The mysteries surrounding secret groups can be difficult to resist. What are their plans? What sort of things are they aware of that we're not? Because many games offer players a power fantasy, we want to know and have everything.
And when joining a respected and powerful order often comes with new gifts, teachings, and prestige, who are we to refuse? That’s just rude.
From ancient assassin guilds to futuristic intelligence teams, the following are the top 10 secret organizations in games.
WARNING: Spoilers ahead.
10. The Lin Kuei from the Mortal Kombat series
To be a feared Lin Kuei assassin, you must be “more stealthful than the night, more deadly than the dawn.” That sounds a little silly, but the ancient order turned out Mortal Kombat favorites like Sub-Zero, Cyrax, Sektor, and Smoke, so it must be doing something right.
Its warriors are selected at birth and trained to take life. The Lin Kuei demands total devotion; deserters are hunted and killed. Its leaders even chose to automate their warriors, including Sektor, who lost his soul in the process. Don’t feel too bad, though. He later went on to found and lead a cyborg ninja army.
9. The Hermetic Order from the Uncharted series
Katherine Marlowe, the antagonist of Uncharted 3, is the leader of the 400-year-old Hermetic Order. Its primary goal is to discover Ubar, a city of immense size and wealth, also known as the Atlantis of the Sands.
Queen Elizabeth I formed the order to combat Britain’s foes through deceit and espionage. Since its inception, the order has taken in historical figures like Walter Raleigh and Francis Drake, as well as contemporary members like Talbot, who uses hallucinogenic drugs against The Hermetic Order’s enemies.
8. The Monolith cult from the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series
No list of secret organizations would be complete without the inclusion of a xenophobic, sacrificial, hyper-religious cult. Monolith from the post-apocalyptic S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series fits the bill nicely.
Far inside a Chernobyl nuclear power plant is a device Monolith calls the “Wish Granter.” Members of the cult will fight to the death to protect the artifact, even if they are unarmed. If captured, they’ll commit suicide however they can. Most monolith members used to be regular stalkers before they were indoctrinated.
Up next: Spooks, Jedi-Sith hybrids, and ancient snakes...