Top 10 Most Evil/Crazy Laughs (Redux)

A few weeks ago, I posted a list of the top 10 most evil and crazy laughs in gaming. As with every list I’ve ever done, I had to exclude some choices to narrow the amount down to 10 and had multiple comments mentioning choices that the commenter would personally put in. However, with this list, the amount of excluded and commenter-introduced choices was much higher than normal. With all those options, I felt that too many good ones would be uncelebrated if I left my list on its own. As such, I’ve decided to do a sequel list of 10 more insanely impactful laughs.

This list won’t consider any laughs mentioned on the last list and I’m not comparing the two sets of laughter to say which are better. I’m considering these only against each other, so let’s get started.

(Skip to about 3:26)

10.) The Announcer (Team Fortress 2)

Even before hearing the majority of her possible quotes and actually seeing what she looked like, The Announcer’s personality quickly presented itself through her comments on TF2 matches. From her biting criticism and obvious enjoyment at the prospect of the two teams tearing each other apart, she clearly came off as the watcher who simply wanted to enjoy a good bloodbath at the player’s expense.

As would be expected from such a person, she eventually burst out into a fittingly crazy laugh when she seemed particularly happy about something. It is a fairly short laugh, but there is such a pure mirth behind it that I can’t help but love it, not to mention that she also seems to be channeling the “oh-ho-ho” that many prim and proper characters seem to share. At its core, an evil laugh should show the enjoyment a character finds in what they do, and I don’t doubt for a second that The Announcer loves her job.

9.) Bryan Fury (Tekken)

I’ll be the first to admit that I barely know anything about Tekken aside from the basics of the story involving Heihachi, Kazuya, and Jin. As such, I don’t know practically anything about Bryan other than the fact that he is a cyborg. However, even taking all that into account, I don’t need to have complete context to say that the man has a great evil laugh.

Bryan has one of the best examples I’ve seen of the classic “Mua-ha-ha-ha” that many villains share. He starts out very low in tone, although with a bit of a machine-like tone to fit his metallic parts, and sticks with that tone throughout, even when he slows down near to end to punctuate his final chuckles. The metallic sounds amplify the effect nicely and make him sound even more sinister than he would otherwise while still keeping the basic laugh strong. Really, there isn’t much more to say about it other than it is a very well-done example of a time-honored evil chuckle.

8.) Skull Kid (Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask)

Despite the numerous entries in the Legend of Zelda series, I’ve always had a fondness for Majora’s Mask. Among other qualities, the surprisingly dark atmosphere that pervaded the game compared to most entries made for a very memorable experience and a mood that, in my opinion, has yet to be matched in the series. Going along with that shadowy feel, Skull Kid, the game’s antagonist for the majority of at least, had a fittingly creepy laugh that still sticks in my mind today.

Although the laugh is yet another short one, it has multiple layers to it that almost make it sound as though multiple people are laughing at you at once. Actually, that may not be far off from the real situation, as the titular mask Skull Kid is wearing possesses him with its own personality and goals. As such, the chuckle can be seen as both the host and the controlling influence laughing together at your misfortune, with the childlike joy at seeing things proceed as they want it to clearly audible from both sides. Regardless, it can almost be guaranteed that anyone who has played this game remembers the chilling chuckle as one of the most classic laughs in gaming.

7.) Heaven Smiles (Killer7)

Killer7 is a game directed by the well-known Suda51, and, by that fact alone, it should be clear that playing through is a unique experience, to say the least. This particular gem takes place in an alternate-reality Earth where all global conflict has been ended and nuclear weapons have all been destroyed. Of course, things are never so simple and, among other problems, a terrorist group known as the Heaven Smile is going against the world governments with a virus that makes people want to kill and a legion of suicide bombers infected with that same virus. These members of the Heaven Smile are the main enemies of the game and, due to them being initially invisible, always announce their presence with a hearty insane laugh.

Although fairly straightforward, the ever-present laugh is still effective, as it sounds as though something truly insane is coming at you. I believe it can best be described as an absolutely mental clown howling at you with an added echo effect that gives the laugh even more weight. Hearing it all the time only further plants it in your memory and while there are many laughs of a similar nature that I could mention, the Heaven Smiles always stick out the most in this regard.

6.) Arakune (Blazblue: Calamity Trigger)

Arakune is another character I don’t know very much about, having never played any of the games in the Blazblue series. Aside from his obviously odd appearance as a big ball of black goo sporting a crude, white mask, the little I have gathered is that Arakune was formerly a human who was driven insane and turned into his current form when he stepped into a place called “The Boundary,” where numerous timelines intersect.

Considering the near impossibility of understanding anything Arakune says due to the effects of The Boundary, it’s a good thing that his consistent laughter manages to perfectly convey his insanity with no dialog necessary. The high-pitched tone combined with the repeatedly quick “hee hee” that makes up the entire laugh really give the sense of an otherworldly little demon is mocking you, even though he is laughing in his own, crazy state of mind. However, what puts it this high for me is the particularly stressed final “hee” in his laugh, as it sounds like he is taking a big breath after letting all the air out to laugh. The inconsistency is seriously off-putting and elevates the laugh from good to truly memorable.