10 Creepy Video Game Details That Will Give You Chills

6: Super Mario Galaxy 2 - Spooky Cliff Figures

mario galaxy 2 figures
Nintendo

Most of these creepy video game details have some kind of reasonable explanation behind then, this is one that doesn't, and somehow that makes it all the more unsettling.

In Shiverburn Galaxy and a section of the Grandmaster Galaxy in Super Mario Galaxy 2 you can spot some ghostly figures peering down at you from a cliff. The black figures have weird hollow eyes and can’t be accessed as they are part of the game’s sky model.

The texture is named HellValleySkyTree. It’s been speculated that ‘hell’ may be referring to heat, specifically lava, as Shiverburn Galaxy is called Frozen Lava galaxy in the game’s final Japanese release.

Suffice it to say, the figures are particularly freaky, especially in the whimsical modern classic platformer, and Nintendo has never discussed them publicly, so your guess is as good as mine here.

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Contributor

Jess has been a journalist and content creator in the games industry for over 15 years and has been WhatCulture's resident Australian import and sorry cop since 2020, upping the quotient of swearing and apologising in WhatCulture Gaming's annual blooper videos considerably. She previously worked at GameSpot for 10 years, most notably hosting GameSpot News in addition to E3 live shows, and PAX panels. She regularly livestreams a variety of games on her 'jessmcdonell' YouTube and Twitch channels and hosts the 'Do It On The Day' podcast. She has won awards for her news and feature work in gaming as well as an accolade for her comedic writing (likely an admin error). She can be found on X at @jessmcdonell and Instagram at @jessicamcdonell sharing her current videogame fixations, industry insights, and videos of her cat, Karma.