Doppelgänger
The German term (literal translation of its parts: double goer) is commonly used to describe someone who could be or is the double of another person or a ghost with the appearance of a still-living person. Most video doppelgängers are enemies in games who use the same (but usually altered) graphics of a playable character. The hook of this gimmick is that you have to battle an opponent with access to most or all of a player's skills, though some have extra powers, because evil rarely plays fairly. Characters who share sprites or a model with a playable character is either colored very differently and behaves very differently is rarely considered a doppelgänger as much as they're just a palette swap. These battles are often called "Mirror Matches" when dealing with just one opponent (especially in fighting games).

Examples of doppelgängers include the Doppelgängers from the Castlevania series, Doppel from Capt. Commando, the Shadow/Doppelgänger from Double Dragon II, Mirror Rick from Splatterhouse, Break from Streets of Rage 3, and the evil clones from Rushing Beat Ran/Brawl Brothers. Be sure to avoid Doppelgängers at all costs if seen in the Black Lodge, as it may take 25 years to fix the results.

Return to smaller definition in Venacula-X glossary

Return to Venacula-X glossary

Return to top of the top of the page

Return to top of the top of the page