10 Scary Video Game Urban Legends Everyone Believed Were True

2. The Madden Curse

MAJORA S MASK Fate
EA

From the most obscure entrant on the list to arguably the most famous, it's easy to see why the Madden curse managed to transcend games journalism and enter popular culture.

Digital trends wrote a superb retrospective on the subject, and even a quick glance through it shows why so many people became believers in the curse. Freak injuries, loss of form, inexplicably poor performances in key games - from 1999-2012 the history of Madden cover stars reads like the black book of a scorned, promiscuous witch. Fortunately the curse seems to have eased up in recent years, with only a few players since 2013 suffering poor luck after starring on the box, but that doesn't change the fact that for 13 years a player appearing on the cover of a Madden game was essentially ringing the death knell for their career.

As a final note, a streak of of bad luck lasting 13 years that ended in the 2013 season? Given the importance of the number thirteen in witchcraft, maybe there is something to the curse...

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Hello! My name's Iain Tayor. I write about video games, wrestling and comic books, and I apparently can't figure out how to set my profile picture correctly.