Gaming is such a wondrous thing, allowing us to achieve a level of immersion that one couldn't even imagine being possible at one point. The fact that we can control the actions of the protagonists and mold their stories — well, to an extent, depending on the linearity of the game you're playing — is something that is still astounding to this day, even though the majority of us tend to take this mechanic for granted.
One thing that absolutely needs to be pointed out when it comes to video games is the sheer level of time and effort taken to develop these immersive behemoths. AAA games nowadays take years to make, and the end result is nothing short of magnificent — well, aside from certain exceptions that we won't tarnish this list with by naming them. In fact, there's so much content in certain games that some of it doesn't even make it to the final product... or does it?
There are certain secret areas that no player should be able to access. However, they still make it to the final product and — since we all know just how dedicated players can be — are discovered at some point or the other. This article will take a look at ten such hidden areas in video games that took quite a while to find!
10 Hidden Area For Bodies — Skyrim
You'd think that a game like Skyrim would have all its areas found in a jiffy, but boy that's a really wrong notion. We say this because of a hidden area in the game that can only be accessed through console commands. If the player typed in "player.moveto 39f1e," then they'd be transported to an eerie room with a crapload of bodies at the center.
Apparently, this room is a place that the game dumps bodies in so that it doesn't slow down the entire game. Of course, Bethesda being the creeps that they are, decided to up the scariness factor by adding two coffins in the center for dramatic effect.
9 Accessing In-Progress DLC — Burnout Paradise
Burnout Paradise is one of the most interesting titles out there, featuring excellent arcade gameplay that no other racing title has been able to replicate since. Through the use of a mod, players were actually able to make their cars fly and discover a pretty unique area.
Out of bounds from the game, players noticed a barebones island of sorts with actual collision detection, meaning that cars could actually drive around this area. The reason for this seemingly needless integration was found out later — apparently, this area was a Work-In-Progress version of the Big Surf Island DLC.
8 Ghost Town — Grand Theft Auto III
Grand Theft Auto III is a legendary game that brought Rockstar to the forefront as one of the greatest video game developers — a reputation that has stayed rock-solid to this day. This game had an intro cutscene which established a baseline for the story.
Well, players found out later on that, after taking the Dodo and flying it to a certain section of the map, they could find a ghost town of sorts which didn't have any collision detection. This ghost town is where the first cutscene of the game takes place.
7 Hidden Crypt — World Of Warcraft
There's an area in World Of Warcraft called Karazhan, which is already a pretty creepy area as is. However, you have no clue what's in store for you once you enter a seemingly innocuous hidden crypt.
If the player perishes close to the crypt and then runs through it, they'll be able to access an area that is quite creepy, with bones everywhere. There's a pool of water in this area as well, and going beneath the surface reveals a horrible sight — bodies hanging upside-down from chains.
To make it worse, entering the aforementioned pool displays the prompt "The Upside-Down Sinners." Yikes.
6 The Actual Ending Level — Halo 2
Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 3 had excellent endings to their campaign, involving Master Chief blasting through exploding landscapes as he made his way to safety. However, Halo 2 — while still boasting a great campaign — had one of the most disappointing ending levels of all time.
However, players found a hidden level in the game that was actually meant to be the real ending sequence. Master Chief would've driven his trusty Warthog like always, slamming it into a Covenant ship and ending in truly bombastic fashion.
5 Debug Room — Final Fantasy VII
Final Fantasy VII is one of the greatest video games of all time, so people were bound to figure out that the game has a debug room at some point or the other. This is actually quite common since most JRPGs feature these rooms so that developers can check out different portions of the game if need be for bug-testing purposes.
However, Final Fantasy VII's room strikes out because of one weird part of this debug room where you interact with an oversized model of Aerith. She allows you to access various areas of the game, one of them being Hades. However, if you choose that option, Aerith gives a chilling reply.
"Silly... didn't anyone tell you? This IS Hades."
4 Developer Room — Chrono Trigger
Speaking of special rooms in JRPGs, it's time we talk about Chrono Trigger and the developer room in this game. In New Game+, if you choose to fight and beat Lavos on your first encounter at the fair, you can unlock a hidden room with the developers represented as sprite models.
It's a pretty neat way for the legendary developers of this illustrious title to make their mark.
3 Messed Up Hall Of Mirrors — Bayonetta 2
Staying on the topic of Japanese games, it's time to talk about a weird room in Bayonetta 2 that can be accessed by using an exploit that has been coined "Witch Twist" by fans. Basically, by using a certain combination, Bayonetta can jump infinitely to reach a location that's... trippy, to explain it in one word.
The entire screen mirrors everything Bayonetta does, with the music also getting cut off. It's definitely not an area that's meant to be found.
2 A Room With A... Boot? — Counter-Strike: Source
Counter-Strike: Source has a map called cs_assault. In this map, players can stand in a specific corner of the map and use the "noclip" command to go under the map.
However, what they'll find is equal parts baffling and hilarious. It's just a small room with a boot in the middle, which disappears once shot at.
What are video games even?
1 A Developer Room That Gets You Banned — Fallout 76
The crapshoot that is Fallout 76 garnered controversy upon controversy after launch. One such instance happened once players found the developer room — a usual occurrence in Fallout games — with the only NPC in the entire game.
However, what followed was even worse. Bethesda insta-banned players who found this room, going so far as to forcing them to write essays on the demerits of cheating and asking them how they found this room in the first place. This kind of behavior was obviously not tolerated by the gaming community, who lashed out at Bethesda yet again.