Skip to main content
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+ The Games, Movies, TV & Comics You Love
UK EditionUK US EditionUS CA EditionCanada AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Games
    • Game Insights
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
    • Genres
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
    • Franchises
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • Insights
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
    • Computing
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
    • Accessories & Tech
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
Total Film
  • home
  • Games
    • View Games
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • View Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • View Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • View TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • View Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • View Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • View Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • View Hardware
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • View Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • View Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
Total Film
Gaming Magazines
Gaming Magazines
Why subscribe?
  • Subscribe from just £3
  • Takes you closer to the games, movies and TV you love
  • Try a single issue or save on a subscription
  • Issues delivered straight to your door or device
From$12
Subscribe now
Don't miss these
Hollow Knight: Silksong bug suspended in silk strands
Platforming Games Silksong devs "maybe" aren't going to The Game Awards and think they're "safe" from a GOTY win because of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which is "exceptional and broadly palatable"
Upcoming PS5 games: A picture showing screenshots of Resident Evil 9, Monster Hunter Stories 3, Black Ops 7 and Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2
Adventure Games Upcoming PS5 games: New PS5 games for 2025 and beyond
Vision Quench
Survival Games Palworld publisher vows to "keep leveraging" the success of the survival game to "help cool people make cool games," like this fantasy looter-shooter made by a small team
GamesRadar+ Best Games of 2025 hero image
Games The 25 Best Games of 2025
Upcoming Xbox Series X games header image featuring State of Decay 3, Fable 4, The Outer Worlds 2, and South of Midnight
FPS Games Upcoming Xbox Series X games for 2025 and beyond
The Elder Scrolls 6
The Elder Scrolls The Elder Scrolls 6, Half-Life 3, or new God of War reveals could be imminent according to hopeful fans who've been sent spiralling over a cryptic Geoff Keighley post – or, "most likely a Diablo 4 expansion"
The 50 Most Iconic Video Game Characters
Games The 50 most iconic video game characters of all time
Horses logo behind Steam symbol with a red line through it
Horror Games Banned by Steam, $100,000 in the hole, and facing shutdown, graphic horror game dev now dropped by Epic Games Store "roughly 24 hours before launch"
Horses
Horror Games One week after an acclaimed indie studio said it faces closure following a Steam ban for its surreal horror game, Humble joins Epic in banning Horses at the last minute
Upcoming PC games 2025 header imagine featuring InZoi / Split Fiction / Elden Ring: Nightreign / Dune: Awakening
PC Gaming Upcoming PC games: New PC games for 2025 and beyond
Upcoming Switch games header image featuring Sonic Racing CrossWorlds, Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time, Hello Kitty Island Adventure, and Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
Action Games Upcoming Switch games for 2026 and beyond
Two polaroid photos of Hakan the rooster that inspired Scrappy
Third Person Shooters The backbone of Arc Raiders, Scrappy the rooster, is based on a real bird who crashed a dev Zoom meeting and was photoscanned in as something "we'll definitely replace later"
Knack
Survival Games No Man's Sky lead says Sony has a "KNACK for this kind of thing" as people try and riddle out the viral Game Awards teaser – that, or "Geoff is simply opening a hell portal"
Toem 2 screnshot showing the photographer climbing up little hillsides with goats roaming
Games Upcoming indie games for 2025 and beyond
Beyond good and Evil 2
Action Games Upcoming Ubisoft games: Every new Ubisoft game in development
Trending
  • Best Games of 2025
  • The Future of Total War
  • Fallout Season 2
  • Gift Guides
  • New Games for 2025
  1. Games

12 animals that won't star in games revealed at E3

Features
By Jason Fanelli published 7 June 2013

Quack of Duty: Ghost Puppies!

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Gone to the dogs

Gone to the dogs

The Call of Duty Dog phenomenon born from the Xbox One reveal event is a beautiful thing. We can always get behind a canine cause, especially when the pooch is part of our beloved video game world. However, the animal kingdom is a vast place, and not every creature that walks the Earth can feature in a big time video game.

There are plenty of animals that, unlike CoD Dog, won't be making video games any time soon--least of all at E3 2013. We've thought of twelve that are sure to be absent from next week's video game bonanza.

Page 1 of 14
Page 1 of 14
Goats

Goats

Why they won't: Goats aren't exactly the most interesting animals in the world. Most of the time they're standing around chewing cud and staring at each other. Who wants to play that? Plus, goats had their chance in the spotlight in the Medal of Honor reboot, and they blew it.

...but if they were: A brand new karaoke game allows us to supplant any part of a song with the infamous goat scream. Hilarity ensues.

Page 2 of 14
Page 2 of 14
Sloths

Sloths

Why they won't: As much as the internet loves the sloth, they're slow, dim-witted creatures that sit in trees all day. They make funny faces, but other than that their entertainment value is zero.

...but if they were: Sloth DLC for Animal Crossing. Seriously, considering all of the different species Nintendo's life sim sports, where's the sloth named Slowpoke?

Page 3 of 14
Page 3 of 14
Meerkats

Meerkats

Why they won't: Meerkats and prairie dogs go hand-in-hand; they both primarily stay underground, poking their heads out every once in a while for food or to scout for danger. Do you think there's a market for a Sim-Ant style meerkat game? We sure don't.

...but if they were: Maxis would have resurrect the old TV show Meerkat Manor with a meerkat life simulation game for us to be on board. That or Disney adding The Lion King's Timon and Pumbaa to Disney Infinity...which seems a lot more plausible. Hakuna Matata indeed.

Page 4 of 14
Page 4 of 14
Man-o-war Jellyfish

Man-o-war Jellyfish

Why they won't: This one is confident that the jellyfish-like Hanar from Mass Effect are the closest thing we'll ever see to a jellyfish character in a video game. This one founds that belief on the fact that jellyfish are literally just blobs of goo with stingy tentacles. This one is tired.

...but if they were: This one believes that a game featuring the hanar spectre Blasto would be the equivalent of the Enkindlers smiling down upon us. This one fully endorses that idea.

Page 5 of 14
Page 5 of 14
Sea Otters

Sea Otters

Why they won't: Cute as they are, sea otters don't lend themselves well to video games. They're either swimming around or laying on their backs eating. Unless it was some kind of "smash the crap out of a clam with the otter's tail" minigame... which might be fun, actually.

...but if they were: Aside from the clam-smashing example above, there is actually a tiny chance that South Park: The Stick of Truth will feature the sea otters from the "Go God Go" episodes. Science be praised!

Page 6 of 14
Page 6 of 14
Duck-billed Platypi

Duck-billed Platypi

Why they won't: Seriously, how the hell would a platypus feature in a video game other than being a Goomba-like character that walks around waiting to get jumped on?

...but if they were: The only hope for platypus-kind nowadays is Perry the Platypus, but unless he features in the next Phineas and Ferb game or he scores his own title, there's no other reason for him to be there. Although, Perry as a Smash Bros combatant would be intriguing...

Page 7 of 14
Page 7 of 14
Capybara

Capybara

Why they won't: They're the world's largest rodent. Most people don't like small field mice, so the idea of a mouse-like creature the size of a small dog wouldn't go over so well. Although the guinea pig owners among us might feel right at home.

...but if they were: Call of Duty Dog needs a partner, right? How about Corporal Curtis Capybara, leader of Rat Platoon? The two would be the Batman and Robin of animal army duos. And no, the company Capybara doesn't count, even if their logo is an adorable capy.

Page 8 of 14
Page 8 of 14
Okapi

Okapi

Why they won't: Just like many reading this are wondering what the hell an okapi is, the creatues itself isn't really sure. Zebra? Steer? Gazelle? The utter confusion makes it hard to place an Okapi in any particular setting, aside from an Afrika or Tokyo Jungle sequel.

...but if they were: Capcom should make Okapi, a spiritual successor to Clover Studio's smash hit Okami, starring a brand new creature tasked with bringing color back to the world, starting with choosing one color for his body.

Page 9 of 14
Page 9 of 14
Aardvark

Aardvark

Why they won't: Aardvarks seemed to be overshadowed by the anteater, and rightfully so. Anteaters have that cool long snout, while aardvarks are stuck with that gross pig nose. Even the one video game starting an aardvark, the Commodore 64 classic Aardvark, was adapted from the arcade game Anteater with the same premise. Anteaters are just better.

...but if they were: Star Fox's newest challenge is posed by the ruthless Aar D'Varkian, the leader of a space pirate gang looking to conquer and enslave the innocent people of AntEternia... and who ends up working for Andross all along.

Page 10 of 14
Page 10 of 14
Blue-footed Boobies

Blue-footed Boobies

Why they won't: We can't help but giggle like 4th-graders whenever we hear the name of this bird, so we can only assume that seeing the first ever video game starring a blue footed booby would stir up some immature laughter across the board. There are plenty of other birds to choose from that won't cause such immaturity, so ol' Blue here will always be left out.

...but if they were: A blue footed booby named Jugghead becomes the new co-mascot of the Dead or Alive fighting series, the other being Timmy the titmouse.

Page 11 of 14
Page 11 of 14
Bandicoots

Bandicoots

Why they won't: This little guy used to be on the top of the digital animal kingdom; what the heck happened? Crash hasn't been seen in years, overshadowed by the huge success of his buddy Spyro in Skylanders, so what's next for the former face of PlayStation?

...but if they were: We hope Crash gets a new game soon, especially with the impending launch of the PS4, although we always hoped he'd be DLC for PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale... that can still happen, right?

Page 12 of 14
Page 12 of 14
Seaman

Seaman

Why he won't: Seaman already had his chance, but he was too busy being insulting and creeping everyone out in his tank. Asking irrelevant questions like "when is your birthday?" and making sure we stay just friends...like we would ever consider a relationship with a sarcastic man-fish...

...but if he was: Perhaps Seaman can make a triumphant return to the gaming world on one of Nintendo's platforms, but if there were to be a Seaman resurgence, we'd much rather it be a cameo in the background of a Sega game somewhere. We wouldn't be able to handle that kind of rejection again.

Page 13 of 14
Page 13 of 14
No animal kingdom here

No animal kingdom here

An extensive search led to us finding these twelve beasts, but we're sure we left some out. Let us know in the comments which animal you'd never expect to find at this year's E3.

If you need more E3 coverage, check out 99 Predictions for E3 2013 or 9 Crazy E3 Rumors That Were Totally Wrong.

Page 14 of 14
Page 14 of 14
CATEGORIES
Android iPad iPhone PC Gaming Wii-u Nintendo PlayStation PS4 Xbox Xbox One Platforms Mobile Gaming
Jason Fanelli
WHY HELLO THERE! Name's Jason, hailing from right outside Philadelphia. I've been playing the vidya games for well over 20 years, starting with the NES and making my way all the way up to the Wii U. My mother tells people that I taught myself to read at age 3 using Wheel of Fortune Family Edition on the NES. I'm the type of guy that will try anything once, but I do have a few favorite genres, fighting and RPG being at the top. I've been writing about video games since I finished my Broadcast Journalism degree at Temple University in December 2008, mostly for www.gamernode.com. Since then I've been to three E3s, two New York Comic Cons, the first ever PAX East, and many more to come (I hope). I hope everyone enjoys my stuff as much as I love producing it. Hit me up on Twitter @bigmanfanelli, I love talking games with anyone and everyone.
Read more
A screenshot shows a witch with an orange hat holding a bone in front of a three-headed dog
I just died and went to Rhythm Heaven: Slay the Princess publisher reveals visual novel inspired by Nintendo's cult rhythm game series and cute puppies
 
 
A view of the countryside in Where Winds Meet
Battered and bruised Where Winds Meet players rally together to rid the Wuxia open-world MMO of its demonic geese: "Yeet into the water. Every single one of them"
 
 
Panic Stations
Dressed in their best digital pigeon cosplay, Fall Guys devs reunite after Epic layoffs to serve up REPO and Peak-style "tasty friendslop"
 
 
Shadow (Keanu Reeves) in Sonic 3
Every upcoming video game movie you need to know about
 
 
God of War Ragnarok
We can apparently cross God of War and Diablo 4 DLC off the list of things The Game Awards host Geoff Keighley could be teasing, and I'm sure The Elder Scrolls 6 fans are feeling very normal about that
 
 
Animal Village Online
This ridiculously blatant Animal Crossing somehow made its way onto the PlayStation Store, but I have a hunch it won't be there long
 
 
Latest in Games
GTA 6
We got a Rockstar doormat before GTA 6: Rockstar drops new merch for GTA, Red Dead Redemption, and Bully ahead of the holidays
 
 
Tacos packed with Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift fly around the screen in Hong Kong 2097 as Vince McMahon looks on from side
The sequel to the one of the worst games of all time failed its Steam review and hasn't gotten a response from Valve, so it's been delayed: "Come on Steam, you guys are busting my balls here"
 
 
Horses
"This still does not compare to the kind of audience we would have on Steam": Horses lead says ban virality helped sales "but we're not out of the woods," and he fears "self-censorship" with future games
 
 
Banjo runs toward the viewer in Banjo-Kazooie: Mumbomania, a fan game made in Dreams
Xbox breaks my heart every day there's no Banjo-Threeie announcement, but this Banjo-Kazooie fan game fills the gap and even has praise from Rare and the OG devs: "Incredible work"
 
 
Lucy in Fallout season 2
Fallout boss Todd Howard reassures New Vegas fans that the Amazon TV show built an "incredible" set for season 2: "Their ability to pull it off on the scale, so much of it practical, it was incredible"
 
 
Elder Scrolls 6
Elder Scrolls and Fallout boss Todd Howard says AI is a useful "tool" in game dev, but "not in generating things" because "the human intention of it is what makes our stuff special"
 
 
Latest in Features
Big Preview Total War hub image featuring Warhammer 3 characters
Explore the future of Total War in the GamesRadar+ Big Preview
 
 
Dust Bunny
Bryan Fuller's Dust Bunny is a weird and wonderful tale with one important lesson: "Believe children"
 
 
Hand using the Nintendo Switch 2 Joy-Con controller in its mouse setting
Here's how to use mouse controls on Metroid Prime 4, and how to make them even better
 
 
Matt Mercer smiling and Brennan Lee Mulligan talking, with a white line dividing them
I've watched 1000+ hours of D&D podcasts, here's what Critical Role 4 should learn from Dimension 20 and new DM Brennan Lee Mulligan
 
 
Art from Octopath Traveler 0 showing Alexia walking down some steps and examining statues
Octopath Traveler 0 fulfils a wish I've had since the first JRPG in the series, but it also loses something that made its predecessors special
 
 
A beautiful Mediterranean coastal fortress as depicted in concept art for Total War: Medieval 3
"Medieval 3 is, in some sense, our Half-Life 3" – Total War: Medieval 3 is finally in the works, and Creative Assembly is leaning on immersion to make it worth the 19-year wait
 
 
  1. Art from Octopath Traveler 0 showing the hero being haunted by the images of those who burned his hometown, with ghostly images of the three surrounding an image of a town on fire behind him as he walks forward
    1
    Octopath Traveler 0 review: "The strongest entry in this retro-styled JRPG series yet, I love the greater focus on tactical battles"
  2. 2
    Sleep Awake review: "An all-timer horror premise is let down by tired stealth that I feel like I'm sleepwalking through"
  3. 3
    Metroid Prime 4: Beyond review: "The series' atmosphere has never been better, while being dragged down by a boring overworld and clunky psychic powers"
  4. 4
    Routine review: "This imperfect but wonderfully atmospheric moon-based horror leaves a strong impression"
  5. 5
    Marvel Cosmic Invasion review: "Excellent '90s-tinged superhero brawling across a punchy campaign falls just short of arcade bliss"
  1. Freddy Fazbear in Five Nights at Freddy's 2
    1
    Five Nights at Freddy's 2 review: "We have waited two years for a Five Nights at Freddy's 1.5"
  2. 2
    Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery review: "Brings Knives Out back to its roots for a sequel that's almost on a par with the original"
  3. 3
    Wicked: For Good review: "Builds to an incredibly cathartic conclusion, but isn't quite as captivating as Part 1"
  4. 4
    The Running Man review: "Some fun action and Glen Powell's star power aren't enough to energize this disappointing Stephen King adaptation"
  5. 5
    Predator: Badlands review: "Die-hard fans may be disappointed, but as a blockbuster action-adventure, Badlands kills it"
  1. Noah Schnapp as Will Byers and Jamie Campbell Bower as Vecna in Stranger Things season 5
    1
    Stranger Things season 5 volume 1 review: “Can the Duffer brothers stick the landing? It’s sure looking like they will”
  2. 2
    Pluribus season 1 review: "Easily one of the year's best dramas"
  3. 3
    The Witcher season 4 review: "The Henry Cavill-less fourth season is the best yet"
  4. 4
    IT: Welcome to Derry review: "A supremely confident step back into the history of Stephen King's cursed town and killer clown"
  5. 5
    Splinter Cell: Deathwatch review: "A pale imitation of the long-dormant stealth franchise"

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google
  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...