Cameo Appearances

This page lists the cameo appearances made by Commander Keen or other characters/lore in the Keeniverse in other unrelated games.

General References in Video Games

Bio Menace

• In Episode 2, Level 6 (Trash Dump), Keen appears as a hostage, who must be rescued by the player in order to exit the level.
• In the same episode, Level 10, there is a giant Yorp statue. Later in the level, there are many Keen-related objects in a secret room, such as Boobus Bombs, Yorps and Keen Dreams score items.
• There's a creature in Episode 2 and 3 that looks like a Garg, but smaller like a Yorp, that is called Gorp.

Keen about to be rescued in Bio Menace

Keen thanking Snake Logan for rescuing him

The Yorp exhibit in Bio Menace

Entering the secret area in E2L10

The secret area in E2L10

Two Gorps

Crystal Caves

• Keen's helmet appears hidden in slime in Episode 2 Level 8, Episode 2 Level 10 and Episode 3 Level 2. This was originally done to poke fun at Commander Keen while Crystal Caves was being developed by a competing company. The company later became part of Apogee while Crystal Caves was still under development, and Keen's helmet was left in as an inside joke.
• "Yorp herding" is mentioned in the story.
• B. Blaze is one of the names on the default high score list.

Keen's helmet hidden in a slime pool in Episode 3 Level 2 of Crystal Caves

B. Blaze on the default high score list.

Doom II

• Commander Keen can be found at the end of Doom II map 32 as an easter egg. Four Keens are hanging on ropes in the final room. You must kill all of them in order to be able to exit the level.

Commander Keen in Doom II - MAP32: Grosse

Duke Nukem

• In Episode 1, in the Mercury Mines, Dr. Proton mentions Commander Keen.

Are you sure, Dr. Proton?

Duke Nukem 3D - High Resolution Pack

• Commander Keen makes many cameos in this fan-made enhancement pack, in the form of several high-resolution textures containing Keen-related elements, such as SGA signs and boxes of cereal with Keen and the Dopefish on them.

A texture. The text reads "BLUEYONDAY / SHITTY / WORLD / PROPAN / BUTAN".

Guild Wars

• "Keen Commander" is the fourth rank of the commander title track.

Jazz Jackrabbit 1 and 2

• The Sparks that appear in Tubelectric (both games) and Megairbase (first game only) bear a striking resemblance to the Volte-faces.

A few Sparks, as seen in Jazz Jackrabbit

Jill of the Jungle

• In a news bulletin (seen on the world map in episode one, when collecting the apple after completing the first level), Commander Keen is mentioned by his real name, Billy Blaze.

Epic poking fun at Keen in Jill of the Jungle

JumpJet Rex

• One of the costumes in the game has Rex dressed like Mario, with the letter on the cap being the SGA letter 'A'.

The SGA letter 'A', found on the cap Rex is wearing.

Minecraft

• The Standard Galactic Alphabet is used as the mystic text for the enchanting tables in Minecraft.

Example text from in-game. Text reads as follows: "ignite klaatu hot", "bless fire berata fresh", "galvanize spirit xyzzy"

Monuments of Mars

• One of the enemies of Monuments of Mars closely resembles the Gargs from Keen 1, which also takes place on Mars.
• Commander Keen is one of the names on the default high score list.

With two eyes on stalks, two legs and no arms, this creature looks like a Garg.

Commander Keen is on the default high score list of Monuments of Mars.

Paganitzu

• A Yorp is in Episode 2 Level 15.
• Commander Keen is one of the names on the default high score list.

A Yorp appears in Paganitzu Episode 2 Level 15.

Commander Keen is on the default high score list of Paganitzu.

Pickle Wars

• Commander Keen is mentioned in the story in Level 10 of Episode 1.

Part 1 of 3.

Part 2 of 3.

Part 3 of 3. Benny Bookworm is a character from Word Rescue. Word Rescue and Pickle Wars are both made by Redwood Games.

Point One

• Yorps make an appearance in the Jump-and-Run game Point One, where the hero of the game must prevent the closure of a popular disco by local authorities. They have been included by the authors to explicitly pay tribute to the Commander Keen series. The Yorps appear occasionally in the second level of the game, which is set in the town's sewer (as appearing here interferes least with the game's non-fictional setting.)

Yorps in the sewer in Point One

Realms of Chaos

• Goodbye Galaxy is one of the names on the default high score list.

Goodbye Galaxy is in the default Hall of Heroes.

Secret Agent

• The Teddy Bear from Keen 1 is a score item in this game. In the help text it is mentioned as "the bonus of choice with Commander Keen."

The help text in Secret Agent

Stargunner

• Billy is one of the names on the default high score list.

Not only the hero from the Commander Keen games is on this list, it also contains the heroes from Duke Nukem, Rise of the Triad, Halloween Harry, Wolfenstein 3D, Blake Stone, Bio Menace, Monster Bash, Crystal Caves and Paganitzu.

Strife

One of the textures in Strife, which appears in at least two locations, uses stylised Standard Galactic Alphabet lettering which reads DAMEX from top to bottom.

The entrance to the Programmer's Keep in Strife.

Wolfenstein 3D and Spear of Destiny

• The B + A + T cheat code used in Keen 4–6 produces a message mentioning Commander Keen.

The message displayed when using a Keen cheat in Wolf3D

Dopefish References

The Dopefish also has an inactive website by Joe Siegler, a former employee at Apogee/3D Realms, noting various Dopefish references.

Duke Nukem 3D

• The text Dopefish Lives appears as an easter egg in E1L5: The Abyss.

The text Dopefish Lives appears at the bottom of a rock platform in E1L5: The Abyss.

Quake

• In the level E2M3: The Crypt of Decay, there is a hidden underwater area. Entering it displays the message "Welcome to the Well of Wishes!", and a Dopefish is seen on a wall while the text "The Dopefish Lives!" blinks on the screen.

The hidden underwater area, with a Dopefish and the message saying "The Dopefish Lives!".

Wacky Wheels

• At the start of a level, hold the brake (down arrow) and the left arrow, and perform an uninterrupted 360 degree turn. Providing the character holding the traffic light stays visible throughout the turn, a Dopefish will slide up from the bottom of the screen after each 360 degree turn.

The Dopefish appearing after performing the required manoeuvre.