Buzz
Tutorials are an unavoidable nuisance. Gamers know this all too well. You start up a much-anticipated game only to be bombarded with walls of text explaining the gameplay. Unfortunately, there’s no way around them. While they’re not essential for understanding the game’s mechanics, developers often lock you in a tutorial room and force you to complete easy tasks before you can proceed. It’s a necessary part of the experience, but it’s also agonizingly dull. However, it doesn’t have to be that way.
Humor can break the monotony of a tutorial. Many games embrace a humorous approach in their early levels. Characters introduce the game’s mechanics in a fun and light-hearted manner, often with sight gags or witty remarks. This method makes learning the game enjoyable, so you’re eager to dive into the rest of the adventure. It takes a unique skill to make that happen.
10. Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc
The Rayman series is known for its quirky humor, but the third installment takes it a step further with a more self-aware tone. In Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc, the peaceful forest home of the protagonist is attacked by the insect-like Hoodlums. In a moment of panic, Rayman’s friend, Globox, accidentally runs off with his hands (don’t ask how). Rayman’s other companion, Murphy, must guide him through the forest to retrieve Globox and uncover the truth behind the chaos. The twist in this tutorial might catch you off guard, though.
Murphy guides you through the game’s basics and storyline, but he does so by reading from an in-game manual. As Rayman relearns his moves, his flying companion breezes through the manual, skipping the dull parts. Players likely do the same when forced to read, but that’s not all. Murphy also complains about his role as a sidekick, wishing for a career change. Some of these jokes may feel outdated, but they fit perfectly with the series' slapstick humor. In fact, it’s almost sad to see Murphy leave after the tutorial ends.
9. Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon
Considering how serious the main Far Cry games can be, the Blood Dragon expansion is a delightful twist. It parodies the over-the-top action heroes and cyberpunk themes of the '80s, and its tone is clear right from the start. Cyborg soldier Rex Colt has his system reset by his comrade and must complete a series of basic tasks before being allowed to continue his mission.
“Basic” is an understatement. The instructions are so simple they could be insulting to toddlers. For example, after teaching you to run, the tutorial explains it’s ‘like walking, but faster.’ The combination of deadpan delivery and Rex’s frustration with the situation makes for a hilarious critique of typical tutorials. These segments spoon-feed you even the most elementary actions, which makes you feel like the developers are talking down to you. Watching Rex share your irritation is both funny and relatable.
8. Spider-Man
Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy has a game based on each entry, and they all require a small learning curve. The tutorials for these superhero tie-ins are standard affairs on paper. They take you through the hero’s web-slinging and wall-crawling powers at a decent pace. However, it’s the narrator who truly brings these bits to life.
Talking you through these opening stages is Bruce Campbell. The Evil Dead star has cameos in all three of Rami’s Spidey flicks, so his presence here is perfect. He’s just as witty as ever. His sarcastic tone elevates even the simplest instructions. It sounds like he’s just as bored with the basics as you are, yet his smart-aleck comments lend an easygoing humor to the mundane ordeal. The Web-Head’s games would be far more fun today if they brought Bruce back.
7. Bully
The first day of school is always intimidating, but not so with Bully. As delinquent Jimmy Hopkins arrives at the infamous Bullworth Academy, he familiarizes himself with the everyday violence and vulgarity. Basically, you go through the daily tasks and classes to get an idea of the gameplay loop. It’s not much different than the rest of the semester, but that’s not a bad thing.
The comedy comes from how inherently insane Bully is. Students and teachers hurl horrible threats and insults every few seconds. After fighting another kid, you humiliate him by twisting his arm, rubbing spit in his face, or doing some other disgusting thing to him. You then learn about the various cliques, complete with sly remarks from the characters. All these scenes are incredibly juvenile but with hints of self-awareness. The game ruthlessly mocks school culture. That’s nothing new in entertainment, but few examples do it with the unabashed classlessness of Grand Theft Auto.
6. Destroy All Humans!
Destroy All Humans! is another bizarre series, and it doesn’t waste time showing that in its opening level. When Crypto (Cryptosporidium-137) lands on Earth, he encounters a farm. The local hillbillies react with fear and aggression at the sight of the 'little green spaceman,' which only annoys Crypto. Even by the standards of this franchise, the setup feels cliché, but Destroy All Humans! embraces it with gusto.
Kicking off with the classic trope of aliens messing with farmers allows the game to leave its mark. Crypto assumes that the cows are the dominant species, so he uses his mind-reading abilities on them. The cows’ simple mooing earns praise from his superior, who calls it 'primitive yet profound.' Later, Crypto is offended when the farmer’s wife refers to him as 'green.' These jokes consistently take playful jabs at societal stereotypes of the time, giving you a clear idea of the humor you can expect throughout the game.
5. Deadpool
The Merc with a Mouth is all about making his stories entertaining, and his game is no exception. Deadpool starts in the anti-hero’s grimy apartment. You can explore his unsavory surroundings and interact with his bizarre belongings while learning the controls. Many of these interactions are just as raunchy as Deadpool himself, including inflating a doll, munching on rotten pizza, drinking low-quality alcohol, and using a filthy restroom. The humor doesn’t stop there, though.
The early storyline maintains its chaotic energy. After receiving the game’s script, the masked mercenary immediately begins rewriting it to match his own preferences. Throughout this, he argues with the voices in his head about where the story should go. To introduce the characters, the game presents wild montages with a manic narrator recounting their comic origins. These elements perfectly capture Deadpool’s offbeat dark humor. It’s all so over-the-top that you can’t look away, and that keeps you hooked.
4. Monsters, Inc. Scream Team
Training is the name of the game here. Set before the iconic film, Monsters, Inc. Scream Team (or Scare Island) has Mike and Sully undergoing a company course for aspiring scarers. The training involves light platforming, combat, and collecting. It’s fun enough, particularly the Nerves—robots designed to mimic real children. Mike and Sully have different ways to scare these robots into submission, all of which involve cartoonish slapstick, making it endlessly entertaining. Like with the Spider-Man games, however, it’s the narrator who steals the show.
The instructor is Roz, the company’s sarcastic receptionist. Completing each task earns praise from this old grump, but she delivers it in the same deadpan, uninspired tone as the rest of her dialogue. This contrast adds humor and mirrors the soul-crushing boredom players often feel during tutorials. It even manages to be a more enjoyable prequel than Monsters University.
3. Lollipop Chainsaw
Given the random title, you might wonder what Lollipop Chainsaw even is. Well, it revolves around a zombie-hunting cheerleader. The upbeat Juliet is incredibly endearing from the get-go. She uses her ditzy valley girl voice to convey an ironclad sense of duty. At the same time, she constantly fantasizes about her boyfriend and other teenage troubles. You don’t expect these extremes to mix, but the game hilariously holds that tone throughout the first level.
The opening sequence unfolds in Juliet’s high school during a zombie apocalypse. That scenario is usually a grim affair fraught with hopelessness, but Lollipop Chainsaw gives it all the pep of a cheerleading routine. Death and mayhem unfold all around the heroine. Despite that, her unyielding enthusiasm combines with the flashy presentation and blaring pop music to craft a confidently crazy venture. For the icing on the cake, Juliet severs her deceased boyfriend’s head, reanimates it, and straps it to her belt so that they can always be together. Moments like that tell you exactly what kind of game you’re getting. You wonder what was going through the creators’ heads when making this unhinged title. After a while, though, you just settle in for the wild ride.
2. Vampire: The Masquerade–Bloodlines
Once again, a tutorial stands out thanks to a witty teacher. Vampire: The Masquerade–Bloodlines is an ultraviolent adventure steeped in gallows humor. After being killed and resurrected as a vampire, you must get used to the undead way of life. Helping you on that journey is Smiling Jack. He’s an extremely powerful vampire with the persona of a drunken street bum. Because of that, he takes everything in stride, getting a sick kick out of the most gratuitous acts. You never know what he’s going to do, which brilliantly sets the campy tone. You can even join in the fun.
The game’s role-playing format lets you respond to Jack. Each exchange comes with a heap of dialogue options, and some of them are just as crazy as him. The ensuing conversations are off the walls. You can be laughing one minute and thoroughly repulsed the next. This unorthodox buddy dynamic fills you with sadistic glee, which is the ideal mindset for this world of supernatural horrors.
1. Doom
In many respects, the 2016 reboot of Doom is a bold rejection of modern gaming norms, particularly those in first-person shooters. Far too often, these games are bogged down by elaborate yet clichéd plots centered on the horrors of war or some other high-minded agenda. Such narratives often distract from the thrill of combat and work against the very essence of what makes a shooter fun. Fortunately, some developers still understand how to inject pure enjoyment into the genre.
The story kicks off with the Doom Slayer (aka 'Doomguy') awakening in a decimated facility on Mars. The forces of Hell are wreaking havoc, unleashed by the station’s dangerous interdimensional experiments, and the Slayer’s mission is clear: stop them. He’s not interested in the bigger picture. Enter Dr. Samuel Hayden, a mysterious scientist who tries to explain the station's purpose and its potential benefits to mankind. However, the Slayer disregards him at every turn. When the doctor pleads with him to preserve vital equipment, the Slayer smashes it without hesitation. His only goal is to destroy demons, and that’s exactly what he does. This no-nonsense attitude challenges the over-complicated approach of many modern game developers, and it’s impossible not to smile with grim satisfaction as he carries out his mission.
