History Videogame / Vietcong

The first game puts players as US Special Forces Intelligence Sergeant Steve R. Hawkins, assigned to the SF camp in Nui Pek to replace the previous ([[PosthumousCharacter dead]]) intel sergeant, Douglas Warren, who is playable in the expansion pack, ''Fist Alpha''. Both the original game and ''Fist Alpha'' was bundled and ported to the UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 and UsefulNotes/XBox in 2004 as ''Purple Haze''.

%%* CoolGuns: Naturally.

%%* DoesNotLikeShoes: The Montagnards and some of the "poor" [=VCs=].

* SendInTheSearchTeam: At the beginning of ''Fist Alpha'', Douglas and his team sees an F105 going down. Naturally, they search the jungle for its pilot. In the second game, Boone and his team is tasked with rescuing ARVN Captain Soat, who "[[HeKnowsTooMuch knows too much]]".

** In ''Fist Alpha'', once Douglas and his team finds the F-105 pilot, they must protect him until the evac chopper arrives. In the second game, the player has to ensure that both Rigley and a US armored vehicle survive throughout certain parts in the US campaign.

** Some of the NVA[=/VCs=] in the first game wear Mao hats that are only worn by the Pathet Lao.

* BoobyTrap: Of course. [[TruthInTelevision It's Vietnam]]. On the plus side, the pointman will always spot them, and you can disarm them yourselves.

* ChromosomeCasting: All of the important characters are men.

* ColdFlames: Averted. You can and you ''will'' be hurt whenever you touch or stand next to or [[TooDumbToLive in]] a fire.

* ConcealmentEqualsCover: Averted. Like ''VideoGame/OperationFlashpoint'', hiding in bushes or tall grass slows you down and makes you both effectively invisible (unless somebody directly stumbles upon you) and more vulnerable to enemy fire.

* DamnYouMuscleMemory: Try playing this game after playing ''VideoGame/MedalOfHonor'', ''VideoGame/HalfLife1'', ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'', or any other [=FPS=] where you only need to hold either the left mouse button or the G key to use the grenade. Here, you'll have to press the left mouse button, ''then'' hold the button to cook the grenade, then release the button to throw it. Worse yet, the grenades in all of the games have exactly 4 seconds before exploding.

* DirtyCommunists: Played with. The NVA and VC hardly ever commit any atrocity in the first game, except in the second game with the church massacre in Hue. Hawkins, however, tend to view his enemies as such, especially based on his reactions upon finding collectables. For instance he reacts to an anti-American propaganda poster with "[[PrecisionFStrike Fuck you, commies]]", and calls both UsefulNotes/JosephStalin and UsefulNotes/MaoZedong mass murderers if he finds their photos.

** In ''Fist Alpha'', once Douglas and his team finds the F105 pilot, they must protect him until the evac chopper arrives. In the second game, the player has to ensure that both Rigley and a US armored vehicle survive throughout certain parts in the US campaign.

** The worst example is the second mission in Fist Alpha, the entire village must survive and you need to escort a single villager armed with only a double barreled shotgun and if a single one dies the mission fails, unlike your allies, the villagers have terminally low health and tend to die instantly, even the hunter who you need to escort can die before you can do anything to defend him.

* GrenadeLauncher: The [=M79=] and the [=XM148=], the latter of which is always underslung on an [=M16=].

-->'''Marine 1''': Yeah man, I've heard that almost all the Communist officers are dead by now and that the North Vietnamese rag-tag troops are commanded by lower-ranking officers.
-->'''Marine 2''': Their casualties are terrible man, and they're out of ammo. But it's not enough for them to back off. They fight till they can't stand.
-->'''Marine 3''': We're beatin' 'em hard, but they're still kicking. Any of us can be shot dead anytime by some bastard hiding in ruins or thick bushes.

* ContractualBossImmunity: Averted. But then again, it's not like the bosses [[AntiClimaxBoss are stronger]] than typical {{mooks}} when it goes to health.

* NamesTheSame: {{Averted|trope}}. Some of the important Vietnamese characters are named "Nguyen". Aside from sharing the same name, they are not related to each other.

* [[spoiler:BolivianArmyEnding]]: [[spoiler:Subverted.]]

* TheComputerIsACheatingBastard:

* DescriptionPorn: Hawkins' diary and documents. ''In spades''.
* DoesNotLikeShoes: The Montagnards and some of the "poor" [=VCs=].

* {{Foreshadowing}}: Bronson is concerned that the [=VCs=] might send in tanks to destroy the radio relay in Dong Tam Hanh hill. [[spoiler:The NVA does the exact same thing when they attacked Nui Pek]].
* GameBreakingBug: A really notorious (and famous) example occurs when the game is run on newer computers, especially in the third mission, where the game always crashes after Hawkins says "I can almost smell the VC bastards". It also crashes whenever the radio icon shows up on the HUD. Fortunately, there's [[http://www.vietcong1.cz/index.php?site=files&file=42 a third-party program]] that tweaks the game to prevent it from crashing.

* GoodGunsBadGuns: Played straight in Quick Fight mode. As Hawkins you can only start with NATO firearms, while as a VC soldier you can only start with Soviet[=/=]Warsaw Pact firearms.

* InkSuitActor: Most of the American characters, as seen [[http://vietcong.scorpions.cz/vc/clanek/galeria-postavy here]].
* KillItWithFire: The napalm strikes.

* MultiPlatform: The ''Purple Haze'' ports.

* {{Prequel}}: ''Fist Alpha''.

* ShootingGallery: Obviously present in the tutorial mode.
* SimulationGame

* TempleOfDoom: Again, double subverted with the Po Tlong Karai temple. Sure, it's filled with NVA forces, but there are no booby traps. [[spoiler:The same can't be said for the VC tunnel network beneath it]].

* TrappedBehindEnemyLines: Hawkins at several points in the game. While searching for Marv, no less.
* TrueCompanions: Everyone in Nui Pek.
* TunnelNetwork: Hawkins infiltrates some of these in the campaign.

* UpdatedRerelease: ''Fist Alpha''.

* WalkingShirtlessScene: Some of the "poor" [=VCs=].

* AwesomePersonnelCarrier: The M113 APC.

* [[LethalJokeCharacter Lethal Joke Weapon]]: The trombone gun.

* RagdollPhysics: Anytime a character dies, his corpse ragdolls. Can fall into [[{{Narm}} narmy]] territory at times.

* StartXToStopX: The Americans and the South Vietnamese employing the NVA[=/=]VC's own [[BoobyTrap Booby Traps]] against them.

* StoryDrivenInvulnerability: See GameplayAllyImmortality.

* UniversalDriversLicense: Played straight in multiplayer mode.

* AcceptableBreakFromReality: Mounted machine guns having BottomlessMagazines? Check. [[HollywoodSilencer Hollywood Silencers]]? Check. Your engineer having unlimited supplies of ammo? Check. The ability to drive tanks despite not being a tank crewman? Check!

* AllAsiansWearConicalStrawHats: Some of the [=VCs=], [[TruthInTelevision quite obviously]].
* AllYourBaseAreBelongToUs: In the first game, the [=VCs=] [[spoiler:(later the NVA)]] launched a couple of attacks on Nui Pek. And of course, the Tet Offensive in the second game.

* AlphabeticalThemeNaming: The expansion packs, except ''Red Dawn''.

* AnyoneCanDie: Subverted with your team-mates in the second game.

* BattleInTheRain: Many missions throughout the series.

* BoringButPractical: Any silenced weapon and assault rifle.

* CoolGuns: Naturally.
* ColdFlames: Averted. You can and you ''will'' be hurt whenever you touch or stand next to[=/=][[TooDumbToLive in]] a fire.

* CriticalExistenceFailure: Played straight with the player.

* DeathFromAbove: Several times throughout the series. All come from the Americans, who certainly ''love'' this trope.

* DuringTheWar (UsefulNotes/TheVietnamWar)

* EliteArmy[=/=]ElitesAreMoreGlamorous: We have the Green Berets, the CIDG, the LLDB, MACV, and the Vietnamese Rangers (Black Panthers[=/=]Hac Bao).

* EscortMission: In ''Fist Alpha'', once Douglas and his team finds the F105 pilot, they must protect him until the evac chopper arrives. In the second game, the player has to ensure that both Rigley and a US armored vehicle survive throughout certain parts in the US campaign.
** It's safe to say that the first game is one huge EscortMission; if one of your team-mates goes down, it's mission failed.

* FacklerScaleOfFPSRealism: Realistic.
* ForegoneConclusion: ''Fist Alpha'' and both campaigns in the second game.
* FriendlyFireproof: Averted. See also VideoGameCrueltyPunishment.
* GameMod: There are lots and lots of mods for the series. Unfortunately[[labelnote:*]]for people who prefer single-player mode[[/labelnote]] most of them are multiplayer-only.
* GameplayAllyImmortality: Averted. Subverted in the second game with your teammates, but still averted for everyone else.

* GunshipRescue: Many of 'em for the Americans in the form of Huey, Choctaw, and Cobra gunships.

* {{Hitscan}}: Painfully played straight for a realistic game franchise.

* HyperspaceArsenal: Averted. See LimitedLoadout.

* MilitaryAlphabet: Prevalent throughout the series. Hotel Six, everyone?
* MirroringFactions: The NVA, the ARVN, and the VC are depicted this way.
* MissingBackblast: Again, Jarringly played straight for a realistic game franchise.

* NintendoHard

* PinkMist
* RatedMForManly

* LaResistance: The [=VCs=].

* SequelDifficultyDrop: The console version of Purple Haze (Which, unlike the PC version which is just a collection of the first game and Fist Alpha is actually a remade version of the game for [=PS2=].), reduces the difficutly of Fist Alpha's missions while removing some of the harder ones, since they're now the first levels in the game instead of being intended to be played after the original game.

* ShortRangeShotgun: Averted.

* ShownTheirWork[=/=]TruthInTelevision: Lots and lots of 'em throughout the series.
* SniperRifle: The [=M21=], Dragunov, M1 Garand, and Mosin-Nagant.

* TheSquad: ''And.'' '''''HOW.'''''

* StuffBlowingUp: Caused by your C4 charges, no less.

* YourTerroristsAreOurFreedomFighters: Again, the [=VCs=].

* DifficultySpike: The VC campaign ''as a whole'', due to being much shorter (only ''4 levels!'') compared to the US campaign (13 levels).

* DifficultySpike: Any section where Hawkins is alone against any number of VC, as the player now has limited healing, can't restock US weapons outside of occasional pick-ups and will be unable to have allies spot enemies for them as well as being very easy to get pinned down and rushed by a group of VC.

* DifficultySpike: The VC campaign ''[[UpToEleven as a whole]]'', due to being much shorter (only ''4 levels!'') compared to the US campaign (13 levels).

* IconicItem[=/=]NiceHat: Pick any headgear worn by the protagonists. From bandannas, boonie hats, US marine caps, NVA pith helmets, the list goes on.

* FiveManBand: The player is accompanied by at least 5 team-mates in the first game and ''Fist Alpha''. In the second game, it's usually 4.

* BlackAndWhiteMorality: How the US and ARVN forces are depicted, sidesteping their more controversial actions during UsefulNotes/TheVietnamWar. The protagonist of the first game, Hawkins, reacts to VC and NVA propaganda in the way the average American patriot then would.

** Despite what Boone claims in the second game, a point repeated by some Americans real life, it is generally [[https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/22/opinion/vietnam-was-unwinnable.html agreed by historians]] that the Vietnam War was unwinnable even from a military standpoint.

* DirtyCommunists: Played with. The NVA and the [=VCs=] hardly ever commit any atrocity in the first game, except in the second game with the church massacre in Hue. Completely played straight for UsefulNotes/JosephStalin and UsefulNotes/MaoZedong, with Hawkins calling both of them mass murderers if he finds their photos.

* ArtisticLicenseHistory: Some of the NVA[=/VCs=] wear Mao hats that are only worn by the Pathet Lao.

* NotSoDifferent: The NVA, the ARVN, and the VC are depicted this way.