Five Epic Power-ups in Gaming History

Lucky's journey in LavaCat is aided by power-ups: items hidden throughout the game that grant special skills. Pajamas enable Lucky to swim through lava; big paws allow Lucky to swipe aside falling rocks; a cape transforms Lucky into a superfeline, able to leap tall structures in a single bound.

The origins of each vary. The pajamas are due to one of Project Manager Jim Bassett's favorite sayings. If something's cool, it's "the cat's pajamas." The big paws are based on a viral video of a cat (declawed) dropping a newly upright toddler with a right hook. The cape, on the other hand? "Who doesn't have a thing for superheroes?" Bassett says.

A rundown of the top power-ups in gaming history:

Rise of the Triad (God Mode)

The plot had something to do with a group of operatives sent to assassinate a maniac cult leader. I'm not sure about that. To me, it seemed made to order for middle-school boys: meaningless, blood-spattered filth that was no proponent of D.A.R.E. (cheat code: BADTRIP). The best part? God mode, in which you had your choice of weaponry (machine gun, heat-seeking missile, flamethrower) or the all-ending God finger. Gesture it at anyone, and they'd cease to be, with appropriate angel music.

Fallout 3 (Bloody Mess)

In Fallout 3 -- if you were to allocate your points from the skill tree to "bloody mess" -- heads, hideous creatures, even bunnies, were reduced to raining pulp at the push of a button. It was enough to make your head hurt -- or explode, Scanners-style.

Super Mario Bros. (Invincibility Star)

The super leaf that sprouted Mario a raccoon tail and flight was pretty neat. But not as neat as the invincibility star, which allowed Mario to vanquish his foes like a spell of gas in a crowded elevator.

Burnout (Slow Motion Replays)

It's a terrible truth that most of us are hardpressed to shelter our eyes from the scene of an accident. Now, imagine if you could rewatch the accident happening. In slow motion. Would you look away? We didn't think so.

Ken Griffey Jr. Presents Major League Baseball (The Loop-to-oops Pitch)

If I can face a batter down with two strikes, it's auf wiedersehen.

I'll toss a slow curve ball (35 to 40 miles per hour) that winds outside (as if destined for the dugout) before slicing inward at the batter's wrists. For the computer, the temptation to swing is too great. I call it the "loop-to-oops."