‘Clone’ is a word often thrown around in games. When one game closely resembles another in mechanics or premise, it’s classified as a clone. Sometimes a character from one series can coincidentally look much like a different character from another as well. But then there are established characters whose stories are tied to them being the result of clone experiments.
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Cloning and genetic alteration have dominated science fiction storytelling and bled into video games. Whether stealth games, fighting games, horror, or action-adventure, there are many classic examples of clones, either the protagonist or antagonist.
10JC Denton - Deus Ex
Before theDeus Exseries returned with the prequel titles with protagonist Adam Jensen at the center, there was JC Denton of the original 2000 Deus Ex game. JC Denton was the product of a nanotech cloning experiment administered by the Majestic 12 on Paul Denton, and he shares a clone brother named Alex Denton.
Like his brother Paul, JC became an agent for the United Nations Anti-Terrorist Coalition in a 2052 society where conspiracies and terrorists rule the world. His character has a sarcastically dry sense of humor that often delivers hilarious and memorable one-liners. And as with his successor, JC alsohas some iconic shadesand feels like a character you’d meet in the Matrix.
9Lara Croft Doubles - Tomb Raider Series
Lara Croft dealt with a few of her own clones in the olderTomb Raiderentries. In the original 1996 game, you encounter a skinless copy of Lara Croft manifested in the Atlantean pyramid. Aside from already being a grotesque husk of flesh and bone, what makes it even creepier is it can mimic Lara’s every exact move.
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The skeletal doppelgänger is featured again in 2007’s Tomb Raider: Anniversary with a more updated design. A clone resembling Lara Croft’s actual human appearance stirs even bigger trouble in the story for the 2008 Underworld follow-up. This one feels like a perfectly enhanced superhuman counterpart to Lara Croft, as it’s much faster and far superior in combat.
8Ridley - Metroid: Other M
In theMetroidseries, Ridley is the recurring arch-nemesis of Samus thatjust can’t seem to die, always returning in some new form with every installment. Some of those include the more cybernetic Meta Ridley inMetroid Primeand Neo-Ridley in Metroid Fusion. The first instance of Ridley resurfacing as a clone occurred in Team Ninja’s Metroid: Other M.
The transformation process of the Ridley clone was pretty bizarre. The space dragon began as a small fluffy white potato-shaped creature on tiny legs scientists nicknamed “Little Birdie.” Then it went through a more true-to-form adolescent phase with a white fur coat and finally the towering dragon form, much to Samus' surprise.
7Mileena - Mortal Kombat
Mileena has been a pivotal character on theMortal Kombatroster following her debut in 1993’s Mortal Kombat 2. Her character’s origins show that she’s a genetic clone of Kitana, the stepdaughter of Shao Khan, mixed with Tarkatan DNA, grown in Shang Tsung’s flesh pits. Her Tarkatan DNA is evident by her glowing eyes, wide jaws, and razor-sharp teeth like Baraka.
Mileena also has a long lizard-like tongue, and wields twin Sais. One of her most brutal Fatalities is springing into the air, off her opponent and spinning rapidly with her Sais like a sawblade to cut through them. Another scary aspect is the teeth, which are perfect for devouring her rivals.
6Carla Radames - Resident Evil 6
Another notable clone antagonist is bioterrorist Carla Radames fromResident Evil 6, who originated the C-Virus. Her rebirth as Ada Wong was the result of Derek Simmons' Project Ada, where he used the C-Virus' ability to replicate Ada’s DNA on Radames. The process was completed when Radames hatched out of a cocoon as Ada.
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Resident Evil 6 follows thecampaigns of alternating main characters, and Carla appears throughout several of them. She has a final confrontation with the real Ada Wong, and the effects of the C-Virus cause her to turn into a gigantic molten, clay-like creature. This allows her to engulf the whole ship with her liquid form, and the walls form appendages that grab you during the fight.
5Starkiller - Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2
If there’s one series that leans heavily on clones, it’sStar Wars. The Kaminoans were responsible for the clone troopers in the prequels, along with Emperor Palpatine’s Snoke clone experiments in the sequel trilogy. Non-canonically though, Darth Vader took advantage of Kamino’s cloning capabilities inThe Force Unleashed 2to make a clone of Galen Marek.
Marek, otherwise known as Starkiller, was Darth Vader’s apprentice in the original Force Unleashed, tasked with hunting down Jedi, while secretly conspiring to remove the Emperor.
4Miranda Lawson - Mass Effect Series
Mass Effect 2introduces Miranda Lawson as part of the Lazarus division of Cerberus, a pro-human organization led by the Illusive Man, where she’s tasked with reviving Commander Shepard. Miranda eventually becomes a part of Shepard’s crew anda possible romance optionas they rescue her twin sister, Oriana, from their father’s clutches.
If you thought Simmons' methods of cloning Ada Wong were twisted and baffling, Henry Lawson managed to create Miranda and Oriana solely from his DNA. Henry sought to form a dynasty by making genetic clones of himself with an additional X chromosome. That’s how Miranda became equipped with her impressive biotic abilities and enhanced combat skills.
3Aloy - Horizon Series
The futuristic apocalyptic setting of theHorizonseries intertwines mystery with its immersive machine action. Part of that mystery in the first game is about discovering who the orphaned Aloy of the Nora tribe truly is, and it’s eventually revealed that she’s a clone of the architect of Project Zero Dawn, Dr. Elisabet Sobeck.
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Unlike some of these other clones, Aloy was created by GAIA, Zero Dawn’s AI system, for an extreme matter. To prevent the resurgence of a new cataclysmic plague that would destroy Sobeck’s efforts.
2Agent 47 - Hitman Series
Hitman extraordinaire Agent 47, formerly of the International Contract Agency, is one of gaming’s most notorious clones. He was ultimately the 47th and most successful test subject in Dr. Otto Wolfgang Ort-Meyer’s rogue cloning project, which aimed to create the perfect obedient assassin. And the barcode on the back of 47’s head represents his creation date.
This backstory was introduced in the firstHitmangame in 2000 called Hitman: Codename 47. IO’s Hitman series has since evolved significantly, with Agent 47’s playing field expanding and new creative ways of taking out his necessary targets being implemented.
1Solid Snake - Metal Gear Solid Series
Not only is hean impeccable soldiertrained in stealth tactics, but Solid Snake is probably gaming’s longest-serving and most iconic clone. His debut was in Konami’s 1987Metal Geargame, where you learn he’s affiliated with a group called FOXHOUND under the command of Big Boss, who Snake is cloned after.
Solid Snake, or David, has two other genetic clone brothers who were all a product of the 1972 Les Enfants Terribles government project.
