History Main / SchrodingersGun

* ''VisualNovel/VirtuesLastReward'' basically runs on this concept. [[spoiler:Whether or not the Old Woman dies depends on which story branch you choose for an initially-unexplained reason, and sometimes your selections in the AB Game will change your opponent's.]] These turns out to be plot points. Yes, it is [[MindScrew this kind of game]].

* Masterfully applied in [[Film/{{Clue}} the movie]] about the [[BoardGames board game]] ''TabletopGame/{{Clue}}''. It has [[MultipleEndings endings]] for several characters where they are the killer, and of course they FlashBack [[RetCon retroactively]] showing how ''only they'' could ever ''possibly'' be the killer. Each theatre showed it with one of three different endings. The VHS release showed all three endings straight through, and the DVD lets you do it either way, with a random ending or with all three. In the ''end'' end, [[spoiler:Mr. Green reveals himself as working for the government and that "They all did it!" Take them away boys!]]

* ''VideoGame/IdolManager'': Thanks to the TakeYourTime elements in gameplay, story mode has several nation-wide events that would be on their own schedule in the real world wait for the player to get to the point of the story at which they interact with them, regardless of the in-game calendar date. For instance, no matter how long it takes for the player to complete prior objectives, the ''Nation of Idols'' show will be making the business deal that prompts the PlayerCharacter's rival to call for boycotting it a short time after the PlayerCharacter's group first appears on it. Even more blatantly, ''the Tokyo Summer Games'' will turn out to have been rescheduled from 2020 to the upcoming summer whenever the next objective becomes applying to have the group sing at their closing ceremony, even if doing so took several in-game years.

* ''VideoGame/DragonAge'':

*** Inquisition uses a similar set-up to ''Origins'' for the PlayerCharacter. Four people[[note]]or maybe five or six; it depends on whether or not the human and elven mages are counted as separate individuals from their non-mage versions[[/note]] attended the Conclave. A human, as a member of either the Chantry delegation or the mage delegation depending on whether or not s/he is a mage. A Dalish elf sent to spy. A dwarven smuggler sent to spy and steal treasure while everyone was occupied. And a [[HornedHumanoid vashoth]] mercenary, sent along with several other members of their band to provide security for the event. At some point during the proceedings, [[spoiler:one of those four overheard [[HighPriest the Divine]] being attacked and rushed off to help]]. That one is the one the player chose as their character. The three that were not chosen were killed by the [[HellGate Breach]] along with thousands of others.

* ''VideoGame/PapersPlease'' does this with terrorists who are part of {{Scripted Event}}s -- on some days, a specific entrant in the queue will turn out to be a terrorist. They will always have their paperwork in order, so you'll likely approve them only for the checkpoint to shut down as they carry out their assault. However, if you reject their entry, then all subsequent entrants will have correct paperwork (meaning that denying these subsequent entrants will get you citations) until you approve one of them, at which point they turn out to be the terrorist and all entrants after that one (or at least the one entrant you'd have time to try to process afterwards) will go back to being regular entrants who may or may not have correct paperwork.

* ''VideoGame/PapersPlease'' does this with terrorists who are part of {{Scripted Event}}s -- on some days, a specific entrant in the queue will turn out to be a terrorist. They will always have their paperwork in order, so you'll likely approve them only for the checkpoint to shut down as they carry out their assault. However, if you reject their entry, then all subsequent entrants will have correct paperwork (meaning that denying these subsequent entrants will get you citations) until you approve one of them, at which point they turn out to be the terrorist and all entrants after one (or at least the one entrant you'd have time to try to process afterwards) will go back to being regular entrants who may or may not have correct paperwork.

* ''VideoGame/TheElderScrolls'':
** In ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion'', in the ''Shivering Isles'' expansion, you are tasked with taking care of a bunch of adventurers invading a dungeon. They make their way through 3 sections, and in each of them you sit in a safe spot and must press one of two buttons that will determine their fate: one results in one of the adventurers dying, while the other drives one of them to insanity. In the second section, two of the remaining adventurers come across a tightly locked cage filled with riches. Your choice is either activating a fire trap that blasts them, or making hundreds of keys appear in the room. This trope into play with the orc adventurer's behaviour: even though the circumstances are exactly the same, depending on your choice, the orc makes a completely different decision. If you choose to release the fire trap, he will try to pry the cage's bars open moments before the trap activates. If you release the keys, he will instead be vary of the cage and decide that they should just go away, moments before the keys appear.
** ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim'' has this principle as the whole basis of its [[http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Radiant Radiant system]]. Many side quests will feature randomised aspects that are determined by which places the player has or hasn't visited yet, what other quests have already been completed, what level the character is at, etc. Some items or characters will appear in variable locations, based on e.g. where the Dragonborn happens to be when they reach a certain level. The trope appears in several other specific ways throughout the game:

** When you do the first [[spoiler: Looker]] sidequest in ''VideoGame/PokemonXAndY'', the 5 tickets you need to find have text on them. No matter what order you do them in, the text they read is dependent on when you find it, not where it is. Which raises the question: how did [[spoiler: Looker]] know what order you'd go for?
** In the postgame of ''VideoGame/PokemonUltraSunAndUltraMoon'', Lysandre presents you with two buttons, one of which will activate a superweapon and the other which will allow you to proceed. No matter which one you pick, it will activate the weapon, and Lysandre battles you to prevent you from pressing the other button to deactivate the weapon.

** A less known IF game called ''VideoGame/{{Enlisted}}'' pulls it off for the same reason, where you get your uniform out of a dispensing machine, and what settings you set it to (short, tall, etc), turn out to be the right ones.

* ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry1'': No matter which of the two color-coded Emblem Shield doors you go through, the Luminite and Pair of Spears key items will always spawn on the first path you choose, while the Nightmare-Beta gun will spawn on the second path.
* In ''VideoGame/PeasantsQuest'', at one point, there are four bushes with a trinket hidden in one of them. No matter what order you go to the bushes, the trinket is ''always'' in the fourth bush you look in.

*** The same goes for ''Ballyhoo'': you need to get into the circus in order to save a certain DamselInDistress, and you need a ticket (and a character configuration) to get through. Once you get a ticket, you'll have to punch out a blue dot (for male) or a pink dot (for female) before you can insert the ticket there. Whichever dot you punched out becomes the correct answer.
** A less known IF game called ''Enlisted'' pulls it off for the same reason, where you get your uniform out of a dispensing machine, and what settings you set it to (short, tall, etc), turn out to be the right ones.
** In an even less known IF game called ''[[https://www.filfre.net/2014/09/amnesia/ Amnesia]]'' the main character closes his eyes and visualizes his appearance, to check how badly he's affected by the titular condition: your choices of features turn out to be completely wrong. [[MindScrew Dude be whack.]]
* ''Moonmist'' does this with your favorite color -- which color you choose determines how your bedroom is decorated, and also (no causal relationship) who the villain is.
* The protagonist of ''VideoGame/BioForge'' is an AmnesiacHero. Early on in the game, you stumble across several ID files - but only one of the people listed can be you. Your decisions determine just who your protagonist is.

* If Creator/{{Sierra}} [[AdventureGame adventure games]] can't kill your character off with something because you noticed it, they may not bother with it at all. Your car only has a fault if you don't perform the safety inspection. (''VideoGame/PoliceQuest 1''). The policeman's only there if you're indecent. (''VideoGame/LeisureSuitLarry1InTheLandOfTheLoungeLizards''). There's only a car coming if you don't LookBothWays. (''VideoGame/TheDaggerOfAmonRa''). The biggest example is in the latter: giving the wrong item to a speakeasy doorman would make the game {{Unwinnable}}, so it also causes a completely random person to walk in from offscreen and stab the protagonist to death. The game then quotes [[HaveANiceDeath knife crime statistics]].
* In the horror [=RPG=]/adventure game ''[[VideoGame/{{Elvira}} Elvira 2 - The Jaws of Cerberus]]'', there are three places where Elvira may be hidden. No matter in what order you reach them, the first two Elviras will be fake and transform into monsters.
* In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheSacredStones'', there's a plot choice point of which main character to follow. Excluding the main character, you get all the current secondary characters ''and'' the same new characters (with a few exceptions) appear in each chapter. Your chosen lord will even have the same encounters with the BigBad and [[spoiler: the BigBad will always take the Sacred Stone from whichever lord you picked.]]
** That being said, there ''is'' a difference in the routes, at least storyline wise. In Eirika's, [[spoiler: Lyon's spirit is subsumed and killed by the demon king's.]] In Ephraim's, [[spoiler: Lyon's spirit ''unites'' with the demon king's and does a full (if very sad) FaceHeelTurn.]]
* In ''VideoGame/TrialsOfMana'', the player can choose three party members for the whole game: one main character and two support characters. Whoever the player picks as the main character becomes the only one who can wield the Mana Sword, and it also determines which of the three evil factions wins the race to the Sanctuary of Mana, and which of the three [[BigBad final bosses]] the player ends up fighting.
* Seen in ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga'' in a boss battle at Joke's End. When Jojora asks the Mario Bros. which of her friends should come (and beat the crap out of them, presumably), the player is given the choice of four different names, which seem to refer to four different possible enemies. However, no matter which one you pick, Jojora's friend will look and fight exactly the same. The only thing your choice really affects is what name the battle display refers to her as, as well as if you have a chance at a hidden item.
* Used extensively in ''VideoGame/IllusionOfGaia'', due to Will's ability to guess any question correctly. It is demonstrated at the beginning of the game, where Will is asked to pick a card. No matter what the player picks, it is the right one. It resurfaces much later for a WireDilemma, where the player simply has to remember that Will is psychic and make a decision quickly.
* ''VideoGame/{{Fahrenheit}}'' has a tarot card reading about half way through. No matter which card you pick or in what order, you get the same ominously creepy message. It seems you really [[YouCantFightFate can't fight fate.]]
* In ''VideoGame/TacticsOgre'', there's a branching off point at the end of the first chapter of the game. You have to choose whether to kill a group of prisoners in order to frame the BigBad. (It's complicated and political). If you choose to kill the prisoners, your best friend will reveal himself to be incredibly noble and oppose you and all governments, and throughout the game form LaResistance until you become TheAtoner. If you choose not to kill the prisoners, your best friend will reveal himself to be the biggest asshole ever and side with the killers just to gain power. In a way, this is a bizarre SadisticChoice. You cannot be a spotless hero and at the same time have your best friend be a good guy (and alive) by the end of the game.
* ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublicIITheSithLords'':
** You can answer various questions about past events, such as Revan's fate in the first game and the color of the lightsaber the Jedi Council took away from you, and the answers retroactively determine what happened.
** Depending on which side you pick on Onderon, an opposing NPC will either be a mercenary or a patriot.
* In the ''VideoGame/StarOcean'' games, in order to keep some kind of weird ArbitraryHeadcountLimit, you can only pick certain party members; which prevents you from getting others, who just aren't available anymore. Or, in one particularly egregious case (Bowman), just not interested in traveling with you anymore.
* ''VideoGame/{{Drakengard}}'' has what might be the most strenuous version of this. Depending on which ending you get the very fabric of reality functions differently. Your Dragon might be the only thing that can save the world, or you may be destined to destroy her lest she destroy the world.
* At one point in ''VideoGame/{{Fable|I}}'', a key is hidden in one of three books. No matter what, the key is always in the second book you pick.
* In the second ''NES'' ''VideoGame/ChipNDaleRescueRangers'' game, the player faces a WireDilemma when defusing a bomb. Any choice turns out to be the right one, though one causes the screen to flash white with a boom, [[FissionMailed then revert back as one character says "Just kidding!"]]
* The "It's War" chapter of ''VideoGame/ConkersBadFurDay'' has a pair of levers near a soldier strapped to an electric chair. Whichever lever Conker pulls first will electrocute the soldier, and the other lever opens a door.

* ''VideoGame/DeadRising'': [[spoiler: Did Barnaby manage to bite Jessie when he started turning into a zombie? Only if you start case 8-1. If the truth vanishes into darkness before then, no he didn't.]]
* ''Franchise/{{Persona}}'':
** At two different points in ''VideoGame/{{Persona 3}}'', you can join one of three clubs. No matter which club you choose, the characters for the related social link will ''always'' be members of that club. It's most obvious with the Culture Clubs, as Yukari says Fuuka is a member of one of them, but can't remember which -- it turns out to be whichever one you end up joining.
** At the end of ''Persona 3 Portable'', if you're playing as the female protagonist, or the male one on subsequent playthroughs, and have romanced at least one character, then [[spoiler:you will hear a voice and the game asks you to specify whose voice. Whoever you pick dictates which character reaches the roof just in time to [[DiedInYourArmsTonight witness your final moments of life]].]]
** To a lesser degree, the Athletic Club in ''VideoGame/{{Persona 4}}'' -- you're still hanging out with [[ThoseTwoGuys Kou and Daisuke]] -- only difference is which one is the focus character.
*** Rank 9 of Persona 4's Tower Social Link involves Shu's ForgottenBirthday. Because of this, Shu's birthday falls on whatever date the player initiates Rank 9 on.
*** Whether [[spoiler:Nanako]] dies or not is dependent on which of the MultipleEndings you're on, but the choices you make that determine which ending route you're on have no real connection to the conditions that cause that character to die. Thus you have [[spoiler:Nanako dying in the bad ending, in a coma in the neutral ending, and miraculously recovering in the good ending, seemingly ''just'' to make those endings happier or sadder]].
* In ''VideoGame/{{Riven}}'', the passcode near the end of the game [[spoiler: which unlocks Catherine's prison]] is randomly generated the first time you see it, retroactively setting the lock to that code. It is impossible to open the lock without having first seen the passcode. This prevents a [[MediumAwareness medium-aware]] player from saving the game early, finding out the code, loading the saved game, and then opening the lock much earlier in the game, which would have required the designers to come up with a completely different ending. (Note that the ''other'' randomly-generated passwords are not Schrödingified, so you can use this trick to unlock them ahead of time.)

* From ''VideoGame/AceCombat'':
** You finally bring down a Yellow Squadron bird in the "Stonehenge" mission of ''VideoGame/AceCombat04ShatteredSkies''. No matter which one gets shot down, though, it's always [[spoiler: Yellow 4]] who bites it. Later avoided with [[spoiler:the remains of the squadron in the final mission]], where if you manage to shoot them down in the right order you get to hear their panicked reactions as the chain of command is passed down along the squadron.
** In ''VideoGame/AceCombat5TheUnsungWar'', four branching missions are hidden away behind two seemingly random YES/NO dialog prompts at the end of the preceding missions. Your answers will determine whether you go down the A or B paths. Only the first of these missions qualifies as a Schrödinger's Gun, as the opposite mission on the other end of the "coin flip" is explicitly referenced as having happened concurrent with the chosen mission, only carried out by [[HeroOfAnotherStory another fighter squadron]].
** ''VideoGame/AceCombatZeroTheBelkanWar'' also averts this, as every encounter with an ace squadron has them react accordingly to which ones you shoot down first. It's most notable with the Gelb team at the end of mission 6, and Espada team in mission 15, as there's only two of them on both teams.
** ''VideoGame/AceCombat6FiresOfLiberation'' also plays it straight. The opening mission squares you off against Strigon Squadron. It doesn't matter if you shoot down all eight of them, just one, or none of them, at some point before the end of the mission Strigon 1, Viktor Voychek, will report that his plane has been shot down.
* In the TextAdventure ''VideoGame/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy1984'', there are 12 or so [[ChekhovsGun Chekhovs Guns]] to collect. The bad news is you'll need one at random at the end of the game or you'll die. The other bad news is the "random" one you need is always one you don't have unless you have them all. It's a cruel game.
* ''[[VideoGame/InFamous inFAMOUS]]'' examples:
** The game employs this to make its SadisticChoice even worse. [[spoiler: Your girlfriend Trish is always on the tower you ''didn't'' save, regardless of what the BigBad says.]] Turns out [[spoiler: Kessler is actually Cole from the future, which means he can predict what Cole would do in that situation.]]
** Both games also include an optional series of Dead Drops that flesh out the story. Their locations are fixed, but no matter what order you visit them in, you'll always find the first Dead Drop at the first site you visit, the second at the second, and so on. This means the story itself will always make sense, but where you ''find'' it may not. (For instance, some of John's messages are recorded during the part of the story where travel between the three boroughs is difficult or impossible, but if you wait till late in the game to pick them up, they may be scattered all over town.)
* ''VideoGame/BaldursGateII'' has a sidequest where one of your companions returns home to find his sister has been murdered, and an investigation is still in progress. His father is convinced it was a hit from a rival and tells you to kill him in revenge. [[MortonsFork If you kill the rival, you later find out that he was innocent; if you spare him, he was guilty all along.]]
* In ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphoniaDawnOfTheNewWorld'', Emil is asked to guess which of Lloyd's companions joined him at the end of ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia''. But since the scene was based on RelationshipValues in that game, ''any'' answer could be a correct one. Indeed, no matter what Emil guesses, Lloyd says that he guessed correctly. The question is a set-up to allow the player to ''choose'' which one, letting them pick their own preference or continue from their own experience playing the first game.
* In ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamAsylum'', at one point Batman must search three body bags in order to continue. No matter what order he opens the actual bags in, the result is always the same. [[spoiler: His dad's body, his mother's body, and then Scarecrow.]] Also, no matter what order you collect the audio logs in, they are always the next in the set, as are the Spirit of Arkham messages.
* In ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamKnight'', when Batman manages to corner Scarecrow aboard the airship, he starts hallucinating two different Scarecrows along with the Joker telling him to "Pick the real Scarecrow!" No matter which Scarecrow you choose, right or left, it's always the wrong one and the real Scarecrow douses you with another dose of his fear toxin. Conveniently, the game also disables all of Batman's techniques that would allow him to attack both Scarecrows at once, preventing you from TakingAThirdOption.

* ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'':
** You may end up with plot-relevant fights halfway through traveling, no matter where you are, and there are dozens of them. Even if you meet a bunch of elves defending themself against some darkspawn in the far northwest near the dwarven home, while the elven woods are southeast and the darkspawn isn't actually rare on the surface that far north.
** The origin stories always end with Duncan bailing your ass out of trouble, which every origin you choose will be the place Duncan decided to recruit a new Grey Warden. It is implied if you go back to those places as a different origin that what happened happened but without Duncan saving that would-be hero. The Dwarven Noble, the second child of King Endrin, was framed for murdering his brother and killed on the Deep Roads; the Dwarven Commoner died in jail, refusing to eat; the human noble was killed by Creator/TimCurry, etc.
* ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition''
** Schematics for elemental runes (Fire, Frost, etc.) are found as ancient glyphs on the walls in various locations, only readable using Veilfire. Each element has 3 levels of runes: normal (no prefix), Master and Superb, and therefore may be found in 3 different locations. However, you cannot find the higher-level runes before you have found the lower-level ones. In a normal playthrough you are supposed to find the Fire Rune in The Hinterlands (the lowest-level area), the Master Fire Rune in The Western Approach (a middle-level area) and the Superb Fire Rune in The Hissing Wastes (the highest-level area). Yet if you choose to ignore the glyphs in the lower-level areas you may change or even reverse the order (i.e. the content of the ancient glyphs in all locations is in fact decided by the order in which you choose to read them).
** Inquisition uses a similar set-up to ''Origins'' for the PlayerCharacter. Four people[[note]]or maybe five or six; it depends on whether or not the human and elven mages are counted as separate individuals from their non-mage versions[[/note]] attended the Conclave. A human, as a member of either the Chantry delegation or the mage delegation depending on whether or not s/he is a mage. A Dalish elf sent to spy. A dwarven smuggler sent to spy and steal treasure while everyone was occupied. And a [[HornedHumanoid vashoth]] mercenary, sent along with several other members of their band to provide security for the event. At some point during the proceedings, [[spoiler:one of those four overheard [[HighPriest the Divine]] being attacked and rushed off to help]]. That one is the one the player chose as their character. The three that were not chosen were killed by the [[HellGate Breach]] along with thousands of others.
* ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedII'' does this with The Truth. No matter what order you find the glyphs, the segments of the video and puzzles will always be found in the same order, possibly because Subject 16 shares the same memories of Ezio's travels, and [[ForegoneConclusion subsequently knew in what order you'd visit the places he marked for the pieces of The Truth]], or because the glyphs work the same way in the Animus as they do in the game.
* In the FMV-based adventure game ''VideoGame/{{Ripper}}'' by Take 2 Interactive, the titular serial murderer has four possible identities, depending on how the player pursue the investigation ([[spoiler:one of them being the main character's girlfriend]]).
* At the end of ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters '95'', returning villain Rugal announces his plan to destroy your team for foiling his plans last time. At the end of ''The King of Fighters '96'', Chizuru reveals that she lured your team there because she needed the help of those responsible for defeating Rugal. In both cases, this speech is made regardless of which team you are playing, and whether or not they actually won or were even in the previous game. (Aside from Geese/Wolfgang/Big, whom even she refuses to acknowledge.) This is additionally in spite of both victories over Rugal in canon being attributed to Kyo Kusanagi (his win in ''[='94=]'' is even [[http://kofaniv.snkplaymore.co.jp/english/history/kof95_story/index.php specifically noted on SNKP's official website chronicling the series' history]]), who'd go on to win the ''[='96=]'' and ''[='97=]'' tourneys.
* A quest in ''VideoGame/GuildWars'' requires the player to help the prince find a gift for his beloved. There are three items you can show him; the first two will always be rejected, no matter the order you try them in. An alternative option is to find only one of the items and hand it directly to the birthday girl, who gets pissed that the prince hired someone else to choose a gift for her.
* ''VideoGame/GuildWars2'' makes extensive use of this trope, from personal storylines (which affect instances) to dynamic events (which alters the state of the world players share).
* ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'':
** The Master Sword in the ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames'' can come from two conflicting sources depending on which game you play first. The games also include a Schrödinger area of the game map: at a certain point in the game, you can earn a flute that will eventually allow you to summon one of the three animal companions. Each of them have skills that allow you to reach places Link can't reach alone, and depending on which flute you get, part of the map ends up being an area that requires that companion to get through. (If you go to that area ''before'' getting a flute, the game forces the choice for you.)
** Late in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'', Link must revisit each of the previous areas in order to collect the parts of the Song of Heroes. These can be done in any order, but no matter when you choose to do Eldin Volcano you always arrive just as it erupts.
** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'', three different chests can contain the magic lamp: the one in the house Link wakes up in, another one in a tunnel under the castle, and the last one in Princess Zelda's cell. There's only one lamp; the second and third chests are backups for the first one in case you somehow didn't notice it; so, the lamp will magically appear in whichever chest you open first (if you open the other two, you find only 5 Rupees).
* ''{{VideoGame/Contra}}: Hard Corps'':
** [[BigBad Colonel Bahamut's]] plan for the [[ImportedAlienPhlebotinum Alien Cell]] depends on which path you take through the game. [[spoiler:Either he wants to use it to power a KillSat, turn it into a bio-weapon, [[FusionDance merge with it]], or load it on a missile and launch it into civilization.]]
** Bahamut's base is either right next to your current location, a train ride away in the jungle, or a boat ride away on an island.
* In ''VideoGame/DawnOfWar II: Chaos Rising'' there is a traitor in your party. And you ''really'' don't know who it is, as it's affected by your actions in the game. However, the treachery began long before the game, so the "choice" of traitor is retroactive.
** The choice is determined by [[spoiler:your [[KarmaMeter Corruption]] rating]], defaulting on [[spoiler:Martellus]] on a perfect play. But really, he's the last person you want as a traitor. [[spoiler:While others all have their [[StartOfDarkness starts of darkness]] and {{motive rant}}s prepared, Martellus is just a plain generic boss, and a hard one at that]].
** The sequel [[CuttingOffTheBranches trims down possible traitors]] to three characters: [[spoiler:the Force Commander, the Devastator sergeant Avitus, or the assault sergeant Thaddeus]]. All others are loyal and playable. [[spoiler: Turns out it's Avitus]]
* Common in the ''VideoGame/HenryStickminSeries'', as the creators maintain that confirming any one canon route would defeat the purpose of having the player choose.
** In the ''Wait for Transfer'' route of ''Fleeing the Complex'', you are given a choice of whether to call Charles or the Toppat Clan for help- whichever one you pick is who you sided with in ''Infiltrating the Airship''.
** ''Completing the Mission'' starts with this- you can pick any combination of endings from ''Airship'' and ''Complex'', which determines the route you take, excepting the mutually exclusive ones (you can't side with the Toppats in ''Airship'' and get rescued by Charles in ''Complex'', or vice versa). Depending on the option chosen, you might have to stop the Toppats from launching a rocket, the rocket might already be launched, or the rocket might not even be mentioned.
* ''Franchise/MassEffect'':
** The first two games have an instance of this in the opening scene. In ''VideoGame/MassEffect1'', regardless of what Shepard's background and military reputation are, he or she is the ''perfect'' candidate for the first human Spectre. Likewise, when ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' begins, regardless of whether the imported save file flags the council as saved, lost, or lost and replaced with an all-human council, Shepard "did everything right."
** If the player imported a ''Mass Effect'' save into ''[=ME2=]'', Shepard is given a brief debriefing and then, as a "memory test", is asked which of two characters he or she chose to represent humanity on the Galactic Council. Because that decision wasn't saved in ''[=ME1=]'' (the final save file is created before the decision occurs), either choice is considered correct and will determine which of the two is the Council member later in the game.
** ''Mass Effect'' has a few moments where your two squadmates will disagree on the big decision you are about to make. However, their opinions can sometimes change depending on the other squadmate so that there will always be one in favor of each option. Thus, some squadmates will be in favor of saving the council, but if a different character is present they might instead be in favor of letting them die. This is presumably to make it clear that BothSidesHaveAPoint and avoid a scenario where two characters are egging you on with the same opinion.
** ''Mass Effect 2'' has you interact with Khalisah al-Jilani, who will try to frame your decision at the end of the last game (saving the council at the expense of human ships, or letting the council die) in the worst possible light, regardless of which you chose. This at least is fully in character, given that she's a paparazzi.
** ''Mass Effect 3'' reveals that all of 2's DLC missions happened whether or not you bought them, but the details changed without the PC on hand. Cerberus resorted to nuking Project Overlord, Liara needed a whole team of mercs to take on the Shadow Broker (and couldn't save Feron), and Arrival took a whole team of marines (none of whom survived).
** A more minor form in ''Mass Effect 3'', on one side-mission, you are looking for someone and they are in one of two rooms on the presidium. They are always in the second one you go to, no matter which order you choose.
** The entirety of ''VideoGame/MassEffectAndromeda'' is one giant Schrödinger's Gun dependent on which Ryder twin is chosen to be the player character at the start of game. If Scott Ryder is chosen by the player, then there is a malfunction in Sara Ryder's cryo pod that sidelines her for the majority of the game while Scott becomes the Pathfinder and explores the Heleus cluster, culminating in [[spoiler:Sara being kidnapped by the Archon as a part of the final boss battle]]. If Sara is chosen by the player, the game plays out functionally the same; Scott's pod malfunctions, he's sidelined while Sara becomes Pathfinder and explores Heleus without him and then [[spoiler:has to rescue him from the Archon during the final boss fight]].
* In the end of ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'', you [[spoiler:are to choose between two guns, one loaded and one not, and duel Ocelot with them.]] No matter what you choose, [[spoiler:you and Ocelot both survive. If you grab the loaded gun and purposefully miss, there is a hole in the wall, but if you shoot him or grab the gun with no bullets and he shoots you, it turns out the bullet was a blank. Oddly enough, however, the bullet Ocelot keeps around his neck the whole game '''is''' a blank; you can notice that if you zoom in on it.]]
* In the FMV game ''Terror T.R.A.X. - Track of the Vampire'' (played by [[WebVideo/TheSpoonyExperiment Spoony]] [[http://spoonyexperiment.com/2009/10/23/terror-t-r-a-x-track-of-the-vampire-pc-the-whole-bloody-affair/ here]]), one of the Bad Ending paths has one of your agents getting captured by a MadScientist vampire. When the second agent finds the first, MissionControl orders her to shoot him preemptively. If you don't, he springs up as a vampire and kills the other agent. If you do, the vampire calls to taunt you with the fact that the agent was still human so you killed him needlessly.
* Done twice in ''VideoGame/{{Portal 2}}'', with an actual gun. With two of the later puzzles, the player needs to fire the portal gun quickly [[PressXToNotDie to not die]], but if they fired the wrong portal, they'd end up dying anyway. To fix this, the programmers fixed it so that whichever portal you fire is the right one and it retroactively changes the portal you had already placed.
* In ''VideoGame/{{XIII}}'', the player must enter a locked cabin to obtain a fuse. There are several guards in the area, but the last one who gets killed is always the one holding the key.
* In ''VideoGame/DragonQuestV'', it doesn't matter whether you decide to marry Bianca or Nera, either one will turn out to be [[spoiler:descended from Zenithian blood, and will give birth to the legendary hero]]. The original game plays this straight, but the [[VideoGameRemake remake]] justifies it a little. The new character Debora is Nera's sister, so they share the same fate, [[spoiler:and it's hinted that all three girls are secretly related anyway]].
* In ''VideoGame/{{Catherine}}'', the differences between the [[MultipleEndings "Bad", "Good", and "True" version of each ending]] are supposedly determined by how well the girl can sense your feelings (that is, your position on the KarmaMeter), but other events happen differently seemingly independently of your feelings about relationships. [[spoiler:If you choose Katherine, Jonny, Orlando, and Boss don't show up to corroborate your story in the Bad ending. If you choose Catherine, her father doesn't show up in the Bad ending. And the difference between the Good and True freedom endings is whether or not Feather wins the wrestling tournament, which Vincent should have no way of influencing.]]

* ''VideoGame/{{StarCraft II}}'' includes three levels where you can choose one of two possible methods to take. While one isn't one of these (merely determining if you strip the Zerg of their primary ZergRush generating unit or of their flying units), the other two are:
** In the Colonists story arc, the climax is to either fight off the Protoss to try and see if the Zerg infection amongst the colonists can be arrested and perhaps cured, or to side with the Protoss and mercilessly burn out all of the infected. Your choice is always the correct one: Choose the former, and the game reveals that there were only a few infected colonists, who are easily contained, and Dr. Hanson leaves the ship to work on researching a cure. Choose the latter, the infestation is far more widespread, and Dr. Hanson goes insane and infects herself, turning into a monstrous human/zerg hybrid that Raynor has to kill.
** Meanwhile, in the Shadow Ops story arc, the climax involves Raynor siding either with Tosh or with Nova to, respectively, either free the fellow Specter program prisoners (supposedly too mentally unstable to release back into society) held at the New Folsom facility or stop them from getting free. Once again, your choice inevitably turns out to be the correct one: side with Tosh, and the Specter prisoners would turn out to be helpful, if somewhat eccentric victims of circumstances wrongfully kept in a hellish prison and more than willing to help once set free. Side with Nova, and it'd turn out that Tosh had been completely insane the whole time, and has not only already took over an orbital facility near the planet that now must be blown up lest it be turned into a Specter factory, but also experimenting on innocent civilians, turning them into (equally, murderously insane) Specters against their will.
* Used in the ''Franchise/SilentHill'' series. Although, given how the town seems to have RealityWarper powers, it's possible these alterations actually are happening in-universe.
** ''VideoGame/SilentHillShatteredMemories'' does this for MindScrew purposes. During the therapy sessions, [[SchrodingersQuestion your answer to some questions will always be wrong, no matter what you choose]]--or when you're asked to color in a picture of a house, whichever color you choose will determine the color of your childhood home. Then there's [[TheReveal the late-game twist]] that [[spoiler:the "Harry" you've been controlling is actually Cheryl's mental projection, and the real Harry's been dead for years. Your actions as the mental Harry retroactively determine whether the real Harry was a loving parent, a coward, or an abusive alcoholic.]]
** In ''VideoGame/SilentHillDownpour'', Murphy's actions in the game can alter his backstory to fit, determining whether or not [[spoiler:he murdered Coleridge to avenge his dead son Charlie, or was merely framed for it by Sewell. Or if Murphy is evil enough during the game, then it turns out ''he'' killed Charlie himself.]]
* In ''VideoGame/FearEffect'', two of the player characters continuously are at odds over whether or not a girl they are helping is a legitimate DamselInDistress or secretly the BigBad playing EvilPlan. Right before the final battle the player must decide who is correct and that choice will determine the final scene of the game. If the player decides innocent it will turn out she is innocent, if the player decides she is lying it will turn out she has been lying throughout the whole game. So in essence the girl is paradoxically telling the truth AND lying throughout the story until the scene when the player makes their decision.
* In the ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoSanAndreas'' mission "Green Goo", it's always the third box that contains the eponymous green goo you're looking for.
* In ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoViceCity'', the player is recruited by an old Haitian woman to help out her son in an upcoming gang war. This mission involves assisting a group of a dozen Haitians as they fight off wave after wave of Cubans. This raises the question of exactly which of the dozen Haitians is the son you are trying to protect, as mechanically and graphically they are all identical. However, the mission is a failure only if ALL the Haitians die, which means that 11 of the 12 are "expendable", i.e. NOT the son you're supposed to protect. Thus one can conclude that the son will always be the final Haitian killed, regardless of the order in which the Haitians go down.
* ''VideoGame/BrainLord'': In the first town, there's a small sidequest you can do involving rescuing a pair of kids who wander down into a cave below the city. However, they only get lost in the cave if you actually talk to them - ignoring them or simply not talking to them will mean you don't need to rescue them.

* ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'':
** In ''[[VideoGame/PokemonRubyAndSapphire Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald]]'':
*** May/Brendan's comments at the beginning of the game indicate that they already have their first Pokémon, yet they will always magically have the one with a type advantage against you.
*** In the post-game of ''Emerald'', a TV reports on a flying Pokémon. Your character is asked what color the Pokémon is. The response you make your character give determines whether it's Latios (blue) or Latias (red). In the original ''Ruby'' and ''Sapphire'' this depended on the version you got.
** In ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'' [[SchrodingersPlayerCharacter the player character you didn't pick with the gender opposite yours]] (Lucas if you picked the female, Dawn if you picked the male) always has the starter that has a type disadvantage against yours (i.e. you pick Fire and they get Grass) despite getting their Pokémon before you did. They even remark that you could have matched if you'd picked a different starter, which of course can't happen.
** In the main games, the player's [[TheRival rival]] always gets whichever starter Pokémon has an [[ElementalRockPaperScissors elemental type advantage]] over the player's starter; while this is usually by virtue of the player choosing first and the rival second, in ''VideoGame/PokemonBlack2AndWhite2'' the rival is known to ''already'' have their starter Pokémon long before the player acquires theirs (having raised it from an egg) - the Mon's specific identity is simply not revealed until the player selects theirs and faces their rival in battle.
** When you do the first [[spoiler: Looker]] sidequest in ''VideoGame/PokemonXAndY'', the 5 tickets you need to find have text on them. No matter what order you do them in, the text they read is dependent on when you find it, not where it is. Which raises the question: how did [[spoiler: Looker]] know what order you'd go for?
** In the postgame of ''VideoGame/PokemonUltraSunAndUltraMoon'', Lysandre presents you with two buttons, one of which will activate a superweapon and the other which will allow you to proceed. No matter which one you pick, it will activate the weapon, and Lysandre battles you to prevent you from pressing the other button to deactivate the weapon.
* Both ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty 4: VideoGame/ModernWarfare'' and ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyBlackOpsII'' feature missions where the player is searching through multiple houses for one specific person. And, in both cases, you can search the houses in whatever order you want, but your target is always in the last one you search. It's less noticeable in the first case, as one of the safehouses is much further off than the rest of them are and getting between them isn't exactly easy, so you're likely to just naturally end up there last unless you go out of your way to visit it early.
* On one path in ''VideoGame/CorpseParty: Book of Shadows'', Mitsuki ends up facing ominous approaching footsteps, with a choice to wait or run away. [[spoiler: If you wait, it's Yoshikazu, who kills her with an axe. If she runs, it was Taguchi, and she ends up running into Sachiko needlessly fleeing from him.]]
* ''VideoGame/ClockTower'': Your friends are only considered dead by the game if you see proof of it. It has actual gameplay implications, in that the only way to get the A and S-endings (where one of the other girls is still alive) is to actively avoid investigating strange noises or places where a body could be found, because if you do, the game will take the chance to declare one of your friends dead.
* ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim'' has this principle as the whole basis of its [[http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Radiant Radiant system]]. Many side quests will feature randomised aspects that are determined by which places the player has or hasn't visited yet, what other quests have already been completed, what level the character is at, etc. Some items or characters will appear in variable locations, based on e.g. where the Dragonborn happens to be when they reach a certain level. The trope appears in several other specific ways throughout the game:
** The various shouts available to the Dragonborn normally are learned by visiting Word Walls dotting the landscape of Skyrim. However, the text of the word walls will change depending on which word in the shout you have, so you will never learn the second or third word in a shout without knowing the one before it.
** Two dragons that you must fight in the main quest do not have unique models. While they are semi-locked into specific Dragon forms, if you are high enough in level (possibly by putting off the main quest for quite a while) they can change into different species of dragons.
** In the opening sequence, the player can decide to flee the dragon attack either with a member of the Imperial Legion or with a Stormcloak. No matter which they go with, they will always find their escape route through the keep blocked by hostile members of the opposing faction.
** Similarly, the lead-up to the Siege of Whiterun is determined by which side the player picks in the civil war. If the player joins the Stormcloaks, they're tasked with delivering an axe to Whiterun's jarl on behalf of Ulfric Stormcloak, as part of a Nord custom allowing the other ruler to declare his intentions -- in this scenario, Jarl Balgruuf rejects the axe (indicating that his fellow jarl will need it for business on the battlefield) and calls upon the Imperial Legion to defend his city from the Stormcloaks. If the player joins the Empire, they instead deliver an axe from Balgruuf to Ulfric -- once again, the other jarl rejects the axe, this time because Ulfric's already ordered the attack on Whiterun.

* In ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3'', there's two slightly different {{Boss Room}}s in Bowser's Castle, with both having a holding cell behind them. No matter which one you go to, you'll always face Bowser there and find Princess Peach in the room behind.
* In most versions of ''VideoGame/{{Minesweeper}}'', the very first square you click will never have a mine. ''Some'' versions are advanced and merciful enough to detect when the player is [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/minesweeper.JPG forced to guess]], and rearrange the board behind-the-scenes to make their guess the right one.

* In ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights2'', you are given the choice to either join the guard, or the thieves. If you join the guard, then they are heavily overwhelmed and many of the members are obviously corrupted, while the thieves are ridiculously powerful and pretty much rule the city. But if you join the thieves, then the guard ends up being quite strong, devoid of corruption, and very efficient, and quite a nuisance to the thieves' business. In some cases it's because the tasks of bribing guards and extorting merchants was delegated to you, but in a few quests towards the end of the storyline a number of guards are hostile to you no matter which side you're on.
* In ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion'', in the ''Shivering Isles'' expansion, you are tasked with taking care of a bunch of adventurers invading a dungeon. They make their way through 3 sections, and in each of them you sit in a safe spot and must press one of two buttons that will determine their fate: one results in one of the adventurers dying, while the other drives one of them to insanity. In the second section, two of the remaining adventurers come across a tightly locked cage filled with riches. Your choice is either activating a fire trap that blasts them, or making hundreds of keys appear in the room. This trope into play with the orc adventurer's behaviour: even though the circumstances are exactly the same, depending on your choice, the orc makes a completely different decision. If you choose to release the fire trap, he will try to pry the cage's bars open moments before the trap activates. If you release the keys, he will instead be vary of the cage and decide that they should just go away, moments before the keys appear.
* In the ending of ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheForceUnleashed 2'', you have the option to kill Darth Vader. Since that's [[DoomedByCanon obviously not going to happen]], selecting that option will cause a [[spoiler:clone of the PlayerCharacter to appear out of nowhere, easily kill you and your allies and]] save Vader. If the player chooses not to kill Vader, [[spoiler:there is no clone]].

* A minor example in the paladin quest "The End of the Saga" in ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft: Legion''. You need to search three graves, and what you're looking for is always in the third grave, no matter the order of search.
** Also in the Suramar arc in the same expansion: You help a Nightborne noble by disguising yourself as her younger sibling. That sibling will luckily be whichever gender you chose for your character.
* ''VideoGame/TheTalosPrinciple'': In ''Road to Gehenna'', the order the robots are encountered is predetermined. Regardless of which order you choose to complete the puzzles, the first robot you free will always be the same, as well as the second, the third, etc.
* At one point in ''Videogame/IndianaJonesAndTheFateOfAtlantis'' the game branches into 3 paths: "Team", "Wits" and "Fist" each involves teamwork with Sophia, lots of puzzle solving, or lots of fistfights respectively. Which path Sophia will suggest is determined by how Indy solved the first puzzle of the game: Sweet-talking praising of Sophia to her backstage guard (Team), making his way through a [[BlockPuzzle maze of crates]] into a fire exit (Wits), or knocking out the aforementioned guard in a fight (Fists).

* The ''Franchise/{{Splatoon}}'' games do this by way of AudienceParticipation, with the final Splatfest (community events where players pick sides in a CavemenVsAstronautsDebate) in each game deciding a major element of the following installment, from story to theming. Naturally, if a different side won, story events and other details about the setting would have gone in different directions.
* ''VideoGame/Borderlands2'':
** During the quest where you have to find Helena Pierce's audio logs, if you try to destroy the ice block on top of the house near a vending machine (the location of the second ECHO log) before the audio of the first ECHO log even finishes, the ice block will respawn, with a chance of spawning additional cash.
** During the quest where you have to collect Tannis's ECHO logs in Sanctuary, regardless of the order in which you retrieve the ECHO logs, the audio being played will still be in sequence as Tannis records her story from start to finish.
* ''VideoGame/TalesFromTheBorderlands'': Felix's ultimate fate involves this. After he betrays [[PlayerCharacter Fiona]] and steals a case full of money from her, you're given the choice of whether or not to warn him that the case is protected by a bomb that will explode when it is opened. If you don't warn him, then he attempts to open the case, triggers the bomb, and dies. If you ''do'' warn him, then it turns out he already knew about the bomb and removed it earlier.
* In ''VideoGame/SunlessSea'', Maybe's-Daughter's story arc is set up in such a way that it combines this with a degree of randomisation. When you start her arc, she presents you with a list of places you might be able to find her mother, and as someone who has played a videogame before, you assume it's going to be a straightforward example of this trope and she'll be in the last one you visit. Actually, the game does a randomised check when you hit the appropriate prompt in a place you haven't searched before, and she's in whichever one you're at when it succeeds - but since the odds start at 4% and double each time, she'll generally only pop up once you've checked most, but not all, of the places (which is just as well, really, since one of the locations is on the surface and so requires ferocious fuel expenditure and a minor risk of death to reach, and another is surrounded by [[DemonicSpiders Blue Prophets]], basically swarms of ship-killing death parrots).
* One of the characters you can date in ''VideoGame/{{Amorous}}'', Lex the husky, is of AmbiguousGender until the second date. Whether they turn out to be male or female changes depending on your choices.
* ''VideoGame/PillarsOfEternity'': The plot changes in various ways depending on what dialogue options you choose, with the answer you gave being treated as if it was always true. Much of the tutorial is devoted to just fleshing out your character’s backstory through such dialogue options. [[VideoGame/PillarsOfEternityIIDeadfire The sequel]] takes this even further by adding whatever choices you made in the first game to the mix.
* In ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiStrangeJourney Redux'', Alex's backstory is determined by the protagonist's actions within the Schwarzwelt.
** If you are Neutral-aligned, [[spoiler:Alex comes from a future where humanity goes right back to its decadent ways after the crisis is resolved. Having grown complacent over time, humanity is unable to stop the second Schwarzwelt, leading to the destruction of human civilization; Alex is one of the few survivors.]]
** If you are Law-aligned, [[spoiler:Alex comes from a future where anyone who is not brainwashed by Zelenin's song is considered to be unclean filth and executed. Alex is the last remaining survivor of those who cannot hear her song.]]
** If you are Chaos-aligned, [[spoiler:Alex comes from a future where every human seeks to prove their strength by attacking anyone they come across. Naturally, this mindset has led to the complete annihilation of humanity, and Alex is the last surviving human period.]]

*** If you lied about your outfit (or changed clothes after the phone call), then Papyrus assumed you were telling him the truth, so he lied to Undyne on your behalf--and [[ContrivedCoincidence his lie just happened to match up with whatever you're actually wearing at that moment]]. (This information does not actually affect any of the player's encounters with Undyne.)

* ''VideoGame/MetroidDread'' does this with an actual gun. The Omega Cannon actually has limited ammo, but will only become depleted once you use it to destroy an E.M.M.I., which will somehow always be the last shot.
* ''BioShockInfinite/BurialAtSea'' requires you to search the back rooms of three establishments for an invitation from Sander Cohen to steal. It's guaranteed to be in LastPlaceYouLook, to ensure you don't miss out on any other pocketable valuables or the spiels Elizabeth uses to distract the shopkeepers.
* ''VideoGame/{{Meritous}}'': From "Somewhat Frequently Asked Questions":
-->Does the order you fight the bosses in matter?\\\
The bosses are tied to the three PSI keys. You can get the PSI keys in any order you like, but you will always fight the three bosses in the same order, no matter which PSI key (the sword, the lance or the bow) you get first.
* In ''VideoGame/HarryPotterHogwartsMystery'', decisions you make about the protagonist simultaneously affect several supporting characters. Your best friend Rowan Khanna is always the same gender as you; Rowan, your Quidditch teammates Skye Parkin and Orion Amari, and Quidditch commentator Murphy [=McNully=] are all in the same house as you, while Quidditch rival Erika Rath defaults to Ravenclaw but is moved to Slytherin if you yourself are a Ravenclaw.
* ''VideoGame/PuzzleQuest: Challenge of the Warlords'': In the early-game mission, "The Missive", you, the player, are given a message from the queen to give to your father. On your way home, you're waylaid by a thief. Defeat the thief and the message is genuine. Lose to the thief, the message turns out to be a decoy.[[note]]You'll be tipped off that something's different in that "The Missive" is the only mission you can't replay if you lose[[/note]]

-->-- '''Hisashi Nogami''' describing how this trope could work in players' favor, ''VideoGame/Splatoon3'' [[https://www.nintendo.com/whatsnew/ask-the-developer-vol-7-splatoon-3-part-2/ developer interview]]

-->-- '''Hisashi Nogami''', ''VideoGame/Splatoon3'' [[https://www.nintendo.com/whatsnew/ask-the-developer-vol-7-splatoon-3-part-2/ developer interview]]

* Many of a stage magician's illusions rely on some form of this. Wiki/TheOtherWiki [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equivocation_(magic) has more details]].

* [[Literature/{{Discworld}} Ankh-Morpork]] [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Games_of_the_Discworld#Stealth_Chess Stealth Chess]] adds the Assassin pieces, who as long as they are on an outer file they alone can be in (these files are called the Slurks) move as though on a second, hidden board beneath the main one. However many moves an Assassin made in the Slurks when reentering the main board is the the furthest away[[labelnote:*]]by orthogonal moves, since Wiki/TheOtherWiki says the maximum needed to turn up anywhere is fifteen Assassin moves[[/labelnote]] from the square from which it entered the Slurks that the Assassin can turn up again. The player can change plans suddenly.

Also known as "Railschroding" (forgive the pun) because it can easily be used for {{Railroading}} purposes.

Compare WritingByTheSeatOfYourPants, [[SchrodingersSuggestionBox Schrödinger's Suggestion Box]]. A subtrope is [[SchrodingersQuestion Schrödinger's Question]].

See also the UsefulNotes regarding [[UsefulNotes/SchrodingersCat Schrödinger's Cat]].

* The final Splatfest in ''VideoGame/{{Splatoon}}'' (an event where players pick sides to battle) was a competition between the Squid Sisters, Callie and Marie, which Marie ended up winning. In ''VideoGame/Splatoon2'', it's revealed that this result is canon in-universe and ends up affecting the events of the singleplayer mode (specifically, Marie acts a MissionControl while Callie [[spoiler: has been kidnapped and brainwashed by the Octarians]]). Presumably if Callie had won, the roles would've been reversed.

* In ''VideoGame/LiveALive'', only one of the three Xin Shan Quan students (Li, Yuan, Sammo) survives, depending on the player's actions.

* The infamous ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' ''Clone Saga'' features Peter and Ben as "Schrodinger's clones": Ben was supposed to be the clone, but once the character became more popular, editors decided Peter was the clone...which lead to some backlash since Peter is the ''main character''. As the [[ContinuitySnarl story grew more complex]], writers had no idea who was supposed to be the original and who was supposed to be the clone. One idea even posited that they were both the original: At the end of the story, Peter would be sent back in time in a StableTimeLoop, and believe himself to be Ben. It was only when Ben died that it became clear he was the clone "all along".

* Also appears in ''Webcomic/DarthsAndDroids'' by the same creator, starting [[http://www.darthsanddroids.net/episodes/0179.html here]]. It also appears in a more amusing variation, Schrödinger's Decoy, seen [[http://www.darthsanddroids.net/episodes/0211.html here]].

* ''Webcomic/DinosaurComics'' parodies the Choose Your Own Adventure books' use of this [[http://www.qwantz.com/index.php?comic=29 in this strip.]]

So, to keep the plot on the rails, the author can subtly tweak facts the audience hasn't discovered yet. Improvismiation masquerading as planning, if you will. For obvious reasons, this kind of plot event is pretty much impossible unless the work in question is either interactive or serialised.

So, to keep the plot on the rails, the author can subtly tweak facts the audience hasn't discovered yet. Improvisation masquerading as planning, if you will. For obvious reasons, this kind of plot event is pretty much impossible unless the work in question is either interactive or serialised.

* In most versions of ''VideoGame/{{Minesweeper}}'', the very first square you click will never have a mine.

** In ''Film/ANewHope'', there are several mentions of "the Emperor," but no details about him are ever given. At the time, Creator/GeorgeLucas apparently intended for him to be a PuppetKing controlled by devious advisors. In subsequent films, the Emperor is instead revealed as the BigBad.

** ''Film/TheForceAwakens'' built up a mystery surrounding the identity of Rey's parents. At the time, there was no definite solution to the mystery, and several possibilities were considered.