The Most Disappointing Secret Rooms In Games
Looking for unused content and secrets in games has become a hobby for many gamers. There are entire channels on YouTube dedicated to breaking game boundaries to explore what's just out of frame. For all the effort put into searching expansive maps and glitching through every wall, you'd expect to be rewarded with something truly special. Sometimes these hidden rooms house loot or exclusive content, but, more often than not, you go through a long process only to discover some secrets aren't worth uncovering. Here are some of the most disappointing secret rooms in games.
The Unstable Teleport Plasmid in Bioshock 2
While tromping through the leaky halls of Rapture there's nothing better than discovering a new Plasmid. Especially one that's just sitting out in the open, ready for the taking. When you approach said Plasmid and realize it's the Unstable Teleport Plasmid, the serum that gives the irksome Houdini Splicers their ability to travel from one place to another instantly, that only doubles your excitement.
When you touch the Unstable Teleport Plasmid in Bioshock 2, it will teleport to another location. The more you interact with the Plasmid, the more it teleports away from you, going further each time. If you have the patience to follow this Plasmid all the way to the end of its route, the game will teleport you to a secret room full of plaster Splicers frozen on their knees with cameras in their hands. Though the developers reward you with the Vending Expert 2 Tonic for your efforts, you soon discover the Plasmid you just spent 15 minutes chasing has disappeared. That's right, no teleportation for you, a restriction that remains in place throughout the 12-year-old franchise.
The million dollar Advent Rising room
Developers had high hopes for action-adventure Advent Rising. With a big advertising campaign and plans to include novelizations and comic tie-ins, expectations for a long-lasting series skyrocketed. Unfortunately, this never came to fruition as the first title didn't hit its sales targets. This, coupled with Majesco Entertainment's shift towards handheld games, led to the premature death of Advent Rising's legacy.
A secret room in the 5-F chapter of the game acts a sad monument to the failed venture. Though many players have looked through the glass door of the seemingly inaccessible room, some gamers have managed to teleport inside. There they discovered a cavernous hall with a seemingly bottomless pit in the center. Luckily, platforms rose from the black abyss below to form a floating walkway. Though pretty cool, the disappointing aspect of this room is the fact it was most likely part of a million dollar Easter egg hunt planned by Majesco Entertainment as part of the Advent Rising launch. Like many of the other plans for the game, the Easter egg hunt, called the "Race to Save Humanity," and the accompanying prize money were nixed before they ever came to be. And now the room stands as a reminder to players that they almost had the chance to win $1 million.
Lara's basement in Tomb Raider 2
If you're going to put in the effort to unlock a secret room in a game, you expect to have some sort of payoff. While a room full of treasure seems like a great reward, the effect is greatly lessened when you find out you can't actually do anything with the mountains of gold.
In Tomb Raider 2, players can access Lara's basement after jumping through a lot of hoops. First, you must get to a secret area in the middle of the hedge maze in her garden which takes quite a bit of time on its own. Once there, you'll press a button that opens the door to the basement inside of the mansion. Of course, that means you'll have to make your way back through the maze all over again. Add to this the fact the door is on a timer strategically set to close the door seconds after you make it inside, and there's no room for error. You'd think for all this effort you'd be rewarded with a secret weapon or an item you can use later in the game but all you get is a quick peek at Lara's treasure room. While it is pretty fun to look at, that's about all it's good for.