A chipper hero named Ed bleeps and blorps through his city -- which looks and sounds suspiciously like a retro video game -- in Rodrigo Díaz's short animation Gummy Gas Crisis. Ed's mission: to chase down a baddie named Lord Gadiseous, who's spreading gas (the stinky kind) all over town.

That's probably a strange thing to say, but really, this super adorable little short film managed to make a dog transforming into a tentacled eldritch nightmare into something rather cute, which is quite the feat.

If you grew up with an older brother or sister and an old school video game console, Zachary Antell's short animation Player Two should hit you right in the nostalgic feeling bank. Some people call that a heart, and maybe make you want to pick up the phone to call him or her (or let's be honest, shoot a text to them).

Video: People leave memories in the most unexpected ways. And when you run into them, you want to hold onto them forever. Here's a sad but touching short film about a son re-discovering the Xbox he shared with his late father and the racing game that still holds his father's time trial ghost. Anyone who has experienced loss can relate.

Video: This is the closest I've seen to a Japanese-made Pixar-style animated short. So, I'm guessing it will be the closest you've seen, too.

I must admit that I am guilty of the laziest of gaming crimes -- taking one game out of the console and putting it back in the new game's case. It's led to some serious nightmare scenarios, but nothing as complicated as director Dan DeStefano's short film, Misplaced.