History Main / FinalDeathMode

* ''VideoGame/HollowKnight'': "Steel Soul" mode, unlocked after beating the game once, forces you to start over completely if your character dies outside the Dream World. This means Rancid Eggs, normally used for retrieving your Shade from a remote or dangerous location so you don't have to risk your neck trying to get back to it, are only useful as ShopFodder, but the [[BreakablePowerUp Fragile charms]] you can buy from Leg Eater are a bit more useful.

* {{Downplayed|Trope}} in ''VideoGame/DivinityOriginalSin'' and ''[[VideoGame/DivinityOriginalSinII Original Sin II]]'' with Honour Mode: there's one save file, which is deleted if [[TotalPartyKill the entire party is killed]], and the game auto-saves whenever a party member dies. However, resurrection abilities work, as long as they're an AutoRevive or a party member is alive to use them.

* {{Downplayed|Trope}} in ''VideoGame/DivinityOriginalSin'' and ''[[VideoGame/DivinityOriginalSinII Original Sin II]]'' with Honour Mode: there's one save file, which is deleted if [[TotalPartyKill the entire party is killed]], and the game auto-saves whenever a party member dies. However, in-game resurrection abilities still work.

* Creator/ParadoxInteractive in-house games since ''VideoGame/CrusaderKingsII'' (the others so far being ''VideoGame/EuropaUniversalis IV'', ''VideoGame/HeartsOfIron IV'', ''VideoGame/{{Stellaris}}'', and ''VideoGame/CrusaderKingsIII'') require the use of "Ironman" mode to earn {{achievement}}s. Meeting the game over condition(s) (e.g. losing your last primary title above baronies or [[HeirClubForMen dying without an heir of your dynasty]] in ''CKII'') means the game is no longer playable. This requires a connection to Paradox's server and an [[GameMod unmodded game]] (outside of minor cosmetic or text changes); failing either condition even once means achievements can no longer be earned on that save.

* ''[[VideoGame/EremidiaDungeonSkywardTemple EremidiaDungeon: Skyward Temple]]'': Ironwill Mode disables saving the game, not only forcing you to complete it in one sitting, but punting you back to the very start if you die.

* ''VideoGame/GhostReconWildlands'' has Ghost Mode, in which your character is deleted if they are killed in action, and your NPC teammates also die permanently if KO'ed and not [[CombatResuscitation revived]] in time.

* ''[[VideoGame/SonicSMSRemake Sonic SMS Remake 2]]'' has this with its unlockable Encore Mode. You can play as any of the available teams in the game[[note]]Sonic & Tails, Amy & Knuckles, Shadow & Metal Sonic, Mighty & Ray, or Espio & Vector[[/note]] and can change between them at any time by using a certain Monitor. The catch? If you die even once as any of them, then you lose that pair for the rest of the run.

* [[HarderThanHard "YOLO" difficulty]][[note]]Which would later be renamed to "One-Credit Champ" in the ''[=RemAssTurd=]'' version of the game.[[/note]] in ''VideoGame/TheAngryVideoGameNerdAdventures'': One life, weaker weapons, stronger enemies, [[OneHitPointWonder no beers]], [[CheckpointStarvation no checkpoints]], no saving, no extra lives to find, and no continues. Take just a single hit from ''anything'', and you start the game over from the beginning. '''Good luck'''.

* In platform shoooter/action movie homage ''VideoGame/{{Broforce}}'', unlocking at least 20 characters allows you to play Ironbro mode. In this mode, lives you collect (every character you rescue counts as a life) carry from level to level, but if any character dies, he/she will not appear again in the game. Losing all characters means failure, and having to start again from the beginning.

* ''[[VideoGame/SonicSMSRemake Sonic SMS Remake 2]]'' has this with its unlockable Encore Mode. You can play as any of the available teams in the game[[note]]Sonic & Tails, Amy & Knuckles, Shadow & Metal Sonic, Mighty & Ray, or Espio & Vector[[/note]] and can change between them at any time by using a certain Monitor. The catch? If you die even once as any of them, you lose that pair for the rest of the run.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Teleroboxer}}'', there is a Title Defense mode where you must fight the eight robot opponents at random (This mode can only be played if you defeat all eight opponents without losing). If you lose a single match in this mode, that's it; you're retired, and you can't play again.

* ''VideoGame/DeusExMankindDivided'' has a difficulty known as "[[HarderThanHard I Never Asked For This]]" -- you can ''save'', but when you die, you have to restart the game from the beginning. You only have a single manual save slot, enemies are more alert, and you make more noise when moving around, rendering it [[HarderThanHard even harder]] than the regular hard difficulty, "Give me Deus Ex". This unlocks after completing the game once, on any difficulty.
* ''VideoGame/CallofDutyInfiniteWarfare'''s "YOLO Mode" disables all checkpoints. Die, and the game mentions "You only live once..." before forcing you to restart the campaign from the very start.

* In ''VideoGame/IWannaBeTheGuy'', "Impossible" difficulty removes all Save Points (except, due to a [[GoodBadBugs tiny glitch]], one) from a game where the protagonist is a OneHitPointWonder with FakeDifficulty and EverythingTryingToKillYou.

* [[HarderThanHard YOLO difficulty]] in ''VideoGame/TheAngryVideoGameNerdAdventures'': One life, [[OneHitPointWonder One HP]], [[CheckpointStarvation no checkpoints]], and no continues. Take just a single hit from anything, and you start the game over from the beginning.

HarderThanHard isn't hard enough for some people when DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist. Choose Final Death Mode as a difficulty level and that's no longer a problem. When activated, your game will be permanently ''over'' if you die. You only get one life, and continuing is impossible; so be extremely careful.

* In ''VideoGame/UnleashTheLight'', Rose's Room is an optional game mode where having your whole party wiped means starting over from scratch. To add to the difficulty, your party members start at Level 1 and without items or money, they have to be recruited one by one, and they only unlock new skills and abilities after defeating enemies or by exploring the overworld. Not only are the stages, the recruitable members, and their unlockable skills and abilities randomly generated, but there are also exclusive enemy variants that are much stronger than the ones in Story Mode. However, completing any run in this mode, regardless of how many stages you clear, permanently gives you EXP to increase your party member's starting stats and unlock party-wide perks, which make the next run easier.

* ''Eremidia Dungeon: Skyward Temple'': Ironwill Mode disables saving the game, not only forcing you to complete it in one sitting, but punting you back to the very start if you die.
* ''VideoGame/TheWitcher2AssassinsOfKings'' has this through its [[HarderThanHard Insane Difficulty]]. In this difficulty, Geralt only has one life; if he gets killed, all of your save files are rendered inaccessible and you have to start the entire game over again.
* ''VideoGame/PillarsOfEternity'' has the Trial of Iron, which imposes a one saved game limit and even that save is deleted permanently if [[PlayerCharacter the Watcher]] dies.
* In ''VideoGame/DeusExMankindDivided'', the "I Never Asked for This" difficulty is unlocked after beating the game. While this difficulty is equivalent to "Give Me Deus Ex", the player's save file will be rendered inaccessible if Jensen dies. Moreover, auto-saving is disabled and the player can only use one save slot throughout the game.

* While ''VideoGame/FearAndHunger'' is already quite ungenerous when it comes to saving your game, Hard Mode disables all means of doing so. Got your head pecked off by the Crow Mauler? It's back to the very beginning for you!

%%* ''VideoGame/CallofDutyInfiniteWarfare'''s "YOLO Mode".

* ''VideoGame/HollowKnight'': "Steel Soul" mode, unlocked after beating the game once, forces you to start over completely if your character dies outside the Dream World or when fighting the TrueFinalBoss. This means Rancid Eggs, normally used for retrieving your Shade from a remote or dangerous location so you don't have to risk your neck trying to get back to it, are only useful as ShopFodder, but the [[BreakablePowerUp Fragile charms]] you can buy from Leg Eater are a bit more useful.

* ''VideoGame/{{Starbound}}'' has a hardcore character mode, but only the ''character'' is deleted, not the worlds: there's only one universe file for the game. If all your items are on your ship, though...

* ''VideoGame/EscapeVelocity'': DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist normally: you can simply reload at the last planet you visited. In "Strict Play", however, you actually have a need for the EscapePod item.
-->If you check this box, when you're dead, you're dead. No [[CheckPoint reincarnation]] allowed.

* ''VideoGame/CallofDutyInfiniteWarfare''[='s=] "YOLO Mode".

--> "You call yourself a professional. Sure maybe you've run a few jobs, hit a few banks. Maybe some people back home even know your name. But you're about to enter the big leagues. Mistakes out here get people killed - We expect flawless execution, every day of the week. Welcome to the fight. You either live up to the challenge or you get gunned down; There's no turning back now."
-->-- Ironman Mode description