Megalodon: The Monster Gets Virtual

In celebration of Shark Week’s end, I see no greater reason to push the Mighty Megalodon to the surface.

While the modern-day shark seems to be making recent headlines off the shores of Florida and Hawaii by way of attack, I tend to like my sharks a bit more pixelated when I’m not wandering the exhibit halls. As a gamer, I have come to find that the Megalodon gets a ton of exposure, as it very well should. Here are just a few titles where the beasts of the deep make a lasting impression.

Guild Wars 2

This PC MMO is a fantasy epic journey across the maps of the fictional land of Tyria. Your hero is meant to follow a chosen path that leads to joining various races together and battling an elder dragon. Well, alongside your main storyline, you’ll be met with four opportunities to face not just a Megalodon, but a ZOMBIE Megalodon! What more could you ask for?

Sea of Thieves

This selection is one I play in my spare time but have yet to defeat the Megalodons. Yes, there are several! While sailing the open seas on a pirate ship, searching for buried treasure and dodging angry skeletons, players also must protect their crews from various Megalodon attacks. There are five species of the Meg that just might track your pirate ship and can only be defeated by cannonball. The Hungering One, The Crested Queen, The Shadowman, The Ancient Terror and The Shrouded Ghost all appear with differing personalities and in varying levels of rarity.

Jurassic World: The Game

This game might be interesting. Players can gather up different categories of dinosaurs and prehistoric animals for their parks. Before being able to make them feel at home, though, you must unlock them by way of battle! Out of all the games, this one, for some reason, is the most difficult to swallow. Would a Megalodon really work alongside another ocean surface animal? Probably not. Am I thinking about this far too much? Yes.

Maneater

This is the latest of the bunch with a release date just last month. It takes the shark simulator to a new level as the player begins their journey as a baby shark. From baby to full grown megalodon, you’ll chomp your way from level to level by way of fish and, yep you guessed it, humans. Not sure unassuming fisherman would be the Meg’s first choice, but then again this is a game.

I don’t understand why sharks only get one week of recognition. Here at HMNS, every week can be shark week in the Paleontology Hall. Gamers, shark enthusiasts and everyone in between are welcome to marvel at the fossilized teeth of the ancient Megalodon. Feast your eyes on the immense scale of the giant jaw replica and allow your imagination to take over.