History Main / PlotLock

* ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' loves this trope, as many of the games have a playable character who can pick locks, and yet is usually forced to find keys anyway.

!! Unsorted examples:

* The ''WesternAnimation/WinxClub'' video game also has a few obstacles (e.g. a boulder on the path) that overlook the fact that all of the titular characters can fly.
* Any "locked" door in the ''Franchise/SilentHill'' series eventually opens one way or another, but if the door is jammed, broken, or "shut tight", it stays shut for good.
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* ''VideoGame/BionicCommando'' forces the player to go where the developers intended by placing lethal clouds of radiation everywhere else. At one point the player is fighting a helicopter on a rooftop and is barred from simply jumping off (the protagonist is immune to falling damage) by this radiation. However, once the helicopter is destroyed, it crashes into the building and our hero narrowly escapes the explosion by... jumping off the roof.
* ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' loves this trope, as many of the games have a playable character who can pick locks, and yet is usually forced to find keys anyway.

* In the later games of the ''VideoGame/{{Geneforge}}'' series, some locked doors are simply "too complicated to be picked" regardless of your Mechanics skill or how many lockpicks you have and can only be passed after finding the key.
* ''VideoGame/MetroidOtherM'' may be the ultimate example. Every BrokenBridge that isn't a locked door is passable by using one of Samus's abilities. Which (except for two) she already has. But she has chosen to only activate her abilities when specifically told to, which happens at arbitrary locations in the game.
* Although the BeefGate is the most common way to keep low-level players out of high-level areas in ''VideoGame/TheLordOfTheRingsOnline'', there are a few doors that are level-locked. Attempting to open them usually results in an ambiguous message, ("your level is too low") but the developers sometimes list specific levels when these doors are first installed. For example, a recent update introduced a door in Bree-town (one of the starting settlements) which restricted access to level 90. As the current level cap is 75, this might (or might not) indicate how high the cap will be raised in the upcoming ''Riders of Rohan'' expansion.
* Most of the ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' games don't allow you to open doors yourself, so you must wait for your teammates to do so. Some obstacles also [[InsurmountableWaistHeightFence can't be surmounted]] until the plot allows you to.
* Though several entries in the ''VideoGame/DragonQuest'' series have a Thief class, they're never able to pick any of the locked doors you encounter along the way.
* {{Pokemon}} uses {{NPC}}s and wild Pokemon to block your path in certain games until a plot point has been resolved. You can teach certain Pokemon the move Fly, which instantly flies you from one town to another (but only towns you've already been to. The FridgeLogic sets in when you can't fly ten feet over that guy's head.

!!Examples:

* ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion'' has locks that can't be picked. ''Morrowind'' averted it: An Open spell with a strength of 100 (which is the maximum lock strength) could open any door, as could a master lockpick.
** ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIDaggerfall Daggerfall]]'' also suffered from this, although you could expect as much from a game that allows you to scale almost any vertical surface. Some walls can't be climbed, arbitrarily. Also, your freedom of movement is crippled by the inability to climb ''down''.
** ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]]'' has quite a few dungeons that are involved in faction quests which are locked until you receive the key for the relevant quest. Snow Veil Sanctum deserves a special mention, since there's no claw to open the Nordic puzzle lock and Mercer Frey unlocks it [[spoiler:using the power of the Skeleton Key]].

* ''Series/DoctorWho'' has the deadlock seal, which the sonic screwdriver can't unlock, appearing on various locks from all places and times for no apparent reason. In less technologically advanced settings, wooden doors thwart the sonic screwdriver just as easily.
* Many ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons''-based games give Thief/Rogue characters the ability to pick locks. This will generally let them open treasure chests or inconsequential doors. But any plot advancing doors must be unlocked with a specific key/lever that you must fight the right bad guys to get.
** Then again, certain doors that don't advance the plot can just be kicked open by a monk... Or hacked at by a barbarian... or blasted into oblivion by a sorceror...
** You would not ''believe'' how many [[GameBreaker Disintegration]]-immune doors there are out there.
* The ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'' series does this. If you start from the beginning, but you've played it before, you'll notice all the places that are impossible to get into that are possible later on. There's no lock to pick or anything, it's just that the character refuses to turn the knob to the door and walk inside. Makes sense with safehouses you haven't bought yet, but why in god's name are you not allowed into the hairdressers until someone tells you where it is?

* The ''VideoGame/{{Half-Life}}'' series has innumerable {{Locked Door}}s that require the player find another route to the required destination. This is reasonable for areas where the player is not intended to go, but not so for {{Space Filling Path}}s that loop back on themselves and create a DoorToBefore, when Gordon could simply blow up the flimsy wooden door or, in the second game, just ''punt'' the damn thing with the incredibly useful Gravity Gun.
** ''{{Concerned}}'' gleefully lampshades this.
-->'''Frohman:''' [...] [[HeroicMime He's]] using my Gravity Gun to punt a '''''car''''' out of our way. But a wooden door, '''''well'''''. Let's just run eight miles through soldier-infested, mine-littered streets to avoid it.
** NightmareHouse, among other Source mods, egregiously abuses this trope. It's not uncommon in Nightmare House 2 to find that a door is locked, be given the requisite plot exposition or orders to go through the door, and then find it magically unlocked. This is a common sight that can be seen in many of the LPs online. The player is also given a shotgun late in the game that had been seen blowing open locked doors, but finds it unable to take down anything tougher than an empty wooden crate.

* This (along with ''[[{{Troperrific}} many]]'' other RPG tropes) is made fun of in ''VideoGame/TouhouLabyrinth''. On the second floor, you have to find a way to bridge across a gap to a treasure chest, in spite of Marisa's arguing that ''everyone in the party can fly'', so why don't we just do that. ([[CassandraTruth They ignore her.]])

* This (along with ''[[{{Troperrific}} many]]'' other RPG tropes) is made fun of in ''TouhouLabyrinth''. On the second floor, you have to find a way to bridge across a gap to a treasure chest, in spite of Marisa's arguing that ''everyone in the party can fly'', so why don't we just do that. ([[CassandraTruth They ignore her.]])

* {{Pokemon}} uses NPCs and wild Pokemon to block your path in certain games until a plot point has been resolved. You can teach certain Pokemon the move Fly, which instantly flies you from one town to another (but only towns you've already been to. The FridgeLogic sets in when you can't fly ten feet over that guy's head.

* In ''BaldursGate'' doors often do not have an ordinary locking mechanism and may be warded against simple spells. You'd think that by the time you're a 40th level unstoppable killing machine with spells to stop time, summon powerful angels and demons, and wreck incredible destruction with a flick of your wrist, you would have learned a ''complicated'' spell to open doors, given how many are protected this way.

* In ''SplinterCell'', a door that is "locked" can usually be either picked or hacked, depending on the particular locking mechanism in place. If the door is "jammed", however, it won't typically open until some specific plot event.
* In ''MassEffect'', three of your characters (and possibly you, depending on your job) are able to defeat electronic locks, and ''everybody'' can simply force them open with enough [[AppliedPhlebotinum Omnigels]]. However, some doors are simply unopenable until you get to the mission where it's supposed to open.

* The ''{{Half-Life}}'' series has innumerable {{Locked Door}}s that require the player find another route to the required destination. This is reasonable for areas where the player is not intended to go, but not so for {{Space Filling Path}}s that loop back on themselves and create a DoorToBefore, when Gordon could simply blow up the flimsy wooden door or, in the second game, just ''punt'' the damn thing with the incredibly useful Gravity Gun.

* ''Bionic Commando'' forces the player to go where the developers intended by placing lethal clouds of radiation everywhere else. At one point the player is fighting a helicopter on a rooftop and is barred from simply jumping off (the protagonist is immune to falling damage) by this radiation. However, once the helicopter is destroyed, it crashes into the building and our hero narrowly escapes the explosion by... jumping off the roof.
* ''ResidentEvil'' loves this trope, as many of the games have a playable character who can pick locks, and yet is usually forced to find keys anyway.
* Any "locked" door in the ''SilentHill'' series eventually opens one way or another, but if the door is jammed, broken, or "shut tight", it stays shut for good.
* In the later games of the ''{{Geneforge}}'' series, some locked doors are simply "too complicated to be picked" regardless of your Mechanics skill or how many lockpicks you have and can only be passed after finding the key.
* MetroidOtherM may be the ultimate example. Every BrokenBridge that isn't a locked door is passable by using one of Samus's abilities. Which (except for two) she already has. But she has chosen to only activate her abilities when specifically told to, which happens at arbitrary locations in the game.

* Most of the ''CallOfDuty'' games don't allow you to open doors yourself, so you must wait for your teammates to do so. Some obstacles also [[InsurmountableWaistHeightFence can't be surmounted]] until the plot allows you to.

* The ''WinxClub'' video game also has a few obstacles (e.g. a boulder on the path) that overlook the fact that all of the titular characters can fly.

* ''[[TheElderScrolls Oblivion]]'' has locks that can't be picked. ''Morrowind'' averted it: An Open spell with a strength of 100 (which is the maximum lock strength) could open any door, as could a master lockpick.
** ''Daggerfall'' also suffered from this, although you could expect as much from a game that allows you to scale almost any vertical surface. Some walls can't be climbed, arbitrarily. Also, your freedom of movement is crippled by the inability to climb ''down''.
** ''[[TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]]'' has quite a few dungeons that are involved in faction quests which are locked until you receive the key for the relevant quest. Snow Veil Sanctum deserves a special mention, since there's no claw to open the Nordic puzzle lock and Mercer Frey unlocks it [[spoiler:using the power of the Skeleton Key]].

* ''Series/DoctorWho'' has the deadlock seal, which the sonic screwdriver can't unlock, appearing on various locks from all places and times for no apparent reason.
** In less technologically advanced settings, wooden doors thwart the sonic screwdriver just as easily.

* ''KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' gives us an In-Universe example by having locked doors that can be opened by the PC if s/he has the skills or items needed, and then there are the ''sealed'' doors, which can only be opened by finding the right computer.

* This (along with ''[[{{Troperrific}} many]]'' other RPG tropes) is made fun of in ''[[{{Touhou}} Labyrinth of Touhou]]''. On the second floor, you have to find a way to bridge across a gap to a treasure chest, in spite of Marisa's arguing that ''everyone in the party can fly'', so why don't we just do that. ([[CassandraTruth They ignore her.]])

** You can't fix the BrokenBridge between Agata Forest and Taka Pass, even though Ammy can paint them good as new everywhere else.

* The later ''{{Halo}}'' games don't have fall damage, but they do have arbitrary drops that kill you to prevent you from jumping down to where you need to go.

* The ''GrandTheftAuto'' series does this. If you start from the beginning, but you've played it before, you'll notice all the places that are impossible to get into that are possible later on. There's no lock to pick or anything, it's just that the character refuses to turn the knob to the door and walk inside. Makes sense with safehouses you haven't bought yet, but why in god's name are you not allowed into the hairdressers until someone tells you where it is?

** There's a similar [[strike:problem]] mechanic in ''NeverwinterNights''.

** ''MassEffect 2'' highlights all player-usable doors with holographic symbols. Unlocked doors have green symbols and hackable doors have orange ones. Plot Locks have red. Every time you see that red symbol, you know you'll be back later, because cosmetic doors that cannot open at all don't have any symbols on them.

* {{Metroid Other M}} may be the ultimate example. Every BrokenBridge that isn't a locked door is passable by using one of Samus's abilities. Which (except for two) she already has. But she has chosen to only activate her abilities when specifically told to, which happens at arbitrary locations in the game.

* Although the BeefGate is the most common way to keep low-level players out of high-level areas in TheLordOfTheRingsOnline, there are a few doors that are level-locked. Attempting to open them usually results in an ambiguous message, ("your level is too low") but the developers sometimes list specific levels when these doors are first installed. For example, a recent update introduced a door in Bree-town (one of the starting settlements) which restricted access to level 90. As the current level cap is 75, this might (or might not) indicate how high the cap will be raised in the upcoming ''Riders of Rohan'' expansion.

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<<|VideoGameTropes|>>

** Bonus points because the character is often carrying a lightsaber.

* The ''GrandTheftAuto'' series does this. If you start from the beginning, but you've played it before, you'll notice all the places that are impossible to get into that are possible later on. There's no lock to pick or anything, it's just that the character refuses to turn the knob to the door and walk inside. After you complete a task, there will be a glowing area in front of that building and you can then enter it.

* ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}}'' has numerous doors that are marked as "INACCESSIBLE" or "REQUIRES KEY" rather than "Easy", "Medium", "Hard", or "Very Hard". Some don't count, as the player is never expected to go there. Others do, as they are opened by plot events.

** ''[[TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]] has quite a few dungeons that are involved in faction quests which are locked until you receive the key for the relevant quest. Snow Veil Sanctum deserves a special mention, since there's no claw to open the Nordic puzzle lock and Mercer Frey unlocks it [[spoiler:using the power of the Skeleton Key]].

* ''TheElderScrollsVSkyrim has quite a few dungeons that are involved in faction quests which are locked until you receive the key for the relevant quest. Snow Veil Sanctum deserves a special mention, since there's no claw to open the Nordic puzzle lock and Mercer Frey unlocks it [[spoiler:using the power of the Skeleton Key]].

* In the later games of the ''{{Geneforge}}'' series, some locked doors are simply "too complicated to be picked" irregardless of your Mechanics skill or how many lockpicks you have and can only be passed after finding the key.

* In ''UltimaVII'', some doors are locked by magic, and can only be opened with a specific magic spell... which you can obtain with fair ease. Other doors are mundanely locked but can be picked or opened with the skeleton key, and yet others can only be opened with a specific key. It's peculiar that anyone would lock anything with a spell that can be undone by anyone with a spellbook. (And that's not even getting into the sixth game, where you actually had access to the magic lock spell, which turned a mundane lock into a magic lock... effectively allowing you to open any lock anywhere.)

* In ''TalesOfSymphonia'', your characters have all demonstrated the ability to make flying leaps and large jumps, and one or two of them ''can literally fly,'' and does so in-game. However, when there's no context-sensitive action to do so, you can't go over the InsurmountableWaistHighFence that you will undoubtedly have to go through a complex series of events to make a little bridge to get there.