The 5 Funniest April Fools’ Jokes in Gaming History
Photo by OPPO Find X5 Pro on Unsplash
Every April 1st, gamers everywhere wake up ready to get bamboozled. And the gaming industry? Oh, they do not miss when it comes to pulling off the dumbest, wildest, and straight-up ridiculous April Fools’ jokes.
Some jokes were so believable that they had us questioning reality. Others were so dumb they looped back around to being genius. So today, we’re looking at 5 of the best, most legendary April Fools’ gaming pranks ever dropped on the gaming community.
1. Google Maps Pokémon Challenge (2014)
The Joke:
Google told the entire world that Pokémon were hidden across Google Maps and that we could become real-life Pokémon Masters by finding them.
The Reality:
Gamers everywhere lost their minds and spent HOURS zooming in on random mountains, cities, and oceans trying to “catch 'em all.”
And guess what?
This “joke” was so good, it low-key led to the creation of Pokémon GO.
They fooled us into giving them a billion-dollar idea. Legendary.
2. World of Warcraft’s Bard Class (2009)
The Joke:
Blizzard announced the ultimate new WoW class—The Bard.
His weapons? A Guitar Hero controller and bad musical puns.
His abilities? Stuff like Power Chord and Face-Melting Solo.
The Reality:
We laughed. We cringed. Then a bunch of players wanted it added for real.
Imagine logging into WoW and getting clapped by a guy playing Through the Fire and Flames.
10/10 would quit.
3. Sonic the Hedgehog Movie (1998)
The Joke:
Electronic Gaming Monthly dropped exclusive” screenshots of a live-action Sonic movie, claiming it was in production.
The Reality:
People freaked out. They begged Sega to make it happen.
Fast forward 20 YEARS… we got a Sonic movie.
Was it because of this joke? Probably not.
But we can pretend it was.
4. IGN’s Zelda Netflix Trailer (2015)
The Joke:
IGN released a high-budget trailer for a Legend of Zelda Netflix series.
It looked so legit, people thought Nintendo finally greenlit the dream.
The Reality:
It was fake.
A beautifully produced, cruel, emotional rollercoaster of a fake.
Fans were crushed.
To this day, folks STILL comment under that video saying, "Please make this real."
We’re all still healing.
5. Overwatch Googly Eyes Update (2020)
The Joke:
One day, Overwatch players logged in—and every single character had giant, dumb, wobbly, googly eyes.
The Reality:
It was the most harmless, dumb, hilarious prank ever.
Watching Soldier: 76 try to be serious with huge cartoon eyes? Comedy gold.
Honestly, they should’ve made it permanent.
We don’t need balance changes—we need more googly eyes.
The gaming world knows how to play us—and honestly, we’re here for it.
So, which April Fools' gaming prank made you laugh the hardest?
Or better yet—which one had you fooled?