Video game bugs that became features, ranked by impact

A tier list by abafa · filed under Gaming · published 25 September 2026

Every one of these started as a mistake in the code (or, in one case, a rumour). Ranked by how much each one changed gaming. S: Space Invaders' aliens speeding up gave games their first difficulty curve, and Street Fighter II's accidental combos became the backbone of every fighting game. A: rocket jumping and strafe-jumping turned physics bugs into movement skills, the Konami Code went far beyond games, GTA's broken police route-finding saved the game from being cancelled, and the creeper (a failed pig) became Minecraft's icon. B: Tribes skiing is brilliant but stayed in one series, and Pac-Man's level 256 kill screen is a legend, not a feature. C: Ermac, a rumour that became a real character. F: Nuclear Gandhi, because it never actually happened. The full stories are on the abafaboy YouTube channel. Agree? Rank it yourself.

Video

4 Bugs That Accidentally Invented Modern Gaming (and 1 That Never Existed)
4 Bugs That Accidentally Invented Modern Gaming (and 1 That Never Existed) · Abafaboy

S tier

  1. Space Invaders' speeding aliens
  2. Street Fighter II combos

A tier

  1. Rocket jumping
  2. Strafe-jumping
  3. The Konami Code
  4. GTA's psycho police
  5. The creeper (a failed pig)

B tier

  1. Tribes skiing
  2. Pac-Man's level 256 kill screen

C tier

  1. Ermac (rumour turned real)

F tier

  1. Nuclear Gandhi (never happened)

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