History Main / OffscreenStartBonus

* ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog

** This trope shows up in ''Crash 1'' and ''3'', but is [[AvertedTrope averted]] in the second entry: [[JustifiedTrope justified]] in that starting point and exit of the level are represented by caves.
*** Speaking of which, a good example in ''[[Videogame/CrashBandicoot3Warped Warped]]'' is the level called "Sphynxinator", where not only there are four boxes behind the starting point, but there's also a fork right after it: the left presents an apparently impossible-to-jump-over gap, while the right shows a (relatively) more benign path. The level can be [[OneHundredPercentCompletion completely]] [[AddedAlliterativeAppeal completed]] without even taking the left road. Why, you ask? [[spoiler: [[DevelopersForesight Because the left road contains only metal crates and Nitro crates, the latter being still required despite having an appropriate trigger at the end of the level.]]]]

** One particularly hard stage in ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry1'', "Stop and Go Station", can be skipped by going back into the cave you come out of at the beginning, which will transport you directly to the stage exit (but miss some secrets).

** ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryReturns'' absolutely loves this trope, with probably half of all the levels featuring a hidden alcove, usually hiding a puzzle piece or a plethora of bananas, to the left of where you begin.
** The very first level begins with DK crashing out of the front door of his house. If you go back in, you'll find an extra life.

*** Speaking of which, a good example in ''[[Videogame/CrashBandicoot3Warped Warped]]'' is the level called "Sphynxinator", where not only there are four boxes behind the starting point, but there's also a fork right after it: the left presents an apparently impossible-to-jump-over gap, while the right shows a (relatively) more benign path. The level can be [[OneHundredPercentCompletion completely]] [[AddedAlliterativeAppeal completed]] without even taking the left road. Why, you ask? [[spoiler: [[TheDevTeamThinksOfEverything Because the left road contains only metal crates and Nitro crates, the latter being still required despite having an appropriate trigger at the end of the level.]]]]

* The UrExample: ''VideoGame/{{Metroid|1}}'', ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'', and ''[[VideoGame/MetroidZeroMission Zero Mission]]'' all put the Morph Ball off the left side of the screen. A required item; you'll either be GenreSavvy and find it immediately or you'll let your Mario instincts take over and you'll have to back-track for it two screens later. As a result, it acts as a tutorial to teach the player that they ''can'' move to the left.

** One particularly hard stage in ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry'', Stop and Go Station, can be skipped by going back into the cave you come out of at the beginning, which will transport you directly to the stage exit (but miss some secrets).

* In the PS2/Wii/PSP version of the ''Film/IronMan1'' video game, you can destroy stockpiles of Stark Industries crates to unlock bonus content. In one level, one of these stockpiles is hidden in an area behind where you spawn in.

* In the second level in ''VideoGame/TimeSplittersFuturPerfect'' you could pickup the flare gun the protagonist used in the opening cutscene if you checked the boat you came with.

* The ''[[VideoGame/LegoAdaptationGame Lego]] Franchise/StarWars'' games loves to stick things behind the camera when you pop into a new zone.

* In the first space-station level of ''VideoGame/DukeNukem 3D'', if you go backwards you teleport into your ship, where there is hidden a rocket launcher.
* In the second level in ''VideoGame/TimeSplitters: Future Perfect'' you could pickup the flare gun the protagonist used in the opening cutscene if you checked the boat you came with.

* One of the clever things in ''VideoGame/{{Mega Man X}}6'' was the armor part in Infinity Mijinion's level. The player simply had to go left one screen at the starting point, where most stages didn't allow movement in that direction.
** It was done in ''X2'' as well, and it was particularly devious, since the life upgrade was to the left, up a wall, and hidden behind the foreground. Only skilled explorers need apply.
* ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'':
** ''Doom 2'', ChainsawGood, first level. Just be sure to grab it ''before'' you move forward, [[InsurmountableWaistHeightFence or else you're out of luck]].

** One particularly hard stage in ''Donkey Kong Country'', Stop and Go Station, can be skipped by going back into the cave you come out of at the beginning, which will transport you directly to the stage exit (but miss some secrets).
** Another notable example is in the Rickety Race level in the second game. When you first land in the cart to start the race, logic tells you to go forward, lest you fall off the edge of the track. However, if you do go backwards as soon as the race starts, you eventually hit a booster that speeds you up significantly and makes the level quite a bit easier.
** One level has an entire level section to the left of the starting point. At the end is the level's DK Coin.

* ''[[VideoGame/Kirby64TheCrystalShards Kirby 64]]'' has one Crystal Shard that appears on top of one of the areas you come out through in Dedede's Castle. Many items are also hidden behind the start of the level, usually being a star or food.
** The ''VideoGame/{{Kirby}}'' series is fond of this; as early as Dreamland there was a part where you go through a door, and the only way to find that level's secret is to figure out that the door you're next to on the next screen ISN'T the one you just came through - the first was a one-way door, the other leads to the secret. D'oh!

* ''Akuji: the Heartless''.

* The first ''{{Trackmania}}'' game has a level that can be cleared in 3 seconds if you hit the reverse.

* It isn't intentional, but if you immediately slide left when ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaSymphonyOfTheNight'' starts, you can access a secret deleted area and increase your map percentage.
** Speaking of ''Castlevania'', in ''Curse of Darkness'', right as the game starts, if you go all the way backwards, you come across an area with a few potions and, if you have a Lament of Innocence save file on your memory card, a [[EenieMeenieMinyMoai Moai]] head that restores [[GoroawaseNumber 573]] HP when used or can be sold for 5730 gold.

* In ''VideoGame/TheForceUnleashed'', levels often hide hidden items behind your starship after you land.

* This is done often enough in ''LocoRoco'' and its sequel that it's usually to your benefit to backtrack a little ways from the starting point just to check.

* ''{{Gish}}'' has a few secrets hidden in that way. In the first level, going straightly left will reveal a hidden room with some treasure. In world 1-4, quickly going left will lead you to a warp zone which takes you to the world 4-3.
* In the PS2/Wii/PSP version of the ''Film/IronMan'' video game, you can destroy stockpiles of Stark Industries crates to unlock bonus content. In one level, one of these stockpiles is hidden in an area behind where you spawn in.

* ''VideoGame/SonicUnleashed'' Wii/Playstation 2 uses this for unlockable pictures/sounds/etc. at least once.
** In the Emerald Coast stage from ''Adventure'', there are a few ring monitors right behind the beginning of the stage.
** In the Game Gear version of Sonic 1, going left at Bridge Zone Act 3 will show you a 1UP. Too bad in this one they only appear once and don't re-appear when you die...

** Also happens in VideoGame/SonicColors. One of the levels in Aquarium Park features a Red Ring that can only be reached by going the "wrong" direction at the start of the level.

* ''VideoGame/GearsOfWar 3'' starts in Marcus' cabin, facing the door. Turning and looking at the desk instead of the door will reveal the campaign's first collectible--[[ContinuityNod the $20 Dom owes Marcus from a bet he lost before the war]].

* ''VideoGame/AladdinVirginGames'' for the SegaGenesis, in the desert and prison levels.

* This is extremely common in the first two {{Oddworld}} games, ''Abe's Oddysee'' and ''Abe's Exoddus''. Very often there is a secret exit from the first screen of the level, which leads to hidden Mudokons.

* The UrExample: ''VideoGame/{{Metroid}} 1'', ''Super Metroid'', and ''Zero Mission'' all put the Morph Ball off the left side of the screen. A required item; you'll either be GenreSavvy and find it immediately or you'll let your Mario instincts take over and you'll have to back-track for it two screens later. As a result, it acts as a tutorial to teach the player that they ''can'' move to the left.
* The ''[[LegoAdaptationGame Lego]] StarWars'' games loves to stick things behind the camera when you pop into a new zone.

* ''VideoGame/{{Doom}} 2'', ChainsawGood, first level.

* In ''Franchise/TombRaider 3'', there's a shotgun obtainable right from the start, so long as instead of sliding down the ramp from the get-go, you move to the right to line yourself up, then jump into some vines that don't appear traversable.

** If you go inside your ship in certain levels of Bounty Hunter and ShadowsOfTheEmpire, you're also able to get a few more rounds of ammo.
** In the Hoth level of ''VideoGame/JediAcademy''. You're supposed to follow some light beacons only barely visible in the fog after you land, but if you go in the opposite direction, you'll find a small cave behind your Z-95 with some items. And an angry wampa.

* In one level in ''SeriousSam'', there is an open door behind you that leads to a secret area with powerful weapons. However, the door starts closing the moment you spawn so you must run backwards immediately to get through the door. The courtyard is shown to be empty in the cutscene of the previous level, and it is unreachable in Co-op games.
** First level of the first game, instead of going IN the temple, you can backtrack in the desert for some bonuses scattered around a palm tree. There are also a few other secrets before that.
** First level of the second game, instead of going along the valley, turning back gives you some items and a secret phone booth. Additionally going down gives you the rocket launcher.

* The TurboGrafx flagship series ''{{Bonk}}'' liked to this on the very first level and usually at least one later level, every game.

* The second stage of the first ''ViewtifulJoe'' game uses and subverts this; if you go left instead of right, you'll encounter a whole bunch of enemies, right at the beginning when you don't have any film canisters or hearts. But, beating them all gets you a ton of points, so it's definitely a bonus if you can live through the fight.

* In the PS2/Wii/PSP version of the ''IronMan'' video game, you can destroy stockpiles of Stark Industries crates to unlock bonus content. In one level, one of these stockpiles is hidden in an area behind where you spawn in.

* ''SuperMonkeyBall'' has Beginner 2 and Advanced 6, both of which have V-shaped guardrail with a tiny ramp in the middle leading up and over the ramp, directly behind the starting point. Directly underneath the ramp is a small platform with a secret goal that gives you a big score bonus and warps you to the next bonus level (Beginner 5 or Advanced 10).

* In ''NoMoreHeroes'', you start each level leaving this motel. The hidden path behind the motel has a bunch of [[ShoutOut Lovikov]] [[DragonBall balls]] that can be traded for power ups.

* ''{{Limbo}}'' has an achievement called "Wrong Way" for walking offscreen to the left as soon as the game starts.

* In the FanRemake of ''StreetsOfRage'', called Streets of Rage Remake, this trope also rears its head. On the rooftop stage where you fight the jetpack dudes, there is a 1-up (extra life) to the left of the screen, just behind the lorry engine.

* Two worlds in ''{{Vexx}}''--The Neverglades and the final level--get crafty with the Wraithheart hiding. Although your first instinct in both cases is to proceed forward from the start point, The Neverglades has a cave hidden behind the entry gate that holds some extra lives and a Wraithheart puzzle, while the final stage has ''two'' hidden areas directly behind it (one of which is the entry to the castle the level takes place in).

* CrisisCore has a few of these in the missions, either hiding directly behind you or in a room backwards of where you start. Players may get used to [[FreeRotatingCamera twirling the camera]] at the start of each mission.

* For whatever reason, it was common in ''KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' to have lootable crates scattered around the ''Ebon Hawk'''s various landing zones through the game. They typically didn't have anything all that valuable, but it was always worth your while to look.
* ''GearsOfWar 3'' starts in Marcus' cabin, facing the door. Turning and looking at the desk instead of the door will reveal the campaign's first collectible--[[ContinuityNod the $20 Dom owes Marcus from a bet he lost before the war]].

* In ''DemonsSouls'', when you enter the first Boletaria Palace level, the archstone spawns you facing toward the main level, but behind you there's some treasure.

* It's a common convention in ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'' mapping to place a decorative, unopenable white door behind the player start as a bit of flavor (supposedly, it's where you entered the level from.) One of the maps in the GameMod ''Memento Mori'' places a secret behind this door. Not everyone liked this idea, as two users on a ''Doom'' forum noted:
-->It's REALLY annoying, because out of the hundreds of maps where it doesn't open, these mappers decided "Let's hide something there!"
-->It doesn't even make any sense for it to be this way because it's the door you enter the map from!!

* In the final mission of ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'''': Finest Hour'', the one with the bridge, if you turn aroundand check behind the dozer tank that featured in previous level you will find a BAR and a M1919 machine gun. Incredibly useful for the level.

* A rare 3D version: in ''DemonsSouls'', when you enter the first Boletaria Palace level, the archstone spawns you facing toward the main level, but behind you there's some treasure.

* In ''TheForceUnleashed'', levels often hide hidden items behind your starship after you land.

* There's one in the second-to-last level of ''KidIcarusUprising'', and if you go for it you trigger an extra bit of dialogue in which this trope is actually discussed. It leads to one of the Zodiac Chambers, and afterwards you get an explanation of what Zodiac Chambers actually are. Which is weird, because given how late you are in the game, the average player will have already discovered several by now.

* ''Turbo Esprit'' on the ZXSpectrum gives you a city to drive around in, hunting down color-coded cars worth various amounts of points. You start on one of the main streets and if you go forward, nothing happens. If you put the car into reverse, one of the highest-scoring cars will spawn behind you and overtake you.

* At least one ''{{VideoGame/AngryBirds}}'' level has a Golden Egg behind where the sling is set up. Getting it can be annoyingly hard.

** In the Hoth level of ''JediAcademy''. You're supposed to follow some light beacons only barely visible in the fog after you land, but if you go in the opposite direction, you'll find a small cave behind your Z-95 with some items. And an angry wampa.
** In DarkForces, the game that started it all, the first level's beginning drops you in a certain spot. As a new game, it was not clear that there was a place you came from and that the game didn't just drop you in place. When the level is complete, Kyle makes it to the roof, and his transport arrives to pick him up. If instead of just ending, he searches a little, he'll find the entrance he dropped in to start the game, including an extra life.

* ''VideoGame/IWannaBeTheGuy'' does this. In addition to the obvious route down and the slightly-less-obvious route up from the first screen, there's a hidden tunnel leading to the left. This being I Wanna Be The Guy, there is no indication that it's there at all, but the screen it leads to is easier than the other two.

* In ''DarkColony'' there is a mission where moving the troops through the main path ends in heavy Martian opposition, while following an inconspicuous side path lets you easily bypass most enemies.

** If you go inside your ship in certain levels of Bounty Hunter and ShadowsOfTheEmpire, you're also able to get a few more rounds of ammo. Same in one of the Jedi Knight games at one point, if I remember correctly.
*** Specifically in the Hoth level of ''JediAcademy''. You're supposed to follow some light beacons only barely visible in the fog after you land, but if you go in the opposite direction, you'll find a small cave behind your Z-95 with some items. And an angry wampa.

* ''RaymanOrigins'' likes to hide small groupings of Lums and hearts near the starting areas. Not only do you have to go left, you also typically need to wall jump.

** Speaking of ''Castlevania'', in ''Curse of Darkness'', right as the game starts, if you go all the way backwards, you come across an area with a few potions and, if you have a Lament of Innocence save file in your memory card, a statue head that restores all your health when used.