History Main / WeNeedToGetProof

* In the NES ''DickTracy'' game, as Dick is a by-the-book cop, you have to follow the trail and find a LOT of evidence before you can arrest any of the big villains, even though you can confront them directly at any time. Arresting them prematurely earns you a stern talking to from your boss. (Much to the chagrin of WebVideo/TheAngryVideoGameNerd.)

* Subverted in ''StarTrekDeepSpaceNine''. When Sisko sets out to find proof that the Dominion is going to attack the Romulans, resident spy-in-exile Garak tells him the best way to find it will be to manufacture it themselves.

* In {{Fallout}}, after saving the mayor of a little town from an assassination attempt, he asks you to gather evidence on the person (a local crime boss casino owner) he knows is behind it. You can either side with the crime boss, pretend to be an assassin available for work to make him do an EngineeredPublicConfession thanks to a tape recorder the mayor gave you, or just plain bugging his room.

* ''A Spy in the Neighborhood'' is about three boys who think a certain neighbor may be a spy. They want to get the cops on her case, but in order to do that, they need to find proof of some sort, so they basically spy on her.

* In ''[=~Baldur's Gate~=] II'' you're required to find overwhelming evidence of the younger Roenall's wrongdoings, as all complaints about him have to go through...him. So you need something very convincing to convince his superior to break protocol and get rid of him.
* In the NES ''DickTracy'' game, as Dick is a by-the-book cop, you have to follow the trail and find a LOT of evidence before you can arrest any of the big villains, even though you can confront them directly at any time. Arresting them prematurely earns you a stern talking to from your boss. (Much to the chagrin of WebOriginal/TheAngryVideoGameNerd.)

* A major plot thread in ''HarryPotter/{{Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince}}'' involves the titular character being certain that GoldfishPoopGang leader Draco Malfoy is up to something, and trying (without success) to prove it. Of course, this is in large part due to the fact that the primary responsible authority figures [[spoiler:(Dumbledore and Snape) already know he's up to something and want Harry to have as little to do with it as possible.]]

* A common occurance on ''{{CSI}}'' and its spinoffs. Often occurs on cases where the evidence isn't yielding as many leads as the CSIs need to make the case.

* The main obstacle for L of ''DeathNote'' is not in deducing [[SerialKiller Kira]]'s identity, but in finding proof beyond a shadow of a doubt to ''support'' his deduction.

* In the NES ''DickTracy'' game, as Dick is a by-the-book cop, you have to follow the trail and find a LOT of evidence before you can arrest any of the big villains, even though you can confront them directly at any time. Arresting them prematurely earns you a stern talking to from your boss. (Much to the chagrin of TheAngryVideoGameNerd.)

* ''{{The X-Files}}''.

* In ''BeyondGoodAndEvil'', this is basically the entire plot: to prove the [[ArmiesAreEvil Alpha Sections]] are secretly associated with the [[PlanetLooters Domz]] they're supposed to protect against.

* {{Animorphs}} starts off with the kids trying to expose the Yeerks' silent invasion to the world, in hopes that once the world knows what's going on, they'll be able to fight back. This plan becomes less significant as the series progresses, in favor of simple guerrilla war, but ultimately succeeds near the end.

* ''TheFugitive'' combines this with SternChase, as a wrongfully-accused man flees from the law as he tries to find the evidence to prove who the real killer was.

[[AC:Tabletop Games]]

* The early plot of ''MassEffect'' revolves around the protagonist uncovering evidence to prove that the villain is actually the villain to The not-so-omniscient council of very visible politicians.

* A major plot thread in ''HarryPotter/{{Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince}}'' involves the titular character being certain that GoldfishPoopGang leader Draco Malfoy is up to something, and trying (without success) to prove it.

* A major plot thread in ''HarryPotter/HarryPotterAndTheHalf-BloodPrince'' involves the titular character being certain that GoldfishPoopGang leader Draco Malfoy is up to something, and trying (without success) to prove it.

* A major plot thread in ''HarryPotterAndTheHalfBloodPrince'' involves the titular character being certain that GoldfishPoopGang leader Draco Malfoy is up to something, and trying (without success) to prove it.

* What Tenma of ''{{Monster}}'' occasionally tries to do about Johann. The rest of the time he's attempting to kill him.

* Subverted in ''Star Trek Deep Space Nine''. When Sisko sets out to find proof that the Dominion is going to attack the Romulans, resident spy-in-exile Garak tells him the best way to find it will be to manufacture it themselves.
* Happens a lot in WhiteCollar. The criminals are often known right away; the trick is gathering enough evidence to allow the FBI to do anything about it.

* In Wonderland, [[KingdomHearts Sora and company]] must clear Alice's name regarding an assassination attempt at the Queen and find evidence against the Heartless.

----
<<|NarrativeDevices|>>
<<|{{Plots}}|>>