10 Funniest Video Game April Fools’ Pranks of 2026, Ranked

by

Okay, so April Fools’ Day? Totally predictable, right? It’s like, you wake up knowing you can’t believe anything you see. I always start the day bracing for pranks, especially those fake announcements – they always get me half-expecting something crazy to happen!

I actually started enjoying this topic more when I learned about the fun pranks game companies and publishers play on their fans. That eventually inspired me to create a ranking of the best pranks!

We had a really good year for jokes, with highlights including a clever new idea for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and a major league baseball team getting excited about The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.

To help you enjoy some laughs instead of just feeling annoyed by April Fools’ jokes (let’s be honest, we all fell for a few today!), here are the 10 funniest gaming pranks we saw this year!

10. Mirror Mode in For Honor

Made by Ubisoft

I always enjoy when holidays inspire developers to add fun, limited-time modes, and For Honor’s April Fools’ Day events are a great example of that!

Ubisoft is bringing back its popular “Mirror Mode” event, flipping everything in the game – even the music! It’s a fun and dizzying way to play this historical fighting game, but it’s only available for 24 hours. The event is happening now and will end tomorrow, April 2nd, at 9:00 AM Eastern Time / 6:00 AM Pacific Time. Check out the trailer to see what it’s like!

9. Look Outside for Smooches

Made by Devolver Digital

Devolver Digital is known for its funny and unique game announcements, and this year they didn’t disappoint fans of Look Outside (which, personally, I think is the best cosmic horror game of 2025).

A surprise trailer appeared, seemingly showing a recorded conversation between Devolver Digital and the game’s creator, FrankieSmileShow, about an unexpected update that was released without prior announcement.

The game’s single developer was clearly shocked that an update was live before it was actually finished! It turns out the “update” is a playful joke: it lets you “smooch” almost every monster in the game, giving them rosy cheeks when you do.

8. Yoshi Meets Yoshi Meets Yoshi

Made by Los Angeles Dodgers (I’m Serious!)

It’s surprising, but a baseball team pulled off one of the year’s best gaming pranks! The Los Angeles Dodgers cleverly used the excitement around the release of The Super Mario Galaxy Movie to create a funny video this week.

Okay, as a huge fan, I have to say this is amazing! Our pitcher, Yoshinobu Yamamoto – everyone calls him ‘Yoshi’ – finally got to meet the actual Yoshi character and Donald Glover, who does Yoshi’s voice in the movie! They even did that iconic Spider-Man pointing meme together, and it’s seriously hilarious. It’s just perfect!

Well, I certainly didn’t expect to type “Yoshi” so many times in one sentence, but the Dodgers have made it happen! You can watch the complete video here:

7. More Blue, Please

Made by SEGA

Have you ever thought SEGA’s logo might look better with a slightly different shade of blue? It turns out SEGA did too! They recently updated the logo to be exactly 3% bluer.

SEGA recently announced a subtle change to their logo on X (formerly Twitter): it’s now 3% bluer! They shared a look at the updated logo and invited fans to take a quick look at the new design, which you can see above.

They even included a message saying, “We hope you enjoy the upgrade,” and I can confidently say we really did, SEGA!

6. Metal Slime in Real Life?

Made by Square Enix

Square Enix playfully tricked people with a convincing hoax! They posted a picture on X (formerly Twitter) of what appeared to be a newly discovered “liquid metal slime” found on the ocean floor, successfully fooling many gamers and even some scientists.

A recent online post announced the discovery of a strange, liquid metal slime on the ocean floor, sparking excitement about potential technological advancements. However, it quickly turned out to be a Slime monster from the Dragon Quest video game series! As anyone who knows them can tell you, Slimes are definitely real, so there’s no need to be alarmed.

5. Release Date? Think Again!

Made by Remedy

I’ll be honest, this game nearly fooled me – I was still waking up at the time! Plus, I’m really excited about Control: Resonant, so I’m definitely biased when it comes to it this year.

Remedy playfully teased fans by hinting at a release date for their upcoming sequel. Their post on X (formerly Twitter) simply said, “Mmmm… release date…” and included a picture of a cell – a clever play on words! It seems they’re enjoying keeping us guessing.

Many fans are hoping this is a trick and the date will still be announced, but I’m almost completely sure Sam Lake and his team are just enjoying the reaction right now.

4. Capcom’s Crossovers Going Too Far

Made by Capcom

Capcom is famous for fun crossovers, often featuring quirky character outfits, so it wouldn’t be April Fools’ Day without a playful surprise from them!

That’s why fans were excited to see a short preview of Pragmata, their upcoming game, which showed off the main characters, Diana and Hugh. Though, some noticed Hugh bears a striking resemblance to Mega Man! It’s exactly the playful, knowing style of humor we’ve come to expect from the developers.

I’m pretty sure someone will turn this into a game mod as soon as the game comes out on April 17, 2026, and that’s what I’m most excited about. You can see the whole prank below!

3. Farmer Goku Joins the Fight!

Made by Bandai Namco

I was totally surprised today when Dragon Ball Legends dropped a new character! It’s Goku, but… a farmer?! Seriously, Farmer Goku is here, and it’s pretty wild. I didn’t expect that at all!

Subscribe to our newsletter for the best gaming pranks

Love clever gaming pranks? Subscribe to the newsletter for curated highlights of April Fools’ gags, publisher antics, and clear context that turns jokes into stories — a must-read for game fans who don’t want to miss the fun.
By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

The announcement trailer for the new update features Farmer Goku joining the battle! It shows him already taking action and protecting the world from…giant lettuce monsters. Bandai Namco seems to have decided, ‘Why not?’ and added him to the game.

He’s currently playable in Legends as part of a month-long event running until April 30th at 6:00 AM UTC (that’s 11:00 PM PT on April 29th).

2. NieR Meets Cosmic Horror

Made by Square Enix (Again)

Square Enix seems to be having a lot of fun this year! They didn’t stop at Dragon Quest pranks; they also teased NieR fans with an announcement that felt a little too real, and honestly, it didn’t quite land as funny.

Just after midnight, a teaser trailer revealed NieR: COSMIC HORROR, hinting at a new installment in the NieR series. The announcement was very vague, promising more details soon. While some fans suspected it was a joke, others were thrilled by the possibility of a new game.

The announcement spread rapidly on social media, and Square Enix had to issue a clarification within hours, apologizing for the misunderstanding. To be honest, whenever Yoko Taro is involved, it’s hard to tell what’s real and what’s a joke, and this situation was a perfect example of that.

1. Meet Project R.O.A.C.H.

Made by CD Projekt Red

Okay, CD Projekt Red totally won April Fools’ Day this year! As a gamer, I gotta say, they brilliantly trolled everyone about those Witcher 3 expansion rumors – it was super creative and honestly, hilarious. They really got me!

So, everyone’s been buzzing about a possible new DLC for weeks now, and today the developers dropped this super polished video using the game’s style. Honestly, my first thought was, ‘Hold up, are they finally announcing an expansion?’ It definitely felt like an announcement!

So, I was getting hyped for a big reveal, but after a few seconds, it turned out to be a joke! They were announcing a controller shaped like Roach, Geralt’s horse! It was totally ridiculous, but honestly? That’s exactly the kind of thing that makes this event awesome.

Read More

2026-04-02 02:42