With the release of Disney’s “Wreck-It Ralph,” video-game bad guys have become popular. My wife, son, and I play mostly cool unblocked games, but many of them have their fair share of tough villains. As each hero sets out on an adventure, the villain does all he can to carry out his own evil plans. Here are our five top-choice villains from favorite past and recent games.
Pac-Man ghosts
Inky, Blinky, Pinky, and Clyde do all they can to stop Pac-Man from enjoying his meal. These ghosts became world-famous in the 1980s when Pac-Man hit the arcades. They appear to wander aimlessly around the maze, but they have a plan to catch and chomp the hero. Blinky and Pinky attack aggressively, Inky stays back and is easier to avoid, but Clyde defends the last remaining dots and sneaks up on Pac-Man. After nearly 30 years, we still have trouble avoiding the ghosts, but we have fun trying.
Original Donkey Kong
Mario first made his debut in the 1980s original hit arcade game Donkey Kong. His name then was Jumpman, and his mission was to save Princess Pauline. Donkey Kong kidnaps the princess and hides her on top of the scaffolding of unfinished buildings. He throws barrels and fireballs at Jumpman. Just as Jumpman reaches the top to save the princess, Donkey Kong grabs her and takes her away to another hiding place. This then-seemingly single arcade game eventually turned into the Super Mario series with multitudes of games that my wife, son, and I still love today.
Super Mario World’s Bowser
When Jumpman became Mario and entered into Super Mario World later in the 80s, Bowser came onto the bad guy scene. He kidnaps Princess Peach and makes Mario and Luigi rescue her. Bowser sends his many minions to stop the Mario Brothers. Mario and Luigi must defeat Bowser in the final stages of the game to rescue the princess. This premise has followed every Super Mario game from the 1980s original to the latest version on the Wii U. Bowser also manages to dampen every Mario Party game by causing chaos wherever the characters play. He is the quintessential foe for Mario fans.
Sonic the Hedgehog’s Eggman
The Sonic the Hedgehog Series debuted in 1991. Sonic and Tails must stop the evil Eggman from taking over the planet Mobius. Sonic must defeat him by traveling across Mobius and launching into space to fight Eggman on his Death Ball. Once there, he must defeat Eggman and destroy the Death Ball. Sonic gathers rings to give him extra strength, but Eggman sends his many robotic minions to steal them away and stop Sonic from thwarting his plans. Many crazy and exciting adventures await Sonic through his many years of adventures. From 1991 to 2012, Sonic has some of the most exciting adventures ever.
Aladdin’s Jafar
The Aladdin game, based on the Disney movie, came out in 1993. Aladdin travels through Agrabah in the quest to win Princess Jasmine’s heart. The Sultan’s adviser, Jafar, has plans of his own to marry the princess and become the new Sultan. Jafar sends out his henchmen to stop Aladdin. We see Jafar late in the game after he has gained his sorcerer’s powers. He shoots lightning bolts at Aladdin and calls in flying pots in an attempt to kill the prince-to-be. After Aladdin escapes from Jafar’s attacks, Jafar morphs into a giant serpent for the final battle. He spits poisoned eggs and strikes at Aladdin.
My wife and I took three years (1993-1996) to make it through the entire game, but our son did it in one summer in 2006 at six years old. We began playing it again in 2012 and find it just as challenging after the long layoff as we originally did
The games center on the heroes, but without the villains, we would have no reason to play.
