Most video games contain non-player characters to some extent, whether to stand in the way of players, give them important items, or just provide exposition. With open-world games becoming even more popular, NPCs are becoming even more important to games.
Not all NPCs only exist to serve the player though, and some games like the recent LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga program in some genuinely hilarious conversations for them to have even without any player input. These NPCs have some of the funniest dialogue in their games.
What's For Dinner? (World of Warcraft)
With such a massive game as World of Warcraft, there are likely dozens if not hundreds of interactions that players may never come across. However, if players hang around Admiral Odesyus long enough, they can hear one of the best exchanges in the entire game.
Odesyus asks his cook, "Cookie", what he is making for dinner, he warns that it had better not be his usual staple of chicken again. Cookie tells the Admiral of the succulent, multi-course meal he has planned, much to the Admiral's amazement, before laughing "not really, it be chicken," and then shooting one to hammer the point home. The Admiral may not be happy, but anyone who heard this exchange was.
Scary Smart (Transformers: Fall of Cybertron)
Transformers: Fall of Cybertron has a surprisingly great script. Not only does it pull off some effective emotional moments, but it also fits in some great jokes as well. Cliffjumper and Jazz's dialogue in their levels is already great, but they can also hear an amusing exchange between two Decepticons.
The Decepticons discuss their scientist Shockwave, and the merits of his experiments. One of the Decepticons describes Shockwave as "scary smart," and is told that compared to himself, everyone is scary smart. He quickly proves his partner's point by saying he doesn't get it, which triggers a smug "I didn't think you would." Not only do players get to hear this great insult, but they also get to witness its perfect payoff as well.
The Mind of a Child (The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt)
Geralt can come across all kinds of people and creatures throughout The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, with many strange tales to tell. One of the more amusing of these tales comes from a group of young children. Players can stumble across the boys in one of the towns, discussing something they overheard from their parents.
One of the boys asks the oldest what a prostitute does, and he replies that his father says they do the things his mother won't. The boys, still young and innocent, take this to mean the various household chores their mothers dislike doing, and simply agree that "adults are strange." Hearing the children's innocent conclusions was hopefully the pick-me-up Geralt needed.
The Lemon Rant (Portal 2)
Portal 2 is legendary for its impeccable script and sense of humor, and nothing encapsulates that better than Cave Johnson's famous lemon rant. Cave Johnson drops many hilarious lines throughout the game, but his take on "when life gives you lemons" is in a league of its own.
He berates players via recording not to make lemonade, but to make life take the lemons back. He even goes on to threaten to build an incendiary lemon to burn life's house down while GLaDOS cheers him on. The absurdity of the speech mixed with J.K. Simmons fiery delivery have made it one of the most enduring moments in the entire game.
J. Jonah Jameson's Hotline (Spider-Man: Miles Morales)
Despite some unpopular opinions about Sony's Spider-Man games on Reddit, the series took a fun new approach to the J. Jonah Jameson character, making him the host of a radio show that players can pick up snippets of throughout the game. One of the best of these occurs in Spider-Man: Miles Morales.
One of the recurring mission types is shutting down dangerous Roxxon labs, during which Jameson will take to the airwaves defending Roxxon, asking people what they would if a man in a skintight suit broke into their homes. He almost immediately realizes his mistake, shutting down the phone lines and ending the broadcast with "You people are sick." As entertaining as the responses likely were, it is almost even funnier leaving them to the player's imagination.
A Raider Legend (Fallout 4)
Like World of Warcraft, Fallout 4 is full of great NPC dialogue that players can completely miss in the vast open world, including this gem of a story from several groups of raiders. Overheard from at least two different groups, they tell the story of a brave, heavily armed man.
The raiders tell of the man throwing grenades, firing machine guns, and riding away on a motorcycle, but at the end they reveal that he was actually just pantomiming everything and making all the noises with his mouth. The best part is, it works, as the raiders were all too stunned to actually fight back. Whether a fearless warrior or a master ventriloquist, the story left many Fallout players wishing they could meet this mysterious man in person.
Mind Reading (Halo Series)
First-person shooters are often not known for their NPC interactions, but the Halo games are host to several great lines from both enemies and allies. When accompanied by the marines that often join Master Chief on missions, players can hear many great quotes from them.
Among the best of these quotes is one marine that claims to be able to read minds. If players stare at him for long enough, he will claim that there is nothing in their mind to read, and begs them to think of something. Alternately, sometimes he will also tell Chief that what he is thinking right now is "just... not okay." Both lines are great punchlines and beg the question of what exactly, if anything, does go in Master Chief's head.
Anti-Ninja Floor (Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory)
Sam Fisher of the Splinter Cell series is not technically a ninja, but since Splinter cell is considered one of the best action-stealth games of all time, he might as well be considered one. This leads to a surprisingly funny moment during a mission in Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory. During an infiltration, Fisher stumbles upon two guards discussing the noisiness of the floor.
One of the men claims that is an "Anti-ninja floor," meant to detect any ninjas trying to sneak across it. The two argue about whether ninjas are real, and finally agree to switch patrols so that the ninja-believer can stay on the noisy floor. Even better, if Sam grabs the man, he will be more excited than scared about the honor of being killed by a ninja.
Mom On Prom Night (Batman: Arkham City)
Many of the random conversations that Batman can overhear from goons in the Batman: Arkham series are entertaining, from one man complaining about never having seen Batman to another fantasizing about Mr. Freeze's frozen wife, but few can compare to the randomness of one conversation towards the beginning of Arkham City.
Batman comes across a group of henchmen, one of whom proclaims that Batman will never make it inside, as the place is "locked down tighter than my mother on prom night." After some heavy questioning from his associates, the man finally reveals that his mother had actually committed some heinous crimes on prom night, quite far from the conclusions they had jumped to. The throwaway line is already funny, but the plot twist adds an even further layer.
Isaac Newton (Mass Effect 2)
The Mass Effect series is absolutely packed full of phenomenal NPCs. Most of them have some great dialogue as well, in the elevators in the original game to the Nomad in Andromeda. One of the best conversations players can overhear is a pep talk by a soldier on the Citadel in Mass Effect 2.
The soldier begins by lecturing his troops on the payloads of various bombs, before launching into arguably the most impassioned physics lesson ever given. After referring to Isaac Newton as "The deadliest S.O.B. in space," he forces a soldier to quote Newton's laws verbatim, leaving the recruits both invigorated and educated. It is a lecture that could rival even Shepard's own famous speeches.