We all know that the worlds we see in video games are different than the world that we live in. But did you know that some of the worlds in video games have been linked to each other. Meaning, some of our very favorite characters may have met before and we didn’t even know it was possible. Now, before you start this remember to keep an open mind. While a lot of these have been confirmed by the devs, a few of them are simple theories that have been studied for years to perfect them. So, it could be that fans have beat the developers to explaining these crossovers in detail. But this time, we’re focusing solely on console games rather than adding in PC games as well, though there are some killer shared worlds there to. Though many of them are thanks to mods, which are cheating. But these theories are mod-free and purely organic.

Besides, don’t you love to read theories? Everyone does for one of two reasons: so you can be amazed or so you can spread the hate by shutting them down. So, it’s really a win-win here, nothing to lose. Now if you’re wondering how Master Chief and EarthGov may be related, then you might be interested in the fifteen other shared worlds below. Open a Nuka Cola and let’s get this over with. Here are seventeen console games you didn’t know shared a world!

17 Left 4 Dead/Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

Via: PCgamesn

There’s a for real theory that Counter-Strike is a Left 4 Dead prequel, and it absolutely makes sense. It all started with a warehouse that appeared in both games. One, clean and slick. The other, in devastation. Is it possible that the war in Counterstrike was what led to the apocalypse in Left 4 Dead? Sure, the maps that look so similar may not be hints, but instead, just Valve taking shortcuts. They could have taken Left 4 Dead content and cleaned it up to create much of Counter-Strike’s content. But even more solid than that hint is the theory that “counter-terrorists of CS: GO are fighting to defuse the biological weapons that spark off the infection of the Left 4 Dead games.”

That’s deep. And the only thing that throws it off is the mention of CS: GO in the dialogue of Left 4 Dead. But, again, this can happen in real life. As there are “real” war games out there. It’s not like breaking the fourth wall.

16 Assassin’s Creed/Watch Dogs

Via: ubiblog

Go ahead, roll your eyes. But hear me out. This one started with a character that actually appears in AC4 and Watch Dogs. His name is Olivier Garneau, CEO of Abstergo Entertainment. You actually see him in the same city in both games: Chicago. In AC, we assume at one point he’s been kidnapped by the Brotherhood. But in Watch Dogs, where he’s a bigger part of his own story, it is revealed that he was in a rather sneaky way. They never directly reference AC, but they say he was involved in “patented genomes, genetic memory manipulation,” etc.

Besides that obvious guy who exists in both worlds, you can spot AC2 being played at one point in Watch Dogs. An Abstergo Entertainment game. Believe it or not, if you look closely, you’ll see even more crossover facts and moments between the two.

15 Bomberman/Lode Runner

Via NocturnalMarauder DeviantArt

You probably already knew this one due to the fact that actual Bombermen appear in Lode Runner. In fact, they appeared in Lode Runner before Bomberman even existed. This may be easier explained by saying that Bombermen is a race before it’s a game.

You see, in the US, Bomberman is a robot “engaged in the production of bombs.” He was created to be put to work creating bombs for evil villains. He became rather bored making bombs and was told that if he wanted to leave, he could. But no one could know. He must escape and after reaching the surface, he would become a human. In the U.S. games, at level 50, he does indeed become a human. But in the Japanese version, things are different.

He turns into a human, but his name is literally “Runner” now that’s interesting. He is known as Lode Runner in Japan, and Bomberman is a sort of origin story to Lode Runner.

14 GTA And Other Rockstar Titles

Via: Wikia

If there was one developer that liked crossovers it would be Rockstar. Let’s get the GTA games straight first. Rockstar themselves have admitted that there are three distinct universes. The 2D universe (starting with GTA1), the 3D universe (starting with GTA III), and the HD universe (starting with GTA IV). The three universe don’t crossover, but other games do cross into them.

One of the most noted crossovers is L.A. Noire where you can find John Marston’s hat of Red Dead Redemption. Since this takes place just 30 years later, it’s definitely possible that it would survive. That would tie both of these games to the HD universe of GTA due to the fact that a book Red Dead Redemption written by J. Marston is found in Travis’ house. It’s possible that he is a descendant of the Marstons. Another that ties into that world is Bully, because Bullworth Academy is definitely existent in GTA IV. So, in a way, most of their games are connected in some way, including Manhunt.

13 Soul Calibur/Tekken

Via: wikia/cinemablend

You may say, “yeah, they’re both similar fighting games.” But I assure you it runs deeper than that. To get this ball rolling let me say one thing: Yoshimitsu. In Tekken, Yoshimitsu is a character who has been in every standard Tekken game since the beginning of Tekken-time. As swords are so important in Soul Caliber, he’s given a sword known as “Yoshimitsu’s Sword” in Soul. He has a sword in both games and is the same leader of the Manji clan in both series. You may say, “well, Heihachi appeared in both games too” and this is true. But he is 100% a Tekken character, whereas Yoshimitsu is a crossover character that appears in both game with his own role.

Let me blow your mind and just say that this character is sword-based. In his Tekken story, he realizes his sword gains power by killing the corrupt. If not, he would become weaker and weaker. In Soul Caliber, due to unfortunate circumstances, he attempts to get his hands on the Soul Edge. In need of more power, eh?

12 SSX/Burnout

Via: wikia/PlayStation Store

Lame, I know. Who cares about storylines in games like this? Well, we do, okay! Now, who remembers the charismatic DJ Atomika from SSX 3? Turns out he is also the DJ for Crash FM in Burnout: Paradise. So, if a radio DJ can exist in both games, they must exist in the same world. While this is mind-blowing, it is well known. Just as the fact that Mac Fraser sends a message through him about the icy peaks of the mountains into Burnout.

This may seem like old or boring info. But it’s really cool to know that while you are crashing a car into a trailer park, up above in the mountains, you are also hitting a high score snowboarding down killer slopes! This is funny since you do control both characters, you are in the same universe as yourself at different times. This is no classic game reveal, but it is nice to know.

11 Final Fantasy VII And Final Fantasy X

Via wikia/Final Fantasy Union

So as Square Enix fans, we just assume that none of the FF games are set in the same universe. But word is, this isn’t true in the least. Turns out, two of our very favorite FF games are set in the very same universe! But it’s a little more complex than most. So, it all starts with Mako and the Shin-Ra Electric Power Company. The company that uses Lifestream, to create Mako, which pretty much fuels the world. This is in FF VII. However, in Final Fantasy X-2, you meet a boy named Shinra, who talks about the “planet's life force” aka Mako. He says it would take years to build up enough to power cities though. Hmmm…

Speaking of energy, Pyreflies appear in both FFX and the FFVII movie. If the two games are connected, then Aerith was not as special as she seemed. She was just a summoner like Yuna. Which in turn would mean that the people of Zanarkand were settlers of Cetra. If so, the Machina War and Jenova are related.

As you may expect, not many buy into this theory. They say the hinting at Lifestream and Mako is just an Easter Egg for fun. That it means nothing. They also defend Square Enix and say that no FF game is connected unless it is said outright ex. FFX and FFX-2. But we all know the truth, right?

10 Infinity/Kingdom Hearts

via animoapps.com/vsbattle.wikia.com

Yes, I do mean Disney Infinity and I’ll tell you the very simple answer as to why. They both have Disney characters! I know that Disney characters tend to be free range and allowed anywhere without speculation. But we’re gamers, we speculate. And it’s really, really obvious after 3.0 was released that they are in the same world. The devs explained that the game had combat styles very similar to Kingdom Hearts and that Mickey Mouse had a Kingdom Hearts role, which was later revealed to be a Power Disc.

It’s no secret at all, but it’s still odd to think that Infinity and Kingdom Hearts are related so closely. That this is the exact same Mickey Mouse that Sora and his friends met. It also gives you something to find in common with the younger generation who is super into Infinity while we’re over here waiting for the next Kingdom Hearts game.

9 Halo/Dead Space

Via: Youtube

Yes way, Ted! The first clue is the similarities in the Flood and Necromorphs. This could very well just be regional names for the same creature. The viral species bent on destroying everything in their paths. These monsters are combatted via the help of the techniques used by old species such as the Forerunners and Tau Volanti aliens. Now similar plots are not always the same as identical universes. But it’s quite possible that Halo takes place about 500 years after Dead Space, where the Flood has turned into the Tau Volanti race. Or perhaps this is simply a different planet and the Flood has been annihilated on Halo and Earth.

The timeline is a clear indicator that this is possible. As is the goal in both games to eliminate the infected and find inhabitable planets to keep others safe. The sad part here is that they haven’t gotten as far as they’d have hoped.

8 Donkey Kong And Banjo Kazooie

Via: Wikia

This one is easy to understand. Aside from the fact that they have both been popular at the same time and have had the same graphics, let’s look at one particular game. Diddy Kong Racing! Banjo appeared in this game as a playable character. This makes it obviously possible for them to share a universe. But even more than that, it makes it likely. This isn’t a Smash type of game where characters join together for no apparent reason. This is a DK game that has Banjo in it. To add to this theory, we can see Goggles, Bottle’s daughter playing with a Donkey Kong toy in Banjo-Tooie. Interesting.

In the Tower of Tragedy quiz, there is a question about Diddy Kong Racing too. So, yeah, he definitely raced with Diddy and his friends in his own world as well. Turn it around and you can find the instruments in Banjo Kazooie’s intro at a shop in Donkey Kong 64.

7 Mass Effect/The Sims

Via: GameSpy/YouTube

Go ahead and laugh but The Sims can do whatever they want! Even travel to the Citadel to check for Reapers. The obvious clue here is the time portal found in The Sims 3. This item is called the time machine and it can take you anywhere…well, sort of. The most interesting thing about it is that you can peak in and hear that “Commander Shepherd is saving humanity from The Reapers” which is paraphrased of course. But since this is a time machine and not a game, it confirms that Mass Effect is the future of The Sims, taking place a couple hundred years later.

This isn’t the only reference made by the time machine, but it’s the best by far. To think that the normal…ish world of The Sims takes place before Mass Effect is quite incredible. But sad. I mean I’d hate to see grandma get attacked by the Reapers.

6 Indiana Jones/Fallout: New Vegas

Via: Games, Brrraaains & A Head-Banging Life

Yes, Indiana Jones is a game. Like dozens actually. And it just so happens, long before the fallout took place, a man named Indiana Jones was running away from boulders with ease. It all starts with the Wild Wasteland perk. One that pretty much just adds Easter Eggs for your enjoyment and speculation. Anyone who has ever seen the movies or played a Crystal Skull game will recognize this next scene. You find a skeleton with a brown fedora on the side of the road…inside a fridge.

This obviously is a reference to the scene in Indiana Jones And The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, where Indiana Jones hides in a fridge to survive a Nuclear Test. Only in Fallout, it seems he didn’t make it. After all, you did find a skeleton. So, this might be the same universe and an alternative…reality. Or…that wasn’t Jones that walked out of that fridge. Imposter!

5 Dead Island/Friday The 13th

Via: Eggabase

Who is the only character in every Friday the 13th game and movie? Jason, you got it! Well, what if I told you that he doesn’t make it when the zombie-infested world in Dead Island? Well, he would have, but you killed him. He can be found in Dead Island in the jungle of course. You know you’re near when you see crucified corpses killed by Jason himself. He himself fights with a machete and it isn’t easy to kill him unless it’s a sneak attack. But after you do catch him, you can access his weapons — you can also use them against him. Thus, you’ve finally ended Jason Voorhees with his own weapon. Even after he dies, if you look through his hockey mask, you can still see his eyes flowing you. Creepy.

4 Borderlands 2/Minecraft

Via: YouTube

Though there are a few small Easter eggs that suggest that Borderlands is just a 3D version of Minecraft, there’s one really big one. Creepers! They can be found in Borderlands 2 looking just the same as they do in Minecraft. No kidding. All you have to do is go to Caustic Caverns. They come in close and BOOM! Explode in your face.

What’s really funny is that they are found at a mining location near a mine cart bridge. The entrance to their cave is marked with squarish boulders and “Minecraft dirt and smooth stone” identical to Minecraft. The Creepers drop Minecraft skins when they are killed. Sure, this is more like an “Easter egg,” but it also makes you think that these games are just different perspectives of the same world. Borderlands is weird like that, and Minecraft has no rules!

3 Uncharted 3/Last Of Us

via: Naughty Dog

This one is so legit because like seriously, every person who didn’t play either of them thought they were the same game. Some say that the games are totally unrelated aside from being from the same developer, Naughty Dog. But this is simply false. They are Naughty Dog games in an earthy world and one of them almost spoiled the other for the world.

Back in 2011, a trailer for Uncharted 3 was released that showed a newspaper that headlined “scientists are still struggling to understand deadly fungus.” This is confirmed to be the same fungus that killed so many in the Last of Us. So, this would mean that the characters in Uncharted will soon face a virus so deadly that Nate and his friends may be in big trouble. Can’t explore your way out of this one.

2 Left 4 Dead/Portal

Via: lambdageneration

To make things interesting, let’s cut to the punchline here. GLaDOS created the zombies of L4D, and Half-Life also plays a role in this. Courtesy of Redditor Zimer100.

Rumor has it, the two most hated organizations of Valve, Aperture and Combine made a secret deal to work together (likely initiated by Dr. Breen). Neither knowing of each other’s location to prevent any betrayals. GLaDos stored all of this info that would be useful to her later just as she stored the info on creating portals for Combine, aka InWorld Teleportation technology. This is when the Borealis construction began. Everything was fine until a few mixups occurred, causing mis-teleportations.

Then come the zombies. Courtesy of GLaDOS who can “bring the dead back to life” as she has told us. So likely, Aperture and BlackMesa really start messing up, as expected. Then, while Gordon is in stasis, GLaDOS begins her creation. The Combine came in after this and kept the zombies away for quite a while before Left 4 Dead takes place and they are no longer able to contain them.

1 Every Nintendo Game

via: nintendotoday.com

This is complicated and well known. Pretty much every pure Nintendo game is connected. This one is hard to comprehend, but it is absolutely true. Because nothing really adds up at first. Why doesn’t everyone have Pokémon? Why is only Hyrule threatened by Ganon?

Well, let’s pretend they are all the same world. If so, obviously, Farore, Din, and Naryu (the goddesses of the Zelda universe) created the world. In this world, Pokémon were created, but they were seen as taboo in many parts of the world, kept hidden for centuries at a time. Animal Crossing is a specific world (seen as a cult) separated from the outside world so it is slightly irrelevant. Then we have Ness who uses the same time traveling power that Link does. Which takes place generally centuries before Starfox. Who is followed by Samus Aran. In the case that the goddesses of Zelda created the world, the gods of Icarus’ world would be the ones to protect it long after Samus has passed. This sounds complex, so if you want to see how Mario, DK, and the others fit in, read the full theory here. It is quite mind-blowing.