History Main / TheLawOfConservationOfDetail

* ''{{Psych}}'' takes it to a whole new level though, by zooming in and highlighting the clue (or flashing back 10 seconds to some relevant thing someone said) while Shaun makes his squinty-I-just-saw-a-clue-face (as LampShaded by Gus when he eventually points out that he sees many of the same clues Shaun does, but doesn't need to make a face about it).
* ''{{Seinfeld}}'' did the opposite and focused on silly things(like the parking spots mentioned above), yet it was still funny. ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'' after it, however, was completely made up of small details and barely had anything else, which is why it is awesome.

* Parodied on the DVD commentary for the final episode of ''TheOffice'' (UK). Gervais and Merchant lampshade the "Secret Santa" game, commenting on its apparent insignificance to the plot, and how it ''definitely'' won't become relevant later.
* On an episode of ''OnceUponATime'', Kathryn bumps into a character we've never seen before at the school, and the camera dwells for a moment on his confused face. Back in fairytale land, he ends up being her true love: a knight turned into a gold statue, whose face was hidden beneath a visor up until the end of the episode.

* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'': ''Every''pony, even five-second gag characters, has at least their own FanNickname, Wiki sub-article, and can even be promoted to join the long list of [[EnsembleDarkhorse Ensemble Darkponies]].

* On ''Murder She Wrote'' almost invariably someone will make an offhand remark that will trigger Jessica's memory of some minor detail that didn't seem important at the time, but which she suddenly realizes is the key to the whole mystery.

** About half of chapter 241 consists of a conversation between Isshin and Ryuuken in the latter's training room. Pretty much everything they say later ends up being vitally important in one way or another. This includes "hello", since the way they greet each other (with ''[[JapaneseHonorifics yobisute]]'') makes it clear they're well acquainted and implies that Isshin hasn't always been called "Kurosaki". It's also the first hint we get that they might both be grooming their sons to face a specific future threat. Three hundred chapters later (the Arrancar arc put a LOT of plot threads on hold), we learn how they met and what Isshin's name used to be: [[spoiler: He was originally a Shiba, and Ryuuken and Isshin first met when Masaki Kurosaki, also revealed to be a Quincy, was undergoing Hollowfication.]]

** The entire scene of Isshin in his Shinigami form walking into Ryuuken's training room and having a discussion with him as if they are friends, particularly the moment when Isshin mentions it is the first time Ryuuken has called him "Kurosaki". This in itself was hinted at in the '''earliest chapters''' when Isshin on the phone with someone from a major hospital and tells the person on the line to tell the manager aka. Ryuuken, that the request for open beds was from Kurosaki. Three hundred chapters, just like the above, we learn how they met and what Isshin meant by that comment: [[spoiler: Isshin was originally a Shiba, and Ryuuken and Isshin first met when Masaki Kurosaki, also revealed to be a Quincy, was undergoing Hollowfication.]]

* In ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'' the author had intended for a minor character (the principal of a school specificaly) to have a massive scar and eyepatch. Due to this law he chose not to since he had no intention of spending the time necessary to make them relevant.

* An article detailed strategies for [=GMs=] who had forgotten their notes, with advice such as asking the players one by one to describe the contents of their bedrooms, specifically asking about the presence of potted plants. By the time the last boring description was out of the way, the GM should have been able to think up a new adventure for the evening. Which, if the GM was being sadistic, should offer the characters the chance to buy potted plants, leading the players to wonder if it would save their necks to have potted plants, or if it would put them at risk...

* ''TheIncredibles'': the ''moment'' Edna Mode starts making a big deal about capes being caught in things, you know that someone else is going to experience a very fatal wardrobe malfunction by movie's end... unless you've read ''Comicbook/{{Watchmen}}'', in which case you might write it off as a ShoutOut. The costume for the baby, [[spoiler:can survive a wide range of extremes, all of which the baby exhibits near the end.]]

* ''{{Bleach}}'' is loaded to the brim with this if one looks close enough at the story

** Zangetsu's actions and appearance become this when the Blood War kicks off. The "Shadows" the Vandenreich use are similar to the "Shadow" Zangetsu used to bring Ichigo into his Inner World during his fight with Zaraki, the Blut can stop a Quincy from bleeding from injuries, similar to how Zangetsu stopped Ichigo's bleeding momentarily during his fight with Zaraki, and Zangetsu and Yhwach's faces are so similar, you would be forgiven for thinking [[OnlySixFace it was a product of Kubo's drawing style.]] There is also the fact that, whenever Zangetsu was teaching Ichigo to use his Zanpakuto, he relied on Hollow Ichigo to do it, just as he did during the fight with Zaraki. In chapter 540, we learn why Zangetsu looks similar to Juha Bach, with the later two chapters explaining everything else: [[spoiler: Zangetsu was never Ichigo's Shinigami powers, but his Quincy powers, and his appearance was the same as Juha Bach's one thousand years ago.]] Cue the fans getting [[MindScrew mindf***ed]].

* In ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'' the author had intended for a one off character(the principal of a school specificaly) to have a massive scar and eyepatch. Due to this law he chose not to since he had no explanation planned for them.

** Zangetsu's actions and appearance become this when the Blood War kicks off. The "Shadows" the Vandenreich use are similar to the "Shadow" Zangetsu used to bring Ichigo into his Inner World during his fight with Zaraki, the Blut can stop a Quincy from bleeding from injuries, similar to how Zangetsu stopped Ichigo's bleeding momentarily during his fight with Zaraki, and Zangetsu and Yhwach's faces are so similar, you would be forgiven for thinking [[OnlySixFace it was a product of Kubo's drawing style.]] There is also the fact that, whenever Zangetsu was teaching Ichigo to use his Zanpakuto, he relied on Hollow Ichigo to do it, just as he did during the fight with Zaraki. In chapters 540-542, we learn why: [[spoiler: Zangetsu was never Ichigo's Shinigami powers, but his Quincy powers, and his appearance was the same as Juha Bach's one thousand years ago.]] Cue the fans getting [[MindScrew mindf***ed]].

* Averted by {{Pixar}} with the Pixarpedia - even sub-minor characters, such as nameless, faceless, do-nothing bystanders get an entry in the encyclopedia. This is still played straight in the films, as you generally do not learn the names and backstories of minor characters in the films.

* A similar case to the {{Pixar}} example for ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'': ''Every''pony, even five-second gag characters, has at least their own FanNickname, Wiki sub-article, and can even be promoted to join the long list of [[EnsembleDarkhorse Ensemble Darkponies]].
* Averted by {{Pixar}} with the Pixarpedia - even sub-minor characters, such as nameless, faceless, do-nothing bystanders get an entry in the encyclopedia.

* Done exceedingly well in ''Film/ShaunOfTheDead'' and ''HotFuzz'' (made by the same people), in which almost every line of dialogue either [[{{Foreshadowing}} foreshadows]] what's to come or gets [[MeaningfulEcho repeated in a meaningful way]].
** ...or as a ''BrickJoke''.

** Recently lampshaded on page 889, when they awaken from a wish-fulfillment illusion:
-->'''Elan:''' Plus, it woulda been weird for everyone to mention that Girard was into illusions and then not see, like, *any*. Who wastes perfectly good foreshadowing like that?

** Similarly: profiles in ''Justice for All'' and ''Trials & Tribulations.'' The lawyer's badge gets used once or twice outside of the courtroom. You even had to present the screwdriver, which had importance exactly because it has ''no importance at all'', which throws suspicion on the suspect's reasoning for having Edgeworth personally pick it up in the first place.

* Averted somewhat in ''VideoGame/{{EarthBound}}'' due to useless items like the Protractor and Ruler. Some NPCs don't say anything useful, but are there to add witty lines. Finally, there are plenty of food items that are usable, but impractical by the time you reach them. Sure, eating a hamburger in combat (effectively instantly, and with no chance of indigestion!) is funny, but PSI powers are generally far more practical.

* In ''FireEmblem'', almost all enemy or NPC with unique sprites and more then a few lines of dialogue is either a boss or recruitable. Which is understandable, considering how many enemies you end up facing.

* Football manga ''{{Eyeshield 21}}'' does this with every team the main characters go up against. Except for the protagonist's team, every team consists of a few dozen generic nameless players whose faces are usually hidden behind their helmets and two or three important named characters. The latter are inevitably the stars who make all the big plays. You can tell how important a team will be to the story by how many players get names; the first team they play, for example, gets one named player, and after that game they never impact the plot again. Meanwhile, important recurring rival teams get five or six named players, plus coaching staff.

* ''Manga/OnePiece''
** There is a short arc about a giant whale who had been waiting for fifty years for its pirate friends. It ended and was never mentioned again, and everything could have just been another [[TearJerker sad but heartwarming episode]]. Then, more or less three hundred chapters later, [[spoiler:a guy pops out, and surprise!, he was part (actually the last survivor) of that pirate crew. And he ended up joining the main hero's crew.]]
** Lots of old characters, mainly villains, from [[spoiler:Buggy to Mr. 3 and Crocodile]], were freed from Impel Down and became decisive to plot development. To the amazement of the readers: [[spoiler:Silvers Rayleigh, the right hand of the Pirate King Gold Roger, appeared.]] If you check carefully, his face had ''already been shown'' in a ''single panel'' of a ''side flashback'' almost five hundred chapters before.

* Subverted in episode 2 of ''Manga/DeathNote''. Light spends a good chunk of the episode setting up and explaining an elaborate safety mechanism to hide his notebook, and it never comes up again. Instead, the pay-off is more immediate: it gives the audience a quick introduction to Light's personality.
** In the manga, when he notices that someone (the people who installed the cameras) entered his room from the state of his no less elaborate door safety mechanism, he infers that they didn't find the notebook because the fire trap didn't go off. His solution to the problem of the cameras is considerably less elaborate. "Hey Ryuk. Go find the cameras and I'll give you some apples."
* ''SteinsGate'' utilizes this trope to the full extent. Every single character actions that were shown will have some kind of significant effect. [[spoiler: One best example would be Mayuri's Metal Oopa from episode 1. 22 episodes later it was revealed that the Oopa set off the metal detector at the airport, preventing Dr. Nakabachi from boarding the plane that was fated to crash.]]
* Inverted in ''YuYuHakusho'' when Kurama and Hiei are introduced. They, along with another youkai, get into trouble with Spirit World, who only seems to have data on the one with the least relevance to the series as a whole.

* Parodied in ''ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicIDW''. Pinkie claims that since she lugged those [[{{Hammerspace}} "bulky"]] costumes all the way from Ponyville, they ''have'' to be useful at some point in the quest. [[spoiler:While Rainbow's costume never serves a meaningful purpose, Pinkie's costume is animated to keep an eye on the Changelings after their defeat]].
** Could double as ChekhovsGag, considering the fact that both times before the climax it's brought up, it's for humor purposes.

* Parodied in ''KissKissBangBang'', when the narrator sarcastically points out the importance of a conversation in his story.
-->'''Harry:''' ''"I'm so sorry. That was a terrible scene. It's like, why was that in the movie? You think it'll come back later? Hmmm..."''

* ''TheIncredibles'': the ''moment'' Edna Mode starts making a big deal about capes being caught in things, you know that someone else is going to experience a very fatal wardrobe malfunction by movie's end... unless you've read ''Comicbook/{{Watchmen}}'', in which case you might write it off as a ShoutOut. The costume for the baby, [[spoiler:can survive a wide range of extremes, all of which the baby exhibits near the end.]]
* ''Film/CitizenKane'' - Playing with this trope is arguably the main conceit: it's a movie about the impossibility of finding the right details. "Rosebud" is an example, as is the famous "girl in the white dress" speech.
* ''Film/{{Timecrimes}}''. From the moment Clara appears on-screen, pay attention. Any detail that seems out-of-place will get explained or otherwise become an important plot point.
* ''Film/TheBigLebowski'' takes this trope and throws a coffee mug at it.
* All the ''{{Saw}}'' franchise, especially the first one (remember when Jigsaw mentioned having a disease?). The last thirty seconds of each installment usually review such details and make the audience feel proud or ashamed depending on whether they'd realised it previously or not.
* Done exceedingly well in ''Film/ShaunOfTheDead'' and ''HotFuzz'' (made by the same people), in which almost every line of dialogue either [[{{Foreshadowing}} foreshadows]] what's to come or gets [[MeaningfulEcho repeated in a meaningful way]].
** ...or as a ''BrickJoke''.
* In the German movie, ''The Lives of Others'', when the main character hides his typewriter (he was writing anti-government pieces in Eastern Germany), he notices that his fingertips were covered with the red ink he used. At the end of the movie, [[spoiler:he finds the reports of the man who was spying on him, and notices two red fingertips next to his codename, showing him who saved his ass earlier in the movie by hiding his typewriter.]]
* Used masterfully in ''{{Rango}}'', the climax of the film has the title character use a ChekhovsArmoury to [[spoiler: defeat the mayor and save the town.]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Megamind}}'' there are [[spoiler: several single frames where the hero isn't in the trap,]] which all become revealed to be important later.
* In ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises'', when Bruce Wayne and Miranda Tate share a moment in the Wayne Manor, you'll see her bare back and for a brief moment, the camera pauses on a scar that she's got there... [[spoiler: a not-so-subtle hint that she's got something harsh in her past..]]

* ''Literature/ThursdayNext'' - In Jasper Fforde's ''Something Rotten'', Thursday is showing Hamlet around the "real world" when she is almost injured/killed by a random accident. She explains to him that, while in the Book World (fiction), this would certainly turn out to be an important clue to something later on, in the real world, such events are meaningless. Because ''Something Rotten'' is fictional, it does turn out to be an important clue to something later on.

* Lots of "masterful" literary works are called so due to complete aversion of this trope. The lady passing on the street is described in extreme detail and [[BigLippedAlligatorMoment is never seen again]].
* If someone is invited to a banquet in ''RomanceOfTheThreeKingdoms'', then chances are that it's part of a plan to kill them. Most of the banquets without murderous intent go unmentioned, leaving [[GenreSavvy modern readers]] to wonder why anyone would be stupid enough to go to a banquet in the first place.
* DouglasAdams is famous for mentioning things in throwaway lines which later turn out to be what the entire plot hinges on. However, he does a ''fantastic'' subversion in ''Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency'' (which is itself a ''book'' of this trope) - there's a scene where the protagonist is looking into a bathroom, and Adams spends several paragraphs describing the contents of the room, the panelling on the walls, the scuffs on the floor, and so forth, in intricate detail, only to end with "There was also a large horse in the room, taking up most of it."\\
\\
This trope may also have been parodied with a fictional novel that Arthur Dent reads on the planet Bartledan: Due to a plumbing problem that is only briefly mentioned in the second chapter of the novel, the main character abruptly dies in the penultimate chapter (the rest of its precisely 100,000 words are about road-mending).
** Adams also explains the use of this trope in ''So Long And Thanks For All The Fish'', stating that "It makes for big fat books such as the American economy thrives on, but it's boring."
* Subverted in the book series ''PersonalEffects.'' The main gimmick of the series is that it encourages the reader to follow up on details mentioned in the books - calling the phone numbers gives you voicemails, and all the websites actually exist. The first printed book even comes packaged with a bunch of handwritten notes and pictures.
* Creator/TomClancy tends to fight this tooth and nail. Paragraphs will be spent describing things other authors would just gloss over. He does love his TechnologyPorn.

* PD James' detective novels featuring Adam Dalgleish feature an insane amount of back-story on almost every character. Everything you need to know is in there, but so are an awful lot of things you don't need to know.

* Subverted repeatedly in Hawthorne's ''The House Of The Seven Gables''.

* ''Literature/TheCountOfMonteCristo'': Averted big-time

* Literature/DonQuixote: This law is invoked by the [[ThePresentsWereNeverFromSanta Innkeeper]] when he and Don Quixote discuss at Part I Chapter III the need for money being a KnightErrant who is WalkingTheEarth, and helps to deconstruct those tropes:
--> He asked if he had any money with him, to which Don Quixote replied that [[AvertedTrope he had not a farthing, as in the histories of knights-errant he had never read of any of them carrying any]]. [[TheLawOfConservationOfDetail On this point the landlord told him he was mistaken; for, though not recorded in the histories, because in the author's opinion there was no need to mention anything so obvious and necessary as money and clean shirts,]] [[FridgeLogic it was not to be supposed therefore that they did not carry them,]] and he might regard it as certain and established that all knights-errant (about whom there were so many full and unimpeachable books) carried well-furnished purses in case of emergency, and likewise carried shirts and a little box of ointment to cure the wounds they received
* At the end of ''Literature/{{Redshirts}}'', [[spoiler: Andrew Dahl figures out that one of his friends, to that point, had been a completely pointless character who had done little, if anything, to further the plot, and had just been along for the ride while all the other characters did all the work. Dahl therefore figured out that his friend must solely exist in the story in order to tell Dahl that he was the main character of the book. He was right.]]

* ''ASongOfIceAndFire'' [[ZigZaggedTrope Zig Zags]] this so much it can make readers' heads spin. Westeros is [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters a very, very big kingdom in an even bigger world]], and almost from the start we're given a whole mess of names belonging to people, organizations, families, deities, stories and locations, such that any first-time reader without a photographic memory or a notebook will be hard-pressed to remember who's who, even with the [[AllThereInTheManual convenient appendix]] in the back. In addition, the multiple POV characters and the people around them have many distinct priorities and focuses; the characters in the first book alone have concerns that range from [[ConspiracyTheorist national]] (or even [[EndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt worldwide]]) security to [[WrongGenreSavvy whether they'll get to attend an extravagant tournament]]. This basically enables the characters (read: the author) to slip all kinds of relevant information to and past each other (read: the reader) without them realizing it until it's too late. After all, with [[NeedleInAStackOfNeedles so much information]], [[ChekhovsArmoury anything can turn out to be relevant]] [[{{Foreshadowing}} when the crucial details]] [[RedHerring are mixed so neatly with the worldbuilding]].

* Parodied on the DVD commentary for the final episode of ''TheOffice'' (UK). Gervais and Merchant lampshade the "Secret Santa" game, commenting on its apparent insignificance to the plot, and how it ''definitely'' won't become relevant later.

* ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' - Played straight during a series regarding the Dominion, which was mentioned in passing in the first episode it showed up in and [[spoiler: was on the verge of taking over the Federation a few seasons later.]]\\
\\
The extra material on the [=DVDs=] even makes note that they were first mentioned in a Ferengi episode, where fans expect nothing to have a lasting effect.
** In the episode Time's Orphan it's done a bit heavy handed when Keiko gives little Molly a shiny silver bracelet and the music swells for a moment before going back to normal. Guess what feral Molly is wearing when they pull her back from the past?
* In one episode of ''{{Goosebumps}}'' we see the parents of a kid protagonist working on something. It turns out [[spoiler: it was a device to expose invisible people and the plot had an invisible friend]].
* Used judiciously on ''Series/{{Monk}}''. Every single random detail comes into use. Character pronounces a word differently? Clue. Has only an aunt for family? Clue. Orange juice jug empty? Clue. Bike comes with a lock? Clue. Meanwhile, the protagonist's skill is noticing and remembering ''everything'', even though he sees more of his world than the viewer and it thus doesn't follow this trope for him. A viewer aware of the trope can still use it to guess the answers before him.

* ''{{Psych}}'' takes it to a whole new level though, by zooming in and highlighting the clue (or flashing back 10 seconds to some relevant thing someone said) while Shaun makes his squinty-I-just-saw-a-clue-face (as LampShaded by Gus when he eventually points out that he sees many of the same clues Shaun does, but doesn't need to make a face about it).
* ''Series/HowIMetYourMother'' - A fan theory regarding the identity of the mother relies on this trope. In season 3, Ted [[spoiler: bumps into a girl at a party that he reveals the mother was at. The scene is at most 3 seconds. Ergo, due to conservation of detail, she is the mother.]]
** This could be [[SubvertedTrope deliberate misdirection]]. HIMYM regularly utilizes UnreliableNarrator for comic relief purposes, so it's entirely possible that scene isn't how it really happened.
* ''{{Seinfeld}}'' did the opposite and focused on silly things(like the parking spots mentioned above), yet it was still funny. ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'' after it, however, was completely made up of small details and barely had anything else, which is why it is awesome.

* The ''Series/{{Leverage}}'' team needs to create elaborate schemes in order to manipulate their mark. This means that side comments to the mark often end up being important later, and their importance becomes apparent during the "how it was done" flashback scenes. This is a trait shared with it's spiritual predecessor ''{{Hustle}}''.
* On one episode of [[Series/TwentyFour 24]], Jack is captured and forced to give bad tactical information to CTU. He ends the information by declaring he is in a "flank-two position". Given that the series is all about time constraints, it's reasonable for viewers to assume that any apparently-innocuous dialogue that's not {{technobabble}} is important. In-character, the terrorists holding Jack just assume its standard tactical talk. Naturally, it turns out to be the duress phrase. Except that CTU ''changed'' the duress phrase since Jack was last part of it, and they barely pick up on it before it's too late.
* ''AustinAndAlly'': In one episode the characters keep getting packages delivered to their businesses, with a joke being about no-one tipping the delivery guy. This takes place almost at random during the main plot about their businesses constantly getting robbed. Take a guess who the thief is.
* {{Lampshaded}} ''constantly'' on ''JonathanCreek'' in which the titular detective notes apparently pointless bits of general knowledge which become crucial in solving the mystery. At one stage, after ascertaining that an elderly client buys fish-food at a market and getting a baffled look in reply, TheWatson wryly comments: "Don't worry, it'll have some deep significance that is invisible to us mere mortals."
** But also quite often averted, as well; especially in the longer episodes where we learn a lot of details about the crime that ultimately turn out to be meaningless. At least once, Jonathan has noted an observation aloud, and when asked what it means, he says he doesn't know. Some of those things simply never get mentioned again.

* On a time-travelling episode of ''{{Smallville}}'' Clark and Chloe walk through the busy work-space of the Daily Planet in which their collegues are partaking in some rather noticeable activites: someone gets a huge bouquet of flowers, someone else trips over, and so on. The camera lingers on them the first time around so that Clark can accurately describe their activities to Chloe when the time-travel kicks in and he needs to convince her of their situation (that the day is repeating).
* On an episode of ''OnceUponATime'', Kathryn bumps into a character we've never seen before at the school, and the camera dwells for a moment on his confused face. Back in fairytale land, he ends up being her true love: a knight turned into a gold statue, whose face was hidden beneath a visor up until the end of the episode.
* Played with in the video game episode of ''Series/{{Community}}''. Upon entering a house, Britta immediately tries to straighten a crooked picture on the wall. Jeff tells her to "stop playing like a girl". Then Britta succeeds, opening a secret passage.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Paranoia}}'' recommends that {{Game Master}}s occasionally roll the dice for no reason other than making the players nervous.
* ''Risus'' too in order to help with improvising off what the players speculate the roll was for.
* ''DungeonsAndDragons'' occasionally uses this trope to explain why all the magic and gear seems designed for folks crawling into caverns, killing ugly people, and taking their stuff. The local magicians probably do make magical plows to help farmers, magical compasses for navigators, and so on. However, since players don't care about most of this stuff most of the time, let's cut back to the stuff that will affect the world as players experience it.
** ''{{Eberron}}'' outright states this in its campaign setting.
** One article of Dragon Magazine was dedicated to listing such mundane magic items.

* Since every object in a game has to be created from scratch, unlike, say, movies, where the world conveniently exists already, this is inevitable in video games of all types with regard to the environment. There simply aren't the resources in terms of textures or manpower to create, say, five hundred unique cars, or thousands of different books to fill a library that only makes up part of a single level. Some games have started creating [[ProceduralGeneration procedural]] plant life and {{mook}}s, but man-made products are likely to always be subject to this trope.
** Any newspapers you see will always be either the cover or a single page with a story relevant to the game, even if they're supposed to be random pages blowing in the wind.
** Books will usually be relevant to the plot or at least relevant to its message; an evil doctor might have fifty copies of ''Frankenstein'' lining his various shelves, for example.
** Industrial equipment will usually look brand-new and catalog-fresh, with no signs of wear and tear and everyone mysteriously using just one brand of any given piece of equipment. (If an object does look worn, every other one of those objects will be worn in exactly the same way.)
** Buildings that aren't falling down for plot reasons will look like they've just been finished and certainly never lived in.
** In any game without an inventory system (and many with), no matter what is displayed on a vending machine, using or destroying it will cause it to dispense exactly one type of product, usually cans with no discernable logo.
** If you're going through an office, any desk, office or cubicle which contains significantly more objects than normal will belong to a character important to the plot in some way. This also tends to apply to houses in AdventureTowns. If not, the clutter will be part of a puzzle of some kind.
** People have an odd habit of barricading any rooms of their house you don't actually need to visit, often using their inexplicable collection of identical furniture. [[InsurmountableWaistHeightFence This works even if the furniture and doors are wood and you have a gun that one-shots tanks]]. Alternatively, a MasterOfUnlocking might be part of your team to only open the doors that actually have things behind them.
** All guns use the same types of ammo. If you do get ammo for a gun you don't have, you'll have a chance to acquire it later. Even uncommon types tend to be just lying around in plain sight. Any given type of ammo will be in the same type of box, and any gun cabinets will be unlocked. If it is locked, you'll need a puzzle to find the key, instead of just finding the owner, or their body. Strangely, gun cabinets tend to the same types of problems encountered with barricaded doors above.

* Subverted with the first generation of the Anime/{{Pokemon}} games. There's a [[http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Truck#Rumors one-of-a-kind truck in the game]] (vehicles aren't seen anywhere else in the game since the preferred methods of travel are walking and flying or surfing on Pokémon) that can only be seen under very specific conditions at a certain point in the game before being LostForever (although there are ways to return to it later in the game); a very high percentage of players would not see it while playing through the game. Endless rumors were spouted about the truck, such as finding a Mew there, etc.; however, the truck actually had no real significance at all. The rest of the series just follow this trope in every possible way.
* ''VideoGame/{{Persona}}'':
** In ''Persona 3 Portable'', the PSP rerelease of ''VideoGame/{{Persona 3}}'', a random faceless character was added in the game's bar/night club. He makes some pretty ominous statements throughout the game, but the last thing he says near the end of the game is followed by a portrait. This leads fans to believe that due to the Law of Conservation of Detail, he is important. Turns out he's a character named Vincent, protagonist of an Atlus psychological horror game titled ''{{Catherine}}''.
** ''VideoGame/{{Persona 4}}'' exemplifies this trope. Every little nagging detail has meaning -- ''every'' detail. The guy who gets rejected by Yukiko at the beginning of the game?[[spoiler: Serial killer suspect. Turns out to be a copycat.]] The council secretary who is having an affair? [[spoiler: Serial killer suspect. Turns out he was being duped.]] The TV announcer he was having the affair with? [[spoiler: Murder victim.]] The bumbling detective who can't keep his mouth shut? [[spoiler: The serial killer.]] The gas station attendant you shake hands with in one of the very first scenes? [[spoiler: The one behind everything that happens in the entire game.]] The list goes on.

* ''{{Suikoden}}''
** In ''Suikoden'' you can tell in the games who is one of the [[OneHundredAndEight 108 Stars]]: If they have a portrait and a name, they're a Star (or a villian, but [[DefeatMeansFriendship those are often the same thing]]).
** Subverted in ''SuikodenII'', however. There's a character with a portrait and a name (Ellie) that is neither a Star nor important to the story at all. She exists for one reason: In the quest that's unlocked if you load ''SuikodenI'' data at the start of the game, [[spoiler:Tir [=McDohl=] joins your party while Gremio occupies a Convoy space. However, if you failed to resurrect Gremio in the S1 file you loaded, he'll be dead in this game, and Eilie will take his place in the plot, occupying the convoy and speaking his lines instead]].
* Subverted in ''VideoGame/ChronoCross''. Of the portraits that characters have, forty of them are playable characters, five of them are alternate versions of the playable characters, and twenty six of them are [=NPCs=]. Of the [=NPCs=], one is unimportant: a shopkeeper you meet early on. Throughout the game you become convinced she'll be important, but she never does, being the only one of the LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters who isn't.\\

The shopkeeper, however, is ''related'' to Funguy. Every single NPC with a character portrait seems to be related to one of the [=PCs=].
* Avoided in ''Franchise/MetalGear'', ''VisualNovel/{{Snatcher}}'', ''VisualNovel/{{Policenauts}}'' and anything HideoKojima does, because of his ''obsessive-compulsive insanity''. He cannot stand to ''not'' worldbuild. The only people who care about the incredibly elaborate [[DeusAngstMachina tragic backstories]], sex lives and namedropping pertaining to characters who show up once and then die - and the endless infodumps about guns and items and nuclear weapons and the future and useless metagame trivia - are going to be fanfiction writers. For the most part, backstory events will be mentioned inconsequentially to add a little flavour to a character.\\
\\
For example, Hideo Kojima designed every desk in the first Metal Gear Solid separately. Every single desk! You have to respect a man who puts in that much work. And at least in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' Kojima-san was nice enough to let players skip all that and go right to the neck-snapping if they want.
* The entire ''VisualNovel/AceAttorney'' scene is all over this, up to the point of being {{Anvilicious}}. Every piece of evidence - besides the lawyer's badge, etc. - is always used at least once. The problem is using the right one, because you need to use them [[GuideDangIt as a sort of sentence fragment to answer questions.]] Players soon hit on the idea of [[SaveScumming saving before a particular point]] they don't know how to get through, and just trying out ''[[TryEverything every single item]]''.
** Similarly: profiles in ''Justice for All'' and ''Trials & Tribulations.'' The lawyer's badge gets used once or twice outside of the courtroom. You even had to present the screwdriver, which had importance exactly because it has ''no importance at all'', which throws suspicion on the suspect's reasoning for having Edgeworth personally pick it up in the first place.
** A 'unique' one happens in ''VisualNovel/AceAttorneyInvestigationsMilesEdgeworth''. In Case 5, 'Turnabout Ablaze', which is the last and LONGEST case, Edgeworth tidies his evidence several times, removing used and useless evidence. [[InterfaceSpoiler And so you know 'Samurai Dogs' are going to be used at some point because it survived the first two 'evidence-sortings'.]]
* In the first ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil'' game, there's a single empty room in Jill's storyline. No puzzles, no items, no enemies. Turns out it's only important in Chris' scenario.
* One Sega CD role playing game would say things like "Who would talk to a cow" if you talked to the cow, as all role players will do. Also mentioned "Wow the guards and castle are laid out exactly the same in this castle as they were in the last one. Maybe that is to show how the two kingdoms are very closely tied, or maybe the programmers were just lazy."
* Averted in ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'' series, most notably the more recent offerings. The sheer amount of useless items dropped into the environment (paintbrushes, mugs, flatware, etc.) threatens to boggle the mind.
** Being on the same engine, ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}}'' and ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' do the same. However, a shrewd player will be able to tell important items from the rest of the VendorTrash and CowTools that litter the level. The older ones had TV dinners, popcorns, nuka-colas, ''pocket lint'', and others that do nothing but take up space in your inventory. You can also examine rocks. Do it enough times and your character will ''cry out in frustration''.
* Near the beginning of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'' we find a masked character that ''manually'' opens doors unlike every other NPC in the entire game. This tiny fact foreshadows just how long his particular sidequest will go on for and how important he really is. [[spoiler: He even temporarily becomes a PC.]]\\
\\

* ''AceCombat''
** ''Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies'' mission "Deep Strike" is set in an area with a ravine leading from the target area back to the RTB line. After splashing the targets, you get notice that Stonehenge is firing your way and have to take your plane below 2000 feet in order to make it out of the area. The only way to do that? Why, the ravine. It also shows up in the "Megalith" mission. Those other missiles within reach aren't just for show.
** ''X: Skies of Deception'' is also in love with this. It's particularly obvious after you play both halves - or, in one case, all three thirdths - of a RemixedLevel. Most of them.
* In ''FireEmblem'', almost all enemy or NPC with unique sprites and more then a few lines of dialogue is either a boss or recruitable. Which is understandable, considering how many enemies you end up facing.
* ''VideoGame/TheGodfather: The Game'' subverts this. There are various places that appear different on the map, many a locked door... While some of them are indeed significant, quite a few of those are {{Red Herring}}s that aren't of any consequence whatsoever, even in sidequests.
* In ''[[VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto Grand Theft Auto IV]]'', the dirt bike seemed to be an incredibly useless bike: not as fast as the speed bikes, not as cool-looking as the choppers, not as cool-sounding as any of the bikes. But, provided you choose the right storyline, Niko uses a dirt bike to chase [[spoiler: Pegorino]] in a helicopter. (Needless to say, the dirt bike also enables a CrowningMomentOfAwesome).
* Used in a different way in the first two ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' games. The point-and-click aspect leads to a prevalence of "examining" objects similar to Wasteland. Therefore, even if the character sprites are the same, a player can tell the difference this way. Upon examining two men in leather jackets, you might see this:
-->''You see a bar patron.''
-->''You see a short, stocky man. He has the confident, relaxed stance of an experienced fighter.''
** Also used hilariously for innocuous items that aren't really meant to be examined. Upon examining a pile of rocks:
-->--''You see a large pile of rocks.''
-->--''You keep a close eye on these rocks, in case they move to attack you.''
* Subverted in ''VideoGame/KnightsInTheNightmare''. The added artbook gives details on all of the units and all of the knights, including age, personality, relationships with the other knights, and character portraits. This is actually important to using the transoul feature.
* Subverted in ''VideoGame/DragonQuestIX''. The world map is a fairly large place, but not all of it is covered with interesting things. A lot of the dead-ends are covered in item gathering points, and eventually you find maps to grottoes, randomly-generated dungeons that are invisible on the world map until you "search" them with the A button. However, most of these grottoes rarely stray far from the beaten path, and a noticeable amount of areas on the world map end up never becoming the slightest bit notable. The Eastern Stornway area is particularly empty; the enemy encounters there are nearly identical to the Western Stornway area, there's very few grottoes in the area, and a single item-gathering point (seashells, on the southern stretch of beach). The bulk of the Eastern Stornway area, including the entire northern beach, remains unused.
** Played straight with characters, though. Plot-important [=NPCs=] generally get 3D sprites. Generic ones are all 2D sprites, recycled throughout the game.
* {{Lampshaded}} in ''[[DotHack .hack//]]''. Several characters wonder why the graphics in the Hulle Granz Cathedral are so gorgeous when there's absolutely ''nothing'' there. The Cathedral is in fact one of the most important areas in the entire ''franchise'' (every single story has something important happen there), but within the context of the GameWithinAGame, there really isn't anything there.
* In ''VideoGame/ArTonelico2'', you can tell which characters are important to the plot because they have full-body pictures used when they speak; everybody else has only a small sprite. This leads to strange situations like a visible character speaking to an "invisible" one, or [[EarlyBirdCameo identifying a character that turns out to be very important later]] during an otherwise innocuous scene.
* Many an UrbanLegendOfZelda was started thanks to this trope. Back in the day, when more rudimentary technology meant a much stricter enforcement of this, people took it for granted that only the important stuff would get detailed. So as technology got better and developers started averting this trope for the sake of providing a richer gaming world, gamers payed attention to neat but nonessential details (e.g. the Mario character portraits seen through a window in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'') and thought that they had some greater significance.
* Modern InteractiveFiction loves this. One-room games where the player must use everything in the room are common--if there's a wad of gum in the trash can, sooner or later that will be an important wad of gum. From playing these games, audiences come to expect this, too, making it a self-fulfilling cycle: If your game mentions the walls, players will get mad if the walls aren't fully implemented.

* RPG Classic ''DivineDivinity'' takes this trope and uses a sledgehammer to destroy it. It contains innummerable amounts of plot-unrelated or useless things like kitchen ware, pictures, junk and all sorts of other things that can be bought or sold for no reason or moved around yet not used for anything useful. It also contains a lot of [[InGameNovel books]], most of which are highly entertaining short stories and at least two longer series, one about an Ork pirate and his adventures. Others show spells and demon summoning or are about the ingame world, describing plants, animals and monsters.

* Averted in ''VideoGame/{{DreamWeb}}'' - there's plenty of items you can take, but the most of them are useless, and would just clutter your inventory. (things like plates, cups, lighters, and so on)
* Averted in the ''VideoGame/DeusEx'' series, there's dozens of characters you can talk to that have no impact on the plot and serve no purpose, and there's lots of virtual books that are interesting to read but don't really serve any actual purpose.
* Averted somewhat in ''VideoGame/{{EarthBound}}'' due to useless items like the Protractor and Ruler. Some NPCs don't say anything useful, but are there to add witty lines. Finally, there are plenty of food items that are usable, but impractical by the time you reach them. Sure, eating a hamburger in combat (effectively instantly, and with no chance of indigestion!) is funny, but PSI powers are generally far more practical.
* In ''VideoGame/AmnesiaTheDarkDescent'' there are many many books and shelves full of books but there are only about five book models in the engine. However they are often cunningly arranged on the shelves to give the illusion, albeit paper-thin, of variety. In fact it's not something you really notice, what with trying to keep from being eaten by monsters, until you have to solve a [[BookcasePassage bookshelf puzzle]] fairly early in the game. [[spoiler: The books you have to pull to open the secret passage are all tall, thick, protrude farther out on the shelf than the other books, and are white (whereas every other book in the game is either red, blue, green, or brown) making them incredibly easy to spot ''even without any light''. It's a bit disappointing because the in-game dialogue sets it up as something really challenging.]]. After that, it's hard ''not'' to notice it.

* In ''WesternAnimation/WinxClub'' season 3, viewers expected that Chimera being a fairy studying at Beta Academy would become important, and complained about [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot plot waste]] when it proved otherwise. During the same season, Aisha briefly mentions that some places still have [[ArrangedMarriage Arranged Marriages]], and later she discovers that she's been placed into one.

* A similar case to the {{Pixar}} example for ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'': ''Every''pony, even five-second gag characters, has at least their own FanNickname, Wiki sub-article, and can even be promoted to join the long list of [[EnsembleDarkhorse Ensemble Darkponies]].
* There are many random mutants released from Genosha in the Slave Island episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{X-Men}}''. Except they aren't so random at all, seeing how Mystique is one of them. The Blob is also there, and several others who will become important in later episodes.
* A ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' episode started with Brooklyn making a remark about mosquitoes. While that alone was unusual, by the time a second one was mentioned, it became obvious they will be vital to the plot. [[spoiler: Turns out they were drones used by Demona to collect blood samples from the Gargoyles, so Sevarius could clone them.]]