Line #30 Main/SameStoryDifferentNames


1	->''"I think the best explanation for Ken Levine's career is that there's some kind of matronly school teacher standing behind him repeatedly going, 'Now do it again, but ''properly'' this time.'"''
2	-->-- '''''WebAnimation/ZeroPunctuation''''' on ''VideoGame/BioShockInfinite''
3
4	An author has a big hit. Then he writes more stories with essentially the same plot as the first hit. Replication of success may vary.
5
6	Compare CreatorDrivenSuccessor, which continues on the same themes without rehashing the story. See also {{Expy}}, StrictlyFormula, RecycledPremise, and RecycledScript. Also see BetterByADifferentName and its more vitriolic sibling TheyCopiedItSoItSucks, both of which are about people thinking a creator has done this to someone else's work.
7	Not to be confused with AdaptationNameChange.
8	----
9	!!Examples:
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11	[[foldercontrol]]
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13	[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
14	* ''Anime/SummerWars'' is almost a ShotForShotRemake of ''Anime/DigimonAdventure: Our War Game'' at times, albeit with a lot of AdaptationExpansion. The two films were both directed by Creator/MamoruHosoda.
15	* The ''Anime/DragonBallZ'' movies recycle the plot of whatever arc they are placed in the timeline and sometimes they don't even bother making the villains anything more than {{exp\|y}}ies (Janemba to Buu etc). For example, ''[[Anime/DragonBallZBojackUnbound Bojack Unbound]]'' is just a recycled Cell Games with Gohan beating Bojack in the exact same way he defeated Cell (going [=SSJ2=] and receiving moral support from the afterlife by Goku), ''[[Anime/DragonBallZFusionReborn Fusion Reborn]]'' is about the MadeOfEvil demon ''Janemba'' (instead of Majin Buu) being clobbered by the fusion ''Gogeta'' (instead of Vegeto). Even [[Anime/DragonBallZDeadZone Garlic Jr.]] is just King Piccolo + Raditz... This practice is lampshaded hard by [[WebVideo/DragonBallZAbridged the abridged version of Lord Slug]], where Lord Slug's plan is compared to King Piccolo's and some of his own minions accidentally call him King Piccolo. Likewise, the abridged versions of Cooler's movies (especially [[Anime/DragonBallZTheReturnOfCooler the second one]]) make a lot of jokes about how he's a copy of Freeza. (As Freeza's ''older'' brother, Cooler doesn't appreciate this.)
16	* The ''Anime/SaintSeiya'' tends to recycle its own stories with the same formulas over and over again, specially in the mangas written by its original author, Masami Kurumada. He also tends to repeat over and over a similar formula in his other mangas. His formulatic and fast paced pattern became well known in Shonen Jump publication as the ''Kurumada style'' and it's considered a classic in old-school manga.
17	[[/folder]]
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19	[[folder:Fan Works]]
20	* Website/FanFictionDotNet has had to explicitly ban "rewriting names of characters/locations of one story in order to upload to multiple categories" (although this only concerns the most blatant version of this trope).
21	[[/folder]]
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23	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
24	* Creator/TylerPerry receives a lot of criticism for this. His movies usually have a black woman in an abusive relationship (or who was in one) who is a single mom. She will meet a nice working class man, and hate him at first because of that, but they will grow to like each other. Meanwhile, somebody will have a problem with their baby mama, somebody will be on drugs, Madea will discipline some children and there will be some incest involved. But at the end, there will be a church scene where everyone finds Jesus and all is well. His first movie, ''Film/DiaryOfAMadBlackWoman'', actually received decent reviews; his later movies [[CriticalDissonance have been poorly received by critics but made quite a bit of money.]]
25	* A lot of cinephiles say this about Creator/HowardHawks's films ''Film/RioBravo'', ''Film/ElDorado'' and ''Rio Lobo'', all of which had Creator/JohnWayne playing the lead.
26	[[/folder]]
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28	[[folder:Literature]]
29	* Creator/DanBrown. Except for the settings and {{MacGuffin}}s of each story, they're all the same. ''Literature/TheDaVinciCode, Literature/AngelsAndDemons, Literature/DigitalFortress, Literature/DeceptionPoint'' -- all written by the same exact formula to a hundred details of specificity.
30	* Creator/GordonKorman made his name with ''This Can't Be Happening at Literature/MacdonaldHall!'' featuring the zany yet skillful Bruno and his OnlySaneMan friend Boots as they mess around in a BoardingSchool. In addition to writing some direct sequels, he also made several other "Crazy Awesome Guy and his straight-man best friend pull off CrazyEnoughToWork schemes" books before eventually branching out. Such as:
31	** ''I Want to Go Home'' = this time they're at a [[SummerCampy summer camp]].
32	** ''Who Is Bugs Potter?'' and its sequel = this time they're musicians.
33	** ''Our Man Weston'' = this time they're twins.
34	** ''Don't Care High'' = this time they're at the world's most apathetic high school.
35	** ''A Semester in the Life of a Garbage Bag'' = this time, the Bruno Expy is BornUnlucky.
36	** Of course, some of his books he wrote in high school, which is a bit of an excuse.
37	*** ''Literature/{{Schooled}}'' is the second Korman book (after ''Literature/DontCareHigh'') to involve a pair of students causing a clueless and socially awkward nonentity to become their class president of a CrapsackWorld school with an EmbarrassingNickname (Don Carney High School/Don’t Care High and Claverage Middle School/C Average Middle School), only for the school to be revitalized by the new President as he becomes a SchoolIdol. The main difference is that the nomination is a cruel prank by the villains in ''Literature/{{Schooled}}'' and a well-meaning plan to drag the school out of its slump in ''Literature/DontCareHigh''. Also, Cap from ''Literature/{{Schooled}}'' takes his responsibilities as president a lot more seriously than TheChosenZero in the earlier book.
38	* Almost all of the fantasy novels by Creator/LEModesittJr, and even some of his science fiction novels, feel like the same story [[WorldBuilding with a different coat of paint]]. Luckily for him, it's still a pretty good story (and it's really nice paint).
39	* Julian F. Thompson's big hit was ''The Grounding of Group Six'', about five teenagers whose RichBitch parents paid a school to have them killed off. The guy hired to do the killing does a HeelFaceTurn when he realizes that the kids aren't the monsters he was told they were. Then they all run off and hide in the woods, form TrueCompanions, and PairTheSpares. He also wrote several other books on the "five or six kids get dumped by parents, run off together to the woods, form True Companions and Pair the Spares" theme, such as:
40	** ''Gypsyworld'' = takes place in another world, and some of the kids were gotten rid of by their parents and some were just stolen, but the gypsies won't tell them which was which. Otherwise, same as ''Group 6'' but with an eco-theme.
41	** ''A Band of Angels'' = kids on the run again from the government.
42	* Most of Creator/DavidGemmell's books feature an old hero who becomes a mentor to a young hero, a fiery damsel who is rarely in distress, a magical order, and a hopeless battle.
43	* Most of Creator/DavidEddings' work is like this, following a very clear HighFantasy outline with lots of Expys, LampshadeHanging, and snark (though he did tend to play around a bit with what personalities occupied what roles- in ''Literature/TheBelgariad'', for example, TheHero is a farmboy ChosenOne and the BigBad is a GodOfEvil in the traditional Satanic vein; in ''Literature/TheElenium'', the roles are held by a KnightInSourArmor and an EldritchAbomination, respectively). There's a LampshadeHanging in The Mallorean (the sequel to ''Literature/TheBelgariad''), where the characters realise they're following ''the same prophecy again''.
44	** Made even more blatant when you realize there are places where lines of dialog used in the first were apparently copy/pasted into the second.
45	* Jack [=McDevitt=]: Some {{Adventurer Archaeologist}}s find a clue leading them to a lost location full of ancient knowledge. There's probably a government or corporation messing things up, whether [[ObstructiveBureaucrat unintentionally]] or [[CorruptCorporateExecutive malignantly]]. Someone WILL [[HeroicSacrifice sacrifice]] him or herself, either for their comrades or to protect the knowledge (sometimes this is by way of RedemptionEqualsDeath -- see the next item). There will be a FaceHeelTurn or a HeelFaceTurn. One or two couples will develop -- generally someone from such couple will die, leaving their partner devastated. When they find the cache, some huge catastrophe will destroy all of what they find except when they can carry while running away, or they'll be an epoch too late. Either way, their discovery [[NothingIsTheSameAnymore changes everything]].
46	* ''Literature/{{Goosebumps}}''. It's a given that the main character will be 12 years old, that they will be unpopular, and that they are doing at least one of the following things: moving to a new house, going to camp, visiting relatives, or working on a school project. They will encounter strange and spooky things but will make it out fine, until the last second where the surprise TwistEnding kicks in and they turn out to be dogs or something.
47	* Creator/JodiPicoult's books all have the same (general) formula after she wrote ''Literature/MySistersKeeper'', which was (and still is) her most successful book: People (usually centering on the woman) living a normal life (in some New England town), something big happens/happened to them (i.e. husband is cheating, child is arrested) and there ends up being a court case either involving family members (i.e a family member committed a crime) or involving family members suing each other. Usually the court case involves children or teens. Expect one child to be severely ill and wiser than their years. The parents will/already did forget about the other child, if there is one. It is often a TearJerker, but is successful because of that (the judge/jury feels sorry for the defendant). Usually there is a Shocking Swerve near the end, and somebody dies. Examples include: ''Literature/VanishingActs'', ''Literature/HouseRules'', ''Literature/HandleWithCare''.
48	* Creator/SarahDessen's books almost always follow this formula: The girl has an annoying, messed up family situation (usually moves a lot), girl doesn't know how to deal with it, girl meets boy, boy fixes everything in girl's hypothetical world, and then there's always that moment when Girl and Boy are going to have a falling out, but they'll be back together by the end. Only some of her earliest novels (''Literature/ThatSummer'', ''Literature/SomeoneLikeYou'', ''Literature/{{Dreamland}}'') don't follow this formula. Another novel, ''Literature/TheMoonAndMore'', does change up this formula some ([[spoiler:in that the main character doesn't end up with either of her love interests]]), and promptly got flack from fans for mixing things up too much.
49	* Children's books by Laura Numeroff and Felicia Bond hardly even bother with different names. Start with ''Literature/IfYouGiveAMouseACookie'', then try ''If You Give a Bear A Brownie''. If you liked that, you're sure to like ''If You Give A Cat A Cupcake''!
50	* Creator/CassandraClare. So far, both of her series have been about an ordinary teenage girl who learns she has [[SecretLegacy magical powers]] that her conveniently absent parents hid from her. Unable to go home, she finds herself living at the local ExtranormalInstitute and gets into a [[BettyAndVeronica love triangle]] between a DeadpanSnarker and a NiceGuy. The villain, who has mysterious ties to her parentage, aims to TakeOverTheWorld with the help of her evil older brother. And most of the characters in ''Literature/TheMortalInstruments'' are {{exp\|y}}ies from ''Fanfic/TheDracoTrilogy'', her ''Franchise/HarryPotter'' fanfiction.
51	* Creator/PGWodehouse admitted to this trope several times, at one point complaining that a reviewer had "called attention to the thing I try to hush up – viz., that I have only got one plot and produce it once a year with variations." On another occasion he said that he'd put paid to a reviewer who called his previous book "the same old characters with different names" by writing his new book about the same old characters under the ''same'' names.
52	* Creator/MercedesLackey has several series that are just the same story happening two or three times in a row. For instance, the [[Literature/HeraldsOfValdemar Mage Storms trilogy]].
53	* Quite a number of Creator/RaymondEFeist's books follow the plotline of (1) one or two misfit boys get in trouble, (2) they randomly come across the ongoing battle against that evil wizard who keeps reincarnating throughout the series, (3) they get recruited by the shadow council, a group of powerful magicians, (4) they end up in a magical resort where EverybodyHasLotsOfSex, (4) the powerful magicians oppose the evil wizard, (5) the misfit boy(s), despite being way out of their league, happen to influence a key event causing victory, and (6) evil wizard escapes again.
54	* Creator/DeanKoontz novels, especially the ones from the 80s and 90s, will have a highly competent, good hero who is slightly depressed and withdrawn because of bad experiences in his past, who in the course of the plot will meet a woman who is either very confident and outgoing or extremely shy and sheltered but who also has enormous inner strength, they're always both very Christian and end up in a relationship. The villain is usually a pure evil monster with a scientific explanation, or a human man who believes himself to be a new god or somehow superior to the rest of the world. Then there's a choice of cute kid, noble (or actually magical) handicapped person, or cute, noble, highly intelligent dog (always a lab or golden retriever), or some combination of the above.
55	* Most of Brian Jacques' ''Literature/{{Redwall}}'' plots are ''very'' similar. Redwall's in trouble. A hero carries Martin's legendary sword and kicks ass. FamilyUnfriendlyViolence occurs. [[SacrificialLion Someone important]] (or not important, but [[SacrificialLamb very kind or innocent]]) dies. More FamilyUnfriendlyViolence. The BigBad gets a big dose of LaserGuidedKarma and dies. Redwall is saved. The end. All interspersed with lots of FoodPorn.
56	* This is the problem that Creator/NicholasSparks' detractors find with his books: somewhere in North Carolina, a good girl (''always'' a Christian and almost always a DaddysGirl) finds love with a bad boy who is usually non-religious, one may have another suitor who's a JerkAss, the love of the girl magically transforms the boy and they leave the other boy/girlfriend for the true love, there's some for of conflict (Dad disapproves, one's from the wrong side of the tracks, etc.), the girl (or someone else crucial to their lives) dies (mainly because TrueArtIsAngsty) and the boy is grieving, but somehow feels closer to God, [[LostAesop because losing the love of your life is supposed to bring you ]]''[[LostAesop closer]]'' [[LostAesop to religion after years of not following anything?]]
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59	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
60	* ''Series/DoctorWho'': 1970s-era script editor Creator/TerranceDicks once complained about writer Creator/TerryNation that, while he told an excellent story, it was always the ''same'' story (his Creator/JonPertwee-era contributions, "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS10E4PlanetOfTheDaleks Planet of the Daleks]]" and "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS11E3DeathToTheDaleks Death to the Daleks]]", were blatant rehashes of the first Dalek story, except on a different planet, with different characters, and with a different Doctor). This led to what many fans consider his masterpiece: "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS12E4GenesisOfTheDaleks Genesis of the Daleks]]".
61	* Creator/VanKootenEnDeBie: Their TV show had several different names over the years, but was always known as ''"Van Kooten en De Bie"'' and essentially the same format: the duo discussed what was in the news that week and then showed sketches or pre-recorded interviews with their characters in between.
62	[[/folder]]
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64	[[folder:Music]]
65	* The critically/fan-acclaimed albums for Music/{{Metallica}} tend to be down to an 8-9 song formula. ''Ride the Lightning'', ''Master of Puppets'', ''...And Justice For All'', and ''Death Magnetic'' all follow a similar structure to the music, with [[EpicRocking varying music lengths]] based on how advanced CD/LP technology is at the time. Each opens with a song that sounds like most of the rest of the album that also has an unusual intro (acoustic, fade-in, heartbeat) before the album's title track if it has one. Track four is generally lighter or slower ("One"[[note]] ''...And Justice For All''[[/note]] and "The Day That Never Comes"[[note]]''Death Magnetic''[[/note]] have identical song structures) and the penultimate track (or last, in the case of ''Lightning'') is an instrumental before a fast-paced song that's not as long as the ones preceding it.
66	* Music/KingCrimson tends to cycle with two-three albums sounding similar to each other, followed by a NewSoundAlbum. Examples being the similarities for ''Lark's Tongue in Aspic'', ''Red'', and ''Starless and Bible Black''.
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69	[[folder:Theatre]]
70	* The Kabuki plays of Chikamatsu Monzaemon, a man regularly referred to as the 'Japanese [[Creator/WilliamShakespeare Shakespeare]]'. ''Courier for Hades'', ''Love Suicides at Amijima'', and ''Love at Sea'' all follow the same plot: a man (usually poor or made poor at the beginning of the story) is in love with a courtesan, but doesn't have enough money to pay her ransom. The protagonist has a rival, who wants the courtesan for himself, and so the protagonist steals money to pay the ransom. '''None''' of the characters in any of these plays live happily ever after. Oh Monzaemon, you really know how to work a crowd.
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73	[[folder:Video Games]]
74	* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros''. Almost all of his 2D games have the same plot: the princess has been kidnapped. Cross a bunch of levels to reach Bowser's castle and save her. Sometimes, this is introduced as a plot twist (in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3'', you're saving [[ForcedTransformation transformed]] kings and the princess is safe at home until the final world).
75	* The ''Franchise/MegaMan'' series includes the most infamous {{Mission Pack Sequel}}s in Video Game history, especially considering how the second half of the [[VideoGame/MegaManClassic original NES games]] (''Mega Man 1 - 6'') used the exact same plot. While [[ExcusePlot simple and generic]], the first three games had a not-horrible progression of intensity: [[VideoGame/MegaMan1 Wily betrays Light]], [[VideoGame/MegaMan2 Wily's Revenge]], [[VideoGame/MegaMan3 Wily's False Reform]]. Games 4-6 (and, while we're here, ''VideoGame/MegaManAndBass'', ''VideoGame/MegaMan9'', and ''VideoGame/MegaMan10'') all involve the apparent BigBad making way for [[HijackedByGanon Wily to steal the endgame]]. 9 at least is honest enough to admit it's Wily behind the scenes upfront.
76	* ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure'' tells the story of Dr. Eggman discovering a SealedEvilInACan, trying to use it to build his evil empire, and finding out at the end that EvilIsNotAToy. Switch the title and you have the plot of ''Videogame/SonicUnleashed'', ''Videogame/SonicLostWorld'', and the DS version of ''Videogame/SonicColors''.
77	* In the ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' series, ''VideoGame/MetalGear2SolidSnake'', ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'', ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty'', and (to a slightly lesser extent) ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidPortableOps'', ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidVGroundZeroes'' and ''VideoGame/MetalGearGhostBabel'' have extremely, extremely similar plots, events and setpieces, with only the names/justification changed (although the similarity between ''[=MGS1=]'' and ''[=MGS2=]'' is lampshaded/deconstructed by the story). ''VideoGame/MetalGear1'', ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'' and ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidPeaceWalker'' have suspiciously similar plots to each other as well, although it's not as clear. ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots'' had its own plot, and, coincidentally or otherwise, it's [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks more often than the others considered by fans to be incoherent and bad]]. On the other hand, ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidVThePhantomPain'' had a mixture of plot points from all over the series wrapped in a revenge plot, and the story is considered by some fans to be lacking in narrative focus.
78	* ''VideoGame/MetalGearAcid'' and its sequel have very similar stories, events and setpieces to each other, too. (Snake infiltrates a laboratory performing experiments on children due to the urging of a general keeping information from him, gets a blond female MsFanservice assistant, develops a rivalry with an enemy [[TheBrute Brute]] who is [[WorthyOpponent actually a pretty]] [[PunchClockVillain nice guy]], is [[StalkerWithACrush stalked somewhat homoerotically]] by the lead scientist in the base, is constantly plagued by the suspicion that his memories may be lies and he may just be the TomatoInTheMirror, and ends up in the thrall of the manipulations of an extremely powerful little girl with the spirit of a dead person living on inside them.) The similarity between them is lampshaded in the story with a couple of obvious {{Nostalgia Level}}s, but not justified at all. They also both do callbacks to ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' with levels where you have to go out of your way to get sniper rifles.
79	* In every main-series ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' game there's this {{kid\|Hero}} who just got their first [[{{Mons}} Pokémon]]. They travel around the region on a circular route, fighting in friendly Pokémon competitions. The kid defeats eight Gym Leaders, then the Elite Four, then the Pokémon Champion, and then [[ToBeAMaster is proclaimed new Champion]]. The kid also gets into conflict with some sort of villainous group, unintentionally at first, but then rallying to the cause and foiling the evil plans (usually [[SaveTheWorldClimax saving the world]] by doing so). The final battle against the villains occurs after the sixth or seventh Gym. The kid has a rival of roughly the same age, who's either a FriendlyRival or a stinker, or there are two rivals one in each archetype. The rival is fought at the very start of the game, right before the Elite Four, and 4-8 times in between. Finally, after the kid becomes Champion, they'll be able to track down and catch OlympusMons (though some may have shown up earlier).
80	* Most ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' games follow the same basic plot: TheHero (who's almost always a Prince) watches his country get invaded and taken over by TheEmpire, and leads his RagtagBunchOfMisfits in many battles against them, eventually invading the enemy's capital and defeating their TinTyrant ruler, only to find out that there was a case of TheManBehindTheMan manipulating things behind the scenes (who's almost always an EvilSorceror), out to summon a SealedEvilInACan. The Hero leads his army in several battles against the true BigBad's forces and eventually fights/defeats the sealed evil, often with the aid of a legendary weapon of some kind. What keeps the series interesting is that, while it has a mostly static set of character roles in its plots, the actual personalities of the characters who fill them are very different between games (For example, in one game the TinTyrant is a MisanthropeSupreme and a TragicVillain, while in another he's a BloodKnight and TheSocialDarwinist who wants to instill a new world order).
81	* As the ''WebAnimation/ZeroPunctuation'' quote up on top suggests, the ''VideoGame/BioShock'' and ''VideoGame/SystemShock'' games shows elements of this. ''VideoGame/BioShock1'' is quite close to ''System Shock 2'' in particular: [[spoiler:Atlas is Polito, seemingly benevolent VoiceWithAnInternetConnection helping you against the apparent enemy (The Many or Ryan). But then there is a midgame reveal and (Polito or Atlas) is shown to have been using you and to be the BigBad (Fontaine or SHODAN) after all.]] In the beginning, you get yourself out of a plane about to sink or a section about to decompress, visit a truly remarkable place (an underwater Objectivist utopia or humanity's first FTL ship), and spend most of your time there fighting people who have turned into zombies (Splicers or Hybrids). You make use of both weapons and magic (Plasmids or Psionics) while working your way first to one central enemy, [[spoiler: Ryan or The Many]] and then to another [[spoiler: Fontaine or SHODAN]]. On the way to the second enemy, you come across a helpful scientist or her logs (Delacroix or Tenenbaum) in a place that's otherwise devoid of non-hostiles.
82	** [[spoiler:''VideoGame/BioshockInfinite'' later established this as an inherent part of the {{Multiverse}} in which the games take place. "There is always a man, a lighthouse and a city" is the description used, one which applies to the ''[=BioShock=]'' games and also to the ''System Shock'' games if taken a little metaphorically.]]
83	* ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil5'' is essentially ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil4'' [[RecycledInSpace in Africa!]] Both games have glaringly similar plots, with the only difference being the setting and characters. In RE 4, Leon is ambushed at the start of the game and has to hold out until the church bell rings. In RE 5, Chris is ambushed at the start of the game and has to hold out until the chopper arrives. The helicopter pilot ends up dying in both instances. The same enemies appear under different names. Leon is reunited with Ada, who is working for the enemy. Chris is reunited with Jill, who is working for the enemy, and the basic premise involves one man trying to spread the virus to the whole world by targeting impoverished, rural villages as guinea pigs for his experiment.
84	* The developer Creator/{{Psikyo}} was infamous for rigidly adhering to the formula set by the first ''VideoGame/AeroFighters'' for the entirety of its 90s shoot-em-up output: nearly all of their game were vertically-oriented shmups with 7 or 8 stages and a [[NewGamePlus second loop]]. The first three or four stages are played in a random order. Stages are short. Most bosses have two phase, usually going from a vehicle or battletation to a more humanoid or animalistic mecha... etc. While the games added at least one mechanic or changed the specific of how the random stage ordering or ChargedAttack works, the games were so interchangeable that until the company started making 3D games, all of their shmups shared the same bullets, powerups/bombs sprites and Continue? screen graphics.
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Context Main / SameStoryDifferentNames