacticsA2'' revealed his fear of ghosts when the clan must defeat a group of Undead. Adelle teased him afterwards.
* Youmu Konpaku from ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' is scared of ghosts -- which is ironic, because she just happens to be [[HalfHumanHybrid half-ghost]] herself, and has a CuteGhostGirl as a mistress.
* Tear Grants from ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'' is scared of ghosts despite being a {{Kuudere}}.
* ''VideoGame/TalesOfVesperia'': Rita Mordio ''really'' hates ghost-ships.
* ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'': Naked Snake is terrified of anything involving the undead. Bats make him think of Dracula, and merely mentioning Dracula is enough to give him nightmares. Because Creator/HideoKojima loves to screw with his own character's minds, Naked Snake gets to face the ghosts of ''every person he's ever killed in the game.'' It's a little unsettling for us, the players, but it's horrific for him. In ''[[VideoGame/MetalGearSolidPeaceWalker Peace Walker]]'', there are more ghosts in some bonus levels. When Chico, a fan of cryptozoology, starts describing an optional boss as an "undead dinosaur" brought back to life by Haitian zombie-makers, Snake's phobias kick right back in and he starts trying to rationalize it as just an "ordinary" dinosaur that happens to be skeletal and immune to conventional weapons.

* Knuckles the Echidna of ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' was revealed to have this in ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2'', but he managed to overcome it [[FaceYourFears by fighting and defeating the king of ghosts,]] so [[CharacterDevelopment he doesn't mind them anymore in latter games.]]
* Chip from ''VideoGame/SonicUnleashed'', as seen in the short ''Night of the Werehog''.
* Judging from what she says about the Old Chateau (a place where Ghost Pokemon and actual ghosts lurk), Gardenia, the Eterna City Gym Leader from ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'' has this phobia. (Oddly enough, if you challenge her with actual Ghost Pokemon on your team, it doesn't make any difference.)
* ''VideoGame/HometownStory'' has its physically extremely strong female blacksmith be afraid of ghosts.
* Ringo Andou from ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyo'' is REALLY scared of ghosts. The mere sight of Yu and Rei (who are harmless and just like having fun with quizzes and puns) is enough to have her scream in terror. In an ironic twist, she discloses that she's into paranormal phenomenons.
* [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsFromZeroAndTrailsToAzure Elie MacDowell]] and [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Millium Orion]] in the ''VideoGame/TrailsSeries'' hate ghosts and do not want to be near them whatsoever. Though to be fair to them, when ghosts can and will kill you as they do in this series, there's a really good reason to be afraid of them.

* Seiji from ''VisualNovel/SpiritHunterNG'' is terrified of the supernatural, to the point that just hearing about them causes him to seize up in a way similar to an allergic reaction. Unfortunately for him, he's a main character in a horror adventure game.

* In ''VideoGame/CoffeeTalk Episode 2: Hibiscus and Butterfly'', Lucas is afraid of the dark, and when the blackout happens, he nervously darts his eyes about. Jorji asks him if he's alright, but [[ObviouslyNotFine he claims that "everything's peachy".]]

* In ''VideoGame/CoffeeTalk Episode 2: Hibiscus and Butterfly'', Lucas is afraid of the dark, and when the blackout happens, he nervously asks darts his eyes about. Jorji asks him if he's alright, but [[ObviouslyNotFine he claims that "everything's peachy".]]

* The Genesis ''Beavis and Butt-Head''. At the Turbo Mall, bring the Army recruiter a snake from the pet shop and he'll be cowering on the floor, leaving you free to take the folder on the desk[[note]]Can be used for couch-fishing--But that's a different trope[[/note]] and the ticket piece it was covering.

* Hayato in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemFates'' tries to act mature and WiseBeyondHisYears and ''hates'' being treated like a kid, but a fear of dark places is his weak point. The ''Boo Camp'' [=DLC=] (fighting Faceless monsters on a dark mountain) even has him ''in tears'' during his pre-battle quote.

** Luigi is afraid of a lot of things, but most of all, he's deathly afraid of ghosts, Boos especially. Despite this, he has to fight ''hordes'' of them in ''VideoGame/LuigisMansion'' to save his brother, Mario. He finally, if only mostly, overcomes this fear at the end of ''VideoGame/LuigisMansionDarkMoon'', even going so far as to [[spoiler:adopt the Polterpup as a pet]].
** Yoshi is afraid of ghost ''houses'', so he stays out of them while Mario and Luigi explore them. In spite of this, two bosses in ''VideoGame/YoshisIsland'' and one in the remake are ghosts. Also in both games, one Yoshi's relay leg consists [[BornUnlucky entirely of fortresses]] while another has [[BornUnlucky all castles]].

* Creepers in ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'' flee from cats and ocelots.

* Tifa in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake'' is shown to be afraid of ghosts when the party visits the Train Graveyard (in the [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII original game]], it was just a short level but in the remake, it's a full chapter). Aerith even beckons Tifa to get behind her and hold her for comfort.
** Tifa isn't alone when it comes to this phobia. Even badass former [[SuperSoldier SOLDIER]] Cloud admits "Ghosts aren't my thing" and displays reluctance to go into Train Graveyard, having to be encouraged by his female companions [[ALadyOnEachArm holding onto both of his arms]] and guiding him in.

* All playable lawyers, save Mia Fey and Athena Cykes seem to suffer from this in the ''Franchise/AceAttorney'' series: Miles Edgeworth suffers from both this, seismophobia, and claustraphobia as result of his childhood trauma -- he has a hard time on airplanes and even needs Gumshoe to fetch him books from the higher up shelves in his office. Phoenix Wright has to have Maya hold his hand when crossing a bridge and mutters "Objection" over and over to stay calm when he's near-vomiting on a ferris wheel. Apollo Justice can't ascend as much as 10 meters without starting to shiver like a dry pile of leaves, and similar to Phoenix, needs Athena to hold his hand when they're up in the rafters of a theater.

* All playable lawyers, save Mia Fey and Athena Cykes seem to suffer from this in the ''Franchise/AceAttorney'' series: Miles Edgeworth suffers from both this, seismophobia, and claustraphobia as result of his childhood trauma -- he has a hard time on airplanes and even needs Gumshoe to fetch him books from the higher up shelves in his office. Phoenix Wright has to have Maya hold his hand when crossing a bridge a bridge and mutters "Objection" over and over to stay calm when he's near-vomiting on a ferris wheel. Apollo Justice can't ascend as much as 10 meters without starting to shiver like a dry pile of leaves.

** Leonie from ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'' can't stand to even look at spiders, centipedes, or other creepy-crawlies. In her supports with Shamir, Shamir uses this fear as a tool to help Leonie improve her archery skills.
* ''VideoGame/MegaMan9'': Bees are Splash Woman's worst enemy, so her weakness is Hornet Man's weapon, Bee Chaser.

* Earthquakes (seismophobia) -- Miles Edgeworth from ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorney''. The first major crack we see in Edgeworth's stoic facade is that he turns into an absolute mess at the slightest of tremors. It's no better in ''Trials and Tribulations'', when [[spoiler: ''he passes out'' after an earthquake hits Hazakurain.]] It also extends to airplane turbulence (which can resemble tremors) and elevators. {{Justified|Trope}} in it being the result of a traumatic and tragic incident he experienced as a kid wheere he was trapped an elevator for 5 hours because of an earthquake, [[spoiler: and his father was murdered]].

* Earthquakes (seismophobia) -- Miles Edgeworth from ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorney''. The first major crack we see in Edgeworth's stoic facade is that he turns into an absolute mess at the slightest of tremors. It's no better in ''Trials and Tribulations'', when [[spoiler: ''he passes out'' after an earthquake hits Hazakurain.]] It also extends to airplane turbulence (which can resemble tremors) and elevators. {{Justified|Trope}} in it being the result of a traumatic and tragic incident he experienced as a kid.

* Rikku from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2'' freaks out when fighting the Battlesnakes screaming "[[Franchise/MetalGear Snake! Snake?! Snaaaaaaake!!!]]". [[FridgeLogic Strangely]] Riku has no problem with the Anaconda in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'' despite them being far more terrifying than the Battlesnakes.

* Lyle Smithsonian of ''Videogame/MetroidOtherM'' really hates bugs. Guess what's invaded the Bottle Ship?

* Karol in ''Videogame/TalesOfVesperia'' is shown to be petrified of them when the party visits a forest teeming with insects. In a rare show of kindness, Rita gives him a can of bug spray, which becomes a skill called 'Bug Busters' for him.

* ''Franchise/MetalGear'': Naked Snake has a fear of bats, and (by extension?) Dracula.

* Creepers in ''Videogame/{{Minecraft}}'' flee from cats and ocelots.

* [[PlayerCharacter Clementine]] from ''VideoGame/TheWalkingDead'' is afraid of dogs from [[VideoGame/TheWalkingDeadSeasonTwo season two]] onwards, due to a bad experience with a homeless dog who [[spoiler:tried to maul her to get the canned beans she was eating]]. She can overcome it in [[VideoGame/TheWalkingDeadSeasonFour season four]], if she keeps seeking out interactions with [[TeamPet Rosie]], a pitbull living in the Ericson's boarding school.

* The Dahaka from ''VideoGame/PrinceOfPersiaWarriorWithin''. [[spoiler: There's even an alternate ending where you [[{{KillItWithWater}} kill it with the Water Sword.]]]] Also, any sand monster in this game loathes water. Strangely, the ones in the [[{{VideoGame/PrinceOfPersiaTheSandsOfTime}} prequel]] can be fought in ponds.

* [[VisualNovel/UminekoWhenTheyCry Battler Ushiromiya]] is terrified of any vehicle that shakes when it moves, as was his late mother Asumu.

* [[ShrinkingViolet Florina]] from ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemElibe Fire Emblem 7]]'' isn't only afraid of insects, but is terrified by bows ({{justified|Trope}}, because as a flying unit, she is vulnerable to them) and suffers from a mild case of [[DoesNotLikeMen androphobia]].

* Bald people: [[CuteBruiser May]] of ''Franchise/GuiltyGear'' has an extreme fear of bald men, and can even sense when someone is bald, as shown during the Story Mode in XX when she runs into Dr. Faust (who, under the paper bag, is bald).

* According to the Drama CD of ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear XX'', Zappa is terrified of dogs (then again, he seems to be scared of ''everything''). Guess what? One of the ghosts possessing him takes the form of a huge, hulking black dog.

* Bald people: [[CuteBruiser May]] of ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear'' has an extreme fear of bald men, and can even sense when someone is bald, as shown during the Story Mode in XX when she runs into Dr. Faust (who, under the paper bag, is bald).

* Mike from ''VideoGame/UntilDawn'' hates birds calling them "rats with wings" after one bird startles him to the amusement of his girlfriend Jessica.

-->'''[=GLaDOS=]:''' [[AC: AAGH! BIRD! BIRD! KILL IT! It's evil!]]

-->'''Wheatley:''' AAH! BIRD, BIRD, BIRD, BIRD!

* The Spelunker from ''VideoGame/{{Spelunky}}'', being kind of an Indiana Jones {{expy}} hates snakes, too. Doesn't really seem to stop him, though.

* Lesley Lopicana in ''VideoGame/MitsumeteKnight'', a SpiritualSuccessor of ''Tokimeki Memorial''. She's an {{Expy}} of Ayako, but unlike her where the origins of her fear were never explained, we get to know how Lesley got this fear of water (long short story - that you can read in the game's [[Characters/MitsumeteKnight Character Sheet]], - it's due to a Childhood Trauma).

* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake'' have Barret's got a fear of heights, most notably when traversing the Sector 4 underplate, which has been left in disrepair and leaving a lot of treacherous terrain dangling just over a drop hundreds of feet down. Related to this, he also dislikes ladders, not just because of the heights but the difficulty in climbing them with one arm.