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When people sit back and reminisce about the late Michael Jackson (he passed away today at age 50), they will more than likely recall his musical career as the King of Pop, and rightly so. But he also had a presence in the gaming world. His songs transcended the music scene to influence videogames in a form not many artists can claim. In the early '90s, Jackson was close with Sega, appearing at several charity events with the publisher and making a visit to their Japan headquarters (some believe that he even inspired Sonic the Hedgehog's character design). Jackson's love for gaming culture became public knowledge when a significant portion of his collection was auctioned off earlier this year. Join us as we take a quick look at his influences:

Moonwalker (Arcade)

Sega's first Jackson game saw him fighting enemies in a 3/4 perspective, dancing to attack, and fighting through various levels with his music playing in the background.

Moonwalker (Genesis/Master System/Game Gear)

For Moonwalker's home console appearances, Sega created a 2D side-scrolling adventure, with similar fighting and children-saving themes, but without a multiplayer option.

Sonic 3's Music

Although the story has never fully been told, rumor has it that Jackson was involved with Sonic the Hedgehog 3's music. Some believe he was originally tapped to compose its soundtrack. But, reportedly, when his child molestation scandal hit, Sega wanted to distance itself from the pop star and never publicly acknowledged his involvement. Plenty of sites have done research into the Sonic 3 soundtrack, and many would say that the similarities between it and other Michael Jackson musical projects prove his involvement -- or at least inspiration.

Space Channel 5 Cameo

Because of his close ties with Sega, Jackson knew of Tetsuya Mizuguchi's music game Space Channel 5 and requested to be involved in it. However, this was a few weeks before the game was supposed to release. Because Mizuguchi was so honored that Michael Jackson's had interest in the game, he added Michael as a special character, Space Michael.

Ready 2 Rumble Boxing: Round 2 Cameo

It never got the same level of attention as Jackson's Space Channel 5 cameo, perhaps because it wasn't as unusual and there were other celebrities also featured in the game, but as the video above shows, he looked pretty at home as an unlockable character.

Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within Thriller Video

This was probably pretty expensive to pull off, but sometimes the cast of a CG Final Fantasy movie just needs to dance.

Little Big Planet Thriller video

While far from an official production, this fan video showcased a creative approach to what a modern Jackson video crossover could have looked like.

Rumored New Game

We're guessing this won't happen at this point, but a Dutch game website just recently posted a rumor about a new Jackson game in the works.