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[[quoteright:350:[[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/guns_in_church.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Hey, yutz! Guns aren't toys! They're for family protection, hunting dangerous and delicious animals and keepin' the King of England out of your face!]]

->'''Inspector Yang:''' You can't bring guns in here! This is a church! It's a holy place!\\
'''Inspector Watson:''' That's okay. You see these? These are holy guns. Because they make a rather large hole-y.
-->-- ''Film/TheMedallion''

Guns In Church is what occurs when a weapon is carried or brandished when not appropriate. When you have Guns In Church, the bank, the supermarket, the U.N., an airport, or anywhere else where the very mention of a weapon could be grounds for arrest, people in games are surprisingly aloof to the dangers it presents. As a result, everyone fantasizes about owning a sword/gun/etc that will never leave their side in all of life's journeys.

In RealLife, however, throughout most of the developed world, life is ''just'' peaceful enough that this is typically a bad idea. With an individual who normally is expected to carry a weapon (such as a knight, policeman, or soldier), if they have a means to store a weapon that can be easily drawn, this trope then is restricted to them actually ''carrying it.'' (For example, a policeman who has a gun in his hand everywhere he goes, leaving his holster empty.)

Some weapons (such as rifles, large machine guns, and {{Arm Cannon}}s) can't be sheathed or holstered, and due to context, the trope is often averted by necessity. If you are a soldier, then chances are, not only do you play the trope straight, but you're actually better off for it. The same does not hold true for an average white-collar office drone walking down the street holding a claymore. (The mine or the sword).

Compare ImprobableUseOfAWeapon, when a weapon may be appropriate, but the one used is unlikely or impossible. Also, OrnamentalWeapon, where it is carried, but doesn't get used for other reasons. Averted in settings where carrying weapons is unremarkable because EveryoneIsArmed. BratsWithSlingshots has a tendency to reflect this trope but with Children. AxesAtSchool is a sub-trope specific to schools.

For when a shootout actually does take place in a church, this is combined with BloodstainedGlassWindows. If the clergy are taking an active part in the proceedings, they may be members of a ChurchMilitant.

-----------
!!Why do these examples have their weapons out?

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
* Inverted in ''Manga/BlackLagoon'' as the church is the gun runner, appropriately called "The Violence Church" ("The Ripoff Church" by other people). Even [[NeverMessWithGranny head sister is armed with]] [[BlingBlingBANG Gold plated and engraved Desert Eagle.]] Given the fact that this church exists in a WretchedHive, it only makes sense.
* The protagonists and most recurring characters of ''Manga/CityHunter'' tend to carry at least a handgun ''everywhere but the bathroom'', with the crowner being Umibozu bringing a machine gun and a bazooka ''at his own marriage''. {{Justified|Trope}} by them being {{Professional Killer}}s [[ProperlyParanoid who could be attacked any moment]], and in fact ''Umibozu's wedding was attacked by professional soldiers'' (Ryo, who was attending, had accidentally ruined a coup in a foreign country by protecting the escaped president, and the leader of the coup started his attempt at revenge with that attack).
* A RunningGag in ''Literature/FullMetalPanic'' is that Sousuke goes absolutely ''everywhere'' heavily armed, no matter how inappropriate or illegal that would be. Even fellow military {{Otaku}} is appalled when he tries to enter a Shinto shrine while armed for bear.
* [[NationsAsPeople Switzerland]] in ''Webcomic/HetaliaAxisPowers'' tends to do this, as he [[GunNut carries a rifle everywhere]]. [[WordOfGod The story goes]] that this was inspired when the author saw a Swiss guy ''out shopping with a gun''.
* In ''Anime/LupinIII'', Jigen is almost always armed, but does ''not'' bring them into church. However, at the beginning of ''The Plot of the Fuma Clan'' where the villains show up while he's in one, at a wedding, this leads to some embarrassment when he tries to draw his weapon, forgetting it's not there.
* Premise of ''Manga/TetragrammatonLabyrinth'' has the main characters fighting evil. ''They live in a church''. Some fight scenes take place in churches.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* ''ComicBook/{{Ultimatum}}'': Why does Carol Danvers need to carry a {{BFG}} around in the Triskelion?
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Film -- Animation]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Up}}'', one of Ellie's friends or family members fires a single gunshot in one of the back pews after she and Carl kiss on the altar during their wedding.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Film -- Live Action]]
* A literal example happens in the prologue to ''Film/{{Dobermann}}''. Uncle Joe attempts to give the infant Dobermann his christening present--a .357 magnum--in the church. Dobermann's father, himself a hardened gangster, points out how inappropriate this is.
* Used twice in ''Film/TheEnforcer''. First he chases a suspect into a church and has him at gunpoint when the minister gets pissed (then his partner kicks the door open with her gun drawn). Later he returns to the church to question the minister about someone in connection to the kidnapping (and potential murder) of the mayor and ends up drawing his gun when the minister refuses to talk. As Harry is dealing with that a woman dressed as a nun tries to shoot him with a shotgun, only for Harry's partner to show up and shoot the nun.
* Played with in ''Film/TheFightingTemptations''. During the scene where several prison inmates are brought into the church choir, Paulina complains about the prison guards being armed as required by law. The piano player then says "Guns ain't allowed? Nobody told me." as he pulls a rather large revolver from his pants and places it on the piano.
* This trope is outright defied in ''Film/{{Highlander}}'', as fighting on holy ground is expressly forbidden.
* ''Film/ItHappenedInHollywood'': When Tim Bart becomes an AccidentalHero by foiling a bank robbery, nobody seems concerned that he was carrying a concealed loaded firearm inside a bank.
* ''Film/JohnWick'' sees John Wick shoot it out in a church with a couple of Viggo Tarasov's men and kneecapping the priest at first, with the second part of the fight taking place outside in the parking lot after Viggo and his enforcers show. [[spoiler:Makes sense, given the church in question is actually a front for Viggo and all...]]
** From the ''Franchise/JohnWick'' franchise in general, "business" is expressly forbidden from being conducted on the premises of the Continental hotels. While one can prepare for "business" in a Continental, such as procuring guns and the like, one cannot conduct it there. The first movie sees Winston have a firing squad execute Miss Perkins for violating the sacred ground to collect on Viggo's doubled bounty on John Wick (and killing Harry). In ''Film/JohnWickChapter2'', Cassian and John's fight after his hit on Gianna (Cassian's boss) is broken up ''immediately'' the instant the fight bursts into the Rome Continental. And in the climax of ''Chapter 2'', John violates the sacred rules of the New York Continental to kill Santino, rendering him excommunicado from the Continental. This leads to the plot of ''Film/JohnWickChapter3Parabellum'', where the High Table actually deconsecrate the New York Continental after John refuses to betray Winston, so they can send in their enforcers and Zero's gang to kill John and Winston.
* Subverted in the ''[[Film/{{K91989}} K-9]]'' sequel ''Film/K911'': James Belushi's character gets into a discussion with his boss about the kind of sidearms he carries while on the job, at the same time brandishing each handgun in succession. His boss urges him to put them away several times.
** Later on in the same movie, while at the park, when he mistakes a toy gun for a real one, he pulls out his own. This prompts his partner/rival's police dog to charge him and bite his arm, making him drop the gun.
* In ''Film/KillBill'', the Bride carries a katana onto a trans-oceanic flight and through the airport without trouble. Shots seem to suggest that ''everyone'' on the flight has a katana though.
* Used for a joke early in ''Film/ManOfTheHouse''. When Texas Ranger Sharp and his partner go to a church to get information from an ex-con turned minister, Sharp keeps his gun with him. When reminded by his partner that they're entering a church, Sharp replies, "That's why I didn't bring the helicopter".
* Spoofed in ''Film/SpyHard'', when Leslie Nielson's character sneaks into a church to rescue a girl, he has to deal with a bunch of violence-prone nuns, ending with nuns ''brandishing machine guns'' and trying to shoot at them!
-->"Girls! ''Make 'em holy!''"
* In ''Film/TheTenthVictim'', a Hunter who has just been told by the manager that no shooting is allowed in the restaurant complains about the increasing restrictions: "In the restaurant, it is not permitted. In the church, it is not permitted...."
* In ''Film/{{Unforgiven}}'' sheriff Little Bill is deadly serious about enforcing the 'no guns in town' ordinance so any time a stranger in town is seen carrying any weapon, even holstered, it means big trouble. Either the stranger is about to shoot people or Little Bill is going to beat him into a bloody pulp.
* In ''Film/TheWeatherMan'', Nicolas Cage's character takes up archery as a hobby. At the end of the movie, he is seen carrying a bow over his shoulder as he walks down the city streets. In closing narration, he acknowledges that it might be why people don't throw things at him from their cars anymore.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* In ''Literature/AdventuresOfHuckleberryFinn'', the [[FeudingFamilies Shepardsons and the Grangerfords]] take their rifles everywhere, including church on Sunday.
** This is something from RealLife, at least in the old English-Scots Border region where many of the [[DeepSouth rural Southerners]] came from. The Border was a lawless and violent place, and if you didn't have a weapon at all times you'd likely meet someone who did have one and was willing to use it. On you.
* ''Literature/BrotherCadfael'': The next-to-last scene in the short story "A Light on the Road to Woodstock" has a young boy tell off Cadfael (who is still an armsman at that point) for wearing his sword in church. This is mainly so Cadfael can leave the sword behind before asking to enter the Benedictine Order in the last scene.
* In ''Literature/TheDarkSideOfTheSun'' a newly-appointed chief of security not only brings a stunner into ''buruku'' (a phnobic compound) but also uses {{Fantastic Slur}}s once in there and shoots someone. Phnobes are known for the two-foot knife they carry on their person... so the guy's career proves short.
* The Church Knights in ''Literature/TheElenium'' are allowed to carry their weapons into churches, at least when they're in full armor. Which doesn't stop one priest from trying to invoke this trope on Sparhawk.
* In ''Literature/TheHuntForRedOctober'', the Soviet ambassador states that although the USSR's submarines are massing on the US eastern coast, they are still in international waters and legally allowed to be there. The American president points out that in the USA someone may be legally allowed to carry a shotgun on their property but if your next-door neighbor starts patrolling his lawn with one while your children are playing on your lawn, you are not going to be happy about it.
* In the ''Literature/IronDruidChronicles'' the Atticus gets a lot of flak for carrying his sword with him in public despite there being nothing inherently illegal about it. Normally carrying a baseball bat will not look very suspicious but when Atticus was lurking in a nightclub parking lot after dark with two baseball bats the police justifiably thought he was up to no good. He really could not explain that he was backing up a witch in killing a bunch of monsters who were immune to iron.
* Creator/KenMacLeod's ''The Night Sessions''. Guns were not specifically mentioned, but during the Great Rejection, the police "God Squads" pulled off repeated irruptions of "boots in the pews" at insufficiently Politically Correct services.
* During ''[[Literature/CiaphasCain Old Soldiers Never Die]]'', Cain and most of the other Guard officers and commissars on the planet attend a funeral service at the cathedral. The priests aren't happy about all the sidearms but have to put up with it since they're part of the dress uniforms. The priests are even less happy when the corpses reanimate and those sidearms get drawn.
-->'''Hierophant Callister:''' Commissar! This is a house of the Emperor!\\
'''Cain:''' Then I'm sure He'd approve of us keeping it safe.
* In the original ''Literature/ThankYouForSmoking'', the Merchants of Death try to spin an actual church shooting when an old lady in the congregation complains that she could have saved the situation if it had not been for the law requiring her to leave HER gun outside.
* Averted for [[PlayedForLaughs laughs]] in ''Literature/TheTwoTowers'', where the heroes are surprised and greatly annoyed/distressed at being asked to leave their weapons at the door when being brought before King Theoden. The guards allow Gandalf to keep his staff, either not realizing that it was the most dangerous item they had or because they secretly wanted him to do something to snap the King out of his Wormtongue-induced delirium.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* ''Series/ThirtyRock'': Pete is justifiably alarmed when Kenneth turns in a gun as well along with his page's badge. For non-fans: they work on a television show, folks.
** When Liz visits a bad neighborhood nicknamed "Little Chechnya", she asks if she just saw a man walking down the street holding a gun. She is told, "Yeah, but don't worry, he's not a cop."
* In ''Series/BattlestarGalactica2003'', Season 3 begins with most of the humans under Cylon subjugation, while Tigh and a few others are part of Main/LaResistance. Part of their strategy was hiding weapons in Caprican temples, which inevitably led to a shootout that left worshippers dead.
** Jacob Clifton, one of the recappers at Website/TelevisionWithoutPity, was so personally repulsed by this that for a time "guns in the temple" became his go-to metaphor for a character betraying principles for short-term goals.
* ''Series/BrassEye'' evoked this in a satirical NewsParody about [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAQy8v0d_qo America's fascination with handguns.]]
* On ''Series/CombatHospital'' all the doctors and nurses wear a sidearm strapped to their hip. They are soldiers in a war zone and are required to carry a weapon.
* In ''Series/GameOfThrones'' Viserys Targaryen, impatient with Khal Drogo, tries to intimidate him into giving him the army he was promised by drawing a sword on him...in Vaes Dothrak, [[TruceZone a city in which it is expressly forbidden]]. [[spoiler: The Khal merely signals his bodyguards to break his sword arm and hold him down while Drogo pours molten gold on him.]]
* On ''Series/GarthMarenghisDarkplace'', most of the characters, who work in a hospital, seem to have guns at all times. This comes in handy when they're attacked by {{Animate Inanimate Object}}s, undead warlocks, and Scotsmen.
* Happens to Freddy in ''Series/HouseOfCardsUS''. Freddy, a small restaurant owner, is about to start a nationwide franchise. He decides to share his good fortune with his son, who is also a gangbanger. His son does this trope twice: once in Freddy's shop, where Freddy temporarily convinces him to stop carrying a gun, and again, when a bunch of photographers are taking their pictures walking down the street. This last action has the effect of completely ruining Freddy - his son is on parole, carrying a gun is a parole violation, and his bond is slightly more than what Freddy's restaurant is worth. Freddy loses the chance at a national franchise (he was a gangbanger in his youth, and there was a morality clause in his contract), and has to sell his shop to get bond for his son, leaving him penniless.
* In ''Series/TheLastKingdom'', Uthred gets into whole heaps of trouble when he not only carries but ''draws'' his sword in a church, in anger, in the middle of a service, in the presence of ''the king''.
* In a short film on an early episode of ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'', they went around in a truck with a big sign that said "Show us your guns!" People from all walks of life proudly displayed their handguns, including an entire wedding party on the front lawn of a church, even the bride and groom.
* The Tollan in ''Series/StargateSG1'' defy this trope using advanced technology which disables both mechanical Earth guns and energy weapons.
** That said, SG teams (particularly [=SG1=]) walk around with their submachine guns on slings (and Teal'c holding his Goa'uld staff weapon since there isn't a holster or sling made that can [[{{BFG}} hold that monster]]) in all kinds of relatively innocuous settings, like primitive villages and ultra-modern high-tech cities. Somewhat justified, since they are on alien planets at the time, and do need to be ready to defend themselves, just in case.
* In an early episode of ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'', the brothers are hunting a shapeshifter and carrying around guns loaded with [[SilverBullet silver bullets]] in order to kill it. They flush it out of its lair and end up looking for it in the middle of a city with quite a few other people around. Sam takes pains to hide his gun, but Dean walks around with it up and at the ready. He receives quite a few nervous looks, but nobody calls the cops about it.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Newspaper Comics]]
* Part RuleOfFunny, part TakeThat. One ''ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}}'' strip had Snoopy renewing his dog licence. He also gets a driving permit and a fishing licence, but according to the people in the government building, he didn't need one for the assault rifle he'd brought with him (presumably in HammerSpace).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'': A common joke regarding the Imperial Guard involves Guardsmen obsessively taking their standard-issue lasrifles everywhere, including to the latrines and, presumably, mass (granted, said mass is conducted by an organization that employs flamethrower-equipped nuns). Since IG regulations prescribe ''execution'' for losing an issue weapon outside of combat, they have a solid reason not to let it out of sight.
* ''TabletopGame/ArsMagica'': TheArchmage Philippus Niger always carries an unsheathed dagger of human bone; in fact, a potent magical talisman, on full display in his hand or his belt. With his rank of Protector of Durenmar[[note]](i.e., the most important MagicalLibrary in Europe)[[/note]] and his [[TheDreaded widespread reputation]] of "Don't Mess With This Magus", he can get away with it.
* Plenty of players in a wide range of RPG games will take it for granted that they can carry their swords/bows/guns/staffs of power anywhere without hindrance, including bars, temples, and audiences with the king. Just have an NPC ask them to leave their weapons behind, and they'll react with fear, suspicion and outrage. (It probably doesn't help that many game world writeups ''do'' seem to establish that the more restrictive a given place's rules on weapons are, the more hostile it will be to player characters -- perpetuating the stereotype that they don't create it in the first place.) Then they'll usually try to conceal the weapons somehow or develop elaborate tactics to reach their weapons just in case the pacifistic church where no one is allowed to carry a weapon happens to be full of armed soldiers. This desperation to avoid separation from their most beloved possessions often turns out to be justified, since so many game masters will be unable to pass up the chance to catch the player characters at less than their min/maxed best. This is unfortunate since these times are almost the only occasions in a tabletop game where the players will not emulate LeeroyJenkins when they encounter VillainsOutShopping, GoKartingWithBowser, or DidYouJustHaveTeaWithCthulhu.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* ''VideoGame/TwentyTwentySeven'', a GameMod for ''Deus Ex'', cleverly averts this by forcing you to leave your weapons with a bouncer when you enter a nightclub.
* ''7.62 High Caliber'' has no restrictions on carrying weapons in the war-torn country, and everyone (including bartenders and people masquerading as civilians) will insist on carrying their weapon in their hands as they walk around and do business. You'll still automatically incite combat if you aim a weapon at someone for too long, though.
* Radd Spencer of ''VideoGame/BionicCommando'' is warned not to shoot within neutral zones, but the fact that he brought a bazooka with him is perfectly okay.
** The computer, naturally, is not at all restricted, and [[MyRulesAreNotYourRules can attack Radd freely]]. If he retaliates, ''he's killed by the peacekeepers.''
* ''VideoGame/CaveStory''. No NPC will ever mind if you test your weapons inside their house. Not even [[UltimateBlacksmith Hermit Gunsmith]] while sleeping.
* ''Franchise/DeusExUniverse'':
** ''VideoGame/DeusEx'': Certain areas will have a "No Weapons" sign when you enter them. Ignoring this sign will cause unarmed [=NPCs=] to panic, and armed ones to attack you.
** ''VideoGame/DeusExInvisibleWar'' averts this, though, as in certain areas you can have your weapons, but they are "locked down" so you can't use them. Also the strength mod is suppressed so you can't use items in the environment heavy enough to damage.
** ''VideoGame/DeusExHumanRevolution'' averts this. Certain areas won't allow you to pull out your weapons, and in other areas, civilians will panic and/or refuse to talk to you if your gun is drawn.
** ''VideoGame/DeusExMankindDivided'' functions similarly to ''Human Revolution'', with certain areas preventing you from drawing your weapons or activating any weaponized augmentations.
* Subverted in ''VideoGame/DivineDivinity''. People notice when you talk to them with your weapon drawn, and you are given the option to threaten them or attack them.
* ''VideoGame/DukeNukem3D'' features a protagonist arming himself across various normal settings, including a movie theater, a burger chain, a theme park, a supermarket, and even a hotel. The trope is justified by the fact that there ''is'' an invasion underway.
* ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'': Played with in different ways throughout the series. To note:
** Played straight in ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsArena Arena]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIDaggerfall Daggerfall]]'', where nobody notices or seems to care that you are pointing your Daedric Longsword at them in a threatening manner.
** ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]'' introduces a mechanic where speaking to an NPC with your weapon drawn will result in a disposition penalty with that NPC, and this was carried into ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion Oblivion]]''. Because the disposition penalty is so small, it Downplays the trope instead of Averting it.
** ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]]'' drops the disposition mechanic from the series, removing any attempt at Averting the trope. Some [=NPCs=], especially guards, may comment that you have your weapon drawn or a spell readied, but no one actually does anything about it.
* ''VideoGame/{{Fable}}'':
** Zig-zagged in ''VideoGame/FableI''. Upon entering the [[TruceZone walled city of Bowerstone]], the guards confiscate your weapons until you leave again. In smaller settlements, people react with anger or fear if your weapon is drawn and the CityGuards will fine you if you don't put it away. Even in the wilderness, neutral [=NPCs=] get nervous if your weapons are drawn, even if you're defending them at the time.
** ''VideoGame/FableII'': Carrying your weapons on your back (or on your side for that matter) is acceptable seeing as it is an archaic society, but, oddly enough, most [=NPCs=] keep their weapons in [[HyperspaceArsenal hammerspace]].
* Being unarmed in the world of ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' is generally a bad idea. There are, however, two notable exceptions: The New California Republic in ''VideoGame/Fallout2'' doesn't allow drawn guns within the city (they have a police force, after all) and [[IJustShotMarvinInTheFace waving your gun in someone else's face]] will penalize speech checks in ''VideoGame/Fallout3''.
** And throughout ''VideoGame/Fallout1'' and ''2'' there are several places where people will tell you to put your guns away before they allow you to talk to them or walk into the town.
** Not exactly this trope but wearing your power armor everywhere can scare quite a few people.
** The casinos in ''[[VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas New Vegas]]'' frisk guests for weapons, and thus the guards get understandably upset when you draw a weapon. Gets hilarious when you're treated politely while wearing full [[KnightTemplar Brotherhood of Steel]] [[PoweredArmor power armour]] and accompanied by an eight-foot-tall [[LightningBruiser Super Mutant]] and a {{Cyborg}} German Shepherd, but the guards all pull guns if you slip on brass knuckles.
* ''VideoGame/{{Faxanadu}}'' shows the main character holding his weapon even when he's in a town. Entering a house or shop, however, disables his weapon and magic, so that it looks like he's eagerly extending his hand as he walks around. This makes rooms with enemies in them the most dangerous locations in the game, as you can't fight back.
* In the ''VideoGame/{{Gothic}}'' games, unsheathing a weapon or preparing an offensive spell out of combat will make people nervous, and they will attack you if you don't put it away after a few warnings.
* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'': While taking a gun out while in a fight or police chase will get you shot at, feel free to walk down a street in Liberty City or San Andreas with an assault rifle and not get even a second look from a police officer. However, if you take a gun out ''inside a police station'', they finally take notice (to the player's surprise if they went in to pick up a weapon and forgot it would automatically appear in their hands...)
** Another aversion appears in ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIV'', where walking into a strip club with a weapon out will get you attacked by the bouncers.
** Another aversion in ''[[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoViceCityStories Vice City Stories]]'', where entering into the airport automatically strips you of all your weapons. The same goes for the golf course in Vice City, but there's an alternate path into the course that's not particularly hard to go through.
* ''Hexcraft: Eventide Sigil'' averts this as a core element of its gameplay. Don't equip a gun unless you plan on killing something, because any [=NPCs=] who see you do it will react accordingly. Humorously, this trope [[MyRulesAreNotYourRules only applies to the player character]] - the cops and [[Main/ItMakesSenseInContext Arthurian knights]] all have their guns out all the time, and nobody runs from ''them''. In fact, if you pull yours out, they'll react too - by shooting you.
** Its sequel, ''Hexcraft: Harlequin Fair'', carries over this mechanic, and with it ups the dissonance to absurd levels. At least in the first game the only [=NPCs=] with guns out are law officers[[note]]or wannabes, in the case of the knights[[/note]] who you'd expect to have guns, but the second game adds a whole host of [=NPCs=] who are regular civilians just like you, and nevertheless several hold guns in the same manner without provoking any reaction from the other [=NPCs=] around them.
* The ''Franchise/{{Hitman}}'' series of games takes this trope and tosses it off a cliff. If you carry ANY weapon that isn't concealed whilst wearing your default outfit, you will blow your cover and all hell will break loose, with the exception of one level in the entire series (so far), however if you have a guard's uniform on things get a bit more relaxed, you can carry two-handed weapons, however you can only carry them underslung, and they have to be standard issue to guards/security/gang members. (So if the guards are armed with [=SMGs=], you can't be carrying around a gatling gun), carrying them "at the ready" is still allowed, but far more suspicious, but don't even THINK about aiming. Interestingly even if an alert has been raised, you can only ever have pistols concealed, even if other guards are running around pseudo-aiming, if you draw yours you will be fired upon the moment you are spotted.
** There's ''one'' stage in any of the games where you can basically carry any gun openly, in any outfit including the default. In ''[[VideoGame/HitmanBloodMoney Blood Money]]'', one of the missions takes place at a large Mississippi crime family wedding in the father of the bride's mansion. The guests are so redneck that they don't bat an eye if you're carrying a scoped M4, although you do run into trouble if you run into the paranoid groom or if guards catch you in a restricted area while armed. You can even fire any gun you like while in the front yard, though if you hit anyone the guests will come after you with ''their'' guns.
* In ''VideoGame/JediOutcast'', at the start of the Nar Shaddaa level, the game stops you from drawing any weapons or using any Force powers, mainly because Kyle is trying to keep a low profile. When he enters a cantina, his pistol is immediately confiscated, yet he is allowed to keep his lightsabre (although the game still won't let you activate until the action begins).
* In ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' and [[VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublicIITheSithLords its sequel]], you can go anywhere, anytime with any weapon clearly visible in your hands, even Manaan, a planet under very strict pacifist rule. There is a moment on Tatooine in a cantina where the barkeep tells you not to use blasters inside, but he still seems okay with you waving one or two around.
* ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' 3D games generally prevent Link from using weapons while in houses and other town buildings, but the 2D games allow him to commit violence everywhere. In particular, in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' Link cannot draw his sword in Castle Town, though he can draw his sword and swing it around to his heart's content in every other town. An exception is ''VideoGame/ZeldaIITheAdventureOfLink'': Link's sprites show him constantly holding his sword, even if he is in a peaceful town. One must wonder if this makes the townspeople nervous. ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' is another exception, as you can brandish weapons absolutely anywhere and even [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential swing them at civilians]].
* In ''VideoGame/LegoStarWars'', attacking anyone (friend, foe, droid, or neutral party) in the hubs will set off a bar brawl in which you can actually take damage and die. Though in the first game, once you buy a few villain characters this is the default state: Jedi and Sith will duel, good gunslingers will trade gunfire with {{mooks}}, etc.
* Played with in ''VideoGame/MafiaTheCityOfLostHeaven'', where the player character stumbles in on the funeral of somebody that they murdered, and is recognized; the mourners draw their guns and a tactical shoot-out ensues. It turns out the family attending goes everywhere armed with their guns.
* Mostly averted in ''Franchise/MassEffect'', as being a Spectre allows Shepard to go around armed wherever s/he pleases, and in the first game no one bats an eye if Shepard whips out a shotgun in a residential area and starts firing. There are a couple of exceptions where guards try to confiscate your weapons, i.e. the guards as Noveria and Purgatory, and one specific mission in ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' requires Shepard to go around unarmed, while another restricts Shepard to just his/her sidearm at a formal dinner party where only concealed sidearms are allowed.
** Keep in mind that even after the weapon crackdown between games, Shepard is still allowed to walk around the Citadel with a mini-nuke on his/her back.
* During the undercover missions in the early ''VideoGame/MedalOfHonor'' games, pulling a gun out in front of German soldiers would blow your cover. But thanks to NoBodyLeftBehind, taking out lone guards while their back was turned with your silenced pistol didn't.
* Given its relative realism you'd expect that drawing weapons in a city might cause a ruckus, but ''VideoGame/MountAndBlade'' averts this, and with good reason. Calradia is in a state of constant war, with raiding parties, bandits, and mercenaries pretty much everywhere. A person carrying weapons openly while covered in plate armor is hardly worth a second glance, but civilian [=NPCs=] won't fuss if you happen to draw a spear and shove the pointy end in their face while talking to them. Shopkeepers blithely ignore the mace being waved in their faces by your character while you browse their wares, and even city guards will simply give you a generic 'don't cause trouble' message.
** The second game, ''VideoGame/MountAndBladeIIBannerlord'', downplays it. While in a town characters will switch to a civilian outfit, which uses the same mechanics as your normal wargear but with your options restricted. Most swords (see Real Life below) are allowed, but more dedicated weapons of war like maces are not allowed. Certain quests will pit you in combat with your civilian gear, so there is incentive to use some of the light armor options that are allowed as civilian clothing.
* Avoidance of this is an actual play element of ''VideoGame/NoOneLivesForever'', as civilians are less than cooperative when Cate is brandishing, so use of quiet weapons and timely holstering are both necessary when in public levels.
* Averted in ''VideoGame/PerfectDark'', when wearing a disguise. If Joanna pulls out a weapon in front of a guard or is caught wielding one otherwise, her cover will immediately be blown, and she may even be accosted for it.
* Explicitly averted in ''VideoGame/Persona4''. The Protagonist and Yosuke are ready to go into the [[EldritchLocation TV World]] to find some clues on the murder of one of their classmates, so Yosuke brings along weapons for them to defend themselves with. Problem is, the portal to the TV World is a TV screen at the local supermarket. And the town IS on edge due to the ''murder investigation''. A brief incident with the ''police'' later, they have to spend a few tense moments sweating it out with the Protagonist's uncle (the detective in charge of the investigation) and he spends the entire game being suspicious of his nephew's activities afterwards. They wisely decide to hide their weapons under their clothes next time.
* ''VideoGame/Postal2'': Waving any kind of weapon around will scare people away and/or alert the police. The "E" key allows you to holster your weapon. But then you get to the ACTUAL church! Islamic terrorists decide to attack the place, Catholic priests grab guns to fight back and you're stuck in the middle of it. So you will have to pull your own gun out just to get out of here alive.
* A gameplay element in ''VideoGame/ScarfaceTheWorldIsYours''. Waving a gun around causes people to flee and police interest to skyrocket. Paying off the cops is possible. Outright hiding works as well. Even crooks get nervous around your gun. It gets funky when you're trying to do in-game required missions in the middle of the street.
* Averted in all 3 games of ''VideoGame/{{STALKER}}'', you can't enter most populated places with your weapon out and nearly no one will talk to you unless you put your weapon away.
* In the video game for ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'', Qui-Gon cannot draw his lightsaber in Mos Eisley without putting the whole town on alert. The shopkeepers will also comment on you having your lightsaber out.
* The first gun obtained in ''VideoGame/TheyHunger'', is in fact, found in a church. It lies next to the corpse of a Priest, who attempted to ring the church bell that unlocks his secret ''Dynamite stash''. [[CrazyPrepared Someone]] apparently knew that a ZombieApocalypse was going to happen sooner or later.
* In ''VideoGame/VampireTheMasqueradeBloodlines'', anywhere designated a 'combat' zone allows you to draw your heaviest artillery and blast away, with no worse repercussions than making nearby non-combatants panic. Normally, combat zones are in areas not covered by law enforcement anyway, but there are a few examples where you'd think you'd get some problems. The trope is inverted in one case, however: A certain enemy has to be killed without the use of firearms or you will be chewed out by the quest-giver, as the subsequent investigation into the enemy's death will have multiple witnesses hearing the gunshots.
* In ''VideoGame/VampireTheMasqueradeRedemption'', your characters could walk around in full tactical armour brandishing [=RPGs=] and flamethrowers, and police, store owners, and private citizens didn't bat an eye (in NYC this was bad enough but London?). Just don't get caught [[KissOfTheVampire necking with someone in an alleyway]]...
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[[folder:Western Animation]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Archer}}'', "covert operative" Lana Kane frequently wears two guns openly in side holsters over her otherwise skintight clothing.
[[/folder]]

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