History Main / Nerf

*** Prior to Gen IV, moves would still hit a Pokemon under the effect of [[AlwaysAccurateAttack Lock-on or Mind Reader]] even if it was out of rage through use of a move like Dig of Fly. Starting in Gen IV, a move will still miss a Pokemon affected by Lock-on or Mind Reader if they're out of range.

* The [[SmartBomb Smart Missile]] in ''Pinball/JurassicParkDataEast'', available only once per game, collected ''every'' lit shot, making getting the T-Rex Triball rather easy. Its sequel, ''Pinball/TheLostWorldJurassicPark'', makes it only work on Multiball-related shots. But in the later game you can get more then one of them. Also last action hero had the smart missile. You lose out on a lot points by just useing it to get Triball started.

* ''Franchice/{{Splatoon}}'':
** Several of the special attacks have been nerfed to make them less dominant. For example, [[VideoGame/Splatoon1 the first game]] had the Kraken special (which turns the player into an invincible, ink-spreading Kraken with an instakill melee attack) modified to suffer increased knockback from attacks. In a later update, the Echolocator and Inkzooka were also nerfed; while the weapons themselves are unchanged, they take longer to charge[[note]](prior to the second game, special charge was based on the special weapon itself, rather than the base weapon of your loadout)[[/note]], meaning they can't be used as often.
** A common practice in the games involves an observant player timing when an opponent [[note]](which is visible unless the player uses Stealth Jump, but ''VideoGame/Splatoon2'' would change it so opponents can still see your landing spot if they're close enough, in exchange for it no longer taking longer to do than a normal Super Jump)[[/note]] and opening fire in time to catch them landing, which gives the landing opponent a one-way trip back to spawn nine times out of ten. In ''VideoGame/Splatoon 2'', however, the Splashdown special can be activated in the middle of a Super Jump, making such tactics without Charger a risky proposition.

** Speaking of nerfed tactics, some games in the first two installments can become so lopsided that spawn camping became prevalent - the dominating team would essentially lock down every means of egress from the spawning pool, meaning that without a Squid Beakon planted behind enemy lines, the match could only end one way. ''VideoGame/Splatoon3'' would switch to giving each player their own off-stage spawning drone that shoots them onto the battlefield, while also being them temporary invincibility after landing, vaporizing the spawn camping tactic altogether.

* ''VideoGame/{{Splatoon}}'':
** Several of the special attacks have been nerfed to make them less dominant. The Kraken special (which turns the player into an invincible, ink-spreading Kraken with an instakill melee attack) was modified to suffer increased knockback from attacks. In a later update, the Echolocator and Inkzooka were also nerfed; while the weapons themselves are unchanged, they take longer to charge, meaning they can't be used as often.
** A common practice in the games involves an observant player timing an opponent's jump point (which is visible unless the player uses Stealth Jump) and opening fire in time to catch them landing, which gives the landing opponent a one-way trip back to the spawning pool nine times out of ten. In ''VideoGame/{{Splatoon 2}}'', however, the Splashdown special causes the user to jump up and come down with a blastwave which instakills players in proximity; this move can be used during a super jump to touch down explosively, making such tactics without a Charger a risky proposition.
** However, in exchange for the above, the stealth jump ability, though slightly compensated for by no longer taking longer than a normal jump, no longer hides your jump if an opposing team member is close to your jump destination.
** The Quick Respawn ability was nerfed so that you have to get splatted at least twice without downing a single opponent, making it less practical for competent combatants. Also Respawn Punisher can slow down the respawn of anybody who splats them, however due to that rule it can't interfere with Quick Respawn as it requires they splat them, punishing reckless fighters who might value splatting wildly over taking a more careful approach. This, combined with the above nerf, is especially notable for basically destroying the infamous chain jumping strategy that used to dominate Tower Control in the first game.
** Another common practice against lopsided teams is for the dominant team to gather in close proximity and fire upon access to the enemy spawning pool to fence them in. The Tenta-Missiles, also introduced in ''Splatoon 2'', acquire a thermal lock on to opponents within the user's cone of sight; teams that bunch together and fire upon a common point can be forced to disperse this way, making them easier pickings for the rest of the user's teammates. Also, due to the fact that this is a thermal lock and not an optic lock, Charger twitch campers can be forced from their nests with absolute impunity.
** Speaking of nerfed tactics, some games of Splatoon (1 or 2) are so lopsided that spawn camping became prevalent - the dominating team would essentially lock down every means of egress from the spawning pool, meaning that without a Squid Beakon planted behind enemy lines, the match could only end one way. ''VideoGame/Splatoon3'' has abandoned use of the spawning pool and instead uses floating spawn pods, which shoot the player spawning from them directly onto the battlefield, with a crosshair for the launching player showing the landing point. It isn't known whether the spawning animation is as explosive as a Splashdown, but what is known is that there is ''no fixed spawn point'' in any capacity anymore, vaporizing the spawn camping tactic altogether.

** The Ultimate Armor from ''X4'', being basically the Fourth Armor UpToEleven and only accessible via inputted code, got hit with a similar nerf as the Fourth Armor in ''X5'' (although it kept the Nova Strike and was actually accessible in-game rather than needing a code). Surprisingly, it ''didn't'' get hit with further nerfs in ''X6'' (aside from going back to needing a code to access).

** The complete disappearance of the Stoneskin spell in ''[=EotB2=]'', even with an imported party from ''[=EotB1=]'', for whom it vanishes from spellbooks (and a Stoneskin scroll can't be saved either). See the [[GameBreaker/RolePlaying Game Breaker]] entry for why.
** The TurnUndead power also get modified between the two games. In ''[=EotB1=]'' it is an automatic function, as long as the character is holding a holy symbol. Starting with ''[=EotB2=]'', it becomes an action like any spell-casting, though not limited in use.

* In ''Super VideoGame/PunchOut'', Bald Bull is demoted to the champion of the Minor Circuit. He is notably much slower and easier to beat than in the original NES game. However this nerf was reversed in the Wii version of the game where he is back to normal.

** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'', the Boomerang and Magic Rod were {{Game Breaker}}s, killing most enemies in one hit. The former weapon was noteworthy for killing the final boss, [[spoiler:DethI]], in one hit. The UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch VideoGameRemake significantly nerfed both weapons, making them less game breaking and more balanced.

* ''Merlin's Revenge 3'' nerfed the Energy Beam and Monster Summon spells from the previous game, renaming them Energy Pulse and Army Summon. Energy Beam was widely regarded as a game breaker(which it was not. It was the only way to defeat the Scarlet Wizard), but the creator never gave a reason as to why Monster Summon was changed. Firstly, Energy Pulse was pathetic mostly due to the fact that as the number of enemies approached 25, a rather limiting maximum, its hit chance would approach zero. It was in fact, nerfed again, halfing its firerate. Army Summon, was, on the other hand, useful during the beta version as it seemed to be exactly the same with a different choice of units to create, until it was toned down AGAIN when the final beta map was released by only allowing you to summon friendly units that you had collected from other screens. Apart from the spells, the blue potion was nerfed next, followed by the swamp region, allied dwarves, the levelling system, enemy spawners, and finally the map itself, which was changed to a 16x4 map, as opposed the the 15x9 map of the previous game and the 18x12 map of the beta(I don't know if the exact numbers are right, but you get the idea). The map removed the scrub and desert regions, replacing them with a larger Magical Alliance area.

*** Self-Destruct and Explosion lost their defense-halving abilities in [[VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite 5th Generation]]. They're still the most powerful move in the game, though.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Persona 3}}'', having the Personae Lucifer and Satan together unlocked the Fusion Raid Armageddon, which at the cost of all of the protagonist's SP delivered [[{{Cap}} 9999]] damage to all enemies. It became a GameBreaker once Lucifer learned Victory Cry, which fully restores the protagonist's HP and SP after a win. The FES UpdatedRerelease made it so Lucifer, now renamed Helel, no longer learned Victory Cry naturally, though creative inheritance could fix that. The second UpdatedRerelease, Portable, further Nerfed Armageddon by making all Fusion Raids consumable items, and giving Armageddon a ludicrous price to make it AwesomeButImpractical.

* ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'':

** Let's start with the pistol. Dear God in heaven, the pistol. In ''VideoGame/HaloCombatEvolved'' the [=M6D=] is an [[SniperPistol extremely accurate medium-range weapon with an integrated scope]] and [[HandCannon high explosive bullets]]. It was replaced with the [=BR55=] battle rifle in ''VideoGame/{{Halo 2}}'', which was fundamentally different because of its [=RoF=], hit-scan bullets, Aim-Assist, and its three-shot burst. The [=M6C=] pistol is regarded as a ScrappyWeapon, even with the ability to go GunsAkimbo. And the fanbase [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks never forgave them for it]] and clamored incessantly for the [=M6D's=] return. Though games from ''VideoGame/HaloReach'' onward have restored the basic pistol's scope and much of its former power and accuracy, the original ''CE'' HandCannon didn't make a return until ''VideoGame/Halo5Guardians'', though even there it's only available as a special REQ power weapon in Warzone.
** The Needler was weakened somewhat in ''VideoGame/{{Halo 2}}'', decreasing its homing capacity and making it a close-range weapon, though by ''Halo 5'' the needles began to track better again. And the shotgun too -- it lost either magazine size or range in every game until ''[[VideoGame/HaloReach Reach]]''.
** It was incredibly easily to run over people in ''Combat Evolved'' even if you just grazed them. Hence, the ability to splatter people was nerfed in ''Halo 2''. However, it seems to have gotten progressively nerfed each game, to the point of it being nearly impossible to ram someone with a Warthog by ''VideoGame/{{Halo 4}}''.
** They also removed the Rocket Launcher's homing ability in ''VideoGame/{{Halo 3}}'', presumably to prevent it from [[GameBreaker breaking the game]] in multiplayer. It can again lock-on again from ''Reach'' onward (albeit only on aerial vehicles now), though it now has to compete with lots of other heavy weapons like the Fuel Rod Gun and Spartan Laser.

* ''{{VideoGame/Destiny 2}}'' nerfed all special weapons into to the ground by forcing them into the "heavy" slot, for which ammunition almost never drops. Players now have two "primary" weapons to use instead and have only one weapon slot to switch for higher damage. The game also massively increased the super and grenade cooldowns. This was revised in Year 2, placing more emphasis on the distinction between kinetic weapons, energy weapons and heavy weapons by moving most shotguns, snipers and fusion rifles out of the heavy slot.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Super Mario World}}'', the Cape Feather was regarded as a GameBreaker as you could easily fly through levels with ease. Although the feather has never appeared in a main series game since then (minus ports and Super Mario Advance 4's eReader), some hacks have made the Cape Feather's "flight" feature null, preventing you from easily flying through levels. Still doesn't stop you from defeating Dry Bones though.

* In ''[[VideoGame/BanjoKazooie Banjo-Tooie]]'', the Wonderwing is greatly Nerfed from its original appearance in ''Banjo-Kazooie''. In the former, it could be used very often, and in some cases required to defeat certain enemies or pass obstacles without taking any damage. Once the GOLDFEATHERS cheat is acquired, it basically becomes an InfinityPlusOneSword. However, in ''Tooie'', most enemies will run away from you when they see it, plus they respawn anyway. There is only one required use of it, claiming the Jinjo behind the super-heated waterfall in Hailfire Peaks. This is likely because you start the game out with the move, the cheat to allow you to carry more Golden Feathers is acquired much earlier, [[AntiFrustrationFeature and Golden Feathers themselves are not as rare an item as they were in the original]]. That said, the move is more useful in Terrydactyland, as the Soarasaurs do not flee at the sight of it and tend to fly over narrow areas, plus it can cross the Stomping Plains as Banjo and Kazooie together to [[SequenceBreaking get the Jiggy earlier than intended]].

** The ''Videogame/RatchetAndClankGoingCommando'' reintroduced five weapons from ''Videogame/RatchetAndClank2002'' that you can get for free if you have a save from that game. The catch is, they were so weakened they're ''maybe'' useful against weakest anklebiters, but nothing else. Even formerly powerful weapons such as Visibomb Gun are practically useless.
** This happened to The Bouncer and Shield Charger from ''Going Commando'' when they reappeared in ''Videogame/RatchetAndClankUpYourArsenal''. Both weapons had their ammo clip considerably reduced and in case of the former the number of shots per ammo drop got the same treatment. Unlike the above, they're still powerful a plenty though, and yes, they can be also obtained for free if you have the save from previous game.

* VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution had a few:

* VideoGame/PumpItUp fixed various old charts (often pre-Exceed) to newer written charts to make the game much easier and accessible to the masses, most notably Beethoven Virus Crazy. This was done mainly to make the charts make more sense in Rank Mode.
* VideoGame/StepManiaX fixed Max 428's Wild and Full charts in the update after its release to contain 1/12th notes at the end instead of the blazing 1/16th notes.

* [[Videogame/SimCity SimCity 2000]] had the hydroelectric power plants, which, unlike other power plants, didn't need to be replaced every 50 years. That meant that one could build a city dependent entirely on hydroelectric power plants and, as long as you had some sort of positive cash flow, leave the city running overnight and come back to find your treasury pleasantly loaded with funds from thousands of years of tax revenue. It was removed entirely in Sim City 3000, with its spiritual successor being the far less game-breaking wind power plant

* The 2002 remake of ''Videogame/ResidentEvil1'' cut down the probability of decapitating zombies with your shotgun and magnum from 100% to about 80% and removed the magnum's ability to consistently score a OneHitKill on them. Granted, it's not a common occurrence, but few things in the game are more frustrating than putting ''two'' shotgun shells or magnum rounds into a zombie's face, and then realizing that you'll still have to deal with it again once it revives as a [[DemonicSpiders Crimson Head]].

* The unlockable AW-01 handgun from ''Videogame/ResidentEvil7Biohazard'' is the strongest 9mm handgun in the game, hampered only by its tiny 3-round magazine. It returns as a pre-order bonus in ''Videogame/ResidentEvilVillage'', with a larger capacity, along with both a faster firing rate and 10% power upgrade over the completely stock LEMI pistol. Problem is, that 10% is a ''far'' cry from its ~200% power increase in ''7'', and the AW-01's stats are completely locked in, as the gun cannot be upgraded in any way; it doesn't even get an option for infinite ammo like every other firearm has. It's an improvement over the basic LEMI when you first get it from The Duke right up until you find and equip the latter's compensator about a half hour later, at which point the AW-01 becomes a waste of inventory space.

** In the [[VideoGame/FireEmblemJugdral Jugdral]] games, the Bard class were a better version of mages, with higher speed and defense. In the Elibe games they became a SpearCounterpart to Dancers, who were also nerfed by taking away their swords[[note]]not that dancers were ''ever'' combat units, but they could defend themselves a little bit[[/note]] rendering them a non-combat class.
** Mages are usually a combination of FragileSpeedster and GlassCannon. The Tellius series downplayed both the Speedster and Cannon parts. This resulted in the massive lack of use of them and many CharacterTiers having them very low.
** The FE Nerf most fans remember is the Luna tome, a Dark Magic tome that negates the enemy's Magic Resistance. This is 'balanced' out by the weapon having 0 Might, so you're effectively doing fixed damage equal to your Magic stat. Except the spell also has an ungodly high critical rate (''very'' rare for a magic tome), and the final two bosses have such massive Resistance stats that negating them makes a HUGE difference. Add the fact that Canas and Athos, the two characters who can use Dark Magic, are both [[GameBreaker Game Breakers]], and you get, well, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AinX2j20fMk this.]] In ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheSacredStones Sacred Stones]]'' its critical rate was cut in half and its hit rate went from 90% to ''50%'', immediately taking it from game breaking to practically useless.
** Another weapon nerf, Javalins went from 7 might in ''Shadow Dragon'' to ''3'' might in its sequel ''New Mystery''. Their damage output is now comparable to actual Nerf Bats.

** The way parents pass on stats to children has also been nerfed from the ''VideoGame/FireEmblemJugdral'' games. Instead of Child's growths = same gendered parent's + 1/2 * opposite gendered parent's, their growths are now the ''average'' of their parent's growths and the child's "base growths", which means they may end up with ''worse'' stats than their parents in some areas. It also means that the difference in stats between pairings is nowhere near as dramatic as in the 4th game, so {{Shipping}} is more down to personal prefferance than gameplay benefits.

** In the earliest version of ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 1}}'' a player with high Barter skill [[GameBreaker could buy/sell things for ridiculously low/high prices]]. This allowed buying something at half price and immediately selling it for full price, as long as the trader had anything left. It was possible to buy Tandy and all Garl's weapons and leave Garl with a single cap. The first patch nerfed that.
** Thanks to Fallout changing hands, and it's [[Creator/{{Bethesda}} new owners]] [[CowboyBebopAtHisComputer not doing the research]], the Enclave's [[PoweredArmor Advanced Power Armor Mk II]] seen in ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}}'' is significantly weaker than its ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 2}}'' namesake, whose stats [[ArmorOfInvincibility surpassed those of the T-51b, the Pre-War pinnacle of Power Armor]]. Instead, its stats are not only inferior to the T-51b: they're identical to the explicitly outdated T-45d, which itself only provides the same level of protection as the heaviest ''non''-powered armor. [[YouDontLookLikeYou It also looks nothing like it's former self]]. ''Videogame/FalloutNewVegas'' [[AuthorsSavingThrow includes]] the original Advanced Power Armor Armor Mk II (renamed "Remnants Power Armor"), revealing that it's just as potent as it always was. The "Advanced Power Armor Mk II" seen in ''3'' was actually a distinct, crappier armor used after the factories for the original suits were destroyed.
** Power Armor ''in general'' got this treatment immediately after Videogame/{{Fallout2}}, and [[UniquenessDecay seems to get more plentiful across the wasteland with each Fallout installment]]. At first, Power Armor was nearly impenetrable to anything but [[PurposelyOverpowered endgame weaponry]], and could only be gotten through a [[ThatOneSidequest particularly difficult sidequest]] for the [[TheOrder Brotherhood Of Steel]]. By ''Fallout 4'', even the ''Raiders'' have it, and the player can get any armor by simply [[FakeUltimateMook killing the wearer and walking away with their suit.]] On top of that, it's also gotten much more difficult to maintain and use.

* The main character in ''LightNovel/BofuriIDontWantToGetHurtSoIllMaxOutMyDefense'' accidentally came across a hilariously [[GameBreaker broken character build]] in the game she played by completely maxing out her defenses and using an extremely powerful set of armor that allows her to devour her enemies. After casually [[NoSell No Selling]] every attack other players threw at her in a PvP event, the game developers released a patch which allows [[ScratchDamage some damage to pierce her titanic defenses]] and capped the uses of Devour to ten times a day. However, she continued to stumble upon new exploits...

* [[Wiki/SCPFoundation SCP]][[http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-3108 -3108]] is a modified [[VisualPun Nerf dart gun]] created by a member of the anomalous artist group "Gamers Against Weed" that can nerf real-world objects, transfiguring them into things believed to be inferior by the wielder. It was used to turn a dollar into a quarter, a can of Coca-Cola into Pepsi (and back again by a different user), a copy of ''Videogame/MassEffect2'' [[TakeThat into]] ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'', and so on. Things went south however, when the Foundation decided to [[WellIntentionedExtremist test its effects on living things]], first turning a dog into a cat (that retained the dog's mind and size) and two D-Class into a Neanderthal and various species of primate respectively, until the latter was reduced to a worm by repeated usage. [[WhatTheHellHero Upon learning of this, its creator (who intended for it to be a joke) was so disgusted with the Foundation that he stopped cooperating with their interviewers.]]

** In ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaOrderOfEcclesia'', the items you find in out of the way places, completing Bonus Dungeons and fulfilling Villager quests, with a few exceptions, are generally not that useful or helpful.. For example, while beating the Bonus Dungeon in ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaPortraitOfRuin'' netted you the Tome of Arms X and the most powerful item crash in the game, beating ''Ecclesia's'' bonus dungeons gave ultimately gave you boots that let you move faster and a crown that boosts every stat by only 2 points. Also, beating the game on a level one cap...simply allowed you to be able to level up to 255 on subsequent play-throughs.

** MP starts out at 0 every fight, limiting the higher level spells such as summons. On the other hand, most abilities use up less MP now.

These days, the term has been expanded so that "NERF" is any downward adjustment, not just an unduly crippling one; similarly, the "Nerf Bat" is no longer [[WithThisHerring what the player is issued]] to take on TheEmpire with, but what the developer whacks him with.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Wingspan}}'': The ''[[ExpansionPack Oceania Expansion]]'' features a redesigned board that makes the Grassland less efficient at generating eggs. This was done to nerf the prevalent egg spam strategies and encourage players to use the other habitats (which got {{Balance Buff}}s) more.

** Many cards are nerfed in the transition from anime to real life cards. One of the most infamous examples is Card of Sanctity. In the anime, it allowed a player to draw until they had 6 cards in their hand (the legal hand size limit). To put that in perspective, Konami banned a card that [[GameBreaker allowed a player to draw 2 cards]] while this one would have allowed a player to draw up to six. Instead of just not releasing it, Konami made it so that you have to remove everything you controlled (hand and field) from play, and only draw 2.

** The Effect Monster versions of Egyptian God Cards, when comparing the anime and manga to real life:
*** In the anime, Obelisk The Tormentor can tribute summon 2 monsters to destroy all your opponent's monsters and immediately attack. With the actual card itself, if you tribute to destroy the opponent's monsters, you have to skip your attack phase.
*** The Winged Dragon of Ra is a whole different story. In the manga and anime, special summoning Ra was totally abused. In real life, this card cannot be special summoned, making it the hardest Egyptian God Card to play. Also, its effect is also nerfed in a bigger way than Slifer and Obelisk's. Ra's Phoenix does not destroy all monsters, but only one. And it's impossible to use the Point-to-Point-Transfer effect after using the Phoenix Mode.
** Starting in 2011 in OCG and 2012 TCG, Konami has removed the priority rule that supported Ignition effects. Before, you could immediately use the effects of a card that allows you to use their effects immediately. Now, you can no longer use their effects immediately upon summon, so responding to a summon with cards like Bottomless Trap Hole and Torrential Tribute destroy the monster before the player was able to use their effects. Previously banned cards like [[https://yugioh.fandom.com/wiki/Black_Luster_Soldier_-_Envoy_of_the_Beginning Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning]], [[https://yugioh.fandom.com/wiki/Chaos_Sorcerer Chaos Sorcerer]], [[https://yugioh.fandom.com/wiki/Tribe-Infecting_Virus Tribe-Infecting Virus]], and [[https://yugioh.fandom.com/wiki/Rescue_Cat Rescue Cat]] would eventually get unbanned.

** Many cards in the Trading Card Game suffer through this every once in a while. Usually it comes in two flavors: either the card itself or the rulings for its use are changed to make it more situational and less powerful. It's become even more of a problem post-''Invasion of Chaos'', as Konami attempts to prevent another [[GameBreaker Envoy incident]].

** The Effect Monster versions of Egyptian God Cards, especially The Winged Dragon of Ra, the most powerful of three Egyptian Gods. In the manga and anime, special summoning Ra was totally abused. In real life, this card cannot be special summoned, making it the hardest Egyptian God Card to play. Also, its effect is also nerfed in a bigger way than Slifer and Obelisk's. Ra's Phoenix does not destroy all monsters, but only one. And it's impossible to use the Point-to-Point-Transfer effect after using the Phoenix Mode.

** ... Starting in late 2014, Konami has begun to nerf long time banned cards so that they can be brought back. Such cards currently include [[http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Ring_of_Destruction Ring of Destruction]][[note]]Can only be used during the opponent's turn and on a monster whose ATK is equal to or less than the opponent's LP; forces the player who activated it to take the damage first, which can lead to a loss if the destroyed monster's ATK is higher than the player's.[[/note]], [[http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Crush_Card_Virus Crush Card Virus]][[note]]No longer lingers for three turns as the opponent chooses which three monsters to destroy in their Deck; also prevents the opponent from taking damage during the turn it is used.[[/note]], [[http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Exchange_of_the_Spirit Exchange of the Spirit]][[note]]Can only be used if the opponent also has 15 or more cards in the Graveyard; can only be used once per Duel.[[/note]], [[http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Temple_of_the_Kings Temple of the Kings]][[note]]Each of its effects can only be used once per turn; the Summoned Extra Deck monster is limited to Fusion Monsters.[[/note]], [[http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Sinister_Serpent Sinister Serpent]][[note]]Another Sinister Serpent must be banished from the Graveyard during the opponent's next End Phase.[[/note]], [[http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Chaos_Emperor_Dragon_-_Envoy_of_the_End Chaos Emperor Dragon - Envoy of the End]][[note]]Other monster effects can't be activated the turn the field and hand wipe effect is activated.[[/note]], and [[http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Dark_Magician_of_Chaos Dark Magician of Chaos]][[note]]Spell-recycling effect can only be used once per turn.[[/note]].

Has no relationship to "[[WesternAnimation/PinkyAndTheBrain Narf]]". Distinct from NerfArm, which is a weapon that the player can intentionally weaken themself by using. We also have a page on the Toys/NerfBrand of toys from which the name is derived.

* VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution X fixed a lot of charts that had the wrong rhythms. Technically, this is a bug fix. In the previous games, songs had rhythms that only match the normal rhythms multiplied by 2 such as 1/8ths and 1/16th. ''Swing songs'' that have 1/3 note use would utilize the nearest 1/64th note. In worse case scenarios, they would unintentionally use 1/16ths like Healing D-Vision. The reason why this is painful for players who listen to swing songs to match the 1/16th notes instead is due to getting non-marvelouses and non-perfects previously; this is made worse in Challenge Courses where getting a good or lower loses life bar. X finally fixed all these rhythms and players can actually hit the proper rhythms without misfiring their step timing.

** Being hit by bombs or shells were sometimes a death sentence because being hit by said items would send you tumbling sideways and sometimes off the track. ''Mario Kart 8'' changed the tumble mechanic to have you simply fly upwards and cancels all momentum.

** Sami between 2 and Dual Strike lost a firepower boost to her infantry units and her transport units no longer have a boost to her range. This is probably so her tactic of getting an infantry unit to the hq and capping would be a little less viable as the namesake Dual Strike could allow her ally to drop her infantry within striking distance from much farther away, especially if the ally is Eagle who can move a transport twice in a turn.

** Vendors have a limited amount of gold to prevent VendorTrash from making you too rich.

** Until ''The Burning Crusade'', the game had an inversion of LinearWarriorsQuadraticWizards whereby weapon users benefited more from gear than spellcasters. This lead to a series of nerfs to those weapon users as raids opened up better gear. This was in time addressed by putting more Spell Power on gear, and in ''Cataclys'' Spell Power was changed to come from base stats just as Attack Power did.
** Individual Cycles tend to be seen too. Spell functionality changes are common as one class becomes too dominate or one style becomes the one true style to play. It gets very strange when spells get nerfed for being too powerful but come back at a higher level. Sleep becomes a huge example as in Beta it was the end all be all Mez before being removed for being too powerful and was put back in the game a few years later.
** Prior to the introduction of ''The Burning Crusade'' shaman were essentially designed to act as near counterparts to paladins in terms of functionality. While difficult, it was entirely possible to have a shaman cover all three roles in a party: Tank, heal, and dps. When paladins and shaman became available to both factions, the talents and stats required to make a shaman tank were removed, while the talents and skills required to make a paladin tank were brought up to a level near the Warrior (long considered the only "real" raid tank class).

** An odd case of a perceived-nerf-that-was-actually-a-buff, shadow priests in 4.2 had their damage tweaked where direct damage spells were buffed by 12% and damage-over-time spells were reduced 12%. To the uneducated who assume shadow priests are wannabe affliction warlocks, it was assumed that shadow had lost its teeth. However, with the addition of [[LimitBreak Dark Archangel and stacking max shadow orbs]] implemented at the start of ''Cataclysm'', direct damage spells grew in power ''exponentially'' with their buff while dots were nerfed linearly. Now, shadow priests can compete with other top-graded dps like hunters and mages.

** ''World of Warcraft'' has been through many nerfs and buffs over the many years it has existed - to the point that people who take a break for a few years find their old class requires a new learning curve. There are endless debates as to what Blizzard is or should be balancing for - often the developers say they have to plan for the end raids, which change each expansion, but this frustrates the casual non-raiders who claim they play the same game and pay the same money yet have to learn a new playstyle for something that doesn't affect them.
** In the original release, physical classes tended to receive nerfs fairly often, although it's arguably the wrong way to address the balance issue -- the real problem is that physical stats scale far better than magical stats. The prime example is Agility versus Intellect. Agility improves damage for rogues, hunters, feral druids, and enhancement shaman, critical hit chance, and every physical defensive attribute. Intelligence only increases mana and spell critical hit chance (at a much lower rate). Strength also being a strong attribute for Death Knights' parry also doesn't help matters.