History VideoGame / HackNSlash

* Main/Unwinnable: It is possible to cause this in many, ''many'' ways. While sometimes it won't be obvious what caused it or how long ago you did it, the game autosaves frequently and keeps all previous saves, so it's not ''too'' bad.

* [[Unwinnable]]: It is possible to cause this in many, ''many'' ways. While sometimes it won't be obvious what caused it or how long ago you did it, the game autosaves frequently and keeps all previous saves, so it's not ''too'' bad.

* ThreeWishes: Upon finding the magic lamp, the genie Halcyon will give you three wishes. As the wishes are made by [[spoiler:specifying one of the game's internal variables and something to change it to]], it is also possible to [[spoiler:wish for more wishes]].

* [[spoiler: CloningGambit: Florentine manages to put a stop to the wizards plans by duplicating her own code to create Alice. She knew that Alice would come and rescue her, because that's what she'd do.]]

* TheCracker: [[spoiler:The Wizard uses the same powers as Alice, but for malevolent ends.]]

* DecoyGetaway: [[spoiler:The first part of Alice's escape when imprisoned by the Wizard.]]
* EconomyCast
** CastOfSnowflakes: That being said, the game makes sure that every named character is visually distinct [[spoiler:, the one exception being justified as a literal 'copy' of another character.]]

* GameBreaker: The [[spoiler:ENABLE_DEBUG_BUTTONS artifact]] can be obtained just before starting the final act of the game. It has three functions: it can change the speed of time similarly to the TIME_DISTORTION artifact, it can display some debugging information on the screen that isn't particularly useful for actual gameplay, as well as a far more useful function: allowing you to [[spoiler:teleport anywhere in the level by clicking there]]. This last function enables you to completely bypass almost all of the puzzles in the castle.

* OmnicidalManiac: [[spoiler:The Wizard isn't this at first, but takes his first defeat by Alice... poorly.]]
* PowersAsPrograms: Naturally.

* RedHeadedHero: Alice.
* RealityWarper: Alice [[spoiler:the Wizard, and Florentine.]]

** [[spoiler: BadassPrincess / BadassInDistress : The reason being, she was very quickly catching on to his plans and learning his methods, and he needed to make sure she couldn't be a threat. And even then she manages to kickstart the events of the game.]]

* SequenceBreaking: An inevitable possibility in a game that lets you modify its code. But even before you get to that point, it's still possible at points.

* ThreeWishes: Upon finding the magic lamp, the genie Halcyon will give you three wishes. As the wishes are made by [[spoiler:specifying one of the game's internal variables and something to change it to]], it is also possible to [[spoiler:wish for more wishes]].
* UnfortunateImplications: Late in the game, a character gives you some bombs. She happens to share a name, most likely by accident, with a certain terrorist group that had been in the news around the time the game was officially released.

* GameMod: An rare in-universe example, in that you solve puzzles by making minor modifications to the game's actual code.

** Even before that, you can actually skip the second (third?) act entirely. This of course means you won't get the magic hat at all, nor any of the other items in the dungeon (besides the sword, because you start with it.) All you need to do is [[spoiler:remember or look up the correct path through the Infinite Woods, and go that way]] before you enter the dungeon. You can still go back to the dungeon later though, and bring [[spoiler: the bombs]] with you to hack your way past obstacles in even more ways.

* StealthPun: Isis' cat is named Script. So that makes it a [[spoiler:Script kitty.]] Badum-tss.

* ThreeWishes: Upon finding the magic lamp, the genie Halcyon will give you three wishes. As the wishes are made by [[spoiler:specifying one of the game's internal variables and something to change it to]], it is also possible to [[spoiler:wish for more wishes]].

* InTheHood: Alice starts off with one. [[spoiler:She uses it to finish off a [[DecoyGetaway decoy]] as part of her escape, revealing a USB port in the back of her head.]]

* CheatCode: Averted. It's possible to do pretty much anything you would normally use a cheat code for through normal gameplay. For example, avoiding damage is not a major part of this game. This is because very early on you can get an insane amount of health by [[spoiler:using an easily-obtainable artifact to reset the variable that says a one-time event in which you receive 10 HP has occurred, so you can do it again and again.]] This is not a [[GoodBadBugs glitch]] like it may sound, but rather something the player is expected to do.

* RealityWarper: Alice [[spoiler:and the Wizard.]]
* RewritingReality: Alice's abilities are all variations of this, [[spoiler:and the Wizard can do the same]].

* FunctionalMagic: The Game. Everything Alice can do involves programming, be it changing variables or outright meddling with the game's scripts.

* FunctionalMagic: The Game. Everything Alice can do involves programming, be it changing variables or outright meddling with scripts.

* ShoutOut: To a disassembler application, of all things: one character is named Ida, after IDA Pro. (which stands for '''I'''nteractive '''D'''is'''a'''ssembler.)

** For example, by a certain point the developers assume you have solved a puzzle which lets you understand the glyphs that appear when using the magic hat. The intended solution to the warden puzzle requires that you [[spoiler:change your name using a mechanic that the player will only understand if the glyphs have been decoded.]] However, you can also get past the warden by [[spoiler:hacking your own movement speed, as allowed by one of the artifacts]], or by simply [[spoiler:knowing from beforehand or online that you're supposed to enter and then change your name]], as it still works even if you haven't decoded the glyphs. This can lead to some confusion when Alice demonstrates an ability to understand the text displayed by the magic hat later on, as it will still appear as glyphs to the player. Thankfully, however, the time-traveling amulet makes backtracking very easy.

* RewritingReality: Alice's abilities are all variations of this, [[spoiler:and the Wizard can do the same]].

* HelloInsertNameHere: Alice is the protagonist's default name, but the player can input what they like. [[spoiler:Changing it later is the solution to a puzzle.]]