History WolverinePublicity / VideoGames

*** ''[[VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasyOperaOmnia]]'' takes this an extreme step further - despite representing over 20 different games in the franchise and boasting a roster of nearly 200 characters by the time of the game's end of service, Cloud alone was used as the app icon.

* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros''

** The Japanese boxart for ''VideoGame/SuperMarioRPG'' places Yoshi right alongside the main cast, despite the fact that he is neither a playable character nor does he have any major involvement in the story. The [[VideoGameRemake remake's]] boxart is based on the Japanese version of the original, but Yoshi is omitted from the cast.

* [[https://www.mariowiki.com/images/6/63/Ashley_tank_troopers.jpg One piece of promotional art]] for the game ''Tank Troopers'' has ''VideoGame/WarioWare'''s BreakoutCharacter Ashley posing with the game's cast. While Ashley did feature in some cross-promotional badges for the game in the aforementioned VideoGame/NintendoBadgeArcade, she doesn't actually appear in the game or its online comic.

** The Japanese boxart for ''VideoGame/SuperMarioRPG places Yoshi right alongside the main cast, despite the fact that he is neither a playable character nor does he have any major involvement in the story. The [[VideoGameRemake remake's]] boxart is based on the Japanese version of the original, but Yoshi is omitted from the cast.

* ''VideoGame/SuperMarioOdyssey'' does this with New Donk City and by extension, Pauline. You don't reach New Donk City until the middle of the game, and in the grand scheme of things neither it nor Pauline are important to the plot, however it is ''the'' level that is most marketed for the game. Pauline isn't actually that major of a character but advertisements treats her like she is in the main female. The reason why New Donk City gets this treatment is due to it being one big CallBack to the original ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong'', with Pauline also having [[TheBusCameBack her first major appearance in years]].

* While she was already a fan favorite before this, Bridget's popularity absolutely ''exploded'' after she was added to ''Videogame/GuiltyGearStrive'' as a DLC character. She's now the most heavily merchandised character in the franchise, with companies producing numerous figures, statues, and even replicas of her signature yo-yo. She's become so omnipresent in marketing for the franchise that new fans are often shocked to learn she's a fairly minor character within the actual storyline.

** From ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'', Cloud Strife. In addition to the media directly related to his universe -- ''VII'', ''VideoGame/CrisisCore'', ''[[Anime/FinalFantasyVIIAdventChildren Advent Children]]'', ''VideoGame/DirgeOfCerberus'', ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake Remake]]'' -- he's popping up in other universes with frightening regularity. He gets a ShoutOut in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII'' and ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'', he's an unlockable GuestFighter in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics'', a recurring character in ''Kingdom Hearts'', in ''VideoGame/FortuneStreet'', and he's in ''VideoGame/{{Ehrgeiz}}'' and ''VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy'' ([[{{Crossover}} Which he would have been in either way, being the hero of a main numbered entry]]). He also joined ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'' as a playable character, cementing his status as the [[FaceOfTheBand Face of the Brand]]. The character designer of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII'', Creator/TetsuyaNomura, was specifically told they wanted a [[DistaffCounterpart female]] Cloud Strife for a main character, which is how he came up with Lightning.

** Charizard's case probably most closely resembles that of the {{Trope Namer|s}}. In many circles, it ended up becoming one of the (if not ''the'') most popular Pokémon and overshadowing SeriesMascot Pikachu for being the series' definitive RatedMForManly character, just as Wolvie himself ended up overshadowing Marvel's mascot Spider-Man in similar circles. As a result, from 2013 onwards, it started getting a ton of gratuitous anime (including [[EnsembleDarkhorse Ash's]] being shoehorned into the second half of ''Best Wishes!'' in an attempt to soften the AudienceAlienatingEra), manga and merchandise appearances (many of them in starring roles), acting as the franchise's backup SpotlightStealingSquad not named "Pikachu", and getting ''two'' [[SuperMode Mega Evolutions]] while other Pokémon (except Mewtwo, who is also an example of this trope) only get one. They even managed to work Charizard into ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'', despite it not being in the regional Pokédex (it appears as a "Ride Pokémon" and it allows players to fly from area to area). Then, in ''VideoGame/PokemonSwordAndShield'', it shows up not only as [[TheAce Leon's]] signature Pokémon, Charizard is one of the returning Pokémon to get a Gigantamax form with an exclusive new move, and its family is not only the sole returning Kanto Starter, but the sole returning Starter, ''period'' (discounting Pikachu and Eevee, and until the DLC expansion ''The Isle of Armor'' gave Venusaur and Blastoise Gigantamax forms). In fact, a strong case can be made for Charizard being ''more'' aggressively marketed than Pikachu during this period, largely due to Game Freak's efforts to appeal to older ''Pokémon'' fans.

** ''Dragon Ball'' fighting games' roster can vary, but the core rosters generally consists of the main Z Fighters (Goku, Gohan, Vegeta, Piccolo, Krillin, and Future Trunks), the main arc villains of ''Z'' (Frieza, Cell, and Majin Buu), and [[TheSmurfettePrinciple Android 18]], who is arguably the most iconic female in the series. You'll be hard pressed to find a game with ''just'' those characters, and even harter pressed to find one missing at least one of them.

** For a while, even he was upstaged by Goro, who created an amazing amount of buzz for a game ''he wasn't even in''. No, he was not in ''VideoGame/MortalKombatII''. Any version. At all. No, that didn't prevent a kajillion hours of speculation about whether he was alive, where he could be, what exactly happened to him after ''VideoGame/MortalKombat1992'', whether Shao Kahn knew about him, etc. When he did finally return, in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat4'', he was given a superstar's welcome-back and placed front and center on the cover art, despite the fact that he had virtually no story to speak of and no connection to Shinnok's scheme whatsoever.

** For a while, even he was upstaged by Goro, who created an amazing amount of buzz for a game ''he wasn't even in''. No, he was not in ''VideoGame/MortalKombatII''. Any version. At all. No, that didn't prevent a kajillion hours of speculation about whether he was alive, where he could be, what exactly happened to him after ''VideoGame/MortalKombat1'', whether Shao Kahn knew about him, etc. When he did finally return, in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat4'', he was given a superstar's welcome-back and placed front and center on the cover art, despite the fact that he had virtually no story to speak of and no connection to Shinnok's scheme whatsoever.

* Marisa Kirisame of ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' is the second playable character, having been in the games since the second on the PC-98. To date (up to ''VideoGame/BlackMarketOfBulletphiliaOneHundredthBlackMarket''), her head is the icon for all ZUN-made Touhou mainline games in the Windows domain -- as well as a side game where she doesn't even appear in, ''[[VideoGame/TouhouBunkachouShootTheBullet Shoot The Bullet]]''. Not even Reimu (''the'' lead) is capable of boasting that she's appeared in every game in one form or another. Marisa is '''not''', however, the icon for the fighting games ''[[VideoGame/DoubleSpoilerTouhouBunkachou Double Spoiler]]'', ''[[VideoGame/YouseiDaisensouTouhouSangetsusei Great Fairy Wars]]'', ''[[VideoGame/DanmakuAmanojakuImpossibleSpellCard Impossible Spell Card]]'', ''[[VideoGame/HifuuNightmareDiaryVioletDetector Violet Detector]]'', & ''[[VideoGame/TouhouGouyokuIbunSunkenFossilWorld Sunken Fossil World]]''. She is, however, fightable in all of those games, and Reimu isn't in ''Fairy Wars'' outside an ending appearance. A notable and recent aversion to this trend, however, is ''100th Black Market'' itself, with Marisa landing as the sole playable character for that spinoff ''as well as being the icon for the game'', with it finally making Marisa the protagonist with the most playable appearances in the Windows era. As {{doujinshi}} are a major part of Touhou, it also happens to all the fangames Marisa takes a starring role in, more than Reimu by far.

* Marisa Kirisame of ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' is the second playable character, having been in the games since the second on the PC-98. To date (up to ''VideoGame/TouhouSeirensenUndefinedFantasticObject''), her head is the icon for all ZUN-made Touhou games in the Windows domain -- even the one where she doesn't even appear in, ''VideoGame/TouhouBunkachouShootTheBullet''. Not even Reimu (''the'' lead) is capable of boasting that she's appeared in every game in one form or another. Marisa is '''not''', however, the icon for ''VideoGame/DoubleSpoilerTouhouBunkachou'' or ''VideoGame/YouseiDaisensouTouhouSangetsusei''. She is, however, fightable in both, and Reimu isn't in ''Fairy Wars'' outside an ending appearance. As {{doujinshi}} are a major part of Touhou, it also happens to all the fangames Marisa takes a starring role in, more than Reimu by far.

** And ''VideoGame/DragonballFighterz'' wasn't even the first ''Dragon Ball'' fighting game to have Goku publicity; Final Bout on Playstation 1 had GT Adult Goku, GT Adult Super Saiyan Goku, GT Kid Goku, GT Kid Super Saiyan Goku, Super Saiyan Z era Goku AND Super Saiyan 4 Goku for a total of 6 playable Goku's! And if one includes Vegetto, that makes 7.

** Charizard's case probably most closely resembles that of the {{Trope Namer|s}}. In many circles, it ended up becoming one of the (if not ''the'') most popular Pokémon and overshadowing SeriesMascot Pikachu for being the series' definitive RatedMForManly character, just as Wolvie himself ended up overshadowing Marvel's mascot Spider-Man in similar circles. As a result, from 2013 onwards, it started getting a ton of gratuitous anime (including [[EnsembleDarkhorse Ash's]] being shoehorned into the second half of ''Best Wishes!'' in an attempt to soften the AudienceAlienatingEra), manga and merchandise appearances (many of them in starring roles), acting as the franchise's backup SpotlightStealingSquad not named "Pikachu", and getting ''two'' [[SuperMode Mega Evolutions]] while other Pokémon (except Mewtwo, who is also an example of this trope) only get one. They even managed to work Charizard into ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'', despite it not being in the regional Pokédex (it appears as a "Ride Pokémon" and it allows players to fly from area to area). Then, in ''VideoGame/PokemonSwordAndShield'', it shows up not only as [[TheAce Leon's]] signature Pokémon, Charizard is one of the returning Pokémon to get a Gigantamax form with an exclusive new move, and its family is not only the sole returning Kanto Starter, but the sole returning Starter, ''period'' (discounting Pikachu and Eevee). In fact, a strong case can be made for Charizard being ''more'' aggressively marketed than Pikachu during this period, largely due to Game Freak's efforts to appeal to older ''Pokémon'' fans.

** Charizard's case probably most closely resembles that of the {{Trope Namer|s}}. In many circles, it ended up becoming one of the (if not ''the'') most popular Pokémon and overshadowing SeriesMascot Pikachu for being the series' definitive RatedMForManly character, just as Wolvie himself ended up overshadowing Marvel's mascot Spider-Man in similar circles. As a result, from 2013 onwards, it started getting a ton of gratuitous anime (including [[EnsembleDarkhorse Ash's]] being shoehorned into the second half of ''Best Wishes!'' in an attempt to soften the DorkAge), manga and merchandise appearances (many of them in starring roles), acting as the franchise's backup SpotlightStealingSquad not named "Pikachu", and getting ''two'' [[SuperMode Mega Evolutions]] while other Pokémon (except Mewtwo, who is also an example of this trope) only get one. They even managed to work Charizard into ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'', despite it not being in the regional Pokédex (it appears as a "Ride Pokémon" and it allows players to fly from area to area). Then, in ''VideoGame/PokemonSwordAndShield'', it shows up not only as [[TheAce Leon's]] signature Pokémon, Charizard is one of the returning Pokémon to get a Gigantamax form with an exclusive new move, and its family is not only the sole returning Kanto Starter, but the sole returning Starter, ''period'' (discounting Pikachu and Eevee). In fact, a strong case can be made for Charizard being ''more'' aggressively marketed than Pikachu during this period, largely due to Game Freak's efforts to appeal to older ''Pokémon'' fans.

* On the subject of Creator/{{SNK}}, there are a few characters you can almost always expect to show up in any crossover. Among the most notable are [[Characters/FatalFuryTerryBogard Terry Bogard]], Mai Shiranui, Kim Kaphwan and [[Characters/FatalFuryGeeseHoward Geese Howard]] from ''VideoGame/FatalFury'', Kyo Kusanagi from ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters'', [[Characters/{{Athena}} Athena Asamiya]] from ''VideoGame/PsychoSoldier'' Ryo Sakazaki, Yuri Sakazaki and Robert Garcia from ''VideoGame/ArtOfFighting'' and to a lesser extent Haomaru and Nakoruru from ''VideoGame/SamuraiShodown''. In the actual ''King of Fighters'' series, Rugal Bernstein emerged as the most popular villain, and has gone on to appear in multiple entries despite canonically having died way back in ''KOF '95''. Mai is so popular that, in addition to showing up in all of the crossovers with Capcom and the all-female fighting games like ''VideoGame/SNKGalsFighters'' and ''VideoGame/SNKHeroinesTagTeamFrenzy'', she's a playable GuestFighter in ''VideoGame/DeadOrAlive5'' and ''VideoGame/DeadOrAlive6''.

*** The cover to the first ''[=NeoGeo=] Pocket Color Selection'' for the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch prominently features Morrigan and Ryu (due to their appearance in ''Videogame/SNKVsCapcomMatchOfTheMillennium'') despite them not actually being SNK characters. ''Vol 2'''s cover is even less subtle about this, not only bringing back Ryu, but also adding Chun-Li, Cammy and several ''Videogame/MegaMan'' characters, all of whom are displayed very prominently at the front of the group.

*** The cover to the first ''[=NeoGeo=] Pocket Color Selection'' for the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch prominently features Morrigan and Ryu (due to their appearance in ''Videogame/SNKVsCapcomMatchOfTheMillennium'') despite them not actually being SNK characters.

** Zero was a supporting character in the first ''VideoGame/MegaManX1'' who got promoted to co-protagonist in the sequels, had a [[EarlyBirdCameo retroactive cameo]] in the [[VideoGame/MegaManClassic original series]], gained his own series in the form of ''VideoGame/MegaManZero'', and [[spoiler:returns from the dead]] as a [[TransformationTrinket Biometal]] in ''[[VideoGame/MegaManZX ZX]]''. Aside from that, he was also mentioned in two more (''[[VideoGame/MegaManLegends Legends]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork Battle Network]]''), with the latter even including an {{expy}} in one of its {{Gaiden Game}}s as well as the [[Anime/MegaManNTWarrior anime]]. ''[[WhatCouldHaveBeen Legends 3]]'' was set to introduce a character who would fill that series Proto Man/Zero niche before it was canceled by Capcom. Last but not the least, he appears as a playable character in ''VideoGame/SNKVsCapcomSVCChaos'', ''VideoGame/OnimushaBladeWarriors'', ''VideoGame/TatsunokoVsCapcom: [[UpdatedRerelease Ultimate All-Stars]]'', ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom3'', ''VideoGame/ProjectXZone'', ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcomInfinite'', and ''VideoGame/{{Teppen}}''. The only series he hasn't appeared in, ''yet'', is ''[[VideoGame/MegaManStarForce Star Force]]''.

* Always expect [[Franchise/StreetFighter Ryu and Chun-Li]] to pop up in [[VideoGame/CapcomVs Capcom's crossover games]]. Excluding the ''Street Fighter''-less ''VideoGame/CrossEdge'' (which only features characters from ''VideoGame/{{Darkstalkers}}'' representing the Capcom side), they're the only characters with a perfect attendance record, and Ken would had got it too if it wasn't for him being one of Ryu's transformations in ''Marvel vs. Capcom'', [[Anime/ScienceNinjaTeamGatchaman an entirely different character with the same name]] in ''Tatsunoko vs. Capcom'' and the developers deciding Akuma was enough in ''Marvel vs. Capcom 3''. Ryu and Chun-Li were even made playable in ''Videogame/PowerRangersLegacyWars'' and ''Videogame/PowerRangersBattleForTheGrid'' (as the Crimson Dragon Ranger and the Blazing Phoenix Ranger, respectively), which also led to them getting action figures in Creator/{{Hasbro}}’s Lightning Collection toyline.

* Always expect [[Franchise/StreetFighter Ryu and Chun-Li]] to pop up in [[VideoGame/CapcomVs Capcom's crossover games]]. Excluding the ''Street Fighter''-less ''VideoGame/CrossEdge'' (which only features characters from ''VideoGame/{{Darkstalkers}}'' representing the Capcom side), they're the only characters with a perfect attendance record, and Ken would had got it too if it wasn't for him being one of Ryu's transformations in ''Marvel vs. Capcom'', [[Anime/ScienceNinjaTeamGatchaman an entirely different character with the same name]] in ''Tatsunoko vs. Capcom'' and the developers deciding Akuma was enough in ''Marvel vs. Capcom 3''. And predictably, the trope namer has appeared in nearly all of Capcom's Marvel-licensed fighting games. He even has two versions of himself in ''Marvel vs. Capcom 2''.

** Ultros from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI'' has started appearing in more games as a BonusBoss recently, although he's no one close to Sephiroth or Gilgamesh in terms of appearances.

** The BonusBoss of ''VideoGame/DragonBallZAttackOfTheSaiyans'', none other than "Legendary" Super Saiyan ''Broly'', despite the game covering until the saga before Super Saiyans ''appear on the plot'', about 15 volumes and 150 episodes before the point Broly's movie could happen. Proving why he belongs in this trope, ''they used him on ads for the game''. Broly appeared in a total of 17 games, including a "WhatIf" ''Super Saiyan 3'' form in ''VideoGame/DragonBallRagingBlast''.

** Franchise/SpiderMan, ComicBook/CaptainAmerica and ComicBook/IncredibleHulk are all tied for second place when it comes to Marvel characters with the most appearances in the ''Marvel vs. Capcom'' series. The only entries not to feature them were ''VideoGame/XMenChildrenOfTheAtom'' and ''VideoGame/XMenVsStreetFighter'', which didn't include Marvel characters who weren't tied to the X-Men franchise.

** Despite the multitude of characters showing up in the games, [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario]], [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Link]], Franchise/{{Kirby}}, and [[Franchise/{{Pokemon}} Pikachu]] are usually featured front and center. In the first game, Link tended to be in the background behind Kirby. Since then [[Franchise/{{Metroid}} Samus]], [[VideoGame/KidIcarus Pit]], [[Franchise/StarFox Fox]], an [[VideoGame/{{Splatoon}} Inkling]] or another ''Super Mario Bros.'' character like Bowser or Wario might push Kirby into the background, but from the second game onward, Mario, Link, and Pikachu will always have the spotlight.

** Out of all of ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'''s newcomers, [[VideoGame/{{Splatoon}} the Inklings]] have received a large amount of focus in promo material for the game. The teaser that announced the game even featured a CommercialSwitcheroo, by making it seem as if it were a trailer for something ''Splatoon''-centric, only for it to end up being a ''Smash'' teaser.

** For a while, even he was upstaged by Goro, who created an amazing amount of buzz for a game ''he wasn't even in''. No, he was not in ''VideoGame/MortalKombatII''. Any version. At all. No, that didn't prevent a kajillion hours of speculation about whether he was alive, where he could be, what exactly happened to him after ''VideoGame/{{Mortal Kombat|1}}'', whether Shao Kahn knew about him, etc. When he did finally return, in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat4'', he was given a superstar's welcome-back and placed front and center on the cover art, despite the fact that he had virtually no story to speak of and no connection to Shinnok's scheme whatsoever.

** For a while, even he was upstaged by Goro, who created an amazing amount of buzz for a game ''he wasn't even in''. No, he was not in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat2''. Any version. At all. No, that didn't prevent a kajillion hours of speculation about whether he was alive, where he could be, what exactly happened to him after ''VideoGame/{{Mortal Kombat|1}}'', whether Shao Kahn knew about him, etc. When he did finally return, in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat4'', he was given a superstar's welcome-back and placed front and center on the cover art, despite the fact that he had virtually no story to speak of and no connection to Shinnok's scheme whatsoever.