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"That illusion of choice was just a formality. Your task has already been decided, you see."

The RPG version of You Cant Fight Fate. In RPGs, the main character has two jobs: in the plot, he is The Hero of his motley crew of rebellious aristocracy, mysterious girls, and many others. He's the leader, the point-man, calling the shots. He's also, however, the player's avatar in the game world. Therefore, it's becoming increasingly common for the other characters to turn to you and ask (in the form of a multiple-choice question and Dialogue Tree) what they should do in any given situation.

The problem, however, is this: The writer already has the script plotted out, and your decision, whatever it is, is going to affect all of jack squat. Either the other characters will just ignore the answer and get on with what you're supposed to be doing, or they'll ask the question over and over until you make the "correct" choice. You might see some altered dialogue or a slightly different scene, but the plot itself will remain largely unchanged.

Occasionally a game utilizing this trope will toss in a question where an incorrect answer results in a Nonstandard Game Over. (God knows why.) Such questions are usually pretty obvious (The Big Bad asking you to become his disciple, for example), though, so it's easy to avoid falling into that trap. Either way, this represents the game forcing you to Follow The Plotted Line, period.

In some games, particularly in Sierra adventure games, answering a choice incorrectly can leave the game in an Unwinnable state, for example the salesman in Space Quest I, who you have to refuse the first offer from, then wait for him to reappear so he offers you a jetpack, which is critical later on. Guide Dang It!

Another way to make these questions relevant is to tie them into Relationship Values — your decisions might not change the plot, but they will change how other characters perceive you.

This trope obviously doesn't apply for games that make heavy use of a Karma Meter, such as the Ogre Battle series, or most western RPGs. In those games, your decisions can and will direct the plot, albeit usually on a pre-programmed branch.

Summed up eloquently in this webcomic (With A Herring, no less) and numerous others.

Named after one of the first instances of the trope, from the original Dragon Quest (Dragon Warrior in the original American release). Compare Stupidity Is The Only Option, Catch-22.


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Examples where giving the "wrong" answer makes it impossible to proceed until you give the "right" answer (including giving Nonstandard Game Overs):

    Action Adventure 

    Adventure 

    H-Games 

    RPG 

    Simulation Games 

    Stealth-based Games 

    Tabletop Game Adaptations 

    Text Adventure 

    Turn-based Strategy 

    Web Original 

    Webcomic 

    Real Life 

    Other/Unsorted 

Examples where giving the "wrong" answer has little or no effect:

    Action Adventure 

    Adventure 

    Puzzle Games 

    RPG 

    Simulation Games 

    Stealth Based Games 

    Other/Unsorted 

Examples where there is no "wrong" answer available to choose:

    Action Adventure 

    Adventure 

    First Person Shooter 

    MMORPG 

    Puzzle Games 

    RPG 

    Shoot Em Up 

    Simulation Games 

    Stealth Based Games 

    Tabletop Game Adaptations 

Unsorted (please help!)

  • In Legend Of Mana, you can refuse any of the NP Cs who want to join your party, and if you don't bother to correct the Onion Kid when he calls you "Chumpy" you are stuck with the nickname for that game cycle, but you are compelled to "buy" some fairly bad gear from Honest John's Dealership on your first quest with him every single time, and in one arc you're not even given the option to refuse the quest to defeat the Big Bad (justified in that you were blackmailed into working for him through most of the quest).
  • .hack brings us the big hulking green freak Piros. The people who designed the first four games must like this guy. He drags you on two quests per game. Half of which are caused by his ineptitude and gullibility. This guy is seriously annoying but the story will NOT progress until you clean up his messes. Because Kite has nothing better to do....... besides saving coma victims.
    • Piros makes FAR more sense when you realize that he's the Author Avatar of Hiroshi Matsuyama, the president of CyberConnect2 and the director of the .hack series. Not only is Piros literally Hiroshi in the game universe (ie, the "graphics designer" who plays Piros' character is Hiroshi Matsuyama), but the real Hiroshi even sings his theme song in the GU games.
  • Shin Megami Tensei II has Beth force you to let Daleth live so he can flee. It still impacts your Karma Meter, though.
  • In Deus Ex the player is constantly given choices that have some impact on how the game plays out. Despite this, you can't chose your allies or enemies until the game decides that you trust them. Justified barely in that having people shoot you on sight is a lot less about how you feel about them and a lot more about how they feel about you.
    • In a particularly egregious example when you are given the mission of killing your own brother, if you try to actually do so he ignores being repeatedly shot and just says "stop kidding around, J.C..
    • And later in that mission, the game makes an invincible enemy and removes your escape chopper, forcing your "death". Though, to be fair, it does give you the option of surrendering.
      • It's worth noting exactly how much this looks like it would avert this trope. See, after sending the rebel's signal and going back to Paul's apartment, you're surrounded by Mi Bs. It is possible to shoot or sneak through all of them, which takes you to the hotel lobby, crammed with soldiers. Once again, you can shoot or sneak through all of them and head outside. Jock will then say that he can't set down the chopper here, so you've got to head to Battery Park instead - while the streets are crawling with patrols. You can then use a code to open the subway gate, and take it back to the park...where you will then meet with Anna Nevarre, if she's still alive out for your blood. If you then kill or sneak by Anna, and take the stairs up out of the subway, you will then meet the invincible Gunther. He will offer you the choice to surrender or fight - fighting will make him and his surrounding army shoot you up until you have the scripted Fake Death. Even if you use cheats to get past everyone, you can't get to the chopper or even walk out of the park - the exits and chopper are behind Invisible Walls. So close and yet so far!
    • And even later, before going to the Ancient Conspiracy's headquarters, you're given two dialogue options, both of which result in you getting knockout gassed and dragged there unconscious.
  • The sequel, Deus Ex: Invisible War gives you at least two factions telling you what to do every step of the way. More often than not, they are telling you to do almost the exact same things. In the end, you are given a choice to tell them all to shove it and leave you alone, but that of course still plays into at least some of their plans.
  • Used straight in Brass Restoration, as it's a Visual Novel, but also lampshaded a few times.
  • Trace Memory, at the end of each chapter the main character quizzes herself. Getting the answer wrong just makes her say 'No, wait... That's not right' and you can guess again. Becomes really obvious in the ending.