Invisibility is one of the more practical superpower concepts, right up there with simple flight and telekinesis. It’s not a showstopper (the opposite of a showstopper, really), but it’s a generally helpful ability to have in a variety of situations.
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Gaming has tackled invisibility from a variety of angles over the years, ranging from quick, temporary power-ups to consistent character abilities.
Some games approach the idea of being invisible, transparent, or otherwise hidden from sight in interesting and novel ways. Some cases have both broad and specific uses, while others are made interesting in how they’re obtained or their lore implications.
Team Fortress 2
The Spy is one of the most mechanically complex classes inTeam Fortress 2, emphasizing stealth and subterfuge rather than overt combat compared tothe other mercs’wacky tactics.
One of the linchpins to the Spy’s kit is his invisibility watch, which renders him nearly transparent when activated. However, it can only last until its battery runs out, after which he’ll be revealed.
An interesting variant of the invisibility watch is the Dead Ringer, a pocket watch that combines the abilities of the invisibility watch and the disguising cigarette case.
When backstabbing a foe with the Dead Ringer activated, rather than the Spy becoming invisible, the enemy’scorpsebecomes invisible while he instantly disguises as them.
9Natural Camouflage
In the city of Rapture inBioShock, the residents utilize ADAM through Plasmids andGene Tonicsto splice new and unusual abilities into their genetic codes.
Abilities that were previously the realm of other animals could be added to the human genome with the right genetic cocktail.
For instance, with the Natural Camouflage Gene Tonic, you gain the blending skills of a chameleon. As long as you’re standing still, you’re completely invisible to Splicers and security devices.
The stationary requirement makes it less helpful for combat, but it’s great for hacking. Even if you mess up and summon security, the bots won’t be able to find you.
8Invisibility Merit Badge
Psychonauts
The psychic campers ofPsychonautsgain access to their latent abilities with the help of official Psychonaut Merit Badges.
Interestingly,counselors likeSasha and Milla don’t give Raz the badge for Invisibility. Rather, it’s a reward from Ford for attaining a high enough Psy-Cadet rank.
Once Raz has the badge, he can instantly vanish from sight and remain as such for a prolonged period, more so if he continues to rank up.
Not only does this hide you from foes, but it’s also used for puzzles like sneaking into self-locking doors or snatching items from small critters.
7Mantorok’s Invisibility
Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem
InEternal Darkness, the spells you cast require an alignment rune from one of the three Ancients. Beyond their effectiveness against each other, the alignment doesn’t change the spell’s overall effect.
The exception to this is the optional Mantorok alignment rune, which alters or inverts the effects of some spells.
Of note is the Reveal Invisible spell. Normally, casting this spell reveals enemies or items that have been hidden from sight.
Casting Reveal Invisible with Mantorok, though, inverts the effect; rather than removing invisibility from others, it grants it to you. It’s an immensely helpful ability for navigating cramped spaces without getting your sanity drained by monsters.
6Stone Mask
The Legend Of Zelda: Majora’s Mask
The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask
InThe Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, Link can gain a variety of helpful (or less-than-helpful) abilities fromthe masks he wears.
One such mask is the Stone Mask, a doofy-looking mask carved from solid rock. It’s rather unassuming, the kind of thing you wouldn’t pay much mind if you saw it on the side of the road.
Therein lay the genius, though; while wearing the mask, Link becomes as unassuming as a random rock, causing most NPCs and enemies to completely disregard him.
It’s the perfect means of hiding in plain sight for spying on the townsfolk or avoiding monsters.
5Invisibility Badge
Super Mario Bros. Wonder
InSuper Mario Bros. Wonder, there are various badges you can equip to gain special abilities, additional moves, and general game modifiers. Most of these make the game easier, but a handful actually make the game harder.
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The Invisibility Badge, despite what you may expect, belongs to the latter category. It does make your character invisible, which prevents them from being detected by basic enemies.
However, the badge also makes your character invisible toyou. The only way to determine your position is through incidental effects like dust clouds or moving blocks.
It’s less amazing in the helpful sense, and more amazing in the… audacious sense.
4Phantom Cloak
Metroid Dread
In her many adventures, Samus Aran has made a habit of co-opting abilities frompowerful boss enemiesto aid in combat and exploration.
InMetroid Dread, following the defeat of Corpius, Samus copies its ability to turn transparent, obtaining the Phantom Cloak ability.
Phantom Cloak can be toggled at will to turn Samus transparent, hiding her from regular enemies and, more importantly, marauding E.M.M.I. units.
Staying cloaked drains Samus’ Aeion bar slowly while she’s still and quicker if she moves. If the bar drains completely, remaining cloaked will begin to drain Samus’ life energy.
3Kevin Smith’s Perfect Disguise
Every member of the Smith Syndicate inKiller7has some manner of inexplicable supernatural ability. For the mysterious Kevin Smith, that ability is Invisibility.
By spending thin blood, Kevin can become completely intangible. Not only is he undetectable by Heaven’s Smiles, he can pass right through them, as well as simple obstacles like laser fences.
In addition to being a very practical ability, Kevin’s invisibility has an interesting thematic implication. Before becoming a persona, Kevin was a master of traditional disguises.
However, an enemy assassin saw through his disguise and gunned him down. In response to this, Kevin developed the perfect disguise, one that literally couldn’t be perceived.
Metal Gear Solid 4
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
TheMetal Gear serieshas tinkered a bit with the concept of invisibility on several occasions. The most obvious example of this was the optic camouflage utilized by Grey Fox in Metal Gear Solid.
However, inMetal Gear Solid 4, Snake got to use an interesting offshoot of smart camouflage: OctoCamo, a stealth system designed to mimic the natural camo used by sea creatures.
With OctoCamo, Snake can manually blend in with whatever material he’s standing next to. This drastically increases his camo index, at least as long as he remains near the sampled spot.
1Chinese Stealth Armor
InFallout 3, your primary source of invisibility is a Stealth Boy, a disposable cloaking device that makes you completely transparent. However, Stealth Boys only last for a couple of minutes before burning out.
A much better stealth solution can be obtained through the Operation Anchorage DLC: the Chinese Stealth Armor.
When crouching with this armor equipped, a built-in Stealth Boy activates, rendering you indefinitely transparent until you stand back up.
It’s one of the most overtly useful items in the game. The only drawback is that it’s a full-body equip, so you’re able to’t wear other armor with it.
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