History Main / InvisibleMonsters

* One of the most frustrating missions in ''VideoGame/JakIIRenegade'' involve slaying 30 invisible Metal Heads in Haven Forest. They come in two flavours: humanoids with guns instead of hands which shoot at you from afar and keep moving all the time and big, bulky crabs with machine guns that drop their camouflage when they first spot and procceed to blast you away. The first kind make a brief return in ''VideoGame/Jak3Wastelander'', although only in one quest.

*** The Cloaked Drone guarding the Power Bombs is invisible to all of the available visors, but its stealth is ruined by muzzle flash. It also can't be scanned or locked onto. However, if you have the Wavebuster, prepare for a short fight. And, if you've been {{Sequence Breaking}}, it actually can be seen with the X-Ray Visor, which shows that TheComputerIsACheatingBastard and allowing it to periodically put up a shield.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'': Picard is abducted by an alien whose translated language comes out as gibberish to a planet where an intermittently-visible creature is stalking them. He figures out what the alien wanted, ([[spoiler:to create a FireForgedFriends scenario, much like their mythological [[MemeticMutation Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra]]]]), but too late to save him.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI'' has an invisible BonusBoss on a small island. It is [[PermanentlyMissableContent lost forever]] when the world explodes. Enemies also become invisible when they have the Vanish status effect, although they can still be targeted. This doesn't happen when your characters have the effect.

* Specters in ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'' are almost-invisible versions of the pink Demons, and are practically invisible in dark areas.
** A similar effect can be achieved in ''VideoGame/DukeNukem3D'' through the use of palette-swapping and translucency in the level editor.

* The Spy in ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2''. Cannot attack while invisible, though.

** [[https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-870 SCP-870]] is a species of bizarre creatures that can only be seen by people with schizophrenia, and they can take a wide variety of nightmarish forms such as "an alligator with spider legs and three eyes", "a man made out of smoke", "a giant ant with a human face", among others. The worst part is that it's strongly implied at the end that even schizophrenics can only see small glimpses of these creatures, implying that they're possibly interdimensional {{Eldritch Abomination}}s that we can't properly visualize. What's worse? They tend to live in densely populated areas, [[ParanoiaFuel sneakingly preying on humans for long periods of time before eating them]].

* The ''Wiki/SCPFoundation'' has a few examples of these.
** SCP - 966: a skeletal-looking monster species that hunts humans by depriving them of sleep, and can only be seen in the 700-900 nm wavelengths of light, meaning they're only visible in the ultra-violet. Inflicting second or third-degree burns renders them visible, however.
** SCP - 870: a species of creatures that can only be seen by schizophrenics, and can take a variety of nightmarish forms such as "An alligator with spider legs and three eyes, A man made out of smoke, A giant ant with a human face." among others. [[spoiler: The worst part is that it's strongly implied at the end that even schizophrenics can only see small glimpses of these creatures, implying that they're possibly {{Eldritch Abomination}}s that we can't properly visualize. What's worse? They live in densely populated areas.]]
** In the short fan-film ''WebVideo/SCPOverlord'', the team find a camera that enables them to [[SeeTheInvisible see the various invisible monsters]] that the cultists have been turned into. [[spoiler:At the end of the movie, the team escapes from the house only for the soldier holding the camera to realise they're surrounded by a giant InvisibleMonster whose tentacles are coming out of the BottomlessPits they found earlier.]]

* ''VideoGame/TheHidden'': 8 troopers vs. 1 [[DeviousDaggers invisible guy with a knife]]. The titular Hidden has ''Film/{{Predator}}''-type invisibility, but, unlike him, is entirely waterproof.

* '' WesternAnimation/GaltarAndTheGoldenLance'': In the episode ''Shadowhaunt'', the heroes get trapped in a castle where the invisible monster stalks them, they are able to see it by pour tar on it making easier for Galtar to hit it.

* Lampshaded during an argument between MadScientist Dr Zarkendorf and the alien monster D'Ork in ''Fanfic/Plan7Of9FromOuterSpace'' over whose {{Evil Plan}}s have failed more miserably. Apparently Zarkendorf invented a potion to turn D'Ork into an invisible terror in "Attack of the No-Budget Special Effect," which worked except that D'Ork couldn't see a thing because "the light passed through my entire body--including my retinas! I couldn't see a blasted thing!"

* Lampshaded during an argument between MadScientist Dr Zarkendorf and the alien monster D'Ork in ''Fanfic/Plan7Of9FromOuterSpace''.
-->"And what about the potion YOU invented — the one that was supposed to turn me into a terrifying Invisible Monster? (* see 'Attack of the No-Budget Special Effect')."\\
"That worked!"\\
"Yes you bungling brainiac, the light passed through my entire body--including my retinas! I couldn't see a blasted thing!"

** In the FanWorks/SCPFoundation short film ''SCP: Overlord'', the team find a camera that enables them to [[SeeTheInvisible see the various invisible monsters]] that the cultists have been turned into. [[spoiler:At the end of the movie, the team escapes from the house only for the soldier holding the camera to realise they're surrounded by a giant InvisibleMonster whose tentacles are coming out of the BottomlessPits they found earlier.]]

* [[TheHeartless Hollows]] in ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' could not be seen by anyone who could not [[ISeeDeadPeople see dead people.]] This lead to the first few episodes having these...things chasing people that nobody could see. Only the footprints and scenery destruction following them.
** Even those who can see dead people have trouble seeing them; you need to have a lot of dead person energy built up. Even Ichigo couldn't see them until the start of the series, and he had trouble telling the dead from the living when he was younger.
* The "Power" card from Manga/CardCaptorSakura is depicted as this. Until Sakura challenges it to a battle, it is only seen by the craters it leaves behind.
* In ''Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureStoneOcean'', the Stand Music/LimpBizkit revives the user right after death as an [[OurZombiesAreDifferent Invisible Zombie.]] [[MakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext Yeah.]] It also resurrects nearby corpses (such as a recently-dead [[RaisingTheSteaks crocodile]]) that relentlessly attack living things in search for [[BrainFood brains.]]
** And in a more broad sense, most Stands are this to non-Stand users. As a rule, Stands cannot be seen by normal people and cannot be harmed by anything other than other Stands. The Stand users, being mostly normal people (or animals) aside from their abilities, can usually be seen and harmed just as usual, however.

* ''Film/{{Supergirl}}'': The Girl of Steel fights an invisible demon summoned by the villains.

* The title creature in the ''[[Radio/QuietPlease1947 Quiet, Please]]'' episode "The Thing on the Fourble Board". It's very heavy, like it's made of rock, but completely invisible. The narrator only confirms its presence by dousing it in red paint.

* The title creature in the ''Radio/QuietPlease'' episode "The Thing on the Fourble Board".

* ''VideoGame/TheHidden'': 8 troopers vs. 1 invisible KnifeNut. The titular Hidden has ''Film/{{Predator}}''-type invisibility, but, unlike him, is entirely waterproof.

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' has the [[AmbushingEnemy invisible hand monsters]].

** And ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'' had invisible Skulltulas, which you could run into before you got the Lens of Truth.
*** However, you can still use the CameraLockOn to find them. You just can't see whether they're about to attack you.
*** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' set the precedent for invisible Skulltulas: In the hidden passage under the boulder near the tree in Jabu Jabu's area that leads to a Gold Skulltula, there are invisible Skulltulas hanging from the roof that can give an unaware player a nasty shock. There is also an invisible one hinted at by a "Danger above!" sign in Kakariko's Bottom of the Well section.
** ''VideoGame/ZeldaIITheAdventureOfLink'' has invisible ghosts in the abandoned town. Also, before you have a source of light, the caves are full of invisible enemies; passing through this is necessary to continue.
** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'' has [[spoiler:zombie rats]], detectable only when you see Midna fidgeting.
*** And the poes which are completely invisible in the day, while at night you can see their floating lantern.
*** Both of these are easily seen as a wolf while in "sense" mode.

*** Hyrule Castle has several ghosts in it that are actually non-malicious, getting close to them makes them point the way to go. Doesn't make them any less creepy.
** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'' has a group of invisible enemies directly outside the room with the item that makes them visible. Said item is intended for a few other (non-battle) purposes.

** Let's not forget Ganon in the [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZelda original game]]. He's invisible until you can shoot him with the Silver Arrows, except for a very brief period after you strike him with your sword. The only way to figure out where he is is by extrapolating from the start location of the fireballs he shoots.
** Ganon also pulls this off in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast A Link to the Past]]''. Even worse, he's utterly invincible while doing so. Good thing [[BossArenaIdiocy he doesn't try to destroy the lanterns in the room that can reveal his location when lit]].
* There are a number of enemies in the ''VideoGame/MetroidPrimeTrilogy'' that require the use of other visors to track. You usually run into at least one ''before'' you get the visor...
** That robot guarding the Power Bombs in ''VideoGame/MetroidPrime'' is an exception as it is invisible to all of the available visors, but its stealth is ruined by muzzle flash.
*** It also can't be scanned or locked onto. However, if you have the Wavebuster, prepare for a short fight (thank god). And, if you've been {{Sequence Breaking}}, it actually can be seen with the X-Ray Visor, which shows that TheComputerIsACheatingBastard and allowing it to periodically put up a shield.
** The Chozo Ghosts, which are invisible when not attacking. You need to use the X-Ray visor to see them.
** The Omega Pirate makes itself invisible when it's recharging. You need to use the X-Ray visor to see it. But just in case you weren't paying attention to the boss's recharging health bar, visible Beam Troopers show up as a distraction...
** The second form of the Metroid Prime itself occasionally makes itself invisible to the visor you're using.
** ''VideoGame/MetroidPrime3Corruption'' has the Steamlord miniboss, who is invisible most of the time until he has to revive his flunkies. It's possible to fight the last one of those after getting the X-Ray Visor, which makes the fight a lot shorter.
*** Unfortunately however, enemies using hypermode short out that visor, making those fights very annoying on the highest difficulty (where any enemy that can go into hypermode most likely will do so immediately).

* ''VideoGame/DawnOfWar'' games use a similar system to the aforementioned [[VideoGame/StarCraft Dark Templars]] to represent infiltrated units. In the classic and ''Winter Assault'' expansion, this was generally limited by disabling the unit's ability to attack. That is, until ''Dark Crusade'', which ''enabled'' attacking while infiltrated without revealing the unit. This was balanced by different races' detecting units and abilities, but it didn't diminish [[GameBreaker the cheapness of using massed infiltrators]].
** Unlike the other factions, the Necrons don't have a dedicated stealth unit... because one artifact makes every Necron unit in a wide area around the Necron Lord (including the Lord, vehicles and ''buildings'') invisible. Fun.
** ''[[VideoGame/DawnOfWar Dawn of War II]]'' fixed this by making infiltrators reveal themselves if they attack, or if they get within arm's reach of any enemy unit. This is with the exception of the super-infiltrated Cyrus, who can use his incredibly destructive array of explosives and specialist ammunition without breaking Infiltration, but will be otherwise be revealed just like any other infiltrated unit.

** ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsI'' gives us the Stealth Sneak, first as a BossBattle, then as a palette-swapped version reappearing later on in the Hades Cup. The icing on the cake is one of the latter seeds, consisting of not one but ''two'' Stealth Sneaks to carve up. These are called Sneak Armies in ''[[UpdatedRerelease Final Mix]]''. Mind you, locking onto and hitting one is not affected by whether they are visible or not. They can be detected by sight alone if you look very carefully. Their camouflage produces a "heat ripple" effect, though this is easier to see during the boss fight than during the seed match.

* ''VideoGame/SilentHillOrigins'' has invisible monsters in Cedar Grove Sanitarium. The only way to tell where they are is by the metal harness floating in midair, and the eerie person-shaped shadow they somehow cast. Oh, and by killing you in the dark.

* ''VideoGame/{{Diablo}}'' has the genuinely creepy The Unseen, which do come visible when they attack, but before that could fill the entire room without you knowing it. Fortunately, they can still be hurt while invisible, so it became standard procedure for adventurers, when opening a new door, to spray the room with arrows, just in case. If you hear a "splorch" sound, keep firing.
** Due to a bug in the level generation routine, they do not respect the safe zone around the entrance. So when you just arrived in the level and you are gathering your bearings, casting {{Mana}} Shield, checking item durability, etc., they could be ''[[RightBehindMe right behind you]], getting closer''. And if this is multiplayer mode, your gear is now on the floor next to a sea of enemies right at the stairs.

* Chapter 10 of ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness'' features a [[OurVampiresAreDifferent telekinetically vampiric]] creature who turns invisible when he's not attacking anyone or getting healed at a shrine. Mercifully, you can use a spell to reveal him.
** That spell is less useful in the final chapter, when it can reveal only some of the invisible Trappers in a room. Good thing they can be {{Helpful Mook}}s.

** Somewhat subverted. You can't issue attacks on them via VATS, but the system is still perfectly capable of detecting where they are. Nothing keeps the player from shooting or meleeing at their general direction manually after that.
** Nightkin in ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'', an UndergroundMonkey version of Super Mutants, have the same effect, which is much more difficult to see while climbing Black Mountain at night. Even worse are nightstalkers, mutant coyote-rattlesnake hybrids that can also cloak. It's nearly impossible to make out the tell-tale visual distortion in their dark cave, especially since they're so small and quick, but you can hear their faint rattling and hissing as they approach, sometimes in packs.
** ''VideoGame/Fallout4'' makes deathclaws even worse by introducing the chameleon variant. The new assaultron robot can also cloak and some boss enemies in the main story make use of Stealth Boys.

** ''VideoGame/{{Metroid Prime 3 Corruption}}'' has the Steamlord miniboss, who is invisible most of the time until he has to revive his flunkies. It's possible to fight the last one of those after getting the X-Ray Visor, which makes the fight a lot shorter.

[[folder:Film — Live-Action]]
* Not seen (but present) in ''Film/TheBladeMaster'', since visible monsters would've strained the budget.

* The film ''Film/CaptainSinbad'' has the title character face an invisible monster that leaves dinosaur-like tracks in the ground (that form from an explosion as its feet land). Considering all of the SpecialEffectsFailure monsters that appear, it's rather startling.
* The Monster from the Id in ''Film/ForbiddenPlanet''.
* There's a movie called ''Film/TheSoundOfHorror'' about invisible dinosaurs. ''That'' is a low budget.
* The titular "witch" of ''Film/TheBlairWitchProject''.
* In 1984's ''Film/{{Supergirl}}'', the Girl of Steel fights an invisible demon summoned by the villains.

* The title creatures in ''Film/FiendWithoutAFace'' are invisible for most of the film, until they absorb enough radiation to become visible.

* Creator/AmbroseBierce's ''The Damned Thing'' featured an early example of an invisible monster. Bierce was cited as an inspiration by Creator/HPLovecraft.
* Subversion: ''Literature/TheVoyageOfTheDawnTreader'' by C.S. Lewis had the Dufflepuds, who only ''seemed'' to be enemies at first, but who just wanted Lucy to undo the spell that made them invisible.
* The Hand That No One Sees, in ''Literature/BridgeOfBirds''.
* The Gnoolies, in Creator/RoaldDahl's ''Literature/{{Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator}}''.
* Creator/HPLovecraft:
** The titular entity in "Literature/TheDunwichHorror".
** Abdul Alhazred, the author of ''[[TomeOfEldritchLore Necronomicon]]'', was devoured alive by an invisible monster.
* [[Literature/{{Discworld}} The Agatean Empire]] is [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial most definitely not]] under attack by 2,300,009 invisible vampire ghosts.
* Whatever is stalking the assorted characters in ''Literature/HouseOfLeaves''.
* The [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin unseen]] in ''Literature/SsaliaAndTheDragonsOfAvienot'', [[spoiler:via InvisibilityCloak, as Ssalia discovers]]. They can be seen by people close to death and their fellow unseen, however.
* The dinosaur ''Carnotaurus sastrei'' in [[Creator/MichaelCrichton Crichton's]] ''[[Literature/TheLostWorld1995 The Lost World]]'' have chameleon- or cuttlefish-like color-changing abilities which render them virtually invisible. Even the ''tyrannosaurs and velociraptors'' don't go anywhere near their territory. [[spoiler: Except during the day, when there's too much ambient light for their camouflage to be convincing.]]
** This ability is also given to the ''Indominus Rex'' in ''Film/JurassicWorld'', which happens to be partially made using ''Carnotaurus'' DNA. However, when an actual ''Carnotaurus'' appears for the first time in ''Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom'', it doesn't seem to be able to change colors.
* In the ''Literature/ParadoxTrilogy'', the {{Eldritch Abomination}}s called phantoms are invisible due to being composed of pure psychic energy.

* ''Series/FraggleRock'': The Invisible Garboyle from "Gobo's Discovery".

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' has the [[WallMaster invisible hand monsters]].

* ''Videogame/DeadlyRoomsOfDeath'' has spiders that camoflauge like HollywoodChameleons. Unless you [[AntiFrustrationFeature activate a vision token or turn on puzzle mode]], you can only see them when they move, or you get close.

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'' has [[spoiler:zombie rats]].

*** Unfortunately however, enemies using hypermode short out that visor, making those fights very annoying on the highest difficulty (where any enemy that can go into hypermode most likely will do so immediately)

* Specters in ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'' are almost-invisible versions of the pink Demons, and practically are invisible in dark areas.