History Main / DoppelgangerSpin

* One of Margery Daw's favorite attacks in ''LightNovel/ShakuganNoShana''.
* Yugi's "Magical Hats" card is like this in ''Anime/YuGiOh''.
** This is Demoness Knight's special power in ''Anime/YuGiOhCapsuleMonsters''.
* This is what the "Double Team" move does in ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries''.
** Played straight as an arrow during Suicune's testing of Janine in ''Manga/PokemonAdventures''. Janine and her Crobat fly into the air, split into a ring of Double Team clones, and dare Suicune to find the right one. After being beaten, the ninja Leader realizes that Suicune identified the real Crobat by the darker shadow underneath it.
** Fun fact: Double Team's Japanese name is "Kage Bunshin", or "Shadow Clone/Divide".
* Cologne from ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf'' executes this maneuver against Ranma in one of their first battles, called the "Splitting Cat Hairs". Since she was so hungry Ranma made the real one jump out when he threw a piece of chicken in the air.
* This is one of the basic ninja skills in ''Manga/{{Naruto}}''. All ninjas learn how to make illusionary copies of themselves with the "Bunshin no Jutsu (Clone Jutsu)". Despite being illusions, the Clone Jutsu is considered ninjutsu rather than genjutsu, implying that they're akin to holograms whereas genjutsu are a form of limited mind control.
** Naruto cannot perform the normal Bunshin no Jutsu, which should only make up to three illusory clones. He instead does Kage-Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Jutsu) which are far more solid (as in they can actually hit things), are only limited in number by the amount of chakra available, and have the added advantage of [[spoiler:whatever they learn before being dispelled, Naruto will learn once they are]].

* Hiei from ''Manga/YuYuHakusho'' uses something similar to the ''Dragon Ball'' example above, using extreme speed to leave an afterimage. It's only one at a time though, and only used as a defensive technique to escape injury.
* This is a favorite trick of ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'''s illusionists. The more skilled practitioners, like Teana and Quattro, are capable of creating duplicates that can fool even radars and sensors.
* Shinomori Aoshi uses something like this in ''Manga/RurouniKenshin'' as a psych-out lead-in to his Kaiten Kenbu attack: several images of Aoshi begin circling his opponent until the real one attacks. Used mainly for intimidation (since the apparent copies don't do anything threatening).
** Since the technique is described as depending on constant, minute shifts in speed, it seems that maybe the afterimages are not supposed to be taken literally, but are a visual representation for the viewer/reader's benefit of the fact that he's moving quickly, but too unreliably to intercept. (If he were actually moving fast enough to leave afterimages, he would be faster than Kenshin or Soujirou.)
** Kenshin has, arguably, something similar with the Kuzu Ryuu Sen attack. The wielder doesn't actually appear in more than one place, but their sword does, since the technique hits nine different spots at almost the same time, making it impossible to block or dodge. [[spoiler:Naturally it's been dodged once (by Soujirou), blocked once (by Enishi), and stopped in mid-execution (Enishi again).]]

* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'':
** Unusually, this ability is given to one of its heroes; [[spoiler:Ichigo, with his new Bankai, pulls this off during his fight with Byakuya]].
** Also used in almost the exact same way with Yourichi and Byakuya himself. The doppelgangers are actually so realistic that they show damage before fading away. Yourichi gets slashed by Byakuya, Byakuya by Zomari [=LeRoux=]. Both times, the doppelgangers fade away, after which the real one reveals him/herself.
** Zomari himself is also quite skilled at creating afterimages, to the point he can initiate a DoppelgangerAttack with them. Fellow Espada Starrk is also able to create multiple afterimages of himself.
** Used by the assassin Kuzuryū, who attacks Uryu in anime episode 176. He creates a mist that generates illusory images of himself.
** Soifon can do this as well.
** Used by the {{villain|s}} Kouga during anime episode 252. He fools Byakuya Kuchiki's senses so that he sees multiple false image of Kouga, preventing him from attacking the real one.
* Used by a rather ghostly opponent in ''VideoGame/{{Medabots}}'', until someone started shining a light on all the projected images.
* Used by one of the Snow Dancers in the ''Anime/SailorMoonSTheMovie''. Sailor Moon attempts to single out the real one and, unsurprisingly, chooses wrong.
* In Part 3 of ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'', Polnareff's Stand, Silver Chariot, displays this ability after it sheds its armor during his fight with Avdol (and he only uses it during this fight). He explains that he doesn't actually have multiple Stands, Silver Chariot simply moves with such speed that the human eye only thinks it sees multiple copies of it.
** In Part 1, Dire has this ability, and he uses it in his fight with Dio... and then promptly stops using it in favor of his Thunder Cross Split Attack gambit.
* Kaede Nagase and Kotaro Inugami of ''Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi''. By choice of [[KiManipulation Ki-use]], [[DoppelgangerAttack they may become physical]].
* Ryoko's done this in the ''Anime/TenchiMuyo'' manga a few times in a hostile vein. She's also capable of creating physical clones, at least in the OVA continuity.

* Played straight by a ninja in ''Manga/{{Airmaster}}'' and then parodied by his [[IdiotHero dim-witted opponent]] who solves the problem in unorthodox fashion by attacking each image until they hit the right one.
* In ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamF91'', the titular mecha can shed the outermost layer of its ablative armor (which is apparently hundreds of layers thick), leaving behind an afterimage that appears real to most sensors (since MinovskyPhysics are in effect, sensors are a lot more limited in than in real life despite the otherwise far more advanced technology). This does, however, straddle the line between Doppleganger Spin and SpeedEchoes. [[spoiler:This becomes highly important in the final climactic fight.]]
* In ''Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar'', someone tries this on Kenshiro. Kenshiro spins around while punching and hits the guy hundreds of times.
** Ryuuken uses a Big Dipper shaped one against Raou. Possibly Ryuuken's SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome.
* Nami from ''Manga/OnePiece'' is capable of manipulating weather conditions with her weapon. This includes creating mirages to confuse enemies. They don't exactly look identical, but don't go assuming that the one that looks like the real deal ''is'' her.
* In ''Manga/FlameOfRecca'', the Genjutsu Wakemi is a technique [[spoiler:created by Genjuro and passed on to Kurei]] that does exactly this for the user. Problem? You can't copy items held in your hands, only your body and clothing.
* In the ''Naruto'' parody reaction episode of ''Manga/YakitateJapan'', Suwabara Kai also uses several Spring Onions to do this trick.

* In the ''Anime/{{Blade}}'' anime, Blade gets this in the form of "Deadly Sword Technique #1: Residual Moon". The illusory copy even looks like it takes damage. This confuses the enemy long enough for the real Blade to attack from behind.
* In Reika's first fight as Cure Beauty in ''Anime/SmilePrettyCure'', she's able to find the real MonsterOfTheWeek by attacking the one that's a "mirror image" of what the others look like (the other four girls just aimed randomly, not realizing that bit.)
* Parodied in an episode of ''Anime/SamuraiPizzaCats''. Guru Lou develops a machine designed to do this, but when Guido tries to use it, the clones turn out to be a series of folding panels that clumsily extend from the sides of the machine, not to mention that the pictures produced are of ''Speedy'', not Guido.
* The Getter-2 line of ''Manga/GetterRobo'' has this with their "Getter Vision" ability, moving so fast that it creates after-images of itself.
* ''Anime/MobileFighterGGundam'' has God Gundam's "God Shadow" technique, in which Domon creates copies of the God Gundam at will... just to catch Chibodee's ultimate attack.
* In ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamF91'', the titular machine has an interesting ability known as Metal Peel-Off Effect or "MEPE". This is caused by the machine generating so much heat that the outer layers of the suit will "peel off", leaving an after-image. Seabook uses this to confuse the Raffelesa and destroy it by confusing its weapons and having them attack the mobile armor's cockpit.
* Robin Mask does this during his fight against Junkman in ''Manga/{{Kinnikuman}}''; the Devil Choujin has a second face growing out of the back of his head, so Robin tosses his armor off to increase his speed and run around him, making the villain dizzy. Then Robin gives him the Tower Bridge.
* In ''Anime/WorldConquestZvezdaPlot'', White Falcon uses this against General Pepel during their fight. All of the images circling around General Pepel turn out to be fakes, the real White Robin performing an aerial attack from above while he's distracted.
* ''Literature/DemonCityShinjuku''. In the 1988 OVA, while fighting the demon underwater Kyouya Izayoi realizes that only one of the demons he can see is real: the rest are illusions. He uses his Nempo ability to strike the correct one.
* ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'': The ''Farewell Story'' Drama CD and its [[ComicBookAdaptation manga adaptation]] ''The Different Story'' both reveal that this is Kyouko's special ability (on top of creating illusions generally). It's never seen in the anime itself because [[spoiler:she lost her magic following the PaterFamilicide; she stopped believing in her own wish, hence the magic born from it stopped working]].
* ''Manga/AssassinationClassroom'': Koro-sensei, being a creature [[SuperSpeed that has a top speed of Mach 20]], can make clones by moving at high speeds. More often than not, he uses this ability [[MundaneUtility to teach his students individually to prepare them for exams]]. It gets weirder. Destroying one of his tentacles makes his clones somehow got ''smaller'', almost child-sized. And the clones are pretty unstable, too, being able to form into freaky shapes when threatened.
* Parodied in ''Anime/BoboboboBobobo'' episode 11, where Gasser is matched up against an old lady who uses an attack called "Nose Hair Split Ends" to duplicate herself into six old ladies and one old man. They run around Gasser at high speeds, creating a dust cloud that blinds him, and after the dust settles, they've turned into bottles of soda. According to Bo-bobo, this is a sign that she has surrendered. However, the one old man is still there, and he battles Bo-bobo, creating another dust cloud, and after that one settles, the two are shown playing croquet together.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'''s Captain Jean-Luc Picard is credited with the creation of the eponymous "Picard Maneuver," in which a starship makes a short-distance warp jump, effectively outrunning light and thus creating an "afterimage" of the ship in its former location.
** Which is totally preposterous. Starships must have some sensor system to prevent this already, lest the ship be perpetually surrounded by sensor phantoms of ships that had long ago left, but hey, RuleOfCool, right?
*** Later justified in the ''Literature/StarTrekTheLostEra'' book "The Buried Age": It was an unexpected maneuver because it would divert power from the weapons and shields; the enemy was relying primarily on short-range, light-speed-limited Tactical sensors in the heat of the battle; but above all, they needed to do something drastic, and they wouldn't get a second shot.
** It makes sense the first time it's used, as it's explicitly stated that it was used against a less advanced Ferengi ship which only had light speed sensors. When a brainwashed Picard uses it against the ''Enterprise'', however... uh... [[MST3KMantra well]]...

* In his younger days fighting manga characters in an arena, ComicBook/{{Rat-Man}} used this ability. We see it twice: the first against a [[Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar Kenshiro]] {{Expy}}, who sees through the illusion and punches the real deal before starting a NoHoldsBarredBeatDown, and then against The Dragon, an invincible [[Franchise/DragonBall Goku]] {{Expy}}... [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome And it succeeds]].

* ''Literature/{{Sorcery}}'': One of the many spells available for players choosing the Sorcerer path is the SIX spell, which creates five duplicates of the player that moves like images reflected on a mirror.

* The penultimate boss of ''VideoGame/{{Ys}}'', Yogleks & Omulgun, consists of a pair of red and blue demon heads surrounded by [[OrbitingParticleShield orbiting objects]]. Only the red head can be damaged, and the two switch places after Adol scores a hit.

** Hidden Phantom does it yet again in ''VideoGame/MegaManZero''.
** And ''again'' with Shadowman.EXE in the ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' series.
** Siarnaq does this to perform his TeleportSpam in ''VideoGame/MegaManZXAdvent'', leaving behind multiple fading afterimages, which makes sense since he's using Model P, which is based on Phantom's data.

** When Emerald attacks Penny in the episode Amity, Emerald makes Penny hallucinate multiple copies of Emerald. Penny is able to find the real person by using an infrared camera, as the clones have no heat signature.

* This is what the "Double Team" move does in ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}''.

* Kaede Nagase and Kotaro Inugami of ''Manga/MahouSenseiNegima''. By choice of [[KiManipulation Ki-use]], [[DoppelgangerAttack they may become physical]].

* ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'': The ''Farewell Story'' Drama CD and it's [[ComicBookAdaptation manga adaptation]] ''The Different Story'' both reveal that this is Kyouko's special ability (on top of creating illusions generally). It's never seen in the anime itself because [[spoiler:she lost her magic following the PaterFamilicide; she stopped believing in her own wish, hence the magic born from it stopped working]].

* Trixie Lulamoon really likes this trope in ''FanFic/RainbowDoubleDashsLunaverse''.

* Azwraith the Phantom Lancer of ''VideoGame/{{Dota 2}}'' has this as his main strength. While any hero can create illusions of themself (only a handful can do so with a built-in ability, most require a rune or item), only Phantom Lancer can reliably hide his real self among them, partly because he can quickly create a massive number of them, but mostly because by using his appropriately named skill Doppelganger, he can shuffle himself among them. Anyone who can't clear out the mass of illusions quickly will die a very fast DeathOfAThousandCuts.

* Flandre Scarlet, an Extra boss in ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}} 6'': Embodiment of Scarlet Devil, is able to pull off this at you as of her "Taboo: Four of a Kind" spellcard, which summons three clones. It's purely for the sake of MoreDakka, though, as it's extremely easy to identify the real deal from the others (the one with a spell circle around her).
* Tau characters in the ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}''-derived tabletop game Inquisitor may use holograms to do this.

* In some of the later ''Videogame/{{Yakuza}}'' games, Goro Majima as a boss has the ability to summon shadow clones to attack the player solely by doing a backflip, which stands out in a game that's otherwise mostly grounded in a sort-of heightened realism (though it's also likely meant to be a representation of his agility).

* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}''

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* Utilized again by Doctor Strange in the fight against Thanos in ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar''. He casts first the Images of Ikkon and then the Crimson Bands of Cytorrak ([[ShownTheirWork both spells from the comics]]) to overwhelm the mad titan. Unfortunately, Thanos uses the soul stone to pick out which Strange is the real one, and the power stone to obliterate the rest.

%% * In the ''ComicBook/ArchieComicsSonicTheHedgehog'' comic, Sonic tended to use this from time to time, using his super speed to confuse his opponents.

* When Yang tries to enter the Vault of the Spring Maiden, Emerald and Mercury attack her. Emerald makes Yang hallucinate dozens of copies of Mercury which allows him to launch surprise attacks. However, since Emerald can really only effect one person at a time, and needs to focus to use her Semblance, all it takes is a hit from Ruby to disperse the illusions.
* Blake's Semblance lets her create clones of herself that disappear when hit. It seems that she can only create one at a time, however.
* When Emerald attacks Penny in the episode Amity, Emerald makes Penny hallucinate multiple copies of Emerald. Penny is able to find the real person by using an infrared camera, as the clones have no heat signature.

* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': When Yang tries to enter the Vault of the Spring Maiden, Emerald and Mercury attack her. Emerald makes Yang hallucinate dozens of copies of Mercury which allows him to launch surprise attacks. However, since Emerald can really only effect one person at a time, and needs to focus to use her Semblance, all it takes is a hit from Ruby to disperse the illusions.

* ''Literature/{{Sorcery}}'': One of the many spells available for players choosing the Sorcerer path is thr SIX spell, which creates five duplicates of the player that moves like images reflected on a mirror.

** Phantom does it yet again in ''VideoGame/MegaManZero''.

* The first phase of [[spoiler: Goro Majima]]'s boss fight in ''VideoGame/YakuzaLikeADragon'' has him summon three blue shades of himself. Seeing as the more fantastic aspects of the battle system are a result of [[ThroughTheEyesOfMadness Ichiban's overactive imagination]], however, it's likely that the doppelgangers are simply a representation of [[spoiler:Majima]]'s overwhelming speed and agility.

* This is one of the basic ninja skills in ''Manga/{{Naruto}}''. All ninjas learn how to make illusionary copies of themselves with the "Bunshin no Jutsu (Clone Jutsu)".

* The Micro Stag-beetle in VideoGame/KouchuuOujaMushiking has this as its super finishing attack, it also has an enhanced version.

* In ''Series/KungFu: The Legend Continues'', Caine uses this (Called the 4 winds) to confuse his enemy "The Dragon's Daughter"

* ''[[VideoGame/DeadRising3 Dead Rising 3]]'' has a boss fight against an [[OrganTheft organ-stealing]] [[DeadlyDoctor surgeon]] named Albert Contiello. Nick Ramos must defeat Albert as he scurries by several duplicates. In a twist, Nick has been drugged and merely ''hallucinates'' innocent bystanders as Albert clones. The giveaway is simple: the real Albert spends most of his time [[AxCrazy slicing up his hapless "doppelgangers"]] for their organs. Yeah, Creator/{{Capcom}} likes this one.

* One of the last bosses in ''VideoGame/DigitalDevilSaga'', Asura Ravana, uses a variant of this trope. He turns himself completely and utterly invisible, and you are then presented with a total of 6 identical, empty-air targets. Also, area-effect attacks doesn't work. Fortunately, you have a WaifProphet on your side, or this battle would have been completely impossible...
** ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIIINocturne'' does this twice: the first time is a boss battle where the enemy, Ongyo-ki, splits himself into four. Again, area attacks don't work, and if you hit the wrong one, you lose your turn. Only the real one has a shadow, '''but''' said shadow only shows up [[spoiler:during a full moon]]. Later, another boss, Mot, disguises itself amongst six identical statues. Before you can fight him, you have to first locate the real one, and fortunately for you the reflective surface of the floor shows his true form.

* Split Mushroom uses this against X or Zero in ''VideoGame/MegaManX4''. Not only that, but he also has an attack that spawns a large number of copies and sends them out as projectiles.
** Which becomes a ''plot point'' in ''[[VideoGame/MegaManX5 X5]]''.

* Creator/{{Capcom}} really loves this; Phantom does it yet again in ''VideoGame/MegaManZero''.
* And ''again'' with Shadowman.EXE in the ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' series.
* In ''VideoGame/MegaManStarForce'', Gemini Spark comes in two forms, White and Black, that you face at the same time. Both of them can hurt you, but you can only hurt the one with the HP under him.
** Until the sequel, where both White Gemini and Black Gemini each get their own set of HP.

* The [[VideoGame/Shinobi2002 PS2 ''Shinobi'']] enables you to "stealth dash" to move quickly, leaving behind a stationary image of yourself which can confuse some enemies into attacking it. Dashing many times can leave many images.

** ''Anime/DragonBallKai'' Cell Saga, episode 88 "Showdown! Cell vs. Goku". Cell uses Tien's "Multi-Form" technique to create multiple versions of himself. When they all attack Goku at the same time, they force him to flee. Goku tricks Cell into spreading out the copies and defeats each of them individually.

* In Chapter 2 of ''VideoGame/DragonQuestIV'', one of Alena's opponents in the tournament is a monster who spawns three copies of himself and shuffles position with the copies. Hitting a copy disperses it, but the monster then spawns a new one and reshuffles their positions again. The only way to hit the real monster and not one of its copies? [[LuckBasedMission Guessing]]. Fortunately, when you ''do'' target the real one, Alena is a lot stronger than her opponent so it doesn't take many hits to win.
* During the InevitableTournament in the second chapter of ''VideoGame/DragonQuestIV'', Alena faces off against a monster known as the Abominable Showman (Linguar in the NES localization) in the final round, who splits itself into four identical-looking copies. If Alena hits one of the clones, it disappears while the real one sticks its tongue out at her. Only the real one will attack her, but this is usually ''after'' she's selected her target, so she only has a 25% chance of inflicting damage. Thankfully, the Showman's HP is lower than that of Sampson Knight from the previous round, so two or three direct hits will KO the monster in short order.

[[folder:Live Action TV]]

* ''Series/StarTrekPicard'' has a Romulan modify his ship's cloaking device to project the image of his ship damaged in front of his target, also rigging a weak lifesign to simulate him being hurt. When the good guys drop their shields to beam him aboard, he reveals the ruse by opening fire on them.

* The [=PS2=] ''VideoGame/{{Shinobi}}'' enables you to "stealth dash" to move quickly, leaving behind a stationary image of yourself which can confuse some enemies into attacking it. Dashing many times can leave many images.

* ''Manga/AssassinationClassroom'': Koro-sensei, being a creature [[SuperSpeed that has a top speed of Mach 20]], can make clones by moving at high speeds. More often than not, he uses this ability [[MundaneUtility to teach his students individually to prepare them for exams]].
** It gets weirder. Destroying one of his tentacles makes his clones somehow got ''smaller'', almost child-sized. And the clones are pretty unstable, too, being able to form into freaky shapes when threatened.

* Franchise/SpiderMan's foe Mysterio is fond of this tactic, although he uses [[MasterOfIllusion holographic projectors]] and other technological means rather than any natural ability.

* ComicBook/WonderWoman has been using her speed to create after images/speed clones since her earliest appearances.

* Both Jair Ohmsford and Walker Boh liked this trick in Terry Brooks' ''Literature/{{Shannara}}'' series. Jair used it in particular during his battle with his sister in ''Wishsong'', and Walker used it as a distraction in the climactic confrontation with the Stone King in ''Druid''.
** Walker uses it again in ''Talismans'' to face off against the Four HorsemenOfTheApocalypse. The trick is [[spoiler:that the Walker they're fighting isn't real at all, just an image he's projecting to make them kill each other. Death sees through the illusion, however, and almost kills Walker]].

* The Poe spirits in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'', ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]'', and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'' do this, as do the Wizzrobes in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]''. The Poes take the trope's name literally; the real one ''spins''.
** A form of this trope also appeared in the [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI first game]] in the series. In the graveyard, touching the tombstones released ghosts known as Ghini, all of which were unkillable except for the "lead" Ghini, which would already be present onscreen; killing the lead Ghini defeated all of them at once. It was fairly easy to identify the lead Ghini, as it was more opaque than the others, but it was vexing in that while you couldn't hurt the other Ghini, ''they'' could most definitely hurt ''you''.
** The original Ghini also moves differently than the others, only moving in the cardinal directions as opposed to the "clones" and their free-floating more akin to Keese and the like.
** Phantom Ganon does this too in his first two appearances, in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker Wind Waker]]''. In ''Ocarina of Time'', he disappears into a painting of a spooky road in his boss room, and several of him ride back (he rides a horse here); the real one creates a portal and come out, while the rest turn back at the last second. In ''Wind Waker'', he gets simple and only surrounds you, and the real one is always the one behind you.
** [[spoiler:Maz Koshia]], the BonusBoss of ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]'', has this as one of his many techniques that he uses during the second phase of combat. He has no obvious tell, except that his real self usually stays in the same location while his clones fan out; however, they can easily become so thickly clustered that it's nigh-impossible to find the real target. This strategy is especially daunting in Master Mode, where attacking a clone gives the real opponent a chance to regenerate his health.

* Split Mushroom uses this against X or Zero in ''VideoGame/MegaManX4''. Not only that, but he also has an attack that spawns a large number of copies and sends them out as projectiles.
** Which becomes a ''plot point'' in ''[[VideoGame/MegaManX5 X5]]''.
** Infinity Mijinion in ''[[VideoGame/MegaManX6 X6]]'' lives up to his name, spawning unlimited copies of himself.
** Flame Hyenard in ''[[VideoGame/MegaManX7 X7]]'' creates two additional copies, and all of them want you to burn.
* Creator/{{Capcom}} really loves this; Phantom does it yet again in ''VideoGame/MegaManZero''.
* And ''again'' with Shadowman.EXE in the ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' series.
* In ''VideoGame/MegaManStarForce'', Gemini Spark comes in two forms, White and Black, that you face at the same time. Both of them can hurt you, but you can only hurt the one with the HP under him.
** Until the sequel, where both White Gemini and Black Gemini each get their own set of HP.
* ''[[VideoGame/DeadRising3 Dead Rising 3]]'' has a boss fight against an [[OrganTheft organ-stealing]] [[DeadlyDoctor surgeon]] named Albert Contiello. Nick Ramos must defeat Albert as he scurries by several duplicates. In a twist, Nick has been drugged and merely ''hallucinates'' innocent bystanders as Albert clones. The giveaway is simple: the real Albert spends most of his time [[AxCrazy slicing up his hapless "doppelgangers"]] for their organs. Yeah, Creator/{{Capcom}} likes this one.
* This is one of the "ninja powers" used by Ken in the "Canned Heat" stage of ''VideoGame/EliteBeatAgents''; if the player is failing when that cutscene comes up, Ken and all of his doppelgangers fall over dizzy afterwards.

* A rare [=PS1=] game called ''VideoGame/KrazyIvan'' had a boss called Reflex, which can split into 3 copies, of which the fake ones are easily destroyed.
* The Decoy tech ability in ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'' creates a holographic image of the caster to distract enemies.
%% * ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'' has done it a lot, especially in the comics.
* A few moves in ''VideoGame/SagaFrontier'' - "Mirror Shade" allows you to create up to 5 illusory dummies, while the "Magician" Arcane spell combines this with Doppelganger attack - while you can only make one dummy per turn, if attacked it's an instant death for the attacker.
* Recurring PsychoForHire Yuber from the ''VideoGame/{{Suikoden}}'' Series has this ability, with the twist that they're ALL real. As shown in the ''VideoGame/SuikodenIII'' manga, this means the attack can be rather deadly.

* ''VideoGame/{{Starcraft}}'' and ''VideoGame/WarcraftIII'' both play this one. In ''Starcraft'', the High Templars can create several illusions out of any unit, while in ''Warcraft III'', the Blade Masters can create several illusions of themselves.
** It also found its way in ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' eventually as a mage spell. It's different in that the Mirror Images attack on their own but are fairly easy to tell apart from the original since they have much less health (The blademaster illusions had the same amount as the original but took more damage). Some bosses also use variations of this.
** In both the original and update versions of Scholomance, the boss Jandice Barov periodically vanishes only to reappear alongside dozens of illusions of herself. The original was a DoppelgangerAttack as the fakes could attack the players, while the updated images launch fake attacks to distract players from finding the real one.
** The first boss in the Temple of Ahn'Qiraj periodically disappears before reappearing along two mirror images of himself.
* One of the last bosses in ''VideoGame/DigitalDevilSaga'', Asura Ravana, uses a variant of this trope. He turns himself completely and utterly invisible, and you are then presented with a total of 6 identical, empty-air targets. Also, area-effect attacks doesn't work. Fortunately, you have a WaifProphet on your side, or this battle would have been completely impossible...
** ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIIINocturne'' does this twice: the first time is a boss battle where the enemy, Ongyo-ki, splits himself into four. Again, area attacks don't work, and if you hit the wrong one, you lose your turn. Only the real one has a shadow, '''but''' said shadow only shows up [[spoiler:during a full moon]]. Later, another boss, Mot, disguises itself amongst six identical statues. Before you can fight him, you have to first locate the real one, and fortunately for you the reflective surface of the floor shows his true form.
* ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga'':
** Cackletta does this. The trick is that the two duplicates can only attack one brother at a time, while the real one can attack both.
** Done by [[RunTheGauntlet two of the Koopalings]] in the endgame. The easiest way to find out which is the real one is by using [[ShockAndAwe Thunder Bros.]], though the game and its remakes do include other tells.
* This is also one of the minigames in one of the ''VideoGame/MarioParty'' games where the player is surrounded by a circle of Boos and have to pick the right one based on the shadows they are casting.

* The NES version of ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden 2'' also provides the player with a powerup with this effect, with up to two copies of the ninja trailing the player's movements and mimicking their attacks.
* ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'' had Sinow Beats which projected holograms and circled you. The trick to finding the fakes? The one with the red shoulder lights are real: all the holograms have yellow lights. They return in ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline2'', though the tell for them is more subtle, instead having the fakes periodically crackle with electricity. They're also all equally capable of hurting you, which makes getting rid of the real deal quickly rather important.
* The final boss of ''VideoGame/MetroidPrime3Corruption'' does this often. [[spoiler:Figuring out which of the Dark Samus clones are fake is easy with the X-Ray Visor, but if you don't kill them quick enough, the original can re-absorb them and regain health.]]
* The [=PS2=] ''VideoGame/{{Shinobi}}'' enables you to "stealth dash" to move quickly, leaving behind a stationary image of yourself which can confuse some enemies into attacking it. Dashing many times can leave many images.
* The sequel ''VideoGame/NightshadeKunoichi'' has this as well as a [[LimitBreak special attack]] which enables the heroine to summon a gang of clones and send them at an enemy.
* ''VideoGame/FreedomForce'' villain Deja Vu can clone himself at will. The key to defeating him is realizing that his clones all have shorter health bars and focusing on the original.

** The [[Disney/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs Magic Mirror]] does this in ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep''. Look very carefully at the different faces' expressions, however...

* This trick, executed through use of holograms is one of the two active abilities of the Tau Ethereals in ''VideoGame/DawnOfWar'', except they can use it to clone ''anyone'' on their side. Clones do absolutely no damage but draw fire, serving as useful decoys.
* Tau characters in the ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}''-derived tabletop game Inquisitor may use holograms to do this.
* A boss in ''VideoGame/BadDudes'' makes copies of himself to do battle with you; the difference is, the real one stays away.
* ''VideoGame/PaperMario'':
** The varieties of Magikoopa sometimes do this.
** The Crystal King does it late in the battle.
** Wizzerds are capable of this in ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor''. You either have to use an item, attack, or special move that hits them all guaranteed, or just guess. The latter of the two gets separate attacks for each clone, which predictably makes them very dangerous.
** In ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario'', Dimentio [[PlayingWithATrope plays with this]] in that the copies are [[MirrorMonster Mirror Monsters]].
* [[AWizardDidIt A wizard does this]] against you in ''VideoGame/{{Drakengard}}'' when you investigate some ruins the Cult of the Watchers left behind in the forest of the seal.
* In ''VideoGame/IcewindDale'', the last [[TheDragon dragon]] has an '''enhanced''' ''mirror image'' spell ("Simulacrum"), where all the images move independently. High level Wizards in ''VideoGame/BaldursGateII'' can learn it as well, but it's significantly ''less'' useful.
* ''VideoGame/{{Terranigma}}'' has one of the creepiest applications of this trope where, before you fight [[ThatOneBoss Bloody Mary]] you have to play two 'games' with her evil dolls. While the second game is clearly 'Red Light, Green Light', the first game is based on a Japanese rhyming children's game where 4 dolls do a doppleganger spin and you have to guess the right one. This was particularly hard because the translated poem the dolls chant doesn't convey the main point of the Japanese original - [[spoiler:you have to attack the one that stops behind you]].
* This is how the 'Double Image' ability is portrayed in the various ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWars'' games.
* Baal from the ''VideoGame/DiabloII'' expansion pack Lord of Destruction does this when you face him. His clone dies much faster than he does. The only visual difference between the real him and the clone is the clone's type listing is slightly offset instead of centered, which allows players to know to target him first. Or they can attack the copy, who is worth just as much [=XP=] as the real Baal.
* The Wizard of ''VideoGame/DiabloIII'' has a spell that summons 2 (sometimes 5) duplicates to run around the enemies casting spells (for 0 damage) from her current build. When she starts the spell, she even moves into a random position. There is also a monster trait that enables a similar attack, often flooding the field with clones.
* The Mad Monk in ''VideoGame/ConquestsOfCamelot'' summons several illusionary doppelgangers when attacking to try and confuse the player.
* One of the archer class's special attacks in ''Franchise/{{Disgaea}}'' is something like this, aptly named "Doppelganger."
* The Succubus in ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaSymphonyOfTheNight'' does this as part of her attack chain, filling up the top of the screen with duplicates. They all do the same choreographed moves, and there's no real way to play "One of these things..." other than to attack each one in turn until the real one doesn't vanish after one hit (or you 'cheat' and use an item/spell that hits everything on the screen at once). Death has a similar tactic in ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaChroniclesOfSorrow Dawn of Sorrow]]'', and Dracula appears to do a 2D version of this in ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaIISimonsQuest''.
* Subverted in ''VideoGame/PrinceOfPersia2008''. A villain breaks up the heroine into multiple clones, and you're told to find the real one. [[spoiler:None of them are.]]
* An optional encounter in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTacticsA2'' does this, but each of the clones is as strong as a regular enemy and the real one is always the one who dies last.
* Klungo in ''[[VideoGame/BanjoKazooie Banjo-Tooie]]'', when he uses the blue potion.
* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyV'' it is shortly used out of a real battle just as a test of the main characters strength by Wolfking Kelgar.
* Used in the later ''VideoGame/AceCombat'' games by AWACS jammer aircraft -- enemy aircraft will be detected on radar, with 2 or 3 "shadow returns" that can be locked on to, resulting in clean misses. However, this doesn't apply to the jammer itself, making it a clear target... ''Ace Combat 2'' also has jammers, but these just [[InterfaceScrew block the radar with static]].
* Flandre Scarlet, an Extra boss in ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}} 6'': Embodiment of Scarlet Devil, is able to pull off this at you as of her "Taboo: Four of a Kind" spellcard, which summons three clones. It's purely for the sake of MoreDakka, though, as it's extremely easy to identify the real deal from the others (the one with a spell circle around her).
* The mutated General Shun, the [[spoiler:second-to-last]] boss of ''VideoGame/LegendOfKay'', splits into four copies when he's not attacking. The one with [[spoiler:a slightly darker red light coming from his amulet]] is the real one. Not that it really matters; [[spoiler:the false ones [[OneHitWonder disappear with one hit]], there's enough time to hit all four of them, and it's really tricky to get more than one hit on the real one before he starts attacking again]].

* In ''VideoGame/{{Iji}}'', Komato Assassin Asha does this in your second fight with him. Fortunately, they're all faded out and hence obviously not him. Unfortunately, Asha's MO is a very fast TeleportSpam and hence it can confuse you for the moment necessary to screw you over.
* ''VideoGame/PunchOut'''s [[SimSimSalabim Great Tiger]] has a number of attacks like this, especially his upgraded Tiger Punch in the Wii Title defense version. '''''[[{{Kiai}} SALZARAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!]]'''''
* In ''VideoGame/CaptainAmericaAndTheAvengers'', the Mandarin can create duplicates of himself, though they are easily identifiable (darker than Mandarin himself) and block your path to Mandarin rather than try to confuse you.
* In ''VideoGame/DemonsSouls'', the Fool's Idol creates duplicates of herself as her HP are depleted. The fakes only shoot weak Soul Arrows at you, but the real one uses the upgraded Soul Ray.
* In ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsI'', Catacombs boss Pinwheel generates a clone of themselves every time they jump away from you to reposition themselves. The clones will immediately shatter in one hit from any weapon, and Pinwheel isn't a very fast boss, but they do this every time they jump, and there's no limit to how many clones they can make. Couple that with the fact that there is no way to differentiate Pinwheel from their clones aside from memorization and this comparatively easy boss can be a nightmare for slow or cocky players. The only mercy you get is that only the original makes clones and [[BreatherBoss Pinwheel has abysmally low health]].
* ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsIII'': The Crystal Sage begins pulling this at half health: three or four identical copies will pop up around the arena and start attacking you all at once. The copies die in a single hit, but it's easy to get overwhelmed by the sheer number of projectiles while you're attacking the wrong one. The trick is that the false Sages can only use two attacks, and the attacks they use are blue: the real one has purple-colored magic.
* In ''[[VideoGame/DuneII Emperor: Battle for Dune]]'', the Ixian projector tank could produce copies that would disappear as soon as they were shot or came into contact with an enemy, but allowed for feints and other distractions. Unfortunately, their ability to do damage was not removed, making the unit somewhat of a GameBreaker, as you swamped the enemy with massive hordes of free units, their rate of production limited only by how quickly the previous projection could get out of the way.
* In ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'', the Lust demon possessing Connor does this in the Fade, not as an attack, but to stall for time while healing. Apparently it takes all her concentration to maintain the duplicates, as she does nothing else when they appear.
* Each ninja character in the ''VideoGame/SamuraiWarriors'' series displays this ability at one point when fought.
* Sun Wukong in ''VideoGame/WarriorsOrochi 2'' does it on some levels.
* And while we're on the subject of ninjas, ninjas Hanzo and Galford from ''VideoGame/SamuraiShodown'' have this ability. Earthquake has this as well.
* In ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' it's implied that Double Team does this just like in the anime; its effect is to raise evasion and all of its animations involve briefly and rapidly splitting in two, but duplicates aren't actually seen to be created and remain once the animation's finished.
* [[DualBoss Sho and Kane]] in ''VideoGame/SilentScope 2'' do this. Only the real Sho and Kane can damage you or be damaged.
* When you go to capture Vanessa [=DeVore=] in the Praetor Tilman Loyalist arc in the ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes'' "Going Rogue" supplement, this is how you face her.
* In one of the instances in ''VideoGame/DCUniverseOnline'', you face an entire ''room'' full of Doctor Psycho mind-clones.
* In ''VideoGame/GodHand'', [[ThatOneBoss the Sensei]] uses a multiform technique to attack Gene. The upside: the multiforms can't take more than a few hits each, and oftentimes one God Roulette super-move or one release of the God Hand's Tension can clear out all the multiforms. The downside: if you don't have either one of those ready to go when he does it, you're probably dead, because the clones all attack as aggressively and with the same moves as Sensei himself, they're solid enough to stab you, and they'll never go away until you do kill them off.
* In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfDragoon'', an early miniboss splits into three duplicates a couple of times during his fight. In a light subversion/twist compared to the "hit the fake and they vanish" routine, the copies take either absolutely no damage and/or have vast amounts of health, and hit just as hard as the real thing. Hitting the ''real'' one makes the duplicates disappear. Attack magic that hits the entire enemy field will out the real one, and you are able to stock up on such magic prior to this fight.
* In ''VideoGame/MonsterInMyPocket'' for NES, Medusa appears with four other duplicates. Hitting the fakes will do nothing; you have to attack the real one who soon fires and then flies straight towards you.

* ''VideoGame/SepterraCore'' has the final boss perform this, but you already have an attack that hits all three targets. Rather, this move signals he is about to use a super attack.
* Agent Tatsuo in the ''VideoGame/{{Syndicate}}'' remake does this, combining it with TeleportSpam to annoying effect.

* The final boss in ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedI'' uses an Apple of Eden to generate phantom copies of himself. The difference is that the copies ''can'' hurt you. Inverted at the end of ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedII'', where ''you'' are the one generating copies to confuse the final boss using a different Apple.
* In ''VideoGame/CrusaderOfCenty'', Shuffler splits into eight pieces, which all spread out four times before you can attack the real one.
* The penultimate boss of ''VideoGame/{{Ys}}'', Yogleks & Omulgun, consists of a pair of red and blue demon heads surrounded by [[OrbitingParticleShield orbiting objects]]. Only the red head can be damaged, and the two switch places after Adol scores a hit.
* Automated Simulations' ''Star Warrior''. Your character's armor could have the Decoys option. When activated (up to 3 times per game) it would release an insubstantial image of your suit which would draw enemy fire for a couple of turns.
* In ''VideoGame/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtlesTheArcadeGame'', Shredder will do this, splitting into a duplicate and the player being forced to find which one's the real one. While the NES port is restricted to one doppelganger at a time, the arcade original will have Shredder field as many copies as there are players. However, each copy has far lower health than the original, and Shredder can ''run out'' of copies. Also, when Shredder himself gets low enough in health, he will stop creating them.
* In Chapter 2 of ''VideoGame/DragonQuestIV'', one of Alena's opponents in the tournament is a monster who spawns three copies of himself and shuffles position with the copies. Hitting a copy disperses it, but the monster then spawns a new one and reshuffles their positions again. The only way to hit the real monster and not one of its copies? [[LuckBasedMission Guessing]]. Fortunately, when you ''do'' target the real one, Alena is a lot stronger than her opponent so it doesn't take many hits to win.
* [[spoiler:Dark Meta Knight]] in ''VideoGame/KirbyTripleDeluxe'' generates two clones of himself in the second phase of the fight. You're given a chance to see which is the real deal before they rapidly shuffle places, then attack you. Hitting a fake destroys it but produces a projectile counterattack, and it'll be regenerated before the next attack is carried out.
* ''VideoGame/LaMulana'' has the enemy Hundun, whose habit of projecting copies of itself around the screen is only made more annoying by its {{Teleport Spam}}ming.

* Azwraith the Phantom Lancer of ''VideoGame/{{Dota 2}}'' has this as his main strength. While any hero can create illusions of themself (only a handful can do so with a built-in ability, most require a rune or item), only Phantom Lancer can reliably hide his real self among them, partly because he can quickly create a massive number of them, but mostly because by using his appropriately named skill Doppelganger, he can shuffle himself among them. Anyone who can't clear out the mass of illusions quickly will die a very fast DeathOfAThousandCuts.

* This appears as an ability in several ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' games, alternately called RUSE, Image, or Utsusemi. Originally something that white mages specialized in, but it's more frequently pulled off by ninjas in later games. In practice, it generally guarantees that a certain number of melee attacks against the target are automatic misses.
* ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyBlackOpsIII'' has Reaper and its Specialist Ability, Psychosis. It disguises Reaper as one of several clones of itself that then rush forward to distract enemies. The clones can't hurt enemies, but they can mock-fire at them to alert the real Reaper to their presence.
* The Micro Stag-beetle in VideoGame/KouchuuOujaMushiking has this as its super finishing attack, it also has an enhanced version.

* Used by Cerise in ''Webcomic/MagickChicks'', where [[http://www.magickchicks.com/strips-mc/the_real_witch they're used as a distraction]].