Line #97 VideoGame/Brink


1	[[quoteright:256:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/BRINK_7215.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:256:[[RuleOfCool Yes, it is possible to fly like this in the game.]] [[CutscenePowerToTheMax No, you cannot shoot like that.]]]]
3
4	''Brink'' is a FirstPersonShooter developed by Splash Damage, creators of the [[VideoGame/ReturnToCastleWolfenstein Enemy]] [[VideoGame/EnemyTerritoryQuakeWars Territory]] series. It is published by Creator/{{Bethesda}} and was released in May of 2011.
5
6	TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture, a green initiative to create a self-contained, self-sustaining city results in TheArk, [[ShiningCity a shining white utopia]] located somewhere out to sea to [[HiddenElfVillage hide it from unscrupulous parties.]] It originally housed about 5000 civilians, workers, security forces, etc. [[TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture Fast forward to 2025.]] [[GlobalWarming The sea levels have risen, displacing millions of people all over the world.]] Some of these people decide to get on boats and set out in search of the Ark. Most never reach their destination, but a lucky few (about 45,000) manage to find the Ark. Our aquatic arcology is now dangerously overpopulated, cut off from the outside world and its once-sustainable resources are now quickly dwindling. Enter [[LaResistance The Resistance,]] angry refugees who believe that the Founders are hoarding resources and not doing enough to improve living conditions and reestablish contact with the outside world. Enter also [[WorkingClassHero The Security,]] the Ark's police force, who have been forced to crack down in an effort to maintain order and preserve the Ark. Both sides are now on the [[TitleDrop Brink]] of total war.
7
8	The game is a fusion of single player, [[CoopMultiplayer Cooperative]] and [[CompetitiveMultiplayer Competitive]] play, where your character will move from one to the next seamlessly. You will earn ExperiencePoints for whatever you do no matter who you're playing with, and earn new items for CharacterCustomization. You will also be able to move through the environment LeParkour-style using a context-sensitive, one-touch interface that allows you to jump, vault, slide and wall run all over the place.
9
10	Poor AI, bad coding, and gameplay elements combined to kill the title on initial reviews and early after release with the end result being a critical and commercial failure that didn't last for very long as a viable multiplayer game with a competitive scene that was dead on arrival.
11
12	This game is now available for free on Steam, while the DLC still needs to be purchased.
13
14	Has absolutely no relation to [[Film/{{Brink}} the film of the same name]].
15	----
16	!!''Brink'' provides examples of:
17
18	* AbsurdlyLowLevelCap: The level cap of twenty (twenty-four after a free update) can be achieved within a relatively short amount of time compared to other games of this type.
19	* AFatherToHisMen: Captain Mokoena to the security.
20	* AfterTheEnd: As far as anyone Security, the Ark is the last site of civilization left. [[spoiler:Mainly because the people presently living on the British Isles are brutal savages.]]
21	* AndYourRewardIsClothes: And hairstyles.
22	* ApocalypticLog: The audio logs.
23	* AKA47: The guns come off as this, coupled with clever wordplay:
24	** '''Kalt''' (a 1911), is German for ''cold'', and it not only sounds like ''Colt'', it is merely one letter off.
25	** '''Tokmak''' combines ''Tok''arev and ''Mak''arov, but is clearly shaped like the Bul Cherokee,
26	** The '''Sea Eagle''' is named after the ''Desert Eagle''. Its model, the Jericho, is nicknamed the Baby Eagle.
27	** The game's only revolver is called '''Ritchie'''. Because ''Film/Revolver2005'' is a Creator/{{Guy\|Ritchie}} ''[[Creator/GuyRitchie Ritchie]]'' film.
28	** The '''Belgo''', a [=VBR PDW=], references the original machine pistol's ''Belgian'' origin.
29	** The '''Hockler''' ([=MP7=]) blended up ''Heckler & Koch'''s name.
30	** The '''Drognav''' parodies the ''Dragunov'', despite being built like a [=DSR=].
31	** Likewise with the '''Barnett''' to the ''Barrett'' M82, but it's modelled after the Mauser [=SR=]-93.
32	** The '''Tampa''' expands on the Steyr ''[=TMP=]'''s name.
33	** The '''Galactic''' pays tribute to the ''Universal'' Submachine Gun, or the [=UMP=].
34	** The '''Kross''' is a ''Kriss'' Vector. Because "[[{{Pun}} crisscross]]".
35	** The name for the Magpul [=PDR-C-esque=] submachine gun, the '''Bulpdaun''', is a play on its ''bullp[=UP=]'' form.
36	** The '''Euston''' (an [=AR=]-15) used the name of ''Eu''gene ''Ston''er.
37	** The ''[=SIG=]'' lookalike ''[=AR=]'' is called '''Rhett'''. Try pronouncing it very fast: [=Sig-Ar-Rhett=]. Sigarrhett. ''[[{{Pun}} Cigarette]]''!
38	** The '''Gerund''' gets its name from the M1 Garand and (by extension) John Garand, despite being modeled after an M14 MCS.
39	** The '''[=FRKN-3K=]''' is a [=FAMAS=] with a crazy name.
40	** The '''Mossington''' combines ''Moss''berg and Rem''ington'', but is shaped like a Benelli.
41	** If you're too legit to call the automatic shotgun anything other than an M1216, then [[Music/MCHammer Stop]]! '''Hjammerdaim'''.
42	** The '''Lobster''' (a [=GL-06=]) ''lobs'' grenades.
43	** The '''[=EZ=]-Nade''' ''easily'' achieves GrenadeSpam.
44	** The '''Maximus''' plays on the name ''Mini''mi (M249).
45	** The '''Chinzor''' is built like the Chain[=SAW=], but its name makes no sense otherwise.
46	** And of course, the '''[[GatlingGood Gotlung]]''' machine gun.
47	* ArmchairMilitary: The Founders come off as woefully ignorant not only of the realities facing both sides of the conflict. However, they are not, and this must be stressed, malicious by any stretch.
48	** Enraptures by his charisma, the Resistance is wilfully ignorant that Chen is basically hiding behind them to further his goals while his supposedly tyrannical counterpart Mokoena actually bothers to fight alongside his men from time to time.
49	* ArtificialStupidity: Because of how the game is set up, toggling the difficulty to "easy" will cause ''your'' team members to behave just as stupid as the enemy, since it affects [[ExactWords "computer controlled"]] characters. The main difference, though, is that you're usually on the attacking side, where there are multiple paths to a single objective, but just one main objective at a time. So while your team is running around in circles broken into three or four different squads running between secondary objectives, the enemy will have all of ''its'' troops stacked on the one thing you need to destroy/hack/repair/whatever, destroying you and your troops piecemeal. This has the side effect of making the defensive missions a cake walk, though.
50	* AsceticAesthetic: This was the Founders' design philosophy. It can still be seen in the original areas. This is ''not'' the case for the sprawling Guest areas.
51	* ATeamFiring: In most missions, a loss by the attacking team will show a cutscene of them falling back under heavy fire... without a single casualty taken on either side.
52	* BeleagueredBureaucrat: Poor AWU General Secretary Joe Chen. The Founders simply ignore reason, and he has to deal with the mess.
53	* BigBad: Subverted in the sense that there isn't a clear bad guy in this conflict. But from the perspective of Security, Chen is a terrorist inciting unrest and anarchy among the Guests, which threatens the Ark; from the perspective of Resistance, Mokoena and the Founders are fascists who hoard most of the resources for themselves at the Guests' expense.
54	* BoomTown: The guest slums ''would'' be this, but there's just not enough supplies to go around. What hasn't stagnated is literally sliding into the sea.
55	* BombDisposal: A key task of TheEngineer is defusing demolition charges planted by enemy Soldiers, as well as mines planted by enemy Engineers. Also, a bomb disposal suit is one of the heaviest-looking outfits available to Security, aptly named The Bomb.
56	* BothSidesHaveAPoint: The game has no clear bad guys, as both the Security and Resistance have legitimate grievances against each other. The Ark could sustain itself on a population of roughly 5,000 people, but with 45,000 hungry, scared refugees flooding in, the Ark naturally can't feed them all. The Security is trying to maintain order and distribute what little supplies are left to those who need it, while the Resistance are scared people trying to look after their families and leave the Ark to find a new future. Unfortunately, the Security won't allow that, because what little is left of the outside world is apparently in even worse condition than the Ark, as explorer teams had been slaughtered by the natives. Thus, they can't risk the Resistance escaping and possibly leading these marauders back to the beleaguered Ark. But as the Resistance believes, the entire world couldn't have fallen into such a state and believe it is a lie to keep them on the Ark as slave labor, and there are implications that support their view of some outside world civilizations being peaceful, with the Founders just having the bad luck to run into one of the more savage tribes.
57	* TheCameo: Many of the introductory cut-scenes show the player's own character in the background or playing a minor role, never speaking.
58	* CharacterClassSystem: Your character can be one of four classes, and you can switch at any time from special stations that also let you switch weapons and such. The classes are [[TheBigGuy The Soldier,]] TheEngineer, TheMedic and [[TheCracker The]] [[StealthExpert Operative.]] There are also special abilities, some unique to each class and some general.
59	* CharacterCustomization: Options include different tops, bottoms, face and head gear for the two factions, but you can also change core features like your face and body type. Your body type is actually a gameplay thing- TheBigGuy can [[MightyGlacier use big guns]] and take a lot of hits, but the FragileSpeedster has the most freedom of movement and LeParkour ability. There is of course, [[JackOfAllStats a middleweight type]] if you prefer a balanced approach.
60	* TheCityNarrows: As far as the Founders are concerned, the whole of the Guest-built areas are this. True, it sure doesn't ''look'' like much. But that's what happens when boatloads of refugees have to build their own houses.
61	* CityOnTheWater: The Ark.
62	* TheConscience: Each side seems to have [[OnlySaneMan exactly one member]] waging a valiant struggle to keep the rest of his side from JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope. Those two guys really have their work cut out for them.
63	* CoolMask / FacelessGoons: Both sides have a lot of [[CharacterCustomization optional gear]] that covers your face. The Security have [[GasMaskMooks gas masks]], balaclavas and such, while The Resistance have bandanas, hockey masks and the like.
64	* TheCracker: The Operative class is able to hack enemy objectives and turrets.
65	* CrazyPrepared: The Operative. One of his abilities is the Cortex Bomb, which is an explosive device ''implanted'' in his head, which he detonates when an enemy is about to execute him, allowing him to have the last laugh.
66	* CrystalSpiresAndTogas: Well, the crystal spires, anyway. The original Ark setup was a white, squeaky clean ShiningCity made of [[GeneticEngineeringIsTheNewNuke genetically engineered]] ''[[GeneticEngineeringIsTheNewNuke coral.]]'' [[UsedFuture By the time the game takes place its become somewhat dungy and unkempt- but that's nothing compared to the sprawling network of slums built of out of shipping containers that lie to the south of it.]] The whole look was said to be basically the "towers of Dubai VS. The favelas of Brazil"
67	* CurbStompBattle: The infamous Container City map has the greatest potential for this, at least at the very earliest state.
68	* CustomUniform: Standard procedure for The Security. This includes everything from a regular button-down police shirt to full-on riot gear and a badass military jacket. Even bomb-suits are an option.
69	* CutscenePowerToTheMax: There are a couple instances, but for the most part this is averted. The picture caption above is also somewhat inaccurate. You CAN shoot while running around on walls and doing complex maneuvers, but because of how the SMART system works, it is very difficult to do it effectively.
70	* DemolitionsExpert: The soldier focuses on the StuffBlowingUp aspect of this trope, deploying HE charges and utilising grenades and satchel charges in combat. The engineer focuses on the BombDisposal aspect, though he can also plant landmines.
71	* DreadlockRasta: Many Resistance characters are seen sporting dreads. It makes sense, given that a sizable portion of the Ark's population is black and the Resistance are rebellious anti-government types. You won't see any Security types (played by bots) with this hairstyle. The white Resistance members usually have shaved heads or [[TheQuincyPunk some kind of punk-rock hairdo]]. The members of Security can have dreads, but they have to have them in a ponytail or under a baseball cap.
72	* {{EMP}}: Operatives have access to EMP grenades, allowing them to disable enemy [[SentryGun turrets.]]
73	* EscortMission: Both teams have missions where the objective is to escort a hostage or a UGV. This is also one of the challenge paths.
74	* ExperiencePoints: Earned for kills and objectives and used to gain perks and [[AndYourRewardIsClothes earn new clothes]].
75	* FloodedFutureWorld: TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture, global warming and rising sea levels have rendered most of the earth a giant ocean, with the Ark, a CityOnTheWater built before the flooding, and a few mountaintops as the only known places where humans survive. The Ark itself is suffering an OverpopulationCrisis due to holding nine times as many people as it was originally designed to host, leading to resource shortages, severe wealth inequality, resentment between the refugee community and the Ark's Founders, and eventual civil war.
76	* {{Foreshadowing}}: "First protests, then violence, now kidnapping, what's next?" [[spoiler:It involves a missile.]]
77	* FragileSpeedster: The light body-type, oh so much.
78	* FreudianExcuse: Apparently Chen's contempt for the forces behind the Ark stems from the fact [[spoiler:that when he and his brother were helping construct it, said brother got buried alive in the concrete-like Arkoral]].
79	* FunWithAcronyms: SMART: Smooth Movement Across Random Terrain. It's what the developers call your ability to interact with the level architecture in cool ways using only the sprint button.
80	* GaiasVengeance: How the Ark became one of the only habitable places on Earth.
81	* GangBangers: The G outfit is based off of modern street gangs, though it's possible to achieve this effect with elements from other Resistance outfits, such as The Anger, The Dude and The Sweat, for example.
82	* GasMaskMooks: If you're on the Resistance side then Security may have them if they use "The Bouncer", "The Shield" or "The Unit" head parts. (Though "The Unit" subverts it by having the face still clearly visible.
83	** The Resistance themselves can become GasMaskMooks if you shove a "The Firestarter" mask on them.
84	* GatlingGood: One of the weapons unlocked for doing the two star Tower Defence challenge, also one of the Engineer's turret options.
85	* GoodHairEvilHair: Though in this case the [[GrayAndGreyMorality good and evil parts don't really count.]] The Security tend to have official-looking short haircuts of the kind you always see cops and soldiers sporting. The Resistance have just about everything else, from mohawks to [[DreadlockRasta dreadlocks.]] Shaved heads go either way.
86	* GrayAndGreyMorality: The developers went out of their way to make both sides seem sympathetic. The Security are trying to conserve resources and their home, The Resistance are trying to improve their lot in life and escape from it. They wanted to [[AvertedTrope avert]] both LaResistance vs. TheEmpire ''and'' [[CowboysAndIndians Hero Cops vs.]] [[WesternTerrorists Evil Terrorists.]]
87	** An example from a developer interview--one map, played as Security, involves eliminating a Resistance biological weapons lab. The same map, played as Resistance, has an objective of defending a vaccine manufacturing area. The developer was quoted as wanting players to make the connection that vaccines are developed from viruses. Complicating the issue is that both sides appear to be operating under limited or false information. Highlighted in the final What-If mission in the Resistance's campaign, where [[spoiler:they destroy a vital component of The Ark's function, fatally irradiating the whole thing, and are then berated by their leader, Chen, for not realizing that he was only bluffing]].
88	** Or when the Resistance's goal is to leave the Ark to reintegrate with the outside world (crippling the Ark's ability to remain functional in the process) when Security [[spoiler:already thinks that the world has become a horrid ''Film/MadMax'' wasteland, and the men they sent to discover this were all slaughtered, when in fact there are peaceful civilizations out there, they just don't know about it.]]
89	** Perhaps the clearest example of this is the briefing and opening cinematics for the mission where the resistance [[spoiler:plans to launch a missile into Founders Tower. Chen informs the resistance that the tower is empty and it is merely a symbolic blow. Mokoena tells his men that the tower is in fact occupied and that a strike on it would kill ''thousands'' of people; one of the security officers mentions that if it were to be destroyed, it would take a dozen other pelgos with it, presumably from falling debris. It's unknown who was telling the truth]].
90	*** In the "Agents of Change" DLC, [[spoiler:Chen tries to blow up the tower the old-fashioned way, with actual explosives. He tells the Resistance rank-and-file that the explosives are "fireworks" to form an ad-hoc lighthouse to signal the outside world. This would presumably cause devastation comparable with the missile strike.]]
91	** Portrayed visually when playing as each side in the single-player campaign. When playing as Security, the Resistance includes guys with evil clown masks and spiky shoulderpads. When playing as the Resistance, the Security includes guys wearing ridiculously-flashy outfits and football gear.
92	* GunsDoNotWorkThatWay: Despite the below, some of the weapons work differently from how they would in RealLife.
93	** The Drognav, which resembles the DSR-1, is depicted as being a semi-auto rifle with the magazine in front of the trigger, despite the real thing being a bolt-action rifle with the bullpup configuration.
94	** The CARB-9 bears a resemblance to the PLR-16 and SU-16A (both by Kel-Tec), neither of which are 9mm Submachine-guns.
95	** The Tampa [=SMG=] and Galactic [=SMG=] both have their charging handles move while firing. The G3 and TMP families have non-reciprocating charging handles. The Galactic was also modeled with two ejection ports, for some reason.
96	** Similar to what ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyBlackOpsII'' would do a year later with the [=M1216=], the Hjammerdaim (modeled after the shorter [=M1208=] if [=IMFDB=] is to be believed) fires automatically per-tube. This is only true of the [=MLE-12=], a select-fire variant of the [=M1216=].
97	* GunPorn: A huge variety of StandardFPSGuns are available, [[GunAccessories of which many features- barrels, sights, etc- can be changed, tweaked.]]
98	* HanlonsRazor: Chen seems to have forgotten this when dealing with the founders...
99	* HealingShiv: High-level medics can use a Lazarus Grenade which deploys life syringes to injured teammates in its radius.
100	* HeavyEquipmentClass: Characters with the Heavy body-type lose some of the LeParkour abilities available to the Medium and Light body-types, in exchange for being the only characters able to carry heavy weapons such as [[GatlingGood Gatling guns]], and being able to equip medium weapons (such as assault rifles and shotguns) as their backup weapon.
101	* {{Hypocrite}}: Both Mokoena and Chen are this to some degree, though their hypocrisies are portrayed in a manner that presents them as flawed human beings.
102	** Mokoena deems Chen as a terrorist riling up the Guests into violent revolt, but a chunk of his Security is comprised of dirty cops and thugs who abuse their power and give Chen ammunition to stir up the Guests in the first place. Despite Mokoena promising to purge them from his ranks after hostilities cease, it's these men that incite said hostilities, when he could have publicly denounced them, or even fired them to make a point that Security does not tolerate them.
103	** Chen labels the Founders as selfish tyrants who hoard most of the Ark's supplies for themselves, but has admitted to sabotaging the Ark's resources to artificially induce mass shortages that he can blame on the Founders and rally more support to his cause. That doesn't even go into the Resistance practically destroying various Ark resources to make ammunition in their war against Security. Likewise, as much as he detests Security's corrupt officers, many of his own rebels are also violent men just looking for a fight. Additionally, Chen exhibits a degree of selfishness himself, as he refuses to tell anyone else about the decaying arkoral, fearing that doing so will lead to the Founders blaming it on him when it may spurn them to do something about it.
104	* ILied: A rare positive example. In the Non-canon ending for the Resistance, [[spoiler:Chen was bluffing when he said that if the Guests weren't allowed to leave, he'd blow up the Ark's reactor. Unfortunately the rest of the Resistance doesn't know about this, and blow up the reactor, condemning ''everyone on the Ark to death by radiation.'']]
105	* ImAHumanitarian: It's heavily implied (through loading screen flavor text and some audio logs) that human corpses and "biological waste" are reprocessed into food.
106	* InfiniteSupplies: You have a [[ManaMeter Supply Meter]] which governs how often you can use abilities, whether class-specific (healing, detpacks, repairs etc.) or general. You have limited uses at any one time but the meter continually regenerates. More to the point of the trope, as long as there's an alert Soldier around resupplying you, you won't run out of ammo.
107	** Each ability has its own cooldown meter. Interestingly, grenade use has one as well. Barring said cooldown (of varying length depending on the type of grenade), you have [[StuffBlowingUp infinite grenades.]]
108	* InTheHood: The Resistance "The Anger" jacket.
109	* JackOfAllStats: The Kalt Pistol, The Kross and Galactic Submachine Guns, and The Gerund Assault Rifles, as well as Medium Builds.
110	* JerkassHasAPoint: According to an audio file, Security tends to perform "random" searches on persons they find suspicious. This would seem unreasonable if not for the fact that the man recording the audio log has admitted in his previous entries that he has actually sabotaged Ark infrastructure to help create weapons for the Resistance.
111	* KickThemWhileTheyAreDown: Players who lose all their health are [[JustAFleshWound initially only incapacitated.]] It takes a lot of damage, but you can finish off a down opponent from afar, or finish them in one hit with a melee attack. Opponents hit by [[MolotovCocktail molotovs]] or melee attacks can also be executed in this way, but be careful- [[TheDogBitesBack stunned opponents can still shoot back.]]
112	** Or worse - if it's an Operative, they might have a Cortex Bomb that [[TakingYouWithMe explodes if you try to finish them off]].
113	** Medics can revive themselves when downed after taking a certain perk.
114	** The last set of abilities you can purchase at Rank 5 includes a LastStand perk. Although anyone who takes this perk is significantly easier to kill when incapacitated, they are able to continue fighting with their secondary weapon after a few seconds.
115	* KillAndReplace: This is The Operative's method of disguise. A cursory scan of a fallen enemy using his PDA enables him to disguise as that enemy.
116	* LandMineGoesClick: Mines can be planted by TheEngineer. They are invisible at first, and are revealed if stepped on. However, they do not detonate until stepped ''off of'', so a careful player can save themselves by waiting for a friendly Engineer to disable it. Operatives can always see concealed mines and can "mark" them simply by iron sight aiming at them for a few seconds, revealing them to friendly sight and radar.
117	* LanternJawOfJustice: Due the exaggerated art style, the huskier characters often exhibit this.
118	* LeParkour: All the player characters can do this, although how much you can do depends on your character's body type. Where you look and where you are affects what you do. For example, say there's a ledge you want to get to, with another wall standing perpendicular to it. Run at it with the SMART button and you'll hop off the near wall and grab onto the ledge.
119	** To wit, heavies can only vault, middleweights can vault and mantle, and lightweights can vault, mantle ''and'' wall-hop.
120	** You can also use the jump and duck buttons, which is harder to master but gives you more control and actually performs moves faster.
121	* LimitedWardrobe: Averted; the characters in the cut scenes are shown to change clothes and hair styles over the course of days, often appropriate for the situation(a man being called for a resistance mission unexpectedly is dressed in his work uniform). One of the What if? missions, that assume you failed an earlier one, show a resistance member to have lost an eye in the failed mission.
122	* MagicTool: Engineers, Medics and Operatives all have one tool they use in all of their class-specific activities
123	* MightyGlacier: The heavy body-type has reduced movement and lacks the LeParkour abilities of other body types, in exchange for more hitpoints and the ability to carry heavier weapons.
124	* MolotovCocktail: Special weapon for Soldiers
125	* MonsterClown: Face paint for the resistance.
126	* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Both the Resistance canon and non-canon endings. In the former, [[spoiler:they succeed in getting off the Ark via plane, but we find out from the Security version of the mission that the rest of the world is a CrapsackWorld even worse than the Ark, and the Founders don't want to make contact with them, assuming they'll come for the Ark's LostTechnology. They may be right.]] Later changed when we find out [[spoiler:there was civilized life outside of the ark]] in the Agents of Change DLC. In the non-canon version, [[spoiler:Chen threatens to destroy the Ark's main reactor if the Guests aren't allowed to leave, which would kill everyone. The Resistance does, then we hear Chen tell his second-in-command he was bluffing as it [[GoingCritical goes critical]].]]
127	** GodzillaThreshold: In the resistance canon ending, this is crossed;[[spoiler:Sure, people beyond the Ark may well be hostile savages, but the sad fact of the matter is that the ''Ark is dying''; the arkoral has gone sterile and the Ark is slowly crumbling out from beneath them, and the Guest slums are not so slowly rusting away. Ironically, Chen and the resistance don't know that they're crossing this line because they don't know about the hostiles in the outside world, and more so, the resistance members themselves don't know that the line ''needs'' to be crossed as Chen hasn't told anyone - Founder or Guest - about the problem with the arkoral.]]
128	* NoBloodForPhlebotinum: In this case, the war is over the basic human necessities of water, food and living space.
129	* NoNameGiven: The three resistance fighters and security officers in the cut scenes. Their bots do have names in game play, but these are randomized and subject to change.
130	* NoPlaceForMeThere: [[spoiler:Chen believes should the resistance's plans to escape the Ark work, he should give up his seat on the plane to someone younger, someone without blood on their hands.]] In the end, [[spoiler:he does stay behind, and the war with security continues over the ark's marketable resources]].
131	* ObstructiveBureaucrat: The Founders, much to the consternation of both the Security and the Resistance.
132	* OneHitKill: Intentionally averted by the developers - no single weapon is capable of killing a player outright with one shot, not even sniper rifles or grenades.
133	* OneWordTitle
134	* OverpopulationCrisis: The Ark is currently home to about 45,000 people, despite only being designed to host 5,000. This leads to resource shortages, wealth inequality and resentment towards those who are able to live comfortably from those who aren't.
135	* ThePasswordIsAlwaysSwordfish: In a cutscene from the Agents of Change DLC, Security capture a member of the Resistance, but he reveals that he's TheMole and on their side by shouting "Swordfish 112!"
136	* PistolWhipping: When using a rifle or other two-handed weapon, you'll hit them with the butt, stunning them, when you use a melee attack. Using a pistol gives you a knife attack which deals more damage but does not stun opponents.
137	* PoorCommunicationKills: Chen [[spoiler:refuses to tell the Founders Council that the arkoral is going sterile and dying and that the Ark is literally crumbling beneath them, all because he fears he'll be used as TheScapegoat and nothing will change. Had he shared this information, the Founders may well have been motivated into action and decided to risk contacting the outside world.]]
138	* PrimalStance: A lot of the characters stand slightly hunched, but the [[TheBigGuy heavy body type]] is especially guilty of this.
139	* PsychoForHire: Its suggested that several resistance fighters are either this or believed to be this by both Security and the resistance leaders. Joe Chen regrets the need for "men of violence" to accomplish what needs to be done, but considers it necessary.
140	** Not that security are immune to this; Mokoena worries about taking men like this into the security forces. Like Chen, he tolerates them as long as the Ark is in a state of open warfare, but promises himself that they'll all be purged from the ranks as soon as hostilities cease.
141	* PunchClockHero: Most of the Security are just regular cops. Some of ''those'' just signed on for the extra water ration. [[SarcasmMode Time to fight a war!]]
142	* TheQuietOne: Your character appears in several cutscences, but always off and away from the group, not partaking in any conversation.
143	* RagTagBunchOfMisfits: The Resistance, of course. They armor themselves with whatever they can find, from sports armor to industrial gear to ''car tires.'' The Security also exhibit elements of this, a good chunk of them are ordinary beat cops wearing a mixture of newer sports gear and various types of real armor.
144	* RealIsBrown: The developers are also trying to [[AvertedTrope avert this.]] [[LampshadeHanging One of their stated goals is to bring color back into shooters.]] There is a bright and varied color palette for environments, characters and even the guns.
145	** Container City and Shipyard play this trope straight, however. Both of those places are littered with rusted shipping containers, garbage, mud, and other structures that are also rusting. Actual colors are few and far between.
146	* RegeneratingHealth: You can regenerate your health, but once you've lost the bonus health from a [[TheMedic medic's]] buff, a Health Command Post under your team's control or the Battle Hardened ability, you've lost it for good.
147	* SanitySlippage: [[spoiler:Chen]] seems to be losing it a little, getting increasingly paranoid and power-mad.
148	* ScarsAreForever: Once you pick scars or tattoos, you cannot change your selection. Makes sense, really.
149	* SentryGun: TheEngineer class will be able to deploy these. [[InvincibleMinorMinion Indestructible ones]] protect each team's spawn area.
150	* SequelHook: The scouting mission you were sent on, and Barbara Elmhurst's last diary.
151	-->'''Elmhurst:''' [[spoiler:"What's this? 'Demolish the house and build a boat. Abandon wealth and seek survival. Spurn property, save life. Take on board all living things' seed.' Who wrote this?"]]
152	* ShiningCity: At its inception, The Ark was this. Though it has fallen into a state of minor disrepair, its shiny origins can still be seen, most clearly in [[StarScraper that big central tower.]] The arrival of the Guests and their building up of sprawling slums around the central Ark proper has turned it into a decaying MegaCity.
153	* ShoutOut: Several, contained in the pre-order [[AndYourRewardIsClothes bonus outfits]], to VideoGame/Fallout3 and VideoGame/Doom3.
154	* SlobsVersusSnobs: Guests versus Founders, if you want to boil it down.
155	* StandardFPSGuns: [[{{Handguns}} Pistols,]] [[HandCannon magnums,]] [[MoreDakka machine pistols, submachine guns, assault rifles,]] {{shotguns\|AreJustBetter}}, {{sniper rifle}}s, [[MoreDakka machine guns]], {{gatling g\|ood}}uns, {{grenade launcher}}s... This game doesn't skimp on firepower. Most of the above can be customized with different parts.
156	* SpiderSense: One of the aforementioned skills is the ability to know when an enemy has you in his sights.
157	* SpiritualSuccessor: To the Enemy Territory "series".
158	* StatusBuff: TheMedic can restore lost health bar sections and add one extra when he uses his healing tool, while TheEngineer can buff weapon damage. Certain command posts provide team-wide buffs (like extra health or supply bars) when captured.
159	** Engineers and Operatives are able to buff the command posts - the Engineer's buff causes the post to give an extra bar of health or supplies, while the Operative's buff makes the post take longer for the other team to hack into.
160	* StuffBlowingUp: Looks like there will be plenty. This happens to be the specialty of [[TheBigGuy The Soldier]], who gets to use molotovs and demolition packs.
161	* TakingYouWithMe: Downed Fire and Cortex Bomb can both by used by a downed player to take revenge on whoever attacked them.
162	* TigerByTheTail: One of Captain Mokoena's diaries talks about "Chen riding a tiger", referencing his belief that Chen has allied with dangerous fanatics for selfish political gain.
163	* TowerDefense: One of the challenge paths, although it can be done without actually having the turret ability.
164	* UngratefulBastard: How the Founders view the Guests, and they're not entirely mistaken as the way Chen, one of the most learned Guests in the story, tells it, the fact that the Founders ''created'' the Ark and let him and his fellow refugees in when they didn't need to is a non-issue.
165	* UnreliableNarrator: You're never quite sure which side is giving correct information.
166	** Example: One of the resistance's biggest motives for wanting to escape the ark is a plague ravaging the slums. [[spoiler:A security officer mentions that it's really just the latest strain of flu.]] A resistance fighter even questions why [[spoiler:the founders would hesitate to look for outside help since the sickness threatens their children as well, but another, more extreme rebel counters that it doesn't threaten them as they live in much better conditions with more medical supplies to spare]]. It's unclear [[spoiler:whether Chen's lying about the whole thing to rile up the guests, or the founders have been lied to about the nature of the sickness. Another Security fighter is seen in the opening cutscene wondering why Nechayev was in the infirmary, which Chen claims to be because he was tortured. Given how slowly Nechayev moves, it seems quite likely]].
167	* UsedFuture: The Founder's vision for a new utopia has faded as of late.
168	** Notably, Container City
169	* ViralMarketing: the Italian [[UsefulNotes/PlaystationNetwork Playstation Store]] used to have a bug back in Summer 2010, in that the download link for the ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep'' trailer redirected to a ''Brink'' icon. This was fixed just a few weeks before the release of the former. Some have since suspected this to be more than a coincidence.
170	* WalkingShirtlessScene: Possible look for the Resistance members.
171	* WhatTheHellHero[=/=]WhatWereYouThinking: Chen's reaction to the aftermath of the What-If mission where [[spoiler:his forces take matters into their own hands and destroy the Ark's reactor.]]
172	-->'''Chen:''' I said ''THREATEN'' to do it - not ''ACTUALLY'' do it! WHAT WERE YOU '''''THINKING'''''?!
173	* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: Both Chen and Mokoena plan to remove the "thugs" from their respective factions after they've won.
174	* YourTerroristsAreOurFreedomFighters: Cutscenes and characters on the security side basically demonize all of the resistance as crazed madmen out to ruin The Ark for selfish reasons, while the Resistance paint themselves in a far more heroic light in the resistance story as protectors to the downtrodden Guests.
175	** One mission has the Security absolutely confused and infuriated over the fact that the Resistance would build a dirty-bomb to use on the Founders, and that the Resistance are using wrongful and dirty tactics to win. The Resistance cutscene has the Resistance state amongst themselves that it isn't a bomb, but a cure to a recent epidemic, and they're holding onto it because the Founders won't disperse it fairly amongst the populace while they'll make sure that everyone gets a fair dosage.
176	** The only time the game is not like this is in the Reactor stage. Whether you're playing Resistance or Security, the Resistance are treated as maniacs for wanting to detonate the reactor. [[spoiler:Just as well, as Chen didn't actually want anyone to do it for real, just to threaten to do so as a bluff]].
177	** In the audio logs, Chen admits to staging a FalseFlagOperation or two by sabotaging desalination plants and robbing clinics to artificially create drastic shortages he can blame on the Founders so he can turn public opinion against them.

Context VideoGame / Brink