Most outlandish gaming urban legend you believed as a kid

[AppliCotton]

I just read the history of the Street Fighter II franchise, and was delighted that in the context of the euphoria that swept the world following the game's release the author mentioned several "urban legends" floating around at the time. Among them was one that I had picked up somewhere and that I actually believed for a time, until EGM published move lists for the characters: that Chun-li had a special move where she would throw her bracelets. (note: it wasn't that unbelievable, considering that another one floating around at the time was that Vega could lose his mask/claw, which, of course, turned out to be true).

But that wasn't the biggest gaming urban legend I fell for. No, that honour goes to something an older kid (ah, older kids, an inexhaustible source of bullshit) told me around 1988/1989: that if you take the little plastic "matchbox" off the bottom of your NES (you know, the plastic box where the grooves meet on the bottom of the NES) and bring it to the store (or send it in, I'm not sure which), they'll send you a newer, better, "super" Nintendo. I recall him using the word "super", even though this was like two years before anybody knew anything about the SNES.

Now that I think about it, he probably just wanted to see me break my console for his own amusement. Alas, older kids were also good at getting you to do stupid shit for their own amusement. I didn't do it, it does make me laugh when I look back though.

So what's your biggest urban legend?

[dunpeal2064]

I recall attempting to run 100 perfect circles around Professor Oak in attempt to get a Mew. Everytime I would hit 100 and not get it, I would assume that one of my circles was imprefect and begin again. I only tried it like.... 9 or 10 times.

Also spent a lot of time around that truck, trying to move it, and all kinds of little things that people would tell me I could do in Pokemon.

Great topic!

[Luke]

John Hoskins (God rest his warped soul) told me if you broke 100 of Birdo's eggs (smb.2)with his own eggs a baby birdo would fly out of the 100th cracked egg. I fell for it.

John also told me that in Excitebike if you crashed twenty consecutive times in front of the cameraman, he would leave his post and help you to your bike.

Fell for that too.

[Hazerd]

Being able to get the Triforce in Zelda 64

[Curlypaul]

I remember a mythical cheat that could let you play as a naked Lara in Tomb Raider. Other than that I've gone blank atm, I'm sure that there must be more though.

[dunpeal2064]

Heh, that reminded me of Nudalities in the first Mortal Kombat.

I would often go to my neighbors to play Genesis, since I only had a SNES, and my neighbor had a bunch of lady friends (much older than me at the time of course) over. They had a blast telling me that there was a was to do Nudalities, and of course I bugged them all day to tell me how, but they refused.

Good times

[BoneSnapDeez]

For a little while I thought that General Leo actually was a hidden character in Final Fantasy VI.

Also (and these aren't "urban legends," just general misinformation) before the days of the internet I always thought that the Neo Geo CD was a peripheral like the Sega CD. In addition, I thought that the Famicom Disk System was a stand-alone console that pre-dated the NES/Famicom.

Finally, there was a long stretch of time where kids at school thought that I was the bullshitter. When I tried to tell people there was an arcade version of Super Mario Bros. (I didn't know it was called Vs. Super Mario Bros.) no one believed me. Such a frustrating experience. Eventually this other kid visited the pizza place where I played it and was able to back me up.

[Luke]

Without cheats you can jump over the pole in smb.

[dunpeal2064]

Without cheats you can jump over the pole in smb.

Ha... I thought this for so long. When I got my SNES (along with SMW and SM All Stars), I started playing the Lost Levels, and I was shocked that I FINALLY made it over one of the polls.

I thought I had done the impossible

[ExedExes]

Don't forget in the original Arcade Battlezone if you kept moving to the volcano in the distance you'd be able to drive inside of it...