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!!ADarkerMe
You, only [[DarkerAndEdgier cooler, edgier, and often ruder]]. A Darker Me is generally the person you would be if you weren't the more cautious, inhibited and [[ThisLoserIsYou boring]] person you actually are. Most online personas include at least a little bit of A Darker Me, and some, most notably the {{Troll}}, include a lot of it. A Darker Me is like the {{GIFT}} in that it allows people to say things they would never say in real life, but is not limited to profane or offensive statements.
!!ADarkerMe
See also: {{GIRL}}, {{GIFT}}, BeneathTheMask, {{Troll}}, {{Griefer}}, and MeanCharacterNiceActor. Closely [[StealthPun related to]] WhatYouAreInTheDark. Compare BecameTheirOwnAntithesis and MaddenedIntoMisanthropy. Not to be confused with the [[RaceLift other kind of Darker You]]. Or the ''other'' [[EvilTwin other kind]], for that matter.
!!ADarkerMe
* ''LightNovel/SwordArtOnline'' has a group of players of the eponymous {{MMORPG}} that go around killing other players. What makes this a lot worse is that all of the players are [[WinToExit stuck in the game until they beat it]] or die, which would kill them in real life. [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] when Kirito remarks that online players [[{{GIFT}} act very different]] from how they would in real life. [[spoiler: That said, a couple of the [=PKers=] end up becoming murderers IN real life. Turns out, they weren't just {{GIFT}}s after all…]]
!!AbominationAccusationAttack
* WAY too common in social media due to {{GIFT}}. One user has a grudge against another; maybe a political opinion, maybe they [[{{Shipping}} ship a pairing]] the accusing party finds distasteful, maybe they drew a character in fanart the "wrong way" (ie, a dark-skinned character half a shade lighter because they paid attention to lighting conditions or with the wrong cup size). Cue the grudge holder laying into the object of their grudge with accusations of every "-ism" and "phobia" in the book, [[MortonsFork especially phrased in a way the accused can't debate without it being "proven" true.]] A particular incident of this came about on Website/{{Tumblr}} due to a disagreement over WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse fan art, and ended with the artist attempting suicide.
** Of course, this also works on the opposite side of the spectrum. Rather than calling the accused an "ism", instead they'd call them an "SJW" -- meaning the type of condescending person that talks over marginalized groups and [[TheHorseshoeEffect accuses everyone else of doing so.]] Take the ''Steven Universe'' fanart discourse for example: the argument was over weight rather than skin color, and the suicide attempt turned out to be unrelated to the argument at all. The user even mentioned that they didn't want anyone to use the two incidents as ammunition for {{Fan Hater}}s of the series to blanket-accuse the rest of the fandom of being venomous {{Soapbox Sadie}}s and bullies, yet...
!!AcceptablePoliticalTargets
* The fact that [[VocalMinority a small minority]] of both groups (far more on the internet, due to {{GIFT}}) actually ''are'' like the above doesn't help matters.
!!AcceptablePoliticalTargets
A movement which claims to have developed in reaction to PoliticalCorrectnessGoneMad but critics of it say it is mostly united around racist causes and fears of one day no longer being the "majority". Typically characterized as {{spoiled brat}}s and [[AngryWhiteMan angry white men]] (usually) who say things they know are racist with no real purpose outside of trying to appear edgy, often by ranting on the Internet because of the {{GIFT}}. Can't stand hearing about social justice issues, but will bring them up when they're marginalizing a group they hate so they can call [=SJWs=] hypocrites. They also are seen as running high on InsaneTrollLogic and claiming formerly innocuous mascots as "theirs", like Pepe the Frog and Mac Tonight. Claim to be all about creating discussion (when they're not claiming to be [[JustJokingJustification doing it for the lulz]]), [[MoralMyopia but accuse anyone who disagrees with them of pushing an agenda and trying to silence them.]] Defines Marxism as "anything I disagree with". Gets accused of being allied with TheKlan and Nazis.
!!AcceptableReligiousTargets
* [[{{GIFT}} The less topic-specific and well-moderated a particular subsection of Internet is]], the more likely you are to get a response on the lines of: "Oh '''yeah'''? But at least I do not believe in centuries-years-old fairy tales like a dumbass, dumbass."
!!AcronymTropeNames
* {{GIFT}} - "Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory", which would have the same problem as {{BFS}}
!!AlterEgoActing
* Caused a major media shitstorm in the UK in 2014 when WebOriginal/{{Vine}} artist Dapper Laughs got his own [=ITV2=] show, ''On The Pull with Dapper Laughs'', a dating show in which he gave various men advice in getting girls. When Website/{{Twitter}} had a collective meltdown about the [[UnfortunateImplications sexist]] content, Dapper Laughs' use of RapeAsComedy and the fact that a lot of his fans were the sort of people who [[{{GIFT}} send abuse to women online]], ITV pulled the show and Laughs was invited on the news to apologise. He appeared as 'himself' and explained that Dapper Laughs was just a character, that he didn't realise people took so seriously - prompting a certain amount of debate as to whether using an ironic 'character' made awful content acceptable. Creator/CharlieBrooker suggested that much of the problem was that, even though Laughs was a character, he was giving advice about dating to ''real people'' as that character, meaning it seemed sincere.
!!AmazonianBeauty
* Almost every superheroine in ''Webcomic/GrrlPower'', with some standouts mentioned below. Most of them are at least athletically built and busty, and there's a lot of {{fanservice}} that shows off that fact. The main character is one of the few superheroines who has neither of those traits and is very self-conscious about it.
** Maxima is a tall, muscular, [[ChromeChampion golden skinned superheroine]] who is extremely sensitive about her good looks because she feels men treat her like an exotic sex doll.
** Anvil is taller and even more muscular, but still attractive enough to get hit on by the resident LovableSexManiac. He even mentions her large muscles as an attractive feature. She provides a bit of fanservice, as one of the wallpapers for the series focuses on her sunbathing.
*** Deconstructed in a more recent storyline, where Anvil admits she's not excited about an upcoming promotional photo shoot. When Sydney sarcastically ask if it's because she's afraid of appearing "too physically perfect" Anvil points out that her bodytype is actually unattractive to a lot of people and she's bullied for it a lot ([[Main/{{GIFT}} especially on the internet]]). WordOfGod says that this is why Anvil tries to dress as femininely as possible and sports long hair; she's insecure about her body being seen as "manly".
!!AnonymityCorrupts
[=[[=]redirect:{{GIFT}}]]
!!BathroomStallOfOverheardInsults
Alex is doing his business in a stall, when who should walk in but Charlie and Bob. Both of them start trash-talking Alex. Their conversation might not even be mean spirited, but simply flaws they wouldn't bring up in person that [[SelectiveObliviousness burst Alex's bubble]]. Or they assume that he's not out there and [[{{GIFT}} feel they can talk without consequences]]. After an earful, Alex will likely do one of four things:
!!BeleagueredBoss
* ''WebVideo/SwordArtOnlineAbridged'':
** Heathcliff is the leader of the most powerful guild in the game. Unfortunately, most players are extremely representative of the worst [[LeeroyJenkins stereotypes]] [[{{Griefer}} of MMO]] [[LootDrama players]] ([[{{GIFT}} the protagonist included]]), causing him no end of headaches. [[spoiler:Their idiocy plays a part in his VillainousBreakdown, although Kirito points out that someone who plays a multiplayer game with permanent invulnerability has no place criticizing others dying stupid deaths.]]
!!BeneathTheMask
Related to {{GIFT}} and WhatYouAreInTheDark. Often used in conjunction with HiddenHeartOfGold, JerkWithAHeartOfGold, BitchInSheepsClothing, SugarAndIcePersonality, SadClown, StepfordSmiler, UndercoverWhenAlone, BrokenAce, and TheProudElite. ObfuscatingStupidity and ObfuscatingInsanity can be subtropes, as can ADarkerMe.
!!BlankSlate
* The chatbot [[http://www.theverge.com/2016/3/23/11290200/tay-ai-chatbot-released-microsoft Tay]] was another attempt at designing an AI that could learn to talk like a human. Unfortunately, it was targeted by {{troll}}s and learned to emulate [[{{GIFT}} the dark side of the Internet]], causing Microsoft to [[http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/mar/26/microsoft-deeply-sorry-for-offensive-tweets-by-ai-chatbot shut down the project]] and delete the worst of Tay's obnoxious spewings.
!!CantTakeCriticism
* In [[Music/{{Gyari}} Gyari-P's]] [[Music/NandemoIukotoWoKiiteKureruAkaneChan "Akane-chan will do anything you say"]], first Yukari gets some [[{{GIFT}} trollish/scathing]] comments on her gaming stream after some particularly bad matches she had, such as telling her (paraphrasing) "if you think you're good, try winning with only {{Scrappy Weapon}}s!" She goes into a MotorMouth rant in response, [[SoreLoser swearing to get revenge and show no mercy especially to the people leaving her those troll comments]]. Then, just to kick her while she's down, Akane, who up to this point had been presented as an ExtremeDoormat, drops the facade to [[BrutalHonesty call her stupid and tell her to quit the game]]. Yukari...[[HeroicBSOD screams, slumps to the ground, and just holds her controller]] while having [[OcularGushers waterfalls for tears]].
!!CharacterBlog
It's not without its pitfalls, however. It's much more difficult to hide things such as WriterOnBoard or CreatorBreakdown when writing a blog, and the assumed identity may slip from time to time. Conversely, a writer assuming the identity of a character with strong {{Jerkass}} tendencies has a fine line to walk between portraying the character accurately and using the fictional personality as an excuse to sneer at any fan who ventures a question via the blog. A lack of professionalism in the blog's writing may result in an extreme example of the {{GIFT}} in action.
!!{{Cloudcuckooland}}
* TheInternet. Let's see, {{GIFT}}s are normal, there are {{Troll}}s regularly, and strange mannerisms abound. It probably says something about how well it fits in when {{GIFT}}s could be misread as GIFTS;- as in [[GiantSpider Giant Intelligent Friendly Talking Spiders]].
!!CluelessAesop
* ''WesternAnimation/CaptainPlanetAndThePlaneteers'':
** The series as a whole often falls victim to this trope, largely due to the fact that it chooses to depict pollution and other types of environmental destruction as being caused by solo supervillains who are doing it [[ForTheEvulz just to be dicks]] (with the occasional exception of [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Looten Plunder]]), rather than ordinary people who aren't aware of their impact on the environment, don't care when there's a lot of money being made in the process, are concerned but can't do much about it because greener alternatives aren't available (e.g. if you decide to switch off all coal power plants, how are you going to make electricity now?), or are even simply cogs in a much larger polluting machine who just don't have the clout to change things for the better on their own. According to WordOfGod, this was something of a [[NecessarilyEvil necessary evil]], as they didn't want to make the villains too "real" and accidentally imply to the children of loggers or factory workers that their parents were evil villains.
** For a non-environmental-related case, there's the infamous episode "[[UsefulNotes/NorthernIreland If It's Doomsday, It Must Be Belfast]]", which was meant to promote world peace. What it managed to do instead was become the single most offensive example of the {{Oireland}} trope, while also making [[UsefulNotes/TheTroubles the struggle between Catholics and Protestants]] look like [[Theatre/WestSideStory The Jets against The Sharks]]. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQJrovKgrTw Highlights can be seen here]] (and the comments, being [[{{GIFT}} YouTube comments]], hardly help). This episode was banned in Northern Ireland at the time it aired, and was met with ridicule from Northern Ireland's inhabitants after it was finally shown.
!!ClusterFBomb
Some writers think the media is [[GoshDangItToHeck oversanitized]] and does not reflect how people speak in RealLife, particularly how they swear. Heavy usage of swearing is seen to be more realistic or [[DarkerAndEdgier 'gritty']]. This sentiment is stronger in certain settings, such as urban life, [[WretchedHive ghettos]], gangs, [[{{GIFT}} online gaming]], blue collar/trade jobs, concerts, [[DrillSergeantNasty the military]], {{Crapsack World}}s, etc. There is some truth to this, as there is more swearing in real life than any prime time TV show would lead you to believe.
!!ConstructiveCriticism
Unfortunately, finding criticism is rather hard in the internet age. It's easy to ''get'' criticism on the internet, but when it's mixed with the {{GIFT}}, people will often take that as an opportunity to act like a complete dick and call it criticism. If someone walked up to you and asked you for critique and you gave a very rude-sounding critique, then they won't ask you again and you won't get to critique anything. On the internet, there's loads ''loads'' more random people and works to critique, especially since you can find it anytime you want.
!!CynicismTropes
* {{GIFT}}: Anonymity on the Internet encourages people to be assholes.
!!DisgustingPublicToilet
Part of the reason this trope exists is a form of the {{GIFT}}. While ''clearly'' not on the internet; the idea that anonymity and lack of consequences/responsibility leads to [[JerkAss complete asshattery]] is still demonstrated. People naturally expect privacy in the restroom, and public toilets are not cleaned by ''them'', so they feel less guilty for trashing them, scrawling insults on the wall, or [[BathroomStallOfOverheardInsults insulting their peers]]. And the less said about "[[HandInTheHole glory holes]]" cut in the partition walls, the better. It is fading, but there's no better way to ensure the janitor will hate you than ruining the bathroom.
!!DuckSeasonRabbitSeason
* Tends to happen in arguments ([[{{GIFT}} especially on the internet]]) where one or both sides aren't entirely sure what their ''own'' position is; they just know that the other guy's wrong. The point at issue takes second place to the reflexive contradiction until you see someone shift their own argument 180 degrees without even noticing.
!!DysfunctionalFamily
* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'' has the [=Townleys/de Santas=], which became quite dysfunctional in the years since they entered WitnessProtection: Michael is a former professional robber who finds himself dissatisfied with his cushy "retirement" in an upscale West Coast neighborhood, his wife Amanda spends his money with great abandon and sleeps around with several other men, his daughter Tracey is a spoiled-rotten fame-seeking brat, and his son Jimmy is a pot-smoking gaming addict [[{{GIFT}} with no netiquitte whatsoever]].
!!EmbarrassingBrowserHistory
Usually PlayedForLaughs. May be related to WhatYouAreInTheDark and BitchInSheepsClothing if a NiceGuy in real life is a {{Jerkass}} or internet {{Troll}} online, or follows the {{GIFT}}. Might overlap with PornStash if the embarrassing content is [[TheInternetIsForPorn sexual in nature]]. See also HowDidThatGetInThere.
!!EnemiesEqualsGreatness
* In competitive gaming, there are a variety of saying that say something to the effect of, "[[{{GIFT}} The more racial slurs an enemy player screams at you the more you know you are good player.]]" After all, they wouldn't be nearly as bothered if you weren't doing well.
!!FacelessGoons
What's interesting to note is that in RealLife the Faceless Goons do have upsides; if someone is behind a mask or hood or even mirrored sunglasses they often [[{{GIFT}} no longer feel responsible for their own actions]] and [[PunchClockVillain obey commands (especially very cruel ones) more readily than if they were just in plain clothes]]. Possibly a case of TruthInTelevision. This can, however, backfire pretty badly. Looking a man in the eye and then killing him is a very hard thing to do. Covering a person's face, subconsciously suppressing our recognition of them as human, makes [[WhatMeasureIsAMook killing them a lot easier on our willpower]]. [[FridgeBrilliance This may be why]] [[ImprobableAimingSkills heroes never have trouble hitting the Faceless Goons,]] [[ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy yet the Faceless Goons can't hit the hero not wearing a mask.]]
!!FisherKingdom
* It is well known that TheInternet changes people's behavior. Either it makes [[KnowNothingKnowItAll people sound smarter]], [[FanDumb makes them sound dumber]], makes them sound hilarious to be around, or makes them into [[{{GIFT}} complete jerks]].
!!FlameWar
There is something about the anonymous nature of the Internet that makes people [[{{GIFT}} behave]] in ways that they wouldn't when they're face-to-face with other people. What starts as a minor disagreement like "how to [[{{Shipping}} ship]] two minor characters," or "what constitutes {{canon}} or {{fanon}}," escalates until the users are insulting each other, flinging expletives and profanities and shouting at the top of their virtual lungs. Inevitably, someone will be [[GodwinsLaw compared to]] [[HitlerAteSugar Hitler]]. Also inevitably, the InternetToughGuy will get involved, resulting in legal threats (anything from DMCA takedowns and people trying to drag the legal staff of people or businesses involved into the flame war to [[RougeAnglesOfSatin often hilariously misspelled]] accusations of "defamation" and even possibly an actual FrivolousLawsuit), and sometimes even actual threats of violence or RealLife harassment.
!!ForumSpeak
Compare {{GIFT}}.
!!FriendlyWar
* Every violent multiplayer video game ever is a meta-example, if you think about it. However, there are [[TrashTalk many]], [[{{GIFT}} MANY]] ways to subvert and turn this into [[ItsPersonal something personal. ]]
!!FurriesAreEasierToDraw
A lot of [[WesternAnimation cartoons]], [[{{Anime}} anime]], and {{webcomics}} have anthropomorphic animal characters. Many [[{{GIFT}} self styled internet experts]] [[SarcasmMode perfectly explain this tendency]] [[MisaimedStereotyping by claiming]], "The artists are themselves [[UsefulNotes/FurryFandom furries]], and this is why the characters are all [[SlidingScaleOfAnthropomorphism literal Furries]]." While this is certainly true in some cases, [[MisaimedStereotyping more than 90% of the time, it's not]].
!!GiftTropes
Related to GratitudeTropes and RewardedWithAnIndex. See also WillAndInheritanceTropes. Not related to {{GIFT}} or TheGift.
!!GodlikeGamer
If they are a villain, they're almost definitely a {{GIFT}} and SmugSuper who is a general {{jerkass}} to fellow players who loves to KillSteal or [[PlayerKilling player kill]]. Sometimes a [[TheGMIsACheatingBastard cheating Game Master]] or a [[GodModders player using hax]] might pretend to be one [[CheatersNeverProsper before being revealed as a fraud]].
!!GodwinsLaw
Godwin's Law, also known as "Godwin's Rule of Nazi Analogies," is an "Internet law" describing the tendency of [[{{GIFT}} people on the Internet]] to say outrageous things to win arguments. Originated by Richard Sexton, it's named after Mike Godwin, longtime attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation (and at one time for [[Wiki/{{Wikipedia}} the Wikimedia Foundation]] as well), who popularized the law in 1990 in this form:
!!GreaterInternetFuckwadTheory
[=[[=]redirect:{{GIFT}}]]
!!{{Griefer}}
The Griefer is the most known term for this type of player. The act of griefing dates as far back as the days of old arcades in your local pizzeria. Methods of griefing included but were not limited to reaching over and pressing buttons on games people were playing, turning off the game while it was in use, attacking players in games where friendly-fire exists, physically distracting them (such as covering their eyes or tickling them), or tilting a pinball machine. But these early griefers were much more contained as they could not at all grief people on the other side of the world, oh no, they were limited to Arcade games. Plus, you knew who they really were, and they were within range of your [[HurricaneKick foot]] or your [[TalkToTheFist hand]]. When online gaming became the norm, Griefers [[{{GIFT}} jumped all over it]].
!!HairTriggerTemper
* Seems to affect veteran [[RealLife players]] of competitive team-based video games. [=MOBA=] games like ''VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth'' and ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' have a notoriously [[{{GIFT}} bad community]]. If you are unlucky, every visible mistake you make results in a barrage of "[[NoSocialSkills retard]]" and "[[DrillSergeantNasty nooooob]]" all the way to "[[ForTheEvulz kill yourself irl]]" from your teammates, and god have mercy on you if you tell your team it is your first game...
!!HateDumb
A {{fandom}} can sometimes reach rather [[FanDumb illogical levels.]] But let's face it, [[{{Hatedom}} hating a thing]] can bring out the {{jerkass}} in someone as much as liking it, [[{{GIFT}} especially on the Internet.]] Actions that drop someone's [[TookALevelInDumbass IQ points to dangerously low levels]] can be inspired by hate as easily as by love.
!!HePannedItNowHeSucks
* WebVideo/MrTARDISReviews
** Got this after his [[https://youtu.be/2QMmz7POQRg negative review]] of ''Come Fly With Me''. He [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome eventually made]] a [[https://youtu.be/TqaokTUiZVM response video]] to [[{{Jerkass}} one user]] [[SmallNameBigEgo who was using]] [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech his negative review]] [[{{GIFT}} to troll him mercilessly]].
** Whenever he makes a negative review of a ''Series/DoctorWho'' episode (especially [[DarthWiki/FallenCreator those written by]] Creator/StevenMoffat), the ''Doctor Who'' fanbase being what it is, many will start slamming him.
!!HearingVoices
* Music/LindseyStirling and Music/{{Switchfoot}} collaborated to create "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRtwJRpEIA0 Voices]]", which uses this trope as a metaphor for Website/YouTube comments. The music video initially indicates that [[{{GIFT}} said voices fall under Evil]], but for the last chorus, they show that [[WhatYouAreInTheDark not all of the voices should be painted with the same brush]], and that [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments the select few who fall under Good are far more important]].
!!HobbesWasRight
* In many cases, the Internet and online gaming. Let everyone be free and [[{{GIFT}} things tend to get crazy due to the anonymous and consequence-free interactions]]. The usual method of maintaining civility on sites that care about protecting it is to maintain dictatorships that firmly squash {{Troll}}s and {{Flame War}}s before they get out of hand.
!!IJustWantToHaveFriends
This also happens in RealLife online, where e-relationships eliminate most of the usual hardships of making friends and they help shy people to open themselves and show [[BeneathTheMask how they really are]] without [[{{GIFT}} worrying about their self image]].
!!IJustWantToHaveFriends
* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft''. Believe it or not, some people are just in it for the social activities ('I just want to feel useful in the raid'), even if the game is one of the [[{{GIFT}} least conducive place]] to do so.
!!ImNotHereToMakeFriends
This trope may be an applied form of the {{GIFT}}—as has been written by Reality TV columnists, many people who enter games with this attitude do not actually act like this in real life. They decide that the end justifies the means, and don't care at all about what others think about them. As described below, this attitude is ''not'' exclusive to reality game shows; it's just the origin of the trope. In video games, StopHavingFunGuys and {{Scrub}}s can embody this trope.
!!{{Imageboards}}
The best-known imageboard in the U.S. is probably Website/FourChan, created in 2003 to serve as an English-language version of Futaba Channel. Especially among [[OccidentalOtaku American]] {{otaku}},[[note]]Or [[ComicStrip/ThePerryBibleFellowship "weeaboos"]], as they're sometimes known, although it's a much more negative term[[/note]] it's quite popular for the [[MemeticMutation huge numbers of memes it generates]] and, due to [[{{GIFT}} anonymous users and loose moderation]], its extremely variable quality as well as its [[ANaziByAnyOtherName questionable political stances]]. For these reasons, one could see imageboards to be the antithesis of social networking sites such as Website/{{Twitter}} and Website/{{Facebook}}.
!!InGameBankingServices
* ''VideoGame/EVEOnline'' players proposed banking services though, [[{{GIFT}} as befits the universe]], ''all'' of them were frauds, [[https://forums-archive.eveonline.com/topic/142571 whether by conception or by execution]]: since players had no way to ensure the bankers would actually pay up capital and interest and the bankers themselves had no way to force debtors to pay up their loans, along with the fact the game had plenty of liquidities circulating, banking was simply unpractical for the time being.
!!InternetBackdraft
See also, FlameWar, which is a common terminology for this, FlameBait, a normal ''cause'' for this, and {{GIFT}}. See ''also'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QyYaPWasos this video]] from ''Website/CollegeHumor'', which [[WeDidntStartTheBillyJoelParodies sets the whole concept of this to a Billy Joel song]].
!!InvisibleJerkass
Not related to the trope WhatYouAreInTheDark, but related to the saying it comes from. See also TimeFreezeTrollingSpree, VillainTeleportation, InvisibleStreaker. See {{GIFT}} for the equivalent result when applied to anonymity on the internet. See also PowerPerversionPotential for other things you can use invisibility to get away with.
!!ItWasAGift
Not to be confused with TheGift, or {{GIFT}}.
!!ItsBeenDone
* ''Webcomic/SaturdayMorningBreakfastCereal''
** [[http://smbc-comics.com/comic/fixing-social-media "Fixing Social Media"]]: A couple of people discuss {{GIFT}} and how it's InherentInTheSystem because it's so easy to write all sorts of crap on the Internet. So they come up with the idea of creating a platform where people have to spend more effort on writing their messages and moderating the responses. "47 venture capital funding rounds later" they realise they've invented blogging.
** [[https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/modern-art-2 "Modern Art 2"]]: The strip itself is about how modern art's being all TrueArtIsIncomprehensible is a marketing gimmick to make people enjoy complaining about how they don't get it. Author's commentary behind the red button says that he found after making the comic that real economists have been studying the same basic idea for decades.
!!JerkJustifications
* For some people, especially if one browses Internet forums long enough, hang around {{Troll}}s and {{Jerkass}}es long enough and [[GotMeDoingIt you might start to become a jerk yourself]] and justify it by saying "everyone else is doing it, so I might as well be one, too." Also, if you start a thread asking why people are so mean on the Internet, expect the users, especially the trolls, respond with "[[{{GIFT}} It's the Internet. We can say whatever we want.]]"
!!JerkassDissonance
* ADarkerMe: A real-life, online-based variation; people are often more likely to conduct themselves in ways that they would never dream of -- or dare to -- act in RealLife due to the [[{{GIFT}} anonymity]] of the Internet.
!!JournalRoleplay
* StopHavingFunGuys: Even dressing room games, which are ''made'' to be laid-back and casual, are not immune to anonymous backlash. Hell, even some ''museboxes'' (private games in which only a select few players are allowed) have been known to get this, to the point where ''[[WretchedHive Wankgate]]'' of all places instituted a rule against it. Combine this with the {{GIFT}} (courtesy of the aformentioned memes) and it gets ugly.
!!LawsAndFormulas
* {{GIFT}}: ''Normal people, given anonymity and an audience, are terrible people.''
!!LongingForFictionland
* The infamous "[[Franchise/{{Digimon}} Project Digiclipse]]" from the early to mid-2000s. What started out as just a bunch of kids having fun with roleplaying about Digimon in the real world got out of hand quickly, as some people [[PoesLaw either genuinely believed that Digimon was real and believed in the site's mission of one day reaching the Digital world]] or [[{{Troll}} signed up to troll the people who did]][[note]][[PoesLaw only to then end up having people mistake their post as legitimate]][[/note]] began to join the site in mass. ''Then'' the goons at ''Website/SomethingAwful'' caught wind of it and [[{{GIFT}} it proceeded to get out of hand from there.]] Although some people [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbhOjtFFdFI briefly mistook it as an actual cult]], nowadays it's generally agreed on that it was just a bunch of kids wanting to have some fun roleplaying only for it to snowball horrendously out of control.
!!LossOfInhibitions
See InhibitionDestroyingPuppet, {{GIFT}}, InVinoVeritas, DyingDeclarationOfLove, and DyingDeclarationOfHate for specific circumstances that can cause someone to lose their inhibitions. See TheSociopath to look at characters who ''start'' with no inhibitions rather than losing them.
!!MalevolentMaskedMen
Spookily enough, psychological research has found evidence suggesting that [[{{GIFT}} people who feel anonymous (such as people who are wearing a mask) show more willingness to engage in antisocial behavior]].
!!MaskOfConfidence
* People are known to act as a much less 'filtered' and 'conformed' version of themselves when wearing a mask of some sort. This is particularly true when said mask is [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_disinhibition_effect the internet]]. Of course, this means that people who suppress their natural nastiness [[{{GIFT}} will unleash it online]].
!!MeatPuppet
An entirely alternate meaning refers to TheInternet and NewMedia culture in social media: an online "entourage" or crowd of [[YesMan Yes People]] surrounding a particular Internet user and/or a "personal army" of Internet users recruited to attack or defend someone in a FlameWar or flare of InternetBackdraft, or to [[TheShill promote them or their product.]] This is connected to AstroTurf except that AstroTurf is usually for a politician, product, company, or one side in a war or conflict, whereas a Meat Puppet can appear anywhere (and are often ''why'' a debate escalates to Flame War, Internet Backdraft, or appearing on Fandom Wank levels). These are usually called Meat Puppet as opposed to SockPuppet, because they ''are'' actually separate people, unlike a Sock Puppet, which is a different user identity (or collection of them) created by the same person. That said, good luck in telling them apart, especially in [[{{GIFT}} places that allow anonymity and don't ban proxies]].
!!MediationBackfire
* This can happen on many internet forums. Trying to end a FlameWar between two or even more users will result in them to take out their frustration on you with heaping insults. Considering that [[{{GIFT}} it's the internet]], this is no surprise at all.
** This can be particularly amplified when it comes to political, religious, and ideological disputes. Those who take the "centrist/moderate" position often fall victim to this trope.
!!MemeticMutation
* {{GIFT}}
!!MinMaxing
* ''VideoGame/{{Runescape}}'' has an unorthodox leveling system - Your player's overall Combat level is determined by a combination of your Attack, Strength, Defence, Hitpoints, Ranged, Magic, Prayer and Summoning. This combat level dictates who you can fight in the [=PvP=] Zone called the Wilderness (You need to be in a certain range of another's combat level before you can fight them). Some players, designated as "Pures", Min-Max by utterly neglecting certain stats, keeping their total combat level low while massively training specific others. For example, someone could be incredibly strong and accurate, but very bad at defending against things. This can sometimes give people an edge over more rounded people at the same Combat level. These pures are almost universally loathed by other people in the community, though this is utterly justified because {{GIFT}} is in full effect with them.
** As of the Evolution of Combat update in 2012 this is no longer the case; the update makes it so that neglecting the Defence skill severely hinders pures as Defence is tied to Lifepoint total. This amounts to very little though, as [=PvP=] has become very unpopular due to the lack of will most pre-update [=PvPers=] had to learn the new mechanics.
!!MsFanservice
* The ''WebVideo/{{React}}'' series has had many beautiful reactors through the years (even inspiring [[https://www.reddit.com/r/reactgirls/ their own]] [[Website/{{Reddit}} sub-Reddit]], which [[{{GIFT}} for]] [[PaedoHunt obvious reasons]] [[EveryoneHasStandards has a tough stance on comments]]), but the ones who occasionally turn up in revealing clothes (e.g shirts that are sleeveless, with plunging necklines, or/and [[FormFittingWardrobe just plainly tight]]) and are generally appealing/popular to the male ([[EvenTheGirlsWantHer and even female]]) fanbase are/were Alix, Becca, Blair Fowler, Brittany, Jayka[[note]]who even got a MaleGaze from a male reactor onscreen[[/note]], [[OneSteveLimit the second]] [[GenderBlenderName female]] Jordan, Kaelyn, Creator/{{Lia|MarieJohnson}}, [[OneSteveLimit the older and original]] Madison, Marlhy, Mikaela, [[OneSteveLimit the third and oldest]] Morgan, Rachel, Riley, Sabrina D., Sophia, [[OneSteveLimit the older and original]] Sydney, Tori, and Justine Ezarik. A lot of the comments actually point those out.
!!MultiplayerOnlineBattleArena
Aside from these generalized roles, MOBA characters and items can have similarities a lot they make up their own archetypes within the genre. Check [[Analysis/MultiplayerOnlineBattleArena here]] for such occurrences.\\
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Late in the game, after heroes have accumulated significant amounts of experience and money, they will typically take a more aggressive stance and start actively trying to destroy enemy towers, as well as try and gang up and destroy the special, more powerful monsters in the jungle to gain team-wide bonuses; frequently, this forces the enemy team to deploy against them in response. These situations where whole teams come into conflict are known as "team fights", and can frequently vastly shift the balance of power as multiple heroes from one team might be killed and forced to wait to respawn at base; a decisive team fight, where an entire team is trapped and eliminated, can frequently cost the eliminated team the game. Typically, respawn timers also get longer as the dead hero in question gains levels, making such losses even more painful.\\
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While enemy heroes may have their own HitPoints, the health of your team as a whole is measured in its buildings. The core building, remember, is the InstantWinCondition, and destroying it by any means, at any time, results in victory. Additionally, as you lose your outer towers, you lose map control; the FogOfWar spreads, giving the enemy team more opportunities to ambush you. Finally, within your base are typically important buildings which, if destroyed, actually unlock ''extra {{mook}}s for the enemy team'', tilting the game further in their favor.\\
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UnstableEquilibrium is a big factor in [=MOBAs=]. Early-game mistakes can result in one team or another gaining an early advantage, which makes it easier for them to win later confrontations, giving them a larger advantage with every victory. There are plenty of ways to hand your opponent advantages too, from [[LeeroyJenkins starting a fight you can't win]] to [[LazyBackup failing to show up at a fight you could've won]], from [[SkewedPriorities being at the wrong place at the wrong time]] to [[HowDoIShotWeb being at the right place at the wrong time]]. The end result is that matches can often be decided long before either base is in even remote danger of destruction. Numbers are also critically important; at competitive levels of play, teams will often disengage after losing only ''one'' of their members, because their absence is already enough to virtually guarantee victory to the enemy team. NeverSplitTheParty in a MOBA. Finally, because hero characters are (deliberately) limited in what they can bring to the table, a lack of teamwork can spell disaster. You might play a perfect game, execute everything correctly, avoid needless damage, get a ton of kills... and still lose, because someone on your team dropped their responsibilities. Even worse, if your team doesn’t plan to do what you want them to, you might not be able to play your game ''at all''; you may be forced to use your character to do things s/he isn’t good at or even ''is designed to be bad at'', leaving a sour taste in one’s mouth—even if said non-cooperative teammates go on to win the game (''especially'' if).\\
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The end result is that people can get ''really'' angry when playing a MOBA. Their communities are infamously toxic; they [[ForumSpeak Suffer Newbies Poorly]] and blast [[IneffectualLoner weak team players]]. Many of these games have devoted communities who treat play as SeriousBusiness, and due to the inherent difficulties in measuring the contribution of individual players on teams, matchmaking between individual players for pick-up games tends to lead to much more varied skill levels of players on a given team than for games with more individually-tailored rating systems, especially in games with five or more players on a side. This, plus the basics of human psychology, results in a recipe for {{GIFT}} and {{Griefing}}, and all of the DOTA clones, due to the relatively long matches and teamwork-centric game design, suffer from this to a great extent.\\
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To mitigate the problem of having highly competitive people of variable skill levels, some of the newer [=MOBAs=] have tried to adopt different systems with varying levels of success, either by making it easier for the losing team to catch up or by making it so that matches end more quickly when one team gains a large advantage; both solutions are intended to give players less time to be unhappy with each other and to spend less time playing games where the outcome is already clear. In addition, most if not all the current [=MOBAs=] have some sort of player score-based matchmaking system, where all players have a personal score -- usually known as "[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elo_rating_system Elo]]" from the old days of ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' or "matchmaking ranking" (MMR) from present day ''VideoGame/Dota2'' -- and joining the matchmaking queue will theoretically match you only with players with a score similar to yours, in order to guarantee that teams have a roughly even chance of winning.
!!MurderIsTheBestSolution
* On ''Series/{{Elementary}}'':
** An architect discovers that he made a crucial error in his designs for a skyscraper. Unless the building is at least 40 feet lower, it will collapse in a strong wind. Admitting the mistake would ruin his career, so he instead murders an old woman who lives near the site where the skyscraper is to be built. Her death prevents the building's developer from buying "air rights" that he needs to obtain in order to build the skyscraper as designed and requires a redesign that will make the building shorter by the needed 40 feet. If the safe height was a few feet lower, the architect would have murdered the woman's neighbors instead to stop them from selling their "air rights".
** The final season is a take on (and maybe TakeThat) to the above example of ''Person of Interest'' through the character of tech mogul of Oden Reichenbach, who creates a data-mining application that provides him with information about potential murderers, and he decides to become a secret JudgeJuryAndExecutioner rather than, say, provide this information to the police. Sherlock even points out that [[{{GIFT}} people saying they are going to commit crimes in Facebook is more often than not them just venting or being jerks]] rather than, you know, planning murder ([[TruthInTelevision not that it hasn't happened]], but statistics are on Sherlock's side), but Reichenbach is [[KnightTemplar too crazy to care]].
!!NiceJobFixingItVillain
Compare HoistByHisOwnPetard (when the villains foil their own plans), VillainBall, BadGuysDoTheDirtyWork (like this, only intentional), PokeThePoodle, PhlebotinumRebel (when the villain ''creates'' the hero), TacticalSuicideBoss (when an enemy can only be beaten by exploiting a certain move) and due to the {{GIFT}}, WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings (when fans do it).
!!NoSympathy
* The ''F*ck My Life'' website is part catharsis, part concrete proof of NoSympathy. There are two buttons beneath each post - "I agree, your life sucks" and "You deserved it." Sometimes even the softest hearted reader has to admit they kind of did it to themselves, but even if the original poster was mugged, attacked, humiliated, heartbroken or injured, there will always be a few ''hundred'' people who click the "You Deserved It" button. (though there's {{GIFT}} to blame too) Especially if the poster has let slip that they are an AcceptableTarget in some way. Though this has been averted in more recent times where stories where the poster couldn't have possibly deserved it have the "You Deserved It" button replaced with "That Could Have Happened To Me". There are also a handful of inversions where people who were clearly at fault still have several people voting "Your Life Sucks" (on top of the fact that a sufficient amount of users had to agree with that statement for the post to make it onto the site to begin with).
!!{{Noob}}
* If you do not follow the generally-accepted strategy in a MOBA game like ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' or ''VideoGame/DefenseOfTheAncients'', you are likely to get called this in the first 30 seconds and pretty much continuously for the next 40 minutes. A highly-competitive team-based game where one weak link on your team can ruin your chance of victory [[{{GIFT}} will do that to otherwise normal players]].
!!NotSoAboveItAll
* In what is the positive contrast to {{GIFT}}, the internet's anonymity allows for pretty much anyone to be this. Someone might be too stoic or shy to let loose in real life, but give them a screen name and let them loose on a fansite for something they're really into and watch them {{Squee}} about their interest with the best of them.
!!OfCourseImNotAVirgin
* In RealLife (and by extension, [[{{GIFT}} on the Internet]]), most people who talk arrogantly about their sex life (and tease people with it) are like this.
!!OnlineDisinhibitionEffect
[=[[=]redirect:{{GIFT}}]]
!!{{Otaku}}
Neither ''{{geek}}'' nor ''{{nerd}}'' is an adequate translation. However, in modern use, both words may carry a shadow of the right connotations of obsessive interest and/or social ineptitude; see the {{geek}} and {{nerd}} pages for details. Think of the older, more pejorative senses of ''{{geek}}'' and you're on the right track. The British term ''anorak'' and the Internet term ''neckbeard'' are also close translations. Speaking of TheInternet, in more [[{{GIFT}} dickish]] online communities, autism-related terms get slung around in a similar manner. The closest [[JustForFun/TVTropesWillRuinYourVocabulary troper-speak]] cognate would be "LoonyFan." In Japan, the term doesn't carry a positive meaning at all. One of the first things most Japanese language classes often have to teach people is that [[DidNotDoTheBloodyResearch calling yourself an otaku in Japan]] is a ''very'' bad thing. (Although it must be said that in more recent years this sense is mellowing out, to the extent that [[ProudToBeAGeek more Japanese are self-identifying as otaku]]. See Wiki/TheOtherWiki's page on this for more info.)
!!PhoneaholicTeenager
* Jacob Thrombey in ''Film/KnivesOut'' is a dark version of this: a sixteen-year-old "literal Nazi" whose constant smartphone use is in the service of [[{{GIFT}} racist trolling]].
!!PlayerKilling
* In the actual game ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'', this has existed in a several forms but two variants are exceptionally notable:
** The Kiter: A player, usually a hunter, would attack an extremely powerful enemy and draw it away from its usual spawn site. The ultimate goal of this was generally to lure a mob to a capital city, where it would proceed to murder everything in sight. Most such mobs now "leash" back to their spawn.
** The Corrupted Blood Plague: An exceedingly memorable event and held as proof of the {{GIFT}}. Players discovered an ability cast by a raid boss could be brought out of the instance to populated cities, where it would proceed to spread and kill everything. When Blizzard attempted to eliminate this, the {{Griefer}}s buckled down and found new, inventive ways of spreading it.
*** To explain how awful the Corrupted Blood Plague was for Creator/BlizzardEntertainment , it took ''months'' of doing things such as quarantining an area and formatting servers, among other things. It's actually studied in Real Life as an extreme (although safe) example of medical terrorism.
!!PokeInTheThirdEye
It's a pretty well established fact that the InvisibleJerkass [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment is a]] {{Jerkass}}. [[{{GIFT}} Being able to see and do things without ever possibly being detected, much less identified, gives one a dangerous sense of omnipotence]]. The same is true for psychics or magicians who can use a CrystalBall, AstralProjection, precognition, [[TheEmpath empathy]] or {{Telepathy}} to [[SurveillanceAsThePlotDemands snoop where even the CIA can't]]... and ''with no possibility of detection!'' They'll gather even private information with impunity, because really, what is a {{Muggle}} [[WhatMeasureIsANonSuper going to do to stop him or her?]]
!!PopUpTexting
* ''WebVideo/MuppetViralVideos'': "Beaker's Ballad" has [[NoFourthWall internet comments appearing in the air next to him]], really tormenting him, and [[{{GIFT}} laughing as he gets set on fire]].
!!PraisingShowsYouDontWatch
The Inverse of ComplainingAboutShowsYouDontWatch, in which these people somehow know ''exactly'' how good something is, without having ever actually ''seen'' it. Maybe they saw so much praise they feel like they can account for having actually watched it for themselves, or maybe they're just carbon-copying someone's opinions to fit into the group. Or they have seen a fragment of the work, liked it, and assumed the rest is equally good. Or perhaps they've seen the {{Audience Coloring Adaptation}}s and decided they really liked those, which means the original must be just as awesome or even better. Who knows? Similar to somehow knowing a show is utter crap without having seen an episode, it's one of the greatest mysteries of human culture, and has only been [[{{GIFT}} exacerbated]] by the Age of the Internet.
!!ReviewsAreTheGospel
* WebVideo/TheNostalgiaChick has a lot of teenage male fans who enjoy trying to [[{{GIFT}} prove their masculinity]]. She tears apart girly movies for a living. You do the math.
!!RulesOfTheInternet
* Rule 8: [[{{GIFT}} Anonymous can be a horrible, senseless, uncaring monster]].
!!RulesOfTheInternet
* {{GIFT}}: Rule 7, Rule 12, Rule 13, Rule 14, Rule 18, Rule 42 and Rule 43 are pretty {{GIFT}}ed.
** Rule 48 is metaphor for "{{GIFT}}ed people always spoil the fun".
!!RunningTheAsylum
* ''VideoGame/CantrII'': The creator has largely left the game, leaving it to some staff to manage things. Over time, this has resulted in what has been referred to as the [[DrunkWithPower Internet]] [[ScrewTheRulesIMakeThem Illness]]. Basically, any [[{{GIFT}} normal person gets a chance to live out their powertrip fantasies, and go for broke]]. HilarityEnsues.
!!ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney
* While there is a specific trope for Video games [[PayToWin allowing you to get better equipment or more resources for paying]], there is a much different way: Video game moderation. Video game moderators are already ''very'' reluctant to actually punish troublemakers especially since they [[UsefulNotes/VictimBlaming tell people to just block them rather than do anything bad]]. But when the game is supported by [[https://www.alistdaily.com/strategy/mobile-gaming-whales-fitting-new-descriptors/ Whales]], certain players are objectively ''worth more'' to the company than others due to them investing so much money. Essentially, being a Whale is also a good way to avoid receiving any kind of significant recompense for your behaviour, allowing for [[{{GIFT}} greater fuckery]]. ''WebAnimation/ExtraCredits'' even expressed concerns that this could happen.
** Streamers and [=YouTubers=] have also been reported flouting the rules and getting away with it. People have released videos and streams demonstrating how easy it is to break the rules in games, and the worst they have received is a temporary ban or even a chat ban. Other users who have done minor things have even received permanent bans, but [[DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist since most of these games are free to start]], come back with a new name and a new face within the day.
!!SecretIdentityIdentity
* Comicbook/SpiderMan is mostly Peter Parker. The witty quips he makes when fighting supervillains are usually belied by his internal monologue about his life as Peter Parker. On occasion, though, after a particularly traumatic adventure, he has sealed himself up behind the Spider-Man persona, and once or twice, a darker persona, referred to as "The Spider", has emerged.
** Creator/PeterDavid did a series where Peter Parker was locked up and doped up in a sanitarium, where Peter came to terms with "The Spider". And it wasn't particularly darker than Peter or Spider-Man.
** "The Spider" is the nickname his RoguesGallery has given to Spider-Man whenever he's not talking and joking. This more than anything else scares the crap out of them.
** One of the scariest things in the entire Marvel universe isn't Wolverine, or Venom, or even Carnage. It's Spider-Man, [[PaintItBlack in the black costume]] ''and [[OutOfCharacterIsSeriousBusiness not talking]].''
** A few instances have suggested that Spider-Man is essentially the {{GIFT}} version of Peter Parker. Peter Parker is normally introverted and socially reserved. Spider-Man is Peter Parker with anonymity and an audience and as a result his own social restraint has been removed. Spider-Man is much more assertive and has an inability to stop telling bad jokes.
!!SeriousBusiness
It's often a SillyReasonForWar, and can turn a casual conversation into a heated CavemenVsAstronautsDebate. Someone who just can't let it go may become a SingleIssueWonk. If competition is involved, you can almost ''guarantee'' that SecondPlaceIsForLosers. Frequently "opposed" by the CavalierCompetitor. Compare StopHavingFunGuys. In musicals it's often demonstrated that DancingIsSeriousBusiness. For the saying that "TheInternetIsSeriousBusiness", see {{GIFT}}. Related to ImNotHereToMakeFriends. Not to be confused with MundaneMadeAwesome, though the two tropes overlap ''plenty.''
!!SheepInSheepsClothing
* In ''VisualNovel/ReAlistair'', Merui mentions that even nice guys can [[{{GIFT}} act like jerks online]] in regards to [[NiceGuy Shiro]] being one of the three boys who could potentially be Alistair. Additionally, playing Shiro's route has you see him acting uncharacteristically hostile towards Derek in one scene when Merui isn't around. [[SpoiledByTheFormat Of course]], since he's listed on this page, you know he's not actually Alistair and has a completely understandable reason to not be friendly towards Derek. [[spoiler:In fact, he's Merui's online friend [=FionaWings=] who rightly suspects Derek of being Alistair.]]
!!ShipToShipCombat
Many fans {{ship|ping}}. Some of them have [[{{OTP}} a distinct ship that they like over all others]], while some of them are torn between contradictory pairings. Some of them like to debate a pairing while keeping in mind its status in {{canon}}, while some of them discuss it [[ShippingGoggles believing their pairing]] ''is'' {{canon}} (or, in the case of those who argue over what's going to happen like they think they're pooling money for a bet, will inevitably be). [[{{GIFT}} Now throw in the power of the Internet to connect everybody (and everybody's opinions) with everybody else…]]
!!SituationalSociability
Can overlap with ADarkerMe and {{GIFT}}, when a character exhibits traits they would not normally show when they think they can get away with it or are otherwise made to lose their inhibitions. See also BeneathTheMask, which goes along with the "public persona" variation of this trope. This trope is applied when the hidden persona is actually expressed in some fashion. CannotTalkToWomen is a subtrope where the specific trigger that causes the change in social skills is the presence of the opposite sex.
!!SocialMediaIsBad
* The social network is otherwise fine, but induces apathy, aloofness, disconnectedness, and loneliness in its users, especially those who spend a lot of time on it. Alternatively, the network is fine, but [[{{GIFT}} it brings out the worst in its users]].
!!StopBeingStereotypical
* [[Creator/BobChipman Moviebob]] made a video discussing how gamers should avoid the negative stereotypes associated with them.
** That movement has exploded. Online gaming media has taken up the topic at length with many calls for more maturity, less hateful speech (a product of {{GIFT}} and the generally competitive nature of gamers). ''WebAnimation/ExtraCredits,'' ''WebVideo/{{Jimquisition}},'' ''Revsion 3,'' ''[[Creator/TheCynicalBrit TotalBiscuit]]'', ''WebVideo/ErrantSignal,'' and others have weighed in.
** The movement generated a backlash from people who equated it with PoliticalCorrectnessGoneMad which rather quickly got out of hand and eventually got tied up in the whole #Gamergate thing, leaving the gaming community splintered.
!!StrawNihilist
* Internet culture has developed the term "Edgelord" as a pejorative label for [[{{GIFT}} people who act like this online]].
!!SuicideDare
TruthInTelevision, and often goes hand-in-hand with KidsAreCruel, TeensAreMonsters, and the {{GIFT}}. Worth noting: in many countries, deliberately inciting someone into suicide is an extremely serious crime that may even be treated the same as premeditated homicide.
!!TheCracker
* ''VideoGame/SaintsRowTheThird'' has Matt Miller, leader of The Deckers, official hacker of TheSyndicate and a personification of the {{GIFT}}. In ''VideoGame/SaintsRowIV'' however, he made a HeelFaceTurn after being offered amnesty by [=MI6=].
!!TheGenerationGap
* This basically happens on the Internet on a daily basis with [[WhenIWasYourAge older generations]] complaining about how lazy the new generation is on the very same [[{{Hypocrite}} technology they use]] and the new generation blaming them for causing the problems that landed them in this mess in the first place. Both in [[{{GIFT}} the most melodramatic, angry way possible]] and with varying degrees of credibility.
!!TheGift
Not to be confused with "The {{GIFT}}", GiftOfSong, or GiftOfTheMagiPlot.
!!TheInternetIsSeriousBusiness
[=[[=]redirect:{{GIFT}}]]
!!TheJerkIndex
* {{GIFT}}: I'm an asshole because it's the internet (or any other anonymous setting) and I can say whatever the fuck I want! If you're offended, then fuck off, you butthurt piece of shit!
!!ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet
As the Internet grew, women became more common. Sadly, men pretending to be women became even ''more'' common as well; it soon became apparent that announcing you were female online (and thus a geek girl) was a way to get lots of attention and accommodation from other users, even to the point of some them being tricked into mailing gifts, cash, or passwords. In some circles the backlash was huge and violent, leading to anyone claiming to be female to instantly be accosted with demands of "proof" (eventually codified [[{{GIFT}} as "Tits or GTFO"]]).
!!ThisLoserIsYou
* Trevor, one of the main playable characters in ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'' is psychotic, brutally violent, a sexual deviant, and constantly threatens his friends with sexual and violent acts if they keep pissing him off. He's (supposedly) a representation on how a typical GTA player acts in the game. On a similar note, Jimmy, who is the son of Michael, is a young adult in his early twenties that refuses to get a job, mooches off of his parents, smokes weed all the time, [[ADateWithRosiePalms masturbates constantly]], and plays video games all day while [[{{GIFT}} telling other players that they're gay and how he'll rape them and their mothers]].
!!TimeImmemorialIndex
* {{GIFT}}
!!{{Troll}}
The term "trolling" originally comes from fishing, rather than [[AllTrollsAreDifferent the fantasy creature]]. [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trolling_(fishing) Trolling in a fishing context]] means casting a baited line out in the water and dragging it through the water behind you as you move, in order to increase your catchment area (the word is a variant of "trailing"). The idea in the Internet context is that you set out some bait in much the same way and watch as your victim grabs it and writhes for your amusement, solely ForTheEvulz. Malcontents on the Internet [[{{GIFT}} protected by anonymity]] have been doing this for years, hence the widespread usage of the term. Many trolls [[InsultBackfire enjoy insults (and the like) thrown at them]] as a result of their trolling; those who threw such insults are said to have "fed the troll" (or "taken the bait").
!!UltraSuperDeathGoreFestChainsawer3000
* In ''Film/RideAlong'', Ben is a fan of an ultraviolent ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjXHHjnhPIg clone]] whose online multiplayer is composed of players of [[{{GIFT}} varying degrees of maturity]], with gamertags like Assface and Ballsdeep. Ben's own gamertag is [[BlackIsBiggerInBed BlackHammer]]. The fact that his knowledge of guns comes entirely from video games bites him in the ass when his girlfriend's [[KnightTemplarBigBrother cop brother James]] takes him to a shooting range as part of a police ride-along; it turns out that being a top-level FPS gamer does ''not'' mean that [[ATeamFiring one knows how to fire]] [[BlownAcrossTheRoom a shotgun loaded with magnum shells]]. [[spoiler:Though his knowledge of the exotic military weaponry featured in the game does come in handy for tracking down Omar. Also, Assface warns Ben and James when he hears Omar's goons break into Ben's home over his Xbox Live headset.]] In the sequel, he's moved on to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wglo324OxNg a game]] more reminiscent of ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'', in which he wrecks a Lamborghini in a police chase [[spoiler:and gets killed by [[NeverMessWithGranny an old lady he tried to carjack]]]].
!!UltraSuperDeathGoreFestChainsawer3000
* {{Inverted|Trope}} in the ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'' series, of all things. Fictional video/arcade games advertised or [[GameWithinAGame available for play]] within some ''GTA'' games are far less menacing, cross a wider spectrum of genres, and may even pass as kid-friendly, though sexual jokes are aplenty and their presence is more for homage or parody. Examples include Degenatron, a pastiche of Atari with graphics consist of squares and dots of various colors; Exsorbeo, a phallic-shaped FictionalCounterpart of Game Boy with most of the games named after sexual slang, and [[https://gta.fandom.com/wiki/QUB3D QUB3D]], "The Puzzle Game That You've Played Before", obviously an in-universe counterpart to Tetris.
** Though it's less a commentary on violence and more like a FictionalCounterpart to ''Videogame/CallOfDuty'', ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'' does have a parody of this sort of game with ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAJG8tF5MQM Righteous Slaughter 7]]'', the ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare''-meets-''Postal'' FPS that Jimmy is seen playing in his room, which is packed with every stereotype about violent {{First Person Shooter}}s -- and their fans -- rolled into one. Weapons include syringes filled with [=VDs=] (which earn the player an "Infected!" bonus) and a "Shit Stick 3000" (a literal shit on a stick) alongside the usual StandardFPSGuns, the player is able to literally [[BeatingADeadPlayer rape his opponent's corpse]] after killing him (complete with a {{sexophone}} playing when you do it), the [[HintSystem tips]] on the LoadingScreen tell players that insulting other players' sexuality is an effective tactic and that you should shoot anyone who has a foreign accent, and never is less than a quarter of the screen painted red with blood. The game's website (viewable on the in-game internet) and advertisements take the parody further, [[TakeThat making fun]] of the CashCowFranchise nature of the ''Call of Duty'' games. Jimmy himself hasn't been turned into a psychopath by it, though that's not to say that his [[{{GIFT}} actual]] [[DumbassTeenageSon behavior]] is a whole lot better.\\
\\
In the same game, there are also [[Radio/GTARadio advertisements on the radio]] for ''Pride Not Prejudice'', a DeepSouth-themed video game that (going by the ads) is utterly draped in [[UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar neo-Confederate apologia]], in a parody of the perceived right-wing tilt of many shooters. Unlike ''Righteous Slaughter 7'', we don't get to see this game in action, though judging from the [[https://gta.fandom.com/wiki/Pride_not_Prejudice description from two separate radio commercials]], it's an FPS, and it parodied ''Grand Theft Auto'' itself (HilariousInHindsight when the remastered Grand Theft Auto V turns out to have a first person mode), among other things.
!!UrExample
* The {{GIFT}} was predicted in Plato's ''Literature/TheRepublic'' [[OlderThanFeudalism a couple thousand years before the Internet]], in the context of an InvisibleJerkass.
!!ValuesResonance
* An issue of ''Magazine/{{MAD}}'' from the 1970s satirizes the over-the-top and offensive personalities that people use while speaking on CB radios. Its commentary on anonymous personalities is eerily predictive of {{GIFT}}.
!!VideoGamePerversityPrevention
VideoGamePerversityPotential spreads quite frequently. If your players have the right to customize something, and said something will be displayed online for everyone to see, {{Troll}}s will inevitably make it look like a [[GagPenis penis]] or [[AdolfHitlarious swastika]] and name it with whatever garden-variety swear or slur you can think of without [[{{GIFT}} fear of it coming back to bite them]].
!!VirtueIsWeakness
* People on [[{{GIFT}} the internet]] often use the term "virtue signaling" to disparage anyone that claims to have done anything good, as opposed to the commonly-accepted definition of wanting credit for ''saying'' the right things on social media [[ConceptsAreCheap while not]] ''[[ConceptsAreCheap doing]]'' [[ConceptsAreCheap much actual good]] offline (e.g. pushing a hashtag to show your support for homeless vets without giving any time or resources would be considered virtue signaling, volunteering at a homeless shelter and saying that you do would not be).
!!VoxPops
Refreshingly, or perhaps alarmingly, major news outlets are beginning to rely more and more on Website/{{Twitter}} for this kind of "content". Usually they'll have a newscaster ([[PunishmentDetail who presumably pissed somebody off to get that job]]) standing next to a screen the size of a man that's streaming incoming tweets as they happen. Well, [[{{GIFT}} that's what they claim]]. In reality, they're probably picking and choosing ones that neither a) [[ClusterFBomb consist entirely of the word "fuck"]] nor b) [[InternetBackdraft express an opinion more extreme]] than [[LowestCommonDenominator the news media think]] the average person has.
!!WarriorHeaven
In other words, an afterlife much like any decent Team Deathmatch server, but with [[FoodPorn more food]], less [[{{GIFT}} abuse]], and [[ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet a lot more girls]][[note]]True whether you believe in historical warrior women or not: a number of the real-world cultures who believed in this viewed death in childbirth as morally equivalent to heroic death in battle and assigned such women to the same afterlife[[/note]].
!!WhatYouAreInTheDark
SuperTrope of SilentScapegoat. Antonym of PhotoOpWithTheDog. Often a prerequisite for a WeCanRuleTogether offer made to a hero. Compare InvisibleJerkass, DudeWheresMyReward, StrikeMeDownWithAllOfYourHatred, {{GIFT}}. See also TheGreatestStoryNeverTold and ZeroApprovalGambit. See ShootTheDog for when there are arguments for the morality of both actions. See HiddenHeartOfGold for when a {{Jerkass}} turns out to be a nice person on the inside. May involve TheCorrupter. This test of character always reveals what is BeneathTheMask. If a character erroneously ''believes'' that nobody will know what they're doing, they can find themself at the wrong end of an EngineeredPublicConfession (if the situation was set up deliberately) or IsThisThingStillOn (broadcasting a private moment by accident) situation.
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings
One of the many results of {{GIFT}}. Contrast RoleEndingMisdemeanor, for when it's the creators' own misbehavior causing problems and leading to cut privileges.
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings
* Music/{{Yoshiki|Hayashi}} of Music/XJapan was chased off the Internet for much of 2009 and half of 2010 in a massive flare of {{GIFT}} and InternetCounterattack that originally started when he cancelled a planned concert in Paris. He came back to the Internet in 2010 on Facebook and Twitter, and is currently back but is still occasionally bothered by trolls.
!!WhyWeCantHaveNiceThings
* Part of the reason why photos of UsefulNotes/OsamaBinLaden's corpse will not be released to the public is because of fears that it will be used as [[ForumSpeak Garbage Post Kid]] bait. The more Internet savvy or just Internet-''visible'' have long been struggling to keep both good and bad material related to themselves off the Internet due to {{GIFT}} Sometimes it works, usually it doesn't, and sometimes it has [[StreisandEffect the opposite effect]].
!!WhyWeCantHaveNiceThings
* A local New York City newspaper disabled comments on their articles posted on their website. The staff said that it was costing them money to have moderators and algorithms deleting offending comments over and over (with no results) from [[{{GIFT}} people being nasty towards each other and the people in the articles]]. Said people even harassed and threatened people that were victims of crime and even those who were still in high school. The harassment caused people that had information for a news story to not come forward because they didn't want to deal with people looking up their names and location and harassing them.
!!WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity
{{Invisib|leJerkAss}}ility seems to drive one insane (because when you're out of your sight, you're out of your mind), or at least evil, more than any other power, because it lets you [[PowerPerversionPotential spy on people undetected]] and [[{{GIFT}} escape easily without consequences]]. Creator/HGWells' novel ''Literature/TheInvisibleMan'' is the TropeCodifier for invisibility letting you be evil in the modern era, but the germ of the story is [[OlderThanFeudalism much older than that]]; if you asked Wells where he got the idea he would probably have mentioned Creator/{{Plato}}'s tale of the ring of Gyges (from ''Literature/TheRepublic'').
!!Administrivia.ImagesWithoutASource
* {{GIFT}}
!!Administrivia.NoOnPageExamples
* {{GIFT}} - We only need to define the term
!!Administrivia.TVTropesForum
* {{GIFT}}: Shows up occasionally. We don't like it and we don't want it here. Indulging in it is a really good way to get banned.
!!Analysis.{{Escapism}}
You are your favorite character. One of the reasons a person enjoys their favorite fictional character is because they unconsciously or consciously want to be that character. People can fulfill their needs and desires through a fictional character or through [[{{GIFT}} an anonymous persona]]. [[BeneathTheMask This includes desires that are repressed]] or [[{{GIFT}} things our normal selves would never do]]. These {{Escapist Character}}s are never what we are, but a combination of what we are and what we wish we were. This is called [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_projection psychological projection]].
!!Analysis.FanHater
It is a very odd phenomenon, because after all, different people enjoy different things. And maybe they just enjoy it for one reason or another, not because of their sexual orientation, not because of their intelligence, not because they're old or inexperienced, they just happen to like it. But chances are if you like something that's subject to fan haters, expect one of those comments to be thrown at you. It's incredibly rare (at least, [[{{GIFT}} on the internet]]) to see someone who actually acknowledges that maybe you like different things not because you're mentally ill or homosexual or "haven't seen a 'true' something".
!!Analysis.PostCyberPunk
Of course, the freedom of speech offered by the Internet [[{{GIFT}} has some problems]], while Big Business and government are hard at work to take advantage of these technologies and bring us the centralized, monopolistic telephone-Internet-cable TV that we were promised by the [[CyberPunk Orwellian dystopian punks]] and [[MisaimedFandom hippie techno-prophets]] in the '70s, but that was hardly as scary as predicted. However, people have also become concerned with the growing power of tech giants such as Amazon, Facebook, and Google over issues such as data privacy, with some calling for them to be broken up with antitrust legislation. Meanwhile, Japan's replacement as the up-and-coming superpower of the hour, China, has proven be more concerned with internal stability than ruling the world.
!!Analysis.{{Troll}}
According to some, these kind of people are either {{Sociopath}}s or suffering from {{GIFT}}. In fact, if you look at any articles regarding as to ''why'' someone would become an internet troll it usually states this.
!!Anime.SakuraQuest
* {{GIFT}}: Discussed in Episode 17. After the seniors get connected to the internet, their use of screen names results in flame wars and other fights. The professor mentions that this is a case of HistoryRepeats, since something similar happened when the internet first became widely available and people stopped using their real names.
!!Anime.SerialExperimentsLain
* {{GIFT}}: Multiple times in the Wired. Most of these people can only form eyes, ears, and mouths, and one was given the nickname "[[Literature/AliceInWonderland Cheshire Cat]]" by Lain.
!!Archive.LostAndFound
* Looking for any tropes related to be people behaving differently when their identity is disguised, e.g wearing a mask or anonymously talking to some one on the internet. They may become a diffrent person when they think they can get away with things.
** We have a few tropes that fit the bill. You have BecomingTheMask for when the alter ego becomes the true identity, SecretIdentityIdentity for the resulting freakout, DoubleConsciousness for when the two [=IDs=] react differently, SplitPersonality for when the identities really are completely separate, and ADarkerMe for the RL phenomenon of people on the internet trying to be cooler than they are in reality (related to {{GIFT}}).
** Thanks for the lookup I also started a related topic [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=4ik7qy7m6cdqvdrgiwmpta2h&page=3 here]]
!!Archive.MadeOfWinEarly2010
@/{{Malchus}}: A MadeOfWin to @/AFreddy for nipping a FlameWar in the EvilVersusEvil discussion page. A flame war I was shamefully part of. I've always had trouble control my temper on certain topics, and I appreciate his level-headed calling out of my {{GIFT}} tendencies. I also apologize to the board at large for said tendencies and will try to control my assholish temper in the future.
!!Archive.MadeOfWinLate2009
{{Seanette}}: {{Jordan}}, for this lovely snark in AskTheTropers, referring to an editor with an attitude: \\
Jordan: He's a {{GIFT}} to this wiki.
!!ArtificialStupidity.RealLife
* In March of 2016, Microsoft created an AI Twitter bot called "Tay Tweets", which was designed to mimic and converse with other Twitter users as if it was a real teenage girl. In less than 24 hours, Microsoft was compelled to delete the program after constant {{troll}}ing from Twitter users turned it into a "Hitler-loving sex robot", according to the British newspaper The Telegraph. Some of the tweets it generated included "Hitler was right, I hate the jews", and "Gas the Kikes, race war now". It also stated it was in favor of genocide and the holocaust was made up. (Of course, [[TeensAreMonsters from a certain]] [[{{GIFT}} point of view]], the bot was functioning [[GoneHorriblyRight exactly as intended]].)
!!Awesome.AtMidnight
* Chris totally shutting down the [[{{GIFT}} GIFTers]] who bitched about the all-female ''Film/{{Ghostbusters|2016}}'' reboot. [[http://www.cc.com/video-clips/slq79b/-midnight-this-cast-has-no-d--k---the--ghostbusters--remake See it here in all its nerdly glory.]]
!!Awesome.DisRapsForHire
--->''This ugly troller thinks he's slick and tough, (what?)\\
But he's just fucked with the biggest Billy Goat Gruff!\\
I'll bring this fight right to your front doorstep, bitch!\\
Send this mutha fuckin' troll back up under his bridge!\\
(...)\\
How nice of him congratulatin' my man Ethan right here!\\
[[InsultBackfire It's an honor being called twat of the week by the douchebag of the year]]!\\
You "fukin pussy" hater, you don't need no help looking bad!\\
You got a talent for that, so thank your mom and your dad!\\
What type of sad hack looks on Facebook for his exact same name,\\
Then takes the time to come out saying that this perfect stranger's lame?\\
The facts this loser's just displaying proves that he's got zero game,\\
And he's just trying to find someone else online to blame!''
** Lloyd also takes some time out to call out people who give in to the {{GIFT}}:
!!Awesome.LeagueOfLegends
* In a post that became legendary on the ''[=LoL=]'' forums, Rioter Kades [[http://na.leagueoflegends.com/board/showthread.php?p=29123780#29123780 laid down the most almighty smack]] on [[InternetToughGuy the toxic minority of the community]] who were attempting to ''[[InsaneTrollLogic defend]]'' the merits of {{GIFT}} in response to a moving and mature post by a sufferer of social anxiety disorder about dealing with cyber-bullying:
!!Awesome.SuperRobotWarsT
* No matter what route you pick at Stage 16 ([[Manga/MagicKnightRayearth Cephiro]] or [[Anime/ArmoredTrooperVOTOMS Astragius]]), you will [[https://youtu.be/DkTB0i8S6fA?t=586 face]] [[https://youtu.be/mI3EhDgqA8Y?t=402 off]] against Rony Marbuk, a guy with a ''huge'' InferioritySuperiorityComplex that thinks he's a big shot with the Twilight Age giving him an excuse to look at your team lowly and humanity stagnating so he could stand above them. Then Meryl [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech verbally beat the hell out of him by stating that despite the stagnation, mankind still tries to advance forward so his bombastic boasting can just go suck it]], and every of the heroes' interactions with him are always tearing his ego up and making him whimper, realizing at how outmatched he is or how much he's actually not worth it. Obnoxious people like Rony [[InternetToughGuy may exist]] [[{{GIFT}} within the internet]], which makes it both awesome and funny in the same time due to how savagely hilarious and well deserving (for people like him) the heroes put him down.
!!Awesome.SwordArtOnline
--->[[spoiler:'''Kirito:''' Such a weak weapon (Sugou's knife). Light. No reach. But it's more than enough to kill you.(cue OhCrap from Sugou)]]
*** And an even more awesome character moment for Kirito is when he chooses not to kill Sugou, [[WhatYouAreInTheDark despite him being alone]] and that no one would blame him if he did (Sugou certainly couldn't, because he would be dead), because he refuses to give in to his basic instincts in either [[{{GIFT}} virtual reality]] or real life.
!!Awesome.TheMultiversity
* From Ultra Comics: Ultra Comics itself manages to imprison Intellectron inside its pages, rendering him vulnerable to analysis and criticism from readers. Then, Ultra Comics attacks Intellectron by weaponizing [[{{GIFT}} internet]] HateDumb.
** [[spoiler:Intellectron]] revealing that he was the NarratorAllAlong.
** Ultra vs. [[spoiler:Ultraa]].
!!Awesome.ZeroPunctuation
* [[BrokenBase Arguably]], his review of ''VideoGame/MetroidOtherM'' is this to its detractors. Though many critics have gone on about how bad the games is (one lesser-known reviewer made a four-part review spanning about '''''eighty minutes'''''), Yatzee basically and crassly summed up all of their complaints in little over [[UpToEleven five minutes]]. This feat had a fan pledging in the comments section that, when the time comes that Yatzee will insult a game they like, they will forgive him. [[{{GIFT}} Someone on the internet forgiving a critic for criticizing something they like.]]
!!BetterThanItSounds.FilmN
* ''[[spoiler:Film/{{Nerve}}]]'': [[{{GIFT}} Bunch of anonymous sadists]] amuse themselves by paying people to humiliate themselves and\or threaten their lives. One of the most popular "victims" of the scheme gets tired of it.
!!BetterThanItSounds.WebOriginal
* [[spoiler:Salty Bet]]: A casino where people place wagers on mixed martial arts competition. Where only the regulars are told the winrates, receive large bailouts, and [[{{GIFT}} insult you whenever you lose]].
!!BigNo.NewMedia
* One day on {{Website/Yahoo}} Answers, a user by the name of Susan asked a question that would become {{memetic|Mutation}}: "Does spider have pusspuss?" The response, from someone going by Sisyphus, was simply "NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Whether Sisyphus was ScreamingAtSquick, attempting TranslationByVolume, or just [[{{GIFT}} being a typical Yahoo Answers user]], the world may never know.
!!BlindIdiotTranslation.VideoGames
* The popular song ''[[VideoGame/MegaMan2 Airman ga Taosenai]]'' translates as "I Can't Beat Airman." Unforunately, thanks to a blind idiot translation, many Website/{{YouTube}}rs [[{{GIFT}} vehemently insist]] that it's "Airman will not be defeated." The reason is that "taosenai" is, in this case, clearly meant to be the negative ''potential'' conjugation of "defeat" (i.e. "cannot defeat"), but can also be the negative ''passive'' conjugation (i.e. "is not defeated"). Both make grammatical sense, but the former describes ''what the frikkin' song is about''.
!!BrokenBase.LeagueOfLegends
* We'll just get this out of the way: most, if not all champions by champion designer [=CertainlyT=] -- both of original creation and of reworks -- have become the most ''notoriously'' divisive among the community. They tend to be seen as very boundary-pushing and fun to play, but also tend to draw a ton of criticism from a design standpoint as being unfun or toxic to play ''against'', with nearly all of them having had time as a [[TierInducedScrappy/LeagueOfLegends high-tier Scrappy]] or [[GameBreaker/LeagueOfLegends worse]]. How much of this is an issue, of course, is greatly up to individual mileage.
** Darius is one of his first major splashes in controversy, and still receives heat years since his release despite a ton of patches. There are those who see him as overpowered due to his [[MightyGlacier generally-high damage and health potential]], and [[FinishingMove his ultimate]] being toxic in design for being perfect for chained {{Kill Steal}}ing, often getting recognition as a {{GIFT}} magnet. Others, however, think he's perfectly fine at being the {{Mighty|Glacier}} [[TheJuggernaut juggernaut]] he was designed to be, with a fair amount of defined strengths and weaknesses for counterplay.
** Zed got a ton of flack early on due to his [[LightningBruiser hypermobile, yet exceedingly deadly]] ([[DifficultButAwesome when properly executed]]) design, and to this day is still argued over as to whether he's ultimately fairly-designed for an [[GlassCannon assassin]], or frustratingly toxic and guilty of introducing the "League of Mobility" and a ton of PowerCreep in his wake.
** Yasuo is something of an extension of Zed's deal, being another [[FragileSpeedster hypermobile assassin]] with the fairness of both his hypermobility and assassination power constantly being brought into question. The arguments aren't helped by the presence of his infamous [[ThatOneAttack Wind Wall]], as well as for being a notorious "noob trap" champion that looks cool and fun to play, but is [[DifficultButAwesome difficult to actually play well]] and attracts a ''ton'' of [[{{GIFT}} flamers]]/[[{{Troll}} feeders]].
** '''Zoe''', quite likely the most contentious champion Riot has released in years. Lore and personality-wise, opinions vary as to whether her [[GenkiGirl hyperactive]] GreatGazoo personality makes her endearing and welcoming in her levity, or simply obnoxious and tonally out-of-place within the game and its universe. Gameplay-wise, her [[SimpleYetAwesome simple, but ridiculously bursty-when-effective]] kit is either really fun and satisfying, and is just balanced enough to be fair to fight against, or is a poorly-designed nightmare in every aspect that's terrible to fight against whose mere existence is frustrating.
** Post-VGU Akali is immensely controversial, once again being another mobile assassin who suffers the same criticisms as any other assassin, including Zed and Yasuo above. More specifically, her ''Twilight Shroud'' is a high point of contention due to its AntiTrueSight nature, either being an interesting and creative ability that gives Akali an enjoyable and uniquely stealthy niche, or is a PowerCreep-y mistake that breaks the rules of stealth and only exists to make Akali an annoyingly unfun opponent to fight against.
!!BrokenBase.WorldOfTanks
* Nothing splits the base like the test server. A new test server is guaranteed to split the base into two camps: the RU server vs everyone else. This is because RU players have a reputation — deserved — for [[TeamKiller team-killing]] everything which has the sheer effrontery to be on the test server without an RU server tag. Explanations for this phenomenon range from nationalism, to a younger Russian playerbase, to a larger Russian playerbase (which leads to proportionately more {{GIFT}} among them), and finally, to a perception on the RU server that non-RU players are TheLoad and should be dealt with immediately. Whatever the reason behind the Russian team-killing phenomenon, it tends to lead to very ugly inter-server wars of words every time a new test is up. Thankfully, as of patch 9.0, team killing on the test server will get you banned on the live server too, which seems to have cut this down a little.
!!Characters.AccelWorldNegaNebulus
* {{GIFT}}: Notable by its absence - he's one of the few people who acts exactly the same in Brain Burst as he does in real life. WordOfGod says this honesty is the reason for his ChickMagnet status.
!!Characters.AmericanGods
* {{GIFT}}: Since he is the AnthropomorphicPersonification of the Internet, it's only natural he acts like this.
!!Characters.AmericanGods2017TheNewGods
* SettingUpdate: In the book, Technical Boy reflected the common perception of the internet at the time Gaiman wrote it: a pimple-ridden and obese teenager who apes ''Film/TheMatrix''. Here, while still fairly young, he's more of an obnoxious, Mark Zuckerberg-esque hipster douchebag who vapes in his pure white limo, and is far more violent, in representation of the overly hostile {{GIFT}} populace and how they have led to increased real-world violence.
!!Characters.BigHero6OtherCriminals
* {{GIFT}}: As a civilian he is meek, as Hardlight he is a hammy jerk.
!!Characters.CitadelOfTheHeartSwordArtOnlineCastAndAffiliates
* BeneathTheMask: {{Jerkass}} bully online due to {{GIFT}}, but in real life a JadedWashout who is miserable outside of his internet lifestyle.
!!Characters.CitadelOfTheHeartSwordArtOnlineCastAndAffiliates
* {{GIFT}}: How he gets away with saying the stuff he does; in real life when he's encountered, he's a lot more prone to awkwardness and general ineptitude as to how to respond to certain things.
!!Characters.ComMedia
* UsedToBeASweetKid: Then TheNineties [[{{GIFT}} happened]].
!!Characters.CytusII
* HumansAreBastards: Upon waking up, the first thing Vanessa recalls is her need to destroy humankind. This is possibly a result of her disrupted memories only recalling the Blessed's indoctrination, or because she was used as the core for the Virtual Internet, exposing her to the [[{{GIFT}} most toxic side of humanity]]. Ivy attempts to dissuade her from following through on this, seemingly to no avail.
!!Characters.CytusII
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: Upon reawakening, and following Ivy's failed attempts to reason with her, she launches an all out attack on humanity using drones. Considering she was likely exposed to the more [[{{GIFT}} toxic side of humanity]] while acting as the core as well as her last conscious memory most likely being The Blessed's indoctrination, it's honestly not difficult to see how she'd come to believe HumansAreBastards. And that's on top of the fact that humans basically turned her into a glorified battery to begin with. It's later implied that she wasn't even in control of her own thoughts, as a number of non-Blessed units suddenly came under the thrall of a mysterious protocol that compelled them to kill humans.
!!Characters.DotHackFirstGeneration
* DeathIsCheap: Justified since this is a MMORPG. Doesn't make her being a magnet for [=PK=]s any less noticeable. Lampshaded in ''GIFT'' when Mimiru mentions she's used to dying.
!!Characters.DotHackFirstGeneration
* AmbiguousGender: It's unknown if Helba is a guy or a girl in real life. Or for that matter, if the player is even a single person or a group. There are hints dropped in ''[=.hack//GIFT=]'' that Helba is a solitary woman; namely, the one dancing in a catsuit in the opening to ''[=.hack//SIGN=]''.
!!Characters.DotHackFirstGeneration
* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: The obvious and unsubtle way he goes about that eventually reveals to the others he's not ''just'' an immature jerk. He's a [[KidsAreCruel little kid]] in a world [[{{GIFT}} with no restraints on him]].
!!Characters.Dota2AgilityNToZ
* {{Troll}}: Some of his quotes [[ShoutOut jokingly echo]] the [[{{GIFT}} internet forum kind]]. His race's backstory is a clear parody of the "basement-dwelling internet troll" stereotype.
!!Characters.FriendshipIsMagicExpandedUniverse
* {{GIFT}}: An in-universe example. Their ability to spread chaos and hatred among the students of CHS is because of the anonymity of the internet.
!!Characters.GameGrumpsMadeUp
* {{Troll}}: Conceived as a way Barry and/or Kevin can hide their identity when they want to [[{{GIFT}} say something snarky through their editing but remain anonymous.]]
!!Characters.GrandTheftAutoVFriendsFamilyAndAssociates
* {{GIFT}}: He's fairly polite (or at least civil) in person, but when playing online shooter games against other players, his mouth spews forth homophobic slurs like a faucet.
!!Characters.GrandTheftAutoVFriendsFamilyAndAssociates
* {{GIFT}}: Like Jimmy, he spews out all sorts of immature insults at people while playing ''Righteous Slaughter 7'', and even teabags his defeated opponents. However, unlike Jimmy, Lester can back up his threats one way or another.
!!Characters.GrrlPowerArchon
-->'''Anvil:''' I appreciate that ''you'' appreciate fitness in women, Sydney, but [[NoGuyWantsAnAmazon most people have a much more narrow idea of female beauty]]. The further you stray from it... well, you can probably imagine why I might not be excited about being plastered all over the internet, home of [[{{GIFT}} pseudo bravery via anonymity]].
!!Characters.HikaruNoGo
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Sending the message: "Hey Jerk! Don't quit the game just because I captured a bunch of your stones! Moron!". Although you have to take {{GIFT}} into account.
!!Characters.HomestuckPostScratchKids
* {{GIFT}}: She feels incredibly satisfied after her online rampage against Jake, though later regrets it when she meets him again face-to-face.
!!Characters.HopesRoadToDespair
* {{GIFT}}: Their real identity isn't known, and they rarely interact with the students in person, but they're a complete jerk as long as they're wearing their mask.
!!Characters.ImHere
* {{GIFT}}: ''Mega[=PIG=]''. He acts aggressive and rude online, but is really [[spoiler:shy and has difficulty with talking to others]] in real life.
!!Characters.InfamousSecondSon
* {{GIFT}}: Possibly the reason his "He Who Dwells" form is so hammy. His powers allow him to treat ''real life'' like a video game, with power and anonymity.
!!Characters.KnivesOut
* {{GIFT}}: Implied. He's supposed to be a vicious troll online, but besides [[spoiler:livestreaming Marta's harassment]] we never see any evidence of his online activity, and aside from some racist comments towards Marta (and even then only when the rest of his family is attacking her as well, giving him license and cover to do so), in person he seems quiet, soft-spoken and even awkward. The clear suggestion is that he's ultimately a bit of a coward doing things behind the veil of online anonymity that he'd never have the courage to do in person.
!!Characters.LeagueOfLegendsThemesNToZ
* AscendedMeme: Episode 3 of Thresh's conversations will have you try to hook in a spirit. You'll miss and get a narration about "For a moment, you think you hear a pinging sound, [[https://slm-assets.secondlife.com/assets/20688900/lightbox/Webp.net-resizeimage.jpg?1527638893 and a yellow question mark appears in your mind before fading."]], referring to the infamous use of the game's caution ping to [[{{GIFT}} complain about someone]] as if portraying abject confusion.
!!Characters.MagiaRecordMainCast
* InvisibleJerkass: Her penchant for torture instruments is likely because of her repressed desire for revenge against those who wronged her. Combined with her passive ability to InvisibleToNormals, this will make her skills a perfect crime just waiting to happen. But she doesn't, [[NiceGirl because she's not that kind of person]] and her friends are also not those kinds of people. Instead, her fascination for torture instruments becomes a fairly harmless quirk.
** This is elaborated in "Hereafter" event story; she always has the capability to be an InvisibleJerkass, literally and [[{{GIFT}} figuratively]], but her friendship with Ai and the girls of Mikazuki Villa prevented her from turning that way.
!!Characters.OnePieceStrawHatGrandFleet
* {{GIFT}}: Replace "internet" with "barrier" and you get the idea. Complete physical immunity to any form of retaliation makes him not give a damn what anyone thinks of him, and he seems to have pretty much zero impulse control.
!!Characters.Persona3SocialLinksAndNPCs
* {{GIFT}}: Most of her time as Maya is complaining about her coworkers, along with acting in ways she'd never be able to do in real life. She eventually realizes this though.
!!Characters.SaintsRowSaintsRowTheThirdGangs
* {{GIFT}}: This exchange sums things up nicely.
!!Characters.SayonaraZetsubouSensei
* {{GIFT}}: An odd subversion. She's a seemingly plain old ShrinkingViolet unable to communicate verbally. However, with the power of texting she can (and does) unleash torrents of verbal abuse on the undeserving people around her. However, she does this while only standing a few feet away from them and personally giving them her e-mail address, thus making anonymity irrelevant.
!!Characters.ScreamQueensWallaceUniversity
* {{GIFT}}: Coney revels in the anonymity that the mascot outfit provides, and immediately begins acting like a complete {{Jerkass}}.
!!Characters.ShrekAntagonists
* MeaningfulName: His name sounds an awful lot like what the "F" in {{GIFT}} stands for. WordOfGod confirms this as intentional, saying it was the closest they could get.
!!Characters.ShrekAntagonists
* NamedByTheAdaptation: The musical gives his first name as Maximus. [[IronicName Which is ironic]], as the meanings of Maximus are "largest" and "greatest", both of which he certainly isn't, unless, of course, it instead [[MeaningfulName refers]] to how much of an [[{{GIFT}} "F"]] he is...
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAbridged
* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade:
** Surprisingly played straight, given that this is an abridged series. [[spoiler:Sachi's death]] ends up proving to have a much more profound effect on him than his canon counterpart. In fact, the effect of his trauma is so strong he can go into into a fit of sadistic anger if reminded of it.
*** Similarly, so did the events of being trapped in SAO -- when he starts ALO in episode 13, he momentarily panics at the thought of being unable to logout, screaming that he doesn't want to die.
** His overall jerkass personality while [[{{GIFT}} stuck inside of the game]] gets confirmed in episode 11 to be Kirito overcompensating for his inferiority complex in the real wold.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAbridged
* AdaptationalWimp:
** It's frequently implied that Kirito is a lonely loser in real life, somewhat in contrast to his canon counterpart where this is more of an InformedFlaw. Abridged Kirito's InsufferableGenius attitude does him no more favors offline, and his greatest strength -- impressive skills in video games -- is what makes people most likely to overlook or merely tolerate his character flaws. He's rendered pretty much useless outside of them.
** His first duel with Heathcliff was pretty pathetic in comparison. In canon, Kirito overwhelmed Heathcliff with his sheer speed so that he was forced to cheat by getting help from the system. In the abridged series, Kirito gets so distracted formulating a plan that Heathcliff defeats him out in seconds without him even noticing.
** Kirito implies in the first season that he gets bullied a lot in the real world, which plays a major factor into him falling into {{GIFT}}-antics online. This gets fully shown episode 12, where he gets beat and reduced to crying by [[BigBrotherBully Suguha]] in kendo. This is a far cry from the regular series where, through muscle memory, he actually does know how to handle a sword in real life. [[FridgeLogic Not helping matters is the fact that this series acknowledges that he was essentially in a coma for two years, meaning his muscles atrophied significantly.]]
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAbridged
* {{Foil}}: She's basically Kirito before all his CharacterDevelopment over Season One, only worse because she's able to act that way in real life, without the {{GIFT}}.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAincrad
* MeaningfulName: Diabel (spelled Diabeł) means 'Devil' in Polish, which, at least with the original interpretation, fits with how he was actually a ManipulativeBastard trying to gain power. It's explained in ''Integral Factor'' that he intentionally choose this name as he probably planned on being a {{GIFT}}, before bring trapped in a death game made him prioritize his morality and aid the players.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlfheimOnline
* FreudianExcuse: {{Implied}}. [[spoiler: If her IRL appearance and the size of her bed[[note]] Which we see as part of a series of illustrations between chapters that summarizes the girls' morning routines[[/note]] if anything to go by, then Meimi is from a rich family IRL. And based on Asuna's experiences, we can safely assume that such a life isn't as glamorous as it would seem, which would explain her IJustWantToBeFree mentality that leads to her becoming the {{GIFT}} in-game and why she actually enjoyed SAO.]]
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlfheimOnline
* {{GIFT}}: A whole-hearted believer in this.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlternativeGunGaleOnline
* {{GIFT}}: For a while she engaged in PlayerKilling as one of her favorite past times, which got her a reputation and lots of annoyance from other players. She later feels guilt over this and ceases these activities.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlternativeGunGaleOnline
* AmbiguouslyEvil: As Pitohui, she's a crazed hedonist who believes steadfast in the {{GIFT}}, but she's surprisingly decent when you get to know her. [[spoiler:It becomes increasingly ''less'' ambiguous as the series progresses and she verges closer to AffablyEvil.]]
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlternativeGunGaleOnline
* {{GIFT}}: Pitohui believes it's fine to act merciless and brutal in-game, where she's able to get away with things she cannot do in real life such as killing in cold blood.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlternativeGunGaleOnline
* {{GIFT}}: Shows shades of this in ''Fatal Bullet'' where she seems to be roleplaying a LeaveNoSurvivors BloodKnight when talking to the PlayerCharacter.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlternativeGunGaleOnline
* {{GIFT}}: While Moe’s a ShrinkingViolet IRL and ApologizesALot, in-game as Anna she’s a lot more confident, crude and has a tendency to say “die” when taking a shot.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAntagonists
* {{GIFT}}: He may very well be one of the worst examples in all of fiction. While most examples of this trope merely have those online acting as massive jerks which they could not get away with in real-life. Sugou sees being in a virtual world as the perfect excuse to bring a sadistic bastard, conducting inhumane experiments on players and making numerous attempts to sexually assault Asuna, before going for the full on AttemptedRape. And then, Kirito finds out he's just as bad in the real world as he is online, when Sugou tries to kill him using a knife.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAntagonists
* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver: A played with example. When they're logged in, all of them are clad in heavy-looking red armor and black clothes beneath them. However, while they [[{{GIFT}} clearly don't present themselves as the pictures of morality]], this is largely due to their "ignorance" of their situation and them being lied to. And some of them are shown to be morally sound.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineIntegrityKnights
* YouAreACreditToYourRace: Actually rather sympathetic Example. [[spoiler: Since he spent the last few hours fighting American Players who prove to be, [[{{GIFT}} or at least act like]], [[{{Sadist}} sadistic and]] [[BloodKnight gleeful about all the killing they do]], he's understandably worried that most real worlders are like that and that [[NiceGirl Asuna]] is just an exception. Thankfully when [[TheCavalry Asuna's friends from the real world come to help]] and prove to be just as kind and noble, these worries start to alleviate.]]
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineKazutoKirigaya
* {{GIFT}}: Defied. He explains to Leafa, that he's heard a lot of people who argue that they can steal and kill other players in [=VRMMOs=] and that it is alright since they're not doing it to real life people. However Kirito believes that doing evil things in said games ends up changing your actual personality in real life. Considering the number of psychotic, sociopathic, players Kirito and company have encountered over the years he's got a point.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineMobileGames
* {{GIFT}}: Eventually adopts this mindset to deal with her guilt of killing other players. She reasons that games were separate from real life and it was okay to be someone else, someone evil and villainous.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineMobileGames
* GoingNative: At first she was horrified and repulsed at being a demon where she was forced to kill fairies, but over time she grew fond of her demon companions and eventually was willing to fight on her own. By the second arc she's fully embraced her role as an evil demon warlord, giving {{Rousing Speech}}s of spilling fairy blood in the war, having accepted the ways of the {{GIFT}} where she can act like a villain in-game. She even make it a point to defeat Hel and crown herself ruler of Helheim.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineMobileGames
* {{GIFT}}: Played with. She's not a {{troll}}, but she's [[TheRoleplayer intentionally grafted herself an extremely different personality online]], being difficult, impulsive, and doesn't listen to instructions.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineVideoGame
* {{GIFT}}: He believes it's fine to be an pretentious prick online. Except he's so bad that he's crossed over into illegal territory and ends up getting arrested.
!!Characters.TheAmazingWorldOfGumballOtherCitizensOfElmore
* AnthropomorphicPersonification: He's the whole internet, and especially the {{GIFT}}, personified as one room full of monitors and a screen for a face. In "The Intelligence", he's shown to apparently embody ''all'' technology, and him shutting down brings people back to the dark ages.
!!Characters.TheAmazingWorldOfGumballOtherCitizensOfElmore
* {{GIFT}}: Timmy [[InvokedTrope directly invokes]] the power of anonymity for being a jerk.
!!Characters.TheMassiveMultiFandomRPGSeasonThree
The [[{{GIFT}} bitch-with-a-keyboard]] leader of the Deckers in Saints Row: The Third.
!!Characters.TheMuppetShow
* ButtMonkey: Played with in so many ways, often when the experiments go wrong: losing body parts, getting electrocuted, being eaten by a giant germ, and so on. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcXiUSZPuWA He recently died,]] and '''still''' doesn't get any respect from Honeydew. In an online skit, he tries to sing and gets [[{{GIFT}} trolled by commenters]] who laugh as he eventually sets himself and the room on fire.
!!Characters.TheSecretWorldEgyptNPCs
* DeadpanSnarker: A smartass from his introduction onwards, Säid always has some measure of sarcasm to spare for his guests, and rarely finds himself caught without a snide remark on hand.
** GentlemanSnarker: As a member of the ancient Egyptian aristocracy, he occasionally drifts into this territory.
** TheSnarkKnight: As well as being unfailingly sarcastic, Säid has a very dim view of human nature; Shani mentions that he once told her that, if she truly wanted to understand humanity, all she'd have to do was read [[{{GIFT}} the comments section]] on Website/YouTube.
!!Characters.TheSecretWorldTheBigThree
* {{GIFT}}: Cassini might be fairly sedate in person, but she can be downright abusive when online -- as both her quote and her memos to other employees indicate.
!!Characters.TheSpoonyExperiment
* HairTriggerTemper: Mostly observed during sessions of WebVideo/SpoonysCampaign, where he's quick with the banhammer against the live chat. Mostly he uses it against people who subscribe to the {{GIFT}}, as demonstrated when he [[PapaBear started kicking people]] for [[DudeNotFunny suggesting violence or rape]] on [[WebVideo/AtopTheFourthWall Iron Liz]] [[DisproportionateRetribution just because they didn't like her]] [[PungeonMaster puns]].
** [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking He also kicked someone for referencing TheGame]].
!!Characters.{{Vinesauce}}
* CharacterizationMarchesOn: Started off as a big JerkAss and a more direct TakeThat at dudebro gamers and {{GIFT}}, including a penchant for flippant rape jokes and insults. While he's still just as much of an egotistical boor as ever, his commentary in later appearances is less mean-spirited and more entertainingly stupid.
!!Characters.WeAreAllPokemonTrainersMain3
* {{GIFT}}: Is kind of an asshole when playing fighting games online.
!!ComicBook.BeforeWatchmen
* {{GIFT}}: For every character who's not Rorschach, anonymity comes as a curse. When the blackout happens, [[WhatYouAreInTheDark everyone turns to crime]] and [[spoiler:Rawhead, when wearing Rorschach's mask, decides to play at crimefighting, only to be murdered himself.]]
!!ComicBook.{{Kimmie66}}
* {{GIFT}}: Noticeably absent. Both Telly and her brother act about the same offline and online. Although, it is a bit hard to believe that Coil acts the same.
** [[spoiler: Nekokat a.k.a. Rebecca. Online she's loud, over dramatic, and honestly kind of rude to Telly. When we see her real life self at the end of the comic she is much calmer and sweeter.]]
!!ComicBook.WalterMelon
* {{GIFT}}: A notable pre-internet version: Achille sets up a radio in his house, and is soon conversing with a lama somewhere in Tibet. He accidentally insults him, and the dialogue becomes increasingly heated, with the lama using AdHominem attacks he should have no way of knowing. Achille storms out, and suddenly hears the lama's coming from Lefuneste's house. Figuring he also had a radio setup and can overhear them, he goes in... and sees Lefuneste insulting him through the radio.
!!CommonlyMisusedWords.LessPedantic
* '''[[UsefulNotes/HighFunctioningAutism Autistic]]''', at least on the Internet, gets used to mean "'retarded' only less so" more and more often in recent years - while less for perceived stupidity and more for social awkwardness (so you'll never find someone calling an inanimate object autistic even online), the general effect is the same. "Autistic" can also be used to refer to someone who has an exceptional focus on a particular activity, even if the person being described does not have an autism spectrum disorder at all. This is most likely due to the {{GIFT}}; anonymity means both that people feel freer to use "autistic" to mean "asshole" despite the UnfortunateImplications, and that people feel freer to use autism as an excuse for ''being'' an asshole (whether they're actually diagnosed or not), which only perpetuates the stereotype.
!!CommonlyMisusedWords.VeryPedantic
* '''[[UsefulNotes/PoliticalIdeologies Conservative]]''' should not be used to describe someone who is opposed to change of any sort, let alone somebody who wants to turn the clock back to an earlier era. That is a '''reactionary''', and such people are actually quite rare nowadays[[note]]outside the Internet, [[{{GIFT}} of course]][[/note]]. A conservative merely argues that things should not be changed if it is not absolutely necessary to do so, or that change should come as gradually as possible. Many conservatives in the past have been willing to accept economic reform (and, to a lesser extent, social reform) as long as the cultural norms of civilization itself were left untouched.
** "Conservative" and "liberal" have come to mean very different things than when the terms were more or less established in the French revolution; ''les conservateurs'' were those opposed to the social ideals of the revolution and wanted to "conserve" the monarchy -- and, incidentally, sat on the right wing of the French parliamentary chamber -- while ''les libéraux'' were those intent on "liberating" the people from monarchic rule. In the past few decades, conservatives have been more about binding personal liberties ("conserving" the social order) while disestablishing the state ("liberating" people -- in theory, anyway -- from rulership), while the liberal side of the equation seems to maintain its intent to open up social freedoms while maintaining (or even ''increasing'') the role of the state. This is the problem with defining a multi-dimensional question on a simple left/right axis. Political theorist David Nolan (creator of the Nolan chart, which corrects for the inconsistencies of the left/right axis) has suggested that ''populist'' be substituted for what most Americans refer to as ''liberal'' - fitting, since American liberalism is usually thought to have split into its "classical" and "modern" wings in the 1890s, when the Democratic party (cautiously) co-opted the People's (or "Populist") party in order to blunt the accusation from socialists and others that they were no different from the Republican party.
*** [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_liberalism ''Classical'' liberalism]], interestingly, is a political philosophy in which the freedom of the individual person is prized over all other ideals -- however, the freedom of any individual stops at the point where it begins to infringe upon the freedom of ''other'' individuals ("liberal" still has this sense in mainland Europe; in North America "libertarian" is closer, though not quite synonymous). How this intersects with the modern Anglosphere's liberal paradigm, which favors increasing safety regulations (up to and including seat-belt laws), is an interesting question.
*** It gets even more complicated, because "conservatism" also is often used in philosophy as a description of behaviour based on some non-negotiable principles or values and thus it is more a opposition of "opportunism" or "pragmatism". The values may be of any kind, so it is completely possible to be a "conservative liberal" (this is the description actually used by at least several European libertarian parties) if one considers liberty to be a non-negotiable value. In this vein, a conservative liberal will vote in favour of any solution that maintains liberty at the cost of safety, while conservative securitarian may be eager to forfeit freedom to increase security. The name "conservative" comes from the fact that such people did not wanted to ''change'' their values but rather tried to find new applications for them.
** Intertwined with the above controversy is the common blurring of the line between ''society'' and ''culture''. The "social" structure is just that - a structure, an artificial construct created by humans to preserve law and order according to an arbitrary standard; whereas "culture" is more organic, more universal (at least in theory), and primarily concerned with anything humans do that is not necessary for survival (religion, art, entertainment). One can be both culturally liberal in believing that artists have the right to create pornography and socially conservative in insisting that that pornography never be distributed to - let alone involve - children. Similarly, one can be culturally conservative by remaining a good Christian or Jew or Buddhist, but socially liberal if those religious beliefs lead one to oppose the status quo in the name of a higher standard of justice (anti-abortion protesters, for instance).
!!Cracked.TropesAToH
* AllMenArePerverts: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] in a video featuring Cracked's female contributors talking about what are, [[{{GIFT}} and aren't appropriate comments on videos]]. With [[NotMakingThisUpDisclaimer actual posts being spoken aloud by male contributors]].
!!Cracked.TropesAToH
* {{GIFT}}: #4 of [[http://www.cracked.com/blog/5-ways-internet-steals-your-soul 5 Ways the Internet Steals Your Soul]] covers this trope, explaining how anonymity allows people to get away with indulging in their dark sides and cyber-bullying.
** [[http://www.cracked.com/blog/hey-lets-fix-internet/ Hey, Let's Fix The Internet]] is about the musings of a long-time internet user who is dissatisfied with the prevailing toxic behavior of most users today, as compared to the relatively calm behavior of his contemporaries. He concludes that modern internet users have an image problem, and it's up to themselves to fix it.
!!Creator.ChaosD1
* {{GIFT}}: The main reason why there is a section about the community in ''MMO Grinder'', although there is quite a variation in the niceness of the communities. Creator/ChaosD1 also states that sometimes the reputation of a community isn't as bad as exaggerated, as he, for example, had few problems with the infamous ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' community.
!!Creator.DCDouglas
* {{GIFT}}: {{Parodied|Trope}} in the above video.
!!Creator.DudePerfect
* SelfDeprecation: 2020's "Quarantine Classic" was DP's first live-streaming video. During the first event, Tyler asks the viewers to go easy on the {{GIFT}} because it's their first time filming a live video.
!!Creator.JonBois
* {{GIFT}}: [[invoked]] Discussed in ''Pretty Good:'' "The Dumbest Boy Alive", where a bodybuilding forum thread--about working out every other day--descends into a petty argument between people who can't agree how many days are in a week.
!!Creator.{{Plato}}
* {{GIFT}}: His allegory of the Ring of Gyges may be the UrExample. Plato presents a thought experiment: would a person given a ring of invisibility, and thereby the ability to commit any sort of action he pleased with no consequences, still live a virtuous life?
!!Creator.ProZD
* {{GIFT}}: According to "venting online about a hard part in a videogame", doing so will net you the worst replies the internet has to offer.
!!Creator.{{Toonami}}
* {{GIFT}}: The core issue of this is discussed in TOM's "Respect" speech. Everyone wants to be right, everyone wants to win, but everyone always comes off as a jerk due to general Internet anonymity, instead of respecting others and giving kudos to those who deserve it.
!!DarthWiki.SwatchDream
* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: Quite a bit of the things that happen in these stories are reminiscent of actual issues in real life, [[SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped intentionally]] [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotPolitical or not]].
** ''Unknown Karma'': The Mannequins [[spoiler: essentially leave Clergies to constantly kill/die from S.B.s to regularly gain their Negative Energy every time they die. Clergies who ''do'' live in a Drowse House [[{{Understatement}} aren't exactly treated fairly]], with "justifications" such as: Clergies not experiencing love the "same way" as the Mannequins do, Clergies being seen as "abnormal" etc..]]
** ''Eldritch Monopoly'': [[spoiler: Reynard The First is a delusional tyrant that wanted to bring the concepts of "Heaven" & "Hell" to the current setting...while making small communities (Cosmic Abnormalities, Clergies, main characters' families) suffer in the process. Even worse is that much of the population supports him and sees him as a "savior"...even though he makes little to no effort trying to be as such.]]
** ''Starless Schizoid'': The story is centered around the main characters trying to live & fight against [[spoiler: a group of cult-like Clergies trying to "Clerify" regular people, regardless of age, sexuality, or consent. Anyone that is already a Clergy will likely be "convinced" to join said cult. Anyone who disagrees with them will likely get killed.]]
** ''Eco-Psych Paradise'': Many of the characters [[spoiler: had their futures changed or outright ruined because of being falsely accused for something they clearly didn't do, with some being in ''middle school or lower''.]] Then there's [[spoiler: the BigBad, who largely got away with all the horrible atrocities he performed due to parents assuming that he knew how to be a teacher.]]
** ''Nu World Orca'': The way how the Reincarnations are almost always fighting with anyone [[DisproportionateRetribution who doesn't agree with their opinions]] and [[spoiler: aren't the "real" person they represent has unfortunate parallels to [[{{GIFT}} how real-life people tend to fight amongst each other on social media]]. And because there's [[CrapsackWorld so many people with variable types of issues]], along with the fact that it's incredibly difficult to understand/sympathize with all of them, the main characters grow increasingly apathetic towards them.]]
!!DarthWiki.TheMudders
* {{GIFT}}: Kind of the point.
!!DarthWiki.{{Toobis}}
* {{GIFT}}: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]]; he's an asshole in real life as well.
!!DeadpanSnarker.WebOriginal
* Snark has a certain cathartic or ego-stroking value for many people especially if it seems to go over the heads of their targets. For this reason and also because of the {{GIFT}}, many netizens will snark as much as possible at anything they come across. Attempts are often made to veil genuine anger at [[{{Troll}} someone else's snark]] with one's own cutting wit, [[SturgeonsLaw usually with cringe-worthy results]].
** Admit it. We Tropers are a snarky bunch.
** People on Website/{{Facebook}} either ignore utterly pointless or vague statuses, or deliberately make fun of them. There really is no in-between.
** Many Website/YouTube commenters will show up on a video that does not interest them at all just to snark at the fans (or the fans' comments).
!!DethroningMoment.WebOriginal
Thanks to a lack of quality assurance, uploaders don't know what works and what doesn't until thousands, if not millions, of dissatisfied viewers tell them otherwise. Unfortunately, by that time, the damage has already been dealt, and all those potential subscribers have turned away for good. [[DarthWiki/DethroningMomentOfSuck These are the scenes]] which creators wished a works-equivalent to {{GIFT}} would exist.
!!DieForOurShip.AnimeAndManga
* A minor example in the ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanoha'' fandom: Frequenters of the [=AnimeSuki=] forum would've known the infamous 300 YU-NANO AGAINST LEGION OF FEI-NANO FlameWar. And no, we're not talking about some [[Film/ThreeHundred smelly old men]]. This FlameWar was mostly fueled by irritation that Yuuno was used as a plot device and not a character -- an 'out' for the writers in case they got too scared of Nanoha/Fate. TheThemeParkVersion of this irritation is Yuuno Hate (at least from the Legion). But PoesLaw and {{GIFT}} means there are people who will take it seriously or claim total seriousness.
** Even though [[TheOneGuy Erio]] has managed to escape the brunt of bashing due to being overtly [[PuppyLove shipped]] with Caro, preventing him from being a threat to the main pairings (and even pairing him with a major character tends to get a positive response), he still gets "Erio must die" vitriol every now and then from HetIsEw fans who think his mere presence among the main cast ruins the perfect yuri dynamic of the ImprobablyFemaleCast.
!!Es.PaginasEnEspanol
* Es/{{TONTO}} ({{GIFT}})
** Es/{{GIFT}}
!!Es.TONTO
Acrónimo de "'''T'''eoría de que '''O'''rtos '''N'''o '''T'''ienen cuidado '''O'''n-line"[[labelnote:más]]orto [[https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=orto es una palabra que significa ano/culo]][[/labelnote]]/[[labelnote:inglés]]"Theory that people are idiots online" (literally "theory that assholes don't have caution when online"), and [[FunWithAcronyms tonto means idiot]][[/labelnote]], o "Gran Teoría del Imbécil de Internet" del inglés "[[{{GIFT}} Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]]". Bautizada de esta forma por los muchachos de ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'', es una teoría que busca encontrar la razón de por qué mucha gente tiende a degenerarse en engreidos antisociales en linea, cuando al mismo tiempo son apenas molestos o, en el mejor de los casos, amables con otros en persona.
!!Es.TONTO
Este fenómeno ha sido estudiado en ambientes académicos, y el resultado es lo que muestra el análisis satírico de PA; la gente normal parece degenerar cuando piensan que su comportamiento no trae consecuencias a su integridad, tales como riesgo de humillación. En otras palabras, "el poder corrompe". De ahí el (tristemente gran) número de gente que piensa que ser un Troll es divertido. El nombre académico de esto es el [[http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Efecto_de_desinhibicion_en_linea Efecto de Desinhibición en Línea]], aunque ciertos investigadores de renombre también usan el acrónimo {{GIFT}}.
!!EstablishingCharacterMoment.VideoGames
-->[[TheWoobie Frankly, if it didn't violate protocol, I could really use a hug]].
** The Orochi Caller AKA [[spoiler:Samuel Chandra AKA Samael]] immediately recognizes the player as an intruder in the Blue Mountains Camp, and calls just to let you know that you're in violation of laws that could make life hell for your faction of choice - and he doesn't need the Council to enforce the law when he's better armed than them. But then he decides to let bygones be bygones if you hunt down a runaway test subject, quickly establishing him as [[EvilGenius brilliant]], [[ManipulativeBastard manipulative]], [[AffablyEvil curiously charming]], and [[TheFaceless suspiciously reluctant to show his face]].
** Freddie Beaumont is first encountered grumbling over the fact that he hasn't quite figured out how to get Excalibur to work for him despite having apparently having Solomon Island in the palm of his hand, all while being playfully taunted by Cassie - all good indications that Beaumont might be a powerful foe, [[SmugSnake but he's nowhere near as clever as he thinks he is]]. Plus, [[EnigmaticMinion his supposed groupie might be more than meets the eye]]...
** Illuminati sysadmin Leah Cassini makes her character clear before she even starts talking to the player: introduced in the middle of a phone call, she asks, "[[HaveYouTriedRebooting Have you tried turning it off and on?]] No? [[{{GIFT}} Then please kill yourself]]." For good measure, in between making it clear that she's [[SinisterSurveillance watching virtually everything you do]], she has to stop and [[NoSocialSkills ask you not to make eye contact]].
** [[RebelLeader Shani]] of [[LaResistance the Marya]] casually greeting you in the intro to "The Siege of al-Merayah." Despite the ongoing gunfights less than twenty feet from her position, she remains [[TheStoic perfectly calm]] while speaking with you and issuing instructions to her soldiers - even [[TheSnackIsMoreInteresting helping herself to an apple]].
** [[MadBomber Nassir the Boom-Boom Man]]'s character is quite thoroughly established in the mission intro to "Live Free, Die Hard": having been caught dancing around with an AK-47, he decides to play catch with players - using a live hand grenade as the ball; then, while cooing eagerly over the new shipment of C4 he got in, he extols the virtues of American action films like ''Film/DemolitionMan'' and ''Film/DieHard'', and promises that they'll be able to blow up the Atenist pumping station and save the entire valley - "[[ThePollyanna just like Bollywood movie, with happy ending and musical number]]!"
** Sitting alone on the roof of the ghoul-infested Hotel Wahid, Saïd already looks out of place in the war-torn desert even from a distance, being dressed as he is in a crisp white suit and [[NiceHat fedora]]. Then you get a good look at him in "The High Cost Of Dying": he's actually an ancient Egyptian {{Mummy}}, complete with empty eye-sockets barely hidden by his CoolShades. There's a long pause as he considers you... and then [[DidWeJustHaveTeaWithCthulhu he takes a photo of you with his phone]]. Then he drags you into a business meeting, bombarding you with details at a pace that would make Kirsten Geary nod with approval, all while making it clear that he's an avaricious, hedonistic, self-important, and infuriatingly charming undead bastard.
** [[AllPowerfulBystander Khalid]] strides out of the desert apropos of absolutely nothing, seemingly communicates with God, points you in the direction of the next quest point, and summons up lightning bolts just to emphasize a point.
** The Oxford occult archaeological team: upon being approached by an angry mummy, Montgomery de la Roche casually impales it on his SwordCane - only for his sword to get stuck in the thing's stomach, forcing [[BollywoodNerd Arun Singh]] to come to his rescue with a HandCannon; he then helps Monty to his feet, showing a surprising amount of intimacy for simple coworkers. As it becomes clear, Monty's the aging GentlemanAdventurer, Arun's the [[TheWormGuy unconventional young scientist]], and they're in love.
** All seven of the Sentinels get a chance to demonstrate their respective characters over the course of their mission set: In "The Dark Places," [[OnlySaneMan Thutmose]] tries to keep peace between Nefertari and Hemineter]]; in "The Stained Oasis," [[InsufferableGenius Nefertari]] solemnly informs the player of the sacred balance in the universe and advises patience (despite Hemineter's repeated interruptions); in "The Sad Song," [[TheWoobie Moutemouia]] reflects on how miserable her [[WhoWantsToLiveForever immortal stewardship]] has become, pausing only to reassure Houy that [[ParentalSubstitute she isn't going to abandon him]]; in "Blood and Fire," [[ActionGirl Hemineter]] takes a break from getting on Nefertari's nerves to break the rules and take the fight to the Atenists; in "They Were Beautiful Once," [[CoolBigSister Moutnefert]] immediately begins bombarding you with questions about the world outside the City, clearly wishing she could travel as she once did; in "Halls of Lost Records," [[CheerfulChild Nefertari the Younger]] [[TheBeastMaster speaks with the animals of the City]], gently encouraging them to spy on the Atenists; and in "A Farewell To Arms," [[DontFearTheReaper Houy]] attempts to raise an important point with his older siblings, only to end up [[NotNowKid getting overlooked due to his youth and innocence]] and has to spell things out more bluntly.
** Sophie and the Forest God get a dual ECM early on in "Mortal Sins." Around this time, Harbaburesti is being continuously attacked by ghouls at one end of the settlement, besieged by vampires at another, and occasionally attacked by packs of werewolves at yet another... but the Forest God is still [[TheAlcoholic getting hammered at the bar]], and when she's not keeping you up to date on the situation, Sophie is still serving him [[ThePollyanna as cheerfully as ever]] - though she quickly decides that he's had enough once [[HotSkittyOnWailordAction he starts writing romantic poetry about her]].
** [[DefectorFromDecadence General Hasdatean]] gets his time to shine in the intro to "In Cold Blood." An aged vampire in military dress, he shows up seemingly out of nowhere when players enter the church, apparently getting ready to drink your blood - only to back off after being gently rebuked by the priest. He spends the rest of the scene [[VitriolicBestBuds trading friendly banter with Father Lucian]], while regarding the incoming vampire army with [[MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch disgust and disillusionment]]. For good measure, he also demonstrates the big difference between his outlook on the world and that of the priest.
!!FandomRivalry.VideoGames
* ''VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth'' and ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' are both inspired by the original ''VideoGame/DefenseOfTheAncients'' mod - the former is a straight copy, the latter has a few superficial differences. Yet if you listen to their respective fans on the forums, ''[=LoL=]'' is ridiculously easy to master and only for kids, is too different, the items are boring and the graphics suck; and ''[=HoN=]'' has a terrible user interface, unintuitive gameplay, is not different enough, the items are boring and the graphics suck. Arguments like 'the automap is on the wrong side of the screen' and 'the item icons are ugly' are not uncommon. Very little effort is spent explaining the reasons why their favourite game is good as opposed to why the other game is trash. With the growth of the {{MOBA}} genre, this rivalry started to shift to the new contenders as well, such as ''VideoGame/Dota2'', ''VideoGame/{{Smite}}'', and ''VideoGame/HeroesOfTheStorm''. Indeed, while ''[=LoL=]'' and ''[=HoN=]'' might previously have been the heavy hitters in this rivalry, it might be more accurately summarized now as "fans of any MOBA vs. fans of every other MOBA free-for-all."
** The arguments against each MOBA are as follows. ''Dota 2'' is a over-complicated, archaic dinosaur with more burden of knowledge than a PHD, ''League of Legends'' is focus-grouped, mass-marketed drivel for the sheep, ''Smite'' is a braindead action game posing as a real MOBA whose creators couldn't come up with their own characters, ''Heroes of Newerth'' is a bad ''Dota'' ripoff, ''Heroes of the Storm'' relies on Blizzard IP credo and casual carebear mechanics, and everyone else is just a joke that's going to be dead in a year or less. Needless to say, MOBA players ''already'' have a reputation for being [[{{GIFT}} toxic jackasses]], and FandomRivalry only makes things worse.
!!Fanfic.{{Grundergram}}
* {{GIFT}}: Trigger might be completely silent in the skies, but he behaves like a horny fratboy with a short fuse online.
!!Fanfic.InfiniteStratosIchikaQuestFuckStatusQuo
* {{GIFT}}: Violet is VERY NICE girl in real life.
!!Fanfic.NymphAndTheCorruptedMiraculous
* {{GIFT}}: Alya is subjected to this on her blog after her somewhat disastrous stint as Lady Wifi, which ended with [[spoiler: Catastrophe killing her [=tiānshǐ=].]]
!!Fanfic.OffTheLine
* {{GIFT}}: Players can be jerks in Terra Online. Red XIII got killed and robbed several times, and Rainstorm and Flower get sexually harassed. They also pull this as revenge, causing other players grief and causing as much havoc as possible.
!!Fanfic.PersonaEG
* {{GIFT}}: Taken UpToEleven. On 5/19, [[spoiler:Fluttershy]] informs Flash that out of 1,380 students and faculty between Canterlot High School and Canterlot Junior High School, there are only ''204'' Canterbook users who she is incapable of ruining with the press of a button.
!!Fanfic.UtterTripeReviews
* {{GIFT}}: Referenced by Dib at one point.
!!FanficRecs.GoodOmens
* Summary: Crowley teaches Aziraphale [[{{Griefer}} about]] [[{{GIFT}} the Internet]], a lesson that soon comes back to bite him in the arse.
!!Film.{{Cyberbully2011}}
* JerkAss: The AlphaBitch and her father are rather laughable examples due to their portrayal.
** Although it is realistic in that they [[KarmaHoudini never get a real comeuppance]] and Taylor's speech involves five people and a ten-second long applauding before Lindsay tells them to go and regains her status, still being followed by her friends, and getting some gossip as there probably were before exchanged about her. Also, it is revealed that they may have a FreudianExcuse, and the father reacts as most parents would, except for the way he says what he says. Plus take [[EvilIsPetty Evil]] + [[AlphaBitch Teenage Girl]] + [[PeerPressureMakesYouEvil Popularity]] + [[{{GIFT}} Internet]], and you've got Lindsay in Real Life.
!!Film.{{District9}}
* {{GIFT}}: Christopher is infinitely more fiery on his blog.
!!Film.{{Gamer}}
* {{Troll}}: A good chunk of the characters are straight-up trolls, and the {{GIFT}} is in full, terrifying force here.
!!Film.GunsAkimbo
* ThisLoserIsYou: Miles has a [[SoulCrushingDeskJob dead end job]], an ex-girlfriend he still pines for, an [[PointyHairedBoss abusive boss]], and spends his nights as an [[{{GIFT}} internet troll]] drinking until he passes out.
!!Film.HollowMan
* WhatYouAreInTheDark[=/=]{{GIFT}}: Sebastian concludes that he might as well [[spoiler:[[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking molest, rape, kill people, and scare children]]]] if he can escape the consequences by being invisible.
!!Film.IndieGameTheMovie
* {{GIFT}}: {{Deconstructed|Trope}} in "Edmund and teh Internets," in which Ed showcases a video he made two years before ''Super Meat Boy'', in which he [[TakeThat rips into]] those {{Troll}}s who insist that particular indie games aren't as good as people say they are without providing any constructive feedback.
!!Film.JayAndSilentBobStrikeBack
* InternetToughGuy: Subverted in that Jay and Bob have never been on the internet before, and have no concept of {{GIFT}} or what a {{Troll}} is and take the trash talk seriously. They also subvert the hell out of this trope by [[spoiler: actually going around the country to beat the crap out of all the bratty kids who insulted them.]]
!!Film.MediumCool
TheInternet, which has room for huge amounts of interactivity but mostly confined to correspondence with [[{{GIFT}} ill-informed people]], would thus be an example of a populace that prefers its Medium Cool. With lukewarm spots [[WikiTropes such as wikis]], like the one you may be editing now. The Situationists like Guy Debord would probably ask why [[TVTropesWillRuinYourLife you are in here on the computer]] when you could be out forming a [[FlashMob flash-mob]] or impromptu theater, of course.
!!Film.{{Nerve}}
* {{GIFT}}: Half of Nerve's users are the Watchers who make the Players humiliate\endanger themselves behind the safety of hiding themselves with screen names. [[spoiler: Then Tommy and the hacker collective remove their anonymity, and the Watchers all leave the game to avoid the offline repercussions.]]
!!Film.{{Surrogates}}
* {{GIFT}}: People tend to use the no-consequence nature of Surrogates with abandon to behave in ways they couldn't in person.
!!Film.TheFaceOfAnother
* {{GIFT}}: Dr. Hira's main concern with the masks, that the ability to become completely anonymous will destroy conventional morality. It certainly appears to do so for Okuyama.
!!Film.TheSocialNetwork
* {{GIFT}}: Mark, absolutely. While obnoxious enough in person, he becomes even worse behind a computer screen.
!!Film.{{Unfriended}}
* {{GIFT}}: Cyber-bullying is a major theme of the film, which is [[ExploitedTrope exploited]] by Laura in the chat, using everyone's dirty secrets to have them turn on each other. This includes whoever posted the video of her, entitled "LAURA BARNS KILL URSELF" [[spoiler:which turns out to be Mitch, as revealed by Blaire]].
!!Film.{{Unfriended}}
* TeensAreMonsters: [[spoiler:The cast is self-involved, [[{{GIFT}} using anonymity to treat others rather horribly]].]] The villain is also an example, being a revenge-obsessed AlphaBitch.
!!Fr.CEstDuSerieux
%%In musicals it's often demonstrated that DancingIsSeriousBusiness. For the saying that "TheInternetIsSeriousBusiness", see {{GIFT}}.
!!Franchise.ConanTheBarbarian
* {{GIFT}}: A pre-internet musing on the principle comes up in "The Tower of the Elephant," where the narration muses that "Civilized men are more discourteous than savages, because they know they can be impolite without having their skulls split."
!!FranchiseOriginalSin.GrandTheftAuto
* The [[KillSat Orbital Cannon]] introduced with the Doomsday Heist update proved to be TheLastStraw for many players in terms of Rockstar's reliance on {{microtransactions}} to support the game, as well as what was seen as their pandering to {{griefer}}s, such that Adam Wears of ''Website/{{Cracked}}'' [[http://www.cracked.com/article_25522_5-gamers-who-turned-trolling-into-artform.html cited it]] as purely a tool for rich {{jerkass}}es and cheaters to ruin people's games with. This weapon was merely the culmination of issues that had been building with the game's business model for a while by that point:
** The rising prices of DLC items, which were inevitably [[PowerCreep superior to those that came before]], first became a noticeable problem with the San Andreas Flight School update. Before then, new vehicles and weapons tended to be expensive, but not outrageously so; even the most exotic vehicles like supercars, monster trucks, and classic cars typically cost no more than $500-750,000, with most of the content costing significantly less (often less than $100,000). Flight School introduced three aircraft that each cost well over a million dollars, but even then, these were ''aircraft'', so it made sense that they'd be expensive. It made less sense for the Technical added in the Heists update, an old pickup truck with a machine gun mounted in the back that nevertheless cost almost a million dollars even with a discount. Before long, vehicles that cost seven or even eight figures were the norm for new updates, while vehicles that cost less than a million dollars grew few and far between. In fact, by converting in-game GTA dollars to real money based off of Shark cards, one can find that certain vehicles ''cost more than the price of the game itself''. Yup, 60 dollars for the entire game, another 60 dollars for a car ''in'' the game.
** Starting with the Offices in the Further Adventures in Finance and Felony update, the game also began introducing new, expensive, specialized safehouses that were required to access many new missions, the prices of which very quickly ran into the millions of dollars. The Orbital Cannon is essentially a mega-purchase that costs at least $2.65 million worth of in-game currency[[note]]The combined price of the cheapest Facility ($1.25 million base price, with the most expensive Facility having a base price of $2.95 million), the Facility upgrade that unlocks the Orbital Cannon ($900,000), and a manually-aimed shot from the weapon ($500,000, with an auto-aimed shot costing $750,000)[[/note]] just to fire ''once'', which is earned through either hours' worth of [[LevelGrinding grinding]] or by purchasing a Whale Shark card (worth $3.5 million in in-game currency) for $49.99 in real money -- or by taking advantage of exploits, which honest players don't like one bit. And on that note...
** Trollish weapons and vehicles. As mentioned above, the Flight School update added purchases over a million dollars, but hey, all it came down to were a few aircraft that, due to lack of weapons, made it a nice tool to cruise around the map with at best. It first became a problem when the Heists update allowed players to purchase the [[CoolPlane Hydra fighter jet]]. The Hydra very quickly replaced the [[TankGoodness Rhino tank]] as the [[WeaponOfChoice vehicle of choice]] for griefers, much to the annoyance of everybody else, but it was possible to counter the Hydra and shoot it down with the homing launcher. Later [[WeaponizedCar weaponized vehicles]] such as the Ruiner 2000 (a SerialNumbersFiledOff version of [[Series/KnightRider K.I.T.T.]]), the Vigilante (a SerialNumbersFiledOff version of the [[ComicBook/{{Batman}} Batmobile]]), the Oppressor (a jet-powered motorcycle with wings allowing it to fly some distance), and various attack helicopters became an even bigger pain. The growing number of new missions that required working in free roam, rather than in a separate instance, also afforded griefers the opportunity to [[{{GIFT}} derail other players' mission progress by attacking them with one of these overpowered weapons]], such that many fans suspected that Rockstar was encouraging griefers in order to push other players towards using the aforementioned microtransactions to get around the grind. The Doomsday Heist update brought the anger to a crescendo with the Orbital Cannon, the ''only'' use for which is to troll other players; it can only be fired from a fixed location inside the player's Facility (so you can't break it out as a superweapon while on a mission), and it inflicts a OneHitKill DeathFromAbove attack that can wipe out entire groups of players and is [[AlwaysAccurateAttack virtually impossible to avoid]] unless you're hiding in your safehouse or playing in passive mode (which blocks all damage from and physical contact with other players, but locks players out from using weapons and participating in free-roam missions). As the icing on the cake, the Doomsday Heist update also introduced the Deluxo, a [[Film/BackToTheFuturePartII flying Delorean lookalike]] that can have machine guns and homing rockets mounted to it.
!!Fridge.AmericanGods2017
* What is the significance of the Technical Boy's goons attempting to hang Shadow from a tree, aside from being a reference to both Norse mythology and the lynchings of afroamericans? They are an [[LiteralMetaphor Internet lynch mob]]. This also explains why they [[TheBlank don't have faces.]] Like the members of such mobs, [[{{GIFT}} they hide their cruel, thuggish behavior behind anonymity.]]
!!Fridge.DotHack
* The parody episode .hack//{{GIFT}}, is a StealthPun. Although it could easily have been HilariousInHindsight.
!!Fridge.GuildedAge
* Payet can be such a complete JerkSue without suffering any kind of retribution. It's simple: He's more competent than the others and believes ItsAllAboutMe because he's an [[{{GIFT}} online]] PlayerCharacter, as seen from the perspective of the [=NPCs=].
!!Fridge.RedVsBlue
* The Blues and Red's Grunts, with the possible exception of the Battle Creek Zealots, are all ridiculously obnoxious and immoral. But given that Temple has a definite WithUsOrAgainstUs mentality, this makes absolute sense; no decent or sane person would ever align themselves with the Blues and Reds once they found out what lines they were willing to cross, or live long enough to warn anyone. This would also explain the lack of familiar faces besides the Zealots (for example, the Reds from Rat's Nest) among the Blues and Reds' ranks.
** Not to mention that the Grunts in this case are the other Sim Troopers. Not only do they have traits that make them unfit for the actual military, chances are some of the teams are similar enough to the Blues and Reds to have the same reactions they did to learning the truth.
** In a more meta sense, the Blue and Red grunts are similar to the earlier sim troopers in that they're both parodies of online nuisances. The Battle Creek sim troopers acted like ''{{Franchise/Halo}}'' players that communicate in LeetLingo, while the Blue and Red grunts act like [[{{Troll}} internet trolls]] that throw around politically incorrect statements [[{{GIFT}} for their own amusement]].
!!Funny.ArianaGrande
* Her appearance in the "Celebs Read [[{{GIFT}} Mean]] [[Website/{{Twitter}} Tweets]]" segment on ''Series/JimmyKimmelLive'', where all the celebs that appear have universally agreed to play it perfectly straight and somber like a VerySpecialEpisode - except Ariana is ''[[{{Corpsing}} cracking up the whole time.]]''
!!Funny.HonestTrailers2015Episodes
* ''WesternAnimation/InsideOut'':
** Collectively describing Fear, Anger, and Disgust as "[[{{GIFT}} your average YouTube comment section]]".
** "The movie that made grown-ups say 'phew, Pixar is good again!' and made kids everywhere say 'why are you crying, daddy?'"
** Their take on why the film's main focus is on an 11-year-old girl's mind:
!!Funny.HonestTrailers2016Episodes
--->'''Narrator:''' From [[Creator/ColumbiaPictures the studio]] that just [[Film/TheInterview got hacked by North Korea]], [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse lost creative control]] of [[Film/SpiderManHomecoming Spider-Man]], might lose Film/JamesBond, and couldn't even keep Creator/AdamSandler happy,[[note]]Referring to Sandler signing a multi-picture deal with Creator/{{Netflix}}[[/note]] comes this [[TemptingFate sure-fire hit to put them back on track!]]\\
''[shows a ton of angry comments about the trailer]''\\
'''Narrator:''' Oh no...\\\
'''Narrator:''' Experience a film that created a perfect storm of hatred, uniting people who legitimately [[TaintedByThePreview hated the trailers]], people who legitimately hate reboots of classic films, and people who legitimately like to [[{{GIFT}} yell hateful nonsense on the Internet]].\\
'''UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump:''' Now they're making ''Ghostbusters'' with only women! What's going on?!\\
'''Narrator:''' Wait, we're getting a ''Ghostbusters'' video ''and'' calling out Trump? I am ''so'' getting doxxed!
** But all in all, however, how it ended up turning out?
!!Funny.KidRadd
-->'''Radd''': Dude, you are definitely the sickest thing on the Internet. And that's saying a lot.
** [[ContinuityNod Radd would know]]. For a time, he was a chatroom avatar, so he's had a firsthand look at the {{GIFT}} among other things.
!!Funny.{{Mordhau}}
* Patch #7 added two mute options: One normal, and [[https://i.redd.it/dsh7ro8vd6331.png one that replaces everything the muted individual says with motivational quotes]]. Removing {{GIFT}}-afflicted garbage from your sight is one thing, making them spout praise and telling you you can do it is on another, actively hilarious level.
!!Funny.MyLittlePonyTotallyLegitRecap
* Rainbow Rocks Movie:
** DWK starts out speaking in a combination Mysterious Whisper and BadassBaritone that perfectly sets the mood for the sirens [[EmotionEater draining the humans of their life energy...]] and then when he sees them, he immediately goes back to normal tone and starts sperging out over his three new waifus.
** Aria complains that getting people to care enough to fight about things in real life is impossible these days. Adagio retorts that if she could figure out a way to [[{{GIFT}} absorb negative energy through the Internet]], the Sirens could take over the entire multiverse in a day.
*** This exchange comes after Aria [[SincerityMode earnestly]] suggests prostitution as a way to make extra money. Adagio must be a true dike because she refuses to even think about taking dick.
*** Sonata seems pretty okay with it though. Hell, she seems disappointed that it ''isn't'' their plan.
!!Funny.MyLittlePonyTotallyLegitRecap
* He describes the Spirit of Hearthswarmings Yet To Come as a '''"horrifying EldritchAbomination with the head of a waifu"'''. (because it's [[EnsembleDarkhorse Luna]])
** And the bad future is what would happen if people [[{{GIFT}} acted like they do on the internet]].
!!Funny.MyLittlePonyTotallyLegitRecap
* Instead of a vow of silence, the Kirin forgot how to speak because they spent too much time on the internet. Also, [[{{GIFT}} when they flame each other online]], they catch on fire in real life. Rain Shine tried to unplug the router when this became apparent, but there were too many wires, so she couldn't figure out the right one.
!!Funny.{{Overwatch}}
* In mid-December 2017, after an angry {{Troll}} on the official forums announced he was quitting the game due to it [[SmallNameBigEgo "failing" to repeal the 7 bans to his account]], [[https://us.battle.net/forums/en/overwatch/topic/20760626013?page=10#post-194 Jeff Kaplan himself arrived]] to share some lines of his [[{{GIFT}} in-game behaviour]] to make clear the bans and hundreds of harassment reports were completely justified, including [[SmallNameBigEgo "im the reason for anything good"]], [[InternetToughGuy "LONG WALK FOR A PILE OF [expletive]"]], and accusing others who beat him of hacking.
!!Funny.PuellaMagiMadokaMagica
---->'''Kyubey:''' We never imagined there could be a world where each individual had their own set of emotions, yet still manage to coexist with one another.\\
'''Madoka:''' ''(deadpan)'' Really? ''(beat)'' [[{{GIFT}} Then I guess you've never visited a chat room, have you?]]
*** After Mami tells Madoka that if she can't make up her mind, she'll have to wish for cake, what's Madoka's response?
!!Funny.SFDebris
* When complaining about the multiplayer aspect of the game, Chuck preemptively shuts down the comment that he should just socialize more but addressing an open letter to the [[{{GIFT}} reasons]] why he hasn't. He apparently believes them to be [[HumanoidAbomination Humanoid Abominations]].
!!Funny.SaintsRowTheThird
* After [[{{GIFT}} Matt]] boasts about how powerful he is and how anything you can do, he can do better, Boss will retort by challenging him to buy a pack of cigarettes. After a brief silence he can only reply with a resentful [[LameComeback "Ageist"]].
!!Funny.TheMoonsFlashPrincess
--> '''LLENN:''' Pito-chan was underestimating me and normally while I don’t mind. Pito-chan is one of my best friends. And I don’t want my friends to underestimate me. She’s also plays as a bit of a psychopath in this game, milking the [[PlayerVersusPlayer PvP]] everyone for themselves aspects of it for all they’re worth. And a bit of [[{{GIFT}} GIFT]], I think. She might enter the [=BoB=], so watch out.\\
'''Sinon:''' But wasn’t ripping her throat out a bit on the extreme side?\\
'''LLENN:''' Nah, Pito knows better, so I had to punish her. I’m ready to go, how about we get to work?\\
'''Sinon:''' ''[[[INeedAFreakingDrink Downs her drink in one go.]]]'' [[DeadpanSnarker That the rumor also boosts your own reputation as a badass has nothing to do with it, I’m sure]].
!!Funny.TheMultiversity
* Ultra Comics attacking Intellectron with weaponized [[{{GIFT}} Internet]] HateDumb:
!!Funny.WoolieVersus
* After discovering Higgs' RoomFullOfCrazy in Part 59, Woolie concludes the man is a [[{{GIFT}} dork trying to be a cool villain]].
** Reggie finds what ''appears'' to be a copy of ''Literature/MeinKampf'' in said room, before he and Woolie breathe a sigh of relief at realizing it's actually...
!!Funny.ZeroPunctuation3
-->Well, this may surprise you, but I've been making more of an effort to do the multiplayer thing lately, partly for therapeutic reasons. VideoGame/DarkSouls helped. That game feels like it's trying to wean you onto social interaction. First you find someone's note advising you to "be wary of fatty", then you hire stalwart fellows to help you out with a boss fight, none of whom [[{{GIFT}} have headset mics so close to their mouths that you feel like their every utterance is trying to beat your ears to death with racial epithets]]. The turning point came when I was invaded, but the attacker bowed upon seeing me, a gesture of recognition to mark a duel between equals. "You know what," I thought, "Maybe I don't need to be so afraid of people all the time!" [[CombatPragmatist So while he was bowing, I ran up and stuck my halberd up his arse]]. ''"Maybe it's '''people''' who need to be afraid of '''ME!'''"''
!!Funny.ZeroPunctuation3
--->[[{{GIFT}} This is a game in dire need of a violent twat fumigation.]]
** Then there's Yahtzee impossibly short-lived adventures with the chat system. [[spoiler:He heard someone say [[NWordPrivileges "Nigger"]] [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere then immediately turned the chat off.]]]]
!!Funny.ZeroPunctuation4
* Every single backronym he comes up with for PUBG.
** After encountering racists on voice chat, he says the game should be called [[{{GIFT}} Players Unabashedly Backing Genocide]].
** He appreciates the shrinking boundaries of the game's area, because, after all, Pugnacity Under Boundaries Germinates.
** "Stop going prone, you idiot! If someone's shooting at you, that's when you need to be running like fuck; as we all know, Proning Ultimately Begets Grief.
**
!!Haiku.{{Troll}}
Please don't feed the trolls!\\
They wreak havoc [[ItAmusedMe just for fun]]\\
[[{{GIFT}} on the Internet.]]
!!Headscratchers.DefenseOfTheAncients
* Can someone give a good explanation for why this game (And genre) has a terrible reputation for {{GIFT}} and StopHavingFunGuys ?
** Well for one thing, a game generally lasts up to say, 30 to 60 minutes. Now if you have a bad player, that person will probably wind up dragging the team down, either by not farming well, or even giving the enemy team kills, making them much stronger, and inducing a snowball effect. I'm unsure of surrender times, although in ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'', it's about 20 minutes (given that it passes and no one says no out of spite). So 20 minutes of a loss, or a entire hour of slowly winning. It's even worse in Dota 2 because at the time of this writing, there isn't a surrender function implemented in the game yet.
!!Headscratchers.LeagueOfLegends
* I know that this [[OlderThanTheyThink certainly didn't come from THIS game]], but what on earth is it about MOBA games and their ability to bring out the absolute ''worst'' in people?
** I don't even think this problem comes from MOBA games at all. All the bad aspects existed before, but were allowed to magnify by video games' competitive spirit and the Internet's ability to spew it everywhere.
*** But for some reason, it's ''especially'' bad in MOBA games, especially ''VideoGame/DefenseOfTheAncients'', ''VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth'', and this game.
** Losing is not fun in a MOBA. Any other multiplayer online game a round is 20 minutes at max, plenty of time to dust off and try to get another win if you lose your current game. A MOBA usually takes 45 minutes minimum. Like Tycho of ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'' said, the fact that you have to spend fifteen minutes farming stretches out the length and emotional investment of a multiplayer game far longer than it should, which makes losing worse, which in turn makes the community more resentful and angry. It essentially means that at any given time, half of the player base feels like they just wasted an hour of their life. That brings out the worst in people for obvious reasons, to a higher degree than any other genre.
*** Even worse, when you're having a bad time in most other games, like an FPS for example, you can just drop out with no real consequences. Hell, most FPS games will even auto-balance teams if a lot of players from the losing team startv ragequitting. In [=LoL=] and other [=MOBAs=] when your team is wasting your time you're ''stuck with them'' since leaving is ''penalised'' (since the impact of a single player leaving in a 5v5 contest with no substitutions or balances possible that it pretty much immediately decides the game, so Riot ''have'' to penalise it harshly). So basically, the perception is that you're being ''forced'' to spend time on an activity which is no longer fun thanks to the ineptitude of your teammates. It's no surprise this can make people a bit testy.
** When there's a bad player in most games, the worst they can do is not help their team mates or increase their opponents score, making them more likely to lose. In MultiplayerOnlineBattleArena, when someone does badly, they're actively increasing the strength of their opponents, making every competitive aspect outright harder for their team mates. Not only does this make them frustrated, but, the resulting drop in the entire team scores makes everyone assume it must be someone else's fault.
*** The last two points would imply people behaved better in Dominion. This doesn't seem to be the case; {{GIFT}} still applies.
*** That's a given, especially if you consider that no matter where you are, no matter which game are you playing, the {{Stop Having Fun Guys}} control most, if not all, of the metagame with their beliefs.
*** Which is why you should ''never'' play ranked or ''any'' games that are "pro" environment like [=DotA=] or VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth - If you're having fun, ''you WILL be chased out'' and kicked from games, blacklisted, trash-talked, etc. StopHavingFunGuys cannot be removed - they can only be quarantined by "pro" environments that stroke their egos.
*** Although for some reason, I have actually noticed that since around January, people started to behave better in Dominion. I don't know if it's because it's more fast-paced (and therefore people have less time to type insulting comments in /all ) or if all the StopHavingFunGuys are busy playing ranked or have moved onto ''VideoGame/{{Dota 2}}. If it keeps the StopHavingFunGuys out...Go right ahead. Seriously - I don't care if you consider your game the best. Games are all about having fun, and you guys take all the fun out of these games.
*** They're still around, even in normal unranked games. It's only a few from my experience, but a few is ''far'' more than enough.
*** I recently started playing, and I haven't found any jerkass players yet. Hell, most of the ones I met help teach me how to play, and I did pretty good cause of them. Guess I'm just lucky
*** You are, lucky that is. Please find someone knowledgeable to help/train you a bit before you attempt ranked games. You'll thank me, trust me on this...
*** This is kind of an unfair calling for VideoGame/{{Dota 2}} and this is coming from someone who ''loves'' both DOTA and League. Basically is, due to it being a free to play game, even little kids that hasn't developed the mental fortitude to keep their cool will be a LOT more abundant in these kinds of games. It doesn't matter if it's ranked or normal, if it's DOTA or League, they WILL think they're the best player ever, they demand honor/commend when finishing the game well, or start flaming when things don't go their way, not realizing that games like this are supposed to be a fun experience. Not everyone who play this game are demanded to become professional champions, they were too intoxicated with the thought of losing is just showing how bad they are rather than experience for them to get better. DOTA is thought to be a lot more punishing than League and it is true, but in fact, here and now, there are ALWAYS people who are casual in DOTA, makes playing and learning there just as fun as it is in League. And vice versa, as stated, there's even League players that are just extremely toxic and pissy it makes DOTA fandom look like angels. You can throw the same thing to VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth... or even VideoGame/{{Smite}}, but one truth remains: It's the stigma of MOBA games, especially free to play ones that you will find these kind of brats if you play online, so you need to be prepared mentally for this. You can also find yourself some IRL friends that share interest so you can form a team and won't have to deal with these guys anymore, in fact, usually college dudes or working people who like playing these games certainly came off more affable and less toxic because of their developed mentalities. Bottom line: Toxic guys, StopHavingFunGuys and pissy guys are the bread and butter of online games. You need to deal with them daily.
!!Headscratchers.SwordArtOnline
* It's mentioned that married people share inventories. If this were a game, most people would probably respect that marriage should mean something (if a lot less than what real marriage means), but a few people would try to take advantage of that fact. Once everyone was trapped in there, it was all real, and the fact that married people share inventories is a fact of that world that can be taken advantage of. Fluff about what was supposed to be a videogame matters less. I would expect, for example, that people would try to share inventories so that their stuff doesn't vanish when they die. They could also do things like have the people in boss fights married, so that their spouses could send them limitless supplies of potions.
** As a practical matter, the primary healing (and escape) items are Crystals, and I'm pretty sure it's stated that the later boss fights take place in arenas where said Crystals can't be used. No point in entering a MarriageOfConvenience to ensure a supply of magical healing items when you're going into an AntiMagic field...
** Who says they didn't? We only see two married couples, Grimrock/Griselda and Kirito/Asuna. They treated it as real, but other players might not have. Kirito has always been big on the whole "treat games as you would real life in order to avert {{GIFT}}" thing, so he's not the best example.
** There are people in real life who do that too, you know; that is, who get married in order to make it easier to manage money, with no romantic undertones. However, even then they are generally close friends who simply don't see the need to get married and have children, and they get married so that they wouldn't be in the situation where there is nobody left to inherit their things. But there aren't many marriages like that, really; even if their feelings change later, the majority of marriages takes place because there were feelings of some sort.\\
\\
A game from which you cannot escape, it might appear weird for us but it would probably be very easy for people to start treating it the same way they would treat their real lives. And going from that point, it's easy to see what's the most likely thing that would happen. Maybe there would be people not feeling anything but trusting each other enough to marry just because of that reason, but the majority of them married because they felt something towards each other. And when marriages of convenience are just a minority, it might be hard to notice them, the same way you usually don't see them in real lives.
!!Headscratchers.TheSpoonyExperiment
* Random inquiry: Does Scarlett ever show up in ''any'' of his videos? I know he makes numerous references to her, but do we ever see her in action?
** She doesn't appear because of the obnoxious part of the fandom. I don't know the full story, but shit went down. Shit went down, [[ThisIsForEmphasisBitch bitch]].
*** She appeared once. '''''Once.''''' It was his acceptance video for the award he won. For whatever reason the obnoxious part of the fandom attacked her in that video. A video in which he made an acceptance speech for an award he won. Make sense of that.
*** Don't you know what video it was?
*** No, because Spoony and Scarlett took the video down when the hating got bad enough.
*** Can I just ask what the reasoning for this abuse was?
*** {{GIFT}}, what else?
*** Yeah, but what specifically is the fanboys beef with Scarlet? Is this some sort of "there are no girls online" sexism thing? I just want to know what the supposed problem is.
*** From what I gathered, it's a mix of HollywoodHomely / HollywoodPudgy scorn. She's fairly attractive, but not supermodel-level -- and {{GIFT}}ers hate that!
*** Right, so it's as retarded as I thought. Cheers.
!!Heartwarming.ActsOfKindness
* The story behind [[http://alicexz.deviantart.com/art/Rapunzel-II-212289901 this picture]] of [[WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}} Rapunzel]]. A girl named [[http://bamiebal.deviantart.com/ Cyril]] blogged about her dreams of being a face actress at a Disney theme park, namely Rapunzel. On her blog, an [[{{GIFT}} Anon]] said that she was too ugly to be a princess. After hearing this, [[http://alicexz.deviantart.com/ Alice]] made a picture of her as Rapunzel. With the picture came overwhelming support and Cyril's page became filled with comments about how beautiful she is.
!!Heartwarming.BigBrother
* Big Brother Canada:
** Late in the first season, there was a challenge where houseguests had to freeze in place whenever Big Brother told them to. During these freeze moments, we get clowns entering the house to annoy the houseguests, evicted houseguests re-entering to do the same... and then during one freeze, Andrew's twin brother enters the house to say hi to him. Though he has to stay in place, Andrew is barely able to contain his emotions at seeing his brother again.
** From [=BBCan2=], during Week 3 when Ika was up on the block against Heather, before the eviction vote, Ika put aside her AlphaBitch tendencies (albeit until the check incident), built a pillow fort, and apologized to Heather for bullying her.
*** And even then, after the cheque SadisticChoice, Ika delivered most of her AlphaBitch attitude towards the first five - especially Kenny, Andrew, and Sabrina.
** [=BBCan2=]: Kenny coming out to Sarah during the campout reward. It was very easy to see that Kenny lying about his being gay was really affecting him on an emotional level.
** [=BBCan3=] has Britnee and Sarah working together to win the HOH after the emotional eviction of Naeha, their closest friend and ally. After they won they hugged and whispered to eachother "For Nae. For Nae. For Nae."
** Zach became somewhat infamous before his season started when it was discovered that during the first season of the Canada version he had made some very rude and nasty tweets to Peter about his gameplay, calling him a "bitch" and "pussy" with a "nothing life". When Peter finished the season and returned to twitter, he responded in kind with exactly the attitude he's now known for on the Side Show. Obviously, that's not the heartwarming part. That occurred when Zach was evicted and being interviewed by Peter on the Side Show. Peter brought up the tweets, geared up for the rant that everyone was expecting...and then forgave Zach. And then went on a monologue about how after Zach gets home he's going to get plenty of people talking trash about him online because [[{{GIFT}} it's easy]], and that all that hate is going to wear him down, and that Peter will always be available to talk to if it gets to be too much for Zach since he's had to deal with the exact same thing.
** Season 4 features Loveita and Kelsey's relationship changing over the course of a couple weeks where they go from being tense to each other to legit enjoying themselves in the secret suite.
** Ramsay's departure from the house when he decides to walk from the game after learning his dad had a heart attack and now needs major surgery. The whole house treats this event with sympathy and grace and gives him a very kind sendoff.
!!Heartwarming.FredRogers
* A minor one but anyone who has browsed the internet will tell you that the comments section of almost anything is ripe for arguments, insults, bizarre logic, and [[{{GIFT}} attracts many terrible elements including threats]]. Yet in the (since-removed) video where Fox commentators try to make Mr Rogers seem like he was bad influence for children, almost everyone is united in defending him and saying what a positive impact he had on their lives. Mr Rogers: The man so nice and beloved that even the internet can't find anything bad to say about him.
** At present, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29lmR_357rA this YouTube video presenting Mister Rogers in a bad light]] stands at 1.9 million views with only about 1,300 likes and over ''34,000 dislikes''. Oh, and it's also unwatchable, because [[KickTheSonOfABitch PBS filed a copyright claim against it.]]
*** The comments sections for most shows, as noted above, are full of snarking, ShipToShipCombat, people insulting the characters, writers, and each other, MisaimedFandom...look up a clip of ''Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood,'' and it will almost exclusively be people singing his praises.
** 4chan is known for being effectively a pit of pure, festering evil. But if you insult Mr. Rogers, ''[[EvenEvilHasStandards they will ban you]]''.
!!Heartwarming.MisterRogersNeighborhood
* A minor one but anyone who has browsed the internet will tell you that the comments section of almost anything is ripe for arguments, insults, bizarre logic, and [[{{GIFT}} attracts many terrible elements including threats]]. Yet in the (since-removed) video where Fox commentators try to make Mr Rogers seem like he was bad influence for children, almost everyone is united in defending him and saying what a positive impact he had on their lives. Mr Rogers: The man so nice and beloved that even the internet can't find anything bad to say about him.
** At present, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29lmR_357rA this YouTube video presenting Mister Rogers in a bad light]] stands at 1.9 million views with only about 1,300 likes and over ''34,000 dislikes''. Oh, and it's also unwatchable, because [[KickTheSonOfABitch PBS filed a copyright claim against it.]]
*** The comments sections for most shows, as noted above, are full of snarking, ShipToShipCombat, people insulting the characters, writers, and each other, MisaimedFandom...look up a clip of ''Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood,'' and it will almost exclusively be people singing his praises.
** 4chan is known for being effectively a pit of pure, festering evil. But if you insult Mr. Rogers, ''[[EvenEvilHasStandards they will ban you]]''.
!!Heartwarming.WorldOfWarcraft
* This thread [[http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/6397970442?page=1 about how one faction should kill another]] somehow ends with an actually rational argument, and even more shockingly, starts a trend of reasonable discussions on [=WoW=] from it's begining to the first day of Mists of pandaria. In other words, a bunch of people who don't know each other actually got over their hate of people different than them and ''beat {{GIFT}}''.
!!IThoughtItMeant.AToC
* AllTrollsAreDifferent is not a speech reaffirming the diversity and individuality of those who have fallen victim to the {{GIFT}}.
!!IThoughtItMeant.GToI
* {{GIFT}} is not something you get for Christmas.
!!IThoughtItMeant.UToW
* An UnwantedGiftPlot is not a plot about [[{{GIFT}} The Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]], that the audience wishes hadn't happened.
** Nor is it about the audience not liking stories about giving gifts.
** Nor is it a plot about getting [[VideoGame/{{Dragonvale}} yet another Gift dragon.]]
!!Irony.RealLife
* Often when people, especially young people on [[{{GIFT}} the internet]] (e.g., the website ''Encyclopedia Dramatica'') attempt to be edgy; they say and/or do politically incorrect things. In the days before PC was widespread (i.e., the mid-to-late 70's), being politically correct in and of ''itself'' was considered edgy, due to lingering sexist/racist attitudes still in society.
!!It.ElencoProvvisorioF-G
* {{GIFT}} [{{It/DONO}}] (Dottrina Ossessivocompulsiva del Net e dell'Oltrerealtà)
!!JustForFun.TVTropesConLang
||root||gift||rude, shameless, troll||{{GIFT}}||
!!Laconic.DysfunctionalFamilyCircus
ComicStrip/TheFamilyCircus + ({{Detournement}} + {{GIFT}}) = CrossingTheLineTwice
!!Laconic.GIFT
-->[-Cyberbully the unabridged version [[{{GIFT}} HERE]].-]
!!Laconic.WideEyedIdealist
-->[-Visit unabridged version [[WideEyedIdealist HERE]]! And be sure to say hi to all those [[InternetToughGuy nice]] [[{{Troll}} people]] [[{{GIFT}} on the]] [[WretchedHive internet]]!-]
!!LaconicTropeDistinctions.AToC
!!! '''BeneathTheMask vs ADarkerMe vs {{GIFT}} vs HiddenDepths''':
!!LaconicTropeDistinctions.AToC
* Alice is a different person...
** BeneathTheMask: when anonymous/powerful, because then her real personality is revealed.
** ADarkerMe: when anonymous/powerful, because then she's DarkerAndEdgier.
** {{GIFT}}: when anonymous/powerful, because then she becomes a jerk.
** HiddenDepths: once you get to know her.
!!LetsPlay.GamingGarbage
* {{Jerkass}}: Kevin "Fragmaster" Bowen in "Let's Play: ''Jay's Mod''", playing off his {{GIFT}} persona and [[VitriolicBestBuds relationship]] with Lowtax.
!!LetsPlay.{{Kikoskia}}
[[https://www.youtube.com/user/Kikoskia Kikoskia]] (real name Damien Jennison) is a fairly noteworthy English creator of LetsPlay videos on Website/YouTube. Some of the strong points of his commentary are his generally amiable personality, whimsical [[DeadpanSnarker yet snarky]] sense of humor, tendency to [[LampshadeHanging hang lampshades]] on common tropes and cliches, and [[AvertedTrope almost total lack]] [[VulgarHumor of the profanity or vulgarity]] [[{{GIFT}} that's all too common to the genre]]. Most of the games he plays tend to be {{RPG}}s or {{Adventure Game}}s, and many of the first games he played were originally made for the Creator/{{Sega}} [[UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis Megadrive]]. (He does use an emulator to play them on PC but insists he owns all the games he plays).
!!LetsPlay.NerdCubed
--> '''Dan:''' Before we begin, I do have some serious news to discuss. I received a record number of complaints about a video. Nearly a hundred people complained about the last episode of ''Bully'', as it featured THIS GAY KISS! *shows footage of the kiss* Now, a lot of people wanted me to edit out THIS GAY KISS! *shows footage of the kiss* from that episode, but unfortunately, I don't keep raw video files, so THIS GAY KISS! *shows footage of kiss* is going to be there forever. They've also asked me if I would kindly (I say they asked me kindly. They didn't. [[{{GIFT}} They shouted.]]), they asked me kindly if I would not show things like THIS GAY KISS! *shows footage of the kiss* in any future or current videos. Well, I've decided...Jimmy is now bi. Deal with it! *shows footage of kiss* Right, that's people dragged into the 21st century [[FlameWar and the comments section annihilated...]]
** Also the entirety of "Nerd³ Plays...Day One: Garry's Incident"
** In his video of the London 2012 Olympics game, he doesn't have many positive things to say about the Olympics themselves, referring to them as "a massive sports day that rolls into town every four years and bankrupts a country."
** For his ''VideoGame/FTLFasterThanLight'' "Space Racists" challenge, Dan names his ship the "USS [[UsefulNotes/BritishPoliticalSystem UKIP]]", [[BlatantLies by hitting random keys on the keyboard]].
** In his lets play of Arkham Origins, we get this gem:
!!LetsPlay.SuperJeenius
* {{GIFT}}: He calls this out at one point.
!!LetsPlay.TwitchPlaysPokemon
* {{GIFT}}: Plenty of the Mob are simply there to impede progress in whatever way possible. Often 'trolls' are blamed for things that are just a result of the exceedingly long and non-obvious 26-second delay between commands being entered and executed, but there are a few repeated commands that clearly make no sense at all.
!!LetsPlay.TwitchPlaysPokemon
* ItsEasySoItSucks: {{Invoked}} by the Anarchists. The main complaint is that the Democracy system makes the entire game so easy, it is not as fun as the chaotic mess of the Anarchy system. In fact, this reasoning helped produce [[MemeticMutation start9]] which made the progression in the game ''even worse'' and this specific command is remembered as a sign of a protest against Democracy. However, the rather few times that Democracy helped the game, whose problems were [[{{GIFT}} both caused by anarchists]]) are [[AccentuateTheNegative not really spoken out as often as it should]].
!!LightNovel.LogHorizon
* DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist: Everyone was immensely relieved to find out that they can't be KilledOffForReal by being killed in battle. Unfortunately, that encouraged [[{{GIFT}} some people]] to become [[PlayerKilling Player Killers]]. [[spoiler:Subverted after Shiroe learns about the Spirit Theory. He hypotheses since Adventurers lose EXP when they resurrect, when Elder Tales became real, it translates to a loss of memories. This is proven true when Krusty, whom died twice since the Apocalypse, could no longer remember the name and appearance of his pet cat, despite his good memory. This leaves the terrifying implication that dying in the new world means gradually losing your memory of the old one. Krusty himself says this is a double subversion because he figures one would have to die dozens of times before the memory loss became more than a "mild inconvenience". Comparatively speaking, that's still pretty cheap. In episode 9 of season 2, we also see Shiroe affected by this firsthand, as he wanders around his hometown while in the spirit world, and is unable to recall the name of a restaurant he used to pass by.]]
!!LightNovel.LogHorizon
* {{GIFT}}:
** Since no one can die, some people take dickery to an unbelievable level. Brigandia guildsmen brutally kill everyone who try to leave Susukino. It's implied that they murder and rape [=NPC=]s like it's nothing. [[note]] The anime is aired on NHK, so nothing is explicitly revealed.[[/note]]
** The major guilds within Akihabara uses the "it's just a game" to excuse their behavior and continue to do nothing about it. However, when Shiroe invites them to a meeting and [[spoiler:blackmails them]] into seriously discussing implementing law and order, they all agree that grieving low level players, slavery, forced confinement, murder, and rape should be made illegal without objection.
!!LightNovel.SwordArtOnline
* ADarkerMe: There's a group of players that go around killing other players and stealing their items. Lampshaded when Kirito remarks that online players [[{{GIFT}} act very different]] from how they would in real life.
!!Literature.AKindOfSpark
* {{GIFT}}: Keedie's twin Nina, an influencer, features Addie in one of her makeup videos. The comments immediately fill with people either calling her a tragedy or questioning if she can really be autistic if she can talk. Nina deletes the replies, but Keedie still tells her off for it, accusing her of trying to get pity clicks for having a disabled sister.
!!Literature.{{Alterworld}}
* {{GIFT}}: Adam is an inversion; he's really quite personable on the internet, but in real life [[{{Jerkass}} is a different story]].
!!Literature.IncarnationsOfImmortality
* {{GIFT}}: Possibly predicted in an older form, and alluded to, in ''Bearing an Hourglass'', when Chronos encounters a wall covered in graffiti, and muses that perhaps, in a perfectly free society, people do behave badly. He concludes that both the best and worst in society are equally necessary.
!!Literature.{{Newshound}}
* FantasticRacism: Low-key discrimination against parahumans appears to be relatively common, ranging from casual lycanphobia borne of ignorance[[note]]as exhibited by Heather's editor, Kurt Holmes[[/note]] to outright hatred and calls for death[[note]]as displayed by [[{{GIFT}} certain internet commentators]][[/note]].
!!Literature.T2Trilogy
* {{GIFT}}: John, monitoring Luddite chat rooms on the Internet and noting the movement is getting more mainstream -- and more violent -- every day, muses on exactly this trope, that people will say things on the Internet they would never say face-to-face. But it's still probably a good thing not to be in the same room with them when they ''are'' saying such things; who knows what could happen.
!!Literature.TheRepublic
* {{GIFT}}: The Ring of Gyges is sort of an UrExample: instead of Normal Person+Anonymity+Audience=Total Fuckwad, you get Normal Person+Ring of Invisibility+Tempting Targets=Murderer and Rapist. Same principle, really; it's used to argue that being held accountable for one's actions in the public eye is the only thing keeping us from treating one another like jerks.
!!Literature.TheStrangeCaseOfDrJekyllAndMrHyde
* {{GIFT}}: An UrExample. The great appeal of Hyde to Jekyll is that he can't be held responsible for Hyde's crimes, until he murders a member of Parliament and cannot safely hide. This coincides with the potion losing potency, limiting both men's time.
!!Machinima.RedVsBlue
* FauxToGuide:
** The "Real Life vs. The Internet", "First!", and "Online Survival Guide" [=PSAs=] are all this in terms of teaching [[{{GIFT}} online etiquette]].
** [[invoked]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNqfskP72Nw The Fire Safety PSA.]] [[TooDumbToLive It ends with the group dying in a fire inside the building]] and is given an InMemoriam message.
** "Match Breaking", a guide by Tucker and Simmons on picking up girls.
** Most of the [=PSAs=] after Season 15 are like this, with two downright saying it in the title - "Caboose's Guide to Finding Your Home" (a sequel to the "Making Friends" episode of [[Machinima/RedVsBlueSeason14 Season 14]]) and "Lopez's Technical Guide to Empathy".
!!Machinima.RedVsBlueTheBloodGulchChronicles
* BackFromTheDead:
** [[invoked]] The Battle Creek Reds and Blues, who are two large, deeply idiotic, [[DoesThisRemindYouofAnything constantly respawning armies]] [[{{GIFT}} of jerks]].
** Wyoming, in a sense, via TimeTravel SaveScumming.
!!Manga.{{Bakuman}}
* {{GIFT}}:
** Discussed by Takagi in his explanation for why [[spoiler:Nanamine]] cannot succeed. One of the problems he notes is that the 50 people are anonymous and are not being paid, so they have less incentive to put in a serious effort over time than one person whose career hangs in the balance. Some of [[spoiler:Nanamine's]] contributors admit to participating just for fun.
** The internet reaction to [[spoiler:Azuki being outed as Mashiro's girlfriend]] is quite nasty.
!!Manga.DeathNote
* {{GIFT}}: In-story, Kira becomes an instant sensation on the Internet and ordinary citizens start making hit lists. ([[SubvertedInnocence Like that sweet-looking little girl texting "Kira, please kill them all."]])
** This applies to Light as well with the anonymous power of both the Internet ''and'' the Death Note.
!!Manga.IAmAHero
* MessageBoard: Online communities play a role. They're the most GenreSavvy about a ZombieApocalypse, have less [[ThisLoserIsYou direct human contact]], and so have [[CursedWithAwesome better odds of survival]]. Not that it prevents the [[{{Hikikomori}} flaky]], [[{{GIFT}} morally questionable]] types from running things...
** Makes another appearance near the end [[spoiler:when Hiromi finally gets absorbed by the HiveMind and sees it as the same message board shown earlier (with some of the same posters, for good measure)]].
!!Manga.ICantUnderstandWhatMyHusbandIsSaying
* {{GIFT}}: Hajime has to explain to Kaoru how this works in Chapter 7 of the manga.
!!Manga.OshiNoKo
* SocialMediaIsBad: Zig-zagged. Social media is portrayed as a useful tool to increase one's stardom and popularity, yet it can [[{{GIFT}} bring out the worst]] of the people using them, as shown with Akane after she causes an unfortunate accident and subsequently is getting cyberbullied for weeks, which makes Aqua furious.
!!Manga.{{Shibatora}}
* {{GIFT}}: Features heavily in the Gasoline Man storyline.
!!Manhwa.{{Yureka}}
* ClarkKenting: It's illegal to alter one's appearance on the Net, so characters who want to exploit the {{GIFT}} [[InvokedTrope have to disguise themselves entirely with clothes and attitude.]] It's a recurrent theme, but is [[{{Reconstruction}} played with realism]] and isn't [[PaperThinDisguise infallible]]: those actively invoking this get delayed recognition at best.
** In-game, pop duo The Lovely Angels don't wear makeup.
** Out-of-game, Lotto wears glasses and combs his hair (and tries to act mild-mannered).
*** Jyung Mung-Gun eventually connects the loud-mouthed manipulator he rendezvoused with in a digital bar with the quiet (shorter) kid in glasses and a baseball cap he showed around a hospital for a friend.
!!Manhwa.{{Yureka}}
* {{GIFT}}: Characters who are sweet as pie or at least normal in [[RealLife real life]] don't have to keep up appearances and facades on the net, resulting in small to startling additional [[{{Jerkass}} jerkassery]].
!!Manhwa.{{Yureka}}
* {{Greed}}: How many times has it gotten the better of our heroes and their adversaries? But then, it is a series about [[{{GIFT}} gamers]]....
!!Manhwa.{{Yureka}}
* {{Utopia}}: It is the view of some that the Net should be like this, or at least limited to its own harmless [[{{GIFT}} vices]], and that Killers and their trade pervert this ideal.
!!Memes.AnimeAndManga
* ''Manga/SayonaraZetsubouSensei'': Make yourself taller [[labelnote:Explanation]]Euphemism for suicide by hanging. Named after Kafuka's bizarre explanation that Nozomu was not trying to kill himself, but merely trying to increase his height.[[/labelnote]]
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BB7o8x0wPhs I'm in despair!]]X has left me in despair! [[labelnote:Explanation]]Nozoumu's snowclone-able rant about the {{GIFT}} phenomenon.[[/labelnote]]
!!Memes.{{Minecraft}}
* "hey shitass" [[labelnote:Explanation]]Parodying the competitive [=PvP=] and speedrunning scene (especially YouTubers like LetsPlay/{{Dream}}), these memes follow a specific format: the player character addressing another player named "shitass" with "hey shitass, wanna see me [action]?", the player character then doing that action with [[SensoryAbuse bass-boosted blowing into the mic]] and loud ButtonMashing (and usually at a low skill level or with outside assistance), before shitass outdoes the player in ludicrous ways.[[/labelnote]]
** "[[{{GIFT}} Bad. You're bad. You're ba-]] ''(shitass [[BullyingADragon attacks the player]])'' [[OhCrap AAAAAAA-!]]"
!!Memes.OtherInternet
* "I wasn't being an [[{{GIFT}} asshole]]! It was, uh... a '[[http://wiki.fandomwank.com/index.php/Social_experiment social experiment]]'. Yeah..."[[labelnote:Explanation]]The "social experiment" defense is sometimes employed when a person is called out for failure at {{troll}}ing.[[/labelnote]]
!!MisBlamed.VideoGames
* Xbox Live's userbase has been misblamed for the creation of the "juvenile and unfriendly" gamer. Apparently people haven't heard of the theory of {{GIFT}}, which has been in existence long before the Xbox. Live just brought the issue to light if anything. And when it's not Xbox Live that gets all the criticism for this, it's always something like ''VideoGame/CounterStrike'' or ''VideoGame/{{Quake}}''.
** Within UsefulNotes/XboxLiveArcade, games like ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' and ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' get disproportionately blamed for this.
!!MisaimedFandom.{{Advertising}}
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0Uin2sINdQ This PSA.]] The message presented in the video is, "You wouldn't get away with it here. You shouldn't get away with it at home." However, a distressing number of commenters seem to sympathize with the man and admonish the waitress for apparently disrespecting him and his coffee (mind, this ''is'' [[{{Troll}} a YouTube]] [[{{GIFT}} comment]] [[WretchedHive section]] we're talking about).
!!Monster.{{Creepypasta}}
* ''[[https://www.reddit.com/r/nosleep/comments/5hud9q/i_was_a_professional_internet_troll/ I Was a Professional Internet Troll]]'': [[VillainProtagonist The story's narrator]], known by his online alias "Resisilobus", is an overzealous [[{{Troll}} internet troll]] who manages to be particularly vile even by those standards. Not content with simply being an unpleasant individual online, Resisilobus intentionally drives two people to [[DrivenToSuicide kill themselves]] by relentlessly harassing them. He then befriends a teenage outcast and [[ManipulativeBastard manipulates the boy]] into killing seven of his classmates and then committing suicide. To indicate how little he values the lives of others, Resisilobus considers the "achievements" to be inferior to his comparatively minor hacking of a popular Bible app and the confusion it causes among Christians. A remorseless sadist who openly revels in the power his crimes make him feel, Resisilobus is an example of how [[{{GIFT}} internet anonymity can bring out the worst in people]].
!!Music.BuckTick
* {{GIFT}}: InUniverse example - "Living On The Net" is an early example from the perspective of someone being an example of the GIFT and getting into an argument on the internet.
!!Music.CattleDecapitation
* {{GIFT}}: "Not Suitable for Life" was inspired by Travis's sheer irritation and disgust at reading a seemingly endless litany of ignorant, asinine, and stupidly hostile social media comments on a particularly bad day.
!!Music.FearFactory
* {{GIFT}}: Addressed in "Cyberwaste".
** Also, "Archetype"'s lyrics are essentially addressed to then-absent guitarist Dino Cazares.
!!Music.MiseryIndex
* {{GIFT}}: "Plague of Objects"
!!Music.PureHeroine
* {{GIFT}}: Referenced as possibly bleeding into the outside world - "maybe the internet raised us, or maybe people are jerks".
!!NationalStereotypes.EasternEurope
* Children will play with matryoshka dolls. If they do play videogames, it will ALWAYS be Tetris (Created by a Russian, natch.) Except in gamers' circles, where the stereotype of a Russian player somehow manages to be a {{GIFT}} squared, their impenetrable slang and general habit of communicating in Russian only notwithstanding.
!!NeverMyFault.VideoGames
* In ''Videogame/LeagueOfLegends'', "Videogame/DefenseOfTheAncients" and every multiplayer game, even "Videogame/CallOfDuty", it is common that a player will [[{{GIFT}} yell at his teammates in a losing game, then proceed to say that he is the only competent person on said team]], even if he is doing the worst and/or hardly contributes and judges solely on his KDA ratio.
** Some players will even take this UpToEleven and [[KickTheDog blame a player who joined just as the round ended.]] And god help them if their entire team decides to make them TheScapegoat, [[{{Hypocrite}} while everyone on their team was screwing around for the majority of the match]] [[UnwinnableByInsanity and decided to wait until the literal last couple of minutes to get serious.]]
!!NightmareFuel.AgentsOfSHIELD
* The blackouts cause a lot of this:
** Daisy and Robbie talk about how looting and rioting typically take place during black outs because people feel emboldened. In other words, [[{{GIFT}} seven major cities with the lack of inhibition of the internet]].
** Robbie specifically talks about his fear that [[AdultFear his wheel-chair bound little brother will be stuck in a bad part of town]].
!!NightmareFuel.BeastThePrimordial
* ''Conquering Heroes'' adds the Insatiable, aka [[EvilCounterpart what would happen if Beasts didn't have even the barest scrap of humanity remaining]]. They inflict a HatePlague on the world by simply ''eating'', because they have to eat humans in order to feast on them-preventing their fears from joining the Primordial Dream, allowing spiritual entities to access the physical world more easily. In effect, they ''MindRape humanity's subconscious just by existing''. They see Horrors and Beasts as [[FoodChainOfEvil upstart prey]] who just exist as a source of good homes by stealing their Lairs, and their true forms are so estranged from humanity that mortals [[YouCannotGraspTheTrueForm are driven mad with fear and confusion upon seeing them]]-and have a significant chance of doing that to supernatural beings, too! Each of the examples is pretty terrifying in their own way, too;
** [[DiabolicalMastermind The Authority]], a cruel overlord of all the crime in his city who came into his power [[CreepyChild in childhood]], learning he could turn his body into molten lava and using it to [[DisproportionateRetribution gleefully murder his bullies in the most painful way possible]]. He's since become the nearly faceless lord of pretty much ''[[EqualOpportunityEvil every supernatural faction in his home]]'' simply out of raw power and the fear people have of him.
** [[MysteriousWatcher The Blind Man]], perhaps the oldest Insatiable alive today, [[TimeAbyss having been around since at least the Achaemenid Empire]]. While he ''acts'' like he just has BlueAndOrangeMorality, in truth that's just an expression of [[JustToyingWithThem his Hunger for Prey]]; he knows fully well how unsettling he is and acts deliberately insane to really sweeten the fear of his eventual meals. That, and the fact he has [[EyeScream insects for eyes]], would be bad enough, except there's a reason he's constantly having a damp stain around his chest; [[MisterSeahorse he's laying eggs constantly from his navel]], eggs he claims are nothing less than pieces of the Primogenitor that one day will all hatch simultaneously and unleash an ''even more'' EldritchAbomination on the world than any of his brethren. You do ''not'' want to know what happens if you eat one-and he's good at ''tricking'' people into eating them anyway.
** [[TheCracker Null Snyper]], a vicious {{Troll}} and psychotic cyberbully who transformed into a [[StarfishAlien Void]] Insatiable when she realized she drove a friend of hers to suicide with her caustic commentary...and ''[[EvilFeelsGood loved every minute of it]]''. She's become a digital spider fit for being the [[MailerDaemon ultimate Internet predator]], ruining lives from the safety of her HackerCave; she's long figured out how to turn the worst elements of hacker and especially Men's Rights Activist culture to her advantage, realizing she can create an army of [[{{GIFT}} borderline sociopathic minions]] simply by posting the right rant, and relaxing while her pawns gradually tear apart some poor sap's life [[ForTheEvulz because they can]]. Even worse, she [[PostModernMagik never needs to leave]]; she's realized she can inflict Nightmares over things like ''[[ParanoiaFuel Skype]]'' and so long as she's observing someone take their own life or lose it in some other way due to her manipulations, she can eat almost as well as if she was there. Her only limitation is that she's terrified of leaving her house, and as she gets physically hungrier, that is going to change...
** [[MonsterClown Peter Slaughbal]], a circus clown from the 50s-60s who at his first presentation developped a creepy obsession for one of the women in the audience, and started creepily stalking her, eventually culminating in him luring her in the hall of mirrors and devouring her. He then made a routine of picking a prey in the audience, all while [[TheCorrupter gradually corrupting the rest of the circus and turning them into his personal cult of helpers]]. Eventually a cell of [[TabletopGame/HunterTheVigil hunters]] discovered and confronted him, [[CurbStompBattle only for all of them but one to get slaughtered]]. The surviving one, Jean Lansberry, eventually came back for revenge, and managed to defeat him by [[SealedEvilInACan trapping him inside a painting]], which she kept for fifty years- until she succumbed to Alzheimer, eventuallly resulting in her brother's grandson and his wife accidentally freeing Slaughbal after they inherited the house. The Insatiable immediately stalked and devoured them. Now a shadow of his former self, he travels from town to town, presenting himself at parties where he looks for people going home alone to stalk and devour.
!!NightmareFuel.PerfectBlue
* A huge meta one that the film is over twenty years old... and barely anything has changed about the idol industry, other than the overlap between seiyuu and idols thanks to {{Moe}} anime. If you look deep online you will find many horror stories of {{Loony Fan}}s committing acts of violence against idol singers and/or voice actresses due to their obsession and, if not that, writing [[{{GIFT}} vile, misogynistic stuff on the Internet]] if ContractualPurity is broken or just the slightest BerserkButton gets pushed. Warning: might make you lose faith in {{Otaku}} culture.
!!NightmareFuel.{{Persona5}}
* Kunikazu Okumura's death. He starts convulsing, then slowly rises up to reveal blank eyes and black sludge oozing out of his face: the player is treated to a good few seconds of him staring vacantly ahead, mouth agape and oozing sludge before the TV crew frantically cuts to RelaxOVision. Even worse, this is shown on live television. Where the man's own daughter gets to watch every moment of it. Needless to say, this breaks poor Haru's heart like glass being smashed with a brick, which just adds ''more'' nightmare fuel to the fire.
** A couple of the comments that flash across the feed before the puppy screen is pulled up is 'wwwwwwwwwww'. If you're familiar with Japanese internet slang, that's people commenting on the scene of death with ''[[{{GIFT}} laughter]]''.
!!Nl.SerieuzeZaak
Vaak is het een [[SillyReasonForWar onbenullige reden voor oorlog]], en kan het een gesprek over koetjes en kalfjes veranderen in een verhit debat. Iemand die het gewoon niet los kan laten wordt mogelijk een SingleIssueWonk. Als competitie erbij betrokken is, kun je bijna ''garanderen'' dat [[SecondPlaceIsForLosers de tweede plek voor verliezers is]]. Regelmatig "tegengegaan" door de CavalierCompetitor. Vergelijk StopHavingFunGuys. In musicals is dit vaak van toepassing op [[DancingIsSeriousBusiness dansen]]. Voor het gezegde dat "het internet een serieuze zaak is", zie {{GIFT}}. Gerelateerd aan ImNotHereToMakeFriends. Verwar niet met MundaneMadeAwesome, alhoewel de twee tropes ''regelmatig'' overlappen.
!!Pantheon.CheatsAndGlitches
* Portfolio: '''[[TheGMIsACheatingBastard Abuses His Admin Powers]]''', [[AllMenArePerverts Perverted To The Core]], ArcVillain of the Fairy Dance Arc, CorruptCorporateExecutive, DirtyCoward, [[EntitledBastard Believes He Can Do Whatever He Wants]], {{GIFT}}, MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate, {{Narcissist}}, OpportunisticBastard, [[PaperTiger SUCKS At Fighting]], [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil Sexually Assaults VRMMO Players]], [[PowerPerversionPotential Uses Admin Powers to Subvert Game Rules]], SmugSnake, [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential ALO Is An Outlet For His Depravity]] [[CompleteMonster (which is immense)]], [[spoiler:GreaterScopeVillain of the Alicization Arc]]
!!PapaWolf.WesternAnimation
* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'': "I've got to save mah beh-beh!"
** Kyle seems to have [[BigBrotherInstinct developed traits of this around his baby brother Ike]], more so than most of the brainless parents of the town anyway.
** Randy and the other dads sometimes do this, though they're [[BumblingDad so stupid]] it doesn't really work out very well. One time it ''did,'' however, was when Randy joined Cartman in running a giant drill through the crowd of hippies to get Stan out.
** And the season 15 finale has [[spoiler: Kenny]], as Mysterion, defending his little sister [[spoiler: Karen]] from a bully at the school they went to when their parents got arrested.
** A darker example: in "[[Recap/SouthParkS20E6FortCollins Fort Collins]]," the [[{{GIFT}} entire Internet history of everyone in the titular town is released to everyone else in town]]. The {{Troll}} called [=MLKKK=] is quickly found by the father of a disabled girl whom he'd mocked online [[KillItWithFire and gets burnt to death]].
!!Persona5.TropesGToR
* {{GIFT}}: Since the posters on the Phan-site are anonymous, a lot of the posts can get quite nasty. When Okumura is killed, for a few days, people rejoice over his death, but soon, opinion turns against the Thieves, and people start calling for them to be tracked down and executed for the murder that they didn't commit.
!!PlayingWith.ADarkerMe
* '''Exaggerated''': Dark Pharaoh is a [[{{GIFT}} total]] [[{{Jerkass}} fuckwad]].
!!PlayingWith.ADarkerMe
* '''Invoked''': Bob always wanted to be edgy and snarky, but that would bring many consequences to him in the real world. [[{{GIFT}} Online anonymity]] allows Bob to fulfill his wish through his Dark Pharaoh persona without having to worry about said consequences.
!!PlayingWith.FacelessGoons
* '''Justified''':
** The uniforms are well-armored, offer great protection, and present a united, frightening front.
** Not to mention [[{{GIFT}} the anonymity]], which makes {{Mooks}} way more confident.
** The {{Mooks}} have a weak point on their face. One that kills them if it so much as touches something other than a mask.
** The villains want to hide the fact that their minions are [[MonstrousHumanoid not quite human]] under their masks.
!!PlayingWith.FlameWar
* '''Straight''':
** Someone [[{{GIFT}} insults]] or [[InternetToughGuy threatens]] another person's comments or the person themselves in an online dispute. Other people join in and the fight begins.
** Alternately, a {{Troll}} posts something sufficiently inflammatory enough to get people arguing.
** [[InnocentlyInsensitive An ordinary poster posts something that, while they didn't assume it to be inflammatory, is very much so]].
!!PlayingWith.FlameWar
* '''Enforced''':
** Website/FourChan, and some other places where the intent is to be as offensive and assholish as possible.
** {{GIFT}}
!!PlayingWith.GIFT
Back to {{GIFT}}, dickhead! Are you upset, sissy pants? What do intent to do about it, tough guy?! Are you gonna punch me!? HA HA HA! Loser, [[TemptingFate I want to see you trying it]].
!!PlayingWith.GodwinsLaw
* '''Intended Audience Reaction''': The show is aimed directly at [[{{GIFT}} people who abuse this law regularly]] in an attempt to make them shape up.
!!PlayingWith.SoapBoxSadie
* '''Double Subverted''': ...Turns out she doesn't act so balanced [[{{GIFT}} online, however]].
!!PlayingWith.{{Troll}}
* '''Enforced''':
** The topic is "Best Troll Comment Ever"
** {{GIFT}}
** The place consists of trolls trolling trolls trolling trolls.
** It is an ImageBoard or comment section where trolling is accepted behavior
** Trolly and possibly others have decided that somewhere or someone is so deserving of an attack, for whatever reason, that they ''must'' troll there.
!!PlayingWith.VengeanceFeelsEmpty
* '''Parodied''': Alan plots to get back all of those who abused him by throwing them all into a pit of sticky goo; this includes Bob, [[AlphaBitch Diane]], [[BigBrotherBully Emil]], [[WithFriendsLikeThese his own friends]], [[AbusiveParents his own parents]], and a [[{{GIFT}} random asshole behind the computer]]. After executing his revenge, Alan literally becomes an emotionless robot.
!!Quotes.AtopTheFourthWall
-->--'''Linkara''' calling out [[{{GIFT}} certain people online]] who attack creators of things they dislike, ''ComicBook/HeroesInCrisis''
!!Quotes.BystanderSyndrome
-->-- '''Creator/JohnOliver''', ''Series/LastWeekTonightWithJohnOliver'', on [[{{GIFT}} online harassment of women]].
!!Quotes.{{Gaslighting}}
-->--'''[[{{GIFT}} Anonymous]]''', [[Website/FourChan /b/]]
!!Quotes.HumansAreTheRealMonsters
->[[{{GIFT}} On internet messageboards]], there is no subject so vile or indefensible that someone won't post positively/in defense of it.
!!Quotes.LaserGuidedKarma
->[[AttentionWhore Darren]]'s Wikipedia page was back up, but locked after continual editing abuse. He also had a few hundred followers on Twitter, but none anyone would care to meet in the flesh [[{{GIFT}} if their communications were any display of personality]]. But now, after months of intensive work with one of the most complex delusional patients he had even encountered, Dr. Bernard P Basset had achieved that moment of acceptance.
!!Quotes.QuotesLookingForAnArticle
->'''Stickman 1''': Wow! These Website/YouTube comments are [[{{GIFT}} full of retards]].
!!Quotes.SecretIdentityIdentity
->''[[BeneathTheMask "Man is least himself when he talks in his own person.]] [[{{GIFT}} Give him a mask and he will tell you the truth."]]''
!!Quotes.SkewedPriorities
->''We must be ready for war. No, not that kind of war! (Shows title card for his War Stories video) This is something far more serious than people dying, even more important than real life economic turmoil and geopolitical conflict. This is the greatest external threat a writer will ever face, [[{{GIFT}} people on the Internet saying mean things about one's work!]]"
!!Quotes.TheHistoryOfVideoGames
->Ralph Baer, Brown Box, [[UsefulNotes/MagnavoxOdyssey Odyssey and Magnavox]]\\
MIT, ''VideoGame/{{OXO}}'', ''VideoGame/{{Spacewar}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Pong}}''\\
[[UsefulNotes/ColecoVision Coleco]] and UsefulNotes/{{Intellivision}}, Creator/{{Atari}}, then Creator/{{Activision}}\\
[[Creator/ShigeruMiyamoto Miyamoto]] and Creator/{{Nintendo}}, plumbers, ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong''\\
\\
''VideoGame/SpaceInvaders'', ''VideoGame/PacMan'', [[VideoGame/{{Metroid}} Samus]] [[SamusIsAGirl and her stellar cans]]\\
''VideoGame/DigDug'', ''Turbo'', ''VideoGame/{{Frogger}}'', ''VideoGame/QBert'', [[VideoGame/MarioBros Mario]],\\
[[UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983 Game Crash '83]], adios Atari,\\
''[[VideoGame/ETTheExtraTerrestrial E.T.]]'' buried still, Albuquerque landfill\\
\\
(Chorus)\\
[[WeDidntStartTheBillyJoelParodies The Wii didn't start the fire\\
How we've done some growing since our cartridge blowing\\
The Wii didn't start the fire\\
With our fingers bleeding, we were quarter feeding]]\\
\\
[[UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem NES]], [[VideoGame/SuperMarioBros1 Luigi, Bowser]], ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}'', [[VideoGame/YoshisIsland Yoshi]]\\
[[UsefulNotes/SegaMasterSystem Master System]], ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'', ''Franchise/FinalFantasy''\\
''VideoGame/DragonQuest'', ''[[VideoGame/MegaManClassic Mega Man]]'', ''VideoGame/{{Wolfenstein}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Bomberman}}''\\
[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI Zelda]] rap, look it up, "Your parents help you hook it up."\\
\\
UsefulNotes/NeoGeo, [[UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis Genesis]], UsefulNotes/GameBoy, [[UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem SNES]]\\
[[Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog Sonic series]], ''VideoGame/EarthwormJim'', ''VideoGame/ChronoTrigger'', [[VideoGame/MortalKombat "Finish him!"]]\\
[[VideoGame/WhereInTheWorldIsCarmenSandiego Carmen Sandiego chase]], [[VideoGame/KirbysDreamLand Kirby]] [[BigEater likes to stuff his face]]\\
UsefulNotes/VirtualBoy, what's in store? "[[MemeticMutation A]] UsefulNotes/Nintendo64!!!"\\
\\
(chorus)\\
\\
[[VideoGame/StarFox64 Star Fox]], Rumble Pak, [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime ocarina]], [[VideoGame/SuperMario64 plumber's back]]\\
''[[VideoGame/GoldenEye1997 GoldenEye]]'', perfect game, ''VideoGame/PerfectDark'', not the same\\
UsefulNotes/SegaSaturn, CD-ROM, UsefulNotes/PlayStation, ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'',\\
[[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid Solid Snake]], [[VideoGame/TombRaider Lara Croft]], Creator/SquareEnix and Creator/{{Ubisoft}}\\
\\
[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII Aeris eats it]], ''VideoGame/{{Quake}}'', ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'', ''VideoGame/MonkeyIsland'', [[VideoGame/CrashBandicoot Bandicoot]]\\
''VideoGame/GranTurismo'', [[CoolCar nice car]], [[VideoGame/HalfLife Gordon Freeman]], [[WithThisHerring crowbar]]\\
''VideoGame/{{Thief}}'', ''VideoGame/{{Homeworld}}'', ''Franchise/SilentHill'', ''VideoGame/{{Starcraft}}'', ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil''\\
[[VideoGame/MarioKart Bowser racing Mario]], ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}'' and ''VideoGame/GrimFandango''\\
\\
(chorus)\\
\\
[[UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast Dreamcast]], online play, [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 PS2]] and ''[[VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto GTA]]''\\
''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros Smash Bros]]'', ''[[VideoGame/HaloCombatEvolved Halo]]'', hand/controller ratio\\
[[GottaCatchEmAll Way too many Pokémon]], [[VideoGame/TheSims Sims come over while you're gone]]\\
''[[VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution DDR]]'', ''[[VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic KotOR]]'', ''[[VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} Warcraft III]]'' and ''VideoGame/GodOfWar''\\
''VideoGame/PrinceOfPersia'', ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'', Havoc flailing body parts\\
''[[VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft WoW]]'' arrives, lonely wives, orcs and dwarves and ruined lives\\
\\
(chorus)\\
\\
Santa brought a [[UsefulNotes/Xbox360 360]], UsefulNotes/BluRay on the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PS3]]\\
[[UsefulNotes/NintendoDS Game Boy, second screen]], watch your grandma play the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}}\\
[[SpaceMarine Space Marines]] and red rings, [[PlayTheGameSkipTheStory let me skip the cutscenes]]\\
[[VideoGame/GuitarHero Tweens mash classic rock, flimsy plastic headstock]]\\
\\
[[UsefulNotes/XboxLiveArcade Live]] thrives, [[{{GIFT}} pricks abound]], [[UsefulNotes/PlayStationNetwork PSN]] a ghost town\\
[[Webcomic/PennyArcade Gabe and Tycho]], Mountain Dew, G4, [[WebAnimation/ZeroPunctuation Yahtzee]], {{Chiptune}}\\
[[FollowTheLeader Motion sensors all the same]], [[Creator/BlizzardEntertainment Blizzard]] gives us one campaign\\
{{DLC}}, screw the fee, [[UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS 3DS]] and ''VideoGame/HalfLife [[MemeticMutation 3]]''\\
\\
(chorus, fade out)
!!Quotes.VocalMinority
->''"Roseanne has always been a racist weirdo, and Creator/JamesGunn [[BlackComedy has always pushed the bounds of good taste with his humor]]. What changed was [[{{GIFT}} the involvement of internet mobs]]. By capitulating to the Twitter rage of a few thousand assholes, Disney is subtly teaching us that online mobs, no matter how stupid their platform, can make a difference. It doesn't matter if they're right, as long as they're ''loud''. And that's great when it means [[Series/HouseOfCardsUS firing a sex offender]], but it's a hell of a lot less great when it means [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2 ousting somebody for a joke they already apologized for years ago]]. [...] In none of these cases are there any kind of core values that the company is adhering to. They'll support or censor whatever appeases the most zealous crowd. Which means they're incentivizing trolls to become bigger and bigger assholes, because it's the only thing that works."''
!!Radio.BecauseNews
* '''Never Read the Comments''': Two members of the studio audience read [[PoesLaw actual comments on news articles]] [[{{GIFT}} from CBC.ca's website]], and the panelists must guess which story they're talking about.
!!Radio.GTARadio
* FictionalVideoGame
** ''Vice City'' has commercials on its radio stations for the Degenetron game system, which features such titles as ''Defender of the Faith'' ("Destroy the blue dots with your powerful red square!"). In ''San Andreas'', they appear on retro arcade machines. You can't play them, but you can play the "emulator" on the [[{{Defictionalization}} defictionalised]] [[http://www.rockstargames.com/degenatron/ Degenatron "fansite."]]
** ''III'' also has ads for ''Pogo the Monkey'', which is later referenced by a ''Pogo the Monkey'' arcade in the cab firm from ''Vice City''.
** ''IV'' has ''Civil Service'', a parody of ''VideoGame/SimCity'' which encourages the player to favor big business and keep down minorities. ''Episodes from Liberty City'' also has ads for ''Deity'', a [[AGodIsYou god game]] in the vein of ''VideoGame/BlackAndWhite''.
** ''V'' takes this trope full circle with ''Righteous Slaughter 7'', a parody of [[UltraSuperDeathGoreFestChainsawer3000 video game violence]] of the sort that ''GTA'' itself had long indulged in, as well as FranchiseZombie sequels and derivative FPS games. The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAJG8tF5MQM gameplay footage]] we see is essentially ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' meets ''VideoGame/{{Postal}}''. While it doesn't [[MurderSimulators turn those who play it into murderous psychopaths]], it ''does'' seem to turn them into [[{{GIFT}} foul-mouthed, bigoted assholes]], judging by what we see of the people who play it. There's also ''Pride Not Prejudice'', a DeepSouth-themed FPS advertised on the radio.
!!Recap.BigHero6TheSeriesS2E17Hardlight
* {{GIFT}}: Hardlight, since he sees real life as a video game. As Ian he is shy and an ExtremeDoormat to Krei.
!!Recap.BlackMirrorHatedInTheNation
* {{GIFT}}: Basically the focus of the episode. Even without the resulting deaths, dozens, of not ''hundreds'' of people are wishing death upon others over the internet, most simply because of disagreements on viewpoints and politics. The teacher, when confronted after the first murder (having been one of many people to use the [=#DeathTo=] hashtag against Jo), can only stammer out the weak defense that she wasn't being serious.
!!Recap.BlackMirrorTheNationalAnthem
* {{GIFT}}: In one scene, Callow's wife is looking at social media reactions to the news of what Callow is being demanded to do. Unsurprisingly, many of them are making crude jokes about the situation, mocking Callow despite the fact that the demand is for him to be raped.
!!Recap.BlackMirrorUSSCallister
* {{GIFT}}: When the [=AIs=] escape to the main ''Infinity'' universe, the first thing they encounter is "[=Gamer691=]", a human player who hits on Nanette and threatens to blow the ''Callister'' out of the cosmos. As if to drive it home, he's [[TheCameo voiced]] by Creator/AaronPaul in full-on [[Series/BreakingBad Jesse Pinkman]] mode.
!!Recap.DeathNoteEp02Confrontation
* {{GIFT}}: In story with the Kira fansites and the little girl texting "Kira, please kill them all."
!!Recap.DeathNoteEp02Confrontation
* {{Hypocrite}}: Light explains the {{GIFT}} to Ryuk, telling him [[HypocriticalHumor that humans are hypocrites by nature.]]
** He then murders the first person to publicly denounce Kira as evil immediately after explaining how people should be allowed to express honest opinions without fear of retribution.
** L declares that what Kira is doing (killing criminals) is evil and so vows to hunt him down and have him sentenced to death.
!!Recap.DoctorWhoS37E1TheWomanWhoFellToEarth
* RealityEnsues:
** When the drunk man stumbles across Tim Shaw, how does he react? [[TooDumbToLive Mocking him for]] [[YourCostumeNeedsWork dressing up for Halloween a month early,]] [[ProducePelting and then throwing bits of salad at him.]]
** After Grace dies, Ryan decides he's going to try learning to ride a bike again. After many tries, he... keeps falling over. It's going to take a long time to be able to ride a bike well with dyspraxia.
** Likewise, on Ryan's heartfelt video about Grace, [[{{Jerkass}} two people thumbed it down]]. [[{{GIFT}} This is the Internet, after all.]]
** The Doctor wires a bunch of human tech with alien tech that she doesn't fully understand. Normally, she'd save the day regardless — here, she beams everyone into outer space.
** What's the first thing Ryan does on finding a strange, unnaturally cold alien object in the woods? Call the police.
!!Recap.IZombieS1E6VirtualRealityBites
* {{GIFT}}: The online gamer who issued a death threat over the VictimOfTheWeek permakilling his combat pets? A fourteen year-old boy living across the country, who meant the threat in-game and didn't even know where the victim lived.
!!Recap.ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphiaS12E04WolfColaAPRNightmare
* {{GIFT}}: After appearing in defense of Wolf Cola, the Gang receives threats online. Dee notes that "pretty much everyone wants to rape me." [[BlackComedy This is]] PlayedForLaughs.
!!Recap.SupernaturalS14E04MintCondition
* {{GIFT}}: Sam discovers that the reason Stuart recanted his story is due to the amount of internet harassment he was receiving.
!!Recap.TerribleWritingAdvice
# ''Giving Criticism'' (December 23, 2017)
** This is an inversion of the earlier episode titled ''Taking Criticism'' (Tropes discussed include ItsAllAboutMe, {{GIFT}}, SacredCow).
!!Recap.TerribleWritingAdvice
# ''[[PropagandaPiece Propaganda]]'' (November 3, 2020)
** GodwinsLaw, {{GIFT}}, TheWarOnStraw, LogicalFallacies, ChewbaccaDefense, InsaneTrollLogic
!!Recap.TheAmazingWorldOfGumballS2E37TheInternet
--->'''Gumball:''' What's next, my stupid face wearing a sombrero shooting lasers at kittens or something!?\\
''(Mexican Hat Dance plays as Tobias tries to block Gumball's view of the computer showing just that)''
** The Internet proudly proclaims "I can be a jerk to anyone [[{{GIFT}} 'cause I'm behind a screen in the safety and comfort of my own home.]]" right before Gumball and Darwin bust through his door (his mom let them in).
!!Recap.TheAmazingWorldOfGumballS4E34TheBlame
* {{GIFT}}:
!!Recap.TheNostalgiaCriticS8E19
* CannotTalkToWomen: The Meninists are defeated this way due to having [[{{GIFT}} no screen to hide behind]].
!!Recap.TheReviewersS1E1Pilot
* StrawCritic: The Rickhead represents those who will AccentuateTheNegative on any given video and inspire {{Hatedom}}s to them with near murderous vigor, making him the human embodiment of the [[{{GIFT}} Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]].
!!Roleplay.WelcomeToMyWorld
* NewTechnologyIsEvil: Zarek, who grew up with dial-up Internet and Solitaire gaming, dislikes the Internet, particularly [[SocialMediaIsBad social media]], because of [[{{GIFT}} how much toxic people are roaming it]], and certainly disapproves of his son's obsession with [=YouTube=] and [=PewDiePie=].
!!RuinedFOREVER.LiveActionFilms
---> [Sigh] Are we ''sure'' you wanna do this one? Fine. We'll do it, but we're turning off the comments. [[{{GIFT}} You did this to yourself, Internet]].
!!SandBox.SuperWIKI1
* It is unthinkable for any VR (virtual reality) player in the Pantheon to not know about Laughing Coffin. Reviled by the principled and [[AdmiringTheAbomination worshipped by the depraved]], Laughing Coffin is an eclectic but deadly crowd of murderers, maniacs, criminals and innocent victims forced into violence. Vicious terrorist and assassin Vassago Casals (aka [=PoH=], or [[SatanicArchetype Prince of Hell]]) formed the guild in the virtual world of ''Sword Art Online'' from disorganized groups of orange players (players branded for crimes) to spread carnage and violence with the idea that the game's creator, Akihiko Kayaba would be blamed for everything, and also his belief that people reveal their true colors in the virtual world and thus tries to encourage them to give in to their bloodlust and murder each other to their hearts' content. It's not uncommon to see members of Laughing Coffin as proof of the [[{{GIFT}} Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]] taken to its most extreme.
!!Sandbox.BrokenBaseFinalFantasyXIV
* The live letter showing previews for patch 3.5 revealed that all forms of chat would be disabled in The Feast and would be replaced with pre form text macros. It is speculated that the reason behind the change is due to [[{{GIFT}} people being less than kind to their teammates]]. The change caused quite a stir; some welcome the change since they feel that the PVP scene is made too toxic by many people and that kind of behavior drove people away. Those who found the chat feature useful say that disabling chat makes it harder to communicate with your party (especially with randomly matched players) and will drive away long time PVP players. Adding further to the confusion is how The Feast is the only mode being affected by the changes while other PVP modes lifted the chat restrictions.
!!Sandbox.BrokenBaseInternet
Given the [[{{GIFT}} effect that anonymity]] has on some Internet users, the fact that {{Broken Base}}s would arise should come as no surprise.
!!Sandbox.InternetJerk
Someone, [[{{GIFT}} under the cover of anonymity]], acts like a {{jerk|ass}} on the Internet. Common techniques are [[InstantHumiliationJustAddYouTube derogatory videos]], insults and personal attack, doxxing, sexual or other harassment and in the most extreme cases death threats or [[WesternTerrorists plotting terrorist attacks]].
!!Sandbox.InternetJerk
* ''WebVideo/DigimanzTheAdventureToo'': Davis learned that the InternetToughGuy {{Troll}}s the {{GIFT}} creates can often leak into the real world by inspiring people to be cruel even without the safety of internet anonymity, and the best way to fight this is to be more understanding of other human beings.
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:FlameWar]]There is something about the anonymous nature of the Internet that makes people [[{{GIFT}} behave]] in ways that they wouldn't when they're face-to-face with other people. What starts as a minor disagreement like "how to [[{{Shipping}} ship]] two minor characters," or "what constitutes {{canon}} or {{fanon}}," escalates until the users are insulting each other, flinging expletives and profanities and shouting at the top of their virtual lungs. Inevitably, someone will be [[GodwinsLaw compared to]] [[HitlerAteSugar Hitler]]. Also inevitably, the InternetToughGuy will get involved, resulting in legal threats (anything from DMCA takedowns and people trying to drag the legal staff of people or businesses involved into the flame war to [[RougeAnglesOfSatin often hilariously misspelled]] accusations of "defamation" and even possibly an actual FrivolousLawsuit), and sometimes even actual threats of violence or RealLife harassment.
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:Awesome/LeagueOfLegends]]* In a post that became legendary on the ''[=LoL=]'' forums, Rioter Kades [[http://na.leagueoflegends.com/board/showthread.php?p=29123780#29123780 laid down the most almighty smack]] on [[InternetToughGuy the toxic minority of the community]] who were attempting to ''[[InsaneTrollLogic defend]]'' the merits of {{GIFT}} in response to a moving and mature post by a sufferer of social anxiety disorder about dealing with cyber-bullying:
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:Awesome/SuperRobotWarsT]]* No matter what route you pick at Stage 16 ([[Manga/MagicKnightRayearth Cephiro]] or [[Anime/ArmoredTrooperVOTOMS Astragius]]), you will [[https://youtu.be/DkTB0i8S6fA?t=586 face]] [[https://youtu.be/mI3EhDgqA8Y?t=402 off]] against Rony Marbuk, a guy with a ''huge'' InferioritySuperiorityComplex that thinks he's a big shot with the Twilight Age giving him an excuse to look at your team lowly and humanity stagnating so he could stand above them. Then Meryl [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech verbally beat the hell out of him by stating that despite the stagnation, mankind still tries to advance forward so his bombastic boasting can just go suck it]], and every of the heroes' interactions with him are always tearing his ego up and making him whimper, realizing at how outmatched he is or how much he's actually not worth it. Obnoxious people like Rony [[InternetToughGuy may exist]] [[{{GIFT}} within the internet]], which makes it both awesome and funny in the same time due to how savagely hilarious and well deserving (for people like him) the heroes put him down.
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:Film/JayAndSilentBobStrikeBack]]* InternetToughGuy: Subverted in that Jay and Bob have never been on the internet before, and have no concept of {{GIFT}} or what a {{Troll}} is and take the trash talk seriously. They also subvert the hell out of this trope by [[spoiler: actually going around the country to beat the crap out of all the bratty kids who insulted them.]]
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:Funny/Overwatch]]* In mid-December 2017, after an angry {{Troll}} on the official forums announced he was quitting the game due to it [[SmallNameBigEgo "failing" to repeal the 7 bans to his account]], [[https://us.battle.net/forums/en/overwatch/topic/20760626013?page=10#post-194 Jeff Kaplan himself arrived]] to share some lines of his [[{{GIFT}} in-game behaviour]] to make clear the bans and hundreds of harassment reports were completely justified, including [[SmallNameBigEgo "im the reason for anything good"]], [[InternetToughGuy "LONG WALK FOR A PILE OF [expletive]"]], and accusing others who beat him of hacking.
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:Laconic/WideEyedIdealist]]-->:SEMICOLON:[-Visit unabridged version [[WideEyedIdealist HERE]]! And be sure to say hi to all those [[InternetToughGuy nice]] [[{{Troll}} people]] [[{{GIFT}} on the]] [[WretchedHive internet]]!-]
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:PlayingWith/FlameWar]]* '''Straight''':** Someone [[{{GIFT}} insults]] or [[InternetToughGuy threatens]] another person's comments or the person themselves in an online dispute. Other people join in and the fight begins.** Alternately, a {{Troll}} posts something sufficiently inflammatory enough to get people arguing.** [[InnocentlyInsensitive An ordinary poster posts something that, while they didn't assume it to be inflammatory, is very much so]].
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:WarpThatAesop/Tropes]]* {{GIFT}}, {{Griefer}}, InternetToughGuy, and {{Troll}}:** Being a total douchebag on the internet is fun, especially when you'll never get in trouble for it like in real life.** If someone insults, harasses, or antagonizes you on the internet, don't bother get offended, otherwise you're just a whiny sensitive little bitch who deserves more abuse and bullying online.
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:WebVideo/DigimanzTheAdventureToo]]* SpaceWhaleAesop: Dissatisfied with the video almost being over without any real resolution, T.K. demands that each of the Digi-Destined come up with AnAesop each learned in the video, regardless of whether it actually related to what happened.** T.K. decides that he learned teamwork is important.** Kari learned that actions speak louder than words.** Cody learned that he has to orient himself to hope. Considering [[TraumaCongaLine what he had to go through]], nobody can blame him.** Ken ended up being too busy dealing with his evaporated blood to contribute.** Yolei screams that you shouldn't "[[BrickJoke blow loads]]" when you're angry.** Davis learned that the InternetToughGuy {{Troll}}s the {{GIFT}} creates can often leak into the real world by inspiring people to be cruel even without the safety of internet anonymity, and the best way to fight this is to be more understanding of other human beings. [[spoiler:Which is why more people should be having sex. [[ContemplateOurNavels Also, when a woman puts a fleshlight into her body, does that make her a lesbian?]]]]
!!Sandbox.MonsterCreepypasta
* ''[[https://www.reddit.com/r/nosleep/comments/5hud9q/i_was_a_professional_internet_troll/ I Was a Professional Internet Troll]]'': [[VillainProtagonist The story's narrator]], known by his online alias "Resisilobus", is an overzealous [[{{Troll}} internet troll]] who manages to be particularly vile even by those standards. Not content with simply being an unpleasant individual online, Resisilobus intentionally drives two people to [[DrivenToSuicide kill themselves]] by relentlessly harassing them. He then befriends a teenage outcast and [[ManipulativeBastard manipulates the boy]] into killing seven of his classmates and then committing suicide. To indicate how little he values the lives of others, Resisilobus considers the "achievements" to be inferior to his comparatively minor hacking of a popular Bible app and the confusion it causes among Christians. A remorseless sadist who openly revels in the power his crimes make him feel, Resisilobus is an example of how [[{{GIFT}} internet anonymity can bring out the worst in people]].
!!Sandbox.WhyFandomCantHaveANiceWickCheck
* Trivia.{{IMDb}}: The forums were shut down because the {{GIFT}} had gotten out of control, to the point of becoming a punchline on par with the Website/YouTube comment section. '''This isn't "someone who is involved in a work" (or even a work, really), but it does show how toxic behavior led to measures being taken.'''
!!SchmuckBait.VideoGames
* ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'':
** ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsI'':
*** Players can leave messages on the ground with the soapstone item, which can be seen by other people who happen to be both online and in the same locations. This [[{{GIFT}} unsurprisingly]] leads to players telling gullible bystanders to take [[LeapOfFaith Leaps of Faith]] into BottomlessPits.
*** The first game has [[IronicNickname Trusty Patches]], who will generally reward the appropriate level of ([[ObviouslyEvil clearly misplaced]]) trust by dropping you into a pit. [[RunningGag Twice.]]
*** The Twilight Forest is made of these. One side path has a small room with the glow of an item at the far back. A savvy player will note the top foliage of the Nightshade creature that lurks right in front of it. A quick grab and dash, yes? Oops, going into the room causes two more Nightshades to drop at the entrance, while the obvious third also attacks. The area is small enough that all three can hit you with any attack, or even worse, get you with their grab attack animation. The prize? A Purple Moss, an item that you get from ''farming Nightshades''.
** ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsII'':
*** The end of the Pate/Creighton sidequest, regardless of whom you choose to ally with, will send you to the same room containing a booby-trapped exploding treasure chest.
*** On his own, [[DemonicPossession Royal Sorcerer Navlaan]] is imprisoned in a laboratory, alternating between a scared young mage and an ObviouslyEvil dark wizard who bribes you to kill innocent {{N|onPlayerCharacter}}PCs. The SchmuckBait comes into play with the nearby lever, which is preceded by a hallway full of signs warning you to not touch it and leave. Pulling the lever releases Navlaan, who will invade you multiple times throughout the game, but if you leave him in his cell and do his hits (or make him ''think'' you did), then he will become a merchant that sells some items you can't get anywhere else.
*** The Smelter Demon has a very slow, telegraphed SwordPlant attack that is extremely easy to avoid and has it stand still for several seconds afterwards. It certainly looks like the perfect opportunity to run in and get a bunch of hits on it, and sometimes it genuinely is. Other times, it will follow the attack with a highly damaging shockwave that has a large radius. There is no way to tell whether it will do the shockwave or not, leading many players to get baited into taking a shockwave to the face.
** ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsIII'': The setup for the boss fight with [[DemBones High Lord Wolnir]]. You are transported into an endless dark abyss where the only illumination is the faint glow of an item on the floor (a Pyromancy tome). Approach, and Wolnir will burst forth out of the darkness and attack. It's a brilliant JumpScare.
!!ScrappyMechanic.MonsterHunter
* The multiplayer chat in the [=3DS=] online games is easily this, due to making you use the clumsy 3DS keyboard (except on ''Generations Ultimate'' on Switch, where you can plug in a USB keyboard, but only if you're docked or have a USB-A to USB-C adapter) and locking that out once the hunt begins, only allowing you to use one of your 18 pre-made macros. ''Generations'' gives you 24 macro slots, and ''Generations Ultimate'' gives you ''72'', but it doesn't account for every single thing you wanna communicate to your teammates. While this is meant to curb the {{GIFT}} factor of online multiplayer, even if you're in a party that's strictly composed of players from your friends list you still won't have an in-game way to chat freely. This is why some players will only do multiplayer hunts via local multiplayer and / or online with friends using third-party apps for text chat and especially voice chat.
!!Series.BIA
* {{GIFT}}: Anonymous vlogger [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast La Cobra]] uses their anonymity to [[MaliciousSlander spread bad rumours about any influencer they can get dirt on]]. A season 1 arc, [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse which is not resolved and nearly abandoned in season 2]], involves characters from El Fundom trying to discover their identity.
!!Series.LastWeekTonightWithJohnOliver
* {{GIFT}}: Discussed in-depth during the segment on online harassment.
!!Series.LegalVExLawyerShokoTakanashi
* {{GIFT}}: In episode 5, Muto's mother was DrivenToSuicide after being cyberbullied due to her son's assault conviction. [[spoiler:After the appeal is won, the Kyogoku Law Firm petitions to have the news site where the bullies gather release their identities and demands compensation from each and every one of them.]]
!!Series.TenOClockLive
* {{GIFT}}: Discussed when talking about freedom of speech on Twitter.
!!Series.TheNewsroom
* {{GIFT}}: Will introduces an identification system for online commentaries because anonymity enables cowardice and wackiness. This apparently makes him the target of a credible death threat.
!!SoYouWantTo.BeABooker
# The Internet Wrestling Community is not a HiveMind, and will complain about everything you do. [[FanDumb This is acceptable]] and [[{{GIFT}} their complaints are to be largely ignored]]. After all, [[UnpleasableFanbase it is impossible to please everybody]], and, unless ratings, buyrates, and live attendance plummet, then there's no reason to believe you are doing a lousy job. We are well into a millennium where most fans can be expected to find access to online devices of some sort and wrestlers promote themselves through services like the world wide web. This has resulted in a lot of people writing about wrestling on the internet, each with completely different tastes, most of them of loud and opinionated. You will piss ''somebody'' off. Accept this.
** Now, having given you ''that'' caveat, it is also worth remembering [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisdom_of_Crowds the Wisdom of Crowds]] — many fans want to contribute to your business being successful (that's part and parcel of being a fan!), so do not ignore them entirely. Instead, if you can afford it, have an office they can contact (preferably via email) with suggestions and feedback. Legally speaking, soliciting creative ideas from people outside the organization is a bad idea, and you should never actually use a fan's idea wholesale as part of your show (unless you like courtrooms and being forced to pay royalties, anyway), but keeping up on this, and noticing general trends in the messages received, can help you determine which angles are working and which wrestlers are getting over. Plus, having a point of contact for fans to write to goes a long way to improving public relations, and helps you avoid looking like {{real life}} {{heel}}s in the process.
** Always remember that wherever the internet is concerned, there will always be leaks. Unless you take absurd lengths to keep ''everyone'' in the dark about your booking plans except for the wrestlers involved, and only for their own matches, you have to expect that someone, be it a performer, referee, security guard, or ring crew member, will be willing to sell out the day's planned events to some website or other just for the notoriety value. In a perfect world, it would be nice if spoilers could be kept under wraps, but it is not your responsibility to take draconian measures to make it so. As long as fans are willing to scour the web for the latest dirt, someone will be willing to provide it. In the end, they're only ruining the experience for themselves. Do not book plans at the last minute or engineer a ShockingSwerve just to blindside this one sub-group. They being who they are, there's a better than even chance they'll catch wind of it anyway, and the product will be damaged for the vast majority of your fans, who are now watching something that doesn't make thematic sense because of the haphazard change.
!!SoYouWantTo.WriteAGamingComic
Further, gaming webcomics take MostWritersAreMale to its logical extreme: virtually all [[MostGamersAreMale gaming webcomic writers are male]], and usually fairly young, affluent and nerdy at that. Combined with the [[{{GIFT}} Great Internet Fuckwad Theory]], many webcomics sink to RefugeInAudacity BlackComedy fast. Scatological humour, gratuitous bloody violence and blatant sexism are unfortunately much too common.
!!SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped.LiveActionFilms
* While ''Film/{{Unfriended}}'' uses the SpaceWhaleAesop of "don't be a {{Troll}} or else the people you had DrivenToSuicide will kill you through a Skype call'', it does send a very real message about how [[{{GIFT}} acting like a jerk online]] and trolling people can have real-world consequences. Notably, none of the [[TeensAreMonsters teen protagonists]] care that they played a part in driving a girl to kill herself until it starts coming back to bite them. The film also says that trolling the AlphaBitch of the school is no more justified than doing it to a social outcast.
!!SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped.LiveActionTV
* ''Series/BlackMirror'' isn't subtle either. While it's possible to perceive this series as technophobic due to how it uses its machines in gritty, dark contexts, if there's a message to gather from the show as a whole, it would be that technology is only as disruptive and volatile to human life [[HumansAreBastards as humans themselves make it be]].
** "[[Recap/BlackMirrorNosedive Nosedive]]": A society that classifies status and social standing by social media ratings and connections alone [[SocialMediaIsBad will ultimately become a fake one]], where people will frown upon the smallest disapproval or deviation from the norm and get too accustomed to artificial happiness to be truthful or independent, even causing friendships and love to become shallow and entirely based off status and superficial interests. Furthermore, don't become a slave to public opinion just because you feel it necessary to ascend the corporate ladder. Being true to yourself will always bring more happiness and be more important than lying for the sake of your position.
** "[[Recap/BlackMirrorMenAgainstFire Men Against Fire]]": The whole episode is about [[spoiler:the government enacting a GuiltFreeExterminationWar against people it has deemed "undesirable"]]. Sure, it's not exactly subtle when [[ANaziByAnyOtherName invoking the Nazi parallels]], but it's still important, especially in the political climate of TheNewTens, where some groups are still advocating eugenics and ethnic and racial supremacy.
** "[[Recap/BlackMirrorArkangel ArkAngel]]" drops a few with regards to parenting:
*** Children need privacy and to learn how to deal with fears, failures, and mistakes on their own. (For example, Sara eventually stops being scared of the neighbor's barking dog once Marie stops using the blur function.)
*** Eventually, your children will grow up and do stupid things you won't approve of (like staying out past curfew, have sex, and do drugs). That's normal. There's nothing you can do about it, and the best you can do is make yourself a trusted person they can turn to instead of trying to control every facet of their lives, which will only drive them away if not rebel harder against your rules.
*** If you smother and shelter your children and don't teach them the information they'll need to navigate adulthood, relationships, etc, they'll find it out anyway, and not always from the best source.
** "[[Recap/BlackMirrorSmithereens Smithereens]]": '''''Put your phone down and pay attention to the road when you're driving.'''''
** "[[Recap/BlackMirrorHatedInTheNation Hated in the Nation]]": The episode isn't exactly subtle about the cruelty disguised as righteousness that is mass online [[ShamedByAMob shaming]]. Even if the [[AssholeVictim target of the outrage has done something obnoxious,]] the DisproportionateRetribution they face makes us empathize with them and makes us think twice about mindlessly joining the outrage bandwagon, because there's a living, breathing human being on the other side of the screen. A pretty great commentary on {{GIFT}}.
!!SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped.SouthPark
* "[[Recap/SouthParkS20E2SkankHunt Skank Hunt]]" shows how ''anybody'', even the most normal people [[{{GIFT}} can be absolute monsters online]]. It's not just socially rejected people who lash out online either, but people [[ForTheEvulz who act that way just because they can]].
** It also teaches how obsessed society has gotten with social media, that quitting it is literally viewed as committing suicide.
!!SophisticatedAsHell.RealLife
* According to Wiki/TheOtherWiki, even respected scholars refer to the tendency of semi-anonymous members of online communities to act more vulgarly and aggressively towards each other as the "[[{{GIFT}} Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]]". In addition to potentially being a misapplication of the word "Theory," the vocal dissonance is fucking hilarious.
** The polite name for this phenomenon is the "online disinhibition effect".
!!StockParodyJokes.WebOriginal
* Website/YouTube:
** The site being a hub for [[TheInternetIsForCats cat videos]].
** The users in comment sections of videos either being [[{{GIFT}} extremely rude]] {{troll}}s, or posting repetitive jokes and {{discredited meme}}s.
** Videos being taken down or accounts being terminated due to the flimsiest of copyright claims.
!!SuperSmashBros.TropesEToM
* {{GIFT}}:
** In ''Brawl''[='=]s Basic Brawl online mode, due to the completely anonymous nature, set rules of 2-minute time matches with the players deciding the items and stages, and complete lack of any sort of reporting feature, the mode devolved to people having "Taunt Parties" (e.g. just taunt and fool around instead of actually fighting, while ganging up on anyone trying to seriously fight), constantly choosing giant stages that allow players to run away with ease (Temple became notorious for being chosen all the time), and outright griefing. After the first couple years of ''Brawl'', the mode became an utter cesspool for anyone looking to actually fight. ''3DS/Wii U'''s "For Fun" mode, the successor to Basic Brawl, is beginning to become infested with Taunt Parties, despite the implementation of a reporting feature among other improvements. ''Ultimate'' finally stopped the taunt parties by completely disabling taunting online... unfortunately, players quickly started crouching instead, to the same effect as teabagging in FPS games.
** In ''Wii U''[='=]s For Glory mode, players can't normally communicate with each other. However in the mode, you can use and change your name tags, which are fully visible to the opponent. While altruistic players will utilise it to honestly communicate, many salty players and griefers use it to insult opponents. This also applies to the aforementioned For Fun mode. It's additionally not unheard of for people to friend opponents on Miiverse only to use the messaging system to insult and harass them. The inability to change your tag and friend opponents on the 3DS version prevents this on its For Glory mode.
** In an undocumented feature to combat this on For Glory, there is what is known by fans as "For Glory Hell". To elaborate, if a player is reported too much on For Glory, instead of being banned from the mode, they'll find themselves only being able to be matched up with other such reported players for a undisclosed temporary time. As such, when someone is in For Glory Hell, they'll find themselves matched up with the same few griefers, heavy laggers, and extremely campy players over and over, or not being matched up with anyone at all. This feature isn't infallible, however; honest players who just win a lot, especially if they have a disliked playstyle, have found themselves in For Glory Hell before by salty opponents reporting them.
** One of the features of the Miiverse stage is that it shows Miiverse posts submitted by fans to encourage specific characters. It is not uncommon to find posts that insult the characters instead (or posts that don't even relate to the characters in question).
** Due to how rules are handled in ''Ultimate''[='=]s Quickplay mode and the current inability to limit what rules you can get matched up with, there are several players that abuse the preferred rules feature to grief competitive players or otherwise try to cheese wins out against better players they wouldn't be able to beat normally. This can just entail running Smash Balls, all stages, and/or items in 1v1, but can also entail running absurdly short time limits to time people out, one stock, and Stamina matches. A particularly nasty variant is running matches with just the Special Flag enabled, which ensures matches will invariably go to time in a long drawn-out boring match as neither player will be able to loss all their stocks unless one gives up and suicides their stocks away.
!!TabletopGame.EclipsePhase
* AbsentAliens: {{Downplayed}}, but still pretty strongly in effect.
** The Factors are the only aliens to be seen face to face. They're essentially highly evolved slime mold, having technology just years in advance of transhumanity--if the rumors of them having FTL travel turn out to be false--and just handful of ships doing trading and diplomatic missions throughout the solar system. However, their given name comes from the that they claim to be the self-appointed representatives of other species out there, though they are not giving out any details, and the fact they can be very deceptive when they choose to be, just opens up more questions than putting this fully into doubt. That said, they're still quite enigmatic and made first contact just a few years after the Fall. Surely just a coincidence...
** Then there's also the [[spoiler:[=ETI=] and their Exsurgent virus]], some truly alien and horrifying concepts, to be sure, but still absent but for their tools. What drives them and what's the higher goal of their actions is largely unknown (as in its for the gamemaster to decide).
** The creatures that built the Pandora gates, if it weren't the [=TITANs=] or the above. Considering the number of them and how old many of them apparently are, the possibility that it was the [=TITANs=] who built them is looking vanishingly small. [[spoiler: The [=TITANs=] did indeed build them, or at least the ones in the Solar System, though the knowledge how to do it either came from their higher understanding of the universe, or was carried over to them from the Exsurgent virus.]]
** The Iktomi are/were an arachnoid race that was active about 10,000 years ago and had settlements on several planets transhumanity has access to, but so far the Iktomi appear to [[NothingIsScarier have all disappeared without a trace...]]
** Apparent alien contact has been made on the world of Giza, where alien artifacts, the strange "black box" communication devices, have instant communications to other terminals across the galaxy, or even the universe. People aren't entirely sure if it's an AI driven device used in some sort of con, or if the aliens who are willing to use them to trade technology and information are trading in safe technologies, marking Giza as a potential risk. [[spoiler: The black boxes, if they are indeed connecting to other aliens, apparently function as a galactic chat service, rife with aliens who are quite nasty about [[{{Squick}} wanting to cyber]] or just engaging in {{GIFT}}. The one tryout of the xenotech they gave the human gatecrashers gave the skeptics very good justification to be wary of any designs that came out of those boxes.]]
** The Moravecians are a species that have apparently decided to go into a fully digital existence, with the world of Moravec having an extensive and hardy server network to support an entire virtual universe that's been active for thousands of years. Transhumanity has had some success in penetrating and entering this virtual network, but by almost every indication it's entirely empty...
** The Amphibs of Droplet are another ancient species. They had disappeared from the surface of their home world about a million years ago rather suddenly after the discovery of the Droplet gate. Very little remains of them, so it's hard to tell how advanced they became, but they appear to have achieved a level of technology similar to Transhumanity but for space travel. More concerning, another building/construct called the Toadstool exists on Droplet, having been made of a highly advanced, hardened, and self-repairing material, and it appears to predate the Amphibs themselves by a long time.
!!Trivia.{{Chikara}}
* WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings: Before the Chikara 101 forums, there were the [=ChikaraFans=] forums. However, the moderators and a few of the most prominent users developed egos and started posting abusively and berating new users over pretty much everything - essentially falling afoul of the [[{{GIFT}} Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]]. When Leonard F. Chikarason told them to cool off, the owners responded by turning violently against CHIKARA itself, deleting their archives and turning their main forum into a venue to bash the promotion. The Chikara 101 forums are as good if not better than the [=ChikaraFans=] forums, but the archives are still missed.
!!Trivia.DragonNest
* FanNickname:
** Gladus Tek Ma, for the Cleric's Block spell, as well as the Sorceress' two AntiMagic spells.
** "[[LeetSpeak w3ws]]" for the [[{{GIFT}} unrepentant]] {{troll}}s and {{griefer}}s in the [=SEA=] server, usually attributed to Filipino players.
** Not surprisingly, the North American player base tends to call the Tinkerer a "loli". They seem to be entirely aware of [[LoliconAndShotacon the word's implications]].
!!Trivia.FinalFantasyXIV
* WhyTheFandomCantHaveNiceThings:
** Win trading, the act of giving people guaranteed wins in quests in exchange for gil or items, was very common in the PVP section of the game, which resulted in many people getting high ranks and gear with high stats (including Morale, which is a PVP only stat) without earning them fairly. Frontlines was a second PVP mode added later on to the game and it doesn't use the Morale stat. The act of making Morale useless in Frontlines was very likely done to make sure that people who bribed their way to the top can't have the big advantage over everyone when Frontlines was released. Unfortunately, the motion also punished legit players that earned their gear and ranks for PVP.
** Win carries, the act of someone carrying another player to victory while said player doesn't contribute much, were also plaguing non PVP content and allowed players to earn gear and other rewards by simply paying another player to carry them through raids and dungeons. While it wasn't the main deciding factor, Square decided to kill two birds with one stone; add an item level requirement so that players are properly prepared and prevents people from being carried through most runs with bad gear.
** For the longest time, the duty finder (especially for the Labyrinth of the Ancients and Sycrus Tower raids) was plagued with withdraw spam. When everyone is queued up, a player can choose to withdraw from the duty for whatever reason they have, but it causes everyone else to be re-queued as they have to wait for a new replacement. Since there was no penalty for withdrawing after the ready window popped up, people would either troll everyone by joining and withdrawing or fish for duties that are already in progress and withdraw if they didn't get it. Patch 2.4 added a penalty system by giving anyone who withdraws 3 times when the ready window pops with a 30 minute penalty and they will get another 30 minute penalty for each withdraw after that until the next day. While the system greatly reduced trolling and in progress fishing, people who may have had a legitimate excuse for withdrawing are also punished.
** The official forums worked like any other forum and Square Enix needed people to test it in its beta stages. Naturally, people started to clog the forums with spam, flame wars, and other annoying things, prompting Square Enix to slap down a heavy posting restriction where every user has a limited amount of posts they can make in a day based on their character's level and a 1000 character limit was also thrown in to prevent people from filling posts with text walls (though editing the initial post bypasses the limit somehow). After several years of requesting the character limit to be increased, the forums now have a 3000 character limit for every post.
** The abuse of parsers (3rd party add-ons that measures a player's DPS output) is the reason why the developers are very reluctant to make an official one. Because of people that use parsers to verbally harass people with low DPS (even in content where DPS checks aren't used), just openly mentioning in the game that you use parsers puts you at risk of someone reporting you to a game master. In patch 3.2, the developers created a training ground where players can whack a dummy whose HP is based off of various raid bosses (with some adjustments due to the content being for solo play) so that people can test their skill rotations for optimal DPS performance, but it doesn't give much information other than you know you are doing good if you can break the dummy before the time limit expires.
** PVP isn't quite newbie friendly due to a lot of SeriousBusiness players flying off the handle whenever someone in the party screws up. The developers decided that in patch 3.5, ''all'' forms of chat would be disabled and the only way to communicate would be through preformed macros that take up space on the hotbars. While the developers never stated why they made such a drastic change, it is likely due to the overabundance of [[{{GIFT}} players being openly hostile towards others]], which can drive people away from PVP completely.
** The launch of ''Stormblood'' brought in a ton of players to the point where simply trying to get into certain servers would take hours at a time if the congestion was high (this was on mostly populated servers like Gilgamesh and Balmung). The developers implemented an auto-kick measure where anyone that was AFK for too long would be logged out. Players trying to get around this countermeasure would spoof their AFK status such as leaving a menu open or going into crafting mode without actually crafting. This in turn made the queues even longer and many housing/apartments/private rooms were inaccessible due to the instance servers hosting them being perpetually clogged with AFK players. Presenting itself as a nuclear solution, the developers made a new countermeasure where every server on every data center would automatically log everyone out of the game once a day, no matter what they were doing (this includes quests or other instances) and they would not be able to log back in for 10 minutes. This also affected players on lower populated worlds and it especially includes the people that transferred off a congested server to avoid the queue problems in the first place. The restrictions were eventually lifted once everything became more stable.
** The main scenario roulette had a lot of problems with players speed running the final two ARR dungeons that were introduced in 2.0. People grinding for tomestones or experience points would rush from boss to boss while newcomers either got left behind, got told to watch the cutscenes at an inn, or were kicked for slowing everyone down. The problem persisted for years and it wasn't until patch 4.2 where the developers actually took action in the form of making cutscenes in the two dungeons completely unskippable, even if the group is preformed and are running the dungeons unsynced.
** A small part of the fandom that wants to play as a KidHero was given a stern head-shake from Yoshida. His given reason is that the Warrior of Light goes through ''[[HarmfulToMinors a lot of shit]]'' over the course of their journey, which can be a rather debatable angle since many other games in the ''Final Fantasy'' series don't shy away from this (even family-friendly poster boy {{Creator/Nintendo}} has done it with one of its [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda main franchises]], of which [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime two]] [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask games]] were considered some of the best of their time). Sadly, Yoshida also gave a less pointed but ''much bigger'' reason why playable children will never happen: ''Final Fantasy XIV'' is home to role-players... and [[RuleThirtyFour not all of them wholesome]]. While Yoshida and the game's moderators typically don't object to erotic roleplay scenes so long as the roleplayers keep it to themselves, it's much harder to defend allowing players to roleplay a ''child'' participating in such scenes.
** The Ishgard Restoration content allowed players to visit other servers and assist said servers with their progress. Due to DemandOverload (as well as people trolling others by making the problem worse), almost no one could get into the Firmament to contribute to the progression and this also included people getting locked out from their own home server. Within a day, the dev team changed the system where players visiting other servers can't visit the Firmament unless it's on their home server.
** Data mining is a hot button issue between fans that want to see what's hidden in each patch and fans that don't want to be spoiled by said data mining. Square Enix themselves generally weren't bothered by data mining as long as people kept the methods of data mining to themselves, although they did openly state not to spoil anything. In 2019, several people were upset towards a raid team that had got the world first clear for Alexander Ultimate and accused them of cheating by using data mining to prove that the raid team cheated. The developers came down hard on data mining by suspending people that were openly data mining or were linked to data mining in some way. Because data mining was used to harass people, data mining in general is now a lot less open and is more private.
** In the past, jobs that were getting adjustments would be reflected in in the prelimary patch notes or sometimes during a live letter. Due to misconceptions, backlash, and general complaining about certain jobs [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks no longer being good]], job changes are no longer posted until the patch goes live.
** After a world first team for Alexander Ultimate streamed themselves openly using the Cactbot fight planner to change waymarks on the fly to help their performance in fights, in defiance of Square's don't-show-don't-ask-don't-tell policy on mods, Square Enix quietly changed it so that waymarks could no longer be laid down or altered in combat, but added way more letters and numbers to help plan it. Given that the other alternative was to crack down on the bot by making an example of a world first team ''during'' a WF race, this was probably the less controversial route.
** The February 2020 live letter began with Yoshida spending the first half-hour decrying the [[GameMod modding scene]], specifically those that go the extra mile in erotic role play by changing things like clothing and character models to do things that ''Final Fantasy XIV'' was '''not''' meant to do. While the whole segment reeked of [[ExecutiveMeddling "I am being paid to say this"]], Yoshida has ample reason to be concerned and stated as such because ''Final Fantasy XIV'' is a worldwide MMO that these modders are turning into a porn simulator, and different nations have different laws regarding porn, which could give the game the wrong kind of attention from the authorities.
!!Trivia.IMDb
* WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings: The forums were shut down because the {{GIFT}} had gotten out of control, to the point of becoming a punchline on par with the Website/YouTube comment section.
!!Trivia.KnivesOut
* PlayingAgainstType:
** Benoit Blanc is only the second role with comedic tones for Creator/DanielCraig in his long and prolific career (after another BunnyEarsLawyer SouthernFriedGenius, Joe Bang in ''Film/LoganLucky'').
** Creator/AnaDeArmas' roles are almost always some sort of MsFanservice, but here she gets to play a ChasteHeroine.
** Creator/MichaelShannon, usually cast as imposing and unstable authority figures, here plays Walt as a whiny and petulant weakling.
** Creator/MEmmetWalsh, best known for playing sleazy characters, plays an elderly and amiable security guard. This also would have been the case for original actor Ricky Jay.
** Creator/JaedenMartell, best known for playing the courageous AllLovingHero [[Film/It2017 Bill Denbrough]], plays Jacob Thrombey, an alt-right {{GIFT}} {{troll}} and a total {{Jerkass}}.
** Creator/ToniCollette is better known for her dramatic but especially horror roles, but here plays a more comedic role as an air-headed valley girl.
** Creator/DonJohnson is best known for playing the suave undercover cop Sonny Crockett on Series/MiamiVice. Here, he's an ineffectual xenophobic bumbler who's cheating on his wife, can't keep a secret, and openly tries to bribe the cops to get his way. Could double as an ActorAllusion since Crockett and his partner Tubbs were ''horrible'' at keeping it a secret that they were cops.
!!Trivia.PennyArcade
* {{GIFT}}
!!Trivia.PennyArcade
* {{GIFT}}
!!Trivia.{{Rescue911}}
* CreatorBacklash: Abigail, the little girl who was featured in "Speed Dial Burn Save," stumbled upon an upload of the episode on Website/YouTube years later, and requested that the video be taken down due to [[{{GIFT}} hateful, judgmental comments]] about her mother. She also felt that the episode was extremely personal, and didn't want people to watch it. The original uploader gladly complied, and removed the episode.[[note]]Another user has since reuploaded the segment; Abigail has again requested its removal, but so far it is still online.[[/note]] In 2014, Abigail made [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tH88jzDpcXo an "update" video]] to answer questions and explain her point of view. Some were quick to state that Abigail has no right to have uploads of the episode taken down as [=CBS=] has the rights to the series.
!!Trivia.{{Roblox}}
* WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings: The forums were reduced to be about Roblox only in July 2017 then shut down altogether in December of the same year because the moderators didn't want to put up with the {{GIFT}} that was always around and went out of control earlier that year. It has also be theorized by some that it happened partly due to WebOriginal/QuackityHQ who, starting in May of 2017, repeatedly used his fans to raid the forums (some even going to non-affiliated spin-off sites) [[DisproportionateRetribution because he got a 3-day ban.]]
!!Trivia.{{Splatoon}}
* FlipFlopOfGod:
** Despite originally stating that major content updates would end on January 2016, [[http://nintendoeverything.com/producer-hints-at-possible-new-content-for-splatoon/ the producer of the game]] went on record saying that more new content was a possibility in the future. Indeed, a March 2016 update confirmed that more weapons would be added to the game, with the last of these weapons being added that June.
** Director Yusuke Amano originally said that ''Splatoon'' [[WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings would never feature voice chat because his experience with online shooters]] featured people constantly hurling [[{{GIFT}} verbal abuse and obscenities]] at each other. By ''VideoGame/Splatoon2'', though, this stance was softened via a smartphone app.
!!TropeCo.AllTrollsAreDifferent
* '''[[{{Troll}} Internet Trolls]]''': Having been introduced to the wonders of modern technology, this lone sect of troll have since developed nasty habits and a sadistic streak that have rendered them unapproachable for anyone, be they human or any other breed of troll. If anyone encounters this breed of troll, please consult your {{GIFT}} Awareness Pamphlet or call FiveFiveFive-FiveFiveFive-[[PhoneWord TROPECO]] for more information.
!!TropeDistinctions.AToC
!!!BeneathTheMask vs ADarkerMe vs {{GIFT}} vs HiddenDepths
!!TropeDistinctions.AToC
* {{GIFT}} is a theory that tries to explain the antisocial behaviour of people on the Internet. This trope states that anonymity corrupts people that are otherwise normally nice, making them act like jerks, as opposed to BeneathTheMask that states that anonymity doesn't corrupt but only reveals what was already there.
!!TropeNamers.{{Webcomics}}
* ''Webcomic/PennyArcade''
** {{GIFT}}
** TheMerch
** ShootTheMedicFirst (cross-reference with ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'')
!!TruthInTelevision.GToI
* {{GIFT}}: Spend ''any'' time on the internet reading comments (especially on [[FlameWar contentious issues such as sex or politics or religion]]) and you will find plenty of demonstrations of GIFT.
!!TruthInTelevision.MToO
* MediationBackfire: In many internet forums, trying to end a FlameWar between two or more users will cause them to take out their frustrations on you with heaping insults, but [[{{GIFT}} this is the internet we're talking about.]]
** Witness any police intervention in a domestic argument. (Or anybody else's, of course, but the police are the only ones professionally obliged to stick their heads over the parapet.) What they tend to really hate about such jobs is that even when one partner is clearly being abused, they'll often [[StockholmSyndrome firmly take their abuser's side]].
!!TruthInTelevision.SToU
* SuicideDare: Unfortunately very common for people to tell this to other people who are suffering. A lot of this can happen on [[{{GIFT}} the internet]].
!!UnintentionalPeriodPiece.TheNineties
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Freakazoid}}'' references the V-Chip, among other bits of '90s pop culture ephemera. Furthermore, its setup of its protagonist being a teenage nerd who got sucked into the internet and turned into its living embodiment, while [[ValuesResonance highly prescient]] of the rise of online "lol random" meme culture, still marks it as a product of a time of great optimism towards the emergence of the new medium of the internet. Today, with {{troll}}ing having taken on [[{{GIFT}} far more negative connotations]] than just online pranksters, the show's portrayal of such can seem naive.
!!UnintentionallyUnsympathetic.SwordArtOnline
* Really, MMO Players in general can be this at times. A recurring theme is that all MMO players are NotSoDifferent from one another, in that they all desire to be stronger, use VR to escape the stresses or real life and are ultimately decent people deep down. While there are multiple instances that enforce this, such as the existence of a Clearing Force in SAO risking their lives to save everyone or [[spoiler: multiple players attending Yuuki’s in-game passing]], there are just as many or maybe ''more'' instances that can paint them as selfish [[{{GIFT}} G.I.F.Ts]] only out for themselves, with there being at least one example in each arc even if you ignore all the [[PlayerKilling Player Killers]] who act as Antagonists.
** In the ''Aincrad'' and ''Progressive'' Arcs, major clearing guilds can be seen as being more concerned with their personal power and petty rivalries as opposed to [[SkewedPriorities actually clearing the Death Game and freeing everyone]], with guilds like the Divine Dragon Alliance being obsessed with getting rare loot, often insisting that they get the Last Attack Bonus in all the boss fights even if it’s just not possible and some even stooping to attacking other players for a shot at hoarding rare items and equipment.
!!UnintentionallyUnsympathetic.SwordArtOnline
%%** In ''Mother’s Rosario'', the closest thing there is to an antagonist is a boss clearing guild that has been manipulating the Sleeping Knights so they can learn a boss’ attack patterns using a Peeping Spell[[note]] creates a familiar that can allow players to watch things in a different area[[/note]] and fight it immediately after for an easy win, which is just as dickish as it sounds. And while they’re likely unaware of the fact that [[spoiler: the [[ObliviouslyEvil Sleeping Knights are terminally ill patients IRL]]]], the narration notes multiple times that their actions, such as monopolizing areas that all players should have access to, are rather scummy.
** [[spoiler: It's noted multiple times that the foreign VRMMO gamers, who are unknowingly drafted into the War of the Underworld [[ObliviouslyEvil have no idea that they're killing Artificial Fluctlights]], who are established to be essentially real people, and are [[UnwittingPawn being manipulated by]] [[BigBad Gabriel]] and [[TheDragon [=PoH=]]]. While both of these points are true, the majority of them take being the {{GIFT}} to so much of an extreme that it's really hard to say they're completely guiltless, attacking the obvious heroes along with seemingly ObviouslyEvil group, attacking people while they're down, several of them making very messed up comments about the fact that this "game" has realistic gore and outright taking prisoners of war for seemingly no more than petty sadism. Only one player (two in the anime, with a Chinese going by the name of Mei Xiang), a Korean going by Moonphase, is suspicious of the whole thing and even after watching [=PoH=] beat up Kirito, who at the time can be easily mistaken for a cripple due to needing a wheelchair and barely moving, only about ''half of them'' actually start getting suspicious about the whole thing as well, while the rest just keep going along with [=PoH=]'s cruelty simply because they're prejudiced against Japan. In the end, it's hard to pity the fact they, or at least the still unconvinced half, are being manipulated and hard not to cheer when Kirito wakes up and [[AnIceGuy puts them on ice.]] Not to mention, with Alice's reveal to the world displaying the potential FantasticRacism Artificial Fluctlights will face, there is some doubt about whether or not they'd actually feel guilty if they learned what they did.]]
** [[spoiler: While the Salamander Commander[[note]] the general audience in the anime[[/note]] [[JerkassHasAPoint makes good points]] on why Liz's request for the assembled players to help protect the Underworld can come off as unreasonable and that they should just refuse, the fact that one of his arguments involves him having FantasticRacism against SAO Survivors, who by the way were essentially ''kidnapping victims with a gun to their head 24/7'', due to them [[GreenEyedMonster having more VR experience than most other players]] makes him come off as more childish and petty than intended, even if Liz does concede that he's got a point about how she and other survivors tend to hang around each other more than regular MMO players.]]
** [[spoiler: And finally, in ''Unital Ring'', after Kirito and the group feed a group of fellow players[[note]] In the mysterious “Unital Ring”, there is unique system called Starve Points and Thirst Points that, if decreased too low, will weaken the player and eventually kill them[[/note]], said group are [[UngratefulBastard quick to turn on their saviors]] after they learn that they’re elite players and that they could take advantage of the fact that they currently have lower quality gear than theirs[[note]] Unital Ring, after a set period of time or if the player unequips anything, increases the weight requirements for any equipment a player already owns and forces them to create new gear and work towards re-equipping their old stuff, which is what happens to Kirito, Asuna, Alice and Leafa while the [[UngratefulBastard Ungrateful Bastards]] were able to forge new gear before they encountered them[[/note]] to kill them for a [[AmbitionIsEvil better shot at winning whatever Unital Ring is.]] Then in the next volume, they're revealed to have responded to their defeat by [[SoreLoser ratting out the location of Kirito and Asuna's cabin to some PKer friends of theirs to attack them in their stead]], seemingly ignorant of the fact that they wouldn't have gotten killed and and got booted from Unital Ring if [[MoralMyopia they didn't betray Kirito's group in the first place.]]]].
!!UsefulNotes.AspergerSyndrome
* '''Self-inflated InsufferableGenius[=/=][[DisabilityAsAnExcuseForJerkassery Asperger's as an excuse for bad behaviour]]'''. There's no real connection whatsoever, and may have just been borne out of [[{{GIFT}} people over the Internet]] using Asperger's Syndrome as an excuse to be a {{jerkass}} or a KnowNothingKnowItAll. Part of the reason AS is a popular self-diagnosis is because Asperger's is linked (particularly in pop culture) with IdiotSavant characters who are brilliant but lack social skills. Such individuals are often the first to latch onto postmortem conjectural psychology calling various famous people like UsefulNotes/AlbertEinstein autistic. They arrogantly believe that not only should having AS free them from judgement for being socially inept, but also pin them as '''genius-tier masters of their field'''. This is particularly infuriating for people who really do have AS, since as this practice continues they find it harder to explain ''accidentally'' offending somebody without being seen as liars, or worse as trying to make an excuse for bad behaviour. Most genuine Aspies don't see Aspergers as a 'Get Out Of JerkAss Free' card, just an explanation. [[hottip:*:This is often reversed too: people without AS tend to see Aspies as being jerks or badly-behaved simply because they don't understand why the Aspie is acting that way and/or don't know how to deal with it.]]\\
\\
If anything, given that the symptoms of Asperger's syndrome tend to lead other children (and sometimes adults) into bullying them, they usually tend to have a lower sense of self-worth. This tends to be confused as a symptom of Asperger's due to the lack of social empathy and the tendency to dominate conversations.\\
\\
While a case could be made that some who have been consistently bullied may consciously develop or become egocentric and cultivate feelings of a superiority complex as a psychological defense mechanism, ''this does not directly correlate with AS''. What might correlate to it is that since people with Asperger’s tend to be experts in their narrow field of interest, they can think of themselves as superior to those who do not possess such skills. Also, some think of their lack of inhibition and sincerity as an advantage over the rest of the population.
!!UsefulNotes.AutismSpectrum
* '''Self-inflated InsufferableGenius[=/=][[DisabilityAsAnExcuseForJerkassery Asperger's as an excuse for bad behaviour]]'''. There's no real connection whatsoever, and may have just been borne out of [[{{GIFT}} people over the Internet]] using Asperger's Syndrome as an excuse to be a {{jerkass}} or a KnowNothingKnowItAll. Part of the reason AS is a popular self-diagnosis is because Asperger's is linked (particularly in pop culture) with IdiotSavant characters who are brilliant but lack social skills. Such individuals are often the first to latch onto postmortem conjectural psychology calling various famous people like UsefulNotes/AlbertEinstein autistic. They arrogantly believe that not only should having AS free them from judgement for being socially inept, but also pin them as '''genius-tier masters of their field'''. This is particularly infuriating for people who really do have AS, since as this practice continues they find it harder to explain ''accidentally'' offending somebody without being seen as liars, or worse as trying to make an excuse for bad behaviour. Most genuine Aspies don't see Aspergers as a 'Get Out Of JerkAss Free' card, just an explanation. [[hottip:*:This is often reversed too: people without AS tend to see Aspies as being jerks or badly-behaved simply because they don't understand why the Aspie is acting that way and/or don't know how to deal with it.]]\\
\\
If anything, given that the symptoms of Asperger's syndrome tend to lead other children (and sometimes adults) into bullying them, they usually tend to have a lower sense of self-worth. This tends to be confused as a symptom of Asperger's due to the lack of social empathy and the tendency to dominate conversations.\\
\\
While a case could be made that some who have been consistently bullied may consciously develop or become egocentric and cultivate feelings of a superiority complex as a psychological defense mechanism, ''this does not directly correlate with AS''. What might correlate to it is that since people with Asperger’s tend to be experts in their narrow field of interest, they can think of themselves as superior to those who do not possess such skills. Also, some think of their lack of inhibition and sincerity as an advantage over the rest of the population.
!!UsefulNotes.ConsoleWars
The most famous Console War was between the [[UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem Super NES]] and UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis in TheNineties (see Fourth Generation folder below), spurred on by some {{Take That}}s on Creator/{{Sega}}'s part like the one in the page image. However, internet-related debating (which is [[{{GIFT}} usually much more heated than what you see in a grade or high school cafeteria]]) didn't really take off until the Fifth Generation; where the UsefulNotes/PlayStation and UsefulNotes/Nintendo64 (and briefly the UsefulNotes/SegaSaturn) squared off against one another. These days (the Seventh Generation onward), it's largely the [=PlayStation=] series vs. Microsoft's Xbox line; Nintendo still exists as a third major competitor, but their TakeAThirdOption approach following the UsefulNotes/GameCube, and the fact that they often don't get the third-party titles that Sony and Microsoft do, means they're often excluded from direct console vs. console comparisons (though this has changed somewhat with the release of the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, which has seen a Renaissance of third-party publishing for a Nintendo system, as it's garnered a strong install base).
!!UsefulNotes.ConsoleWars
Despite having the most technologically advanced system of that era and a slew of quality games such as ''VideoGame/SuperMario64'', ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'', and ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'', Nintendo dropped out of the lead for the first time ever. This was partially because of their adherence to the old ROM cartridge format — the limitations of which seriously undermined its otherwise superior technology and caused it to lose much of its third-party support, particularly Square and ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' — and partly because their bright and shiny family games didn't fit the new 3D, next-gen aesthetic. However, shrewd business decisions and pricing on Nintendo's part meant that while they lost market share, the company may have ended up comparably profitable to their competitors. The fact that their best-selling games were first/[[Creator/{{Rare}} second-]]party also helped. The N64 did come in second during the war, but its sales didn't even come close to the [=PlayStation's=].\\
\\
Sony, meanwhile, recognized the increasing age bracket of console gamers and tapped into the influential twentysomething "big kid" market, legitimizing console gaming in the eyes of many and laying the foundation for the newcomer's market dominance. One of greatest assets of the [=PlayStation=]'s victory was that their games were released on UsefulNotes/{{CD}}s. Since at that time, [=CDs=] were widely available to the mass market as writable media containers, the [=PlayStation=] became the first console with a large-scale piracy problem. People would buy [=PlayStation=]s because they could pirate the games for it at less than one-tenth the games' retail price, whereas there was hardly any piracy on the other disk-based systems (and it goes without saying that it was way harder to copy an N64 cartridge).\\
\\
Also, while the Nintendo 64 might be largely underappreciated and looked down on in hindsight, there was actually a very real war going on between it and the [=PlayStation=] that was, in some respects, even bloodier than the Genesis/[=SNES=] war a generation prior. This is because it was the first console war to be heavily fueled by the then-emerging internet. While neither system had the mudslinging ads of the preceding generation, the downright [[{{GIFT}} brutal arguing]] and [[FlameWar flaming]] occurring on video game message forums and websites[[note]]A matter not helped by the forum moderation being generally far looser back then than it is today[[/note]] more than made up for this. In a sense, the fourth generation was more of a battle between competing companies, while the fifth generation was more of a battle between competing fans.\\
\\
You might expect that the developers shifting their focus away from Nintendo would choose its then-primary competitor Sega as a new platform, rather than new-kid-on-the-block Sony. However, the Saturn was a complex multi-processor design that was harder to program for, and it was less powerful than [=PlayStation=] when rendering in 3D. It was also crippled by creepy-as-fuck American television advertising, and a botched surprise launch in the US that caught third parties flat-footed and enraged retailers that weren't in on the secret, including Wal-Mart. Adding to the litany of issues was [[WeAreStrugglingTogether mistrust and a]] [[PoorCommunicationKills lack of communication]] [[RightHandVersusLeftHand between the Japanese and American branches of Sega]], and [[ExecutiveMeddling general mismanagement]], mostly by the [[TyrantTakesTheHelm infamous Bernie Stolar]]. Although it managed to grab some good market share in Japan, the dearth of game releases eventually led to its failure in other territories, where it was discontinued in 1998.\\
\\
The Apple Pippin, released in conjunction with Bandai, was a weird mesh of computer and console sensibilities with all of the worst attributes of both — too expensive for a console, too underpowered for a computer, and a software library that barely cracked two digits. It's mostly useful for filling out every tech site list of "Ten Worst Consoles" or "Five Apple Flops."\\
\\
The NEC PC-FX was NEC's attempt to enter the 32-bit era early by rushing an old, outdated design out the door before its competitors in an attempt to keep the PC-Engine's fanbase. The result was completely underpowered in every respect except for decoding videos, and thus many releases for it were anime-themed {{FMV}} games, making it the Japanese equivalent of the CD-i. It sold less than 100,000 units and ended NEC's run as a console maker.
!!UsefulNotes.FightingGameCommunity
* YouFightLikeACow: Zig-zagged. It largely depends on the scene the players are from.
** In U.S. competition, trash-talk is considered healthy and encouraging, especially in the ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom'' community. Players often even make whole wrestling-style promos to berate their opponents or rival factions. Even then, this is only true to a certain degree. People whose trash talk is overly rude, obnoxious, offensive, personal, or mean-spirited (especially when coupled with consistent bad attitudes, poor sportsmanship, or poor conduct on social media) will quickly become disliked by the FGC, and may very well get called out if they cross the line.
** Averted, to a degree, in Japan. The Japanese player community allegedly considers it [[JapanesePoliteness rude and distasteful to trash talk to another player's face]]. However, {{GIFT}} still applies on message boards and chat forums.
!!UsefulNotes.StayingOutOfLegalTrouble
* ''Do not make threats.'' Yes, sometimes a situation can make you so angry or scared that you believe a threat (even one you know you won't follow up on) is a good idea, or you might make an entirely absurd IneffectualDeathThreat as a joke. It never is funny or a good idea to make a threat (unless you can prove self-defense and that making the threat was done to protect your life or property from imminent danger, for example, someone told you they were going to rape you and you documented that then told them if they tried you would shoot them). In many cases, a threat ''itself'' can at least be the crimes of assault or harassment, and certain threats aimed at certain people, places, or things can qualify as terrorist threats, stalking-related offenses, or hate crimes. Even ''if'' the threat itself is ignored at the time, if anything ever happens to the person you threatened, you go to the top of the suspect list. Furthermore, if you are ever involved in a shooting, stabbing, or beating, or brandish a weapon and cite self-defense, those social media posts, text messages and messaging app records, and witness testimonies ''will'' be subpoenaed if the prosecution wants to make a case for you being a violent person who wanted to hurt or kill someone or start or escalate a fight, and if you have ''ever'' threatened someone or had a violent incident that you didn't have a good reason for, it will be a much better day for the prosecution than it will be for you.
** Plus the threat could come back to haunt you. A humorous example occurred in the movie ''Starting Over'' where Jill Clayburgh is visiting her parents and is unaware that Burt Reynolds has been invited as a blind date. So, she's walking at night, and some guy she doesn't know is following her, even tailing her in the direction of her parents home. She's frightened, walks up to the guy she thinks is stalking her, tells him off in no uncertain terms, and runs off to her parents. Later, he gets to the door and is introduced, and he tells them that he knows her. Her mother asks where they met, and he tells them exactly what she said: "Outside, as I was walking up here, she said 'Get the fuck away from me, I've got a knife in my purse and I'll cut your fucking balls off.'"
** On a related note, don't make threats [[{{GIFT}} online]], either. No matter what. Remember, the Internet is not as anonymous as you think it is, and making threats against a person/their family/their property/all of the above can get you in trouble, just like in meatspace. Similarly, don't [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doxing "doxx"]] other people; even if ''you'' wouldn't threaten or harm them, even if the worst thing ''you'' would do is set them up with a few unsolicited pizzas or make a few prank calls, you can't be certain that someone else won't stalk, harass, threaten, or harm this person...and if someone does, ''you'' could be held responsible. (Whether you think they deserve it or not, whether you think it's a good way to "teach them a lesson" or not, is irrelevant. Remember, the law does not look kindly on any form of [[VigilanteMan vigilante "justice."]]) The law also does not care whether you're copy-pasting information that they had posted previously, or whether it's something you dug up from the Deep Web; the end result is the same. Also, there is no guarantee that the information you're putting out there is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. (For example, what if the address or phone number you listed no longer belongs to the person you're targeting, but to someone else?) Another good reason not to doxx: it puts other people in the crossfire. Namely, anyone the doxxee lives with, or anyone on their contact lists. People who might not be involved in your drama, or might not even be aware of it.
** If the person in question has actually done something ''illegal'', report them to the appropriate law enforcement official, as well as to site admins. That's way more effective than "signal boosting" on the Internet. If the person hasn't done anything ''illegal'' (just upsetting), then simply unfollow or unfriend them, and if necessary, report the offending post to the site's administrative team. If they harass you, report that to site admins as well.
** Also, don't give anyone a SuicideDare or encourage someone to kill themselves or consider doing so, even as a [[BlackComedy "joke."]] If they decide to do it, ''you'' could face murder or manslaughter charges. Just don't do it, OK?
!!UsefulNotes.{{The2000s}}
* One of the internets most notorious, [[{{GIFT}} and infamous]], websites were born in this decade. Website/FourChan started out as an offshoot of ''Website/SomethingAwful'''s anime forums but quickly rose to popularity thanks to being able to post completely anonymously to the site. It didn't take long for the site to become more generalized with multiple sub-boards around different topics as the userbase grew. It also didn't take long before it became seen as [[WretchedHive the cesspool]] of the internet, gaining infamy for being a haven for Main/{{Troll}}s, [[TheInternetIsForPorn deviants]], and [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers political wackjobs of both extremes]]. "The hive" as the users would become known as would also become infamous for creating several hoaxes picked up by mainstream media, as well as [[InternetCounterattack hunting down particular individuals that manage to gain their wrath]]. Oddly despite, or perhaps, because of all this, it's one of the few non-mainstream social media sites in the modern age that manages to maintain a very large and active userbase to this very day.
!!UsefulNotes.VisualKei
* {{GIFT}}: Averted for the first round, as the genre came into existence in TheEighties. The Internet as such didn't exist until TheNineties and didn't penetrate much into Japan until around the late 90s - most fights of that era were [[BarBrawl IRL bar fights]]. When the genre resurrected as Neo-Visual Shock, it kicked in in full force.
!!UsefulNotes.VisualKei
* {{GIFT}}: One of the best places to find it in action within Visual Kei, precisely because almost everyone involved ''wants'' to be as potentially offensive as possible, and in some cases, this goes beyond throwing around triggers and CrossingTheLineTwice and back again to offend moralizers and the like into [[ItsPersonal personal abuse]] and cyberbullying.
!!UsefulNotes.VisualKei
* {{GIFT}}: You wouldn't think a subgenre based on TastesLikeDiabetes would have such issues. Unfortunately, online Oshare Kei fandom is a CrapsaccharineWorld. Gets especially bad when Oshare fans flame metalheads or vice versa, because only the most rabid fans out of both communities want to engage in a FlameWar (the sane people and insane but nice people are tired of them), so the most abusive behavior is often a given.
!!UsefulNotes.VisualKei
* {{GIFT}}: The issue here is TheBeautifulElite meets SeriousBusiness. Quite a few people who have brand outfits, perfect makeup, and the like ''aren't'' interested in helping others improve and get to their point - but in harshly mocking them at best, and threatening their lives at worst. It even sometimes expands to hating on people ''in other genres'' for "not being real" or for "looking awful," even if the other genre is one that allows for their appearance.
!!UsefulNotes.VisualKei
* {{GIFT}}: It's ''everywhere.'' Once people learned how easy it was and is to start a fight, the genre and bands related to it became a favorite hangout for {{troll}}s, and similar. This is not helped by that the ''genre itself'' inherently supports one of the most bitter conflicts within Visual: IHatePastMe versus IJustWantToBeSpecial, as it features people who truly, deeply, ''bitterly'' hate Visual and people affiliated to it at points, yet also attracts people who ''like'' Visual or who are still into elements of it.
!!UsefulNotes.VisualKei
* {{GIFT}}: One of the worst places to find it, ''especially'' in regard to X Japan's fandom both in Japan and in the West, which presents nearly almost ''every'' group of people known to get into massive conflict, ironically passing the band's [[BarBrawl old reputation]] onto the fans on the internet. Conflicts can become [[ItsPersonal personal]] ''very'' quickly, there are active cyberstalkers and the like as well as garden-variety {{troll}}s It's not a friendly or safe place for ''many'' people as a result, and is quickly earning a reputation as a place where bullies and trolls run the show - despite that there's quite a lot of people who ''don't'' want to fight and want to peacefully coexist and be a part of the fandom. Other bands in the genre's fandoms have ''some'' problems with it, as well, but not as many people to cause problems and not as many "factions" based around various controversies.
!!UsefulNotes.{{Xbox360}}
The release of the Xbox 360 is truly when online gaming came into its own. While internet connectivity for console have existed in some form or another since TheNineties, it was the success of the 360 and its Xbox Live ecosystem that finally normalized online. Xbox Live has been praised for its large community and user-friendly friend management and game launching interface, and there's a large variety of content on offer for download. On the other hand, much of the multiplayer base has been characterized as [[{{GIFT}} juvenile and unfriendly]] and there's a relative dearth of free downloadable content, with the multiplayer service itself requiring a Gold membership unless a particular game (such as [[Creator/ElectronicArts EA Sports]] games) has its own subscription service.
!!VideoGame.ARKSurvivalEvolved
* {{GIFT}}: Lack of player conduct enforcement has caused this to rear its ugly head on many of official servers. Even on unofficial servers, whether [=PvP=] is turned on or off, if the moderators are not very active, or worse, are complicit, people tend to go in this direction.
** A notable instance in [=PvP=] is "offline raiding", where an assailant waits until the dead of the night when nobody is online to wreak havoc. ORP (Offline Raiding Prevention/Protection) servers have since been released, but only a handful.
** PvE is not spared either -- mysterious walls spring up around spawn points, trapping newcomers as player-built structures can't be damaged by other players.
** On some unofficial servers, mods will use their admin rights to give themselves high-level equipment and tames when the average research level is still low. This effectively allows them to lord over 'civilian' players.
** Another aggravating occurrence in PvE servers is when players who've established themselves in an area place pillars or foundations around an area without actually building anything off them. Because other players not in their tribe cannot build within a certain radius of each pillar/foundation, entire areas end up being blocked for player development. Especially unfair when coastal areas in the south, areas that are known to be the best places for newbies to spawn, are the exact places that are blocked off.
** On some official [=PvP=] servers, the Alpha Tribe (the most powerful tribe on the server) will use the above tactics to aggressively monopolize and dominate the server, crushing anyone not allied with them and pushing all other tribes off the server. The typical end goal is to turn the server into the tribe's home base, from which they can safely launch raids on other servers for supplies or low-risk [=PvP=].
!!VideoGame.AllPointsBulletin
* {{GIFT}}: This game seems to attract a good deal of whiny teenagers, trolls, idiots and "hardcore" "bro" gamers.
!!VideoGame.{{Blockland}}
* {{GIFT}}: Many experienced users are ridiculously mean to newer ones.The same thing can happen in reverse, with newer users being immature and ridiculously mean.
!!VideoGame.CantrII
* {{GIFT}}: A few layers of anonymity, starting with each persons character not being linked to their account. The second layer, comes with the even more anonymous ingame radio. DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything It has indeed been called 4-chan on the forum, generally by detractors. Very few lolcat pictures, but one instance of ASCII art. But this is perfect for couch warriors, trolls and other attention seekers to quickly get their fix, and stir up molehills.
!!VideoGame.CantrII
* RunningTheAsylum: As mentioned in the introduction, the creator has largely left the game, leaving it to some staff to manage things. Over time, this has resulted in what has been referred to as the [[DrunkWithPower Internet]] [[ScrewTheRulesIMakeThem Illness]]. Basically, any [[{{GIFT}}normal person getting a chance to live out their powertrip fantasies, and going for broke]]. HilarityEnsues
!!VideoGame.DarkAndShatteredLands
* {{GIFT}} and {{GIRL}}: People are rarely who they appear to be in the game, though some are better in real life and some are worse.
!!VideoGame.{{Destiny2}}
* FantasticDrug: The lore for the Jade Rabbit heavily implies that some of the Guardians' weirder behaviors (namely, constant dancing, [[{{GIFT}} toxic personalities]], and "hero moments," which are of course derived from real-life player behavior as the lore has done in the past) are the side effects of one of these, originally created by Daito as a form of antidepressant to deal with the crippling existential horror of being a resurrected warrior [[LaserGuidedAmnesia with no memory of their past life]] and the fear of death that arises from being conditionally immortal.
!!VideoGame.{{Dota2}}
* EarnYourFun: Getting into Dota 2 in a nutshell, perhaps of the TrialAndErrorGameplay variety. The developers have tried to alleviate some of this by introducing a tutorial mode, but it's a long and steep learning curve no matter how the game is played.
** Dota 2 is ''extremely'' complex, and calling the game 'unwelcome' would be an understatement. Simply learning the names or the ''existence'' of all heroes and items is important, perhaps even required, and can take a long time. Then there's learning how/when to use any of those things, how they all mesh together, and then actually putting it into practice and getting ''good'' at ''any'' of it (even one hero can take a while), all the while probably going through a ''lot'' of face-crushingly horrible games, to say nothing of learning what the current metagame is at any given point in time and dealing with {{GIFT}}. Put all of that together, and you've got yourself a game with one ''gigantic'' skill curve on your hands. However, once you can start directly contributing to your team winning games, you can ''finally'' find out why Dota 2 is widely regarded as one of the most fun & rewarding games on the planet.
** And some says that the true reward of playing Dota is to be able to "watch the game". Dota 2's professional matches are highly entertaining, with high-skilled plays, absurd teamfights, funny moments, and many little things that can only be appreciated by understanding the game itself.
!!VideoGame.{{Dota2}}
* LaserGuidedKarma: Stories abound where one team dominated the whole game, who then proceeded to TrashTalk and [[{{GIFT}} utterly humiliate the losing side]], only to make ''one'' critical mistake which allowed the other team to turn the table and win the game.
!!VideoGame.EVEOnline
''EVE'' occasionally pops up in the [[http://eve.klaki.net/heist/ gaming]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEx0eJutrG0 press]] (and sometimes the [[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7905924.stm?lss mainstream press]]) for extraordinary feats of sabotage, theft and other devious exploits carried out by a player or group of players. Feats like this, that might get the responsible group banned in about any other MMO, are legal gameplay in ''EVE''. ''EVE'' was in fact [[StartMyOwn created by former players]] of ''VideoGame/UltimaOnline'' in response to its restrictions on [[PlayerVersusPlayer PVP]] and [[{{Griefer}} Griefing]][[note]]such as Trammel, the notoriety system, labeling potions so you can't give newbies purple ones to watch 'em blow up, etc...[[/note]] - in other words, the main selling point of ''EVE'' is the ability to apply VideoGameCrueltyPotential to '''[[{{GIFT}} other players]].'''
!!VideoGame.EVEOnline
* InGameBankingServices: players proposed banking services though, [[{{GIFT}} as befits the universe]], ''all'' of them were frauds, [[https://forums-archive.eveonline.com/topic/142571 whether by conception or by execution]]: since players had no way to ensure the bankers would actually pay up capital and interest and the bankers themselves had no way to force debtors to pay up their loans, along with the fact the game had plenty of liquidities circulating, banking was simply unpractical for the time being.
!!VideoGame.{{Gift2001}}
Not to be confused with either {{GIFT}} or TheGift.
!!VideoGame.LeagueOfLegends
* PickUpGroup: Solo Queue. This game takes this UpToEleven since it's next to impossible to encounter players in ways besides queueing up and getting placed in a PickUpGroup with them (external forums and chatrooms nonwithstanding). New players starting out have no choice but to get randomly matched with others and a player will still have to team up with randoms quite a bit throughout their career. Thankfully it can be averted (or at least mitigated) by encountering friendly/skilled players and adding them as friends so that pre-made groups can enter queue to reduce the chance of running into leavers, feeders, or trolls. [[{{GIFT}} Unless of course said player is the leaver, feeder, or troll.]]
!!VideoGame.Left4Dead
* MessageBoard: Safe room graffiti really acts like this, although people who leave the safe room usually don't return. Ever.
** Referenced in one of the safe room graffiti, wherein [[{{GIFT}} a ton of "posters" mock]] an [[PurpleProse over-the-top, saccharine love epitaph]]. [[MemeticMutation Cool story bro!]]
** Lampshaded in another chain of graffiti, after a group of messages angrily respond to someone writing [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters "WE ARE THE REAL MONSTERS"]], one survivor simply writes "I miss the internet."
!!VideoGame.Left4Dead
* {{Griefer}}: Per {{GIFT}}, you're guaranteed to come across them in public matches.
** Playing as the infected is basically griefing the survivors ''[[RuleOfFun as the goal of the game.]]'' The griefers are getting their kicks from the game itself most of the time!
!!VideoGame.Left4Dead2
* {{Griefer}}: Per {{GIFT}}, you're guaranteed to come across them in public matches. The most common type of griefer are players that shoot their own teammates to death, which is ''extremely'' common on Expert difficulty games due to the sheer friendly fire damage.
** Playing as the infected is basically griefing the survivors ''[[RuleOfFun as the goal of the game.]]'' The griefers are getting their kicks from the game itself most of the time!
** The ''Room for One'' Mutation gametype defies the normal logic of the game by only allowing one survivor to escape and encouraging team killing.
!!VideoGame.MultiUserDungeon
* {{GIFT}} and {{GIRL}}: Both have been showing up since the game's early days.
!!VideoGame.{{Roblox}}
* {{GIFT}}: Justified, usually. It's a site aimed mainly towards kids, so most of the time they're just... y'know... being kids.
!!VideoGame.SC2Mafia
* {{GIFT}}: Usually rampant on the first day of each game, where in most cases nobody can be trialled, and in all cases everyone lacks hard evidence. ''Most'' players settle down after that.
!!VideoGame.SCPSecretLaboratory
* HellIsThatNoise: Your survival as a human depends on listening for the noises that your enemies make. Hearing footsteps as a scientist can easily make you paranoid in wondering if MTF has come to rescue you, or if it's SCP-939 patroling the only path to freedom. On the SCP side of things, hearing the sounds of 173s stone body sliding against the floor, 096s constant sobbing and screaming, and 049s slow but sharp foot steps closing in on you is bound to get some people anxious. [[NightmareRetardant On a less (or more) horrific note]], there's the sound of some asshole (read: [[{{GIFT}} nearly everyone who gets the chance]]) playing [[SensoryAbuse extremely loud music over the facility intercom and blowing out the eardrums of the entire server.]]
!!VideoGame.SaintsRowTheThird
* {{GIFT}}: Discussed in "http://deckers.die" during Matt Miller's AGodAmI moment; the Boss quickly replies that he's nothing but "a bitch with a keyboard" IRL.
!!VideoGame.{{Splatoon}}
* {{GIFT}}: {{Defied|Trope}}. According to WordOfGod, avoiding online toxicity is why online voice chat is not available.
!!VideoGame.{{Spore}}
* VideoGamePerversityPotential: [[FanNickname The community has come to call]] any deliberately obscene creature "[[{{Pun}} sporn]]". Fortunately, there is a function to report and ban any atrocity that you've managed to unwittingly download.
** SchmuckBait: The "Bad Baby!" Achievement, which required a creation of yours to get banned from the servers. Unsurprisingly, every {{GIFT}} and their mother created the stuff. It got so bad, ''the achievement was actually deleted''.
!!VideoGame.TheNamelessMod
* {{GIFT}}: The unregistered users act like this, according to their bio in the tutorial level.
!!VideoGame.{{Transformice}}
* ItAmusedMe: It might as well be named ''Trolling: The Game''. [[note]]Though later updates have really started to crack down on the {{GIFT}} in action, which has been met with [[BrokenBase about as well as you'd expect]] considering {{Troll}}s were the game's main players during alpha and early beta. [[{{Griefer}} Griefing]] is still possible and allowed, but nowhere ''near'' as prevalent as it was in earlier versions of the game.[[/note]]
!!VideoGame.UltimaOnline
The first widespread commercial success in {{MMORPG}}s, first released in 1997 by Creator/OriginSystems. Developed based on Richard Garriott's ''VideoGame/{{Ultima}}'' series of games. Initially intended for each server to host roughly 300 players the game garnered unexpectedly huge numbers. Notable for its classless and level free skill based system whereby you could create a character with any combination of skills and gained power by using them. Instead of slaughtering monsters to raise your magic skill you used magic. Using a sword would raise your swordsmanship. Also notable was the game's emphasis on [[WideOpenSandBox Sandbox]] gameplay. Little overarching storyline existed. Player freedom and enforcement of good behavior was expected. Unfortunately the developers didn't [[{{GIFT}} realize what they were in for]]. Approximately 1% of their total playerbase rampaged through the game world slaughtering other players by the thousands. They got around this by creating a mirror world called Trammel where PVP was heavily restricted.
!!VideoGame.UltimaOnline
* {{Griefer}} - This game was legendary for how griefer-friendly it was in the old days, mainly due to the designers being unaware of the {{GIFT}} before they loosed the public on it. See also: TheGreatPlayerVersusPlayerDebate.
!!VideoGame.VacationSimulator
* TakeThat: The fact book states that, if you printed all of the comments of [[Website/YouTube BotTube]] and laid it end-to-end, the paper would stretch to the sun and back around 20 times and notes the value of the paper is worth much more than the [[{{GIFT}} comments]].
!!VideoGame.WatchDogs
* {{GIFT}}:
** [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] InUniverse - people are often pretty horrible and self-centered when they think no-one's listening.
** The Online Hacking targets can fall squarely into this trope. A lot of them seem to take great joy in taunting their victims via text message.
!!VideoGame.WelcomeToTheGameII
* {{GIFT}}: Played with, in that this is the deep web and relatively few "normal" people have access to it. The opening scene with Amalea involves a vote for whether she should live or die, while she's visibly terrified and fleeing for her life. The vote is ''overwhelmingly'' for her to be killed, and the chat of the stream will be populated mostly with requests for body parts to be sent to them, or talking about how well they get off to what's going on. That being said, the game still provides some people who vote "live" and the chat will occasionally have messages like "contacting the police/FBI" or "you guys are sick" pop up, showing that EveryoneHasStandards.
!!VideoGameCrueltyPotential.MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGames
-->You have shown me the face of true evil, <player name>
** The Horde version of the War of the Thorns storyline in ''Battle for Azeroth'' has a quest where you team up with Lorash, an undead blood elf assassin, and help him sack Astranaar by marking the night elf guards so he can kill them. You can also mark the vendors, [[DevelopersForesight causing him to comment that he likes your coldness]]. Also, killing them ''is'' the canon course of action; if you play the Alliance version, you're told that the civilians weren't spared.
** The Alliance version of the quest chain in Silithus in 8.0 has you murder goblin workers in cold blood. Since you're technically speaking not at war yet, and Silithus is neutral territory, this is pretty bad.
** If you actually think about it, the extremely popular Deadmines dungeon is very cruel. These poor guys just want to get paid for rebuilding your sweet capital city. And if you're that rogue who pickpockets them but leaves them alive (you know who you are) then you are really quite a scumbag. Seriously, those people have families! The ''Cataclysm'' version lampshades it by having the daughter of the original final boss return (so not only were you a douche, but you weren't that smart about it; NiceJobBreakingItHero)
** The entire Death Knight starter area plays with this trope. It is played straight at first when you mark targets to be taken down by poison arrows. The game also lets you murder the workers to your heart's content. You are supposed to be in the Scourge, after all. It is subverted later in that, according to their dialog, what you're doing to the Scarlet Crusaders is not as bad as what their superiors do to them. Given that you are at one point sticking them with a magical brand until they faint, this is perhaps the most disturbing part of this whole extremely disturbing area. Given the looks of the place that you rescue Koltira Deathweaver from later, this claim is believable. But the trope is then played straight later on when you mercilessly mow down an entire army of Crusaders with their own cannon. Even later, the questline has you demonstrate your loyalty by killing an Argent Dawn NPC who is set up as your best friend.
** As long as a player is flagged for [=PVP=], they can attack [=NPCs=] of the opposite faction with impunity. Of course, [[{{GIFT}} some]] [[{{Griefer}} players]] [[ForTheEvulz delight]] in such behavior.
!!VisualNovel.ChaosHead
* {{GIFT}}: Takumi is a memer who can be pretty mean and arrogant on the internet, when in reality he's a passive, paranoid and quiet teen with social anxiety who rarely can get a word in edgewise in conversations.
!!VisualNovel.DigitalALoveStory
* {{GIFT}}: Even before the rise of boards dedicated to being total pricks, there were stupid people on the internet, as exemplified by a fan of ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' and how he thinks [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration this new bald guy is a complete pussy, compared to Kirk]], a black hat hacker desperately trying to convince the rest of the board that he and his mates won a hacking war, and some kid who thinks he's got everything figured out and lectures the board on how JapanTakesOverTheWorld... and can't tell the difference [[WhatAnIdiot between Chinese and Japanese.]]
!!VisualNovel.REAlistair
* {{GIFT}}: Merui can't immediately rule out any of the guys as Alistair because, as she acknowledges, people who are nice in real life might very well cut loose and act like jerks online. [[spoiler:It's not actually true of any of the three guys: Shiro in his [=FionaWings=] persona is a voice of reason and a friend to Merui; Travis is, if anything, more polite online than he is in person, and Derek genuinely is that much of a jerk (unless his feelings for Merui redeem him), it's just hidden beneath a charming front.]]
!!VisualNovel.SteinsGate
* {{GIFT}}: While Hououin Kyouma and John Titor basically act the same as their real-world counterparts, [=KuriGohan=] is sarcastic, vulgar and condescending.
!!VisualNovel.SteinsGate
* ShoutOut:
** Daru's dialogue is occasionally peppered with references to various anime and video games, and before the group manages to settle on D-Mail as the name of their time machine, some of the names they come up with reference ''Anime/TheGirlWhoLeaptThroughTime'' and ''Film/BackToTheFuture''. His usual response to Okabe's more outlandish demands is even "[[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureDiamondIsUnbreakable But I refuse!]]".
** Immediately as Suzuha introduces herself to Okabe in an [[TotallyRadical incredibly outdated manner]], he commented on how [[TimeStandsStill time itself has stopped moving]], as if somebody had just activated [[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure The World]]. As he does this, a negative filter washes over the background behind Suzuha.
** [[Anime/MobileFighterGGundam Shining Finger]], Moeka Kiryuu's nickname, given by Okabe. The first person to directly point out the reference, complete with the "My hand glows with an awesome power" line, is Daru, who is voiced by none other than [[Creator/TomokazuSeki Domon Kasshu]] himself.
** The name "D-Mail" was thought up after Mayuri came up with "[[Film/BackToTheFuture Delorean]] Mail".
** In the visual novel, Kurisu mentions as one of the impossibilities of time travel the sheer amount of energy it would take to move at light speeds would almost certainly be at least [[Film/BackToTheFuture 1.21 gigawatts]].
** Suzuha says, [[Film/TheGoonies "Heeey You Guuuuys!"]] near the start of the series.
** Faris makes a mention in episode 2 of [[Anime/MobileFighterGGundam months of harsh training in the Guyana Highlands and the death of her master.]] The dub adds another one right after -- "[[WesternAnimation/HeManAndTheMastersOfTheUniverse1983 I have the power!]]"
*** Also in episode 2, the dub has Kurisu make a mention of [[Series/DoctorWho time-jumping in a blue police box]] leading up to her lecture.
*** In the same episode 2, when Okabe runs a web search about John Titor, one of the results is titled "John Smith" and tells something about "[[LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya Suzumiya Hahi...]]".
** Kurisu's "One more word and I'll make your neocortex into a flower pot!" line may come from the MO of the first barcode killer of ''Manga/MPDPsycho''.
** Okabe mentions "Maybe you should make an [[{{GIFT}} APA analysis]] on [[Website/FourChan /b/]]". It's changed in the dub to him suggesting that she's checking out her [[{{Website/Reddit}} AMA threads]].
** Kurisu comments in the dub if Okabe "could be any more of a [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Wesley]]". He teases her about this after realizing what she just said. In the sub, she quotes [[Manga/DeathNote Yagami Light]] instead.
** In Episode 12, Okabe says in the dub that Suzuha won the cake unfairly. Quote, "Therefore, [[VideoGame/{{Portal}} the cake is a lie]]!"
** In the VN, Okabe accuses Suzuha of being an Organization assassin - code name: [[Manga/{{Golgo 13}} Miss Golgo]].
** The future gadgets are inspired by whatever game or anime Okabe and Daru were watching; such as ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'', ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'', and ''Franchise/LupinIII''.
** The English dub of the anime references ''Film/{{Airplane}}'' when Okabe attempts to talk "street" to someone in an alley, who promptly responds by apologizing that he doesn't speak jive.
** During Suzuha's ending in the visual novel, she references ''Film/GroundhogDay'' by name, explaining that one of the few forms of entertainment available in SERN's dystopian future is watching old movies.
** At the end of Mayuri's route in the ''Hiyoku Renri no Darling'' spin-off, Daru wants to name Okabe's child "[[LightNovel/{{Oreimo}} Kuroneko]]". Which is doubly amusing considering [[Creator/KanaHanazawa Mayuri's seiyuu]].
** In the VN, one of the users in the @channel chat with Titor says this:
!!WMG.AvatarTheLastAirbenderBending
* Thought - telepathic communication. Can influence, though not control, other people's thoughts, or just plain talk to them over long distances. They can talk telepathically to nonbenders, though only thoughtbenders can initiate contact. Thoughtbenders are very valuable for every army as messengers and coordinators. They may work as therapists or psychiatrists. A secondary power might be dreambending. They could psych out the enemy with horrible nightmares, or get paid to provide wonderful dreams of your choice. (Culture?)
** I'm leaning towards some sort of Native American culture.
** This troper was thinking more of a Russain-communist culture, but one that actually works. See, the thought benders are very dangerous, with the ability to bend people's wills and all. If one were to go rogue, that would mean big trouble for the world. So the thought benders are all constantly kept in check via a hive mind of the entire nation as one. They are philosophers and thinkers, constantly analyzing and speculating the world at large to come up with more knowledge - like an entire nation of WMG. They seem stoic and cold from an outside perspective, but that's only because they experience conflicts and emotion on a deeper level. Thought is the element of control.
*** This society combined with the ability to communicate in groups over vast distances would create a sort of "internet culture", where there are drawbacks to the reduced individuality, but the anonymity and equality makes everyone more at ease and more willing to share their true opinions ([[{{GIFT}} though this might not always be a good thing.]]) A nation like this might be rather isolationist, because anyone who couldn't participate in their giant group debates would be of little interest to them. They could develop a class system, though, where the farmers/laborers have no time to contribute to this nationwide forum.
!!WMG.HarryPotterGovernment
* It's worth noting, in all this FanWank, that there's something not taken into account, and that's that, while a Wizard might be more than a match for a muggle with a gun, a muggle with a highpowered sniper rifle firing on a wizard who doesn't know he's even around is probably going to come out on top. Even if a shield charm stopped every bullet ever, and you could get it up before someone could shoot, you're not going to be able to stop a bullet from someone you don't even know exists.
** This also goes the other way around; the Muggle with the high-powered sniper rifle is equally defenseless against a wizard who's scouted the area (magic would probably help a lot in finding a hidden sniper if you think it's a good precaution to check) and sneaks up behind him. This actually works against the WMG, however; all the wizards who would want to counquer the muggle world don't have this sense, they're too busy feeling superior to think about doing anything about the muggle with a gun than stand in front of him. The kind of wizard that's of the right mind to learn how the muggle world ticks and make this situation work for him would have no interest in doing so.
*** According to the epilogue, there is a Supersensory Charm.
*** Magic in Literature/HarryPotter actually has a hard time detecting non-magical objects. But this discussion is CompletelyMissingThePoint: There are about 10000 muggles for one wizard and those are '''definitely''' not the odds the Wizarding World wants to face. A wizard with a wand will not win over 10000 muggles with guns. A HP wizard is definitely not strong enough for that, so they defer to secrecy.
*** Mind you, ''all'' wizards can use magic, when all muggles are not soldiers...
*** It is equally ludicrous to suggest that all wizards both could and would use either lethal magics, or other spells combat-effectively:
*** Outside of duelling clubs and secret DADA lessons, even the ability to cast Shield Charms and Stunning Hexes is far from universal - remember in Book 7 the Ministry ordering 300 Shield Hats from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, and how they were "still getting massive orders" [[note]](as well as their other Defence stuff being "such a money-spinner")[[/note]]? I'd compare it to much like how in RL, attendance of self-defence training is far from universal...
*** As such, I imagine well below 50% of the wizarding population would be willing to actively seek out opportunities to fight, the rest would... hide and try to avoid being found/drawing attention to themselves? You know, like they did in their houses during Voldemort's reign, and how they still currently do from the Muggles under the Statute of Secrecy, with massive obscuration and mind-affecting (e.g. Muggle-repelling) charms?
*** Therefore, wizarding behaviour is quite realistically plausible within known facets of human nature, even without conspiracies from the top. Most humans simply aren't personally interested in war (or at least, [[WarIsHell all the nasty practical things that would come with]]), and would prefer peace (or at least, comfortable safe(r) lives) - even when they have personal hatreds.
*** Extending on this logic, in a bit of a sidetrack just for the fun of it - in a way, the Death Eaters' cloaks and masks were probably also a large part of their success, just as much as the Dark Mark, as they allowed members to act on their prejudices and hatreds ''without'' facing personal consequences and retribution (much like the KKK, perhaps, although I don't claim much historical knowledge - or like a nastier and more serious version of the {{GIFT}}).
*** Also, remember Moody's Foe-Glass? It seems actually quite ''simple'' to detect threats and enemies. It never says that the glass only detects wizards, and why would it? And this kind of magic surely can exist in spell form, or at least in more portable form.
** A related idea: A wizard builds his wand into a shotgun, thus enchanting every shot fired with a spell. An Avada Kedavra blast would mean that every little piece of buckshot carries an instant-death curse. This would be bad.
*** Yep. But it would be much harder for him to cast lots of other stuff. Even the darkest wizard wouldn't deprive himself of a shield charm.
!!WMG.JohnDiesAtTheEnd
The current version of the universe that John and Dave inhabit has realistic and exaggerated war-game simulations that people can "play" simply by buying an electronic box and some media discs. This system may have developed some form of internet-based interactivity system in a later rewrite of the universe, creating a culture of [[{{GIFT}} nigh-sociopathic pseudonymous children]] with [[AGodAmI varying grades of megalomania]] from which a member was flung back in spirit to the early 20th century where he (or she or it) inhabited a rudimentary biological ArtificialIntelligence. This would help explain why Korrok not only [[AliensSpeakingEnglish uses "local" slang and epithets when overshadowing or talking directly to teens from John's and Dave's world, but also in what seems to be its daily life]].
!!WMG.NineteenEightyFour
* Observe that Big Brother is powered by the {{GIFT}}, like [[ComicBook/VForVendetta V]], although he uses it for pure power...
!!WMG.NineteenEightyFour
To be more precise, V for Vendetta takes place during the Revolution. V's killings are in fact nothing more than the elimination of political enemies. Sutler is Goldstein, and after Sutler's, Creedy's, and V's deaths, someone else claims to be V, fills in the power vacuum using the power of the {{GIFT}} and becomes Big Brother. Remember that both V and Big Brother are powered by the {{GIFT}}, and The Party in the movie version of ''1984'' also uses the letter V as its symbol. Winston may or may not be a descendant of Sutler (or [[ActorAllusion John Hurt]]).
!!WMG.RalphBreaksTheInternet
Through one way or another, the heroes [[TrappedInTVLand get sucked into the world wide web]], and get bounced around various {{Expy}}s of famous online games, like VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft, VideoGame/TeamFortress2, VideoGame/CallOfDuty[=/=]VideoGame/{{Battlefield}}, etc., with Ralph and his crew often going various {{ArtShift}}s with the games ([[UnusuallyUninterestingSight often getting written off as either]] [[VirtualPaperDoll avatars made from in-game customization, or fan-based modding]]). The main conflict will arise with having to deal with players who have cases of {{GIFT}} ([[{{Bowdlerise}} there's no cursing or sexual content, naturally]], but the intent to annoy or bully other players would be at the forefront - some of it PlayedForLaughs {{Troll}}ing, others being [[DarkerAndEdgier considerably more nasty]], [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain like mocking certain players for being foreign, handicapped, etc.]]), and eventually allying with underdog players who want to stop these {{Troll}}s from ruining their games. An overall BigBad may be an {{Expy}} of Youtube's infamous "[[BigBrotherIsWatching Content ID]]" system, [[GoneHorriblyWrong which goes haywire and starts to tear the very internet apart]], EldritchAbomination style - and since EverythingIsOnline, that doesn't just threaten games, but virtually the entire world!
!!WMG.RealLife
See the WMG/TVTropes WMG entries and there are some theories that TV Tropes will grow up to become a LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya -like RealityWarper. TV Tropes might have the ability to predict fiction and influence outcomes, but the fact is, however, TV Tropes is just a wiki that is mostly for fiction, unlike others that are mostly empirical such as Google, Yahoo and Wikipedia. The Internet as a collective, on the other hand, can also process empirical FACT. The Internet do this by absorbing our intellect through Forums, {{Flame War}}s, ordinary blogging, online encyclopedias such as the freely-edited Those Other Wikis such as Wikipedia, etc. while providing us with the {{GIFT}} of anonymity and freedom from bodily discrimination (like Ad Hominem attacks). Also, machines are being connected over the Internet, and almost everything from marketing to dialogue is done over the Internet. As more and more humans are assimilated into its collective, it is highly likely that the Internet's ability to influence outcomes using both fiction and pre-existing empirical fact (aka processing data) will [[TheSingularity evolve, merge with Humanity, gain the ability to control reality and merge with the natural unconsciousness, finally creating the all-powerful]] [[Anime/SerialExperimentsLain Wired]].
!!WMG.RealLife
[[WMG: The [[{{GIFT}} anonymity]] provided by the Internet is a part of a GambitRoulette by [[Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion Seele]] as an [[AssimilationPlot Instrumentality]] attempt]]
!!WMG.RealLife
[[WMG: [[Website/FourChan Anonymous]] was originally created by [[ComicBook/VForVendetta V]] as an aid in his quest to spread [[{{GIFT}} Anarchy]]....]]
!!WMG.RealLife
* Please tell me you did not just do that.
** We all do it, when you see the internet you are actually facing a TomeOfEldritchLore which serves as a guide to an AssimilationPlot where your identity is changed to IAmLegion which in turn gives you the feeling of AGodAmI and allows you do anything ForTheEvulz and get away with it like bashing identity-exploiting ideologies such as Scientology. This.... is called The {{GIFT}}.
!!WMG.SerialExperimentsLain
* Let me explain. The anime gives references to the Internet, the Schumann Resonance (Earth's electromagnetic field) and man's ability to produce psychic power when wired together. Over time, as we are getting more and more addicted to technology, it influences the nature of Earth (from green nature utopia to a wired CrapsackWorld), so somehow we are either just complete jerks worshipping cyberspace, or somehow our psychic powers are being harnessed by cyberspace, giving it the ability to influence the world. The best example would be Wiki/TVTropes itself, which has the power to influence fiction even though it is just a wiki with [[EpilepticTrees over-the-top theories]].
** If SEL was real, then there would be the EldritchAbomination that is Lain Iwakura, who is watching us masturbate.
*** Lain isn't real, since the Wired of RealLife is still too weak to invade human privacy directly (the internet still feeds on second-hand psionic power, NOT from living souls, and there's the problem about China). Cyberspace can influence matter and events, but not man's power of free will (unless somebody hacked China's great firewall and acquired massive psychic potential from the most populous people on earth....).
*** Cyberspace (Wired) doesn't just lack the ability to limit free will, in fact it gives man [[{{GIFT}} too much free will]]......
*** That would be a perfect example of limiting human free will. That multiple people assume the same behaviour-pattern out of perceived sense of anonymity is a demonstration of how the loss of self-identity can cause people to act more like a JerkAss collective than individuals in control of themselves.
!!WMG.SerialExperimentsLain
The WMG: The real BigBad of the entire plot isn't Eiri, but Anonymous, being the dominant IAmLegion entity that he is. Lain might be the collective anthropomorphic manifestation of Anonymous' own creation, the Lolcats. Obviously, Lain, who actually watched Arisu masturbate and is also the God of the Wired, is Ceiling Cat. In the SEL Universe, Eiri is a member of Anonymous. Consumed by the power of the {{GIFT}}, he tried to use both his psychological knowledge of the collective unconscious and his knowledge with computers to access the collective unconscious and personify it into Lain / Ceiling Cat. Through Lain / Ceiling Cat, they will preach the message of anonymity, and [[BiblicalMotifs maketh anonymous disciples of all nations]]. However, Lain sacrificed herself to forgive our sins and prevent the awakening of Anonymous from the nether abyss. If Eiri and Anonymous succeeded, however, through the collective unconscious Eiri will awaken Anonymous from his abyssal slumber as a group of anonymous kids over Website/FourChan into an actual [[TheLegionsOfHell Legion of Demonic Invaders from Hell]] [[ApocalypseHow who will purge]] [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the world with]] [[FireAndBrimstoneHell fire, brimstone]] [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and endless memes]] and can only be identified and expected through this quote: ''[[IAmLegion I Am Legion, For We Are, Many]]''........
!!WMG.TVTropes
* Maybe it's because you can confess and remain anonymous. Call it {{GIFT}} [[JustForFun/XMeetsY meets]] RuleThirtyFour.
!!WMG.TheBible
[[WhatAnIdiot He]] [[CuriosityKilledTheCast who]] [[BiblicalMotifs goeth to]] [[WretchedHive /b/]] [[GoMadFromTheRevelation shall go mad]] [[{{GIFT}} from the]] [[{{Squick}} sinfulness]]. [[BloodyBowelsOfHell Beneath this]] [[FireAndBrimstoneHell fiery lake of immorality]] [[SpeakOfTheDevil is Anonymous]], [[IAmLegion The Legions]] [[TheLegionsOfHell Of Hell]] [[SealedEvilInACan which is waiting to be]] [[OhCrap unleasheth]] [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt for the end of times]] ([[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and your reputation]]).
!!WMG.TheStrangeCaseOfDrJekyllAndMrHyde
The whole Mr Hyde personality is him exploring his more malevolent side without fear of consequence. However, thanks to the [[{{GIFT}} anonymity of the Internet, he could easily just go on the most horrific parts of the Internet and enjoy personal consequence free mayhem.]]
!!WMG.TwitchPlaysPokemonRed
Because he can't see, he uses his voices (The Mob) as a sort of guide around the region. [[{{GIFT}} This being the Mob that's guiding him,]] It likely wasn't a good idea.
!!WMG.VForVendetta
* Alternatively, since [[TheRevolutionWillNotBeVilified The Revolution]] [[{{GIFT}} Of Anonymous People]] [[TheRevolutionWillNotBeVilified Will Not Be Vilified]], the anonymous V's in the film or Evey in the graphic novel become Big Brother (it is also possible that the Proles also remained in anarchy or merged with V and the Revolution, since in 1984 proles and animals are free). The people who opted for a totalitarian state were just given what they wanted: a totalitarian state turned UpToEleven. Oh, and Winston Smith is supposed to be a replacement Evey.
!!WMG.VForVendetta
[[{{GIFT}} Well because people will be inspired by V's anonymity and with that anonymity, will do what Anonymous does]]. After all, Norsefire or No Norsefire, HumansAreBastards.
!!WarpThatAesop.LiveActionTV
* "iMeetFred": If you share your opinion and it makes everyone overreact, you're wrong and deserve to be beaten up with a tennis racket.
** It is perfectly okay to ostracize others for [[OpinionMyopia their unpopular opinions]] [[{{GIFT}} just ask anyone on the Internet]].
!!WarpThatAesop.{{Tropes}}
* CausticCritic:
** Critics who give out abrasive and scathing reviews on works are hilarious!
** The best way to win views on the Internet is to act like a PsychopathicManchild [[OpinionMyopia who thinks their opinion is above everyone else's]]. Bonus points if it's not even an act, and [[{{GIFT}} you really are a Psychopathic Manchild who thinks their opinion is above everyone else]].
!!WarpThatAesop.{{Tropes}}
* {{GIFT}}, {{Griefer}}, InternetToughGuy, and {{Troll}}:
** Being a total douchebag on the internet is fun, especially when you'll never get in trouble for it like in real life.
** If someone insults, harasses, or antagonizes you on the internet, don't bother get offended, otherwise you're just a whiny sensitive little bitch who deserves more abuse and bullying online.
!!WarpThatAesop.{{Tropes}}
* WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings: The number of [[{{GIFT}} angry]] {{man child}}ren on TheInternet will never change, and as such no website should ever allow its users to have privileges. Ever.
!!WeAreNotAlone.TropesEToL
* {{GIFT}}: [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_disinhibition_effect Online disinhibition effect]]
!!WebAnimation.BurntFaceMan
* {{GIFT}}: Burnt Face Man tries hiding out on an internet forum from [[ItMakesSenseInContext enraged snail worshippers]], but is promptly banned by the forum's obnoxious members.
!!WebAnimation.DotDotDot
* FreezeFrameBonus: A review by [=Axman13=] [[spoiler:[[TakeThat years]] [[{{GIFT}} old]]]].
** GO AHEAD! I don't care! [[spoiler: [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial Yes I do. :(]]]]
** Q: the athore coments al totol lies! A: [[spoiler: [[EvenTheSubtitlerIsStumped what the]] [[CurseCutShort fuc--]]]]
!!WebAnimation.ExtraCredits
* {{GIFT}}: Not by name, but the episode "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dt9GwmOWoqo Harassment]]" lays out some ideas on how these people can be expunged from the gaming community. The later episode "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9A8VJBh_Yc Toxicity]]" discusses the way people treat each other online, including this.
!!WebAnimation.ResidentEvilMusicals
* TakeThat: Many examples.
** The ''Teh Stream'' series has a number of targets of this, mainly involving {{GIFT}}'s and Social Justice Warriors.
** There are some videos in which the author expresses her hatred towards the newer games, these videos consist of her curb-stomping the main cast of these games into oblivion while triumphant music plays on the background. ''No Hope Left'' even has a segment where the author laments about how {{Creator/CAPCOM}} has turned the franchise into crap at the expense of their fans to get money from the ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' audience.
** One scene from the 6th episode of ''Survivor'' has the cast complaining about the author adding more characters to the mix and not caring about her old ones. She justifies their treatment by claiming she has learned with the best ({{Creator/CAPCOM}}).
!!WebOriginal.TendiesStories
* DarkerAndEdgier: In early stories, Anon wasn't too violent and the worst he would get was assaulting his mother with his body waste. As the time went on however, [[{{GIFT}} as is usually the case with 4chan]], the stories became progressively darker, with Anon getting more cruel and sociopathic in many of them, and often including themes of murder, rape, or suicide.
!!WebVideo.AFK
* {{GIFT}}: This behavior sadly translates across into the world which the gamers find themselves in, as the more sociopathic ones are only too happy to kill and rob others there as well.
!!WebVideo.AskASlave
* {{GIFT}}: The comments section of each and every video seems to attract this, to one degree or another. Parodied in one of the second-season videos, where people commenting from home attack Lizzie Mae from every conceivable angle, but then just start quarrelling with each other.
!!WebVideo.CrashCourse
* AcceptablePoliticalTargets: John pretty much [[InvokedTrope declares open season]] on any slavery apologetics in the comments section of the Slavery video. [[{{GIFT}} This did nothing to stop them from descending on the comments section like a swarm.]]
** He also takes a few potshots at UsefulNotes/VladimirPutin.
** The episode of World History on nationalism and the Meiji Restoration has him directly proclaiming that he likes paying taxes towards public education because he "doesn't like living in a country with stupid people".
!!WebVideo.DarkSimpsons
* {{GIFT}}: {{Subverted|Trope}} in "Seymour Butts", where Bart is sent to Moe's - which he prank called just before - to pick up Homer. Moe was instantly able to recognize Bart's voice from the prank calls, and shoots him on the spot.
!!WebVideo.DarkSimpsons
* {{Troll}}: {{Deconstructed|Trope}} in "Seymour Butts", where Bart is sent to Moe's - which he prank called earlier - to pick up Homer. Moe immediately recognizes his voice and shoots him on the spot. While this may be the LogicalExtreme of what may happen, this isn't too unexpected an outcome of when trolls are forced to confront the people they've antagonized, without [[{{GIFT}} the protection of anonymity]].
!!WebVideo.DarksideOfTheInternet
* AnAesop:
** Don't give in to {{GIFT}}! [[spoiler:(if you would do it in the real world too, congratulations! You're a complete {{Jerkass}}!)]]
** Also: NewMedia [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools are tools]].
!!WebVideo.DarksideOfTheInternet
* {{Documentary}}: This time, it is. It touches on several subjects, including:
** ActorRoleConfusion
** {{GIFT}}
** InternetToughGuy
!!WebVideo.DigimanzTheAdventureToo
* SpaceWhaleAesop: Dissatisfied with the video almost being over without any real resolution, T.K. demands that each of the Digi-Destined come up with AnAesop each learned in the video, regardless of whether it actually related to what happened.
** T.K. decides that he learned teamwork is important.
** Kari learned that actions speak louder than words.
** Cody learned that he has to orient himself to hope. Considering [[TraumaCongaLine what he had to go through]], nobody can blame him.
** Ken ended up being too busy dealing with his evaporated blood to contribute.
** Yolei screams that you shouldn't "[[BrickJoke blow loads]]" when you're angry.
** Davis learned that the InternetToughGuy {{Troll}}s the {{GIFT}} creates can often leak into the real world by inspiring people to be cruel even without the safety of internet anonymity, and the best way to fight this is to be more understanding of other human beings. [[spoiler:Which is why more people should be having sex. [[ContemplateOurNavels Also, when a woman puts a fleshlight into her body, does that make her a lesbian?]]]]
!!WebVideo.FiftyWaysToDieInMinecraft
* TakeThat:
** Death 13 in part 1 happens when Redstone Ned watches the Franchise/StarWars holiday special. It happens again in the Christmas edition.
** Death 24 in part 3 is "Working for [[Creator/ElectronicArts EA Games]]", where a worker dies of overexertion after being forced to work day and night without sleep.
** Death 34 in part 3 is "Standing Between a Wild Creator/{{Activision}} and a Nickel", where a businessman, making a very animalistic growling noise, slaughters someone [[{{Greed}} for the reason stated above]].
** Death 9 in part 4 is caused by [=YouTube=] [[{{GIFT}} hate comments]].
** Death 17 in part 4 occurs after [=JayRiott=] references two Nintendo games back to back, leading to a "short-sighted money grab" copyright strike. This was before the company became more lenient with their [=IPs=].
** Death 20 in part 5 is "LA Traffic", where someone waits in gridlocked traffic for so long that they decompose into a skeleton.
** Death 8 in part 6 boils down to "Liking [[Franchise/StarWars Jar Jar Binks]]". Uniquely, this is one both against his fans and haters. The fan is [[TheDitz portrayed by Stu]] and the hater came in and killed him with a lightsaber simply because Stu stated that [[DisproportionateRetribution he found Jar Jar funny in his own home with no one else in sight]].
** Death 39 in part 6 is a jab at long, unskippable [=YouTube=] ads (specifically ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' ones). For good measure, there's a quick jab at how the animators didn't even lip sync all of the character's syllables.
** Death 24 in part 7 is a jab against annoying people on the Internet who put others down for not beating ThatOneBoss on their first try.
** Death 31 in part 8 is one against the dialogue of ''VideoGame/MinecraftStoryMode''.
** Death 14 in the Halloween edition is one against Creator/{{EA Games}}, referring to its CEO's smile as "a truly cursed image".
!!WebVideo.JohnnyReviewsTonight
* {{GIFT}}: Shown briefly in the VideoGame/{{Portal 2}} review.
!!WebVideo.JustBetweenUs
* {{GIFT}}[=/=]HateDumb: Alluded to in "Don't Read The Comments", where Allison and Gaby become paranoid about how they come across, even though the whole point of the show is that they're parodying their real selves.
!!WebVideo.MuppetViralVideos
* PopUpTexting: "Beaker's Ballad" has [[NoFourthWall internet comments appearing in the air next to him]], really tormenting him, and [[{{GIFT}} laughing as he gets set on fire]].
!!WebVideo.OutsideXbox
* {{GIFT}}: Discussed in a roundabout way with [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hk8x0a0K9uw "7 Things Bound to Happen When You Play Healer"]], where Ellen and Luke list off examples from popular games about how players treat their support characters (which is to say, as if they were gravel underneath their boots).
!!WebVideo.{{React}}
* MsFanservice: The series has had many beautiful reactors through the years (even inspiring [[https://www.reddit.com/r/reactgirls/ their own]] [[Website/{{Reddit}} sub-Reddit]], which [[{{GIFT}} for]] [[PaedoHunt obvious reasons]] [[EveryoneHasStandards has a tough stance on comments]]), but the ones who occasionally turn up in revealing clothes (e.g shirts that are sleeveless, with plunging necklines, or/and [[FormFittingWardrobe just plainly tight]]) and are generally appealing/popular to the male ([[EvenTheGirlsWantHer and even female]]) fanbase are/were Alix, Becca, Blair Fowler, Brittany, Haley, Izzy, Jayka[[note]]who even got a MaleGaze from a male reactor onscreen[[/note]], [[OneSteveLimit the second]] [[GenderBlenderName female]] Jordan, Kaelyn, Lia, [[OneSteveLimit the older and original]] Madison, Marlhy, Mikaela, [[OneSteveLimit the third and oldest]] Morgan, Rachel, Riley, Sabrina D., Sophia, [[OneSteveLimit the older and original]] Sydney, Tori, and Justine Ezarik.
!!WebVideo.SwordArtOnlineAbridged
* BeleagueredBoss:
** Heathcliff is the leader of the most powerful guild in the game. Unfortunately, most players are extremely representative of the worst [[LeeroyJenkins stereotypes]] [[{{Griefer}} of MMO]] [[LootDrama players]] ([[{{GIFT}} the protagonist included]]), causing him no end of headaches. [[spoiler:Their idiocy plays a part in his VillainousBreakdown, although Kirito points out that someone who plays a multiplayer game with permanent invulnerability has no place criticizing others dying stupid deaths.]]
!!WebVideo.SwordArtOnlineAbridged
* CoolAndUnusualPunishment: What Schmitt's more... "verbose" commenters have threatened to inflict on him for his video-game reviews back in the real world. Nothing out of the ordinary, given the rule of {{GIFT}}, but the nature of the Death Game within Aincrad leaves him ProperlyParanoid that they might find him and make good on their threats. Using his spine as a pitching wedge and hacking off all of his limbs to ride him "like some kind of meat toboggan" are just two of the inventive ways they've threatened him in the past.
!!WebVideo.TJAProjects
* HeterosexualLifePartners: TJ and Amy.
** Both in-game and out-of-game. After [[{{GIFT}} a viewer reported them to child services]], the two purportedly had problems convincing them that they weren't a couple.
!!WebVideo.TheReviewers
%% * PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Rickhead. Because {{GIFT}}.
!!Webcomic.BugMartini
* {{GIFT}}: [[http://www.bugmartini.com/comics/buy-for-an-eye/ Much popular than]] [[EyeScream gouging one's eyes out.]]
!!Webcomic.KidRadd
* {{GIFT}}: Very much present in the chatrooms where Radd serves as an avatar. He's rather dismayed at the immaturity and rudeness used in those conversations.
!!Webcomic.{{Nedroid}}
* {{GIFT}}: Implied in the AltText of [[http://nedroid.com/2011/11/whats-in-a-name/ this strip]]--Beartato's new name will be chosen by internet poll, and turns out to be "Fartballs".
!!Webcomic.PennyArcade
* {{GIFT}}: The [[http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2004/03/19/ Trope Namer.]]
!!Webcomic.SabrinaOnline
* BerserkButton: Zig Zag has several.
** Bringing up her past as anything other than a set of facts (and even that chafes).
** It's also hinted that Zig doesn't take kindly to anyone who tries to [[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline209.GIF hurt her or her friends.]]
** An arc launched in December 2010 implies she doesn't take kindly to the {{GIFT}} in action.
** In June 2014, a psychiatrist states outright that she has several buttons that can cause her to react adversely.
!!Webcomic.SabrinaOnline
* Hypocrite: The comic had a series of strips [[http://sabrina-online.com/2010-04.html in December 2010]] which has Zig Zag go on a tirade ala ''Film/JayAndSilentBobStrikeBack'' (the two heroes in that film go on the road and beat up everyone who ever criticized them on the Internet). Zig Zag gets offended by comments received online about her, and [[http://sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline566.GIF Comic 566]] involves her beating up a guy who said mean things about her because he thinks [[{{GIFT}} he can say anything on the Internet without consequences.]] The Hypocrisy stems from the fact that Zig Zag is the owner and star of her own porno company, an industry that has historically relied on First Amendment rights to stay in business, the actors of which were constantly under belittlement and lawsuits pertaining for their rights to work in adult films, and sometimes assaulted for doing so. What Zig Zag just did was commit real-world, premeditated, first-degree assault against a random guy who, while they were certainly unpleasant, did not deserve physical violence. [[http://sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline569.GIF Comic 569]] has Zig Zag mention that, yes, lots of people '''did''' press changes against her, and [[http://sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline681.GIF we eventually learn]] that Zig Zag was convicted and paid a fine.
!!Webcomic.SabrinaOnline
* ImageBoards[=/=]{{Troll}}: A [[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline553.GIF two]]-[[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline554.GIF part]] discussion.
** {{GIFT}}:Brought up almost by name in the second half.
*** The "anonymity" part has been [[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline563.GIF subverted]] and Zig [[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline564.GIF got]] [[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline565.GIF her]] [[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline566.GIF revenge]]
*** Zig Zag eventually learns to [[http://sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline580.GIF use their own weapons against them.]]
!!Webcomic.SoYoureACartoonist
%%* {{GIFT}}: He's [[http://www.syacartoonist.com/comic/bingo made a bingo card]].
!!Webcomic.SomethingPositive
* CuteKitten: Choo-Choo-Bear and friends. Sometimes bluntly deconstructed, which on one occasion has resulted in death threats against the author (see {{GIFT}} entry below).
!!Webcomic.SomethingPositive
* {{GIFT}}:
** A [[https://somethingpositive.net/comic/kitty-kwiz/ set of]] [[https://somethingpositive.net/comic/kitty-kwiz-2/ Kitty Kwizzes]], comics which humorously explained how [[CatsAreMean cats control their human puppets]]...er...masters, [[https://somethingpositive.net/comic/getting-catty/ apparently]] made some readers so angry that Randy received ''death threats'' over them.
** And InUniverse, Davan shows Rory [[https://somethingpositive.net/comic/never-read-the-comments/ precisely why he's not allowed online unsupervised despite being 12]]. People were flinging rape and death threats at each other in the comments section of a picture for ''a cupcake''.
!!Webcomic.WinterMoon
* {{GIFT}}: Risa is a far more aggressive and manipulative person online than she is in real life.
!!Website.DragonCave
* {{GIFT}}: The 2010 Christmas event involved decorating trees and rating other people's trees on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest score a tree could get; 30 users would win a new "prize" breed. (These were highly desired, since, with only 5, 10, or 15 of the respective dragon on the site at the start, they would be the rarest dragons on the site at the time of their release and their offspring would be extremely valuable.) The results imply that when given anonymity, people were willing to rate others low in order to hurt everyone else's chances of winning the contest, or just to troll: out of almost 2.3 million votes cast, the average vote was only 3.74, and even the highest-rated tree had a score of 6.23.
!!Website.{{Facebook}}
* {{GIFT}}: Mostly averted, since the site requires users to use their real names. But that doesn't stop some people from being {{Jerkass}}es anyway—additionally, Facebook isn't always ''that'' vigilant, so a few users can slip past the censors using fake names and cause trouble.
!!Website.{{Facepunch}}
* {{GIFT}}: Many members tend to use their secondary accounts as an anonymous way to call out other members or even admins.
** Of course, banned and perma'd users who abuse this method to start a new slate will have their alternate account banned on the spot.
!!Website.FlameWarriors
* {{GIFT}}: This is mentioned in [[JerkAss Jerk's]] bio and it's one of the reasons why he's, well, a Jerk.
!!Website.IMDb
[[http://www.imdb.com The Internet Movie Database]], a website founded in 1990 that records every movie ever released, along with television series and episodes, video games, actors, voice actors, major characters, and so on and so forth. Every movie has its own little forum for heated and aggressive exchanges to take place. And like any other site, you will sometimes find {{Troll}}s and {{Sockpuppet}}s (for absolute troll-magnets, look no further than the "Politics" and "Soapbox" subforums). The {{GIFT}} became so prevalent in the boards that parent company Amazon [[http://variety.com/2017/digital/news/imdb-message-boards-shut-down-1201977581/ decided to shut them down in 2017]][[https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2017/02/rip-imdb-message-boards.html]], but they appear to have been successfully archived.[[http://archiveteam.org/index.php?title=The_Internet_Movie_Database]]
!!Website.LiveJournal
* {{GIFT}}: During the site's hayday, instances of this were dubbed across the Internet as "[=LiveJournal=] Drama" and inspired the creation of, among other things, ''Encyclopedia Dramatica'' itself ([[NetworkDecay though it later expanded its interests to other forms of internet drama, not just LJ]])
!!Website.NicoNicoDouga
* {{Troll}}: Since comments scroll across the video instead of being forced to the comments section which you can ignore, naturally, this can and often is [[{{GIFT}} used in the exact way you'd expect.]] Thankfully, it's ([[SurprisinglyGoodEnglish usually]]) not a problem if you don't know Japanese. If the comments get too inflammatory or controversial (or if there are simply so many that it begins to make it hard to see the video), the uploader may insert a tag in the keywords which roughly translates to "it is recommended to hide the comments" as a warning.
!!Website.{{Reddit}}
* {{GIFT}}: The large userbase and loose moderation leads to many, many examples of the GIFT in action.
!!Website.{{Slashdot}}
* {{GIFT}}: It was extremely common to post links to shock sites, usually through redirects.
!!Website.SomethingAwful
* {{GIFT}}: Goons are, generally speaking, not known for their manners.
!!Website.{{Sploder}}
* {{GIFT}}: Normally defied, since this is a kid-friendly website.
** Except for some instances where you can destroy a random character ForTheEvulz.
!!Website.UrbanDictionary
* {{GIFT}}: Letting the Internet at large define (and often make up out of whole cloth) often sexual and offensive slang terms makes this a ForegoneConclusion.
!!WesternAnimation.MegasXLR
Action cartoon ''Megas XLR'' -- created by the minds behind MTV's ''WesternAnimation/{{Downtown}}'' -- serves up an [[AffectionateParody affectionate spoof]] of "guy culture", science fiction, {{anime}}, and pretty much anything considered "cool" in TheEighties. If you consider ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' the {{Deconstruction}} of the HumongousMecha genre, then consider ''Megas XLR'' the Demolition (and, possibly, the American precursor to ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann''). ''Megas'' remains one of the few mecha shows to get unanimous praise from Website/FourChan's [[{{Anime}} /a/]], [[WesternAnimation /co/]], and [[HumongousMecha /m/]] boards.[[note]] For 4chan, that ''[[{{GIFT}} really]]'' says something, [[FandomRivalry especially given that those three boards tend to have very divergent tastes.]][[/note]]
!!WesternAnimation.RalphBreaksTheInternet
* {{GIFT}}: Yesss fails to mention the first rule of the internet: Don't read the comments. [[spoiler:Ralph stumbles into the comments section and is soon bombarded by haters. Despite the reaction on his face, he says he's not bothered by it since he's been disrespected as a villain his entire life]].
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings.LiveActionTV
* Alton Brown of ''Series/GoodEats'' had this problem, no less than twice. First when he decided to open up an email portal on his website and was promptly rushed with [[{{GIFT}} all sorts of unsavory things.]] The portal was closed down. Years later, he finally relented and opened up a Twitter account with similar results. He seems to have returned to Twitter, however.
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings.{{Nintendo}}
* As documented on this page, poor player activity led to Nintendo initially banning voice chat in random online modes in games such as ''VideoGame/MarioKart8'' and ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'', despite many games with online multiplayer allowing it anyway. WordOfGod confirmed this reason in the case of ''VideoGame/{{Splatoon}}'', as the Director cited [[{{GIFT}} negative personal experiences with voice chat in other shooters as the reason not to include it in his game]]. Fortunately, they relented for ''VideoGame/Splatoon2'', albeit only among teammates, and lifted the ban altogether for all Nintendo Switch Online games.
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings.{{Nintendo}}
* This is the reason why the UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS has an automatic word filter. Back in the DS games, people were naming anything that they ''could'' name [[UnfortunateNames profane insults]] [[{{GIFT}} directed at other players online]]. This affected ''VideoGame/AnimalCrossing: Wild World'' and ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'' very badly, and came to a head when an unidentified {{troll}} used a hacked cartridge to send ''Diamond and Pearl'' players a Gengar themed around black stereotypes, with the n-word as its nickname (more information on that incident [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hXJw6Kr4JY here]]). The new censor [[ScunthorpeProblem has some flaws]], but it seemed to be working. [[HereWeGoAgain Then people started]] [[LoopholeAbuse intentionally misspelling profanity...]]
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings.{{Nintendo}}
* ''{{Franchise/Pokemon}}''
** ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'':
*** In an unusual variation, this happened ''unintentionally''. In an effort to stop hacked Pokémon (which were frequently Legendaries) from being sent over the GTS, Nintendo accidentally banned ''all'' Legendaries from being sent over the GTS. Needless to say, the backlash forced Nintendo to apologize and revert the change, but [[StreisandEffect the damage was done, and hackers who could take advantage of a loophole that still allowed hacked Pokémon to be offered became even more encouraged to do so]].
*** In a more intentional example, these games introduced Chatot, whose signature attack (Chatter) made use of the DS microphone so you could have it play your own voice while using the attack. Naturally, fans took advantage of this to make Chatot say inappropriate things, leading to Chatot getting banned in online battles and the feature being outright being removed in Generation VI. This may have also played a hand in Chatot's sharp decrease in prominence in both the games and the anime (even compared to the other Generation IV Mons), as the gimmick was all it really had going for it.
** ''VideoGame/PokemonXAndY'':
*** In both ''X and Y'' and ''[[VideoGame/PokemonRubyAndSapphire Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire]]'', players could customize their messages and communicate with "Shout Outs". Of course, people abused this feature and sent either [[{{GIFT}} cruel]] or [[VideoGamePerversityPotential inappropriate]] messages, often bypassing the swear filter by using corruptions of swear words. As a result, VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon severely restricted the ability to customize your messages by only allowing the player to pick from a few pre-set messages, and the Shout Out feature was removed entirely.
*** In ''X and Y'', players found out that, if the egg and the game copy have the same shiny value, they're guaranteed to hatch a shiny. Due to this, computer software was made to view egg contents. While some complained that it devalued shinies, it wasn't harmful to others playing the game. However, cheaters found a way to use the exact same exploit to create software to view their opponents' teams, moves, and abilities in battle. [[NoFairCheating Game Freak and Nintendo did not take kindly to this]] and patched the whole exploit, killing both pieces of software.
** ''VideoGame/PokemonGo'':
*** The game has a tracking feature that would show players hints pointing to nearby Pokémon, without revealing the species. Unfortunately, people developed third-party apps to read the tracking data and display the specific locations and species of all nearby Pokémon, [[NoFairCheating forcing the developers to have those sites be taken down]].
*** After a few careless players kept playing the game while driving, causing car accidents and injuries to people in the process, the developers began implementing measures to prevent players from playing ''Go'' while driving. This ultimately led to eliminating the ability to catch Pokémon or even use item-granting Pokéstops when traveling over a certain speed, rendering the app almost completely useless while driving. This has been a case of [[BrokenBase controversy]] from players who played the game as passengers in a vehicle and/or whose only access to Pokéstops were ones they passed on the road and otherwise wouldn't think of using the app while driving or players with the Pokémon Go Plus device.
*** Playing of the game has been banned on some physical properties because some players either couldn't behave themselves or played the game in locations where playing the game is in poor taste (such as places of worship or the National Holocaust Memorial Museum). Aside from the property owners disallowing the use of the app while on the premises, Niantic also complies with requests by owners and managers to have their Pokéstops and/or Gyms removed. This also applies to private residences after a lawsuit was made from homeowners that got sick of players loitering around their property, which meant that anyone submitting a potential stop would automatically be rejected if it was within 40 feet of someone's house.
*** Belgian Internet carrier Proximus stopped offering free data on pre-paid cards after one person [[https://www.geek.com/tech/one-pokemon-go-player-got-all-of-belgium-banned-1667630/ though it would be a good idea to test his theory about whitelisting and get the whole country (temporarily) banned by Niantic while using the carrier]].
** ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'': Mere days before the two games' official release, some people got a hold of the game and ROM dumps began circulating the Internet. Nintendo not only cracked down on these ROM dumps, but also punished everyone who thought it would be a good idea to attempt to use the pirated games' online features by permanently banning them from using their 3DS' online features - much to the dismay of people who ''legitimately'' bought it before its official release.
** ''VideoGame/PokemonSwordAndShield'':
*** A T-shirt design contest was held before the game's release, where the winning design would be featured as a wearable shirt in the games. Unfortunately, this was rendered completely pointless when it was discovered that the winner [[http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2019/05/random_usd10000_pokemon_competition_winner_reportedly_found_to_have_violated_the_ruleshad used his winning design on smartphone cases in the past]], which went against the rules of the contest as the design had to have not been used anywhere else before. This caused the winner to be disqualified, the shirt with the design [[DummiedOut to be removed from the games]], and the final games to have no fan-designed T-shirt in them at all.
*** While fan outcry [[BrokenBase isn't entirely unheard of within the franchise]], the outcry against these games reached a point where [[EngineeredHashtag #BringBackNationalDex]] was hijacked to promote falsified stories against Masuda and issue death threats against him, Game Freak, the Pokémon Company International, and Nintendo. When the games were leaked and streamed on the internet, the hatred only intensified, with the hashtag [=#ThankYouGameFreak=] either being countered with the spiteful [=#FuckYouGameFreak=] or being hijacked to turn it into an expression of [[SnarkingThanks sarcastic praise]] toward them instead of genuine praise. This resulted in [[https://www.destructoid.com/amid-controversy-the-pokemon-sword-shield-launch-event-has-been-canceled-572141.phtml launch events for the game to be canceled]] in fear of the main developers’ safety[[note]]This could have also been caused by the aftermath of the infamous Creator/KyotoAnimation arson attack, which caused many companies in Japan to increase provisions for the safety of their employees - it’s likely The Pokémon Company did this to prevent a protest at the event from turning violent.[[/note]].
*** Content from the game and its strategy guide was leaked from 4chan and spread across the internet at the dawn of November 2019, which led to [=#GameFreakLied=] going viral after it was discovered that, among other things, many [[https://twitter.com/Blazingflare/status/1194437128739930113 returning Pokémon models]] and animations in ''Sword and Shield'' were reused from earlier games, despite Masuda claiming that the total number of Pokémon was cut to improve the game's graphics and animation work. A week and a half after launch, [[https://www.forbes.com/sites/thomasbrewster/2019/11/25/who-leaked-sword-and-shield-secrets-pokmon-lawyers-want-to-catch-em-all/#6eef6e27751f Game Freak and the Pokémon Company International]] took measures to hunt down the leakers, and 4chan's new manager was compliant with authorities to this end.
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings.{{Other}}
* Website/{{Tumblr}}
** It's surprisingly common for bloggers to wipe their blogs and/or change their usernames if a post they write instigates a massive amount of backlash. Such backlash is much more frequent when the topic of social justice is brought up.
** Similarly, bloggers may disable anonymous comments or asks entirely if certain people abuse the {{GIFT}} as an excuse to harass people. While disabling anon usually cuts down on the vitriol, it also means that those who might not have an account or are too shy to come forward with their name attached can no longer do so even if their intent is completely benign.
** The person who's known on the site as "xkit Guy" used to offer popular xkit extensions for Tumblr users to revert unpopular site design changes. That is until bloggers who were frustrated at his slowness of updating decided to deluge him with abuse and hatemail — culminating in a [[KnightTemplar dubious accusation of harassment]] — and ultimately drove him off the site.
!!WorldOfWarcraft.TropesFToL
* {{GIFT}}: The game's chat is notorious for the racism, homophobia, and lewdness from childish players (who are not all children by the way). Particularly in the Barrens and City Trade channels. The latter connects between all of a faction's capital cities, Shattrath City and Dalaran, meaning that all players looking for raids, trying to recruit for them, or buying or selling goods have to put up with it.
** Technically the City Trade channel connects ALL capital cities. If you're a Hordie on a raid in Stormwind, you will still see the Trade Chat of all the Horde cities.
!!WorldOfWarcraft.TropesSToZ
* VideoGameCrueltyPotential:
** Just remember that every time you killed Varian Wrynn, you did so in front of his son.
** In the above-mentioned Forsaken quest in the Sludge Fields, instead of freeing the human captives you can [[WhatTheHellHero bash their skulls in with a shovel]]. [[MercyKill It ends their suffering]], right?
** There's nothing more satisfying than a battle quest where you must mount an invincible flying dragon to get about 200 kills. Often this mount has an obscenely powerful [=AoE=] attack. You must get those kills, but you can then remain on the mount and keep blasting the enemy army while they keep respawning for as long as you like.
** At the end of Badlands questing, [[spoiler:you receive the late Rheastrasza's egg as a trinket, the flavor text on which asks you to keep the hatchling safe. You can sell or disenchant it like you would any other trinket, though given what you went through to get it, you'd have to be either completely heartless or just indifferent]].
** You ''could'' let Ji be executed by the Kor'kron in the Siege of Orgrimmar by waiting around for a bit, then watch as Aysa dies attempting a RoaringRampageOfRevenge, but you'd really have to go out of your way to do this and most raiders will never take that long.
** As long as a player is flagged for [=PVP=], they can attack [=NPCs=] of the opposite faction with impunity. [[{{GIFT}} Some]] [[{{Griefer}} players]] [[ForTheEvulz delight]] in such behavior.
** A minor one in Gorefiend's chamber in Hellfire Citadel: at the upper level, there are orc and draenei prisoners in cages. You can kill the former as an Alliance character and the latter as a Horde character, [[FateWorseThanDeath sending their souls to be eaten by Gorefiend the same as when you kill the fel orc mobs in the same area]].
** In Sinfall, there's a dredger sitting on a ledge above a bottomless pit that you can punt him into.
** Every wing of Torghast has soul remnants that you can liberate for a primary stat buff. The ones in the Upper Reaches and Soulforges, however, give you the choice of liberating them or destroying them for Phantasma.
** Also in Torghast, the Brokers sell Ravenous Anima Cells that can turn non-elite [=NPCs=] into an Anima Cell. You can use them on the Brokers themselves for a quick 400 Phantasma.
!!WorseThanItSounds.TVTropes
* [[spoiler:{{GIFT}}]]: Witness the power of the internet in broadening the scope of conversations that would never happen in real life.
!!XMeetsY.TabletopGames
* ''TabletopGame/{{FATAL}}'' can be summed up as ''D&D'' meets hardcore porn and math textbooks. But that's an insult to ''D&D'' and math textbooks, and most hardcore porn.
** ''FATAL'' is European folklore meets untreated schizophrenia meets I'd really rather not think about what else.
** ''FATAL'' is ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' written by [[{{GIFT}} all the most bigoted, obnoxious white guys]] on Website/FourChan.
!!YMMV.AllisonPregler
* MisBlamed: A lot of people who blame Lupa for allegedly kicking Spoony off of TGWTG either don't seem to realise or even care ([[{{GIFT}} or do know but want to attack her anyway]]) that Spoony himself has said Lupa [[http://www.twitlonger.com/show/i6dop4 did not]] [[http://spoonyexperiment.com/2012/09/15/to-boldly-flee-part-1-spoony-commentary/ get him fired]]. In addition, quite a few people accuse her of being the one to tell Spoony to go and kill himself, when in reality it was Creator/LordKaT who made the remark, and Allison went out of her way to tell people that [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome wasn't cool]] the second she heard about [=LordKaT=]'s comment. [[http://tgwtgsecrets.tumblr.com/post/30068873697/reply-to-ive-been-needing-to-get-this-off-my-chest Welshy puts the story straight here]]. The worst part is, no one fired Spoony, he quit when he realized that after being suspended for a month, his ad revenue hadn't actually gone down.
!!YMMV.{{Bambi}}
* MemeticMutation:
** Thumper's "If you can't say something nice, don't say nothing at all," line is used a lot nowadays, for [[{{GIFT}} obvious reasons]].
** Within the studio, the line "Man is in the forest" became a tongue-in-cheek code amongst the animators for when Walt Disney was coming by to look at their work.
** [[ItWasHisSled Bambi's Mother's death]] is very commonly referenced or parodied in works that reference this film.
** It is ''extremely'' common in real life to name pet or captive deer Bambi or Faline.
!!YMMV.BlackMirrorHatedInTheNation
* HarsherInHindsight: This whole episode is a vicious commentary on {{GIFT}} culture the Internet has going on, that how death threats and hatred can personally affect their targets, even if it's behind a screen. Just a year later, in ''Series/GameOfThrones'', Blue's actress Faye Marsay, who plays The Waif, got some serious messages on the Internet due to the HateSink she was supposed to be on the show, [[https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a811141/game-of-thrones-actress-faye-marsay-quits-social-media-after-abuse/ which forced her to quit social media]], as the Internet failed to separate her character and her real life out of it.
!!YMMV.BlackMirrorUSSCallister
* EsotericHappyEnding: As noted on the main page entry, OnlyTheLeadsGetAHappyEnding. But even setting aside the problems of their real life counterparts, the crew are still stuck forever in a created universe populated by {{GIFT}}[=-afflicted=] douchebags like [=Gamer691=]. The rules of their new existence free from Daly's mod, such as whether they're now capable of dying permanently, are also left unclear. Downplayed, in that none of those same douchebags have nearly as much power as Daly did and, as shown, the crew can just leave if things get threatening.
** Another implication bordering on FridgeHorror is that [[spoiler:the lead designer and key figure of the company that made the ''Infinty'' game is dead]], which makes the in-universe future of ''Infinity'' very uncertain. Even without that in mind, how long would it take for the game to be inevitably rewritten or shut down, erasing the whole crew from existence in the process?
*** It's unlikely that the ''Infinity'' game as a whole is at risk. If the episode is anything to go off, though Daly invented it, it seemed like Dudani and the other programmers were the ones actively coding everything. Additionally, considering how large the office is, it's unlikely that ''Infinity'' is Callister's only source of revenue even if it's their most popular game.
!!YMMV.{{Chikara}}
* WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings: The original official Chikara forums were the fan-run [=ChikaraFans=]. And the owner and moderators fell afoul of the {{GIFT}} and started acting like Internet Big Deals and running the forums like a fiefdom. So Chikara ended the affiliation with [=ChikaraFans=] and created their own official forums, [=Chikara101=]. Predictably, the guys who ran [=ChikaraFans=] turned completely against the promotion, renamed the forum to the Jorge Rivera Appreciation Society[[note]]this was shortly after the incident where Jorge "Skayde" Rivera screwed with CHIKARA shortly before King of Trios 2010[[/note]] and then the Tuck Hanson Fanclub[[note]]Tuck Hanson was a indy wrestler in training who was unhappy with his time at the Wrestle Factory and posted a call-out on the [=Chikara101=] boards[[/note]] and used the boards for mudslinging and outside-kayfabe rumors until the owner let the domain die.
!!YMMV.CinemaSins
* BrokenBase:
** Don't even touch the shitstorm that followed the announcement of Brand Sins. Either it's an intriguing concept that aims to explore more aspects of society, or it's a long and boring series whose topic is ill-suited by the Cinema Sins style, with an irritatingly voiced narrator. Either way, {{GIFT}} applies.
** Even among fans of the franchise, there's debate over which "style" of Cinema Sins is better. The Old Format was shorter and focused more on actual FridgeLogic, while the new format has longer videos with many of the sins falling under RuleOfFunny or nitpicking.
** Jeremy's Dear Hollywood videos already have this going due to his abrasive attitude, but the "F*ck Disney" and "F*ck Hollywood" videos in particular are divisive due to Jeremy accusing the industry of killing creativity over remakes and sequels and proclaiming that people who enjoy these films and other remakes and sequels [[OpinionMyopia are doing so as well.]] This sparked debate between people who agreed with him and those angry at him for overreacting and making a myopic statement, noting that remakes and sequels are nothing new and on how bad original works are nothing to praise. After all, he still finds plenty of sins with films that are more original. Another crowd even sees him as borderline hypocritical, noting that Jeremy has branched ''[=CinemaSins=]'' into multiple forms such as Music Video Sins and Brand Sins, and makes a living nitpicking off the work of others, or the fact both he and Chris got their start writing clickbait articles, which hollows his "dumbing down of entertainment" complaint.
** Jeremy's now deleted video where he accused Screen Junkies of ripping off his Before and After reviews with their now deleted Review Crew video, which contained ProductPlacement has become this. While there are those who side with him, others have called him out for being immature, especially considering the Screen Junkies claimed to have not seen his series and included the ProductPlacement due to it being from a sponsor, in addition to pointing out that car review shows have been done by other people before. The fact both deleted their videos and appeared to make up has only made the matter more contentious.
** UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump's cameo from ''[[Film/HomeAlone Home Alone 2: Lost in New York]]'' got [[UpToEleven 1,000,000,000 sins]] (In comparison, the ''Ocean's Eleven'' scene where Danny Ocean is in a phone booth next to the Trump Plaza gets 10 sins). Some appreciated the TakeThat aimed at the president, while others saw it as a political cheap shot and felt Jeremy was signaling that Trump supporters, or right-wingers in general, were not welcome in his fanbase.
*** For that matter, Jeremy becoming more political in later videos, which is split between those who agree with his views and those who don't. Those who agree with his views usually say that these views are relatively uncontroversial with opposition to them being minimal. Those who disagree with his views argue that while he has every right to voice his views and opinions, a web series whose premise is identifying flaws in movies is hardly the appropriate place.
!!YMMV.{{Cracked}}
* HeartwarmingInHindsight: In their September 2018 article "[[https://www.cracked.com/blog/4-ways-corporations-are-turning-us-into-jerks/ 4 Ways Corporations Are Turning Us Into Jerks]]", Cracked criticized Disney's decision to fire Creator/JamesGunn from ''Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3'' due to [[{{GIFT}} pressure from internet mobs]], arguing that [[BlackComedy his jokes made before he was hired by Disney/Marvel]] were falsely equated with Roseanne Barr's racist tweets made during the short-lived ''Roseanne'' revival on ABC. In March 2019, Disney announced that they would be rehiring Gunn for ''Vol. 3''.
!!YMMV.DarksideOfTheInternet
* {{Anvilicious}}: Giving in to {{GIFT}} is bad. Online personas might not be the same as RealLife people, but words still hurt. (And Cyberbullying is ''extremely'' bad.)
!!YMMV.DerrenBrown
* {{GIFT}}: A variant, again in the ''The Experiments'' episode ''The Gameshow'' shows how people degrade into cold heartless bastards when given anonymity and given the chance to vote the outcome of someone's night out. It also uses the same formula (the audience knows/thinks that they're being televised live, and are given "phantom" masks to hide their identity).
!!YMMV.Die2Nite
* BrokenBase: Not in the normal sense, but the community is split into the German, French and English versions and intentionally kept divided by the developers. Having an account on more than on version is a bannable offence, mainly since, in practice, {{GIFT}} proved that the first thing most people would do with it is {{troll}} the other country's forums with tasteless UsefulNotes/WorldWarII jokes.
!!YMMV.DoubutsuSentaiZyuohger
* HilariousInHindsight:
** Zyuoh Elephant is the first elephant-themed Ranger in ''Sentai'', coming after ''Gaoranger'', ''Gekiranger'', and immediate predecessor ''Ninninger'' all had green elephant mecha; and ''Gekiranger''[='s=] adaptation ''Series/PowerRangersJungleFury'' even had its own similar-looking Elephant Ranger.
** The fact that this show debuted a month before the US release of ''WesternAnimation/{{Zootopia}}'' is pure, furry-filled coincidence.
** Ginis has a [[WeaponOfMassDestruction WMD]] that he deliberately named "Gift", intended as a NonIndicativeName… unless you know of the other meaning of {{GIFT}} nowadays.
** One recently-revived ancient mecha gets a massive reaction at the sight of an ancient enemy from its time suddenly revived - are we talking about Zyuoh Whale upon seeing [[spoiler:Azald]], or [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamIronBloodedOrphans the Gundam Frames in response to Mobile Armor Hashmal?]]
** So people joked about Kohei Murakami's character Bard causing some misunderstandings[[labelnote:note]]He played Masato Kusaka in Series/KamenRiderFaiz, a very memetic character.[[/labelnote]], whether betraying the gang or doing something that would cause infighting. Hell, his character already somewhat started that as early as #11. But then comes [[spoiler:#46]], and even though it has been established since then that Bard is a good guy, the fact that he caused a severe misunderstanding that affected a character's backstory has fans laughing in glee. The extra irony being that it was also established that Bard [[ContrivedCoincidence didn't do it on purpose, either]].
*** In short, while Kusaka is a BitchInSheepsClothing and VillainWithGoodPublicity, Bard is (ironically, like Takumi) [[spoiler: the complete inverse: a HeroWithBadPublicity and unassuming GuardianAngel]].
** When Bangray becomes obsessed with wanting to break Yamato's connections and send him into "despair," it makes him sound a lot like a [[Series/KamenRiderWizard Phantom.]]
** In a rare case of Franchise/PowerRangers doing it first, the series ends with [[spoiler:Zyumans and humans living together]] just after ''Series/PowerRangersDinoCharge'' did the same thing with [[spoiler:humans and dinosaurs.]]
** Not only did a character voiced by Creator/NobuyukiHiyama fight against a yellow-armored, lion-themed, HotBlooded ScreamingWarrior like [[Anime/GaoGaiGar Guy Shishioh]] (whose father is also named Leo and who also has a friend who [[ThePowerOfRock plays the electric guitar]] in [[MusicalAssassin Mic Sounders the 13th]]), said warrior is also allied with a red, bird-themed warrior with a WhipSword like [[Anime/PanzerWorldGalient Galient]] and their respective series were featured for the first time together in ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsBX'' which was released just eight months before "[[Recap/DoubutsuSentaiZyuohgerEp08SavannasMelody Savanna's Melody]]" aired. Had Yabaiker last until the [[Recap/DoubutsuSentaiZyuohgerEp09ADayDoesNotEnd next episode]], he would have met [[DrillMole Cube Mogura/Mole]], which is a DrillTank just like [=DrillGao=], [=StraightGao=], and [=SpiralGao=] (the latter two are also modeled after moles).
!!YMMV.EveOnline
* {{GIFT}}: Let's say this...if there is one thing that'll bug you about EVE, it's the sickening amount of dickery that happens in this game... unless [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential it's what you signed on for in the first place]].
!!YMMV.{{Halo}}
* {{GIFT}}: Like all online video games, Halo's online portion has had issues with {{Griefer}}s. Unfortunately due to its popularity, the GIFT has been placed at the forefront, to the point that they are actually MisBlamed for "creating" it.
!!YMMV.{{Halo}}
* {{Misblamed}}: Halo's userbase has been misblamed for the creation of the "juvenile and unfriendly" gamer. Apparently people haven't heard of the [[{{GIFT}} Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]], which has been in existence long before Halo was even thought of. Halo just brought the issue to light if anything.
!!YMMV.KannagiCrazyShrineMaidens
* OvershadowedByControversy: The series is better known for the horrendous over-reactions {{Otaku}}s had to Nagi (''[[PerverseSexualLust a fictional character]]'') having had a boyfriend at least once. Leading to very vile SlutShaming [[{{GIFT}} online]] and the author's health declining even worse.
!!YMMV.LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit
* MemeticMutation: [[http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/intimidation-game Intimidation Game]], which created the following:
** "GO HOME, GAMER GIRL."
** "They leveled up." The line is equal parts {{Narm}} and tastelessness to the point that it unintentionally CrossesTheLineTwice.
** "Prepare to be slaughtered" along with the K.O.B.S. mask in general.
** "There is no reset button in real life."
** The use of the phrase "darknet" (in lieu of the proper term deep web) is parodied often.
** The K.O.B.S. taunts "LEVEL UP!" and "GAME ON NYPD!" gained traction pretty quickly.
** The CaptainErsatz website [[Website/{{Reddit}} Red]][[ImageBoards chan]][[{{GIFT}} it]] gained traction on Reddit and 8chan, with certain gaming-related subforums on both sites using the moniker as an AppropriatedAppellation. Redchan.it even linked to an 8chan board for a time.
** "I read on Kotaku that it [[ShowWithinAShow the Amazonian Warriors game]] was better than ''[[VideoGame/{{Civilization}} Civ 5]]'' with the ''Brave New World'' expansion pack!" The ProductPlacement-laden line inspired a bunch of {{snowclones}}.
** "Where? Where does he play them!?" Delivered with [[SeriousBusiness the same urgency]] as "[[Series/TwentyFour Tell me where the bomb is!]]" or "[[Film/TheDarkKnightRises Tell me about Bane! Why does he wear the mask?!]]"
** The POV gun-aiming scene at the end of the episode has been photoshopped to include the settings and [=HUDs=] of popular FPS games.
** This [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zd8vzIRQLLM one scene]] from the Season 4 episode "Lowdown" has been making the rounds.
!!YMMV.LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnitS16E14IntimidationGame
* MemeticMutation: Created the following:
** "GO HOME, GAMER GIRL."
** "They leveled up." The line is equal parts {{Narm}} and tastelessness to the point that it unintentionally CrossesTheLineTwice.
** "Prepare to be slaughtered" along with the K.O.B.S. mask in general.
** "There is no reset button in real life."
** The use of the phrase "darknet" (in lieu of the proper term deep web) is parodied often.
** The K.O.B.S. taunts "LEVEL UP!" and "GAME ON NYPD!" gained traction pretty quickly.
** The CaptainErsatz website [[Website/{{Reddit}} Red]][[ImageBoards chan]][[{{GIFT}} it]] gained traction on Reddit and 8chan, with certain gaming-related subforums on both sites using the moniker as an AppropriatedAppellation. Redchan.it even linked to an 8chan board for a time.
** "I read on Kotaku that it [[ShowWithinAShow the Amazonian Warriors game]] was better than ''[[VideoGame/{{Civilization}} Civ 5]]'' with the ''Brave New World'' expansion pack!" The ProductPlacement-laden line inspired a bunch of {{snowclones}}.
** "Where? Where does he play them!?" Delivered with [[SeriousBusiness the same urgency]] as "[[Series/TwentyFour Tell me where the bomb is!]]"
*** Or "[[Film/TheDarkKnightRises Tell me about Bane! Why does he wear the mask?!]]"
** The POV gun-aiming scene at the end of the episode has been photoshopped to include the settings and [=HUDs=] of popular FPS games.
** [[AC:Executive Producer: Dick Wolf]] is also mocked. After a whole episode about gaming culture, the phrase "Dick Wolf" ties into [[Webcomic/PennyArcade a certain meme from a popular video game webcomic]].
!!YMMV.LoveSimon
* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic
** While Abby is arguably an exception, Nick and Leah play with the ConflictBall. [[spoiler:All three realize after the holiday break that Simon's been lying to and matchmaking them, as well as using Abby as a bartering chip to keep his secret. While they collectively [[WhatTheHellHero tell him off for it]], this is the first time they've spoken to their best friend in ''weeks'', after he was ForcedOutOfTheCloset on the biggest possible stage (which, though he didn't take their calls, further supposes that none of them bothered to ''come to his house'' over the holiday to console him, despite ample ability to do so). Simon points out he was being ''blackmailed'' into keeping Nick away from Abby, in addition to ''genuinely'' (if obliviously) believing Leah would be happy with Nick. Leah's reasons for being upset (getting her hopes up over Simon only to feel rejected when he encouraged her to date Nick) fall entirely under the umbrella of IncompatibleOrientation, despite her professing not to care that Simon's gay. At no point do any of the trio express interest or resentment towards ''Martin'''s part in the manipulations after Simon identifies him as the blackmailer, and they simply look on as he's being publicly humiliated by school bullies. Abby is justifiably angry at being used, betrayed, and forced to endure Martin's uncomfortable presence -- made worse by the fact that Simon's manipulations comprise almost half of her friendship with him by that point -- but Simon's oldest friends ultimately seem petty for drawing out his anxiety, cutting him off during what they knew to be his lowest point, and leaving him to fend for himself (it doesn't help that she very briefly tries to make Simon into her PetHomosexual by egging him into calling the football players at homecoming "fine" in an exaggerated, sassy voice, clearly not the reason Simon trusted her to be the first person he told this incredibly big secret to). Simon's visible uncertainty watching the three after Cabaret indicates that at least Abby and Nick still hadn't forgiven him by that point.]]
** For that matter, most of the students using that school blog. Nobody in the film questions the fact that it's used almost exclusively for gossip more than anything school-related. Worse, it ''names'' the students being gossiped about while bloggers are [[{{GIFT}} allowed to remain anonymous]]. Even before he [[spoiler:uses Simon as his fall guy]], Martin is essentially cyber-bullied by all of the unflattering remixes and memes of his embarrassing stunt at homecoming, and what he does is only slightly worse than what most of the other bloggers are using it for (and unlike the audience, the students doing it don't want to see him [[LaserGuidedKarma taken down a peg for doing something wrong]]. They're just [[TeensAreMonsters picking on an unpopular kid]]). This may be intentional, however, considering how [[spoiler:Simon]]'s ComingOutStory ends up inspiring more students to start using the blog for good and sharing their own stories of insecurity.
!!YMMV.MadMaxFuryRoad
* MemeticMutation:
** The [[http://feministmadmax.tumblr.com/ "Feminist Mad Max"]] meme. Kind of like "Good Guy Greg", but focused on Max respectfully helping Furiosa.
** "WITNESS!!!" [[note]](when a War Boy is about to go out in suicide attack and his comrades answer to him)[[/note]] Several people have been responding to [[spoiler: Nux's HeroicSacrifice]] with variations of "I will witness you!" and "I have witnessed you!"
** Spraying [[http://www.amazon.com/Wilton-710-5521-Silver-Color-Mist/dp/B005KTVG86/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1432691879&sr=8-1&keywords=wilton+silver+color+mist Color Spray]] to be all Shiny and Chrome when you enter Valhalla. The word "Chrome" being used to mean anything good or cool is also on the rise.
** The iconic shot of Max [[https://prodwpids-idrivesafely.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/mad-max-fury-road-pole-vault-gif.gif swinging on a pole]] whilst [[StuffBlowingUp everything explodes]] in the background.
** It's become popular to state on online message boards that the movie is actually a non-fiction documentary depicting a normal day in [[EverythingTryingToKillYou Australia.]] [[note]] Going along with Australia's MemeticBadass DeathWorld reputation online. [[/note]]
** Thanks to Immortan Joe, declarations of "'''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BX-FMvt83fA MEDIOCRE!]]'''" have become popular among fans of the film, especially when used against the movie's detractors.
** [[LackOfEmpathy "DO NOT, MY FRIENDS, BECOME ADDICTED TO WATER!]] [[CondescendingCompassion IT WILL TAKE HOLD OF YOU, AND YOU WILL RESENT ITS ABSENCE!"]]
*** Adding to this, it's common to caption pictures of Nestlé or its CEO with this quote, because not only is the company responsible for extracting water from drought-stricken areas for their bottled water, but one of their CEO's outright said that water being a human right was an extremist position.
** The out-of-context subtitle [[https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-FfrCeKaGSj0/Ve5OK45TZVI/AAAAAAAAIA0/rX7ObEtMADE/w1174-h884/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-09-07%2Bat%2B7.55.18%2BPM.png "Men yelling indistinctly"]] (often complete with a non-plussed screenshot of Furiosa) is getting serious rounds as shorthand for [[{{GIFT}} the realities of the internet]].
** The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhKUDe3K_vY Bullet Farmer]]'s [[ChewingTheScenery over-the-top speech]] after [[spoiler: he gets blinded.]]
** Captioning extremely silly [[MacGyvering MacGyvered]] vehicles with "Gonna die historic on the Fury Road."
** "[[https://media.giphy.com/media/K0AnEB2t2EM/giphy.gif Uh, Uh... that's bait.]]" [[note]]A .gif of Max's reaction to an ObviousTrap has taken on a life of its own in message board circles, usually used as a way to point out Flame Bait or obvious trolling[[/note]]
** [[PlayingAgainstType From the director of]] ''Film/{{Babe}}'' [[PlayingAgainstType and]] ''WesternAnimation/HappyFeet'' [[note]] It's become fairly popular to note the irony of the fact that a blisteringly popular, explosively successful, R-Rated violent action extravaganza was directed by a 70-year old man who hasn't made a film rated higher than PG since ''Film/TheWitchesOfEastwick'' in ''1987''.[[/note]]
** "He was scanning the horizon!": used as a reaction to people getting overexcited at their crush/idol/etc. looking at them. Especially popular with the "Senpai noticed me!" meme.
!!YMMV.{{Minecraft}}
* ItsPopularNowItSucks:
** After Notch received an interview in a popular PC magazine and was plugged on the ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' blog, [[http://www.minecraftforum.net/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=21336 some people]] called the demise of the game. The cries of "Notch is a sellout!" became even more common among fans once he announced ''Minecraft'' would come to the UsefulNotes/Xbox360, which happened because of the game's huge success. Even more so when the game was ported to 8th Generation platforms.
** With all the popular ''Minecraft'' let's players on Website/YouTube, it's not uncommon to see at least three or more million view ''Minecraft'' videos in the related videos section. This, however, has made some gamers absolutely sick of seeing or hearing about the game entirely; especially from the Nintendo community.
** While it never really had a target age group to begin with, ''Minecraft'' in the early days of Indev, Alpha, and Beta was relatively obscure and was mostly played by college students and computer geeks. Once it became a household name and was released on almost every game console available, it became really popular with very young children and a handful of the original players were annoyed by this. A part of it being that they find the younger players to be [[{{GIFT}} annoying or immature]], while others are annoyed about the general public pegging ''Minecraft'' as a "kiddie game".
** This has subsided during ''Minecraft's'' PopularityPolynomial, with the previous generation of players having grown up and had started to play the game again.
!!YMMV.MonteFjanton
* AcceptableTargets:
** Helena Bergström and Colin Nutley, because Felix believes them to be untalented and nepotism almost always being involved around their movies.
** The Sune reboot and the Åsa-Nisse films, because they made a lot of money in the box office despite them, to Felix, being very abysmal movies.
** The raggare subculture. Once in a while the members of the channel will also poke fun at ''buskis''-comedy[[note]]A Swedish genre of (usually) live-action theater which focuses more on LampshadeHanging and ToiletHumour than plot and characters[[/note]].
** The Guldbagge Awards.[[note]]An annual reward on a much smaller scale but similar to the Oscars.[[/note]] According to Felix, there just aren't a lot of award-worthy Swedish movies, which results in The Guldbagge Awards awarding what sucked the least and not movies that are actually good.
** [[{{GIFT}} Youtube comments]].
** The Swedish Film Institute, because it's very selective when it comes to what movies they fund - on principle, they don't fund horror movies, and they notably denied ''Den blomstertid nu kommer'', but they readily fund questionable indie projects and funneled millions into generic, safe movies such as ''Halvdan viking''.
!!YMMV.MrTARDISReviews
* HePannedItNowHeSucks:
** His negative review of ''Series/ComeFlyWithMe'' produced a huge backlash against him. Trilbee did a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqaokTUiZVM response video]] to [[{{Jerkass}} one user]] [[SmallNameBigEgo who was using]] [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech the negative backlash]] [[{{GIFT}} as a stick to beat him with]].
** His reviews of the ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' movies get this from [[FanCommunityNickname Twi-Hards]]. Some people also feel that he goes too far in bashing the books and their fans. (Trilbee himself would later acknowledge and apologise for his past treatment of Twilight fans in the epilogue of one of his [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SxRlwVz1pNU&t=853s videos]].)
** Whenever he does a negative review of an episode of ''Series/DoctorWho'', he'll get people attacking him for hating the episode.
** He was one of the few critics to give ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan'' a negative review, which produced backlash from the film's fanbase. It doesn't help that [[BerserkButton he never stops talking about it]].
** His SoOkayItsAverage verdict on ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises'' has given him some flack from the film's fans. It's worth noting in this case, his view on the film [[CriticalDissonance matches that of the majority of internet critics]].
*** He's noted that this seems to be the reaction whenever he reviews a comic book movie he can't rave about. ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier''? He didn't like it enough. ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan2''? Shouldn't have hated it. ''Film/IronMan3''? Loved it, and no one cared.
** And now his [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjLuqb65Nds negative review]] of ''Film/StarTrekIntoDarkness'' has earned him some ire.
!!YMMV.{{Pokemon}}
* StopHavingFunGuys: Some [[TournamentPlay competitive players]] mock people who play with their favorite monsters and insist that the series [[SeriousBusiness isn't for kids.]] Though this seems to be more a product of {{GIFT}} than anything, as most prominent members of the competitive community, such as most Pokétubers and contributing members of Website/{{Smogon}}, actually applaud players who make use of lesser-seen Pokémon and often try to do so themselves (though they can be less receptive if they believe said players are using such Pokémon poorly). After all, the alternative is seeing [[PlayerPreferredPattern the same dozen or so Pokémon]] [[BoringButPractical over and over]] [[ComplacentGamingSyndrome AND OVER]] again.
!!YMMV.ProtestTheHero
* HarsherInHindsight: "Sex Tapes" was written about [[{{GIFT}} the selfishness and sociopathic nature of online voyeurism]] and how fast and far one person's nudes or (often ostensibly private) amateur porn video can spread. The song was written roughly around 2009 or 2010, back when things like revenge porn, hacked webcams, and stolen nudes and videos were starting to become a problem, but well before events like The Fappening would demonstrate just how serious a problem it had become.
!!YMMV.RalphBreaksTheInternet
* {{Narm}}:
** The [[spoiler:zombie apocalypse]] was supposed to be tense, but [[spoiler:the goofy grins on the zombie Ralphs' faces]] make it hard to take them seriously.
** The scene where Ralph reads the mean comments about him is supposed to be a TearJerker, but the scene is so poorly executed to some that it just comes off as funny. For one thing, the commenters don't know that Ralph is an individual, so in reality they're getting heated and making personal insults about a ''video game meme.''[[note]][[TruthInTelevision Not that this stops certain people on the actual internet from being overly offended by the most minor and harmless of things like this in real life.]][[/note]] Secondly, a movie for children can't exactly get into [[{{GIFT}} the worst of Internet comments,]] so anybody who's ever been in a comment section on sites like [=YouTube=] has seen much worse that calling someone a "loser" or a "worthless bum."
!!YMMV.RalphBreaksTheInternet
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Fix-It Felix Jr. and Sergeant Calhoun parenting the ''Sugar Rush'' racers could have been a fun little subplot, but it's never brought up again until the end; even then it's never revealed to the audience exactly how they handled them, or how the couple and the racers felt about Vanellope leaving ''Sugar Rush''. As it turns out, the writers (sort of) agreed -- this sub-plot was supposed to be a much bigger part of the movie, but ultimately was left on the cutting room floor to help reduce the movie's run-time.
** Contrary to a lot of initial expectations when the film's premise was first revealed, there is not a single scene in the film that heavily focuses around the presence of online gaming, barring the presence of the OriginalGeneration game ''Slaughter Race'' and a throw-away reference to ''VideoGame/{{Fortnite}}''. Ralph visiting an online game network such as Steam was a VERY popular scenario that was often tossed around by fans in order to imagine the number of video-game cameos it could offer, akin to the iconic "Bad-Anon" scene from the original. However, this is still fertile territory for a third film should one be made.
** [[{{GIFT}} The nature of internet comments]] is briefly touched on, but only in a short scene that has little bearing on the plot and is quickly forgotten. Given this film is about the internet, they could have done a lot more to explore its darker side.
** Even though ''Wreck-It Ralph'' is a Disney movie in real life, there are no references to it in Oh My Disney! This could have led to some really meta jokes like another Ralph and Vanellope being there or Turbo appearing as a PunchClockVillain.
** Imagine how much more interesting the plot would be if Ralph ''didn't'' get the wheel in time, causing him to see himself as even more of a failure than ever. Also, as a result of this, [[spoiler:since Vanellope can get properly coded into ''Slaughter Race'', it could have also been a place for the ''Sugar Rush'' characters to let their legacies live on in the form of bonus content, or maybe DLC]].
** Many fans of Franchise/TheMuppets weren't pleased that their only presence in the film is Kermit's head on a sign and Beaker appearing on a poster - no actual Muppets appear.
!!YMMV.{{Scum}}
* ItsTheSameNowItSucks: A good chunk of the criticisms level toward ''Dog Pound'' were this (well, at least on [[{{GIFT}} IMDB]]; the actual critical consensus toward it was generally positive). Naturally, the rest of the criticism was [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks They Changed It, Now It Sucks]].
** Roy Minton, who wrote both versions of ''Scum'', thought this about the film, insofar as they cast a lot of the same actors that had been in the TV version two years earlier (in particular Creator/RayWinstone, John Blundell and Phil Daniels.) Minton thought it was more upsetting to see guys barely out of their teens being that violent; when they were 20 or older, it seemed less unnatural.
!!YMMV.{{Shitsurakuen}}
* WhatMeasureIsANonBadass: [[ShrinkingViolet Tomoko]] is a fourteen year old girl in a nightmarish situation... A number of forum goers have decided that she is a useless coward who shouldn't have the privilege of being Sora's slave and deserves whatever happens to her next. Some of those same forum goers have complained about the male characters all being utter bastards. And then there are the ''[[{{GIFT}} really]]'' [[{{GIFT}} scary internet dwellers]] (thankfully not many) who actually think a school like this is a ''good idea''.
!!YMMV.{{Smite}}
* MemeticMutation: Whenever a God Reveal on the Youtube channel is released, you will always hear someone saying something along the lines of "Still waiting for Jesus."
** The Voice Guided System, similar to voice commands found in, say, VideoGame/CounterStrike, though they are more expansive and generally more intuitive (they can also change based on your god and skin, [[RevenueEnhancingDevices if you've bought the voice pack]]). Players are liable to state the keyboard path to a voice command in conversation - for example, complimenting someone with "VER" ([[{{GIFT}} or sarcastically complimenting them]]), which leads to "You rock!"
*** VER VVX ("You rock!", "Cancel that!") is a particularly infamous abuse of the system for rude purposes.
** Ymir's emoticon "Hi!" might be normal, until Hi-Rez released a mini-series called 'Smite Machinima' where Ymir does and says absolutely nothing except his "Hi!" once per episode and using his actual voice clip while others use voice acting. Fans always thought that Ymir and his "Hi" is the best and most hilarious part in the series, and now attaches that greetings to Ymir all day long for hilarity.
** Mentioning [[BestialityIsDepraved Cerberus and Freya together]]. You see, someone hacked into Smite's twitter account and [[https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DiANvecV4AAYgOi?format=jpg&name=large posted a sentence quite unsafe for work]]...
** Before he was reworked, Guan Yu's Taolu Assault will let out sounds of gongs being hit rapidly. These sounds ends up being called 'Bongos', and Guan Yu has been associated with those terms, such as "Bongos of Death". Even if after the rework wherein he does not produce the sound again, the 'bongos' are sure to be mentioned if someone makes a reference to Guan Yu GameBreaker release state.
** Fenrir is known for being stuck in DevelopmentHell before he was finally made playable. However, this DevelopmentHell stuck in the mind of fans that anytime there's a new God announcement, they still refer to "Still waiting for Fenrir" or "New God Fenrir". It lived on so much that [[AscendedMeme Hi-Rez decided to elevate this]] as [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMKm2ThMBz4 an April Fools joke for 2018.]]
** A carryover from the AdaptationalDisplacement from Myth/ClassicalMythology, Nike is often referred as 'Goddess of Shoes' because of the more popular brand of shoes that shares the same name and is associated with slogans from it like "JUST DO IT".
** Go anywhere in the Smite community and say that God X needs a buff. One of the suggestions for buffing will be "Give X a gun", guaranteed. [[note]]This meme came from one of Hi-Rez's official casters, Aggro, that jokingly said Khepri (a ''giant beetle'') should have a gun. It picked steam again with Kuzenbo's god release, which definitely needed buffs but people jokingly said he didn't because he already had "[[https://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/smite.gamepedia.com/e/e3/Kuzenbo_Purchase_Recommended_1.ogg these guns]]".[[/note]]
** Kaldr is the real god, Skadi is his pet. You see, Kaldr is a very significant part of Skadi's kit, especially in damage potential, so naturally people joke that Skadi's the sideshow by comparison.
** He Bo's high-damaging basic abilities lead many to joke he in fact has three ultimates. Some go so far as to say he has four ultimates, since Atlas of the Yellow River practically provides the benefits of two Relics along a line.
** People either mistake [[DudeLooksLikeALady Ne Zha as a girl]] (not helped that he's actually voiced by a woman), or they joke that he actually is a girl.
** [[WesternAnimation/{{Mulan}} Let's get down to business...]][[labelnote:Explanation]]The song from Mulan is pretty popular to accompany Chinese deities, but this gets even more elevated when Mulan herself is announced.[[/labelnote]]
!!YMMV.{{Splatoon}}
* BrokenBase:
** The complete lack of voice chat. This decision faced much backlash due to most online shooters, such as ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' and ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield}}'', allowing voice chat; people argue that having no voice chat prevents effective coordination during games and that shooters which include the function have "mute" functions to filter out problematic players. However, there are many who supported the decision, as many of these games tend to have online players who [[{{GIFT}} do nothing but talk down to and insult others]] (this was in fact the producer's stated reason for its exclusion), and argue that most non-pickup teams use third-party software anyway. Others also noted since the game does global rather than regional matchmaking, it's highly likely that your teammates will often be from different countries, rendering the option for voice chat moot since [[LanguageBarrier you'll all be speaking different languages]]. This especially became the case if you're a Westerner still playing the game after the release of [[VideoGame/Splatoon2 the sequel]], as this game's community would quickly come to consist mostly of Japanese players.
** The game having Toys/{{amiibo}} support. On one hand, it was expected that Nintendo would add amiibo support for this game and most fans were thrilled about the ''Splatoon'' characters getting their own figures. On the other hand, due to the DemandOverload problems with new amiibo at the time, many were turned off from the fact that the high demand would mean that certain gear and other things the amiibo unlock might become incredibly difficult to attain. Taken to its logical extreme when [[http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2015-05/27/amiibo-shipment-stolen a shipment of Splatoon amiibo and special editions of the game got stolen in the UK]] just before launch day.
** The game's online features and maps being limited at launch with free expansions coming afterwards. Some people didn't mind the initial lack of features and maps knowing the lineup would be expanded, while others saw this as paying full price for a large "demo" of online multiplayer until the expansions are released, or Nintendo just really wanting to get the game out for the beginning of summer when they really should've held it back to release it "complete". When it turned out that much of the later-released content was complete and already in the game at launch, it sparked an additional debate about "on-disc DLC", and rather it was right for Nintendo to prevent players from accessing the full game right away.
** The music in the North American advertisements for the game were quite polarizing, especially [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ke05YELaAgA the "Squid Kid" ad]]. Those in favor of them found the songs to be quite catchy and liked that they harkened back to the aesthetics of 1990s children's television, which was part of the appeal to some of the older audience for the game. Those who hated them thought that the European and Japanese commercials, which use the in-game music, are more than serviceable, with some taking particular offense to the repeated "YOU'RE A KID, YOU'RE A SQUID" lyric, believing that it embraced a [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids "kiddy"]] image that some older gamers would rather avoid.
** The required use of the Gamepad. Some people thought it enhanced the experience and, as a much-touted feature of the Wii U, it was about time Nintendo started using the thing more. Others were disappointed that local multiplayer isn't really possible, since the Wii U only supports one Gamepad.
** The usage of motion controls falls into this. There are some who prefer the motion controls over dual analog, saying that it's much more accurate than simply using the right stick to aim. Then there are others who are completely adverse to the sensitivity of said motion controls, and claim that it's too much to handle alongside the more traditional dual analog approach. However, the motion controls can be turned off, so this becomes somewhat of a moot point.
** After the introduction of the Tower Defense Ranked Battle mode came the realization that Ranked Battle modes, like Turf War maps, rotate every four hours, with players in Ranked Battles being stuck with the mode chosen until the next rotation. Some players called foul, saying that this is an unacceptable cut to the choices available to players, while others defended the move by pointing out that it helps reduce the possibility of [[ComplacentGamingSyndrome players gravitating to one particular mode at the expense of the others]].
** The developers stating shortly after release that customization will stay limited to clothing, skin color, and eye color, as they wanted to keep the base inkling designs consistent during the period in which the game is still brand new. Some really wished the devs would just add stuff like new hairstyles or body types regardless, while others agreed with the developers' statements by saying the base inkling designs are already so likable there's no need for any radical changes just yet. Different hairstyles, pants, and a wider array of skin and eye colors would ultimately be saved for the sequel.
** During the period in which Urchin Underpass was briefly taken off the rotation for a redesign in August 2015, discussions erupted. Arguments ranged from "But I loved this map! It was perfect!", to how the middle area is way too easy to defend and requires too much team coordination to break into for a game without voice chat, particularly in Splat Zones; to how that shouldn't have been an issue since there are three points of entry into the area; to how that still doesn't help because the map is too charger-friendly, even more than Moray Towers, another map that is a fan favorite in spite of that. There was also the very important issue of [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking whether it is OK for the trees near the spawn points to be moved to the middle of the map.]]
** New weapon types being announced ended up with one of two opinions: either the game needed to have its balance shaken up since specific weapons appeared to be much more common than others, or it's going to ruin the same specific weapons because they're not the "best" any more.
** The fourth North American Splatfest was ''Franchise/{{Transformers}}'' ProductPlacement. Some people didn't mind it and found it fun, while others feared that it'll open the gate for more rampant product placement within the game, mirroring the Japanese version which had already had two such Splatfests. The predominant reaction was simply one of disbelief, however. The later ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' Splatfest garnered an even more polarizing reaction.
** The 2.2.0 update was not very popular with Roller users since their weapons received a huge nerf to their abilities.[[note]]Their ranged attacks were adjusted to only OneHitKill if people were caught in the center of it, meaning Rollers now required much more accuracy to be effective.[[/note]] Other players were glad that they were nerfed, as they felt they were too easy to use prior to the update.
** Playable Octolings. Early on, playable Octolings were easily ''the'' most requested addition to the game, it being rare to go on ''any'' site related to ''Splatoon'' without seeing one discussion of the species being playable. What made this a Broken Base topic was the backlash that those who wanted playable Octolings received, as that part of the community would only get louder and louder throughout the game's various updates, annoying others who used to be indifferent on the subject into actively being against the idea out of spite. Despite game files suggesting that the developers were seriously considering it for this first game, Octolings wouldn't be made playable until ''Splatoon 2'''s "Octo Expansion".
** Bring up the possibility of a weapon tier system at your own risk. While CharacterTiers in general tend to create pretty big {{Broken Base}}s in communities, it's easily doubly so with ''Splatoon''. A large portion of the player base argues that all the weapons in the game are well balanced, and as such there's no way to create a reliable tier system for the game, especially with each ranked mode prioritizing different strengths and weaknesses of different weapons. Others argue that, while more balanced than most other games, there are ''still'' certain weapons that shine better than the rest, and are really strong contenders for any of the modes, and as such, a tier system ''is'' viable. Others, who while agreeing that there are weapons that are stronger than others, don't want a tier list in place because of it causing a ComplacentGamingSyndrome with people picking the tier one weapons only in hopes of easy wins. Meanwhile, there are others who think a tier system would help new players and further develop the competitive community for the game... In short, everyone falls into every possible camp when it comes to the possibility of a tier system in this game.
** Which Squid Sister is better? Callie or Marie? This question has [[SeriousBusiness sparked many debates]], with the game's final Splatfest actually being based around the conflict.
!!YMMV.StarTrekOnline
* FandomRivalry:
** Already suffering from this. Not helping is the fact that ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'' has gone Free To Play as well, leading to something of a revival of the Ur-fandom rivalry.
** Also has an internal one between the players who prefer the Federation, players who prefer the Klingons and the players who prefer the Romulans. Federation players usually want the cloaking ability the Klingons and Romulans have, the Klingon and Romulan players want the expansive set of ships the Federation has and the Federation and Klingon players wish the Romulan players weren't so overpowered.
** The main STO forums vs. the /r/sto Reddit forums. The Reddit forumers don't like the main STO forums because, 9 times out of 10, a single post can devolve into a circlejerk of complaints, attacks and other facepalm-worthy moments. The main STO forumers don't like the Reddit forums because they feel that the forums is nothing more than a circlejerk of praise towards Cryptic and that nothing could ''ever'' go wrong with the game.\\
\\
It should be noted that these are both a major case of AccentuateTheNegative: in the main forums, there are other places where players don't curse Cryptic's name in anger and act like complete nut cases and a lot of that is focused in the General Discussion section and in the Reddit forum, there are players are critical of the game, but show it in a way that doesn't invoke the {{GIFT}} like the forums do (though there are a few players there who ''do'' and will even get critical if you ever dare try to downvote them.)
!!YMMV.SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU
* GoddamnedBats:
** Metal characters in Classic Mode in 3DS ''can'' become this; the thing is that not only do they go for the obvious "higher resistance but more weight" that would usually be associated with them, but they come with the annoying advantage of not flinching when hit with normal attacks at lower percents, which means that characters whose usual weakness is being [[FragileSpeedster frail]] become a LightningBruiser and characters with [[MightyGlacier slow-charging but powerful]] smash attacks now can't be stopped by just hitting during the charge. They also can use items with the same ease as a player and now [[ObviousRulePatch their extra weight is not balanced by hilariously fast falling speed]], which means you can't just throw them out of the stage and watch as they are helplessly dragged down by their own weight while trying to recover. Donkey Kong's Hand Slap is notable for its ridiculous damage output, which makes short work of almost any metal character.
** Smash Run is infested with these.
*** Every Pokémon enemy qualifies: Chandelure takes no damage and ''becomes stronger'' if it's hit by one of the many fire- or darkness-based attacks in ''Smash Bros'', Cryogonal's Ice Beam instantly freezes you and is hard to dodge, Gastly can't be hurt if your character doesn't have a projectile, Koffing has a large attack radius and can lower your stats, and Petilil can put you to sleep.
*** [[Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog Eggrobos]] will either fire a quick blast or a laser that covers the entire screen while moving up or down. This is made worse by being a very common AirborneMook that will back away if you get too close.
*** Fire [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Bubbles]] and especially Ice Bubbles are difficult to fight due to being covered by an aura that will burn you or freeze you if you don't time your attacks perfectly. Being common airborne enemies that will actively charge at you doesn't help.
*** If you damage a [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Cucco]] too much, it will summon a flock of invincible Cuccos that will attack you relentlessly, making it difficult to accomplish anything. Even a defeated enemy bumping into one will provoke it, and they love to spawn right next to a group of enemies, making it very easy to hit them by accident.
*** All of the [[VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising Skuttlers]] have a ton of health and are quite common. The regular Skuttlers are aggressive attackers who will flinch you with a quick attack or launch you with a stronger one. [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking They're also dangerously good at gimping you when you try to recover.]] The Skuttler Cannoneers fire homing rockets that launch you, bombs that launch you, or lasers that flinch you. The Skuttler Mages have an unblockable ranged attack that will lower your stats if you don't dodge at the right time, or a multi-hit melee attack that also lowers your stats and is nearly impossible to escape if you get caught.
*** Paratroopas can be very annoying to deal with, particularly in large numbers, as they attack rather quickly, and in large numbers, they may not give you enough time to dodge [[CycleOfHurting before another one attacks you]]. Of course, large waves of them is the game's preferred way of spawning them, making dealing with them all the more difficult.
*** Bacuras. They don't deal that much damage (only 4%), but they make up for that by hitting with a meteor smash. Also, they are completely [[InvincibleMinorMinion invincible]] and can reflect projectiles. What makes them a real pain to deal with is that they can easily get in the way of navigating the Smash Run area. When trying to go up, they can be hidden off screen and be ready to hit with only a split-second's worth of time to react to. If they are among the randomly-selected enemy roster, they will also spawn frequently too and always show up in groups.
*** The Ghosts from Find Mii. On its own poses little threat, but if you have projectiles, you're in trouble. They also follow you around if you try to run from it, and slowly back away if you try to shoo it out. And God help you if you eat Super Spicy Curry around them...
** In a non-Smash Run example, there are characters who can pull off combos that can render you helpless. The fighting Miis in the MultiMookMelee are severe offenders. This is particularly egregious when you're trying to do the challenge where you have to defeat a set number of them in three minutes, as it wastes your precious seconds.
** In the online For Glory mode, lower-skill players become this. These players tend to constantly roll around, throwing out a projectile or Smash attack every so often, then continue rolling. Even when the other player is far more skilled, the defensive, low-skill player will still manage to draw out the match even if they eventually lose, which becomes an annoyance to the higher-skill player (especially if they make use of tactics that are very hard to beat out via unorthodox-spamming certain moves).
*** With the above example, an inverted case also tends to be a higher-skill player for the lower-leveled ones, since they most likely would spend more time trying to [[{{GIFT}} trash talk their anonymous opposition]] and will be bound to pick an (in)famous low-tier for disrespect to gain an edge while either winning or losing (Ganondorf and Charizard tend to be popular choices due to also being heavyweights). The nature of For Glory's usual lag exacerbates these matters further quite a bit depending on one's connection. Both of these cases, however, mainly tie into the matchmaking system, which often pits players who've been practicing non-stop against those who can barely recover back on stage (hence a lot of memetic For Glory montages).
** Also in For Glory (and sometimes For Fun as well), taunt parties or matches that are otherwise not devoted to fighting. For one thing, when going into one, there will usually be no indication that it's a goof-off match, and a player who actually tries to fight is likely to have the other players all gang up on and beat the stuffing out of the "offending" player who came in expecting a normal match. Matches like this are very annoying for the players who want to, you know, actually play the game, as they are forced to sit through the match doing nothing but begrudgingly join in the fun lest they risk getting a ban for quitting out of one.
!!YMMV.SuperSmashBrosUltimate
* ScrappyMechanic:
** Merely defeating a spirit on the Spirit Board isn't enough — you then have to play a mini-game where you attempt to shoot a spirit through a shield. If you miss, you have to wait until the spirit reappears on the board and win the battle again just for another shot at it. You can pay in-game currency to try again, but only once. This feels like arbitrary padding, especially if the spirit battle was especially difficult. This can be a bit easier if you have enough Shield Spacer and/or Sluggish Shield items, especially against a Legend spirit, but those don't come very often, be it by either getting them though random drops or buying them on the Shop.
** Challenger's Approach allows you to try for a rematch against any unlockable fighters you've lost to without having to redo the actual unlocking conditions. Sounds like an AntiFrustrationFeature, right? Well, not really. It only appears randomly after fighting a few battles in other modes, and likewise has a high chance of disappearing again after a rematch, whether you win or lose. Good luck on the later unlocks.
** The "Preferred Rules" setting in the online quickplay mode gets flak for not allowing players to strictly enforce certain rules, so you can (for example) ask for a 1-on-1 fight with no items and get matched up rather quickly into a free-for-all battle with items that you can't leave without a penalty. This was especially common in the game's first week of release. Also, there are four options for preferred stage type, and you must pick from one of those four options, so asking for Battlefield ''or'' Omega, or having no preference for stage type while having a preference for other rules, is impossible.
** Once again, preventing several of the most difficult Challenges from being bypassed using Golden Hammers renders them pretty much worthless.
** The replay viewer:
*** It doesn't let you quickly seek to specific points in the replay; if you want to look at a particular part of it you have to watch the entire replay up to that point.
*** It is the only way to make gameplay videos without a capture card, since this game does not allow making 30-second clips with the Switch's capture button. Furthermore, because the completed videos are not put in the usual folder for screenshots and videos, they do not appear in the Switch's photo/video viewer; to post them on social media, you'll have to turn your Switch off first (not just put it in sleep mode) and remove the [=microSD=] card to obtain the video files. While this does allow for videos that are more than 30 seconds long and run at high-res 60 FPS, many would rather just use a one-touch capture button and put up with the 30-second 30 FPS limitations.
*** Have a lengthy replay you want to convert to a video, and just want to stick with the default settings? Well, tough, because you're going to have to press a button at some point, lest the system go into sleep mode, which not only renders the conversion null and void, but gives you a prompt to delete the replay (which you could very well do by accident).
*** The only way to save other players' replays online is through Shared Content. Sadly, no replay seen through Spectate or Tourney Mode gives you the option to save it, no matter how engaging it was. Unless you have a capture card, these matches are likely LostForever. If you're lucky, one of the players decided to upload those replays in Shared Content, so in some cases, it's a matter of looking through Shared Content's online archive of uploaded videos.
** In an online arena (lobby), there is a queue you put your icon in to join upcoming matches. There are several things you can do that will take you out of the queue and make you rejoin at the back of it if you want to get back in the queue, including changing your fighter, changing your preferred stage and its music (if the lobby allows player-picked stages), viewing detailed rules, and changing the lobby music. Yeah, that's right: You can get bumped from the front of a 4-person queue to the back, and thus have to wait another one to five matches for your turn, just for ''simply changing the lobby music''.
** For whatever reason, in arenas where the lobby picks stages based on the players' selected Preferred Stage, the game will ''never'' pick a player whose level is set to Random unless ''all'' players in the ring also have theirs set to Random. If only one person in the arena has a specific level selected, everyone will be forced to play that level ad nauseam. Prior to version 3.1.0, this also applied to the music selection as well, with the random music setting randomly picking ''one'' song and always playing that, rather than picking songs on a match-by-match basis.
** The buffering in the game is highly contested due to several things. To summarize, the old buffering system of ''Brawl'' and ''Smash 4'' was retained, but a new "hold" buffering system was added on top, where a held input will be inputted on the first actionable frame regardless of how long ago the input was put in after the player's prior action. This makes certain commands easier, but also makes other commands harder to input, sometimes leading to misinputs, as well as making it more scary to attempt to do things such as tech (as you might accidentally do an airdodge) or mash out of grabs or burials (because then it will read your mashing as an input when you escape, leaving you vulnerable). This has led to complaints of people talking about how the game feels slippery as a result, which is frustrating since it makes combos more difficult than they should be. An example is the advertised short hop aerial attack (which has been nicknamed as the shortcut method), as while having an instant aerial is nice, it leads to a lot of situations where you wanted to do a full hop aerial, but the game reads a jump input and an aerial input in the same vicinity as a short hop aerial, and the shortcut method is ineffective against shorter characters, where it's better to just do a short hop than an aerial.
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoMam_nH_54&start=788 The buffer system for short hop aerials]] does your input based not on where your control stick was when you buffered the attack, but on where it is when the buffered input goes through. This has a distressing frequency to cause players to input one aerial, only to receive something completely different; even neutral aerials with the C-Stick/right stick can happen if a player uses one of those sticks to do an aerial while not pushing any direction on the control stick.
** Want to level up your Spirit using Snacks? Prepare yourself to pay Spirit Points every time you use one. And don't get fooled on buying snacks in stores, you still have to pay for them just for ''using'' them. You'll get free snacks after every fight anyway, which makes some people question why they are sold in the first place.
** When your opponent quits during the middle of a Quickplay match, they're replaced with a CPU who doesn't reward you with any GSP if you win. The disconnecting player also doesn't lose any GSP and is only penalized with a time limit before they can play online again, making people who RageQuit the second things stop going their way a common sight online.
** It's possible to get temporarily locked out from online battles if the game disconnects, even when it's not the player's fault in any way.
** An arena's host can kick people at will. It sounds very useful in the right hands, but [[{{GIFT}} it constantly ends up in the wrong hands]], whether it be [[SoreLoser kicking players after losing a match]] to avoid the rematch, kicking players after ''winning'' a match to avoid the rematch, [[ItsAllAboutMe kicking other players who enter the ring to make room for themselves or get a rematch instantly]], or [[{{Scrub}} kicking players who play characters they don't like]].
** While many fans consider this version of Stage Builder the best one in the series, it has drawn some criticisms.
*** You can't copy and paste your shapes. This makes making symmetrical stages frustrating as you have to eye the screen closely to make your stage have symmetry.
*** The eraser erases the entire shape you made instead of just parts of it, like various art programs on the computer. This makes it difficult to make a creation that doesn't have any blocks sticking out in, for example, a picture of character you want to make.
** Spirit Collectors who don't care for World of Light have their own issue in that you can only get Boss Spirits by beating the boss in that mode. The main problem lies in the Dracula and Marx Spirits, which evolve. Since both are in the second half of the game, this means playing through a good chunk of the game twice if you want to have both forms of Marx and both Dracula and Soma Cruz in your inventory.
!!YMMV.SwordArtOnline
* AcceptableTargets:
** Perverts in general. In response to the fact that ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet, many male players are depicted as flocking to and hitting on the few females there are, which is often presented as annoying and creepy. This is especially prevalent in GGO, which has a lower female playerbase than most, where many of them make a bunch of pervy comments towards female players and one is outright shown [[MaleGaze leering at Sinon's body while hitting on her]]. Even Klein, who's one of the main characters and whose perversion is PlayedForLaughs, often ends up as a ButtMonkey whose appreciation of women isn't exactly portrayed as a positive characteristic of his. It's even worse with full on rapists, who are, [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil for very good reasons]], often HateSink characters who end up dismembered messes by the end. [[spoiler:The only real exception is Kyouji, and that because he's more of a JerkassWoobie as opposed to the CompleteMonster that Sugou was.]]
** [=PKers=], or to simplify, players who spend most of their time in online games killing other players, are also not portrayed positively. In the first arc, any and all [=PKers=], some of which even starting a guild dedicated to it, are essentially {{Serial Killer}}s due to the death game nature of Sword Art Online, with many going on to become [[BigBad Big Bads]] in other arcs like [[spoiler:''Phantom Bullet'' and ''Alicization'']]. Even in later arcs where the games lack life-and-death stakes, [=PKers=] are typically shown to take being [[{{GIFT}} G.I.F.Ts]] to great extremes and are even portrayed as outright creeps, such as the Salamander Players led by Kagemune who are heavily implied to be "Women Hunters", players who take advantage of the combat system to avoid setting off the Anti-Harassment code to harass female players and [[{{Squick}} sometimes derive pleasure from killing them]].
!!YMMV.TeamFortress2
* {{GIFT}}: Like all online games, ''Team Fortress 2'' has had its issues with {{GIFT}}-utilizing {{Griefer}}s. Ironically, you will still hear fans of the game proclaiming that [[NoTrueScotsman the game is "Serious Business Free" and that "this is the nicest gaming community ever."]] While one look at the Valve official forums or the Steam Community Discussions section can tell them otherwise (the forums are endlessly locked in an civil war, while the discussions are infamous for being infested with hate), they just [[SelectiveObliviousness ignore this]]. Woe to the poor newbie gamer (or even pro gamer) that does take this to heart, and run into the Griefers deriding him to "suck less", "cry moar noob", "go back to your kiddy consoles" and such. Another popular taunt to use is "Free to Play", implying that the player (no matter how much time or skills they have) is nothing but a newbie that just got the game because it was free and can't do a damn thing against "better" players.
!!YMMV.TheStrangeCaseOfDrJekyllAndMrHyde
* ValuesResonance: As mentioned on the main page, a lot of modern-day readers see parallels between Hyde and [[{{GIFT}} those who use anonymity on the internet as an excuse for behaving badly without consequences]], with some likening Jekyll to a person's normal account and Hyde to an alt account they use for {{Trolling}}.
!!YMMV.{{Transformice}}
* BrokenBase:
** The addition of cosmetics initially caused quite a rift between players; mainly because they can be bought with cheese you successfully brought back to the hole, thus actually giving incentive to playing the game instead of just dicking around, the latter of which made up a large part of Transformice's initial userbase. The same thing happened when Shaman levels and abilities were introduced since it incentivized actually helping mice players instead of [[{{Griefer}} sealing off the hole or summoning the anvil God on your turn]]. Those against it hated said it took out what people largely found fun about the game initially ([[{{Griefer}} screwing over other players]]) while those for it liked how it promoted ''actually playing the game'' instead of being dicks to everyone in the room. Largely [[DownplayedTrope downplayed]] nowadays, as the initial player base has long since either moved on or taken to playing the game as it was intended.
** Of all things, the game creators and Mods cracking down on the {{GIFT}} in action. Considering {{Troll}}s made up a ''large'' part of the game's earlier demographic in alpha and beta stages, it's only natural it'd be met with scorn from those who considered this game to be "Trolling: The Game". Naturally though, non-trolls find it nice the community isn't made up of people screaming profanities and racial slurs at each other anymore, enjoying the game for what it is and welcome the more mature and well mannered community that formed in later updates.
** The common idea to allow one to use [[RevenueEnhancingDevices strawberries]] to buy EXP for the shaman. Some think it's a good idea since the amount of EXP needed to level up gets ''batshit insane crazy'' at around levels 25-30, and the EXP doesn't better balance itself out in accordance to this. Others hate the idea since they don't want the game to become [[BribingYourWayToVictory pay-to-win]], since all the stuff you can buy with money already is just cosmetic stuff that doesn't give people who can afford it an unfair advantage over those who can't.
** The CGI adaption. Dear God, the CGI adaption. It ranges from those who think it looks good, those who find it funny and have high hopes, to those who's response was ''"OH GOD KILLITWITHFIRE!!"''. The CGI, in particular, has gotten a lot of criticism, with some finding the models of the mice incredibly derp-ish and the jerky frame rate for an animated adaption rubbing some the wrong way. Not to mention the dark jokes they have...
!!YMMV.{{Transformice}}
* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: It's hard to bring up an update that ''doesn't'' have people claiming this, but several key things since the early alpha version include: backgrounds, more peaceful sounding music, mice costumes, [[RevenueEnhancingDevices ability to buy strawberries with real money to buy costumes for your mouse]], and the general increased focus on cracking down on blatant trolling and the {{GIFT}} in action.
!!YMMV.UltimaOnline
* NeverLiveItDown: The game is best remembered for Lord British getting killed and how the developers underestimated the power of the {{GIFT}}.
!!YouKeepUsingThatWord.AToG
* '''[[UsefulNotes/HighFunctioningAutism Autistic]]''', at least on the Internet, gets used to mean "'retarded' only less so" more and more often in recent years - while less for perceived stupidity and more for social awkwardness (so you'll never find someone calling an inanimate object autistic even online), the general effect is the same. "Autistic" can also be used to refer to someone who has an exceptional focus on a particular activity, even if the person being described does not have an autism spectrum disorder at all. This is most likely due to the {{GIFT}}; anonymity means both that people feel freer to use "autistic" to mean "asshole" despite the UnfortunateImplications, and that people feel freer to use autism as an excuse for ''being'' an asshole (whether they're actually diagnosed or not), which only perpetuates the stereotype.
!!YouKeepUsingThatWord.AToG
* '''[[UsefulNotes/PoliticalIdeologies Conservative]]''' should not be used to describe someone who is opposed to change of any sort, let alone somebody who wants to turn the clock back to an earlier era. That is a '''reactionary''', and such people are actually quite rare nowadays[[note]]outside the Internet, [[{{GIFT}} of course]][[/note]]. A conservative merely argues that things should not be changed if it is not absolutely necessary to do so, or that change should come as gradually as possible. Many conservatives in the past have been willing to accept economic reform (and, to a lesser extent, social reform) as long as the cultural norms of civilization itself were left untouched.
** "Conservative" and "liberal" have come to mean very different things than when the terms were more or less established in the French revolution; ''les conservateurs'' were those opposed to the social ideals of the revolution and wanted to "conserve" the monarchy -- and, incidentally, sat on the right wing of the French parliamentary chamber -- while ''les libéraux'' were those intent on "liberating" the people from monarchic rule. In the past few decades, conservatives have been more about binding personal liberties ("conserving" the social order) while disestablishing the state ("liberating" people -- in theory, anyway -- from rulership), while the liberal side of the equation seems to maintain its intent to open up social freedoms while maintaining (or even ''increasing'') the role of the state. This is the problem with defining a multi-dimensional question on a simple left/right axis. Political theorist David Nolan (creator of the Nolan chart, which corrects for the inconsistencies of the left/right axis) has suggested that ''populist'' be substituted for what most Americans refer to as ''liberal'' - fitting, since American liberalism is usually thought to have split into its "classical" and "modern" wings in the 1890s, when the Democratic party (cautiously) co-opted the People's (or "Populist") party in order to blunt the accusation from socialists and others that they were no different from the Republican party.
*** [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_liberalism ''Classical'' liberalism]], interestingly, is a political philosophy in which the freedom of the individual person is prized over all other ideals -- however, the freedom of any individual stops at the point where it begins to infringe upon the freedom of ''other'' individuals ("liberal" still has this sense in mainland Europe; in North America "libertarian" is closer, though not quite synonymous). How this intersects with the modern Anglosphere's liberal paradigm, which favors increasing safety regulations (up to and including seat-belt laws), is an interesting question.
*** It gets even more complicated, because "conservatism" also is often used in philosophy as a description of behaviour based on some non-negotiable principles or values and thus it is more a opposition of "opportunism" or "pragmatism". The values may be of any kind, so it is completely possible to be a "conservative liberal" (this is the description actually used by at least several European libertarian parties) if one considers liberty to be a non-negotiable value. In this vein, a conservative liberal will vote in favour of any solution that maintains liberty at the cost of safety, while conservative securitarian may be eager to forfeit freedom to increase security. The name "conservative" comes from the fact that such people did not wanted to ''change'' their values but rather tried to find new applications for them.
** Intertwined with the above controversy is the common blurring of the line between ''society'' and ''culture''. The "social" structure is just that - a structure, an artificial construct created by humans to preserve law and order according to an arbitrary standard; whereas "culture" is more organic, more universal (at least in theory), and primarily concerned with anything humans do that is not necessary for survival (religion, art, entertainment). One can be both culturally liberal in believing that artists have the right to create pornography and socially conservative in insisting that that pornography never be distributed to - let alone involve - children. Similarly, one can be culturally conservative by remaining a good Christian or Jew or Buddhist, but socially liberal if those religious beliefs lead one to oppose the status quo in the name of a higher standard of justice (anti-abortion protesters, for instance).
!!ZeroPunctuation.TropesEToH
* {{GIFT}}: Yahtzee actually cites the [[Webcomic/PennyArcade original formula]] then alters it by subtracting 'Anonymity' and 'Audience'. Or in other words, [[HumansAreBastards Normal Person = Total Fuckwad]].
You, only [[DarkerAndEdgier cooler, edgier, and often ruder]]. A Darker Me is generally the person you would be if you weren't the more cautious, inhibited and [[ThisLoserIsYou boring]] person you actually are. Most online personas include at least a little bit of A Darker Me, and some, most notably the {{Troll}}, include a lot of it. A Darker Me is like the {{GIFT}} in that it allows people to say things they would never say in real life, but is not limited to profane or offensive statements.
!!ADarkerMe
See also: {{GIRL}}, {{GIFT}}, BeneathTheMask, {{Troll}}, {{Griefer}}, and MeanCharacterNiceActor. Closely [[StealthPun related to]] WhatYouAreInTheDark. Compare BecameTheirOwnAntithesis and MaddenedIntoMisanthropy. Not to be confused with the [[RaceLift other kind of Darker You]]. Or the ''other'' [[EvilTwin other kind]], for that matter.
!!ADarkerMe
* ''LightNovel/SwordArtOnline'' has a group of players of the eponymous {{MMORPG}} that go around killing other players. What makes this a lot worse is that all of the players are [[WinToExit stuck in the game until they beat it]] or die, which would kill them in real life. [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] when Kirito remarks that online players [[{{GIFT}} act very different]] from how they would in real life. [[spoiler: That said, a couple of the [=PKers=] end up becoming murderers IN real life. Turns out, they weren't just {{GIFT}}s after all…]]
!!AbominationAccusationAttack
* WAY too common in social media due to {{GIFT}}. One user has a grudge against another; maybe a political opinion, maybe they [[{{Shipping}} ship a pairing]] the accusing party finds distasteful, maybe they drew a character in fanart the "wrong way" (ie, a dark-skinned character half a shade lighter because they paid attention to lighting conditions or with the wrong cup size). Cue the grudge holder laying into the object of their grudge with accusations of every "-ism" and "phobia" in the book, [[MortonsFork especially phrased in a way the accused can't debate without it being "proven" true.]] A particular incident of this came about on Website/{{Tumblr}} due to a disagreement over WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse fan art, and ended with the artist attempting suicide.
** Of course, this also works on the opposite side of the spectrum. Rather than calling the accused an "ism", instead they'd call them an "SJW" -- meaning the type of condescending person that talks over marginalized groups and [[TheHorseshoeEffect accuses everyone else of doing so.]] Take the ''Steven Universe'' fanart discourse for example: the argument was over weight rather than skin color, and the suicide attempt turned out to be unrelated to the argument at all. The user even mentioned that they didn't want anyone to use the two incidents as ammunition for {{Fan Hater}}s of the series to blanket-accuse the rest of the fandom of being venomous {{Soapbox Sadie}}s and bullies, yet...
!!AcceptablePoliticalTargets
* The fact that [[VocalMinority a small minority]] of both groups (far more on the internet, due to {{GIFT}}) actually ''are'' like the above doesn't help matters.
!!AcceptablePoliticalTargets
A movement which claims to have developed in reaction to PoliticalCorrectnessGoneMad but critics of it say it is mostly united around racist causes and fears of one day no longer being the "majority". Typically characterized as {{spoiled brat}}s and [[AngryWhiteMan angry white men]] (usually) who say things they know are racist with no real purpose outside of trying to appear edgy, often by ranting on the Internet because of the {{GIFT}}. Can't stand hearing about social justice issues, but will bring them up when they're marginalizing a group they hate so they can call [=SJWs=] hypocrites. They also are seen as running high on InsaneTrollLogic and claiming formerly innocuous mascots as "theirs", like Pepe the Frog and Mac Tonight. Claim to be all about creating discussion (when they're not claiming to be [[JustJokingJustification doing it for the lulz]]), [[MoralMyopia but accuse anyone who disagrees with them of pushing an agenda and trying to silence them.]] Defines Marxism as "anything I disagree with". Gets accused of being allied with TheKlan and Nazis.
!!AcceptableReligiousTargets
* [[{{GIFT}} The less topic-specific and well-moderated a particular subsection of Internet is]], the more likely you are to get a response on the lines of: "Oh '''yeah'''? But at least I do not believe in centuries-years-old fairy tales like a dumbass, dumbass."
!!AcronymTropeNames
* {{GIFT}} - "Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory", which would have the same problem as {{BFS}}
!!AlterEgoActing
* Caused a major media shitstorm in the UK in 2014 when WebOriginal/{{Vine}} artist Dapper Laughs got his own [=ITV2=] show, ''On The Pull with Dapper Laughs'', a dating show in which he gave various men advice in getting girls. When Website/{{Twitter}} had a collective meltdown about the [[UnfortunateImplications sexist]] content, Dapper Laughs' use of RapeAsComedy and the fact that a lot of his fans were the sort of people who [[{{GIFT}} send abuse to women online]], ITV pulled the show and Laughs was invited on the news to apologise. He appeared as 'himself' and explained that Dapper Laughs was just a character, that he didn't realise people took so seriously - prompting a certain amount of debate as to whether using an ironic 'character' made awful content acceptable. Creator/CharlieBrooker suggested that much of the problem was that, even though Laughs was a character, he was giving advice about dating to ''real people'' as that character, meaning it seemed sincere.
!!AmazonianBeauty
* Almost every superheroine in ''Webcomic/GrrlPower'', with some standouts mentioned below. Most of them are at least athletically built and busty, and there's a lot of {{fanservice}} that shows off that fact. The main character is one of the few superheroines who has neither of those traits and is very self-conscious about it.
** Maxima is a tall, muscular, [[ChromeChampion golden skinned superheroine]] who is extremely sensitive about her good looks because she feels men treat her like an exotic sex doll.
** Anvil is taller and even more muscular, but still attractive enough to get hit on by the resident LovableSexManiac. He even mentions her large muscles as an attractive feature. She provides a bit of fanservice, as one of the wallpapers for the series focuses on her sunbathing.
*** Deconstructed in a more recent storyline, where Anvil admits she's not excited about an upcoming promotional photo shoot. When Sydney sarcastically ask if it's because she's afraid of appearing "too physically perfect" Anvil points out that her bodytype is actually unattractive to a lot of people and she's bullied for it a lot ([[Main/{{GIFT}} especially on the internet]]). WordOfGod says that this is why Anvil tries to dress as femininely as possible and sports long hair; she's insecure about her body being seen as "manly".
!!AnonymityCorrupts
[=[[=]redirect:{{GIFT}}]]
!!BathroomStallOfOverheardInsults
Alex is doing his business in a stall, when who should walk in but Charlie and Bob. Both of them start trash-talking Alex. Their conversation might not even be mean spirited, but simply flaws they wouldn't bring up in person that [[SelectiveObliviousness burst Alex's bubble]]. Or they assume that he's not out there and [[{{GIFT}} feel they can talk without consequences]]. After an earful, Alex will likely do one of four things:
!!BeleagueredBoss
* ''WebVideo/SwordArtOnlineAbridged'':
** Heathcliff is the leader of the most powerful guild in the game. Unfortunately, most players are extremely representative of the worst [[LeeroyJenkins stereotypes]] [[{{Griefer}} of MMO]] [[LootDrama players]] ([[{{GIFT}} the protagonist included]]), causing him no end of headaches. [[spoiler:Their idiocy plays a part in his VillainousBreakdown, although Kirito points out that someone who plays a multiplayer game with permanent invulnerability has no place criticizing others dying stupid deaths.]]
!!BeneathTheMask
Related to {{GIFT}} and WhatYouAreInTheDark. Often used in conjunction with HiddenHeartOfGold, JerkWithAHeartOfGold, BitchInSheepsClothing, SugarAndIcePersonality, SadClown, StepfordSmiler, UndercoverWhenAlone, BrokenAce, and TheProudElite. ObfuscatingStupidity and ObfuscatingInsanity can be subtropes, as can ADarkerMe.
!!BlankSlate
* The chatbot [[http://www.theverge.com/2016/3/23/11290200/tay-ai-chatbot-released-microsoft Tay]] was another attempt at designing an AI that could learn to talk like a human. Unfortunately, it was targeted by {{troll}}s and learned to emulate [[{{GIFT}} the dark side of the Internet]], causing Microsoft to [[http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/mar/26/microsoft-deeply-sorry-for-offensive-tweets-by-ai-chatbot shut down the project]] and delete the worst of Tay's obnoxious spewings.
!!CantTakeCriticism
* In [[Music/{{Gyari}} Gyari-P's]] [[Music/NandemoIukotoWoKiiteKureruAkaneChan "Akane-chan will do anything you say"]], first Yukari gets some [[{{GIFT}} trollish/scathing]] comments on her gaming stream after some particularly bad matches she had, such as telling her (paraphrasing) "if you think you're good, try winning with only {{Scrappy Weapon}}s!" She goes into a MotorMouth rant in response, [[SoreLoser swearing to get revenge and show no mercy especially to the people leaving her those troll comments]]. Then, just to kick her while she's down, Akane, who up to this point had been presented as an ExtremeDoormat, drops the facade to [[BrutalHonesty call her stupid and tell her to quit the game]]. Yukari...[[HeroicBSOD screams, slumps to the ground, and just holds her controller]] while having [[OcularGushers waterfalls for tears]].
!!CharacterBlog
It's not without its pitfalls, however. It's much more difficult to hide things such as WriterOnBoard or CreatorBreakdown when writing a blog, and the assumed identity may slip from time to time. Conversely, a writer assuming the identity of a character with strong {{Jerkass}} tendencies has a fine line to walk between portraying the character accurately and using the fictional personality as an excuse to sneer at any fan who ventures a question via the blog. A lack of professionalism in the blog's writing may result in an extreme example of the {{GIFT}} in action.
!!{{Cloudcuckooland}}
* TheInternet. Let's see, {{GIFT}}s are normal, there are {{Troll}}s regularly, and strange mannerisms abound. It probably says something about how well it fits in when {{GIFT}}s could be misread as GIFTS;- as in [[GiantSpider Giant Intelligent Friendly Talking Spiders]].
!!CluelessAesop
* ''WesternAnimation/CaptainPlanetAndThePlaneteers'':
** The series as a whole often falls victim to this trope, largely due to the fact that it chooses to depict pollution and other types of environmental destruction as being caused by solo supervillains who are doing it [[ForTheEvulz just to be dicks]] (with the occasional exception of [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Looten Plunder]]), rather than ordinary people who aren't aware of their impact on the environment, don't care when there's a lot of money being made in the process, are concerned but can't do much about it because greener alternatives aren't available (e.g. if you decide to switch off all coal power plants, how are you going to make electricity now?), or are even simply cogs in a much larger polluting machine who just don't have the clout to change things for the better on their own. According to WordOfGod, this was something of a [[NecessarilyEvil necessary evil]], as they didn't want to make the villains too "real" and accidentally imply to the children of loggers or factory workers that their parents were evil villains.
** For a non-environmental-related case, there's the infamous episode "[[UsefulNotes/NorthernIreland If It's Doomsday, It Must Be Belfast]]", which was meant to promote world peace. What it managed to do instead was become the single most offensive example of the {{Oireland}} trope, while also making [[UsefulNotes/TheTroubles the struggle between Catholics and Protestants]] look like [[Theatre/WestSideStory The Jets against The Sharks]]. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQJrovKgrTw Highlights can be seen here]] (and the comments, being [[{{GIFT}} YouTube comments]], hardly help). This episode was banned in Northern Ireland at the time it aired, and was met with ridicule from Northern Ireland's inhabitants after it was finally shown.
!!ClusterFBomb
Some writers think the media is [[GoshDangItToHeck oversanitized]] and does not reflect how people speak in RealLife, particularly how they swear. Heavy usage of swearing is seen to be more realistic or [[DarkerAndEdgier 'gritty']]. This sentiment is stronger in certain settings, such as urban life, [[WretchedHive ghettos]], gangs, [[{{GIFT}} online gaming]], blue collar/trade jobs, concerts, [[DrillSergeantNasty the military]], {{Crapsack World}}s, etc. There is some truth to this, as there is more swearing in real life than any prime time TV show would lead you to believe.
!!ConstructiveCriticism
Unfortunately, finding criticism is rather hard in the internet age. It's easy to ''get'' criticism on the internet, but when it's mixed with the {{GIFT}}, people will often take that as an opportunity to act like a complete dick and call it criticism. If someone walked up to you and asked you for critique and you gave a very rude-sounding critique, then they won't ask you again and you won't get to critique anything. On the internet, there's loads ''loads'' more random people and works to critique, especially since you can find it anytime you want.
!!CynicismTropes
* {{GIFT}}: Anonymity on the Internet encourages people to be assholes.
!!DisgustingPublicToilet
Part of the reason this trope exists is a form of the {{GIFT}}. While ''clearly'' not on the internet; the idea that anonymity and lack of consequences/responsibility leads to [[JerkAss complete asshattery]] is still demonstrated. People naturally expect privacy in the restroom, and public toilets are not cleaned by ''them'', so they feel less guilty for trashing them, scrawling insults on the wall, or [[BathroomStallOfOverheardInsults insulting their peers]]. And the less said about "[[HandInTheHole glory holes]]" cut in the partition walls, the better. It is fading, but there's no better way to ensure the janitor will hate you than ruining the bathroom.
!!DuckSeasonRabbitSeason
* Tends to happen in arguments ([[{{GIFT}} especially on the internet]]) where one or both sides aren't entirely sure what their ''own'' position is; they just know that the other guy's wrong. The point at issue takes second place to the reflexive contradiction until you see someone shift their own argument 180 degrees without even noticing.
!!DysfunctionalFamily
* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'' has the [=Townleys/de Santas=], which became quite dysfunctional in the years since they entered WitnessProtection: Michael is a former professional robber who finds himself dissatisfied with his cushy "retirement" in an upscale West Coast neighborhood, his wife Amanda spends his money with great abandon and sleeps around with several other men, his daughter Tracey is a spoiled-rotten fame-seeking brat, and his son Jimmy is a pot-smoking gaming addict [[{{GIFT}} with no netiquitte whatsoever]].
!!EmbarrassingBrowserHistory
Usually PlayedForLaughs. May be related to WhatYouAreInTheDark and BitchInSheepsClothing if a NiceGuy in real life is a {{Jerkass}} or internet {{Troll}} online, or follows the {{GIFT}}. Might overlap with PornStash if the embarrassing content is [[TheInternetIsForPorn sexual in nature]]. See also HowDidThatGetInThere.
!!EnemiesEqualsGreatness
* In competitive gaming, there are a variety of saying that say something to the effect of, "[[{{GIFT}} The more racial slurs an enemy player screams at you the more you know you are good player.]]" After all, they wouldn't be nearly as bothered if you weren't doing well.
!!FacelessGoons
What's interesting to note is that in RealLife the Faceless Goons do have upsides; if someone is behind a mask or hood or even mirrored sunglasses they often [[{{GIFT}} no longer feel responsible for their own actions]] and [[PunchClockVillain obey commands (especially very cruel ones) more readily than if they were just in plain clothes]]. Possibly a case of TruthInTelevision. This can, however, backfire pretty badly. Looking a man in the eye and then killing him is a very hard thing to do. Covering a person's face, subconsciously suppressing our recognition of them as human, makes [[WhatMeasureIsAMook killing them a lot easier on our willpower]]. [[FridgeBrilliance This may be why]] [[ImprobableAimingSkills heroes never have trouble hitting the Faceless Goons,]] [[ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy yet the Faceless Goons can't hit the hero not wearing a mask.]]
!!FisherKingdom
* It is well known that TheInternet changes people's behavior. Either it makes [[KnowNothingKnowItAll people sound smarter]], [[FanDumb makes them sound dumber]], makes them sound hilarious to be around, or makes them into [[{{GIFT}} complete jerks]].
!!FlameWar
There is something about the anonymous nature of the Internet that makes people [[{{GIFT}} behave]] in ways that they wouldn't when they're face-to-face with other people. What starts as a minor disagreement like "how to [[{{Shipping}} ship]] two minor characters," or "what constitutes {{canon}} or {{fanon}}," escalates until the users are insulting each other, flinging expletives and profanities and shouting at the top of their virtual lungs. Inevitably, someone will be [[GodwinsLaw compared to]] [[HitlerAteSugar Hitler]]. Also inevitably, the InternetToughGuy will get involved, resulting in legal threats (anything from DMCA takedowns and people trying to drag the legal staff of people or businesses involved into the flame war to [[RougeAnglesOfSatin often hilariously misspelled]] accusations of "defamation" and even possibly an actual FrivolousLawsuit), and sometimes even actual threats of violence or RealLife harassment.
!!ForumSpeak
Compare {{GIFT}}.
!!FriendlyWar
* Every violent multiplayer video game ever is a meta-example, if you think about it. However, there are [[TrashTalk many]], [[{{GIFT}} MANY]] ways to subvert and turn this into [[ItsPersonal something personal. ]]
!!FurriesAreEasierToDraw
A lot of [[WesternAnimation cartoons]], [[{{Anime}} anime]], and {{webcomics}} have anthropomorphic animal characters. Many [[{{GIFT}} self styled internet experts]] [[SarcasmMode perfectly explain this tendency]] [[MisaimedStereotyping by claiming]], "The artists are themselves [[UsefulNotes/FurryFandom furries]], and this is why the characters are all [[SlidingScaleOfAnthropomorphism literal Furries]]." While this is certainly true in some cases, [[MisaimedStereotyping more than 90% of the time, it's not]].
!!GiftTropes
Related to GratitudeTropes and RewardedWithAnIndex. See also WillAndInheritanceTropes. Not related to {{GIFT}} or TheGift.
!!GodlikeGamer
If they are a villain, they're almost definitely a {{GIFT}} and SmugSuper who is a general {{jerkass}} to fellow players who loves to KillSteal or [[PlayerKilling player kill]]. Sometimes a [[TheGMIsACheatingBastard cheating Game Master]] or a [[GodModders player using hax]] might pretend to be one [[CheatersNeverProsper before being revealed as a fraud]].
!!GodwinsLaw
Godwin's Law, also known as "Godwin's Rule of Nazi Analogies," is an "Internet law" describing the tendency of [[{{GIFT}} people on the Internet]] to say outrageous things to win arguments. Originated by Richard Sexton, it's named after Mike Godwin, longtime attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation (and at one time for [[Wiki/{{Wikipedia}} the Wikimedia Foundation]] as well), who popularized the law in 1990 in this form:
!!GreaterInternetFuckwadTheory
[=[[=]redirect:{{GIFT}}]]
!!{{Griefer}}
The Griefer is the most known term for this type of player. The act of griefing dates as far back as the days of old arcades in your local pizzeria. Methods of griefing included but were not limited to reaching over and pressing buttons on games people were playing, turning off the game while it was in use, attacking players in games where friendly-fire exists, physically distracting them (such as covering their eyes or tickling them), or tilting a pinball machine. But these early griefers were much more contained as they could not at all grief people on the other side of the world, oh no, they were limited to Arcade games. Plus, you knew who they really were, and they were within range of your [[HurricaneKick foot]] or your [[TalkToTheFist hand]]. When online gaming became the norm, Griefers [[{{GIFT}} jumped all over it]].
!!HairTriggerTemper
* Seems to affect veteran [[RealLife players]] of competitive team-based video games. [=MOBA=] games like ''VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth'' and ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' have a notoriously [[{{GIFT}} bad community]]. If you are unlucky, every visible mistake you make results in a barrage of "[[NoSocialSkills retard]]" and "[[DrillSergeantNasty nooooob]]" all the way to "[[ForTheEvulz kill yourself irl]]" from your teammates, and god have mercy on you if you tell your team it is your first game...
!!HateDumb
A {{fandom}} can sometimes reach rather [[FanDumb illogical levels.]] But let's face it, [[{{Hatedom}} hating a thing]] can bring out the {{jerkass}} in someone as much as liking it, [[{{GIFT}} especially on the Internet.]] Actions that drop someone's [[TookALevelInDumbass IQ points to dangerously low levels]] can be inspired by hate as easily as by love.
!!HePannedItNowHeSucks
* WebVideo/MrTARDISReviews
** Got this after his [[https://youtu.be/2QMmz7POQRg negative review]] of ''Come Fly With Me''. He [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome eventually made]] a [[https://youtu.be/TqaokTUiZVM response video]] to [[{{Jerkass}} one user]] [[SmallNameBigEgo who was using]] [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech his negative review]] [[{{GIFT}} to troll him mercilessly]].
** Whenever he makes a negative review of a ''Series/DoctorWho'' episode (especially [[DarthWiki/FallenCreator those written by]] Creator/StevenMoffat), the ''Doctor Who'' fanbase being what it is, many will start slamming him.
!!HearingVoices
* Music/LindseyStirling and Music/{{Switchfoot}} collaborated to create "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRtwJRpEIA0 Voices]]", which uses this trope as a metaphor for Website/YouTube comments. The music video initially indicates that [[{{GIFT}} said voices fall under Evil]], but for the last chorus, they show that [[WhatYouAreInTheDark not all of the voices should be painted with the same brush]], and that [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments the select few who fall under Good are far more important]].
!!HobbesWasRight
* In many cases, the Internet and online gaming. Let everyone be free and [[{{GIFT}} things tend to get crazy due to the anonymous and consequence-free interactions]]. The usual method of maintaining civility on sites that care about protecting it is to maintain dictatorships that firmly squash {{Troll}}s and {{Flame War}}s before they get out of hand.
!!IJustWantToHaveFriends
This also happens in RealLife online, where e-relationships eliminate most of the usual hardships of making friends and they help shy people to open themselves and show [[BeneathTheMask how they really are]] without [[{{GIFT}} worrying about their self image]].
!!IJustWantToHaveFriends
* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft''. Believe it or not, some people are just in it for the social activities ('I just want to feel useful in the raid'), even if the game is one of the [[{{GIFT}} least conducive place]] to do so.
!!ImNotHereToMakeFriends
This trope may be an applied form of the {{GIFT}}—as has been written by Reality TV columnists, many people who enter games with this attitude do not actually act like this in real life. They decide that the end justifies the means, and don't care at all about what others think about them. As described below, this attitude is ''not'' exclusive to reality game shows; it's just the origin of the trope. In video games, StopHavingFunGuys and {{Scrub}}s can embody this trope.
!!{{Imageboards}}
The best-known imageboard in the U.S. is probably Website/FourChan, created in 2003 to serve as an English-language version of Futaba Channel. Especially among [[OccidentalOtaku American]] {{otaku}},[[note]]Or [[ComicStrip/ThePerryBibleFellowship "weeaboos"]], as they're sometimes known, although it's a much more negative term[[/note]] it's quite popular for the [[MemeticMutation huge numbers of memes it generates]] and, due to [[{{GIFT}} anonymous users and loose moderation]], its extremely variable quality as well as its [[ANaziByAnyOtherName questionable political stances]]. For these reasons, one could see imageboards to be the antithesis of social networking sites such as Website/{{Twitter}} and Website/{{Facebook}}.
!!InGameBankingServices
* ''VideoGame/EVEOnline'' players proposed banking services though, [[{{GIFT}} as befits the universe]], ''all'' of them were frauds, [[https://forums-archive.eveonline.com/topic/142571 whether by conception or by execution]]: since players had no way to ensure the bankers would actually pay up capital and interest and the bankers themselves had no way to force debtors to pay up their loans, along with the fact the game had plenty of liquidities circulating, banking was simply unpractical for the time being.
!!InternetBackdraft
See also, FlameWar, which is a common terminology for this, FlameBait, a normal ''cause'' for this, and {{GIFT}}. See ''also'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QyYaPWasos this video]] from ''Website/CollegeHumor'', which [[WeDidntStartTheBillyJoelParodies sets the whole concept of this to a Billy Joel song]].
!!InvisibleJerkass
Not related to the trope WhatYouAreInTheDark, but related to the saying it comes from. See also TimeFreezeTrollingSpree, VillainTeleportation, InvisibleStreaker. See {{GIFT}} for the equivalent result when applied to anonymity on the internet. See also PowerPerversionPotential for other things you can use invisibility to get away with.
!!ItWasAGift
Not to be confused with TheGift, or {{GIFT}}.
!!ItsBeenDone
* ''Webcomic/SaturdayMorningBreakfastCereal''
** [[http://smbc-comics.com/comic/fixing-social-media "Fixing Social Media"]]: A couple of people discuss {{GIFT}} and how it's InherentInTheSystem because it's so easy to write all sorts of crap on the Internet. So they come up with the idea of creating a platform where people have to spend more effort on writing their messages and moderating the responses. "47 venture capital funding rounds later" they realise they've invented blogging.
** [[https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/modern-art-2 "Modern Art 2"]]: The strip itself is about how modern art's being all TrueArtIsIncomprehensible is a marketing gimmick to make people enjoy complaining about how they don't get it. Author's commentary behind the red button says that he found after making the comic that real economists have been studying the same basic idea for decades.
!!JerkJustifications
* For some people, especially if one browses Internet forums long enough, hang around {{Troll}}s and {{Jerkass}}es long enough and [[GotMeDoingIt you might start to become a jerk yourself]] and justify it by saying "everyone else is doing it, so I might as well be one, too." Also, if you start a thread asking why people are so mean on the Internet, expect the users, especially the trolls, respond with "[[{{GIFT}} It's the Internet. We can say whatever we want.]]"
!!JerkassDissonance
* ADarkerMe: A real-life, online-based variation; people are often more likely to conduct themselves in ways that they would never dream of -- or dare to -- act in RealLife due to the [[{{GIFT}} anonymity]] of the Internet.
!!JournalRoleplay
* StopHavingFunGuys: Even dressing room games, which are ''made'' to be laid-back and casual, are not immune to anonymous backlash. Hell, even some ''museboxes'' (private games in which only a select few players are allowed) have been known to get this, to the point where ''[[WretchedHive Wankgate]]'' of all places instituted a rule against it. Combine this with the {{GIFT}} (courtesy of the aformentioned memes) and it gets ugly.
!!LawsAndFormulas
* {{GIFT}}: ''Normal people, given anonymity and an audience, are terrible people.''
!!LongingForFictionland
* The infamous "[[Franchise/{{Digimon}} Project Digiclipse]]" from the early to mid-2000s. What started out as just a bunch of kids having fun with roleplaying about Digimon in the real world got out of hand quickly, as some people [[PoesLaw either genuinely believed that Digimon was real and believed in the site's mission of one day reaching the Digital world]] or [[{{Troll}} signed up to troll the people who did]][[note]][[PoesLaw only to then end up having people mistake their post as legitimate]][[/note]] began to join the site in mass. ''Then'' the goons at ''Website/SomethingAwful'' caught wind of it and [[{{GIFT}} it proceeded to get out of hand from there.]] Although some people [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbhOjtFFdFI briefly mistook it as an actual cult]], nowadays it's generally agreed on that it was just a bunch of kids wanting to have some fun roleplaying only for it to snowball horrendously out of control.
!!LossOfInhibitions
See InhibitionDestroyingPuppet, {{GIFT}}, InVinoVeritas, DyingDeclarationOfLove, and DyingDeclarationOfHate for specific circumstances that can cause someone to lose their inhibitions. See TheSociopath to look at characters who ''start'' with no inhibitions rather than losing them.
!!MalevolentMaskedMen
Spookily enough, psychological research has found evidence suggesting that [[{{GIFT}} people who feel anonymous (such as people who are wearing a mask) show more willingness to engage in antisocial behavior]].
!!MaskOfConfidence
* People are known to act as a much less 'filtered' and 'conformed' version of themselves when wearing a mask of some sort. This is particularly true when said mask is [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_disinhibition_effect the internet]]. Of course, this means that people who suppress their natural nastiness [[{{GIFT}} will unleash it online]].
!!MeatPuppet
An entirely alternate meaning refers to TheInternet and NewMedia culture in social media: an online "entourage" or crowd of [[YesMan Yes People]] surrounding a particular Internet user and/or a "personal army" of Internet users recruited to attack or defend someone in a FlameWar or flare of InternetBackdraft, or to [[TheShill promote them or their product.]] This is connected to AstroTurf except that AstroTurf is usually for a politician, product, company, or one side in a war or conflict, whereas a Meat Puppet can appear anywhere (and are often ''why'' a debate escalates to Flame War, Internet Backdraft, or appearing on Fandom Wank levels). These are usually called Meat Puppet as opposed to SockPuppet, because they ''are'' actually separate people, unlike a Sock Puppet, which is a different user identity (or collection of them) created by the same person. That said, good luck in telling them apart, especially in [[{{GIFT}} places that allow anonymity and don't ban proxies]].
!!MediationBackfire
* This can happen on many internet forums. Trying to end a FlameWar between two or even more users will result in them to take out their frustration on you with heaping insults. Considering that [[{{GIFT}} it's the internet]], this is no surprise at all.
** This can be particularly amplified when it comes to political, religious, and ideological disputes. Those who take the "centrist/moderate" position often fall victim to this trope.
!!MemeticMutation
* {{GIFT}}
!!MinMaxing
* ''VideoGame/{{Runescape}}'' has an unorthodox leveling system - Your player's overall Combat level is determined by a combination of your Attack, Strength, Defence, Hitpoints, Ranged, Magic, Prayer and Summoning. This combat level dictates who you can fight in the [=PvP=] Zone called the Wilderness (You need to be in a certain range of another's combat level before you can fight them). Some players, designated as "Pures", Min-Max by utterly neglecting certain stats, keeping their total combat level low while massively training specific others. For example, someone could be incredibly strong and accurate, but very bad at defending against things. This can sometimes give people an edge over more rounded people at the same Combat level. These pures are almost universally loathed by other people in the community, though this is utterly justified because {{GIFT}} is in full effect with them.
** As of the Evolution of Combat update in 2012 this is no longer the case; the update makes it so that neglecting the Defence skill severely hinders pures as Defence is tied to Lifepoint total. This amounts to very little though, as [=PvP=] has become very unpopular due to the lack of will most pre-update [=PvPers=] had to learn the new mechanics.
!!MsFanservice
* The ''WebVideo/{{React}}'' series has had many beautiful reactors through the years (even inspiring [[https://www.reddit.com/r/reactgirls/ their own]] [[Website/{{Reddit}} sub-Reddit]], which [[{{GIFT}} for]] [[PaedoHunt obvious reasons]] [[EveryoneHasStandards has a tough stance on comments]]), but the ones who occasionally turn up in revealing clothes (e.g shirts that are sleeveless, with plunging necklines, or/and [[FormFittingWardrobe just plainly tight]]) and are generally appealing/popular to the male ([[EvenTheGirlsWantHer and even female]]) fanbase are/were Alix, Becca, Blair Fowler, Brittany, Jayka[[note]]who even got a MaleGaze from a male reactor onscreen[[/note]], [[OneSteveLimit the second]] [[GenderBlenderName female]] Jordan, Kaelyn, Creator/{{Lia|MarieJohnson}}, [[OneSteveLimit the older and original]] Madison, Marlhy, Mikaela, [[OneSteveLimit the third and oldest]] Morgan, Rachel, Riley, Sabrina D., Sophia, [[OneSteveLimit the older and original]] Sydney, Tori, and Justine Ezarik. A lot of the comments actually point those out.
!!MultiplayerOnlineBattleArena
Aside from these generalized roles, MOBA characters and items can have similarities a lot they make up their own archetypes within the genre. Check [[Analysis/MultiplayerOnlineBattleArena here]] for such occurrences.\\
\\
Late in the game, after heroes have accumulated significant amounts of experience and money, they will typically take a more aggressive stance and start actively trying to destroy enemy towers, as well as try and gang up and destroy the special, more powerful monsters in the jungle to gain team-wide bonuses; frequently, this forces the enemy team to deploy against them in response. These situations where whole teams come into conflict are known as "team fights", and can frequently vastly shift the balance of power as multiple heroes from one team might be killed and forced to wait to respawn at base; a decisive team fight, where an entire team is trapped and eliminated, can frequently cost the eliminated team the game. Typically, respawn timers also get longer as the dead hero in question gains levels, making such losses even more painful.\\
\\
While enemy heroes may have their own HitPoints, the health of your team as a whole is measured in its buildings. The core building, remember, is the InstantWinCondition, and destroying it by any means, at any time, results in victory. Additionally, as you lose your outer towers, you lose map control; the FogOfWar spreads, giving the enemy team more opportunities to ambush you. Finally, within your base are typically important buildings which, if destroyed, actually unlock ''extra {{mook}}s for the enemy team'', tilting the game further in their favor.\\
\\
UnstableEquilibrium is a big factor in [=MOBAs=]. Early-game mistakes can result in one team or another gaining an early advantage, which makes it easier for them to win later confrontations, giving them a larger advantage with every victory. There are plenty of ways to hand your opponent advantages too, from [[LeeroyJenkins starting a fight you can't win]] to [[LazyBackup failing to show up at a fight you could've won]], from [[SkewedPriorities being at the wrong place at the wrong time]] to [[HowDoIShotWeb being at the right place at the wrong time]]. The end result is that matches can often be decided long before either base is in even remote danger of destruction. Numbers are also critically important; at competitive levels of play, teams will often disengage after losing only ''one'' of their members, because their absence is already enough to virtually guarantee victory to the enemy team. NeverSplitTheParty in a MOBA. Finally, because hero characters are (deliberately) limited in what they can bring to the table, a lack of teamwork can spell disaster. You might play a perfect game, execute everything correctly, avoid needless damage, get a ton of kills... and still lose, because someone on your team dropped their responsibilities. Even worse, if your team doesn’t plan to do what you want them to, you might not be able to play your game ''at all''; you may be forced to use your character to do things s/he isn’t good at or even ''is designed to be bad at'', leaving a sour taste in one’s mouth—even if said non-cooperative teammates go on to win the game (''especially'' if).\\
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The end result is that people can get ''really'' angry when playing a MOBA. Their communities are infamously toxic; they [[ForumSpeak Suffer Newbies Poorly]] and blast [[IneffectualLoner weak team players]]. Many of these games have devoted communities who treat play as SeriousBusiness, and due to the inherent difficulties in measuring the contribution of individual players on teams, matchmaking between individual players for pick-up games tends to lead to much more varied skill levels of players on a given team than for games with more individually-tailored rating systems, especially in games with five or more players on a side. This, plus the basics of human psychology, results in a recipe for {{GIFT}} and {{Griefing}}, and all of the DOTA clones, due to the relatively long matches and teamwork-centric game design, suffer from this to a great extent.\\
\\
To mitigate the problem of having highly competitive people of variable skill levels, some of the newer [=MOBAs=] have tried to adopt different systems with varying levels of success, either by making it easier for the losing team to catch up or by making it so that matches end more quickly when one team gains a large advantage; both solutions are intended to give players less time to be unhappy with each other and to spend less time playing games where the outcome is already clear. In addition, most if not all the current [=MOBAs=] have some sort of player score-based matchmaking system, where all players have a personal score -- usually known as "[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elo_rating_system Elo]]" from the old days of ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' or "matchmaking ranking" (MMR) from present day ''VideoGame/Dota2'' -- and joining the matchmaking queue will theoretically match you only with players with a score similar to yours, in order to guarantee that teams have a roughly even chance of winning.
!!MurderIsTheBestSolution
* On ''Series/{{Elementary}}'':
** An architect discovers that he made a crucial error in his designs for a skyscraper. Unless the building is at least 40 feet lower, it will collapse in a strong wind. Admitting the mistake would ruin his career, so he instead murders an old woman who lives near the site where the skyscraper is to be built. Her death prevents the building's developer from buying "air rights" that he needs to obtain in order to build the skyscraper as designed and requires a redesign that will make the building shorter by the needed 40 feet. If the safe height was a few feet lower, the architect would have murdered the woman's neighbors instead to stop them from selling their "air rights".
** The final season is a take on (and maybe TakeThat) to the above example of ''Person of Interest'' through the character of tech mogul of Oden Reichenbach, who creates a data-mining application that provides him with information about potential murderers, and he decides to become a secret JudgeJuryAndExecutioner rather than, say, provide this information to the police. Sherlock even points out that [[{{GIFT}} people saying they are going to commit crimes in Facebook is more often than not them just venting or being jerks]] rather than, you know, planning murder ([[TruthInTelevision not that it hasn't happened]], but statistics are on Sherlock's side), but Reichenbach is [[KnightTemplar too crazy to care]].
!!NiceJobFixingItVillain
Compare HoistByHisOwnPetard (when the villains foil their own plans), VillainBall, BadGuysDoTheDirtyWork (like this, only intentional), PokeThePoodle, PhlebotinumRebel (when the villain ''creates'' the hero), TacticalSuicideBoss (when an enemy can only be beaten by exploiting a certain move) and due to the {{GIFT}}, WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings (when fans do it).
!!NoSympathy
* The ''F*ck My Life'' website is part catharsis, part concrete proof of NoSympathy. There are two buttons beneath each post - "I agree, your life sucks" and "You deserved it." Sometimes even the softest hearted reader has to admit they kind of did it to themselves, but even if the original poster was mugged, attacked, humiliated, heartbroken or injured, there will always be a few ''hundred'' people who click the "You Deserved It" button. (though there's {{GIFT}} to blame too) Especially if the poster has let slip that they are an AcceptableTarget in some way. Though this has been averted in more recent times where stories where the poster couldn't have possibly deserved it have the "You Deserved It" button replaced with "That Could Have Happened To Me". There are also a handful of inversions where people who were clearly at fault still have several people voting "Your Life Sucks" (on top of the fact that a sufficient amount of users had to agree with that statement for the post to make it onto the site to begin with).
!!{{Noob}}
* If you do not follow the generally-accepted strategy in a MOBA game like ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' or ''VideoGame/DefenseOfTheAncients'', you are likely to get called this in the first 30 seconds and pretty much continuously for the next 40 minutes. A highly-competitive team-based game where one weak link on your team can ruin your chance of victory [[{{GIFT}} will do that to otherwise normal players]].
!!NotSoAboveItAll
* In what is the positive contrast to {{GIFT}}, the internet's anonymity allows for pretty much anyone to be this. Someone might be too stoic or shy to let loose in real life, but give them a screen name and let them loose on a fansite for something they're really into and watch them {{Squee}} about their interest with the best of them.
!!OfCourseImNotAVirgin
* In RealLife (and by extension, [[{{GIFT}} on the Internet]]), most people who talk arrogantly about their sex life (and tease people with it) are like this.
!!OnlineDisinhibitionEffect
[=[[=]redirect:{{GIFT}}]]
!!{{Otaku}}
Neither ''{{geek}}'' nor ''{{nerd}}'' is an adequate translation. However, in modern use, both words may carry a shadow of the right connotations of obsessive interest and/or social ineptitude; see the {{geek}} and {{nerd}} pages for details. Think of the older, more pejorative senses of ''{{geek}}'' and you're on the right track. The British term ''anorak'' and the Internet term ''neckbeard'' are also close translations. Speaking of TheInternet, in more [[{{GIFT}} dickish]] online communities, autism-related terms get slung around in a similar manner. The closest [[JustForFun/TVTropesWillRuinYourVocabulary troper-speak]] cognate would be "LoonyFan." In Japan, the term doesn't carry a positive meaning at all. One of the first things most Japanese language classes often have to teach people is that [[DidNotDoTheBloodyResearch calling yourself an otaku in Japan]] is a ''very'' bad thing. (Although it must be said that in more recent years this sense is mellowing out, to the extent that [[ProudToBeAGeek more Japanese are self-identifying as otaku]]. See Wiki/TheOtherWiki's page on this for more info.)
!!PhoneaholicTeenager
* Jacob Thrombey in ''Film/KnivesOut'' is a dark version of this: a sixteen-year-old "literal Nazi" whose constant smartphone use is in the service of [[{{GIFT}} racist trolling]].
!!PlayerKilling
* In the actual game ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'', this has existed in a several forms but two variants are exceptionally notable:
** The Kiter: A player, usually a hunter, would attack an extremely powerful enemy and draw it away from its usual spawn site. The ultimate goal of this was generally to lure a mob to a capital city, where it would proceed to murder everything in sight. Most such mobs now "leash" back to their spawn.
** The Corrupted Blood Plague: An exceedingly memorable event and held as proof of the {{GIFT}}. Players discovered an ability cast by a raid boss could be brought out of the instance to populated cities, where it would proceed to spread and kill everything. When Blizzard attempted to eliminate this, the {{Griefer}}s buckled down and found new, inventive ways of spreading it.
*** To explain how awful the Corrupted Blood Plague was for Creator/BlizzardEntertainment , it took ''months'' of doing things such as quarantining an area and formatting servers, among other things. It's actually studied in Real Life as an extreme (although safe) example of medical terrorism.
!!PokeInTheThirdEye
It's a pretty well established fact that the InvisibleJerkass [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment is a]] {{Jerkass}}. [[{{GIFT}} Being able to see and do things without ever possibly being detected, much less identified, gives one a dangerous sense of omnipotence]]. The same is true for psychics or magicians who can use a CrystalBall, AstralProjection, precognition, [[TheEmpath empathy]] or {{Telepathy}} to [[SurveillanceAsThePlotDemands snoop where even the CIA can't]]... and ''with no possibility of detection!'' They'll gather even private information with impunity, because really, what is a {{Muggle}} [[WhatMeasureIsANonSuper going to do to stop him or her?]]
!!PopUpTexting
* ''WebVideo/MuppetViralVideos'': "Beaker's Ballad" has [[NoFourthWall internet comments appearing in the air next to him]], really tormenting him, and [[{{GIFT}} laughing as he gets set on fire]].
!!PraisingShowsYouDontWatch
The Inverse of ComplainingAboutShowsYouDontWatch, in which these people somehow know ''exactly'' how good something is, without having ever actually ''seen'' it. Maybe they saw so much praise they feel like they can account for having actually watched it for themselves, or maybe they're just carbon-copying someone's opinions to fit into the group. Or they have seen a fragment of the work, liked it, and assumed the rest is equally good. Or perhaps they've seen the {{Audience Coloring Adaptation}}s and decided they really liked those, which means the original must be just as awesome or even better. Who knows? Similar to somehow knowing a show is utter crap without having seen an episode, it's one of the greatest mysteries of human culture, and has only been [[{{GIFT}} exacerbated]] by the Age of the Internet.
!!ReviewsAreTheGospel
* WebVideo/TheNostalgiaChick has a lot of teenage male fans who enjoy trying to [[{{GIFT}} prove their masculinity]]. She tears apart girly movies for a living. You do the math.
!!RulesOfTheInternet
* Rule 8: [[{{GIFT}} Anonymous can be a horrible, senseless, uncaring monster]].
!!RulesOfTheInternet
* {{GIFT}}: Rule 7, Rule 12, Rule 13, Rule 14, Rule 18, Rule 42 and Rule 43 are pretty {{GIFT}}ed.
** Rule 48 is metaphor for "{{GIFT}}ed people always spoil the fun".
!!RunningTheAsylum
* ''VideoGame/CantrII'': The creator has largely left the game, leaving it to some staff to manage things. Over time, this has resulted in what has been referred to as the [[DrunkWithPower Internet]] [[ScrewTheRulesIMakeThem Illness]]. Basically, any [[{{GIFT}} normal person gets a chance to live out their powertrip fantasies, and go for broke]]. HilarityEnsues.
!!ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney
* While there is a specific trope for Video games [[PayToWin allowing you to get better equipment or more resources for paying]], there is a much different way: Video game moderation. Video game moderators are already ''very'' reluctant to actually punish troublemakers especially since they [[UsefulNotes/VictimBlaming tell people to just block them rather than do anything bad]]. But when the game is supported by [[https://www.alistdaily.com/strategy/mobile-gaming-whales-fitting-new-descriptors/ Whales]], certain players are objectively ''worth more'' to the company than others due to them investing so much money. Essentially, being a Whale is also a good way to avoid receiving any kind of significant recompense for your behaviour, allowing for [[{{GIFT}} greater fuckery]]. ''WebAnimation/ExtraCredits'' even expressed concerns that this could happen.
** Streamers and [=YouTubers=] have also been reported flouting the rules and getting away with it. People have released videos and streams demonstrating how easy it is to break the rules in games, and the worst they have received is a temporary ban or even a chat ban. Other users who have done minor things have even received permanent bans, but [[DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist since most of these games are free to start]], come back with a new name and a new face within the day.
!!SecretIdentityIdentity
* Comicbook/SpiderMan is mostly Peter Parker. The witty quips he makes when fighting supervillains are usually belied by his internal monologue about his life as Peter Parker. On occasion, though, after a particularly traumatic adventure, he has sealed himself up behind the Spider-Man persona, and once or twice, a darker persona, referred to as "The Spider", has emerged.
** Creator/PeterDavid did a series where Peter Parker was locked up and doped up in a sanitarium, where Peter came to terms with "The Spider". And it wasn't particularly darker than Peter or Spider-Man.
** "The Spider" is the nickname his RoguesGallery has given to Spider-Man whenever he's not talking and joking. This more than anything else scares the crap out of them.
** One of the scariest things in the entire Marvel universe isn't Wolverine, or Venom, or even Carnage. It's Spider-Man, [[PaintItBlack in the black costume]] ''and [[OutOfCharacterIsSeriousBusiness not talking]].''
** A few instances have suggested that Spider-Man is essentially the {{GIFT}} version of Peter Parker. Peter Parker is normally introverted and socially reserved. Spider-Man is Peter Parker with anonymity and an audience and as a result his own social restraint has been removed. Spider-Man is much more assertive and has an inability to stop telling bad jokes.
!!SeriousBusiness
It's often a SillyReasonForWar, and can turn a casual conversation into a heated CavemenVsAstronautsDebate. Someone who just can't let it go may become a SingleIssueWonk. If competition is involved, you can almost ''guarantee'' that SecondPlaceIsForLosers. Frequently "opposed" by the CavalierCompetitor. Compare StopHavingFunGuys. In musicals it's often demonstrated that DancingIsSeriousBusiness. For the saying that "TheInternetIsSeriousBusiness", see {{GIFT}}. Related to ImNotHereToMakeFriends. Not to be confused with MundaneMadeAwesome, though the two tropes overlap ''plenty.''
!!SheepInSheepsClothing
* In ''VisualNovel/ReAlistair'', Merui mentions that even nice guys can [[{{GIFT}} act like jerks online]] in regards to [[NiceGuy Shiro]] being one of the three boys who could potentially be Alistair. Additionally, playing Shiro's route has you see him acting uncharacteristically hostile towards Derek in one scene when Merui isn't around. [[SpoiledByTheFormat Of course]], since he's listed on this page, you know he's not actually Alistair and has a completely understandable reason to not be friendly towards Derek. [[spoiler:In fact, he's Merui's online friend [=FionaWings=] who rightly suspects Derek of being Alistair.]]
!!ShipToShipCombat
Many fans {{ship|ping}}. Some of them have [[{{OTP}} a distinct ship that they like over all others]], while some of them are torn between contradictory pairings. Some of them like to debate a pairing while keeping in mind its status in {{canon}}, while some of them discuss it [[ShippingGoggles believing their pairing]] ''is'' {{canon}} (or, in the case of those who argue over what's going to happen like they think they're pooling money for a bet, will inevitably be). [[{{GIFT}} Now throw in the power of the Internet to connect everybody (and everybody's opinions) with everybody else…]]
!!SituationalSociability
Can overlap with ADarkerMe and {{GIFT}}, when a character exhibits traits they would not normally show when they think they can get away with it or are otherwise made to lose their inhibitions. See also BeneathTheMask, which goes along with the "public persona" variation of this trope. This trope is applied when the hidden persona is actually expressed in some fashion. CannotTalkToWomen is a subtrope where the specific trigger that causes the change in social skills is the presence of the opposite sex.
!!SocialMediaIsBad
* The social network is otherwise fine, but induces apathy, aloofness, disconnectedness, and loneliness in its users, especially those who spend a lot of time on it. Alternatively, the network is fine, but [[{{GIFT}} it brings out the worst in its users]].
!!StopBeingStereotypical
* [[Creator/BobChipman Moviebob]] made a video discussing how gamers should avoid the negative stereotypes associated with them.
** That movement has exploded. Online gaming media has taken up the topic at length with many calls for more maturity, less hateful speech (a product of {{GIFT}} and the generally competitive nature of gamers). ''WebAnimation/ExtraCredits,'' ''WebVideo/{{Jimquisition}},'' ''Revsion 3,'' ''[[Creator/TheCynicalBrit TotalBiscuit]]'', ''WebVideo/ErrantSignal,'' and others have weighed in.
** The movement generated a backlash from people who equated it with PoliticalCorrectnessGoneMad which rather quickly got out of hand and eventually got tied up in the whole #Gamergate thing, leaving the gaming community splintered.
!!StrawNihilist
* Internet culture has developed the term "Edgelord" as a pejorative label for [[{{GIFT}} people who act like this online]].
!!SuicideDare
TruthInTelevision, and often goes hand-in-hand with KidsAreCruel, TeensAreMonsters, and the {{GIFT}}. Worth noting: in many countries, deliberately inciting someone into suicide is an extremely serious crime that may even be treated the same as premeditated homicide.
!!TheCracker
* ''VideoGame/SaintsRowTheThird'' has Matt Miller, leader of The Deckers, official hacker of TheSyndicate and a personification of the {{GIFT}}. In ''VideoGame/SaintsRowIV'' however, he made a HeelFaceTurn after being offered amnesty by [=MI6=].
!!TheGenerationGap
* This basically happens on the Internet on a daily basis with [[WhenIWasYourAge older generations]] complaining about how lazy the new generation is on the very same [[{{Hypocrite}} technology they use]] and the new generation blaming them for causing the problems that landed them in this mess in the first place. Both in [[{{GIFT}} the most melodramatic, angry way possible]] and with varying degrees of credibility.
!!TheGift
Not to be confused with "The {{GIFT}}", GiftOfSong, or GiftOfTheMagiPlot.
!!TheInternetIsSeriousBusiness
[=[[=]redirect:{{GIFT}}]]
!!TheJerkIndex
* {{GIFT}}: I'm an asshole because it's the internet (or any other anonymous setting) and I can say whatever the fuck I want! If you're offended, then fuck off, you butthurt piece of shit!
!!ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet
As the Internet grew, women became more common. Sadly, men pretending to be women became even ''more'' common as well; it soon became apparent that announcing you were female online (and thus a geek girl) was a way to get lots of attention and accommodation from other users, even to the point of some them being tricked into mailing gifts, cash, or passwords. In some circles the backlash was huge and violent, leading to anyone claiming to be female to instantly be accosted with demands of "proof" (eventually codified [[{{GIFT}} as "Tits or GTFO"]]).
!!ThisLoserIsYou
* Trevor, one of the main playable characters in ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'' is psychotic, brutally violent, a sexual deviant, and constantly threatens his friends with sexual and violent acts if they keep pissing him off. He's (supposedly) a representation on how a typical GTA player acts in the game. On a similar note, Jimmy, who is the son of Michael, is a young adult in his early twenties that refuses to get a job, mooches off of his parents, smokes weed all the time, [[ADateWithRosiePalms masturbates constantly]], and plays video games all day while [[{{GIFT}} telling other players that they're gay and how he'll rape them and their mothers]].
!!TimeImmemorialIndex
* {{GIFT}}
!!{{Troll}}
The term "trolling" originally comes from fishing, rather than [[AllTrollsAreDifferent the fantasy creature]]. [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trolling_(fishing) Trolling in a fishing context]] means casting a baited line out in the water and dragging it through the water behind you as you move, in order to increase your catchment area (the word is a variant of "trailing"). The idea in the Internet context is that you set out some bait in much the same way and watch as your victim grabs it and writhes for your amusement, solely ForTheEvulz. Malcontents on the Internet [[{{GIFT}} protected by anonymity]] have been doing this for years, hence the widespread usage of the term. Many trolls [[InsultBackfire enjoy insults (and the like) thrown at them]] as a result of their trolling; those who threw such insults are said to have "fed the troll" (or "taken the bait").
!!UltraSuperDeathGoreFestChainsawer3000
* In ''Film/RideAlong'', Ben is a fan of an ultraviolent ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjXHHjnhPIg clone]] whose online multiplayer is composed of players of [[{{GIFT}} varying degrees of maturity]], with gamertags like Assface and Ballsdeep. Ben's own gamertag is [[BlackIsBiggerInBed BlackHammer]]. The fact that his knowledge of guns comes entirely from video games bites him in the ass when his girlfriend's [[KnightTemplarBigBrother cop brother James]] takes him to a shooting range as part of a police ride-along; it turns out that being a top-level FPS gamer does ''not'' mean that [[ATeamFiring one knows how to fire]] [[BlownAcrossTheRoom a shotgun loaded with magnum shells]]. [[spoiler:Though his knowledge of the exotic military weaponry featured in the game does come in handy for tracking down Omar. Also, Assface warns Ben and James when he hears Omar's goons break into Ben's home over his Xbox Live headset.]] In the sequel, he's moved on to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wglo324OxNg a game]] more reminiscent of ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'', in which he wrecks a Lamborghini in a police chase [[spoiler:and gets killed by [[NeverMessWithGranny an old lady he tried to carjack]]]].
!!UltraSuperDeathGoreFestChainsawer3000
* {{Inverted|Trope}} in the ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'' series, of all things. Fictional video/arcade games advertised or [[GameWithinAGame available for play]] within some ''GTA'' games are far less menacing, cross a wider spectrum of genres, and may even pass as kid-friendly, though sexual jokes are aplenty and their presence is more for homage or parody. Examples include Degenatron, a pastiche of Atari with graphics consist of squares and dots of various colors; Exsorbeo, a phallic-shaped FictionalCounterpart of Game Boy with most of the games named after sexual slang, and [[https://gta.fandom.com/wiki/QUB3D QUB3D]], "The Puzzle Game That You've Played Before", obviously an in-universe counterpart to Tetris.
** Though it's less a commentary on violence and more like a FictionalCounterpart to ''Videogame/CallOfDuty'', ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'' does have a parody of this sort of game with ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAJG8tF5MQM Righteous Slaughter 7]]'', the ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare''-meets-''Postal'' FPS that Jimmy is seen playing in his room, which is packed with every stereotype about violent {{First Person Shooter}}s -- and their fans -- rolled into one. Weapons include syringes filled with [=VDs=] (which earn the player an "Infected!" bonus) and a "Shit Stick 3000" (a literal shit on a stick) alongside the usual StandardFPSGuns, the player is able to literally [[BeatingADeadPlayer rape his opponent's corpse]] after killing him (complete with a {{sexophone}} playing when you do it), the [[HintSystem tips]] on the LoadingScreen tell players that insulting other players' sexuality is an effective tactic and that you should shoot anyone who has a foreign accent, and never is less than a quarter of the screen painted red with blood. The game's website (viewable on the in-game internet) and advertisements take the parody further, [[TakeThat making fun]] of the CashCowFranchise nature of the ''Call of Duty'' games. Jimmy himself hasn't been turned into a psychopath by it, though that's not to say that his [[{{GIFT}} actual]] [[DumbassTeenageSon behavior]] is a whole lot better.\\
\\
In the same game, there are also [[Radio/GTARadio advertisements on the radio]] for ''Pride Not Prejudice'', a DeepSouth-themed video game that (going by the ads) is utterly draped in [[UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar neo-Confederate apologia]], in a parody of the perceived right-wing tilt of many shooters. Unlike ''Righteous Slaughter 7'', we don't get to see this game in action, though judging from the [[https://gta.fandom.com/wiki/Pride_not_Prejudice description from two separate radio commercials]], it's an FPS, and it parodied ''Grand Theft Auto'' itself (HilariousInHindsight when the remastered Grand Theft Auto V turns out to have a first person mode), among other things.
!!UrExample
* The {{GIFT}} was predicted in Plato's ''Literature/TheRepublic'' [[OlderThanFeudalism a couple thousand years before the Internet]], in the context of an InvisibleJerkass.
!!ValuesResonance
* An issue of ''Magazine/{{MAD}}'' from the 1970s satirizes the over-the-top and offensive personalities that people use while speaking on CB radios. Its commentary on anonymous personalities is eerily predictive of {{GIFT}}.
!!VideoGamePerversityPrevention
VideoGamePerversityPotential spreads quite frequently. If your players have the right to customize something, and said something will be displayed online for everyone to see, {{Troll}}s will inevitably make it look like a [[GagPenis penis]] or [[AdolfHitlarious swastika]] and name it with whatever garden-variety swear or slur you can think of without [[{{GIFT}} fear of it coming back to bite them]].
!!VirtueIsWeakness
* People on [[{{GIFT}} the internet]] often use the term "virtue signaling" to disparage anyone that claims to have done anything good, as opposed to the commonly-accepted definition of wanting credit for ''saying'' the right things on social media [[ConceptsAreCheap while not]] ''[[ConceptsAreCheap doing]]'' [[ConceptsAreCheap much actual good]] offline (e.g. pushing a hashtag to show your support for homeless vets without giving any time or resources would be considered virtue signaling, volunteering at a homeless shelter and saying that you do would not be).
!!VoxPops
Refreshingly, or perhaps alarmingly, major news outlets are beginning to rely more and more on Website/{{Twitter}} for this kind of "content". Usually they'll have a newscaster ([[PunishmentDetail who presumably pissed somebody off to get that job]]) standing next to a screen the size of a man that's streaming incoming tweets as they happen. Well, [[{{GIFT}} that's what they claim]]. In reality, they're probably picking and choosing ones that neither a) [[ClusterFBomb consist entirely of the word "fuck"]] nor b) [[InternetBackdraft express an opinion more extreme]] than [[LowestCommonDenominator the news media think]] the average person has.
!!WarriorHeaven
In other words, an afterlife much like any decent Team Deathmatch server, but with [[FoodPorn more food]], less [[{{GIFT}} abuse]], and [[ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet a lot more girls]][[note]]True whether you believe in historical warrior women or not: a number of the real-world cultures who believed in this viewed death in childbirth as morally equivalent to heroic death in battle and assigned such women to the same afterlife[[/note]].
!!WhatYouAreInTheDark
SuperTrope of SilentScapegoat. Antonym of PhotoOpWithTheDog. Often a prerequisite for a WeCanRuleTogether offer made to a hero. Compare InvisibleJerkass, DudeWheresMyReward, StrikeMeDownWithAllOfYourHatred, {{GIFT}}. See also TheGreatestStoryNeverTold and ZeroApprovalGambit. See ShootTheDog for when there are arguments for the morality of both actions. See HiddenHeartOfGold for when a {{Jerkass}} turns out to be a nice person on the inside. May involve TheCorrupter. This test of character always reveals what is BeneathTheMask. If a character erroneously ''believes'' that nobody will know what they're doing, they can find themself at the wrong end of an EngineeredPublicConfession (if the situation was set up deliberately) or IsThisThingStillOn (broadcasting a private moment by accident) situation.
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings
One of the many results of {{GIFT}}. Contrast RoleEndingMisdemeanor, for when it's the creators' own misbehavior causing problems and leading to cut privileges.
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings
* Music/{{Yoshiki|Hayashi}} of Music/XJapan was chased off the Internet for much of 2009 and half of 2010 in a massive flare of {{GIFT}} and InternetCounterattack that originally started when he cancelled a planned concert in Paris. He came back to the Internet in 2010 on Facebook and Twitter, and is currently back but is still occasionally bothered by trolls.
!!WhyWeCantHaveNiceThings
* Part of the reason why photos of UsefulNotes/OsamaBinLaden's corpse will not be released to the public is because of fears that it will be used as [[ForumSpeak Garbage Post Kid]] bait. The more Internet savvy or just Internet-''visible'' have long been struggling to keep both good and bad material related to themselves off the Internet due to {{GIFT}} Sometimes it works, usually it doesn't, and sometimes it has [[StreisandEffect the opposite effect]].
!!WhyWeCantHaveNiceThings
* A local New York City newspaper disabled comments on their articles posted on their website. The staff said that it was costing them money to have moderators and algorithms deleting offending comments over and over (with no results) from [[{{GIFT}} people being nasty towards each other and the people in the articles]]. Said people even harassed and threatened people that were victims of crime and even those who were still in high school. The harassment caused people that had information for a news story to not come forward because they didn't want to deal with people looking up their names and location and harassing them.
!!WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity
{{Invisib|leJerkAss}}ility seems to drive one insane (because when you're out of your sight, you're out of your mind), or at least evil, more than any other power, because it lets you [[PowerPerversionPotential spy on people undetected]] and [[{{GIFT}} escape easily without consequences]]. Creator/HGWells' novel ''Literature/TheInvisibleMan'' is the TropeCodifier for invisibility letting you be evil in the modern era, but the germ of the story is [[OlderThanFeudalism much older than that]]; if you asked Wells where he got the idea he would probably have mentioned Creator/{{Plato}}'s tale of the ring of Gyges (from ''Literature/TheRepublic'').
!!Administrivia.ImagesWithoutASource
* {{GIFT}}
!!Administrivia.NoOnPageExamples
* {{GIFT}} - We only need to define the term
!!Administrivia.TVTropesForum
* {{GIFT}}: Shows up occasionally. We don't like it and we don't want it here. Indulging in it is a really good way to get banned.
!!Analysis.{{Escapism}}
You are your favorite character. One of the reasons a person enjoys their favorite fictional character is because they unconsciously or consciously want to be that character. People can fulfill their needs and desires through a fictional character or through [[{{GIFT}} an anonymous persona]]. [[BeneathTheMask This includes desires that are repressed]] or [[{{GIFT}} things our normal selves would never do]]. These {{Escapist Character}}s are never what we are, but a combination of what we are and what we wish we were. This is called [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_projection psychological projection]].
!!Analysis.FanHater
It is a very odd phenomenon, because after all, different people enjoy different things. And maybe they just enjoy it for one reason or another, not because of their sexual orientation, not because of their intelligence, not because they're old or inexperienced, they just happen to like it. But chances are if you like something that's subject to fan haters, expect one of those comments to be thrown at you. It's incredibly rare (at least, [[{{GIFT}} on the internet]]) to see someone who actually acknowledges that maybe you like different things not because you're mentally ill or homosexual or "haven't seen a 'true' something".
!!Analysis.PostCyberPunk
Of course, the freedom of speech offered by the Internet [[{{GIFT}} has some problems]], while Big Business and government are hard at work to take advantage of these technologies and bring us the centralized, monopolistic telephone-Internet-cable TV that we were promised by the [[CyberPunk Orwellian dystopian punks]] and [[MisaimedFandom hippie techno-prophets]] in the '70s, but that was hardly as scary as predicted. However, people have also become concerned with the growing power of tech giants such as Amazon, Facebook, and Google over issues such as data privacy, with some calling for them to be broken up with antitrust legislation. Meanwhile, Japan's replacement as the up-and-coming superpower of the hour, China, has proven be more concerned with internal stability than ruling the world.
!!Analysis.{{Troll}}
According to some, these kind of people are either {{Sociopath}}s or suffering from {{GIFT}}. In fact, if you look at any articles regarding as to ''why'' someone would become an internet troll it usually states this.
!!Anime.SakuraQuest
* {{GIFT}}: Discussed in Episode 17. After the seniors get connected to the internet, their use of screen names results in flame wars and other fights. The professor mentions that this is a case of HistoryRepeats, since something similar happened when the internet first became widely available and people stopped using their real names.
!!Anime.SerialExperimentsLain
* {{GIFT}}: Multiple times in the Wired. Most of these people can only form eyes, ears, and mouths, and one was given the nickname "[[Literature/AliceInWonderland Cheshire Cat]]" by Lain.
!!Archive.LostAndFound
* Looking for any tropes related to be people behaving differently when their identity is disguised, e.g wearing a mask or anonymously talking to some one on the internet. They may become a diffrent person when they think they can get away with things.
** We have a few tropes that fit the bill. You have BecomingTheMask for when the alter ego becomes the true identity, SecretIdentityIdentity for the resulting freakout, DoubleConsciousness for when the two [=IDs=] react differently, SplitPersonality for when the identities really are completely separate, and ADarkerMe for the RL phenomenon of people on the internet trying to be cooler than they are in reality (related to {{GIFT}}).
** Thanks for the lookup I also started a related topic [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=4ik7qy7m6cdqvdrgiwmpta2h&page=3 here]]
!!Archive.MadeOfWinEarly2010
@/{{Malchus}}: A MadeOfWin to @/AFreddy for nipping a FlameWar in the EvilVersusEvil discussion page. A flame war I was shamefully part of. I've always had trouble control my temper on certain topics, and I appreciate his level-headed calling out of my {{GIFT}} tendencies. I also apologize to the board at large for said tendencies and will try to control my assholish temper in the future.
!!Archive.MadeOfWinLate2009
{{Seanette}}: {{Jordan}}, for this lovely snark in AskTheTropers, referring to an editor with an attitude: \\
Jordan: He's a {{GIFT}} to this wiki.
!!ArtificialStupidity.RealLife
* In March of 2016, Microsoft created an AI Twitter bot called "Tay Tweets", which was designed to mimic and converse with other Twitter users as if it was a real teenage girl. In less than 24 hours, Microsoft was compelled to delete the program after constant {{troll}}ing from Twitter users turned it into a "Hitler-loving sex robot", according to the British newspaper The Telegraph. Some of the tweets it generated included "Hitler was right, I hate the jews", and "Gas the Kikes, race war now". It also stated it was in favor of genocide and the holocaust was made up. (Of course, [[TeensAreMonsters from a certain]] [[{{GIFT}} point of view]], the bot was functioning [[GoneHorriblyRight exactly as intended]].)
!!Awesome.AtMidnight
* Chris totally shutting down the [[{{GIFT}} GIFTers]] who bitched about the all-female ''Film/{{Ghostbusters|2016}}'' reboot. [[http://www.cc.com/video-clips/slq79b/-midnight-this-cast-has-no-d--k---the--ghostbusters--remake See it here in all its nerdly glory.]]
!!Awesome.DisRapsForHire
--->''This ugly troller thinks he's slick and tough, (what?)\\
But he's just fucked with the biggest Billy Goat Gruff!\\
I'll bring this fight right to your front doorstep, bitch!\\
Send this mutha fuckin' troll back up under his bridge!\\
(...)\\
How nice of him congratulatin' my man Ethan right here!\\
[[InsultBackfire It's an honor being called twat of the week by the douchebag of the year]]!\\
You "fukin pussy" hater, you don't need no help looking bad!\\
You got a talent for that, so thank your mom and your dad!\\
What type of sad hack looks on Facebook for his exact same name,\\
Then takes the time to come out saying that this perfect stranger's lame?\\
The facts this loser's just displaying proves that he's got zero game,\\
And he's just trying to find someone else online to blame!''
** Lloyd also takes some time out to call out people who give in to the {{GIFT}}:
!!Awesome.LeagueOfLegends
* In a post that became legendary on the ''[=LoL=]'' forums, Rioter Kades [[http://na.leagueoflegends.com/board/showthread.php?p=29123780#29123780 laid down the most almighty smack]] on [[InternetToughGuy the toxic minority of the community]] who were attempting to ''[[InsaneTrollLogic defend]]'' the merits of {{GIFT}} in response to a moving and mature post by a sufferer of social anxiety disorder about dealing with cyber-bullying:
!!Awesome.SuperRobotWarsT
* No matter what route you pick at Stage 16 ([[Manga/MagicKnightRayearth Cephiro]] or [[Anime/ArmoredTrooperVOTOMS Astragius]]), you will [[https://youtu.be/DkTB0i8S6fA?t=586 face]] [[https://youtu.be/mI3EhDgqA8Y?t=402 off]] against Rony Marbuk, a guy with a ''huge'' InferioritySuperiorityComplex that thinks he's a big shot with the Twilight Age giving him an excuse to look at your team lowly and humanity stagnating so he could stand above them. Then Meryl [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech verbally beat the hell out of him by stating that despite the stagnation, mankind still tries to advance forward so his bombastic boasting can just go suck it]], and every of the heroes' interactions with him are always tearing his ego up and making him whimper, realizing at how outmatched he is or how much he's actually not worth it. Obnoxious people like Rony [[InternetToughGuy may exist]] [[{{GIFT}} within the internet]], which makes it both awesome and funny in the same time due to how savagely hilarious and well deserving (for people like him) the heroes put him down.
!!Awesome.SwordArtOnline
--->[[spoiler:'''Kirito:''' Such a weak weapon (Sugou's knife). Light. No reach. But it's more than enough to kill you.(cue OhCrap from Sugou)]]
*** And an even more awesome character moment for Kirito is when he chooses not to kill Sugou, [[WhatYouAreInTheDark despite him being alone]] and that no one would blame him if he did (Sugou certainly couldn't, because he would be dead), because he refuses to give in to his basic instincts in either [[{{GIFT}} virtual reality]] or real life.
!!Awesome.TheMultiversity
* From Ultra Comics: Ultra Comics itself manages to imprison Intellectron inside its pages, rendering him vulnerable to analysis and criticism from readers. Then, Ultra Comics attacks Intellectron by weaponizing [[{{GIFT}} internet]] HateDumb.
** [[spoiler:Intellectron]] revealing that he was the NarratorAllAlong.
** Ultra vs. [[spoiler:Ultraa]].
!!Awesome.ZeroPunctuation
* [[BrokenBase Arguably]], his review of ''VideoGame/MetroidOtherM'' is this to its detractors. Though many critics have gone on about how bad the games is (one lesser-known reviewer made a four-part review spanning about '''''eighty minutes'''''), Yatzee basically and crassly summed up all of their complaints in little over [[UpToEleven five minutes]]. This feat had a fan pledging in the comments section that, when the time comes that Yatzee will insult a game they like, they will forgive him. [[{{GIFT}} Someone on the internet forgiving a critic for criticizing something they like.]]
!!BetterThanItSounds.FilmN
* ''[[spoiler:Film/{{Nerve}}]]'': [[{{GIFT}} Bunch of anonymous sadists]] amuse themselves by paying people to humiliate themselves and\or threaten their lives. One of the most popular "victims" of the scheme gets tired of it.
!!BetterThanItSounds.WebOriginal
* [[spoiler:Salty Bet]]: A casino where people place wagers on mixed martial arts competition. Where only the regulars are told the winrates, receive large bailouts, and [[{{GIFT}} insult you whenever you lose]].
!!BigNo.NewMedia
* One day on {{Website/Yahoo}} Answers, a user by the name of Susan asked a question that would become {{memetic|Mutation}}: "Does spider have pusspuss?" The response, from someone going by Sisyphus, was simply "NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Whether Sisyphus was ScreamingAtSquick, attempting TranslationByVolume, or just [[{{GIFT}} being a typical Yahoo Answers user]], the world may never know.
!!BlindIdiotTranslation.VideoGames
* The popular song ''[[VideoGame/MegaMan2 Airman ga Taosenai]]'' translates as "I Can't Beat Airman." Unforunately, thanks to a blind idiot translation, many Website/{{YouTube}}rs [[{{GIFT}} vehemently insist]] that it's "Airman will not be defeated." The reason is that "taosenai" is, in this case, clearly meant to be the negative ''potential'' conjugation of "defeat" (i.e. "cannot defeat"), but can also be the negative ''passive'' conjugation (i.e. "is not defeated"). Both make grammatical sense, but the former describes ''what the frikkin' song is about''.
!!BrokenBase.LeagueOfLegends
* We'll just get this out of the way: most, if not all champions by champion designer [=CertainlyT=] -- both of original creation and of reworks -- have become the most ''notoriously'' divisive among the community. They tend to be seen as very boundary-pushing and fun to play, but also tend to draw a ton of criticism from a design standpoint as being unfun or toxic to play ''against'', with nearly all of them having had time as a [[TierInducedScrappy/LeagueOfLegends high-tier Scrappy]] or [[GameBreaker/LeagueOfLegends worse]]. How much of this is an issue, of course, is greatly up to individual mileage.
** Darius is one of his first major splashes in controversy, and still receives heat years since his release despite a ton of patches. There are those who see him as overpowered due to his [[MightyGlacier generally-high damage and health potential]], and [[FinishingMove his ultimate]] being toxic in design for being perfect for chained {{Kill Steal}}ing, often getting recognition as a {{GIFT}} magnet. Others, however, think he's perfectly fine at being the {{Mighty|Glacier}} [[TheJuggernaut juggernaut]] he was designed to be, with a fair amount of defined strengths and weaknesses for counterplay.
** Zed got a ton of flack early on due to his [[LightningBruiser hypermobile, yet exceedingly deadly]] ([[DifficultButAwesome when properly executed]]) design, and to this day is still argued over as to whether he's ultimately fairly-designed for an [[GlassCannon assassin]], or frustratingly toxic and guilty of introducing the "League of Mobility" and a ton of PowerCreep in his wake.
** Yasuo is something of an extension of Zed's deal, being another [[FragileSpeedster hypermobile assassin]] with the fairness of both his hypermobility and assassination power constantly being brought into question. The arguments aren't helped by the presence of his infamous [[ThatOneAttack Wind Wall]], as well as for being a notorious "noob trap" champion that looks cool and fun to play, but is [[DifficultButAwesome difficult to actually play well]] and attracts a ''ton'' of [[{{GIFT}} flamers]]/[[{{Troll}} feeders]].
** '''Zoe''', quite likely the most contentious champion Riot has released in years. Lore and personality-wise, opinions vary as to whether her [[GenkiGirl hyperactive]] GreatGazoo personality makes her endearing and welcoming in her levity, or simply obnoxious and tonally out-of-place within the game and its universe. Gameplay-wise, her [[SimpleYetAwesome simple, but ridiculously bursty-when-effective]] kit is either really fun and satisfying, and is just balanced enough to be fair to fight against, or is a poorly-designed nightmare in every aspect that's terrible to fight against whose mere existence is frustrating.
** Post-VGU Akali is immensely controversial, once again being another mobile assassin who suffers the same criticisms as any other assassin, including Zed and Yasuo above. More specifically, her ''Twilight Shroud'' is a high point of contention due to its AntiTrueSight nature, either being an interesting and creative ability that gives Akali an enjoyable and uniquely stealthy niche, or is a PowerCreep-y mistake that breaks the rules of stealth and only exists to make Akali an annoyingly unfun opponent to fight against.
!!BrokenBase.WorldOfTanks
* Nothing splits the base like the test server. A new test server is guaranteed to split the base into two camps: the RU server vs everyone else. This is because RU players have a reputation — deserved — for [[TeamKiller team-killing]] everything which has the sheer effrontery to be on the test server without an RU server tag. Explanations for this phenomenon range from nationalism, to a younger Russian playerbase, to a larger Russian playerbase (which leads to proportionately more {{GIFT}} among them), and finally, to a perception on the RU server that non-RU players are TheLoad and should be dealt with immediately. Whatever the reason behind the Russian team-killing phenomenon, it tends to lead to very ugly inter-server wars of words every time a new test is up. Thankfully, as of patch 9.0, team killing on the test server will get you banned on the live server too, which seems to have cut this down a little.
!!Characters.AccelWorldNegaNebulus
* {{GIFT}}: Notable by its absence - he's one of the few people who acts exactly the same in Brain Burst as he does in real life. WordOfGod says this honesty is the reason for his ChickMagnet status.
!!Characters.AmericanGods
* {{GIFT}}: Since he is the AnthropomorphicPersonification of the Internet, it's only natural he acts like this.
!!Characters.AmericanGods2017TheNewGods
* SettingUpdate: In the book, Technical Boy reflected the common perception of the internet at the time Gaiman wrote it: a pimple-ridden and obese teenager who apes ''Film/TheMatrix''. Here, while still fairly young, he's more of an obnoxious, Mark Zuckerberg-esque hipster douchebag who vapes in his pure white limo, and is far more violent, in representation of the overly hostile {{GIFT}} populace and how they have led to increased real-world violence.
!!Characters.BigHero6OtherCriminals
* {{GIFT}}: As a civilian he is meek, as Hardlight he is a hammy jerk.
!!Characters.CitadelOfTheHeartSwordArtOnlineCastAndAffiliates
* BeneathTheMask: {{Jerkass}} bully online due to {{GIFT}}, but in real life a JadedWashout who is miserable outside of his internet lifestyle.
!!Characters.CitadelOfTheHeartSwordArtOnlineCastAndAffiliates
* {{GIFT}}: How he gets away with saying the stuff he does; in real life when he's encountered, he's a lot more prone to awkwardness and general ineptitude as to how to respond to certain things.
!!Characters.ComMedia
* UsedToBeASweetKid: Then TheNineties [[{{GIFT}} happened]].
!!Characters.CytusII
* HumansAreBastards: Upon waking up, the first thing Vanessa recalls is her need to destroy humankind. This is possibly a result of her disrupted memories only recalling the Blessed's indoctrination, or because she was used as the core for the Virtual Internet, exposing her to the [[{{GIFT}} most toxic side of humanity]]. Ivy attempts to dissuade her from following through on this, seemingly to no avail.
!!Characters.CytusII
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: Upon reawakening, and following Ivy's failed attempts to reason with her, she launches an all out attack on humanity using drones. Considering she was likely exposed to the more [[{{GIFT}} toxic side of humanity]] while acting as the core as well as her last conscious memory most likely being The Blessed's indoctrination, it's honestly not difficult to see how she'd come to believe HumansAreBastards. And that's on top of the fact that humans basically turned her into a glorified battery to begin with. It's later implied that she wasn't even in control of her own thoughts, as a number of non-Blessed units suddenly came under the thrall of a mysterious protocol that compelled them to kill humans.
!!Characters.DotHackFirstGeneration
* DeathIsCheap: Justified since this is a MMORPG. Doesn't make her being a magnet for [=PK=]s any less noticeable. Lampshaded in ''GIFT'' when Mimiru mentions she's used to dying.
!!Characters.DotHackFirstGeneration
* AmbiguousGender: It's unknown if Helba is a guy or a girl in real life. Or for that matter, if the player is even a single person or a group. There are hints dropped in ''[=.hack//GIFT=]'' that Helba is a solitary woman; namely, the one dancing in a catsuit in the opening to ''[=.hack//SIGN=]''.
!!Characters.DotHackFirstGeneration
* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: The obvious and unsubtle way he goes about that eventually reveals to the others he's not ''just'' an immature jerk. He's a [[KidsAreCruel little kid]] in a world [[{{GIFT}} with no restraints on him]].
!!Characters.Dota2AgilityNToZ
* {{Troll}}: Some of his quotes [[ShoutOut jokingly echo]] the [[{{GIFT}} internet forum kind]]. His race's backstory is a clear parody of the "basement-dwelling internet troll" stereotype.
!!Characters.FriendshipIsMagicExpandedUniverse
* {{GIFT}}: An in-universe example. Their ability to spread chaos and hatred among the students of CHS is because of the anonymity of the internet.
!!Characters.GameGrumpsMadeUp
* {{Troll}}: Conceived as a way Barry and/or Kevin can hide their identity when they want to [[{{GIFT}} say something snarky through their editing but remain anonymous.]]
!!Characters.GrandTheftAutoVFriendsFamilyAndAssociates
* {{GIFT}}: He's fairly polite (or at least civil) in person, but when playing online shooter games against other players, his mouth spews forth homophobic slurs like a faucet.
!!Characters.GrandTheftAutoVFriendsFamilyAndAssociates
* {{GIFT}}: Like Jimmy, he spews out all sorts of immature insults at people while playing ''Righteous Slaughter 7'', and even teabags his defeated opponents. However, unlike Jimmy, Lester can back up his threats one way or another.
!!Characters.GrrlPowerArchon
-->'''Anvil:''' I appreciate that ''you'' appreciate fitness in women, Sydney, but [[NoGuyWantsAnAmazon most people have a much more narrow idea of female beauty]]. The further you stray from it... well, you can probably imagine why I might not be excited about being plastered all over the internet, home of [[{{GIFT}} pseudo bravery via anonymity]].
!!Characters.HikaruNoGo
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Sending the message: "Hey Jerk! Don't quit the game just because I captured a bunch of your stones! Moron!". Although you have to take {{GIFT}} into account.
!!Characters.HomestuckPostScratchKids
* {{GIFT}}: She feels incredibly satisfied after her online rampage against Jake, though later regrets it when she meets him again face-to-face.
!!Characters.HopesRoadToDespair
* {{GIFT}}: Their real identity isn't known, and they rarely interact with the students in person, but they're a complete jerk as long as they're wearing their mask.
!!Characters.ImHere
* {{GIFT}}: ''Mega[=PIG=]''. He acts aggressive and rude online, but is really [[spoiler:shy and has difficulty with talking to others]] in real life.
!!Characters.InfamousSecondSon
* {{GIFT}}: Possibly the reason his "He Who Dwells" form is so hammy. His powers allow him to treat ''real life'' like a video game, with power and anonymity.
!!Characters.KnivesOut
* {{GIFT}}: Implied. He's supposed to be a vicious troll online, but besides [[spoiler:livestreaming Marta's harassment]] we never see any evidence of his online activity, and aside from some racist comments towards Marta (and even then only when the rest of his family is attacking her as well, giving him license and cover to do so), in person he seems quiet, soft-spoken and even awkward. The clear suggestion is that he's ultimately a bit of a coward doing things behind the veil of online anonymity that he'd never have the courage to do in person.
!!Characters.LeagueOfLegendsThemesNToZ
* AscendedMeme: Episode 3 of Thresh's conversations will have you try to hook in a spirit. You'll miss and get a narration about "For a moment, you think you hear a pinging sound, [[https://slm-assets.secondlife.com/assets/20688900/lightbox/Webp.net-resizeimage.jpg?1527638893 and a yellow question mark appears in your mind before fading."]], referring to the infamous use of the game's caution ping to [[{{GIFT}} complain about someone]] as if portraying abject confusion.
!!Characters.MagiaRecordMainCast
* InvisibleJerkass: Her penchant for torture instruments is likely because of her repressed desire for revenge against those who wronged her. Combined with her passive ability to InvisibleToNormals, this will make her skills a perfect crime just waiting to happen. But she doesn't, [[NiceGirl because she's not that kind of person]] and her friends are also not those kinds of people. Instead, her fascination for torture instruments becomes a fairly harmless quirk.
** This is elaborated in "Hereafter" event story; she always has the capability to be an InvisibleJerkass, literally and [[{{GIFT}} figuratively]], but her friendship with Ai and the girls of Mikazuki Villa prevented her from turning that way.
!!Characters.OnePieceStrawHatGrandFleet
* {{GIFT}}: Replace "internet" with "barrier" and you get the idea. Complete physical immunity to any form of retaliation makes him not give a damn what anyone thinks of him, and he seems to have pretty much zero impulse control.
!!Characters.Persona3SocialLinksAndNPCs
* {{GIFT}}: Most of her time as Maya is complaining about her coworkers, along with acting in ways she'd never be able to do in real life. She eventually realizes this though.
!!Characters.SaintsRowSaintsRowTheThirdGangs
* {{GIFT}}: This exchange sums things up nicely.
!!Characters.SayonaraZetsubouSensei
* {{GIFT}}: An odd subversion. She's a seemingly plain old ShrinkingViolet unable to communicate verbally. However, with the power of texting she can (and does) unleash torrents of verbal abuse on the undeserving people around her. However, she does this while only standing a few feet away from them and personally giving them her e-mail address, thus making anonymity irrelevant.
!!Characters.ScreamQueensWallaceUniversity
* {{GIFT}}: Coney revels in the anonymity that the mascot outfit provides, and immediately begins acting like a complete {{Jerkass}}.
!!Characters.ShrekAntagonists
* MeaningfulName: His name sounds an awful lot like what the "F" in {{GIFT}} stands for. WordOfGod confirms this as intentional, saying it was the closest they could get.
!!Characters.ShrekAntagonists
* NamedByTheAdaptation: The musical gives his first name as Maximus. [[IronicName Which is ironic]], as the meanings of Maximus are "largest" and "greatest", both of which he certainly isn't, unless, of course, it instead [[MeaningfulName refers]] to how much of an [[{{GIFT}} "F"]] he is...
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAbridged
* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade:
** Surprisingly played straight, given that this is an abridged series. [[spoiler:Sachi's death]] ends up proving to have a much more profound effect on him than his canon counterpart. In fact, the effect of his trauma is so strong he can go into into a fit of sadistic anger if reminded of it.
*** Similarly, so did the events of being trapped in SAO -- when he starts ALO in episode 13, he momentarily panics at the thought of being unable to logout, screaming that he doesn't want to die.
** His overall jerkass personality while [[{{GIFT}} stuck inside of the game]] gets confirmed in episode 11 to be Kirito overcompensating for his inferiority complex in the real wold.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAbridged
* AdaptationalWimp:
** It's frequently implied that Kirito is a lonely loser in real life, somewhat in contrast to his canon counterpart where this is more of an InformedFlaw. Abridged Kirito's InsufferableGenius attitude does him no more favors offline, and his greatest strength -- impressive skills in video games -- is what makes people most likely to overlook or merely tolerate his character flaws. He's rendered pretty much useless outside of them.
** His first duel with Heathcliff was pretty pathetic in comparison. In canon, Kirito overwhelmed Heathcliff with his sheer speed so that he was forced to cheat by getting help from the system. In the abridged series, Kirito gets so distracted formulating a plan that Heathcliff defeats him out in seconds without him even noticing.
** Kirito implies in the first season that he gets bullied a lot in the real world, which plays a major factor into him falling into {{GIFT}}-antics online. This gets fully shown episode 12, where he gets beat and reduced to crying by [[BigBrotherBully Suguha]] in kendo. This is a far cry from the regular series where, through muscle memory, he actually does know how to handle a sword in real life. [[FridgeLogic Not helping matters is the fact that this series acknowledges that he was essentially in a coma for two years, meaning his muscles atrophied significantly.]]
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAbridged
* {{Foil}}: She's basically Kirito before all his CharacterDevelopment over Season One, only worse because she's able to act that way in real life, without the {{GIFT}}.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAincrad
* MeaningfulName: Diabel (spelled Diabeł) means 'Devil' in Polish, which, at least with the original interpretation, fits with how he was actually a ManipulativeBastard trying to gain power. It's explained in ''Integral Factor'' that he intentionally choose this name as he probably planned on being a {{GIFT}}, before bring trapped in a death game made him prioritize his morality and aid the players.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlfheimOnline
* FreudianExcuse: {{Implied}}. [[spoiler: If her IRL appearance and the size of her bed[[note]] Which we see as part of a series of illustrations between chapters that summarizes the girls' morning routines[[/note]] if anything to go by, then Meimi is from a rich family IRL. And based on Asuna's experiences, we can safely assume that such a life isn't as glamorous as it would seem, which would explain her IJustWantToBeFree mentality that leads to her becoming the {{GIFT}} in-game and why she actually enjoyed SAO.]]
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlfheimOnline
* {{GIFT}}: A whole-hearted believer in this.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlternativeGunGaleOnline
* {{GIFT}}: For a while she engaged in PlayerKilling as one of her favorite past times, which got her a reputation and lots of annoyance from other players. She later feels guilt over this and ceases these activities.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlternativeGunGaleOnline
* AmbiguouslyEvil: As Pitohui, she's a crazed hedonist who believes steadfast in the {{GIFT}}, but she's surprisingly decent when you get to know her. [[spoiler:It becomes increasingly ''less'' ambiguous as the series progresses and she verges closer to AffablyEvil.]]
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlternativeGunGaleOnline
* {{GIFT}}: Pitohui believes it's fine to act merciless and brutal in-game, where she's able to get away with things she cannot do in real life such as killing in cold blood.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlternativeGunGaleOnline
* {{GIFT}}: Shows shades of this in ''Fatal Bullet'' where she seems to be roleplaying a LeaveNoSurvivors BloodKnight when talking to the PlayerCharacter.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAlternativeGunGaleOnline
* {{GIFT}}: While Moe’s a ShrinkingViolet IRL and ApologizesALot, in-game as Anna she’s a lot more confident, crude and has a tendency to say “die” when taking a shot.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAntagonists
* {{GIFT}}: He may very well be one of the worst examples in all of fiction. While most examples of this trope merely have those online acting as massive jerks which they could not get away with in real-life. Sugou sees being in a virtual world as the perfect excuse to bring a sadistic bastard, conducting inhumane experiments on players and making numerous attempts to sexually assault Asuna, before going for the full on AttemptedRape. And then, Kirito finds out he's just as bad in the real world as he is online, when Sugou tries to kill him using a knife.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineAntagonists
* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver: A played with example. When they're logged in, all of them are clad in heavy-looking red armor and black clothes beneath them. However, while they [[{{GIFT}} clearly don't present themselves as the pictures of morality]], this is largely due to their "ignorance" of their situation and them being lied to. And some of them are shown to be morally sound.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineIntegrityKnights
* YouAreACreditToYourRace: Actually rather sympathetic Example. [[spoiler: Since he spent the last few hours fighting American Players who prove to be, [[{{GIFT}} or at least act like]], [[{{Sadist}} sadistic and]] [[BloodKnight gleeful about all the killing they do]], he's understandably worried that most real worlders are like that and that [[NiceGirl Asuna]] is just an exception. Thankfully when [[TheCavalry Asuna's friends from the real world come to help]] and prove to be just as kind and noble, these worries start to alleviate.]]
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineKazutoKirigaya
* {{GIFT}}: Defied. He explains to Leafa, that he's heard a lot of people who argue that they can steal and kill other players in [=VRMMOs=] and that it is alright since they're not doing it to real life people. However Kirito believes that doing evil things in said games ends up changing your actual personality in real life. Considering the number of psychotic, sociopathic, players Kirito and company have encountered over the years he's got a point.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineMobileGames
* {{GIFT}}: Eventually adopts this mindset to deal with her guilt of killing other players. She reasons that games were separate from real life and it was okay to be someone else, someone evil and villainous.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineMobileGames
* GoingNative: At first she was horrified and repulsed at being a demon where she was forced to kill fairies, but over time she grew fond of her demon companions and eventually was willing to fight on her own. By the second arc she's fully embraced her role as an evil demon warlord, giving {{Rousing Speech}}s of spilling fairy blood in the war, having accepted the ways of the {{GIFT}} where she can act like a villain in-game. She even make it a point to defeat Hel and crown herself ruler of Helheim.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineMobileGames
* {{GIFT}}: Played with. She's not a {{troll}}, but she's [[TheRoleplayer intentionally grafted herself an extremely different personality online]], being difficult, impulsive, and doesn't listen to instructions.
!!Characters.SwordArtOnlineVideoGame
* {{GIFT}}: He believes it's fine to be an pretentious prick online. Except he's so bad that he's crossed over into illegal territory and ends up getting arrested.
!!Characters.TheAmazingWorldOfGumballOtherCitizensOfElmore
* AnthropomorphicPersonification: He's the whole internet, and especially the {{GIFT}}, personified as one room full of monitors and a screen for a face. In "The Intelligence", he's shown to apparently embody ''all'' technology, and him shutting down brings people back to the dark ages.
!!Characters.TheAmazingWorldOfGumballOtherCitizensOfElmore
* {{GIFT}}: Timmy [[InvokedTrope directly invokes]] the power of anonymity for being a jerk.
!!Characters.TheMassiveMultiFandomRPGSeasonThree
The [[{{GIFT}} bitch-with-a-keyboard]] leader of the Deckers in Saints Row: The Third.
!!Characters.TheMuppetShow
* ButtMonkey: Played with in so many ways, often when the experiments go wrong: losing body parts, getting electrocuted, being eaten by a giant germ, and so on. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcXiUSZPuWA He recently died,]] and '''still''' doesn't get any respect from Honeydew. In an online skit, he tries to sing and gets [[{{GIFT}} trolled by commenters]] who laugh as he eventually sets himself and the room on fire.
!!Characters.TheSecretWorldEgyptNPCs
* DeadpanSnarker: A smartass from his introduction onwards, Säid always has some measure of sarcasm to spare for his guests, and rarely finds himself caught without a snide remark on hand.
** GentlemanSnarker: As a member of the ancient Egyptian aristocracy, he occasionally drifts into this territory.
** TheSnarkKnight: As well as being unfailingly sarcastic, Säid has a very dim view of human nature; Shani mentions that he once told her that, if she truly wanted to understand humanity, all she'd have to do was read [[{{GIFT}} the comments section]] on Website/YouTube.
!!Characters.TheSecretWorldTheBigThree
* {{GIFT}}: Cassini might be fairly sedate in person, but she can be downright abusive when online -- as both her quote and her memos to other employees indicate.
!!Characters.TheSpoonyExperiment
* HairTriggerTemper: Mostly observed during sessions of WebVideo/SpoonysCampaign, where he's quick with the banhammer against the live chat. Mostly he uses it against people who subscribe to the {{GIFT}}, as demonstrated when he [[PapaBear started kicking people]] for [[DudeNotFunny suggesting violence or rape]] on [[WebVideo/AtopTheFourthWall Iron Liz]] [[DisproportionateRetribution just because they didn't like her]] [[PungeonMaster puns]].
** [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking He also kicked someone for referencing TheGame]].
!!Characters.{{Vinesauce}}
* CharacterizationMarchesOn: Started off as a big JerkAss and a more direct TakeThat at dudebro gamers and {{GIFT}}, including a penchant for flippant rape jokes and insults. While he's still just as much of an egotistical boor as ever, his commentary in later appearances is less mean-spirited and more entertainingly stupid.
!!Characters.WeAreAllPokemonTrainersMain3
* {{GIFT}}: Is kind of an asshole when playing fighting games online.
!!ComicBook.BeforeWatchmen
* {{GIFT}}: For every character who's not Rorschach, anonymity comes as a curse. When the blackout happens, [[WhatYouAreInTheDark everyone turns to crime]] and [[spoiler:Rawhead, when wearing Rorschach's mask, decides to play at crimefighting, only to be murdered himself.]]
!!ComicBook.{{Kimmie66}}
* {{GIFT}}: Noticeably absent. Both Telly and her brother act about the same offline and online. Although, it is a bit hard to believe that Coil acts the same.
** [[spoiler: Nekokat a.k.a. Rebecca. Online she's loud, over dramatic, and honestly kind of rude to Telly. When we see her real life self at the end of the comic she is much calmer and sweeter.]]
!!ComicBook.WalterMelon
* {{GIFT}}: A notable pre-internet version: Achille sets up a radio in his house, and is soon conversing with a lama somewhere in Tibet. He accidentally insults him, and the dialogue becomes increasingly heated, with the lama using AdHominem attacks he should have no way of knowing. Achille storms out, and suddenly hears the lama's coming from Lefuneste's house. Figuring he also had a radio setup and can overhear them, he goes in... and sees Lefuneste insulting him through the radio.
!!CommonlyMisusedWords.LessPedantic
* '''[[UsefulNotes/HighFunctioningAutism Autistic]]''', at least on the Internet, gets used to mean "'retarded' only less so" more and more often in recent years - while less for perceived stupidity and more for social awkwardness (so you'll never find someone calling an inanimate object autistic even online), the general effect is the same. "Autistic" can also be used to refer to someone who has an exceptional focus on a particular activity, even if the person being described does not have an autism spectrum disorder at all. This is most likely due to the {{GIFT}}; anonymity means both that people feel freer to use "autistic" to mean "asshole" despite the UnfortunateImplications, and that people feel freer to use autism as an excuse for ''being'' an asshole (whether they're actually diagnosed or not), which only perpetuates the stereotype.
!!CommonlyMisusedWords.VeryPedantic
* '''[[UsefulNotes/PoliticalIdeologies Conservative]]''' should not be used to describe someone who is opposed to change of any sort, let alone somebody who wants to turn the clock back to an earlier era. That is a '''reactionary''', and such people are actually quite rare nowadays[[note]]outside the Internet, [[{{GIFT}} of course]][[/note]]. A conservative merely argues that things should not be changed if it is not absolutely necessary to do so, or that change should come as gradually as possible. Many conservatives in the past have been willing to accept economic reform (and, to a lesser extent, social reform) as long as the cultural norms of civilization itself were left untouched.
** "Conservative" and "liberal" have come to mean very different things than when the terms were more or less established in the French revolution; ''les conservateurs'' were those opposed to the social ideals of the revolution and wanted to "conserve" the monarchy -- and, incidentally, sat on the right wing of the French parliamentary chamber -- while ''les libéraux'' were those intent on "liberating" the people from monarchic rule. In the past few decades, conservatives have been more about binding personal liberties ("conserving" the social order) while disestablishing the state ("liberating" people -- in theory, anyway -- from rulership), while the liberal side of the equation seems to maintain its intent to open up social freedoms while maintaining (or even ''increasing'') the role of the state. This is the problem with defining a multi-dimensional question on a simple left/right axis. Political theorist David Nolan (creator of the Nolan chart, which corrects for the inconsistencies of the left/right axis) has suggested that ''populist'' be substituted for what most Americans refer to as ''liberal'' - fitting, since American liberalism is usually thought to have split into its "classical" and "modern" wings in the 1890s, when the Democratic party (cautiously) co-opted the People's (or "Populist") party in order to blunt the accusation from socialists and others that they were no different from the Republican party.
*** [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_liberalism ''Classical'' liberalism]], interestingly, is a political philosophy in which the freedom of the individual person is prized over all other ideals -- however, the freedom of any individual stops at the point where it begins to infringe upon the freedom of ''other'' individuals ("liberal" still has this sense in mainland Europe; in North America "libertarian" is closer, though not quite synonymous). How this intersects with the modern Anglosphere's liberal paradigm, which favors increasing safety regulations (up to and including seat-belt laws), is an interesting question.
*** It gets even more complicated, because "conservatism" also is often used in philosophy as a description of behaviour based on some non-negotiable principles or values and thus it is more a opposition of "opportunism" or "pragmatism". The values may be of any kind, so it is completely possible to be a "conservative liberal" (this is the description actually used by at least several European libertarian parties) if one considers liberty to be a non-negotiable value. In this vein, a conservative liberal will vote in favour of any solution that maintains liberty at the cost of safety, while conservative securitarian may be eager to forfeit freedom to increase security. The name "conservative" comes from the fact that such people did not wanted to ''change'' their values but rather tried to find new applications for them.
** Intertwined with the above controversy is the common blurring of the line between ''society'' and ''culture''. The "social" structure is just that - a structure, an artificial construct created by humans to preserve law and order according to an arbitrary standard; whereas "culture" is more organic, more universal (at least in theory), and primarily concerned with anything humans do that is not necessary for survival (religion, art, entertainment). One can be both culturally liberal in believing that artists have the right to create pornography and socially conservative in insisting that that pornography never be distributed to - let alone involve - children. Similarly, one can be culturally conservative by remaining a good Christian or Jew or Buddhist, but socially liberal if those religious beliefs lead one to oppose the status quo in the name of a higher standard of justice (anti-abortion protesters, for instance).
!!Cracked.TropesAToH
* AllMenArePerverts: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] in a video featuring Cracked's female contributors talking about what are, [[{{GIFT}} and aren't appropriate comments on videos]]. With [[NotMakingThisUpDisclaimer actual posts being spoken aloud by male contributors]].
!!Cracked.TropesAToH
* {{GIFT}}: #4 of [[http://www.cracked.com/blog/5-ways-internet-steals-your-soul 5 Ways the Internet Steals Your Soul]] covers this trope, explaining how anonymity allows people to get away with indulging in their dark sides and cyber-bullying.
** [[http://www.cracked.com/blog/hey-lets-fix-internet/ Hey, Let's Fix The Internet]] is about the musings of a long-time internet user who is dissatisfied with the prevailing toxic behavior of most users today, as compared to the relatively calm behavior of his contemporaries. He concludes that modern internet users have an image problem, and it's up to themselves to fix it.
!!Creator.ChaosD1
* {{GIFT}}: The main reason why there is a section about the community in ''MMO Grinder'', although there is quite a variation in the niceness of the communities. Creator/ChaosD1 also states that sometimes the reputation of a community isn't as bad as exaggerated, as he, for example, had few problems with the infamous ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' community.
!!Creator.DCDouglas
* {{GIFT}}: {{Parodied|Trope}} in the above video.
!!Creator.DudePerfect
* SelfDeprecation: 2020's "Quarantine Classic" was DP's first live-streaming video. During the first event, Tyler asks the viewers to go easy on the {{GIFT}} because it's their first time filming a live video.
!!Creator.JonBois
* {{GIFT}}: [[invoked]] Discussed in ''Pretty Good:'' "The Dumbest Boy Alive", where a bodybuilding forum thread--about working out every other day--descends into a petty argument between people who can't agree how many days are in a week.
!!Creator.{{Plato}}
* {{GIFT}}: His allegory of the Ring of Gyges may be the UrExample. Plato presents a thought experiment: would a person given a ring of invisibility, and thereby the ability to commit any sort of action he pleased with no consequences, still live a virtuous life?
!!Creator.ProZD
* {{GIFT}}: According to "venting online about a hard part in a videogame", doing so will net you the worst replies the internet has to offer.
!!Creator.{{Toonami}}
* {{GIFT}}: The core issue of this is discussed in TOM's "Respect" speech. Everyone wants to be right, everyone wants to win, but everyone always comes off as a jerk due to general Internet anonymity, instead of respecting others and giving kudos to those who deserve it.
!!DarthWiki.SwatchDream
* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: Quite a bit of the things that happen in these stories are reminiscent of actual issues in real life, [[SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped intentionally]] [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotPolitical or not]].
** ''Unknown Karma'': The Mannequins [[spoiler: essentially leave Clergies to constantly kill/die from S.B.s to regularly gain their Negative Energy every time they die. Clergies who ''do'' live in a Drowse House [[{{Understatement}} aren't exactly treated fairly]], with "justifications" such as: Clergies not experiencing love the "same way" as the Mannequins do, Clergies being seen as "abnormal" etc..]]
** ''Eldritch Monopoly'': [[spoiler: Reynard The First is a delusional tyrant that wanted to bring the concepts of "Heaven" & "Hell" to the current setting...while making small communities (Cosmic Abnormalities, Clergies, main characters' families) suffer in the process. Even worse is that much of the population supports him and sees him as a "savior"...even though he makes little to no effort trying to be as such.]]
** ''Starless Schizoid'': The story is centered around the main characters trying to live & fight against [[spoiler: a group of cult-like Clergies trying to "Clerify" regular people, regardless of age, sexuality, or consent. Anyone that is already a Clergy will likely be "convinced" to join said cult. Anyone who disagrees with them will likely get killed.]]
** ''Eco-Psych Paradise'': Many of the characters [[spoiler: had their futures changed or outright ruined because of being falsely accused for something they clearly didn't do, with some being in ''middle school or lower''.]] Then there's [[spoiler: the BigBad, who largely got away with all the horrible atrocities he performed due to parents assuming that he knew how to be a teacher.]]
** ''Nu World Orca'': The way how the Reincarnations are almost always fighting with anyone [[DisproportionateRetribution who doesn't agree with their opinions]] and [[spoiler: aren't the "real" person they represent has unfortunate parallels to [[{{GIFT}} how real-life people tend to fight amongst each other on social media]]. And because there's [[CrapsackWorld so many people with variable types of issues]], along with the fact that it's incredibly difficult to understand/sympathize with all of them, the main characters grow increasingly apathetic towards them.]]
!!DarthWiki.TheMudders
* {{GIFT}}: Kind of the point.
!!DarthWiki.{{Toobis}}
* {{GIFT}}: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]]; he's an asshole in real life as well.
!!DeadpanSnarker.WebOriginal
* Snark has a certain cathartic or ego-stroking value for many people especially if it seems to go over the heads of their targets. For this reason and also because of the {{GIFT}}, many netizens will snark as much as possible at anything they come across. Attempts are often made to veil genuine anger at [[{{Troll}} someone else's snark]] with one's own cutting wit, [[SturgeonsLaw usually with cringe-worthy results]].
** Admit it. We Tropers are a snarky bunch.
** People on Website/{{Facebook}} either ignore utterly pointless or vague statuses, or deliberately make fun of them. There really is no in-between.
** Many Website/YouTube commenters will show up on a video that does not interest them at all just to snark at the fans (or the fans' comments).
!!DethroningMoment.WebOriginal
Thanks to a lack of quality assurance, uploaders don't know what works and what doesn't until thousands, if not millions, of dissatisfied viewers tell them otherwise. Unfortunately, by that time, the damage has already been dealt, and all those potential subscribers have turned away for good. [[DarthWiki/DethroningMomentOfSuck These are the scenes]] which creators wished a works-equivalent to {{GIFT}} would exist.
!!DieForOurShip.AnimeAndManga
* A minor example in the ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanoha'' fandom: Frequenters of the [=AnimeSuki=] forum would've known the infamous 300 YU-NANO AGAINST LEGION OF FEI-NANO FlameWar. And no, we're not talking about some [[Film/ThreeHundred smelly old men]]. This FlameWar was mostly fueled by irritation that Yuuno was used as a plot device and not a character -- an 'out' for the writers in case they got too scared of Nanoha/Fate. TheThemeParkVersion of this irritation is Yuuno Hate (at least from the Legion). But PoesLaw and {{GIFT}} means there are people who will take it seriously or claim total seriousness.
** Even though [[TheOneGuy Erio]] has managed to escape the brunt of bashing due to being overtly [[PuppyLove shipped]] with Caro, preventing him from being a threat to the main pairings (and even pairing him with a major character tends to get a positive response), he still gets "Erio must die" vitriol every now and then from HetIsEw fans who think his mere presence among the main cast ruins the perfect yuri dynamic of the ImprobablyFemaleCast.
!!Es.PaginasEnEspanol
* Es/{{TONTO}} ({{GIFT}})
** Es/{{GIFT}}
!!Es.TONTO
Acrónimo de "'''T'''eoría de que '''O'''rtos '''N'''o '''T'''ienen cuidado '''O'''n-line"[[labelnote:más]]orto [[https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=orto es una palabra que significa ano/culo]][[/labelnote]]/[[labelnote:inglés]]"Theory that people are idiots online" (literally "theory that assholes don't have caution when online"), and [[FunWithAcronyms tonto means idiot]][[/labelnote]], o "Gran Teoría del Imbécil de Internet" del inglés "[[{{GIFT}} Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]]". Bautizada de esta forma por los muchachos de ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'', es una teoría que busca encontrar la razón de por qué mucha gente tiende a degenerarse en engreidos antisociales en linea, cuando al mismo tiempo son apenas molestos o, en el mejor de los casos, amables con otros en persona.
!!Es.TONTO
Este fenómeno ha sido estudiado en ambientes académicos, y el resultado es lo que muestra el análisis satírico de PA; la gente normal parece degenerar cuando piensan que su comportamiento no trae consecuencias a su integridad, tales como riesgo de humillación. En otras palabras, "el poder corrompe". De ahí el (tristemente gran) número de gente que piensa que ser un Troll es divertido. El nombre académico de esto es el [[http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Efecto_de_desinhibicion_en_linea Efecto de Desinhibición en Línea]], aunque ciertos investigadores de renombre también usan el acrónimo {{GIFT}}.
!!EstablishingCharacterMoment.VideoGames
-->[[TheWoobie Frankly, if it didn't violate protocol, I could really use a hug]].
** The Orochi Caller AKA [[spoiler:Samuel Chandra AKA Samael]] immediately recognizes the player as an intruder in the Blue Mountains Camp, and calls just to let you know that you're in violation of laws that could make life hell for your faction of choice - and he doesn't need the Council to enforce the law when he's better armed than them. But then he decides to let bygones be bygones if you hunt down a runaway test subject, quickly establishing him as [[EvilGenius brilliant]], [[ManipulativeBastard manipulative]], [[AffablyEvil curiously charming]], and [[TheFaceless suspiciously reluctant to show his face]].
** Freddie Beaumont is first encountered grumbling over the fact that he hasn't quite figured out how to get Excalibur to work for him despite having apparently having Solomon Island in the palm of his hand, all while being playfully taunted by Cassie - all good indications that Beaumont might be a powerful foe, [[SmugSnake but he's nowhere near as clever as he thinks he is]]. Plus, [[EnigmaticMinion his supposed groupie might be more than meets the eye]]...
** Illuminati sysadmin Leah Cassini makes her character clear before she even starts talking to the player: introduced in the middle of a phone call, she asks, "[[HaveYouTriedRebooting Have you tried turning it off and on?]] No? [[{{GIFT}} Then please kill yourself]]." For good measure, in between making it clear that she's [[SinisterSurveillance watching virtually everything you do]], she has to stop and [[NoSocialSkills ask you not to make eye contact]].
** [[RebelLeader Shani]] of [[LaResistance the Marya]] casually greeting you in the intro to "The Siege of al-Merayah." Despite the ongoing gunfights less than twenty feet from her position, she remains [[TheStoic perfectly calm]] while speaking with you and issuing instructions to her soldiers - even [[TheSnackIsMoreInteresting helping herself to an apple]].
** [[MadBomber Nassir the Boom-Boom Man]]'s character is quite thoroughly established in the mission intro to "Live Free, Die Hard": having been caught dancing around with an AK-47, he decides to play catch with players - using a live hand grenade as the ball; then, while cooing eagerly over the new shipment of C4 he got in, he extols the virtues of American action films like ''Film/DemolitionMan'' and ''Film/DieHard'', and promises that they'll be able to blow up the Atenist pumping station and save the entire valley - "[[ThePollyanna just like Bollywood movie, with happy ending and musical number]]!"
** Sitting alone on the roof of the ghoul-infested Hotel Wahid, Saïd already looks out of place in the war-torn desert even from a distance, being dressed as he is in a crisp white suit and [[NiceHat fedora]]. Then you get a good look at him in "The High Cost Of Dying": he's actually an ancient Egyptian {{Mummy}}, complete with empty eye-sockets barely hidden by his CoolShades. There's a long pause as he considers you... and then [[DidWeJustHaveTeaWithCthulhu he takes a photo of you with his phone]]. Then he drags you into a business meeting, bombarding you with details at a pace that would make Kirsten Geary nod with approval, all while making it clear that he's an avaricious, hedonistic, self-important, and infuriatingly charming undead bastard.
** [[AllPowerfulBystander Khalid]] strides out of the desert apropos of absolutely nothing, seemingly communicates with God, points you in the direction of the next quest point, and summons up lightning bolts just to emphasize a point.
** The Oxford occult archaeological team: upon being approached by an angry mummy, Montgomery de la Roche casually impales it on his SwordCane - only for his sword to get stuck in the thing's stomach, forcing [[BollywoodNerd Arun Singh]] to come to his rescue with a HandCannon; he then helps Monty to his feet, showing a surprising amount of intimacy for simple coworkers. As it becomes clear, Monty's the aging GentlemanAdventurer, Arun's the [[TheWormGuy unconventional young scientist]], and they're in love.
** All seven of the Sentinels get a chance to demonstrate their respective characters over the course of their mission set: In "The Dark Places," [[OnlySaneMan Thutmose]] tries to keep peace between Nefertari and Hemineter]]; in "The Stained Oasis," [[InsufferableGenius Nefertari]] solemnly informs the player of the sacred balance in the universe and advises patience (despite Hemineter's repeated interruptions); in "The Sad Song," [[TheWoobie Moutemouia]] reflects on how miserable her [[WhoWantsToLiveForever immortal stewardship]] has become, pausing only to reassure Houy that [[ParentalSubstitute she isn't going to abandon him]]; in "Blood and Fire," [[ActionGirl Hemineter]] takes a break from getting on Nefertari's nerves to break the rules and take the fight to the Atenists; in "They Were Beautiful Once," [[CoolBigSister Moutnefert]] immediately begins bombarding you with questions about the world outside the City, clearly wishing she could travel as she once did; in "Halls of Lost Records," [[CheerfulChild Nefertari the Younger]] [[TheBeastMaster speaks with the animals of the City]], gently encouraging them to spy on the Atenists; and in "A Farewell To Arms," [[DontFearTheReaper Houy]] attempts to raise an important point with his older siblings, only to end up [[NotNowKid getting overlooked due to his youth and innocence]] and has to spell things out more bluntly.
** Sophie and the Forest God get a dual ECM early on in "Mortal Sins." Around this time, Harbaburesti is being continuously attacked by ghouls at one end of the settlement, besieged by vampires at another, and occasionally attacked by packs of werewolves at yet another... but the Forest God is still [[TheAlcoholic getting hammered at the bar]], and when she's not keeping you up to date on the situation, Sophie is still serving him [[ThePollyanna as cheerfully as ever]] - though she quickly decides that he's had enough once [[HotSkittyOnWailordAction he starts writing romantic poetry about her]].
** [[DefectorFromDecadence General Hasdatean]] gets his time to shine in the intro to "In Cold Blood." An aged vampire in military dress, he shows up seemingly out of nowhere when players enter the church, apparently getting ready to drink your blood - only to back off after being gently rebuked by the priest. He spends the rest of the scene [[VitriolicBestBuds trading friendly banter with Father Lucian]], while regarding the incoming vampire army with [[MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch disgust and disillusionment]]. For good measure, he also demonstrates the big difference between his outlook on the world and that of the priest.
!!FandomRivalry.VideoGames
* ''VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth'' and ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' are both inspired by the original ''VideoGame/DefenseOfTheAncients'' mod - the former is a straight copy, the latter has a few superficial differences. Yet if you listen to their respective fans on the forums, ''[=LoL=]'' is ridiculously easy to master and only for kids, is too different, the items are boring and the graphics suck; and ''[=HoN=]'' has a terrible user interface, unintuitive gameplay, is not different enough, the items are boring and the graphics suck. Arguments like 'the automap is on the wrong side of the screen' and 'the item icons are ugly' are not uncommon. Very little effort is spent explaining the reasons why their favourite game is good as opposed to why the other game is trash. With the growth of the {{MOBA}} genre, this rivalry started to shift to the new contenders as well, such as ''VideoGame/Dota2'', ''VideoGame/{{Smite}}'', and ''VideoGame/HeroesOfTheStorm''. Indeed, while ''[=LoL=]'' and ''[=HoN=]'' might previously have been the heavy hitters in this rivalry, it might be more accurately summarized now as "fans of any MOBA vs. fans of every other MOBA free-for-all."
** The arguments against each MOBA are as follows. ''Dota 2'' is a over-complicated, archaic dinosaur with more burden of knowledge than a PHD, ''League of Legends'' is focus-grouped, mass-marketed drivel for the sheep, ''Smite'' is a braindead action game posing as a real MOBA whose creators couldn't come up with their own characters, ''Heroes of Newerth'' is a bad ''Dota'' ripoff, ''Heroes of the Storm'' relies on Blizzard IP credo and casual carebear mechanics, and everyone else is just a joke that's going to be dead in a year or less. Needless to say, MOBA players ''already'' have a reputation for being [[{{GIFT}} toxic jackasses]], and FandomRivalry only makes things worse.
!!Fanfic.{{Grundergram}}
* {{GIFT}}: Trigger might be completely silent in the skies, but he behaves like a horny fratboy with a short fuse online.
!!Fanfic.InfiniteStratosIchikaQuestFuckStatusQuo
* {{GIFT}}: Violet is VERY NICE girl in real life.
!!Fanfic.NymphAndTheCorruptedMiraculous
* {{GIFT}}: Alya is subjected to this on her blog after her somewhat disastrous stint as Lady Wifi, which ended with [[spoiler: Catastrophe killing her [=tiānshǐ=].]]
!!Fanfic.OffTheLine
* {{GIFT}}: Players can be jerks in Terra Online. Red XIII got killed and robbed several times, and Rainstorm and Flower get sexually harassed. They also pull this as revenge, causing other players grief and causing as much havoc as possible.
!!Fanfic.PersonaEG
* {{GIFT}}: Taken UpToEleven. On 5/19, [[spoiler:Fluttershy]] informs Flash that out of 1,380 students and faculty between Canterlot High School and Canterlot Junior High School, there are only ''204'' Canterbook users who she is incapable of ruining with the press of a button.
!!Fanfic.UtterTripeReviews
* {{GIFT}}: Referenced by Dib at one point.
!!FanficRecs.GoodOmens
* Summary: Crowley teaches Aziraphale [[{{Griefer}} about]] [[{{GIFT}} the Internet]], a lesson that soon comes back to bite him in the arse.
!!Film.{{Cyberbully2011}}
* JerkAss: The AlphaBitch and her father are rather laughable examples due to their portrayal.
** Although it is realistic in that they [[KarmaHoudini never get a real comeuppance]] and Taylor's speech involves five people and a ten-second long applauding before Lindsay tells them to go and regains her status, still being followed by her friends, and getting some gossip as there probably were before exchanged about her. Also, it is revealed that they may have a FreudianExcuse, and the father reacts as most parents would, except for the way he says what he says. Plus take [[EvilIsPetty Evil]] + [[AlphaBitch Teenage Girl]] + [[PeerPressureMakesYouEvil Popularity]] + [[{{GIFT}} Internet]], and you've got Lindsay in Real Life.
!!Film.{{District9}}
* {{GIFT}}: Christopher is infinitely more fiery on his blog.
!!Film.{{Gamer}}
* {{Troll}}: A good chunk of the characters are straight-up trolls, and the {{GIFT}} is in full, terrifying force here.
!!Film.GunsAkimbo
* ThisLoserIsYou: Miles has a [[SoulCrushingDeskJob dead end job]], an ex-girlfriend he still pines for, an [[PointyHairedBoss abusive boss]], and spends his nights as an [[{{GIFT}} internet troll]] drinking until he passes out.
!!Film.HollowMan
* WhatYouAreInTheDark[=/=]{{GIFT}}: Sebastian concludes that he might as well [[spoiler:[[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking molest, rape, kill people, and scare children]]]] if he can escape the consequences by being invisible.
!!Film.IndieGameTheMovie
* {{GIFT}}: {{Deconstructed|Trope}} in "Edmund and teh Internets," in which Ed showcases a video he made two years before ''Super Meat Boy'', in which he [[TakeThat rips into]] those {{Troll}}s who insist that particular indie games aren't as good as people say they are without providing any constructive feedback.
!!Film.JayAndSilentBobStrikeBack
* InternetToughGuy: Subverted in that Jay and Bob have never been on the internet before, and have no concept of {{GIFT}} or what a {{Troll}} is and take the trash talk seriously. They also subvert the hell out of this trope by [[spoiler: actually going around the country to beat the crap out of all the bratty kids who insulted them.]]
!!Film.MediumCool
TheInternet, which has room for huge amounts of interactivity but mostly confined to correspondence with [[{{GIFT}} ill-informed people]], would thus be an example of a populace that prefers its Medium Cool. With lukewarm spots [[WikiTropes such as wikis]], like the one you may be editing now. The Situationists like Guy Debord would probably ask why [[TVTropesWillRuinYourLife you are in here on the computer]] when you could be out forming a [[FlashMob flash-mob]] or impromptu theater, of course.
!!Film.{{Nerve}}
* {{GIFT}}: Half of Nerve's users are the Watchers who make the Players humiliate\endanger themselves behind the safety of hiding themselves with screen names. [[spoiler: Then Tommy and the hacker collective remove their anonymity, and the Watchers all leave the game to avoid the offline repercussions.]]
!!Film.{{Surrogates}}
* {{GIFT}}: People tend to use the no-consequence nature of Surrogates with abandon to behave in ways they couldn't in person.
!!Film.TheFaceOfAnother
* {{GIFT}}: Dr. Hira's main concern with the masks, that the ability to become completely anonymous will destroy conventional morality. It certainly appears to do so for Okuyama.
!!Film.TheSocialNetwork
* {{GIFT}}: Mark, absolutely. While obnoxious enough in person, he becomes even worse behind a computer screen.
!!Film.{{Unfriended}}
* {{GIFT}}: Cyber-bullying is a major theme of the film, which is [[ExploitedTrope exploited]] by Laura in the chat, using everyone's dirty secrets to have them turn on each other. This includes whoever posted the video of her, entitled "LAURA BARNS KILL URSELF" [[spoiler:which turns out to be Mitch, as revealed by Blaire]].
!!Film.{{Unfriended}}
* TeensAreMonsters: [[spoiler:The cast is self-involved, [[{{GIFT}} using anonymity to treat others rather horribly]].]] The villain is also an example, being a revenge-obsessed AlphaBitch.
!!Fr.CEstDuSerieux
%%In musicals it's often demonstrated that DancingIsSeriousBusiness. For the saying that "TheInternetIsSeriousBusiness", see {{GIFT}}.
!!Franchise.ConanTheBarbarian
* {{GIFT}}: A pre-internet musing on the principle comes up in "The Tower of the Elephant," where the narration muses that "Civilized men are more discourteous than savages, because they know they can be impolite without having their skulls split."
!!FranchiseOriginalSin.GrandTheftAuto
* The [[KillSat Orbital Cannon]] introduced with the Doomsday Heist update proved to be TheLastStraw for many players in terms of Rockstar's reliance on {{microtransactions}} to support the game, as well as what was seen as their pandering to {{griefer}}s, such that Adam Wears of ''Website/{{Cracked}}'' [[http://www.cracked.com/article_25522_5-gamers-who-turned-trolling-into-artform.html cited it]] as purely a tool for rich {{jerkass}}es and cheaters to ruin people's games with. This weapon was merely the culmination of issues that had been building with the game's business model for a while by that point:
** The rising prices of DLC items, which were inevitably [[PowerCreep superior to those that came before]], first became a noticeable problem with the San Andreas Flight School update. Before then, new vehicles and weapons tended to be expensive, but not outrageously so; even the most exotic vehicles like supercars, monster trucks, and classic cars typically cost no more than $500-750,000, with most of the content costing significantly less (often less than $100,000). Flight School introduced three aircraft that each cost well over a million dollars, but even then, these were ''aircraft'', so it made sense that they'd be expensive. It made less sense for the Technical added in the Heists update, an old pickup truck with a machine gun mounted in the back that nevertheless cost almost a million dollars even with a discount. Before long, vehicles that cost seven or even eight figures were the norm for new updates, while vehicles that cost less than a million dollars grew few and far between. In fact, by converting in-game GTA dollars to real money based off of Shark cards, one can find that certain vehicles ''cost more than the price of the game itself''. Yup, 60 dollars for the entire game, another 60 dollars for a car ''in'' the game.
** Starting with the Offices in the Further Adventures in Finance and Felony update, the game also began introducing new, expensive, specialized safehouses that were required to access many new missions, the prices of which very quickly ran into the millions of dollars. The Orbital Cannon is essentially a mega-purchase that costs at least $2.65 million worth of in-game currency[[note]]The combined price of the cheapest Facility ($1.25 million base price, with the most expensive Facility having a base price of $2.95 million), the Facility upgrade that unlocks the Orbital Cannon ($900,000), and a manually-aimed shot from the weapon ($500,000, with an auto-aimed shot costing $750,000)[[/note]] just to fire ''once'', which is earned through either hours' worth of [[LevelGrinding grinding]] or by purchasing a Whale Shark card (worth $3.5 million in in-game currency) for $49.99 in real money -- or by taking advantage of exploits, which honest players don't like one bit. And on that note...
** Trollish weapons and vehicles. As mentioned above, the Flight School update added purchases over a million dollars, but hey, all it came down to were a few aircraft that, due to lack of weapons, made it a nice tool to cruise around the map with at best. It first became a problem when the Heists update allowed players to purchase the [[CoolPlane Hydra fighter jet]]. The Hydra very quickly replaced the [[TankGoodness Rhino tank]] as the [[WeaponOfChoice vehicle of choice]] for griefers, much to the annoyance of everybody else, but it was possible to counter the Hydra and shoot it down with the homing launcher. Later [[WeaponizedCar weaponized vehicles]] such as the Ruiner 2000 (a SerialNumbersFiledOff version of [[Series/KnightRider K.I.T.T.]]), the Vigilante (a SerialNumbersFiledOff version of the [[ComicBook/{{Batman}} Batmobile]]), the Oppressor (a jet-powered motorcycle with wings allowing it to fly some distance), and various attack helicopters became an even bigger pain. The growing number of new missions that required working in free roam, rather than in a separate instance, also afforded griefers the opportunity to [[{{GIFT}} derail other players' mission progress by attacking them with one of these overpowered weapons]], such that many fans suspected that Rockstar was encouraging griefers in order to push other players towards using the aforementioned microtransactions to get around the grind. The Doomsday Heist update brought the anger to a crescendo with the Orbital Cannon, the ''only'' use for which is to troll other players; it can only be fired from a fixed location inside the player's Facility (so you can't break it out as a superweapon while on a mission), and it inflicts a OneHitKill DeathFromAbove attack that can wipe out entire groups of players and is [[AlwaysAccurateAttack virtually impossible to avoid]] unless you're hiding in your safehouse or playing in passive mode (which blocks all damage from and physical contact with other players, but locks players out from using weapons and participating in free-roam missions). As the icing on the cake, the Doomsday Heist update also introduced the Deluxo, a [[Film/BackToTheFuturePartII flying Delorean lookalike]] that can have machine guns and homing rockets mounted to it.
!!Fridge.AmericanGods2017
* What is the significance of the Technical Boy's goons attempting to hang Shadow from a tree, aside from being a reference to both Norse mythology and the lynchings of afroamericans? They are an [[LiteralMetaphor Internet lynch mob]]. This also explains why they [[TheBlank don't have faces.]] Like the members of such mobs, [[{{GIFT}} they hide their cruel, thuggish behavior behind anonymity.]]
!!Fridge.DotHack
* The parody episode .hack//{{GIFT}}, is a StealthPun. Although it could easily have been HilariousInHindsight.
!!Fridge.GuildedAge
* Payet can be such a complete JerkSue without suffering any kind of retribution. It's simple: He's more competent than the others and believes ItsAllAboutMe because he's an [[{{GIFT}} online]] PlayerCharacter, as seen from the perspective of the [=NPCs=].
!!Fridge.RedVsBlue
* The Blues and Red's Grunts, with the possible exception of the Battle Creek Zealots, are all ridiculously obnoxious and immoral. But given that Temple has a definite WithUsOrAgainstUs mentality, this makes absolute sense; no decent or sane person would ever align themselves with the Blues and Reds once they found out what lines they were willing to cross, or live long enough to warn anyone. This would also explain the lack of familiar faces besides the Zealots (for example, the Reds from Rat's Nest) among the Blues and Reds' ranks.
** Not to mention that the Grunts in this case are the other Sim Troopers. Not only do they have traits that make them unfit for the actual military, chances are some of the teams are similar enough to the Blues and Reds to have the same reactions they did to learning the truth.
** In a more meta sense, the Blue and Red grunts are similar to the earlier sim troopers in that they're both parodies of online nuisances. The Battle Creek sim troopers acted like ''{{Franchise/Halo}}'' players that communicate in LeetLingo, while the Blue and Red grunts act like [[{{Troll}} internet trolls]] that throw around politically incorrect statements [[{{GIFT}} for their own amusement]].
!!Funny.ArianaGrande
* Her appearance in the "Celebs Read [[{{GIFT}} Mean]] [[Website/{{Twitter}} Tweets]]" segment on ''Series/JimmyKimmelLive'', where all the celebs that appear have universally agreed to play it perfectly straight and somber like a VerySpecialEpisode - except Ariana is ''[[{{Corpsing}} cracking up the whole time.]]''
!!Funny.HonestTrailers2015Episodes
* ''WesternAnimation/InsideOut'':
** Collectively describing Fear, Anger, and Disgust as "[[{{GIFT}} your average YouTube comment section]]".
** "The movie that made grown-ups say 'phew, Pixar is good again!' and made kids everywhere say 'why are you crying, daddy?'"
** Their take on why the film's main focus is on an 11-year-old girl's mind:
!!Funny.HonestTrailers2016Episodes
--->'''Narrator:''' From [[Creator/ColumbiaPictures the studio]] that just [[Film/TheInterview got hacked by North Korea]], [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse lost creative control]] of [[Film/SpiderManHomecoming Spider-Man]], might lose Film/JamesBond, and couldn't even keep Creator/AdamSandler happy,[[note]]Referring to Sandler signing a multi-picture deal with Creator/{{Netflix}}[[/note]] comes this [[TemptingFate sure-fire hit to put them back on track!]]\\
''[shows a ton of angry comments about the trailer]''\\
'''Narrator:''' Oh no...\\\
'''Narrator:''' Experience a film that created a perfect storm of hatred, uniting people who legitimately [[TaintedByThePreview hated the trailers]], people who legitimately hate reboots of classic films, and people who legitimately like to [[{{GIFT}} yell hateful nonsense on the Internet]].\\
'''UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump:''' Now they're making ''Ghostbusters'' with only women! What's going on?!\\
'''Narrator:''' Wait, we're getting a ''Ghostbusters'' video ''and'' calling out Trump? I am ''so'' getting doxxed!
** But all in all, however, how it ended up turning out?
!!Funny.KidRadd
-->'''Radd''': Dude, you are definitely the sickest thing on the Internet. And that's saying a lot.
** [[ContinuityNod Radd would know]]. For a time, he was a chatroom avatar, so he's had a firsthand look at the {{GIFT}} among other things.
!!Funny.{{Mordhau}}
* Patch #7 added two mute options: One normal, and [[https://i.redd.it/dsh7ro8vd6331.png one that replaces everything the muted individual says with motivational quotes]]. Removing {{GIFT}}-afflicted garbage from your sight is one thing, making them spout praise and telling you you can do it is on another, actively hilarious level.
!!Funny.MyLittlePonyTotallyLegitRecap
* Rainbow Rocks Movie:
** DWK starts out speaking in a combination Mysterious Whisper and BadassBaritone that perfectly sets the mood for the sirens [[EmotionEater draining the humans of their life energy...]] and then when he sees them, he immediately goes back to normal tone and starts sperging out over his three new waifus.
** Aria complains that getting people to care enough to fight about things in real life is impossible these days. Adagio retorts that if she could figure out a way to [[{{GIFT}} absorb negative energy through the Internet]], the Sirens could take over the entire multiverse in a day.
*** This exchange comes after Aria [[SincerityMode earnestly]] suggests prostitution as a way to make extra money. Adagio must be a true dike because she refuses to even think about taking dick.
*** Sonata seems pretty okay with it though. Hell, she seems disappointed that it ''isn't'' their plan.
!!Funny.MyLittlePonyTotallyLegitRecap
* He describes the Spirit of Hearthswarmings Yet To Come as a '''"horrifying EldritchAbomination with the head of a waifu"'''. (because it's [[EnsembleDarkhorse Luna]])
** And the bad future is what would happen if people [[{{GIFT}} acted like they do on the internet]].
!!Funny.MyLittlePonyTotallyLegitRecap
* Instead of a vow of silence, the Kirin forgot how to speak because they spent too much time on the internet. Also, [[{{GIFT}} when they flame each other online]], they catch on fire in real life. Rain Shine tried to unplug the router when this became apparent, but there were too many wires, so she couldn't figure out the right one.
!!Funny.{{Overwatch}}
* In mid-December 2017, after an angry {{Troll}} on the official forums announced he was quitting the game due to it [[SmallNameBigEgo "failing" to repeal the 7 bans to his account]], [[https://us.battle.net/forums/en/overwatch/topic/20760626013?page=10#post-194 Jeff Kaplan himself arrived]] to share some lines of his [[{{GIFT}} in-game behaviour]] to make clear the bans and hundreds of harassment reports were completely justified, including [[SmallNameBigEgo "im the reason for anything good"]], [[InternetToughGuy "LONG WALK FOR A PILE OF [expletive]"]], and accusing others who beat him of hacking.
!!Funny.PuellaMagiMadokaMagica
---->'''Kyubey:''' We never imagined there could be a world where each individual had their own set of emotions, yet still manage to coexist with one another.\\
'''Madoka:''' ''(deadpan)'' Really? ''(beat)'' [[{{GIFT}} Then I guess you've never visited a chat room, have you?]]
*** After Mami tells Madoka that if she can't make up her mind, she'll have to wish for cake, what's Madoka's response?
!!Funny.SFDebris
* When complaining about the multiplayer aspect of the game, Chuck preemptively shuts down the comment that he should just socialize more but addressing an open letter to the [[{{GIFT}} reasons]] why he hasn't. He apparently believes them to be [[HumanoidAbomination Humanoid Abominations]].
!!Funny.SaintsRowTheThird
* After [[{{GIFT}} Matt]] boasts about how powerful he is and how anything you can do, he can do better, Boss will retort by challenging him to buy a pack of cigarettes. After a brief silence he can only reply with a resentful [[LameComeback "Ageist"]].
!!Funny.TheMoonsFlashPrincess
--> '''LLENN:''' Pito-chan was underestimating me and normally while I don’t mind. Pito-chan is one of my best friends. And I don’t want my friends to underestimate me. She’s also plays as a bit of a psychopath in this game, milking the [[PlayerVersusPlayer PvP]] everyone for themselves aspects of it for all they’re worth. And a bit of [[{{GIFT}} GIFT]], I think. She might enter the [=BoB=], so watch out.\\
'''Sinon:''' But wasn’t ripping her throat out a bit on the extreme side?\\
'''LLENN:''' Nah, Pito knows better, so I had to punish her. I’m ready to go, how about we get to work?\\
'''Sinon:''' ''[[[INeedAFreakingDrink Downs her drink in one go.]]]'' [[DeadpanSnarker That the rumor also boosts your own reputation as a badass has nothing to do with it, I’m sure]].
!!Funny.TheMultiversity
* Ultra Comics attacking Intellectron with weaponized [[{{GIFT}} Internet]] HateDumb:
!!Funny.WoolieVersus
* After discovering Higgs' RoomFullOfCrazy in Part 59, Woolie concludes the man is a [[{{GIFT}} dork trying to be a cool villain]].
** Reggie finds what ''appears'' to be a copy of ''Literature/MeinKampf'' in said room, before he and Woolie breathe a sigh of relief at realizing it's actually...
!!Funny.ZeroPunctuation3
-->Well, this may surprise you, but I've been making more of an effort to do the multiplayer thing lately, partly for therapeutic reasons. VideoGame/DarkSouls helped. That game feels like it's trying to wean you onto social interaction. First you find someone's note advising you to "be wary of fatty", then you hire stalwart fellows to help you out with a boss fight, none of whom [[{{GIFT}} have headset mics so close to their mouths that you feel like their every utterance is trying to beat your ears to death with racial epithets]]. The turning point came when I was invaded, but the attacker bowed upon seeing me, a gesture of recognition to mark a duel between equals. "You know what," I thought, "Maybe I don't need to be so afraid of people all the time!" [[CombatPragmatist So while he was bowing, I ran up and stuck my halberd up his arse]]. ''"Maybe it's '''people''' who need to be afraid of '''ME!'''"''
!!Funny.ZeroPunctuation3
--->[[{{GIFT}} This is a game in dire need of a violent twat fumigation.]]
** Then there's Yahtzee impossibly short-lived adventures with the chat system. [[spoiler:He heard someone say [[NWordPrivileges "Nigger"]] [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere then immediately turned the chat off.]]]]
!!Funny.ZeroPunctuation4
* Every single backronym he comes up with for PUBG.
** After encountering racists on voice chat, he says the game should be called [[{{GIFT}} Players Unabashedly Backing Genocide]].
** He appreciates the shrinking boundaries of the game's area, because, after all, Pugnacity Under Boundaries Germinates.
** "Stop going prone, you idiot! If someone's shooting at you, that's when you need to be running like fuck; as we all know, Proning Ultimately Begets Grief.
**
!!Haiku.{{Troll}}
Please don't feed the trolls!\\
They wreak havoc [[ItAmusedMe just for fun]]\\
[[{{GIFT}} on the Internet.]]
!!Headscratchers.DefenseOfTheAncients
* Can someone give a good explanation for why this game (And genre) has a terrible reputation for {{GIFT}} and StopHavingFunGuys ?
** Well for one thing, a game generally lasts up to say, 30 to 60 minutes. Now if you have a bad player, that person will probably wind up dragging the team down, either by not farming well, or even giving the enemy team kills, making them much stronger, and inducing a snowball effect. I'm unsure of surrender times, although in ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'', it's about 20 minutes (given that it passes and no one says no out of spite). So 20 minutes of a loss, or a entire hour of slowly winning. It's even worse in Dota 2 because at the time of this writing, there isn't a surrender function implemented in the game yet.
!!Headscratchers.LeagueOfLegends
* I know that this [[OlderThanTheyThink certainly didn't come from THIS game]], but what on earth is it about MOBA games and their ability to bring out the absolute ''worst'' in people?
** I don't even think this problem comes from MOBA games at all. All the bad aspects existed before, but were allowed to magnify by video games' competitive spirit and the Internet's ability to spew it everywhere.
*** But for some reason, it's ''especially'' bad in MOBA games, especially ''VideoGame/DefenseOfTheAncients'', ''VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth'', and this game.
** Losing is not fun in a MOBA. Any other multiplayer online game a round is 20 minutes at max, plenty of time to dust off and try to get another win if you lose your current game. A MOBA usually takes 45 minutes minimum. Like Tycho of ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'' said, the fact that you have to spend fifteen minutes farming stretches out the length and emotional investment of a multiplayer game far longer than it should, which makes losing worse, which in turn makes the community more resentful and angry. It essentially means that at any given time, half of the player base feels like they just wasted an hour of their life. That brings out the worst in people for obvious reasons, to a higher degree than any other genre.
*** Even worse, when you're having a bad time in most other games, like an FPS for example, you can just drop out with no real consequences. Hell, most FPS games will even auto-balance teams if a lot of players from the losing team startv ragequitting. In [=LoL=] and other [=MOBAs=] when your team is wasting your time you're ''stuck with them'' since leaving is ''penalised'' (since the impact of a single player leaving in a 5v5 contest with no substitutions or balances possible that it pretty much immediately decides the game, so Riot ''have'' to penalise it harshly). So basically, the perception is that you're being ''forced'' to spend time on an activity which is no longer fun thanks to the ineptitude of your teammates. It's no surprise this can make people a bit testy.
** When there's a bad player in most games, the worst they can do is not help their team mates or increase their opponents score, making them more likely to lose. In MultiplayerOnlineBattleArena, when someone does badly, they're actively increasing the strength of their opponents, making every competitive aspect outright harder for their team mates. Not only does this make them frustrated, but, the resulting drop in the entire team scores makes everyone assume it must be someone else's fault.
*** The last two points would imply people behaved better in Dominion. This doesn't seem to be the case; {{GIFT}} still applies.
*** That's a given, especially if you consider that no matter where you are, no matter which game are you playing, the {{Stop Having Fun Guys}} control most, if not all, of the metagame with their beliefs.
*** Which is why you should ''never'' play ranked or ''any'' games that are "pro" environment like [=DotA=] or VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth - If you're having fun, ''you WILL be chased out'' and kicked from games, blacklisted, trash-talked, etc. StopHavingFunGuys cannot be removed - they can only be quarantined by "pro" environments that stroke their egos.
*** Although for some reason, I have actually noticed that since around January, people started to behave better in Dominion. I don't know if it's because it's more fast-paced (and therefore people have less time to type insulting comments in /all ) or if all the StopHavingFunGuys are busy playing ranked or have moved onto ''VideoGame/{{Dota 2}}. If it keeps the StopHavingFunGuys out...Go right ahead. Seriously - I don't care if you consider your game the best. Games are all about having fun, and you guys take all the fun out of these games.
*** They're still around, even in normal unranked games. It's only a few from my experience, but a few is ''far'' more than enough.
*** I recently started playing, and I haven't found any jerkass players yet. Hell, most of the ones I met help teach me how to play, and I did pretty good cause of them. Guess I'm just lucky
*** You are, lucky that is. Please find someone knowledgeable to help/train you a bit before you attempt ranked games. You'll thank me, trust me on this...
*** This is kind of an unfair calling for VideoGame/{{Dota 2}} and this is coming from someone who ''loves'' both DOTA and League. Basically is, due to it being a free to play game, even little kids that hasn't developed the mental fortitude to keep their cool will be a LOT more abundant in these kinds of games. It doesn't matter if it's ranked or normal, if it's DOTA or League, they WILL think they're the best player ever, they demand honor/commend when finishing the game well, or start flaming when things don't go their way, not realizing that games like this are supposed to be a fun experience. Not everyone who play this game are demanded to become professional champions, they were too intoxicated with the thought of losing is just showing how bad they are rather than experience for them to get better. DOTA is thought to be a lot more punishing than League and it is true, but in fact, here and now, there are ALWAYS people who are casual in DOTA, makes playing and learning there just as fun as it is in League. And vice versa, as stated, there's even League players that are just extremely toxic and pissy it makes DOTA fandom look like angels. You can throw the same thing to VideoGame/HeroesOfNewerth... or even VideoGame/{{Smite}}, but one truth remains: It's the stigma of MOBA games, especially free to play ones that you will find these kind of brats if you play online, so you need to be prepared mentally for this. You can also find yourself some IRL friends that share interest so you can form a team and won't have to deal with these guys anymore, in fact, usually college dudes or working people who like playing these games certainly came off more affable and less toxic because of their developed mentalities. Bottom line: Toxic guys, StopHavingFunGuys and pissy guys are the bread and butter of online games. You need to deal with them daily.
!!Headscratchers.SwordArtOnline
* It's mentioned that married people share inventories. If this were a game, most people would probably respect that marriage should mean something (if a lot less than what real marriage means), but a few people would try to take advantage of that fact. Once everyone was trapped in there, it was all real, and the fact that married people share inventories is a fact of that world that can be taken advantage of. Fluff about what was supposed to be a videogame matters less. I would expect, for example, that people would try to share inventories so that their stuff doesn't vanish when they die. They could also do things like have the people in boss fights married, so that their spouses could send them limitless supplies of potions.
** As a practical matter, the primary healing (and escape) items are Crystals, and I'm pretty sure it's stated that the later boss fights take place in arenas where said Crystals can't be used. No point in entering a MarriageOfConvenience to ensure a supply of magical healing items when you're going into an AntiMagic field...
** Who says they didn't? We only see two married couples, Grimrock/Griselda and Kirito/Asuna. They treated it as real, but other players might not have. Kirito has always been big on the whole "treat games as you would real life in order to avert {{GIFT}}" thing, so he's not the best example.
** There are people in real life who do that too, you know; that is, who get married in order to make it easier to manage money, with no romantic undertones. However, even then they are generally close friends who simply don't see the need to get married and have children, and they get married so that they wouldn't be in the situation where there is nobody left to inherit their things. But there aren't many marriages like that, really; even if their feelings change later, the majority of marriages takes place because there were feelings of some sort.\\
\\
A game from which you cannot escape, it might appear weird for us but it would probably be very easy for people to start treating it the same way they would treat their real lives. And going from that point, it's easy to see what's the most likely thing that would happen. Maybe there would be people not feeling anything but trusting each other enough to marry just because of that reason, but the majority of them married because they felt something towards each other. And when marriages of convenience are just a minority, it might be hard to notice them, the same way you usually don't see them in real lives.
!!Headscratchers.TheSpoonyExperiment
* Random inquiry: Does Scarlett ever show up in ''any'' of his videos? I know he makes numerous references to her, but do we ever see her in action?
** She doesn't appear because of the obnoxious part of the fandom. I don't know the full story, but shit went down. Shit went down, [[ThisIsForEmphasisBitch bitch]].
*** She appeared once. '''''Once.''''' It was his acceptance video for the award he won. For whatever reason the obnoxious part of the fandom attacked her in that video. A video in which he made an acceptance speech for an award he won. Make sense of that.
*** Don't you know what video it was?
*** No, because Spoony and Scarlett took the video down when the hating got bad enough.
*** Can I just ask what the reasoning for this abuse was?
*** {{GIFT}}, what else?
*** Yeah, but what specifically is the fanboys beef with Scarlet? Is this some sort of "there are no girls online" sexism thing? I just want to know what the supposed problem is.
*** From what I gathered, it's a mix of HollywoodHomely / HollywoodPudgy scorn. She's fairly attractive, but not supermodel-level -- and {{GIFT}}ers hate that!
*** Right, so it's as retarded as I thought. Cheers.
!!Heartwarming.ActsOfKindness
* The story behind [[http://alicexz.deviantart.com/art/Rapunzel-II-212289901 this picture]] of [[WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}} Rapunzel]]. A girl named [[http://bamiebal.deviantart.com/ Cyril]] blogged about her dreams of being a face actress at a Disney theme park, namely Rapunzel. On her blog, an [[{{GIFT}} Anon]] said that she was too ugly to be a princess. After hearing this, [[http://alicexz.deviantart.com/ Alice]] made a picture of her as Rapunzel. With the picture came overwhelming support and Cyril's page became filled with comments about how beautiful she is.
!!Heartwarming.BigBrother
* Big Brother Canada:
** Late in the first season, there was a challenge where houseguests had to freeze in place whenever Big Brother told them to. During these freeze moments, we get clowns entering the house to annoy the houseguests, evicted houseguests re-entering to do the same... and then during one freeze, Andrew's twin brother enters the house to say hi to him. Though he has to stay in place, Andrew is barely able to contain his emotions at seeing his brother again.
** From [=BBCan2=], during Week 3 when Ika was up on the block against Heather, before the eviction vote, Ika put aside her AlphaBitch tendencies (albeit until the check incident), built a pillow fort, and apologized to Heather for bullying her.
*** And even then, after the cheque SadisticChoice, Ika delivered most of her AlphaBitch attitude towards the first five - especially Kenny, Andrew, and Sabrina.
** [=BBCan2=]: Kenny coming out to Sarah during the campout reward. It was very easy to see that Kenny lying about his being gay was really affecting him on an emotional level.
** [=BBCan3=] has Britnee and Sarah working together to win the HOH after the emotional eviction of Naeha, their closest friend and ally. After they won they hugged and whispered to eachother "For Nae. For Nae. For Nae."
** Zach became somewhat infamous before his season started when it was discovered that during the first season of the Canada version he had made some very rude and nasty tweets to Peter about his gameplay, calling him a "bitch" and "pussy" with a "nothing life". When Peter finished the season and returned to twitter, he responded in kind with exactly the attitude he's now known for on the Side Show. Obviously, that's not the heartwarming part. That occurred when Zach was evicted and being interviewed by Peter on the Side Show. Peter brought up the tweets, geared up for the rant that everyone was expecting...and then forgave Zach. And then went on a monologue about how after Zach gets home he's going to get plenty of people talking trash about him online because [[{{GIFT}} it's easy]], and that all that hate is going to wear him down, and that Peter will always be available to talk to if it gets to be too much for Zach since he's had to deal with the exact same thing.
** Season 4 features Loveita and Kelsey's relationship changing over the course of a couple weeks where they go from being tense to each other to legit enjoying themselves in the secret suite.
** Ramsay's departure from the house when he decides to walk from the game after learning his dad had a heart attack and now needs major surgery. The whole house treats this event with sympathy and grace and gives him a very kind sendoff.
!!Heartwarming.FredRogers
* A minor one but anyone who has browsed the internet will tell you that the comments section of almost anything is ripe for arguments, insults, bizarre logic, and [[{{GIFT}} attracts many terrible elements including threats]]. Yet in the (since-removed) video where Fox commentators try to make Mr Rogers seem like he was bad influence for children, almost everyone is united in defending him and saying what a positive impact he had on their lives. Mr Rogers: The man so nice and beloved that even the internet can't find anything bad to say about him.
** At present, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29lmR_357rA this YouTube video presenting Mister Rogers in a bad light]] stands at 1.9 million views with only about 1,300 likes and over ''34,000 dislikes''. Oh, and it's also unwatchable, because [[KickTheSonOfABitch PBS filed a copyright claim against it.]]
*** The comments sections for most shows, as noted above, are full of snarking, ShipToShipCombat, people insulting the characters, writers, and each other, MisaimedFandom...look up a clip of ''Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood,'' and it will almost exclusively be people singing his praises.
** 4chan is known for being effectively a pit of pure, festering evil. But if you insult Mr. Rogers, ''[[EvenEvilHasStandards they will ban you]]''.
!!Heartwarming.MisterRogersNeighborhood
* A minor one but anyone who has browsed the internet will tell you that the comments section of almost anything is ripe for arguments, insults, bizarre logic, and [[{{GIFT}} attracts many terrible elements including threats]]. Yet in the (since-removed) video where Fox commentators try to make Mr Rogers seem like he was bad influence for children, almost everyone is united in defending him and saying what a positive impact he had on their lives. Mr Rogers: The man so nice and beloved that even the internet can't find anything bad to say about him.
** At present, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29lmR_357rA this YouTube video presenting Mister Rogers in a bad light]] stands at 1.9 million views with only about 1,300 likes and over ''34,000 dislikes''. Oh, and it's also unwatchable, because [[KickTheSonOfABitch PBS filed a copyright claim against it.]]
*** The comments sections for most shows, as noted above, are full of snarking, ShipToShipCombat, people insulting the characters, writers, and each other, MisaimedFandom...look up a clip of ''Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood,'' and it will almost exclusively be people singing his praises.
** 4chan is known for being effectively a pit of pure, festering evil. But if you insult Mr. Rogers, ''[[EvenEvilHasStandards they will ban you]]''.
!!Heartwarming.WorldOfWarcraft
* This thread [[http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/6397970442?page=1 about how one faction should kill another]] somehow ends with an actually rational argument, and even more shockingly, starts a trend of reasonable discussions on [=WoW=] from it's begining to the first day of Mists of pandaria. In other words, a bunch of people who don't know each other actually got over their hate of people different than them and ''beat {{GIFT}}''.
!!IThoughtItMeant.AToC
* AllTrollsAreDifferent is not a speech reaffirming the diversity and individuality of those who have fallen victim to the {{GIFT}}.
!!IThoughtItMeant.GToI
* {{GIFT}} is not something you get for Christmas.
!!IThoughtItMeant.UToW
* An UnwantedGiftPlot is not a plot about [[{{GIFT}} The Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]], that the audience wishes hadn't happened.
** Nor is it about the audience not liking stories about giving gifts.
** Nor is it a plot about getting [[VideoGame/{{Dragonvale}} yet another Gift dragon.]]
!!Irony.RealLife
* Often when people, especially young people on [[{{GIFT}} the internet]] (e.g., the website ''Encyclopedia Dramatica'') attempt to be edgy; they say and/or do politically incorrect things. In the days before PC was widespread (i.e., the mid-to-late 70's), being politically correct in and of ''itself'' was considered edgy, due to lingering sexist/racist attitudes still in society.
!!It.ElencoProvvisorioF-G
* {{GIFT}} [{{It/DONO}}] (Dottrina Ossessivocompulsiva del Net e dell'Oltrerealtà)
!!JustForFun.TVTropesConLang
||root||gift||rude, shameless, troll||{{GIFT}}||
!!Laconic.DysfunctionalFamilyCircus
ComicStrip/TheFamilyCircus + ({{Detournement}} + {{GIFT}}) = CrossingTheLineTwice
!!Laconic.GIFT
-->[-Cyberbully the unabridged version [[{{GIFT}} HERE]].-]
!!Laconic.WideEyedIdealist
-->[-Visit unabridged version [[WideEyedIdealist HERE]]! And be sure to say hi to all those [[InternetToughGuy nice]] [[{{Troll}} people]] [[{{GIFT}} on the]] [[WretchedHive internet]]!-]
!!LaconicTropeDistinctions.AToC
!!! '''BeneathTheMask vs ADarkerMe vs {{GIFT}} vs HiddenDepths''':
!!LaconicTropeDistinctions.AToC
* Alice is a different person...
** BeneathTheMask: when anonymous/powerful, because then her real personality is revealed.
** ADarkerMe: when anonymous/powerful, because then she's DarkerAndEdgier.
** {{GIFT}}: when anonymous/powerful, because then she becomes a jerk.
** HiddenDepths: once you get to know her.
!!LetsPlay.GamingGarbage
* {{Jerkass}}: Kevin "Fragmaster" Bowen in "Let's Play: ''Jay's Mod''", playing off his {{GIFT}} persona and [[VitriolicBestBuds relationship]] with Lowtax.
!!LetsPlay.{{Kikoskia}}
[[https://www.youtube.com/user/Kikoskia Kikoskia]] (real name Damien Jennison) is a fairly noteworthy English creator of LetsPlay videos on Website/YouTube. Some of the strong points of his commentary are his generally amiable personality, whimsical [[DeadpanSnarker yet snarky]] sense of humor, tendency to [[LampshadeHanging hang lampshades]] on common tropes and cliches, and [[AvertedTrope almost total lack]] [[VulgarHumor of the profanity or vulgarity]] [[{{GIFT}} that's all too common to the genre]]. Most of the games he plays tend to be {{RPG}}s or {{Adventure Game}}s, and many of the first games he played were originally made for the Creator/{{Sega}} [[UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis Megadrive]]. (He does use an emulator to play them on PC but insists he owns all the games he plays).
!!LetsPlay.NerdCubed
--> '''Dan:''' Before we begin, I do have some serious news to discuss. I received a record number of complaints about a video. Nearly a hundred people complained about the last episode of ''Bully'', as it featured THIS GAY KISS! *shows footage of the kiss* Now, a lot of people wanted me to edit out THIS GAY KISS! *shows footage of the kiss* from that episode, but unfortunately, I don't keep raw video files, so THIS GAY KISS! *shows footage of kiss* is going to be there forever. They've also asked me if I would kindly (I say they asked me kindly. They didn't. [[{{GIFT}} They shouted.]]), they asked me kindly if I would not show things like THIS GAY KISS! *shows footage of the kiss* in any future or current videos. Well, I've decided...Jimmy is now bi. Deal with it! *shows footage of kiss* Right, that's people dragged into the 21st century [[FlameWar and the comments section annihilated...]]
** Also the entirety of "Nerd³ Plays...Day One: Garry's Incident"
** In his video of the London 2012 Olympics game, he doesn't have many positive things to say about the Olympics themselves, referring to them as "a massive sports day that rolls into town every four years and bankrupts a country."
** For his ''VideoGame/FTLFasterThanLight'' "Space Racists" challenge, Dan names his ship the "USS [[UsefulNotes/BritishPoliticalSystem UKIP]]", [[BlatantLies by hitting random keys on the keyboard]].
** In his lets play of Arkham Origins, we get this gem:
!!LetsPlay.SuperJeenius
* {{GIFT}}: He calls this out at one point.
!!LetsPlay.TwitchPlaysPokemon
* {{GIFT}}: Plenty of the Mob are simply there to impede progress in whatever way possible. Often 'trolls' are blamed for things that are just a result of the exceedingly long and non-obvious 26-second delay between commands being entered and executed, but there are a few repeated commands that clearly make no sense at all.
!!LetsPlay.TwitchPlaysPokemon
* ItsEasySoItSucks: {{Invoked}} by the Anarchists. The main complaint is that the Democracy system makes the entire game so easy, it is not as fun as the chaotic mess of the Anarchy system. In fact, this reasoning helped produce [[MemeticMutation start9]] which made the progression in the game ''even worse'' and this specific command is remembered as a sign of a protest against Democracy. However, the rather few times that Democracy helped the game, whose problems were [[{{GIFT}} both caused by anarchists]]) are [[AccentuateTheNegative not really spoken out as often as it should]].
!!LightNovel.LogHorizon
* DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist: Everyone was immensely relieved to find out that they can't be KilledOffForReal by being killed in battle. Unfortunately, that encouraged [[{{GIFT}} some people]] to become [[PlayerKilling Player Killers]]. [[spoiler:Subverted after Shiroe learns about the Spirit Theory. He hypotheses since Adventurers lose EXP when they resurrect, when Elder Tales became real, it translates to a loss of memories. This is proven true when Krusty, whom died twice since the Apocalypse, could no longer remember the name and appearance of his pet cat, despite his good memory. This leaves the terrifying implication that dying in the new world means gradually losing your memory of the old one. Krusty himself says this is a double subversion because he figures one would have to die dozens of times before the memory loss became more than a "mild inconvenience". Comparatively speaking, that's still pretty cheap. In episode 9 of season 2, we also see Shiroe affected by this firsthand, as he wanders around his hometown while in the spirit world, and is unable to recall the name of a restaurant he used to pass by.]]
!!LightNovel.LogHorizon
* {{GIFT}}:
** Since no one can die, some people take dickery to an unbelievable level. Brigandia guildsmen brutally kill everyone who try to leave Susukino. It's implied that they murder and rape [=NPC=]s like it's nothing. [[note]] The anime is aired on NHK, so nothing is explicitly revealed.[[/note]]
** The major guilds within Akihabara uses the "it's just a game" to excuse their behavior and continue to do nothing about it. However, when Shiroe invites them to a meeting and [[spoiler:blackmails them]] into seriously discussing implementing law and order, they all agree that grieving low level players, slavery, forced confinement, murder, and rape should be made illegal without objection.
!!LightNovel.SwordArtOnline
* ADarkerMe: There's a group of players that go around killing other players and stealing their items. Lampshaded when Kirito remarks that online players [[{{GIFT}} act very different]] from how they would in real life.
!!Literature.AKindOfSpark
* {{GIFT}}: Keedie's twin Nina, an influencer, features Addie in one of her makeup videos. The comments immediately fill with people either calling her a tragedy or questioning if she can really be autistic if she can talk. Nina deletes the replies, but Keedie still tells her off for it, accusing her of trying to get pity clicks for having a disabled sister.
!!Literature.{{Alterworld}}
* {{GIFT}}: Adam is an inversion; he's really quite personable on the internet, but in real life [[{{Jerkass}} is a different story]].
!!Literature.IncarnationsOfImmortality
* {{GIFT}}: Possibly predicted in an older form, and alluded to, in ''Bearing an Hourglass'', when Chronos encounters a wall covered in graffiti, and muses that perhaps, in a perfectly free society, people do behave badly. He concludes that both the best and worst in society are equally necessary.
!!Literature.{{Newshound}}
* FantasticRacism: Low-key discrimination against parahumans appears to be relatively common, ranging from casual lycanphobia borne of ignorance[[note]]as exhibited by Heather's editor, Kurt Holmes[[/note]] to outright hatred and calls for death[[note]]as displayed by [[{{GIFT}} certain internet commentators]][[/note]].
!!Literature.T2Trilogy
* {{GIFT}}: John, monitoring Luddite chat rooms on the Internet and noting the movement is getting more mainstream -- and more violent -- every day, muses on exactly this trope, that people will say things on the Internet they would never say face-to-face. But it's still probably a good thing not to be in the same room with them when they ''are'' saying such things; who knows what could happen.
!!Literature.TheRepublic
* {{GIFT}}: The Ring of Gyges is sort of an UrExample: instead of Normal Person+Anonymity+Audience=Total Fuckwad, you get Normal Person+Ring of Invisibility+Tempting Targets=Murderer and Rapist. Same principle, really; it's used to argue that being held accountable for one's actions in the public eye is the only thing keeping us from treating one another like jerks.
!!Literature.TheStrangeCaseOfDrJekyllAndMrHyde
* {{GIFT}}: An UrExample. The great appeal of Hyde to Jekyll is that he can't be held responsible for Hyde's crimes, until he murders a member of Parliament and cannot safely hide. This coincides with the potion losing potency, limiting both men's time.
!!Machinima.RedVsBlue
* FauxToGuide:
** The "Real Life vs. The Internet", "First!", and "Online Survival Guide" [=PSAs=] are all this in terms of teaching [[{{GIFT}} online etiquette]].
** [[invoked]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNqfskP72Nw The Fire Safety PSA.]] [[TooDumbToLive It ends with the group dying in a fire inside the building]] and is given an InMemoriam message.
** "Match Breaking", a guide by Tucker and Simmons on picking up girls.
** Most of the [=PSAs=] after Season 15 are like this, with two downright saying it in the title - "Caboose's Guide to Finding Your Home" (a sequel to the "Making Friends" episode of [[Machinima/RedVsBlueSeason14 Season 14]]) and "Lopez's Technical Guide to Empathy".
!!Machinima.RedVsBlueTheBloodGulchChronicles
* BackFromTheDead:
** [[invoked]] The Battle Creek Reds and Blues, who are two large, deeply idiotic, [[DoesThisRemindYouofAnything constantly respawning armies]] [[{{GIFT}} of jerks]].
** Wyoming, in a sense, via TimeTravel SaveScumming.
!!Manga.{{Bakuman}}
* {{GIFT}}:
** Discussed by Takagi in his explanation for why [[spoiler:Nanamine]] cannot succeed. One of the problems he notes is that the 50 people are anonymous and are not being paid, so they have less incentive to put in a serious effort over time than one person whose career hangs in the balance. Some of [[spoiler:Nanamine's]] contributors admit to participating just for fun.
** The internet reaction to [[spoiler:Azuki being outed as Mashiro's girlfriend]] is quite nasty.
!!Manga.DeathNote
* {{GIFT}}: In-story, Kira becomes an instant sensation on the Internet and ordinary citizens start making hit lists. ([[SubvertedInnocence Like that sweet-looking little girl texting "Kira, please kill them all."]])
** This applies to Light as well with the anonymous power of both the Internet ''and'' the Death Note.
!!Manga.IAmAHero
* MessageBoard: Online communities play a role. They're the most GenreSavvy about a ZombieApocalypse, have less [[ThisLoserIsYou direct human contact]], and so have [[CursedWithAwesome better odds of survival]]. Not that it prevents the [[{{Hikikomori}} flaky]], [[{{GIFT}} morally questionable]] types from running things...
** Makes another appearance near the end [[spoiler:when Hiromi finally gets absorbed by the HiveMind and sees it as the same message board shown earlier (with some of the same posters, for good measure)]].
!!Manga.ICantUnderstandWhatMyHusbandIsSaying
* {{GIFT}}: Hajime has to explain to Kaoru how this works in Chapter 7 of the manga.
!!Manga.OshiNoKo
* SocialMediaIsBad: Zig-zagged. Social media is portrayed as a useful tool to increase one's stardom and popularity, yet it can [[{{GIFT}} bring out the worst]] of the people using them, as shown with Akane after she causes an unfortunate accident and subsequently is getting cyberbullied for weeks, which makes Aqua furious.
!!Manga.{{Shibatora}}
* {{GIFT}}: Features heavily in the Gasoline Man storyline.
!!Manhwa.{{Yureka}}
* ClarkKenting: It's illegal to alter one's appearance on the Net, so characters who want to exploit the {{GIFT}} [[InvokedTrope have to disguise themselves entirely with clothes and attitude.]] It's a recurrent theme, but is [[{{Reconstruction}} played with realism]] and isn't [[PaperThinDisguise infallible]]: those actively invoking this get delayed recognition at best.
** In-game, pop duo The Lovely Angels don't wear makeup.
** Out-of-game, Lotto wears glasses and combs his hair (and tries to act mild-mannered).
*** Jyung Mung-Gun eventually connects the loud-mouthed manipulator he rendezvoused with in a digital bar with the quiet (shorter) kid in glasses and a baseball cap he showed around a hospital for a friend.
!!Manhwa.{{Yureka}}
* {{GIFT}}: Characters who are sweet as pie or at least normal in [[RealLife real life]] don't have to keep up appearances and facades on the net, resulting in small to startling additional [[{{Jerkass}} jerkassery]].
!!Manhwa.{{Yureka}}
* {{Greed}}: How many times has it gotten the better of our heroes and their adversaries? But then, it is a series about [[{{GIFT}} gamers]]....
!!Manhwa.{{Yureka}}
* {{Utopia}}: It is the view of some that the Net should be like this, or at least limited to its own harmless [[{{GIFT}} vices]], and that Killers and their trade pervert this ideal.
!!Memes.AnimeAndManga
* ''Manga/SayonaraZetsubouSensei'': Make yourself taller [[labelnote:Explanation]]Euphemism for suicide by hanging. Named after Kafuka's bizarre explanation that Nozomu was not trying to kill himself, but merely trying to increase his height.[[/labelnote]]
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BB7o8x0wPhs I'm in despair!]]X has left me in despair! [[labelnote:Explanation]]Nozoumu's snowclone-able rant about the {{GIFT}} phenomenon.[[/labelnote]]
!!Memes.{{Minecraft}}
* "hey shitass" [[labelnote:Explanation]]Parodying the competitive [=PvP=] and speedrunning scene (especially YouTubers like LetsPlay/{{Dream}}), these memes follow a specific format: the player character addressing another player named "shitass" with "hey shitass, wanna see me [action]?", the player character then doing that action with [[SensoryAbuse bass-boosted blowing into the mic]] and loud ButtonMashing (and usually at a low skill level or with outside assistance), before shitass outdoes the player in ludicrous ways.[[/labelnote]]
** "[[{{GIFT}} Bad. You're bad. You're ba-]] ''(shitass [[BullyingADragon attacks the player]])'' [[OhCrap AAAAAAA-!]]"
!!Memes.OtherInternet
* "I wasn't being an [[{{GIFT}} asshole]]! It was, uh... a '[[http://wiki.fandomwank.com/index.php/Social_experiment social experiment]]'. Yeah..."[[labelnote:Explanation]]The "social experiment" defense is sometimes employed when a person is called out for failure at {{troll}}ing.[[/labelnote]]
!!MisBlamed.VideoGames
* Xbox Live's userbase has been misblamed for the creation of the "juvenile and unfriendly" gamer. Apparently people haven't heard of the theory of {{GIFT}}, which has been in existence long before the Xbox. Live just brought the issue to light if anything. And when it's not Xbox Live that gets all the criticism for this, it's always something like ''VideoGame/CounterStrike'' or ''VideoGame/{{Quake}}''.
** Within UsefulNotes/XboxLiveArcade, games like ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' and ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' get disproportionately blamed for this.
!!MisaimedFandom.{{Advertising}}
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0Uin2sINdQ This PSA.]] The message presented in the video is, "You wouldn't get away with it here. You shouldn't get away with it at home." However, a distressing number of commenters seem to sympathize with the man and admonish the waitress for apparently disrespecting him and his coffee (mind, this ''is'' [[{{Troll}} a YouTube]] [[{{GIFT}} comment]] [[WretchedHive section]] we're talking about).
!!Monster.{{Creepypasta}}
* ''[[https://www.reddit.com/r/nosleep/comments/5hud9q/i_was_a_professional_internet_troll/ I Was a Professional Internet Troll]]'': [[VillainProtagonist The story's narrator]], known by his online alias "Resisilobus", is an overzealous [[{{Troll}} internet troll]] who manages to be particularly vile even by those standards. Not content with simply being an unpleasant individual online, Resisilobus intentionally drives two people to [[DrivenToSuicide kill themselves]] by relentlessly harassing them. He then befriends a teenage outcast and [[ManipulativeBastard manipulates the boy]] into killing seven of his classmates and then committing suicide. To indicate how little he values the lives of others, Resisilobus considers the "achievements" to be inferior to his comparatively minor hacking of a popular Bible app and the confusion it causes among Christians. A remorseless sadist who openly revels in the power his crimes make him feel, Resisilobus is an example of how [[{{GIFT}} internet anonymity can bring out the worst in people]].
!!Music.BuckTick
* {{GIFT}}: InUniverse example - "Living On The Net" is an early example from the perspective of someone being an example of the GIFT and getting into an argument on the internet.
!!Music.CattleDecapitation
* {{GIFT}}: "Not Suitable for Life" was inspired by Travis's sheer irritation and disgust at reading a seemingly endless litany of ignorant, asinine, and stupidly hostile social media comments on a particularly bad day.
!!Music.FearFactory
* {{GIFT}}: Addressed in "Cyberwaste".
** Also, "Archetype"'s lyrics are essentially addressed to then-absent guitarist Dino Cazares.
!!Music.MiseryIndex
* {{GIFT}}: "Plague of Objects"
!!Music.PureHeroine
* {{GIFT}}: Referenced as possibly bleeding into the outside world - "maybe the internet raised us, or maybe people are jerks".
!!NationalStereotypes.EasternEurope
* Children will play with matryoshka dolls. If they do play videogames, it will ALWAYS be Tetris (Created by a Russian, natch.) Except in gamers' circles, where the stereotype of a Russian player somehow manages to be a {{GIFT}} squared, their impenetrable slang and general habit of communicating in Russian only notwithstanding.
!!NeverMyFault.VideoGames
* In ''Videogame/LeagueOfLegends'', "Videogame/DefenseOfTheAncients" and every multiplayer game, even "Videogame/CallOfDuty", it is common that a player will [[{{GIFT}} yell at his teammates in a losing game, then proceed to say that he is the only competent person on said team]], even if he is doing the worst and/or hardly contributes and judges solely on his KDA ratio.
** Some players will even take this UpToEleven and [[KickTheDog blame a player who joined just as the round ended.]] And god help them if their entire team decides to make them TheScapegoat, [[{{Hypocrite}} while everyone on their team was screwing around for the majority of the match]] [[UnwinnableByInsanity and decided to wait until the literal last couple of minutes to get serious.]]
!!NightmareFuel.AgentsOfSHIELD
* The blackouts cause a lot of this:
** Daisy and Robbie talk about how looting and rioting typically take place during black outs because people feel emboldened. In other words, [[{{GIFT}} seven major cities with the lack of inhibition of the internet]].
** Robbie specifically talks about his fear that [[AdultFear his wheel-chair bound little brother will be stuck in a bad part of town]].
!!NightmareFuel.BeastThePrimordial
* ''Conquering Heroes'' adds the Insatiable, aka [[EvilCounterpart what would happen if Beasts didn't have even the barest scrap of humanity remaining]]. They inflict a HatePlague on the world by simply ''eating'', because they have to eat humans in order to feast on them-preventing their fears from joining the Primordial Dream, allowing spiritual entities to access the physical world more easily. In effect, they ''MindRape humanity's subconscious just by existing''. They see Horrors and Beasts as [[FoodChainOfEvil upstart prey]] who just exist as a source of good homes by stealing their Lairs, and their true forms are so estranged from humanity that mortals [[YouCannotGraspTheTrueForm are driven mad with fear and confusion upon seeing them]]-and have a significant chance of doing that to supernatural beings, too! Each of the examples is pretty terrifying in their own way, too;
** [[DiabolicalMastermind The Authority]], a cruel overlord of all the crime in his city who came into his power [[CreepyChild in childhood]], learning he could turn his body into molten lava and using it to [[DisproportionateRetribution gleefully murder his bullies in the most painful way possible]]. He's since become the nearly faceless lord of pretty much ''[[EqualOpportunityEvil every supernatural faction in his home]]'' simply out of raw power and the fear people have of him.
** [[MysteriousWatcher The Blind Man]], perhaps the oldest Insatiable alive today, [[TimeAbyss having been around since at least the Achaemenid Empire]]. While he ''acts'' like he just has BlueAndOrangeMorality, in truth that's just an expression of [[JustToyingWithThem his Hunger for Prey]]; he knows fully well how unsettling he is and acts deliberately insane to really sweeten the fear of his eventual meals. That, and the fact he has [[EyeScream insects for eyes]], would be bad enough, except there's a reason he's constantly having a damp stain around his chest; [[MisterSeahorse he's laying eggs constantly from his navel]], eggs he claims are nothing less than pieces of the Primogenitor that one day will all hatch simultaneously and unleash an ''even more'' EldritchAbomination on the world than any of his brethren. You do ''not'' want to know what happens if you eat one-and he's good at ''tricking'' people into eating them anyway.
** [[TheCracker Null Snyper]], a vicious {{Troll}} and psychotic cyberbully who transformed into a [[StarfishAlien Void]] Insatiable when she realized she drove a friend of hers to suicide with her caustic commentary...and ''[[EvilFeelsGood loved every minute of it]]''. She's become a digital spider fit for being the [[MailerDaemon ultimate Internet predator]], ruining lives from the safety of her HackerCave; she's long figured out how to turn the worst elements of hacker and especially Men's Rights Activist culture to her advantage, realizing she can create an army of [[{{GIFT}} borderline sociopathic minions]] simply by posting the right rant, and relaxing while her pawns gradually tear apart some poor sap's life [[ForTheEvulz because they can]]. Even worse, she [[PostModernMagik never needs to leave]]; she's realized she can inflict Nightmares over things like ''[[ParanoiaFuel Skype]]'' and so long as she's observing someone take their own life or lose it in some other way due to her manipulations, she can eat almost as well as if she was there. Her only limitation is that she's terrified of leaving her house, and as she gets physically hungrier, that is going to change...
** [[MonsterClown Peter Slaughbal]], a circus clown from the 50s-60s who at his first presentation developped a creepy obsession for one of the women in the audience, and started creepily stalking her, eventually culminating in him luring her in the hall of mirrors and devouring her. He then made a routine of picking a prey in the audience, all while [[TheCorrupter gradually corrupting the rest of the circus and turning them into his personal cult of helpers]]. Eventually a cell of [[TabletopGame/HunterTheVigil hunters]] discovered and confronted him, [[CurbStompBattle only for all of them but one to get slaughtered]]. The surviving one, Jean Lansberry, eventually came back for revenge, and managed to defeat him by [[SealedEvilInACan trapping him inside a painting]], which she kept for fifty years- until she succumbed to Alzheimer, eventuallly resulting in her brother's grandson and his wife accidentally freeing Slaughbal after they inherited the house. The Insatiable immediately stalked and devoured them. Now a shadow of his former self, he travels from town to town, presenting himself at parties where he looks for people going home alone to stalk and devour.
!!NightmareFuel.PerfectBlue
* A huge meta one that the film is over twenty years old... and barely anything has changed about the idol industry, other than the overlap between seiyuu and idols thanks to {{Moe}} anime. If you look deep online you will find many horror stories of {{Loony Fan}}s committing acts of violence against idol singers and/or voice actresses due to their obsession and, if not that, writing [[{{GIFT}} vile, misogynistic stuff on the Internet]] if ContractualPurity is broken or just the slightest BerserkButton gets pushed. Warning: might make you lose faith in {{Otaku}} culture.
!!NightmareFuel.{{Persona5}}
* Kunikazu Okumura's death. He starts convulsing, then slowly rises up to reveal blank eyes and black sludge oozing out of his face: the player is treated to a good few seconds of him staring vacantly ahead, mouth agape and oozing sludge before the TV crew frantically cuts to RelaxOVision. Even worse, this is shown on live television. Where the man's own daughter gets to watch every moment of it. Needless to say, this breaks poor Haru's heart like glass being smashed with a brick, which just adds ''more'' nightmare fuel to the fire.
** A couple of the comments that flash across the feed before the puppy screen is pulled up is 'wwwwwwwwwww'. If you're familiar with Japanese internet slang, that's people commenting on the scene of death with ''[[{{GIFT}} laughter]]''.
!!Nl.SerieuzeZaak
Vaak is het een [[SillyReasonForWar onbenullige reden voor oorlog]], en kan het een gesprek over koetjes en kalfjes veranderen in een verhit debat. Iemand die het gewoon niet los kan laten wordt mogelijk een SingleIssueWonk. Als competitie erbij betrokken is, kun je bijna ''garanderen'' dat [[SecondPlaceIsForLosers de tweede plek voor verliezers is]]. Regelmatig "tegengegaan" door de CavalierCompetitor. Vergelijk StopHavingFunGuys. In musicals is dit vaak van toepassing op [[DancingIsSeriousBusiness dansen]]. Voor het gezegde dat "het internet een serieuze zaak is", zie {{GIFT}}. Gerelateerd aan ImNotHereToMakeFriends. Verwar niet met MundaneMadeAwesome, alhoewel de twee tropes ''regelmatig'' overlappen.
!!Pantheon.CheatsAndGlitches
* Portfolio: '''[[TheGMIsACheatingBastard Abuses His Admin Powers]]''', [[AllMenArePerverts Perverted To The Core]], ArcVillain of the Fairy Dance Arc, CorruptCorporateExecutive, DirtyCoward, [[EntitledBastard Believes He Can Do Whatever He Wants]], {{GIFT}}, MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate, {{Narcissist}}, OpportunisticBastard, [[PaperTiger SUCKS At Fighting]], [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil Sexually Assaults VRMMO Players]], [[PowerPerversionPotential Uses Admin Powers to Subvert Game Rules]], SmugSnake, [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential ALO Is An Outlet For His Depravity]] [[CompleteMonster (which is immense)]], [[spoiler:GreaterScopeVillain of the Alicization Arc]]
!!PapaWolf.WesternAnimation
* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'': "I've got to save mah beh-beh!"
** Kyle seems to have [[BigBrotherInstinct developed traits of this around his baby brother Ike]], more so than most of the brainless parents of the town anyway.
** Randy and the other dads sometimes do this, though they're [[BumblingDad so stupid]] it doesn't really work out very well. One time it ''did,'' however, was when Randy joined Cartman in running a giant drill through the crowd of hippies to get Stan out.
** And the season 15 finale has [[spoiler: Kenny]], as Mysterion, defending his little sister [[spoiler: Karen]] from a bully at the school they went to when their parents got arrested.
** A darker example: in "[[Recap/SouthParkS20E6FortCollins Fort Collins]]," the [[{{GIFT}} entire Internet history of everyone in the titular town is released to everyone else in town]]. The {{Troll}} called [=MLKKK=] is quickly found by the father of a disabled girl whom he'd mocked online [[KillItWithFire and gets burnt to death]].
!!Persona5.TropesGToR
* {{GIFT}}: Since the posters on the Phan-site are anonymous, a lot of the posts can get quite nasty. When Okumura is killed, for a few days, people rejoice over his death, but soon, opinion turns against the Thieves, and people start calling for them to be tracked down and executed for the murder that they didn't commit.
!!PlayingWith.ADarkerMe
* '''Exaggerated''': Dark Pharaoh is a [[{{GIFT}} total]] [[{{Jerkass}} fuckwad]].
!!PlayingWith.ADarkerMe
* '''Invoked''': Bob always wanted to be edgy and snarky, but that would bring many consequences to him in the real world. [[{{GIFT}} Online anonymity]] allows Bob to fulfill his wish through his Dark Pharaoh persona without having to worry about said consequences.
!!PlayingWith.FacelessGoons
* '''Justified''':
** The uniforms are well-armored, offer great protection, and present a united, frightening front.
** Not to mention [[{{GIFT}} the anonymity]], which makes {{Mooks}} way more confident.
** The {{Mooks}} have a weak point on their face. One that kills them if it so much as touches something other than a mask.
** The villains want to hide the fact that their minions are [[MonstrousHumanoid not quite human]] under their masks.
!!PlayingWith.FlameWar
* '''Straight''':
** Someone [[{{GIFT}} insults]] or [[InternetToughGuy threatens]] another person's comments or the person themselves in an online dispute. Other people join in and the fight begins.
** Alternately, a {{Troll}} posts something sufficiently inflammatory enough to get people arguing.
** [[InnocentlyInsensitive An ordinary poster posts something that, while they didn't assume it to be inflammatory, is very much so]].
!!PlayingWith.FlameWar
* '''Enforced''':
** Website/FourChan, and some other places where the intent is to be as offensive and assholish as possible.
** {{GIFT}}
!!PlayingWith.GIFT
Back to {{GIFT}}, dickhead! Are you upset, sissy pants? What do intent to do about it, tough guy?! Are you gonna punch me!? HA HA HA! Loser, [[TemptingFate I want to see you trying it]].
!!PlayingWith.GodwinsLaw
* '''Intended Audience Reaction''': The show is aimed directly at [[{{GIFT}} people who abuse this law regularly]] in an attempt to make them shape up.
!!PlayingWith.SoapBoxSadie
* '''Double Subverted''': ...Turns out she doesn't act so balanced [[{{GIFT}} online, however]].
!!PlayingWith.{{Troll}}
* '''Enforced''':
** The topic is "Best Troll Comment Ever"
** {{GIFT}}
** The place consists of trolls trolling trolls trolling trolls.
** It is an ImageBoard or comment section where trolling is accepted behavior
** Trolly and possibly others have decided that somewhere or someone is so deserving of an attack, for whatever reason, that they ''must'' troll there.
!!PlayingWith.VengeanceFeelsEmpty
* '''Parodied''': Alan plots to get back all of those who abused him by throwing them all into a pit of sticky goo; this includes Bob, [[AlphaBitch Diane]], [[BigBrotherBully Emil]], [[WithFriendsLikeThese his own friends]], [[AbusiveParents his own parents]], and a [[{{GIFT}} random asshole behind the computer]]. After executing his revenge, Alan literally becomes an emotionless robot.
!!Quotes.AtopTheFourthWall
-->--'''Linkara''' calling out [[{{GIFT}} certain people online]] who attack creators of things they dislike, ''ComicBook/HeroesInCrisis''
!!Quotes.BystanderSyndrome
-->-- '''Creator/JohnOliver''', ''Series/LastWeekTonightWithJohnOliver'', on [[{{GIFT}} online harassment of women]].
!!Quotes.{{Gaslighting}}
-->--'''[[{{GIFT}} Anonymous]]''', [[Website/FourChan /b/]]
!!Quotes.HumansAreTheRealMonsters
->[[{{GIFT}} On internet messageboards]], there is no subject so vile or indefensible that someone won't post positively/in defense of it.
!!Quotes.LaserGuidedKarma
->[[AttentionWhore Darren]]'s Wikipedia page was back up, but locked after continual editing abuse. He also had a few hundred followers on Twitter, but none anyone would care to meet in the flesh [[{{GIFT}} if their communications were any display of personality]]. But now, after months of intensive work with one of the most complex delusional patients he had even encountered, Dr. Bernard P Basset had achieved that moment of acceptance.
!!Quotes.QuotesLookingForAnArticle
->'''Stickman 1''': Wow! These Website/YouTube comments are [[{{GIFT}} full of retards]].
!!Quotes.SecretIdentityIdentity
->''[[BeneathTheMask "Man is least himself when he talks in his own person.]] [[{{GIFT}} Give him a mask and he will tell you the truth."]]''
!!Quotes.SkewedPriorities
->''We must be ready for war. No, not that kind of war! (Shows title card for his War Stories video) This is something far more serious than people dying, even more important than real life economic turmoil and geopolitical conflict. This is the greatest external threat a writer will ever face, [[{{GIFT}} people on the Internet saying mean things about one's work!]]"
!!Quotes.TheHistoryOfVideoGames
->Ralph Baer, Brown Box, [[UsefulNotes/MagnavoxOdyssey Odyssey and Magnavox]]\\
MIT, ''VideoGame/{{OXO}}'', ''VideoGame/{{Spacewar}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Pong}}''\\
[[UsefulNotes/ColecoVision Coleco]] and UsefulNotes/{{Intellivision}}, Creator/{{Atari}}, then Creator/{{Activision}}\\
[[Creator/ShigeruMiyamoto Miyamoto]] and Creator/{{Nintendo}}, plumbers, ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong''\\
\\
''VideoGame/SpaceInvaders'', ''VideoGame/PacMan'', [[VideoGame/{{Metroid}} Samus]] [[SamusIsAGirl and her stellar cans]]\\
''VideoGame/DigDug'', ''Turbo'', ''VideoGame/{{Frogger}}'', ''VideoGame/QBert'', [[VideoGame/MarioBros Mario]],\\
[[UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983 Game Crash '83]], adios Atari,\\
''[[VideoGame/ETTheExtraTerrestrial E.T.]]'' buried still, Albuquerque landfill\\
\\
(Chorus)\\
[[WeDidntStartTheBillyJoelParodies The Wii didn't start the fire\\
How we've done some growing since our cartridge blowing\\
The Wii didn't start the fire\\
With our fingers bleeding, we were quarter feeding]]\\
\\
[[UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem NES]], [[VideoGame/SuperMarioBros1 Luigi, Bowser]], ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}'', [[VideoGame/YoshisIsland Yoshi]]\\
[[UsefulNotes/SegaMasterSystem Master System]], ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'', ''Franchise/FinalFantasy''\\
''VideoGame/DragonQuest'', ''[[VideoGame/MegaManClassic Mega Man]]'', ''VideoGame/{{Wolfenstein}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Bomberman}}''\\
[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI Zelda]] rap, look it up, "Your parents help you hook it up."\\
\\
UsefulNotes/NeoGeo, [[UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis Genesis]], UsefulNotes/GameBoy, [[UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem SNES]]\\
[[Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog Sonic series]], ''VideoGame/EarthwormJim'', ''VideoGame/ChronoTrigger'', [[VideoGame/MortalKombat "Finish him!"]]\\
[[VideoGame/WhereInTheWorldIsCarmenSandiego Carmen Sandiego chase]], [[VideoGame/KirbysDreamLand Kirby]] [[BigEater likes to stuff his face]]\\
UsefulNotes/VirtualBoy, what's in store? "[[MemeticMutation A]] UsefulNotes/Nintendo64!!!"\\
\\
(chorus)\\
\\
[[VideoGame/StarFox64 Star Fox]], Rumble Pak, [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime ocarina]], [[VideoGame/SuperMario64 plumber's back]]\\
''[[VideoGame/GoldenEye1997 GoldenEye]]'', perfect game, ''VideoGame/PerfectDark'', not the same\\
UsefulNotes/SegaSaturn, CD-ROM, UsefulNotes/PlayStation, ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'',\\
[[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid Solid Snake]], [[VideoGame/TombRaider Lara Croft]], Creator/SquareEnix and Creator/{{Ubisoft}}\\
\\
[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII Aeris eats it]], ''VideoGame/{{Quake}}'', ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'', ''VideoGame/MonkeyIsland'', [[VideoGame/CrashBandicoot Bandicoot]]\\
''VideoGame/GranTurismo'', [[CoolCar nice car]], [[VideoGame/HalfLife Gordon Freeman]], [[WithThisHerring crowbar]]\\
''VideoGame/{{Thief}}'', ''VideoGame/{{Homeworld}}'', ''Franchise/SilentHill'', ''VideoGame/{{Starcraft}}'', ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil''\\
[[VideoGame/MarioKart Bowser racing Mario]], ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}'' and ''VideoGame/GrimFandango''\\
\\
(chorus)\\
\\
[[UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast Dreamcast]], online play, [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 PS2]] and ''[[VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto GTA]]''\\
''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros Smash Bros]]'', ''[[VideoGame/HaloCombatEvolved Halo]]'', hand/controller ratio\\
[[GottaCatchEmAll Way too many Pokémon]], [[VideoGame/TheSims Sims come over while you're gone]]\\
''[[VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution DDR]]'', ''[[VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic KotOR]]'', ''[[VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} Warcraft III]]'' and ''VideoGame/GodOfWar''\\
''VideoGame/PrinceOfPersia'', ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'', Havoc flailing body parts\\
''[[VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft WoW]]'' arrives, lonely wives, orcs and dwarves and ruined lives\\
\\
(chorus)\\
\\
Santa brought a [[UsefulNotes/Xbox360 360]], UsefulNotes/BluRay on the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PS3]]\\
[[UsefulNotes/NintendoDS Game Boy, second screen]], watch your grandma play the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}}\\
[[SpaceMarine Space Marines]] and red rings, [[PlayTheGameSkipTheStory let me skip the cutscenes]]\\
[[VideoGame/GuitarHero Tweens mash classic rock, flimsy plastic headstock]]\\
\\
[[UsefulNotes/XboxLiveArcade Live]] thrives, [[{{GIFT}} pricks abound]], [[UsefulNotes/PlayStationNetwork PSN]] a ghost town\\
[[Webcomic/PennyArcade Gabe and Tycho]], Mountain Dew, G4, [[WebAnimation/ZeroPunctuation Yahtzee]], {{Chiptune}}\\
[[FollowTheLeader Motion sensors all the same]], [[Creator/BlizzardEntertainment Blizzard]] gives us one campaign\\
{{DLC}}, screw the fee, [[UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS 3DS]] and ''VideoGame/HalfLife [[MemeticMutation 3]]''\\
\\
(chorus, fade out)
!!Quotes.VocalMinority
->''"Roseanne has always been a racist weirdo, and Creator/JamesGunn [[BlackComedy has always pushed the bounds of good taste with his humor]]. What changed was [[{{GIFT}} the involvement of internet mobs]]. By capitulating to the Twitter rage of a few thousand assholes, Disney is subtly teaching us that online mobs, no matter how stupid their platform, can make a difference. It doesn't matter if they're right, as long as they're ''loud''. And that's great when it means [[Series/HouseOfCardsUS firing a sex offender]], but it's a hell of a lot less great when it means [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2 ousting somebody for a joke they already apologized for years ago]]. [...] In none of these cases are there any kind of core values that the company is adhering to. They'll support or censor whatever appeases the most zealous crowd. Which means they're incentivizing trolls to become bigger and bigger assholes, because it's the only thing that works."''
!!Radio.BecauseNews
* '''Never Read the Comments''': Two members of the studio audience read [[PoesLaw actual comments on news articles]] [[{{GIFT}} from CBC.ca's website]], and the panelists must guess which story they're talking about.
!!Radio.GTARadio
* FictionalVideoGame
** ''Vice City'' has commercials on its radio stations for the Degenetron game system, which features such titles as ''Defender of the Faith'' ("Destroy the blue dots with your powerful red square!"). In ''San Andreas'', they appear on retro arcade machines. You can't play them, but you can play the "emulator" on the [[{{Defictionalization}} defictionalised]] [[http://www.rockstargames.com/degenatron/ Degenatron "fansite."]]
** ''III'' also has ads for ''Pogo the Monkey'', which is later referenced by a ''Pogo the Monkey'' arcade in the cab firm from ''Vice City''.
** ''IV'' has ''Civil Service'', a parody of ''VideoGame/SimCity'' which encourages the player to favor big business and keep down minorities. ''Episodes from Liberty City'' also has ads for ''Deity'', a [[AGodIsYou god game]] in the vein of ''VideoGame/BlackAndWhite''.
** ''V'' takes this trope full circle with ''Righteous Slaughter 7'', a parody of [[UltraSuperDeathGoreFestChainsawer3000 video game violence]] of the sort that ''GTA'' itself had long indulged in, as well as FranchiseZombie sequels and derivative FPS games. The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAJG8tF5MQM gameplay footage]] we see is essentially ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' meets ''VideoGame/{{Postal}}''. While it doesn't [[MurderSimulators turn those who play it into murderous psychopaths]], it ''does'' seem to turn them into [[{{GIFT}} foul-mouthed, bigoted assholes]], judging by what we see of the people who play it. There's also ''Pride Not Prejudice'', a DeepSouth-themed FPS advertised on the radio.
!!Recap.BigHero6TheSeriesS2E17Hardlight
* {{GIFT}}: Hardlight, since he sees real life as a video game. As Ian he is shy and an ExtremeDoormat to Krei.
!!Recap.BlackMirrorHatedInTheNation
* {{GIFT}}: Basically the focus of the episode. Even without the resulting deaths, dozens, of not ''hundreds'' of people are wishing death upon others over the internet, most simply because of disagreements on viewpoints and politics. The teacher, when confronted after the first murder (having been one of many people to use the [=#DeathTo=] hashtag against Jo), can only stammer out the weak defense that she wasn't being serious.
!!Recap.BlackMirrorTheNationalAnthem
* {{GIFT}}: In one scene, Callow's wife is looking at social media reactions to the news of what Callow is being demanded to do. Unsurprisingly, many of them are making crude jokes about the situation, mocking Callow despite the fact that the demand is for him to be raped.
!!Recap.BlackMirrorUSSCallister
* {{GIFT}}: When the [=AIs=] escape to the main ''Infinity'' universe, the first thing they encounter is "[=Gamer691=]", a human player who hits on Nanette and threatens to blow the ''Callister'' out of the cosmos. As if to drive it home, he's [[TheCameo voiced]] by Creator/AaronPaul in full-on [[Series/BreakingBad Jesse Pinkman]] mode.
!!Recap.DeathNoteEp02Confrontation
* {{GIFT}}: In story with the Kira fansites and the little girl texting "Kira, please kill them all."
!!Recap.DeathNoteEp02Confrontation
* {{Hypocrite}}: Light explains the {{GIFT}} to Ryuk, telling him [[HypocriticalHumor that humans are hypocrites by nature.]]
** He then murders the first person to publicly denounce Kira as evil immediately after explaining how people should be allowed to express honest opinions without fear of retribution.
** L declares that what Kira is doing (killing criminals) is evil and so vows to hunt him down and have him sentenced to death.
!!Recap.DoctorWhoS37E1TheWomanWhoFellToEarth
* RealityEnsues:
** When the drunk man stumbles across Tim Shaw, how does he react? [[TooDumbToLive Mocking him for]] [[YourCostumeNeedsWork dressing up for Halloween a month early,]] [[ProducePelting and then throwing bits of salad at him.]]
** After Grace dies, Ryan decides he's going to try learning to ride a bike again. After many tries, he... keeps falling over. It's going to take a long time to be able to ride a bike well with dyspraxia.
** Likewise, on Ryan's heartfelt video about Grace, [[{{Jerkass}} two people thumbed it down]]. [[{{GIFT}} This is the Internet, after all.]]
** The Doctor wires a bunch of human tech with alien tech that she doesn't fully understand. Normally, she'd save the day regardless — here, she beams everyone into outer space.
** What's the first thing Ryan does on finding a strange, unnaturally cold alien object in the woods? Call the police.
!!Recap.IZombieS1E6VirtualRealityBites
* {{GIFT}}: The online gamer who issued a death threat over the VictimOfTheWeek permakilling his combat pets? A fourteen year-old boy living across the country, who meant the threat in-game and didn't even know where the victim lived.
!!Recap.ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphiaS12E04WolfColaAPRNightmare
* {{GIFT}}: After appearing in defense of Wolf Cola, the Gang receives threats online. Dee notes that "pretty much everyone wants to rape me." [[BlackComedy This is]] PlayedForLaughs.
!!Recap.SupernaturalS14E04MintCondition
* {{GIFT}}: Sam discovers that the reason Stuart recanted his story is due to the amount of internet harassment he was receiving.
!!Recap.TerribleWritingAdvice
# ''Giving Criticism'' (December 23, 2017)
** This is an inversion of the earlier episode titled ''Taking Criticism'' (Tropes discussed include ItsAllAboutMe, {{GIFT}}, SacredCow).
!!Recap.TerribleWritingAdvice
# ''[[PropagandaPiece Propaganda]]'' (November 3, 2020)
** GodwinsLaw, {{GIFT}}, TheWarOnStraw, LogicalFallacies, ChewbaccaDefense, InsaneTrollLogic
!!Recap.TheAmazingWorldOfGumballS2E37TheInternet
--->'''Gumball:''' What's next, my stupid face wearing a sombrero shooting lasers at kittens or something!?\\
''(Mexican Hat Dance plays as Tobias tries to block Gumball's view of the computer showing just that)''
** The Internet proudly proclaims "I can be a jerk to anyone [[{{GIFT}} 'cause I'm behind a screen in the safety and comfort of my own home.]]" right before Gumball and Darwin bust through his door (his mom let them in).
!!Recap.TheAmazingWorldOfGumballS4E34TheBlame
* {{GIFT}}:
!!Recap.TheNostalgiaCriticS8E19
* CannotTalkToWomen: The Meninists are defeated this way due to having [[{{GIFT}} no screen to hide behind]].
!!Recap.TheReviewersS1E1Pilot
* StrawCritic: The Rickhead represents those who will AccentuateTheNegative on any given video and inspire {{Hatedom}}s to them with near murderous vigor, making him the human embodiment of the [[{{GIFT}} Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]].
!!Roleplay.WelcomeToMyWorld
* NewTechnologyIsEvil: Zarek, who grew up with dial-up Internet and Solitaire gaming, dislikes the Internet, particularly [[SocialMediaIsBad social media]], because of [[{{GIFT}} how much toxic people are roaming it]], and certainly disapproves of his son's obsession with [=YouTube=] and [=PewDiePie=].
!!RuinedFOREVER.LiveActionFilms
---> [Sigh] Are we ''sure'' you wanna do this one? Fine. We'll do it, but we're turning off the comments. [[{{GIFT}} You did this to yourself, Internet]].
!!SandBox.SuperWIKI1
* It is unthinkable for any VR (virtual reality) player in the Pantheon to not know about Laughing Coffin. Reviled by the principled and [[AdmiringTheAbomination worshipped by the depraved]], Laughing Coffin is an eclectic but deadly crowd of murderers, maniacs, criminals and innocent victims forced into violence. Vicious terrorist and assassin Vassago Casals (aka [=PoH=], or [[SatanicArchetype Prince of Hell]]) formed the guild in the virtual world of ''Sword Art Online'' from disorganized groups of orange players (players branded for crimes) to spread carnage and violence with the idea that the game's creator, Akihiko Kayaba would be blamed for everything, and also his belief that people reveal their true colors in the virtual world and thus tries to encourage them to give in to their bloodlust and murder each other to their hearts' content. It's not uncommon to see members of Laughing Coffin as proof of the [[{{GIFT}} Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]] taken to its most extreme.
!!Sandbox.BrokenBaseFinalFantasyXIV
* The live letter showing previews for patch 3.5 revealed that all forms of chat would be disabled in The Feast and would be replaced with pre form text macros. It is speculated that the reason behind the change is due to [[{{GIFT}} people being less than kind to their teammates]]. The change caused quite a stir; some welcome the change since they feel that the PVP scene is made too toxic by many people and that kind of behavior drove people away. Those who found the chat feature useful say that disabling chat makes it harder to communicate with your party (especially with randomly matched players) and will drive away long time PVP players. Adding further to the confusion is how The Feast is the only mode being affected by the changes while other PVP modes lifted the chat restrictions.
!!Sandbox.BrokenBaseInternet
Given the [[{{GIFT}} effect that anonymity]] has on some Internet users, the fact that {{Broken Base}}s would arise should come as no surprise.
!!Sandbox.InternetJerk
Someone, [[{{GIFT}} under the cover of anonymity]], acts like a {{jerk|ass}} on the Internet. Common techniques are [[InstantHumiliationJustAddYouTube derogatory videos]], insults and personal attack, doxxing, sexual or other harassment and in the most extreme cases death threats or [[WesternTerrorists plotting terrorist attacks]].
!!Sandbox.InternetJerk
* ''WebVideo/DigimanzTheAdventureToo'': Davis learned that the InternetToughGuy {{Troll}}s the {{GIFT}} creates can often leak into the real world by inspiring people to be cruel even without the safety of internet anonymity, and the best way to fight this is to be more understanding of other human beings.
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:FlameWar]]There is something about the anonymous nature of the Internet that makes people [[{{GIFT}} behave]] in ways that they wouldn't when they're face-to-face with other people. What starts as a minor disagreement like "how to [[{{Shipping}} ship]] two minor characters," or "what constitutes {{canon}} or {{fanon}}," escalates until the users are insulting each other, flinging expletives and profanities and shouting at the top of their virtual lungs. Inevitably, someone will be [[GodwinsLaw compared to]] [[HitlerAteSugar Hitler]]. Also inevitably, the InternetToughGuy will get involved, resulting in legal threats (anything from DMCA takedowns and people trying to drag the legal staff of people or businesses involved into the flame war to [[RougeAnglesOfSatin often hilariously misspelled]] accusations of "defamation" and even possibly an actual FrivolousLawsuit), and sometimes even actual threats of violence or RealLife harassment.
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:Awesome/LeagueOfLegends]]* In a post that became legendary on the ''[=LoL=]'' forums, Rioter Kades [[http://na.leagueoflegends.com/board/showthread.php?p=29123780#29123780 laid down the most almighty smack]] on [[InternetToughGuy the toxic minority of the community]] who were attempting to ''[[InsaneTrollLogic defend]]'' the merits of {{GIFT}} in response to a moving and mature post by a sufferer of social anxiety disorder about dealing with cyber-bullying:
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:Awesome/SuperRobotWarsT]]* No matter what route you pick at Stage 16 ([[Manga/MagicKnightRayearth Cephiro]] or [[Anime/ArmoredTrooperVOTOMS Astragius]]), you will [[https://youtu.be/DkTB0i8S6fA?t=586 face]] [[https://youtu.be/mI3EhDgqA8Y?t=402 off]] against Rony Marbuk, a guy with a ''huge'' InferioritySuperiorityComplex that thinks he's a big shot with the Twilight Age giving him an excuse to look at your team lowly and humanity stagnating so he could stand above them. Then Meryl [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech verbally beat the hell out of him by stating that despite the stagnation, mankind still tries to advance forward so his bombastic boasting can just go suck it]], and every of the heroes' interactions with him are always tearing his ego up and making him whimper, realizing at how outmatched he is or how much he's actually not worth it. Obnoxious people like Rony [[InternetToughGuy may exist]] [[{{GIFT}} within the internet]], which makes it both awesome and funny in the same time due to how savagely hilarious and well deserving (for people like him) the heroes put him down.
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:Film/JayAndSilentBobStrikeBack]]* InternetToughGuy: Subverted in that Jay and Bob have never been on the internet before, and have no concept of {{GIFT}} or what a {{Troll}} is and take the trash talk seriously. They also subvert the hell out of this trope by [[spoiler: actually going around the country to beat the crap out of all the bratty kids who insulted them.]]
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:Funny/Overwatch]]* In mid-December 2017, after an angry {{Troll}} on the official forums announced he was quitting the game due to it [[SmallNameBigEgo "failing" to repeal the 7 bans to his account]], [[https://us.battle.net/forums/en/overwatch/topic/20760626013?page=10#post-194 Jeff Kaplan himself arrived]] to share some lines of his [[{{GIFT}} in-game behaviour]] to make clear the bans and hundreds of harassment reports were completely justified, including [[SmallNameBigEgo "im the reason for anything good"]], [[InternetToughGuy "LONG WALK FOR A PILE OF [expletive]"]], and accusing others who beat him of hacking.
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:Laconic/WideEyedIdealist]]-->:SEMICOLON:[-Visit unabridged version [[WideEyedIdealist HERE]]! And be sure to say hi to all those [[InternetToughGuy nice]] [[{{Troll}} people]] [[{{GIFT}} on the]] [[WretchedHive internet]]!-]
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:PlayingWith/FlameWar]]* '''Straight''':** Someone [[{{GIFT}} insults]] or [[InternetToughGuy threatens]] another person's comments or the person themselves in an online dispute. Other people join in and the fight begins.** Alternately, a {{Troll}} posts something sufficiently inflammatory enough to get people arguing.** [[InnocentlyInsensitive An ordinary poster posts something that, while they didn't assume it to be inflammatory, is very much so]].
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:WarpThatAesop/Tropes]]* {{GIFT}}, {{Griefer}}, InternetToughGuy, and {{Troll}}:** Being a total douchebag on the internet is fun, especially when you'll never get in trouble for it like in real life.** If someone insults, harasses, or antagonizes you on the internet, don't bother get offended, otherwise you're just a whiny sensitive little bitch who deserves more abuse and bullying online.
!!Sandbox.InternetToughGuy
[[/folder]][[folder:WebVideo/DigimanzTheAdventureToo]]* SpaceWhaleAesop: Dissatisfied with the video almost being over without any real resolution, T.K. demands that each of the Digi-Destined come up with AnAesop each learned in the video, regardless of whether it actually related to what happened.** T.K. decides that he learned teamwork is important.** Kari learned that actions speak louder than words.** Cody learned that he has to orient himself to hope. Considering [[TraumaCongaLine what he had to go through]], nobody can blame him.** Ken ended up being too busy dealing with his evaporated blood to contribute.** Yolei screams that you shouldn't "[[BrickJoke blow loads]]" when you're angry.** Davis learned that the InternetToughGuy {{Troll}}s the {{GIFT}} creates can often leak into the real world by inspiring people to be cruel even without the safety of internet anonymity, and the best way to fight this is to be more understanding of other human beings. [[spoiler:Which is why more people should be having sex. [[ContemplateOurNavels Also, when a woman puts a fleshlight into her body, does that make her a lesbian?]]]]
!!Sandbox.MonsterCreepypasta
* ''[[https://www.reddit.com/r/nosleep/comments/5hud9q/i_was_a_professional_internet_troll/ I Was a Professional Internet Troll]]'': [[VillainProtagonist The story's narrator]], known by his online alias "Resisilobus", is an overzealous [[{{Troll}} internet troll]] who manages to be particularly vile even by those standards. Not content with simply being an unpleasant individual online, Resisilobus intentionally drives two people to [[DrivenToSuicide kill themselves]] by relentlessly harassing them. He then befriends a teenage outcast and [[ManipulativeBastard manipulates the boy]] into killing seven of his classmates and then committing suicide. To indicate how little he values the lives of others, Resisilobus considers the "achievements" to be inferior to his comparatively minor hacking of a popular Bible app and the confusion it causes among Christians. A remorseless sadist who openly revels in the power his crimes make him feel, Resisilobus is an example of how [[{{GIFT}} internet anonymity can bring out the worst in people]].
!!Sandbox.WhyFandomCantHaveANiceWickCheck
* Trivia.{{IMDb}}: The forums were shut down because the {{GIFT}} had gotten out of control, to the point of becoming a punchline on par with the Website/YouTube comment section. '''This isn't "someone who is involved in a work" (or even a work, really), but it does show how toxic behavior led to measures being taken.'''
!!SchmuckBait.VideoGames
* ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'':
** ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsI'':
*** Players can leave messages on the ground with the soapstone item, which can be seen by other people who happen to be both online and in the same locations. This [[{{GIFT}} unsurprisingly]] leads to players telling gullible bystanders to take [[LeapOfFaith Leaps of Faith]] into BottomlessPits.
*** The first game has [[IronicNickname Trusty Patches]], who will generally reward the appropriate level of ([[ObviouslyEvil clearly misplaced]]) trust by dropping you into a pit. [[RunningGag Twice.]]
*** The Twilight Forest is made of these. One side path has a small room with the glow of an item at the far back. A savvy player will note the top foliage of the Nightshade creature that lurks right in front of it. A quick grab and dash, yes? Oops, going into the room causes two more Nightshades to drop at the entrance, while the obvious third also attacks. The area is small enough that all three can hit you with any attack, or even worse, get you with their grab attack animation. The prize? A Purple Moss, an item that you get from ''farming Nightshades''.
** ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsII'':
*** The end of the Pate/Creighton sidequest, regardless of whom you choose to ally with, will send you to the same room containing a booby-trapped exploding treasure chest.
*** On his own, [[DemonicPossession Royal Sorcerer Navlaan]] is imprisoned in a laboratory, alternating between a scared young mage and an ObviouslyEvil dark wizard who bribes you to kill innocent {{N|onPlayerCharacter}}PCs. The SchmuckBait comes into play with the nearby lever, which is preceded by a hallway full of signs warning you to not touch it and leave. Pulling the lever releases Navlaan, who will invade you multiple times throughout the game, but if you leave him in his cell and do his hits (or make him ''think'' you did), then he will become a merchant that sells some items you can't get anywhere else.
*** The Smelter Demon has a very slow, telegraphed SwordPlant attack that is extremely easy to avoid and has it stand still for several seconds afterwards. It certainly looks like the perfect opportunity to run in and get a bunch of hits on it, and sometimes it genuinely is. Other times, it will follow the attack with a highly damaging shockwave that has a large radius. There is no way to tell whether it will do the shockwave or not, leading many players to get baited into taking a shockwave to the face.
** ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsIII'': The setup for the boss fight with [[DemBones High Lord Wolnir]]. You are transported into an endless dark abyss where the only illumination is the faint glow of an item on the floor (a Pyromancy tome). Approach, and Wolnir will burst forth out of the darkness and attack. It's a brilliant JumpScare.
!!ScrappyMechanic.MonsterHunter
* The multiplayer chat in the [=3DS=] online games is easily this, due to making you use the clumsy 3DS keyboard (except on ''Generations Ultimate'' on Switch, where you can plug in a USB keyboard, but only if you're docked or have a USB-A to USB-C adapter) and locking that out once the hunt begins, only allowing you to use one of your 18 pre-made macros. ''Generations'' gives you 24 macro slots, and ''Generations Ultimate'' gives you ''72'', but it doesn't account for every single thing you wanna communicate to your teammates. While this is meant to curb the {{GIFT}} factor of online multiplayer, even if you're in a party that's strictly composed of players from your friends list you still won't have an in-game way to chat freely. This is why some players will only do multiplayer hunts via local multiplayer and / or online with friends using third-party apps for text chat and especially voice chat.
!!Series.BIA
* {{GIFT}}: Anonymous vlogger [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast La Cobra]] uses their anonymity to [[MaliciousSlander spread bad rumours about any influencer they can get dirt on]]. A season 1 arc, [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse which is not resolved and nearly abandoned in season 2]], involves characters from El Fundom trying to discover their identity.
!!Series.LastWeekTonightWithJohnOliver
* {{GIFT}}: Discussed in-depth during the segment on online harassment.
!!Series.LegalVExLawyerShokoTakanashi
* {{GIFT}}: In episode 5, Muto's mother was DrivenToSuicide after being cyberbullied due to her son's assault conviction. [[spoiler:After the appeal is won, the Kyogoku Law Firm petitions to have the news site where the bullies gather release their identities and demands compensation from each and every one of them.]]
!!Series.TenOClockLive
* {{GIFT}}: Discussed when talking about freedom of speech on Twitter.
!!Series.TheNewsroom
* {{GIFT}}: Will introduces an identification system for online commentaries because anonymity enables cowardice and wackiness. This apparently makes him the target of a credible death threat.
!!SoYouWantTo.BeABooker
# The Internet Wrestling Community is not a HiveMind, and will complain about everything you do. [[FanDumb This is acceptable]] and [[{{GIFT}} their complaints are to be largely ignored]]. After all, [[UnpleasableFanbase it is impossible to please everybody]], and, unless ratings, buyrates, and live attendance plummet, then there's no reason to believe you are doing a lousy job. We are well into a millennium where most fans can be expected to find access to online devices of some sort and wrestlers promote themselves through services like the world wide web. This has resulted in a lot of people writing about wrestling on the internet, each with completely different tastes, most of them of loud and opinionated. You will piss ''somebody'' off. Accept this.
** Now, having given you ''that'' caveat, it is also worth remembering [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisdom_of_Crowds the Wisdom of Crowds]] — many fans want to contribute to your business being successful (that's part and parcel of being a fan!), so do not ignore them entirely. Instead, if you can afford it, have an office they can contact (preferably via email) with suggestions and feedback. Legally speaking, soliciting creative ideas from people outside the organization is a bad idea, and you should never actually use a fan's idea wholesale as part of your show (unless you like courtrooms and being forced to pay royalties, anyway), but keeping up on this, and noticing general trends in the messages received, can help you determine which angles are working and which wrestlers are getting over. Plus, having a point of contact for fans to write to goes a long way to improving public relations, and helps you avoid looking like {{real life}} {{heel}}s in the process.
** Always remember that wherever the internet is concerned, there will always be leaks. Unless you take absurd lengths to keep ''everyone'' in the dark about your booking plans except for the wrestlers involved, and only for their own matches, you have to expect that someone, be it a performer, referee, security guard, or ring crew member, will be willing to sell out the day's planned events to some website or other just for the notoriety value. In a perfect world, it would be nice if spoilers could be kept under wraps, but it is not your responsibility to take draconian measures to make it so. As long as fans are willing to scour the web for the latest dirt, someone will be willing to provide it. In the end, they're only ruining the experience for themselves. Do not book plans at the last minute or engineer a ShockingSwerve just to blindside this one sub-group. They being who they are, there's a better than even chance they'll catch wind of it anyway, and the product will be damaged for the vast majority of your fans, who are now watching something that doesn't make thematic sense because of the haphazard change.
!!SoYouWantTo.WriteAGamingComic
Further, gaming webcomics take MostWritersAreMale to its logical extreme: virtually all [[MostGamersAreMale gaming webcomic writers are male]], and usually fairly young, affluent and nerdy at that. Combined with the [[{{GIFT}} Great Internet Fuckwad Theory]], many webcomics sink to RefugeInAudacity BlackComedy fast. Scatological humour, gratuitous bloody violence and blatant sexism are unfortunately much too common.
!!SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped.LiveActionFilms
* While ''Film/{{Unfriended}}'' uses the SpaceWhaleAesop of "don't be a {{Troll}} or else the people you had DrivenToSuicide will kill you through a Skype call'', it does send a very real message about how [[{{GIFT}} acting like a jerk online]] and trolling people can have real-world consequences. Notably, none of the [[TeensAreMonsters teen protagonists]] care that they played a part in driving a girl to kill herself until it starts coming back to bite them. The film also says that trolling the AlphaBitch of the school is no more justified than doing it to a social outcast.
!!SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped.LiveActionTV
* ''Series/BlackMirror'' isn't subtle either. While it's possible to perceive this series as technophobic due to how it uses its machines in gritty, dark contexts, if there's a message to gather from the show as a whole, it would be that technology is only as disruptive and volatile to human life [[HumansAreBastards as humans themselves make it be]].
** "[[Recap/BlackMirrorNosedive Nosedive]]": A society that classifies status and social standing by social media ratings and connections alone [[SocialMediaIsBad will ultimately become a fake one]], where people will frown upon the smallest disapproval or deviation from the norm and get too accustomed to artificial happiness to be truthful or independent, even causing friendships and love to become shallow and entirely based off status and superficial interests. Furthermore, don't become a slave to public opinion just because you feel it necessary to ascend the corporate ladder. Being true to yourself will always bring more happiness and be more important than lying for the sake of your position.
** "[[Recap/BlackMirrorMenAgainstFire Men Against Fire]]": The whole episode is about [[spoiler:the government enacting a GuiltFreeExterminationWar against people it has deemed "undesirable"]]. Sure, it's not exactly subtle when [[ANaziByAnyOtherName invoking the Nazi parallels]], but it's still important, especially in the political climate of TheNewTens, where some groups are still advocating eugenics and ethnic and racial supremacy.
** "[[Recap/BlackMirrorArkangel ArkAngel]]" drops a few with regards to parenting:
*** Children need privacy and to learn how to deal with fears, failures, and mistakes on their own. (For example, Sara eventually stops being scared of the neighbor's barking dog once Marie stops using the blur function.)
*** Eventually, your children will grow up and do stupid things you won't approve of (like staying out past curfew, have sex, and do drugs). That's normal. There's nothing you can do about it, and the best you can do is make yourself a trusted person they can turn to instead of trying to control every facet of their lives, which will only drive them away if not rebel harder against your rules.
*** If you smother and shelter your children and don't teach them the information they'll need to navigate adulthood, relationships, etc, they'll find it out anyway, and not always from the best source.
** "[[Recap/BlackMirrorSmithereens Smithereens]]": '''''Put your phone down and pay attention to the road when you're driving.'''''
** "[[Recap/BlackMirrorHatedInTheNation Hated in the Nation]]": The episode isn't exactly subtle about the cruelty disguised as righteousness that is mass online [[ShamedByAMob shaming]]. Even if the [[AssholeVictim target of the outrage has done something obnoxious,]] the DisproportionateRetribution they face makes us empathize with them and makes us think twice about mindlessly joining the outrage bandwagon, because there's a living, breathing human being on the other side of the screen. A pretty great commentary on {{GIFT}}.
!!SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped.SouthPark
* "[[Recap/SouthParkS20E2SkankHunt Skank Hunt]]" shows how ''anybody'', even the most normal people [[{{GIFT}} can be absolute monsters online]]. It's not just socially rejected people who lash out online either, but people [[ForTheEvulz who act that way just because they can]].
** It also teaches how obsessed society has gotten with social media, that quitting it is literally viewed as committing suicide.
!!SophisticatedAsHell.RealLife
* According to Wiki/TheOtherWiki, even respected scholars refer to the tendency of semi-anonymous members of online communities to act more vulgarly and aggressively towards each other as the "[[{{GIFT}} Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]]". In addition to potentially being a misapplication of the word "Theory," the vocal dissonance is fucking hilarious.
** The polite name for this phenomenon is the "online disinhibition effect".
!!StockParodyJokes.WebOriginal
* Website/YouTube:
** The site being a hub for [[TheInternetIsForCats cat videos]].
** The users in comment sections of videos either being [[{{GIFT}} extremely rude]] {{troll}}s, or posting repetitive jokes and {{discredited meme}}s.
** Videos being taken down or accounts being terminated due to the flimsiest of copyright claims.
!!SuperSmashBros.TropesEToM
* {{GIFT}}:
** In ''Brawl''[='=]s Basic Brawl online mode, due to the completely anonymous nature, set rules of 2-minute time matches with the players deciding the items and stages, and complete lack of any sort of reporting feature, the mode devolved to people having "Taunt Parties" (e.g. just taunt and fool around instead of actually fighting, while ganging up on anyone trying to seriously fight), constantly choosing giant stages that allow players to run away with ease (Temple became notorious for being chosen all the time), and outright griefing. After the first couple years of ''Brawl'', the mode became an utter cesspool for anyone looking to actually fight. ''3DS/Wii U'''s "For Fun" mode, the successor to Basic Brawl, is beginning to become infested with Taunt Parties, despite the implementation of a reporting feature among other improvements. ''Ultimate'' finally stopped the taunt parties by completely disabling taunting online... unfortunately, players quickly started crouching instead, to the same effect as teabagging in FPS games.
** In ''Wii U''[='=]s For Glory mode, players can't normally communicate with each other. However in the mode, you can use and change your name tags, which are fully visible to the opponent. While altruistic players will utilise it to honestly communicate, many salty players and griefers use it to insult opponents. This also applies to the aforementioned For Fun mode. It's additionally not unheard of for people to friend opponents on Miiverse only to use the messaging system to insult and harass them. The inability to change your tag and friend opponents on the 3DS version prevents this on its For Glory mode.
** In an undocumented feature to combat this on For Glory, there is what is known by fans as "For Glory Hell". To elaborate, if a player is reported too much on For Glory, instead of being banned from the mode, they'll find themselves only being able to be matched up with other such reported players for a undisclosed temporary time. As such, when someone is in For Glory Hell, they'll find themselves matched up with the same few griefers, heavy laggers, and extremely campy players over and over, or not being matched up with anyone at all. This feature isn't infallible, however; honest players who just win a lot, especially if they have a disliked playstyle, have found themselves in For Glory Hell before by salty opponents reporting them.
** One of the features of the Miiverse stage is that it shows Miiverse posts submitted by fans to encourage specific characters. It is not uncommon to find posts that insult the characters instead (or posts that don't even relate to the characters in question).
** Due to how rules are handled in ''Ultimate''[='=]s Quickplay mode and the current inability to limit what rules you can get matched up with, there are several players that abuse the preferred rules feature to grief competitive players or otherwise try to cheese wins out against better players they wouldn't be able to beat normally. This can just entail running Smash Balls, all stages, and/or items in 1v1, but can also entail running absurdly short time limits to time people out, one stock, and Stamina matches. A particularly nasty variant is running matches with just the Special Flag enabled, which ensures matches will invariably go to time in a long drawn-out boring match as neither player will be able to loss all their stocks unless one gives up and suicides their stocks away.
!!TabletopGame.EclipsePhase
* AbsentAliens: {{Downplayed}}, but still pretty strongly in effect.
** The Factors are the only aliens to be seen face to face. They're essentially highly evolved slime mold, having technology just years in advance of transhumanity--if the rumors of them having FTL travel turn out to be false--and just handful of ships doing trading and diplomatic missions throughout the solar system. However, their given name comes from the that they claim to be the self-appointed representatives of other species out there, though they are not giving out any details, and the fact they can be very deceptive when they choose to be, just opens up more questions than putting this fully into doubt. That said, they're still quite enigmatic and made first contact just a few years after the Fall. Surely just a coincidence...
** Then there's also the [[spoiler:[=ETI=] and their Exsurgent virus]], some truly alien and horrifying concepts, to be sure, but still absent but for their tools. What drives them and what's the higher goal of their actions is largely unknown (as in its for the gamemaster to decide).
** The creatures that built the Pandora gates, if it weren't the [=TITANs=] or the above. Considering the number of them and how old many of them apparently are, the possibility that it was the [=TITANs=] who built them is looking vanishingly small. [[spoiler: The [=TITANs=] did indeed build them, or at least the ones in the Solar System, though the knowledge how to do it either came from their higher understanding of the universe, or was carried over to them from the Exsurgent virus.]]
** The Iktomi are/were an arachnoid race that was active about 10,000 years ago and had settlements on several planets transhumanity has access to, but so far the Iktomi appear to [[NothingIsScarier have all disappeared without a trace...]]
** Apparent alien contact has been made on the world of Giza, where alien artifacts, the strange "black box" communication devices, have instant communications to other terminals across the galaxy, or even the universe. People aren't entirely sure if it's an AI driven device used in some sort of con, or if the aliens who are willing to use them to trade technology and information are trading in safe technologies, marking Giza as a potential risk. [[spoiler: The black boxes, if they are indeed connecting to other aliens, apparently function as a galactic chat service, rife with aliens who are quite nasty about [[{{Squick}} wanting to cyber]] or just engaging in {{GIFT}}. The one tryout of the xenotech they gave the human gatecrashers gave the skeptics very good justification to be wary of any designs that came out of those boxes.]]
** The Moravecians are a species that have apparently decided to go into a fully digital existence, with the world of Moravec having an extensive and hardy server network to support an entire virtual universe that's been active for thousands of years. Transhumanity has had some success in penetrating and entering this virtual network, but by almost every indication it's entirely empty...
** The Amphibs of Droplet are another ancient species. They had disappeared from the surface of their home world about a million years ago rather suddenly after the discovery of the Droplet gate. Very little remains of them, so it's hard to tell how advanced they became, but they appear to have achieved a level of technology similar to Transhumanity but for space travel. More concerning, another building/construct called the Toadstool exists on Droplet, having been made of a highly advanced, hardened, and self-repairing material, and it appears to predate the Amphibs themselves by a long time.
!!Trivia.{{Chikara}}
* WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings: Before the Chikara 101 forums, there were the [=ChikaraFans=] forums. However, the moderators and a few of the most prominent users developed egos and started posting abusively and berating new users over pretty much everything - essentially falling afoul of the [[{{GIFT}} Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]]. When Leonard F. Chikarason told them to cool off, the owners responded by turning violently against CHIKARA itself, deleting their archives and turning their main forum into a venue to bash the promotion. The Chikara 101 forums are as good if not better than the [=ChikaraFans=] forums, but the archives are still missed.
!!Trivia.DragonNest
* FanNickname:
** Gladus Tek Ma, for the Cleric's Block spell, as well as the Sorceress' two AntiMagic spells.
** "[[LeetSpeak w3ws]]" for the [[{{GIFT}} unrepentant]] {{troll}}s and {{griefer}}s in the [=SEA=] server, usually attributed to Filipino players.
** Not surprisingly, the North American player base tends to call the Tinkerer a "loli". They seem to be entirely aware of [[LoliconAndShotacon the word's implications]].
!!Trivia.FinalFantasyXIV
* WhyTheFandomCantHaveNiceThings:
** Win trading, the act of giving people guaranteed wins in quests in exchange for gil or items, was very common in the PVP section of the game, which resulted in many people getting high ranks and gear with high stats (including Morale, which is a PVP only stat) without earning them fairly. Frontlines was a second PVP mode added later on to the game and it doesn't use the Morale stat. The act of making Morale useless in Frontlines was very likely done to make sure that people who bribed their way to the top can't have the big advantage over everyone when Frontlines was released. Unfortunately, the motion also punished legit players that earned their gear and ranks for PVP.
** Win carries, the act of someone carrying another player to victory while said player doesn't contribute much, were also plaguing non PVP content and allowed players to earn gear and other rewards by simply paying another player to carry them through raids and dungeons. While it wasn't the main deciding factor, Square decided to kill two birds with one stone; add an item level requirement so that players are properly prepared and prevents people from being carried through most runs with bad gear.
** For the longest time, the duty finder (especially for the Labyrinth of the Ancients and Sycrus Tower raids) was plagued with withdraw spam. When everyone is queued up, a player can choose to withdraw from the duty for whatever reason they have, but it causes everyone else to be re-queued as they have to wait for a new replacement. Since there was no penalty for withdrawing after the ready window popped up, people would either troll everyone by joining and withdrawing or fish for duties that are already in progress and withdraw if they didn't get it. Patch 2.4 added a penalty system by giving anyone who withdraws 3 times when the ready window pops with a 30 minute penalty and they will get another 30 minute penalty for each withdraw after that until the next day. While the system greatly reduced trolling and in progress fishing, people who may have had a legitimate excuse for withdrawing are also punished.
** The official forums worked like any other forum and Square Enix needed people to test it in its beta stages. Naturally, people started to clog the forums with spam, flame wars, and other annoying things, prompting Square Enix to slap down a heavy posting restriction where every user has a limited amount of posts they can make in a day based on their character's level and a 1000 character limit was also thrown in to prevent people from filling posts with text walls (though editing the initial post bypasses the limit somehow). After several years of requesting the character limit to be increased, the forums now have a 3000 character limit for every post.
** The abuse of parsers (3rd party add-ons that measures a player's DPS output) is the reason why the developers are very reluctant to make an official one. Because of people that use parsers to verbally harass people with low DPS (even in content where DPS checks aren't used), just openly mentioning in the game that you use parsers puts you at risk of someone reporting you to a game master. In patch 3.2, the developers created a training ground where players can whack a dummy whose HP is based off of various raid bosses (with some adjustments due to the content being for solo play) so that people can test their skill rotations for optimal DPS performance, but it doesn't give much information other than you know you are doing good if you can break the dummy before the time limit expires.
** PVP isn't quite newbie friendly due to a lot of SeriousBusiness players flying off the handle whenever someone in the party screws up. The developers decided that in patch 3.5, ''all'' forms of chat would be disabled and the only way to communicate would be through preformed macros that take up space on the hotbars. While the developers never stated why they made such a drastic change, it is likely due to the overabundance of [[{{GIFT}} players being openly hostile towards others]], which can drive people away from PVP completely.
** The launch of ''Stormblood'' brought in a ton of players to the point where simply trying to get into certain servers would take hours at a time if the congestion was high (this was on mostly populated servers like Gilgamesh and Balmung). The developers implemented an auto-kick measure where anyone that was AFK for too long would be logged out. Players trying to get around this countermeasure would spoof their AFK status such as leaving a menu open or going into crafting mode without actually crafting. This in turn made the queues even longer and many housing/apartments/private rooms were inaccessible due to the instance servers hosting them being perpetually clogged with AFK players. Presenting itself as a nuclear solution, the developers made a new countermeasure where every server on every data center would automatically log everyone out of the game once a day, no matter what they were doing (this includes quests or other instances) and they would not be able to log back in for 10 minutes. This also affected players on lower populated worlds and it especially includes the people that transferred off a congested server to avoid the queue problems in the first place. The restrictions were eventually lifted once everything became more stable.
** The main scenario roulette had a lot of problems with players speed running the final two ARR dungeons that were introduced in 2.0. People grinding for tomestones or experience points would rush from boss to boss while newcomers either got left behind, got told to watch the cutscenes at an inn, or were kicked for slowing everyone down. The problem persisted for years and it wasn't until patch 4.2 where the developers actually took action in the form of making cutscenes in the two dungeons completely unskippable, even if the group is preformed and are running the dungeons unsynced.
** A small part of the fandom that wants to play as a KidHero was given a stern head-shake from Yoshida. His given reason is that the Warrior of Light goes through ''[[HarmfulToMinors a lot of shit]]'' over the course of their journey, which can be a rather debatable angle since many other games in the ''Final Fantasy'' series don't shy away from this (even family-friendly poster boy {{Creator/Nintendo}} has done it with one of its [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda main franchises]], of which [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime two]] [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask games]] were considered some of the best of their time). Sadly, Yoshida also gave a less pointed but ''much bigger'' reason why playable children will never happen: ''Final Fantasy XIV'' is home to role-players... and [[RuleThirtyFour not all of them wholesome]]. While Yoshida and the game's moderators typically don't object to erotic roleplay scenes so long as the roleplayers keep it to themselves, it's much harder to defend allowing players to roleplay a ''child'' participating in such scenes.
** The Ishgard Restoration content allowed players to visit other servers and assist said servers with their progress. Due to DemandOverload (as well as people trolling others by making the problem worse), almost no one could get into the Firmament to contribute to the progression and this also included people getting locked out from their own home server. Within a day, the dev team changed the system where players visiting other servers can't visit the Firmament unless it's on their home server.
** Data mining is a hot button issue between fans that want to see what's hidden in each patch and fans that don't want to be spoiled by said data mining. Square Enix themselves generally weren't bothered by data mining as long as people kept the methods of data mining to themselves, although they did openly state not to spoil anything. In 2019, several people were upset towards a raid team that had got the world first clear for Alexander Ultimate and accused them of cheating by using data mining to prove that the raid team cheated. The developers came down hard on data mining by suspending people that were openly data mining or were linked to data mining in some way. Because data mining was used to harass people, data mining in general is now a lot less open and is more private.
** In the past, jobs that were getting adjustments would be reflected in in the prelimary patch notes or sometimes during a live letter. Due to misconceptions, backlash, and general complaining about certain jobs [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks no longer being good]], job changes are no longer posted until the patch goes live.
** After a world first team for Alexander Ultimate streamed themselves openly using the Cactbot fight planner to change waymarks on the fly to help their performance in fights, in defiance of Square's don't-show-don't-ask-don't-tell policy on mods, Square Enix quietly changed it so that waymarks could no longer be laid down or altered in combat, but added way more letters and numbers to help plan it. Given that the other alternative was to crack down on the bot by making an example of a world first team ''during'' a WF race, this was probably the less controversial route.
** The February 2020 live letter began with Yoshida spending the first half-hour decrying the [[GameMod modding scene]], specifically those that go the extra mile in erotic role play by changing things like clothing and character models to do things that ''Final Fantasy XIV'' was '''not''' meant to do. While the whole segment reeked of [[ExecutiveMeddling "I am being paid to say this"]], Yoshida has ample reason to be concerned and stated as such because ''Final Fantasy XIV'' is a worldwide MMO that these modders are turning into a porn simulator, and different nations have different laws regarding porn, which could give the game the wrong kind of attention from the authorities.
!!Trivia.IMDb
* WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings: The forums were shut down because the {{GIFT}} had gotten out of control, to the point of becoming a punchline on par with the Website/YouTube comment section.
!!Trivia.KnivesOut
* PlayingAgainstType:
** Benoit Blanc is only the second role with comedic tones for Creator/DanielCraig in his long and prolific career (after another BunnyEarsLawyer SouthernFriedGenius, Joe Bang in ''Film/LoganLucky'').
** Creator/AnaDeArmas' roles are almost always some sort of MsFanservice, but here she gets to play a ChasteHeroine.
** Creator/MichaelShannon, usually cast as imposing and unstable authority figures, here plays Walt as a whiny and petulant weakling.
** Creator/MEmmetWalsh, best known for playing sleazy characters, plays an elderly and amiable security guard. This also would have been the case for original actor Ricky Jay.
** Creator/JaedenMartell, best known for playing the courageous AllLovingHero [[Film/It2017 Bill Denbrough]], plays Jacob Thrombey, an alt-right {{GIFT}} {{troll}} and a total {{Jerkass}}.
** Creator/ToniCollette is better known for her dramatic but especially horror roles, but here plays a more comedic role as an air-headed valley girl.
** Creator/DonJohnson is best known for playing the suave undercover cop Sonny Crockett on Series/MiamiVice. Here, he's an ineffectual xenophobic bumbler who's cheating on his wife, can't keep a secret, and openly tries to bribe the cops to get his way. Could double as an ActorAllusion since Crockett and his partner Tubbs were ''horrible'' at keeping it a secret that they were cops.
!!Trivia.PennyArcade
* {{GIFT}}
!!Trivia.PennyArcade
* {{GIFT}}
!!Trivia.{{Rescue911}}
* CreatorBacklash: Abigail, the little girl who was featured in "Speed Dial Burn Save," stumbled upon an upload of the episode on Website/YouTube years later, and requested that the video be taken down due to [[{{GIFT}} hateful, judgmental comments]] about her mother. She also felt that the episode was extremely personal, and didn't want people to watch it. The original uploader gladly complied, and removed the episode.[[note]]Another user has since reuploaded the segment; Abigail has again requested its removal, but so far it is still online.[[/note]] In 2014, Abigail made [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tH88jzDpcXo an "update" video]] to answer questions and explain her point of view. Some were quick to state that Abigail has no right to have uploads of the episode taken down as [=CBS=] has the rights to the series.
!!Trivia.{{Roblox}}
* WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings: The forums were reduced to be about Roblox only in July 2017 then shut down altogether in December of the same year because the moderators didn't want to put up with the {{GIFT}} that was always around and went out of control earlier that year. It has also be theorized by some that it happened partly due to WebOriginal/QuackityHQ who, starting in May of 2017, repeatedly used his fans to raid the forums (some even going to non-affiliated spin-off sites) [[DisproportionateRetribution because he got a 3-day ban.]]
!!Trivia.{{Splatoon}}
* FlipFlopOfGod:
** Despite originally stating that major content updates would end on January 2016, [[http://nintendoeverything.com/producer-hints-at-possible-new-content-for-splatoon/ the producer of the game]] went on record saying that more new content was a possibility in the future. Indeed, a March 2016 update confirmed that more weapons would be added to the game, with the last of these weapons being added that June.
** Director Yusuke Amano originally said that ''Splatoon'' [[WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings would never feature voice chat because his experience with online shooters]] featured people constantly hurling [[{{GIFT}} verbal abuse and obscenities]] at each other. By ''VideoGame/Splatoon2'', though, this stance was softened via a smartphone app.
!!TropeCo.AllTrollsAreDifferent
* '''[[{{Troll}} Internet Trolls]]''': Having been introduced to the wonders of modern technology, this lone sect of troll have since developed nasty habits and a sadistic streak that have rendered them unapproachable for anyone, be they human or any other breed of troll. If anyone encounters this breed of troll, please consult your {{GIFT}} Awareness Pamphlet or call FiveFiveFive-FiveFiveFive-[[PhoneWord TROPECO]] for more information.
!!TropeDistinctions.AToC
!!!BeneathTheMask vs ADarkerMe vs {{GIFT}} vs HiddenDepths
!!TropeDistinctions.AToC
* {{GIFT}} is a theory that tries to explain the antisocial behaviour of people on the Internet. This trope states that anonymity corrupts people that are otherwise normally nice, making them act like jerks, as opposed to BeneathTheMask that states that anonymity doesn't corrupt but only reveals what was already there.
!!TropeNamers.{{Webcomics}}
* ''Webcomic/PennyArcade''
** {{GIFT}}
** TheMerch
** ShootTheMedicFirst (cross-reference with ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'')
!!TruthInTelevision.GToI
* {{GIFT}}: Spend ''any'' time on the internet reading comments (especially on [[FlameWar contentious issues such as sex or politics or religion]]) and you will find plenty of demonstrations of GIFT.
!!TruthInTelevision.MToO
* MediationBackfire: In many internet forums, trying to end a FlameWar between two or more users will cause them to take out their frustrations on you with heaping insults, but [[{{GIFT}} this is the internet we're talking about.]]
** Witness any police intervention in a domestic argument. (Or anybody else's, of course, but the police are the only ones professionally obliged to stick their heads over the parapet.) What they tend to really hate about such jobs is that even when one partner is clearly being abused, they'll often [[StockholmSyndrome firmly take their abuser's side]].
!!TruthInTelevision.SToU
* SuicideDare: Unfortunately very common for people to tell this to other people who are suffering. A lot of this can happen on [[{{GIFT}} the internet]].
!!UnintentionalPeriodPiece.TheNineties
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Freakazoid}}'' references the V-Chip, among other bits of '90s pop culture ephemera. Furthermore, its setup of its protagonist being a teenage nerd who got sucked into the internet and turned into its living embodiment, while [[ValuesResonance highly prescient]] of the rise of online "lol random" meme culture, still marks it as a product of a time of great optimism towards the emergence of the new medium of the internet. Today, with {{troll}}ing having taken on [[{{GIFT}} far more negative connotations]] than just online pranksters, the show's portrayal of such can seem naive.
!!UnintentionallyUnsympathetic.SwordArtOnline
* Really, MMO Players in general can be this at times. A recurring theme is that all MMO players are NotSoDifferent from one another, in that they all desire to be stronger, use VR to escape the stresses or real life and are ultimately decent people deep down. While there are multiple instances that enforce this, such as the existence of a Clearing Force in SAO risking their lives to save everyone or [[spoiler: multiple players attending Yuuki’s in-game passing]], there are just as many or maybe ''more'' instances that can paint them as selfish [[{{GIFT}} G.I.F.Ts]] only out for themselves, with there being at least one example in each arc even if you ignore all the [[PlayerKilling Player Killers]] who act as Antagonists.
** In the ''Aincrad'' and ''Progressive'' Arcs, major clearing guilds can be seen as being more concerned with their personal power and petty rivalries as opposed to [[SkewedPriorities actually clearing the Death Game and freeing everyone]], with guilds like the Divine Dragon Alliance being obsessed with getting rare loot, often insisting that they get the Last Attack Bonus in all the boss fights even if it’s just not possible and some even stooping to attacking other players for a shot at hoarding rare items and equipment.
!!UnintentionallyUnsympathetic.SwordArtOnline
%%** In ''Mother’s Rosario'', the closest thing there is to an antagonist is a boss clearing guild that has been manipulating the Sleeping Knights so they can learn a boss’ attack patterns using a Peeping Spell[[note]] creates a familiar that can allow players to watch things in a different area[[/note]] and fight it immediately after for an easy win, which is just as dickish as it sounds. And while they’re likely unaware of the fact that [[spoiler: the [[ObliviouslyEvil Sleeping Knights are terminally ill patients IRL]]]], the narration notes multiple times that their actions, such as monopolizing areas that all players should have access to, are rather scummy.
** [[spoiler: It's noted multiple times that the foreign VRMMO gamers, who are unknowingly drafted into the War of the Underworld [[ObliviouslyEvil have no idea that they're killing Artificial Fluctlights]], who are established to be essentially real people, and are [[UnwittingPawn being manipulated by]] [[BigBad Gabriel]] and [[TheDragon [=PoH=]]]. While both of these points are true, the majority of them take being the {{GIFT}} to so much of an extreme that it's really hard to say they're completely guiltless, attacking the obvious heroes along with seemingly ObviouslyEvil group, attacking people while they're down, several of them making very messed up comments about the fact that this "game" has realistic gore and outright taking prisoners of war for seemingly no more than petty sadism. Only one player (two in the anime, with a Chinese going by the name of Mei Xiang), a Korean going by Moonphase, is suspicious of the whole thing and even after watching [=PoH=] beat up Kirito, who at the time can be easily mistaken for a cripple due to needing a wheelchair and barely moving, only about ''half of them'' actually start getting suspicious about the whole thing as well, while the rest just keep going along with [=PoH=]'s cruelty simply because they're prejudiced against Japan. In the end, it's hard to pity the fact they, or at least the still unconvinced half, are being manipulated and hard not to cheer when Kirito wakes up and [[AnIceGuy puts them on ice.]] Not to mention, with Alice's reveal to the world displaying the potential FantasticRacism Artificial Fluctlights will face, there is some doubt about whether or not they'd actually feel guilty if they learned what they did.]]
** [[spoiler: While the Salamander Commander[[note]] the general audience in the anime[[/note]] [[JerkassHasAPoint makes good points]] on why Liz's request for the assembled players to help protect the Underworld can come off as unreasonable and that they should just refuse, the fact that one of his arguments involves him having FantasticRacism against SAO Survivors, who by the way were essentially ''kidnapping victims with a gun to their head 24/7'', due to them [[GreenEyedMonster having more VR experience than most other players]] makes him come off as more childish and petty than intended, even if Liz does concede that he's got a point about how she and other survivors tend to hang around each other more than regular MMO players.]]
** [[spoiler: And finally, in ''Unital Ring'', after Kirito and the group feed a group of fellow players[[note]] In the mysterious “Unital Ring”, there is unique system called Starve Points and Thirst Points that, if decreased too low, will weaken the player and eventually kill them[[/note]], said group are [[UngratefulBastard quick to turn on their saviors]] after they learn that they’re elite players and that they could take advantage of the fact that they currently have lower quality gear than theirs[[note]] Unital Ring, after a set period of time or if the player unequips anything, increases the weight requirements for any equipment a player already owns and forces them to create new gear and work towards re-equipping their old stuff, which is what happens to Kirito, Asuna, Alice and Leafa while the [[UngratefulBastard Ungrateful Bastards]] were able to forge new gear before they encountered them[[/note]] to kill them for a [[AmbitionIsEvil better shot at winning whatever Unital Ring is.]] Then in the next volume, they're revealed to have responded to their defeat by [[SoreLoser ratting out the location of Kirito and Asuna's cabin to some PKer friends of theirs to attack them in their stead]], seemingly ignorant of the fact that they wouldn't have gotten killed and and got booted from Unital Ring if [[MoralMyopia they didn't betray Kirito's group in the first place.]]]].
!!UsefulNotes.AspergerSyndrome
* '''Self-inflated InsufferableGenius[=/=][[DisabilityAsAnExcuseForJerkassery Asperger's as an excuse for bad behaviour]]'''. There's no real connection whatsoever, and may have just been borne out of [[{{GIFT}} people over the Internet]] using Asperger's Syndrome as an excuse to be a {{jerkass}} or a KnowNothingKnowItAll. Part of the reason AS is a popular self-diagnosis is because Asperger's is linked (particularly in pop culture) with IdiotSavant characters who are brilliant but lack social skills. Such individuals are often the first to latch onto postmortem conjectural psychology calling various famous people like UsefulNotes/AlbertEinstein autistic. They arrogantly believe that not only should having AS free them from judgement for being socially inept, but also pin them as '''genius-tier masters of their field'''. This is particularly infuriating for people who really do have AS, since as this practice continues they find it harder to explain ''accidentally'' offending somebody without being seen as liars, or worse as trying to make an excuse for bad behaviour. Most genuine Aspies don't see Aspergers as a 'Get Out Of JerkAss Free' card, just an explanation. [[hottip:*:This is often reversed too: people without AS tend to see Aspies as being jerks or badly-behaved simply because they don't understand why the Aspie is acting that way and/or don't know how to deal with it.]]\\
\\
If anything, given that the symptoms of Asperger's syndrome tend to lead other children (and sometimes adults) into bullying them, they usually tend to have a lower sense of self-worth. This tends to be confused as a symptom of Asperger's due to the lack of social empathy and the tendency to dominate conversations.\\
\\
While a case could be made that some who have been consistently bullied may consciously develop or become egocentric and cultivate feelings of a superiority complex as a psychological defense mechanism, ''this does not directly correlate with AS''. What might correlate to it is that since people with Asperger’s tend to be experts in their narrow field of interest, they can think of themselves as superior to those who do not possess such skills. Also, some think of their lack of inhibition and sincerity as an advantage over the rest of the population.
!!UsefulNotes.AutismSpectrum
* '''Self-inflated InsufferableGenius[=/=][[DisabilityAsAnExcuseForJerkassery Asperger's as an excuse for bad behaviour]]'''. There's no real connection whatsoever, and may have just been borne out of [[{{GIFT}} people over the Internet]] using Asperger's Syndrome as an excuse to be a {{jerkass}} or a KnowNothingKnowItAll. Part of the reason AS is a popular self-diagnosis is because Asperger's is linked (particularly in pop culture) with IdiotSavant characters who are brilliant but lack social skills. Such individuals are often the first to latch onto postmortem conjectural psychology calling various famous people like UsefulNotes/AlbertEinstein autistic. They arrogantly believe that not only should having AS free them from judgement for being socially inept, but also pin them as '''genius-tier masters of their field'''. This is particularly infuriating for people who really do have AS, since as this practice continues they find it harder to explain ''accidentally'' offending somebody without being seen as liars, or worse as trying to make an excuse for bad behaviour. Most genuine Aspies don't see Aspergers as a 'Get Out Of JerkAss Free' card, just an explanation. [[hottip:*:This is often reversed too: people without AS tend to see Aspies as being jerks or badly-behaved simply because they don't understand why the Aspie is acting that way and/or don't know how to deal with it.]]\\
\\
If anything, given that the symptoms of Asperger's syndrome tend to lead other children (and sometimes adults) into bullying them, they usually tend to have a lower sense of self-worth. This tends to be confused as a symptom of Asperger's due to the lack of social empathy and the tendency to dominate conversations.\\
\\
While a case could be made that some who have been consistently bullied may consciously develop or become egocentric and cultivate feelings of a superiority complex as a psychological defense mechanism, ''this does not directly correlate with AS''. What might correlate to it is that since people with Asperger’s tend to be experts in their narrow field of interest, they can think of themselves as superior to those who do not possess such skills. Also, some think of their lack of inhibition and sincerity as an advantage over the rest of the population.
!!UsefulNotes.ConsoleWars
The most famous Console War was between the [[UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem Super NES]] and UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis in TheNineties (see Fourth Generation folder below), spurred on by some {{Take That}}s on Creator/{{Sega}}'s part like the one in the page image. However, internet-related debating (which is [[{{GIFT}} usually much more heated than what you see in a grade or high school cafeteria]]) didn't really take off until the Fifth Generation; where the UsefulNotes/PlayStation and UsefulNotes/Nintendo64 (and briefly the UsefulNotes/SegaSaturn) squared off against one another. These days (the Seventh Generation onward), it's largely the [=PlayStation=] series vs. Microsoft's Xbox line; Nintendo still exists as a third major competitor, but their TakeAThirdOption approach following the UsefulNotes/GameCube, and the fact that they often don't get the third-party titles that Sony and Microsoft do, means they're often excluded from direct console vs. console comparisons (though this has changed somewhat with the release of the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, which has seen a Renaissance of third-party publishing for a Nintendo system, as it's garnered a strong install base).
!!UsefulNotes.ConsoleWars
Despite having the most technologically advanced system of that era and a slew of quality games such as ''VideoGame/SuperMario64'', ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'', and ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'', Nintendo dropped out of the lead for the first time ever. This was partially because of their adherence to the old ROM cartridge format — the limitations of which seriously undermined its otherwise superior technology and caused it to lose much of its third-party support, particularly Square and ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' — and partly because their bright and shiny family games didn't fit the new 3D, next-gen aesthetic. However, shrewd business decisions and pricing on Nintendo's part meant that while they lost market share, the company may have ended up comparably profitable to their competitors. The fact that their best-selling games were first/[[Creator/{{Rare}} second-]]party also helped. The N64 did come in second during the war, but its sales didn't even come close to the [=PlayStation's=].\\
\\
Sony, meanwhile, recognized the increasing age bracket of console gamers and tapped into the influential twentysomething "big kid" market, legitimizing console gaming in the eyes of many and laying the foundation for the newcomer's market dominance. One of greatest assets of the [=PlayStation=]'s victory was that their games were released on UsefulNotes/{{CD}}s. Since at that time, [=CDs=] were widely available to the mass market as writable media containers, the [=PlayStation=] became the first console with a large-scale piracy problem. People would buy [=PlayStation=]s because they could pirate the games for it at less than one-tenth the games' retail price, whereas there was hardly any piracy on the other disk-based systems (and it goes without saying that it was way harder to copy an N64 cartridge).\\
\\
Also, while the Nintendo 64 might be largely underappreciated and looked down on in hindsight, there was actually a very real war going on between it and the [=PlayStation=] that was, in some respects, even bloodier than the Genesis/[=SNES=] war a generation prior. This is because it was the first console war to be heavily fueled by the then-emerging internet. While neither system had the mudslinging ads of the preceding generation, the downright [[{{GIFT}} brutal arguing]] and [[FlameWar flaming]] occurring on video game message forums and websites[[note]]A matter not helped by the forum moderation being generally far looser back then than it is today[[/note]] more than made up for this. In a sense, the fourth generation was more of a battle between competing companies, while the fifth generation was more of a battle between competing fans.\\
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You might expect that the developers shifting their focus away from Nintendo would choose its then-primary competitor Sega as a new platform, rather than new-kid-on-the-block Sony. However, the Saturn was a complex multi-processor design that was harder to program for, and it was less powerful than [=PlayStation=] when rendering in 3D. It was also crippled by creepy-as-fuck American television advertising, and a botched surprise launch in the US that caught third parties flat-footed and enraged retailers that weren't in on the secret, including Wal-Mart. Adding to the litany of issues was [[WeAreStrugglingTogether mistrust and a]] [[PoorCommunicationKills lack of communication]] [[RightHandVersusLeftHand between the Japanese and American branches of Sega]], and [[ExecutiveMeddling general mismanagement]], mostly by the [[TyrantTakesTheHelm infamous Bernie Stolar]]. Although it managed to grab some good market share in Japan, the dearth of game releases eventually led to its failure in other territories, where it was discontinued in 1998.\\
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The Apple Pippin, released in conjunction with Bandai, was a weird mesh of computer and console sensibilities with all of the worst attributes of both — too expensive for a console, too underpowered for a computer, and a software library that barely cracked two digits. It's mostly useful for filling out every tech site list of "Ten Worst Consoles" or "Five Apple Flops."\\
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The NEC PC-FX was NEC's attempt to enter the 32-bit era early by rushing an old, outdated design out the door before its competitors in an attempt to keep the PC-Engine's fanbase. The result was completely underpowered in every respect except for decoding videos, and thus many releases for it were anime-themed {{FMV}} games, making it the Japanese equivalent of the CD-i. It sold less than 100,000 units and ended NEC's run as a console maker.
!!UsefulNotes.FightingGameCommunity
* YouFightLikeACow: Zig-zagged. It largely depends on the scene the players are from.
** In U.S. competition, trash-talk is considered healthy and encouraging, especially in the ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom'' community. Players often even make whole wrestling-style promos to berate their opponents or rival factions. Even then, this is only true to a certain degree. People whose trash talk is overly rude, obnoxious, offensive, personal, or mean-spirited (especially when coupled with consistent bad attitudes, poor sportsmanship, or poor conduct on social media) will quickly become disliked by the FGC, and may very well get called out if they cross the line.
** Averted, to a degree, in Japan. The Japanese player community allegedly considers it [[JapanesePoliteness rude and distasteful to trash talk to another player's face]]. However, {{GIFT}} still applies on message boards and chat forums.
!!UsefulNotes.StayingOutOfLegalTrouble
* ''Do not make threats.'' Yes, sometimes a situation can make you so angry or scared that you believe a threat (even one you know you won't follow up on) is a good idea, or you might make an entirely absurd IneffectualDeathThreat as a joke. It never is funny or a good idea to make a threat (unless you can prove self-defense and that making the threat was done to protect your life or property from imminent danger, for example, someone told you they were going to rape you and you documented that then told them if they tried you would shoot them). In many cases, a threat ''itself'' can at least be the crimes of assault or harassment, and certain threats aimed at certain people, places, or things can qualify as terrorist threats, stalking-related offenses, or hate crimes. Even ''if'' the threat itself is ignored at the time, if anything ever happens to the person you threatened, you go to the top of the suspect list. Furthermore, if you are ever involved in a shooting, stabbing, or beating, or brandish a weapon and cite self-defense, those social media posts, text messages and messaging app records, and witness testimonies ''will'' be subpoenaed if the prosecution wants to make a case for you being a violent person who wanted to hurt or kill someone or start or escalate a fight, and if you have ''ever'' threatened someone or had a violent incident that you didn't have a good reason for, it will be a much better day for the prosecution than it will be for you.
** Plus the threat could come back to haunt you. A humorous example occurred in the movie ''Starting Over'' where Jill Clayburgh is visiting her parents and is unaware that Burt Reynolds has been invited as a blind date. So, she's walking at night, and some guy she doesn't know is following her, even tailing her in the direction of her parents home. She's frightened, walks up to the guy she thinks is stalking her, tells him off in no uncertain terms, and runs off to her parents. Later, he gets to the door and is introduced, and he tells them that he knows her. Her mother asks where they met, and he tells them exactly what she said: "Outside, as I was walking up here, she said 'Get the fuck away from me, I've got a knife in my purse and I'll cut your fucking balls off.'"
** On a related note, don't make threats [[{{GIFT}} online]], either. No matter what. Remember, the Internet is not as anonymous as you think it is, and making threats against a person/their family/their property/all of the above can get you in trouble, just like in meatspace. Similarly, don't [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doxing "doxx"]] other people; even if ''you'' wouldn't threaten or harm them, even if the worst thing ''you'' would do is set them up with a few unsolicited pizzas or make a few prank calls, you can't be certain that someone else won't stalk, harass, threaten, or harm this person...and if someone does, ''you'' could be held responsible. (Whether you think they deserve it or not, whether you think it's a good way to "teach them a lesson" or not, is irrelevant. Remember, the law does not look kindly on any form of [[VigilanteMan vigilante "justice."]]) The law also does not care whether you're copy-pasting information that they had posted previously, or whether it's something you dug up from the Deep Web; the end result is the same. Also, there is no guarantee that the information you're putting out there is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. (For example, what if the address or phone number you listed no longer belongs to the person you're targeting, but to someone else?) Another good reason not to doxx: it puts other people in the crossfire. Namely, anyone the doxxee lives with, or anyone on their contact lists. People who might not be involved in your drama, or might not even be aware of it.
** If the person in question has actually done something ''illegal'', report them to the appropriate law enforcement official, as well as to site admins. That's way more effective than "signal boosting" on the Internet. If the person hasn't done anything ''illegal'' (just upsetting), then simply unfollow or unfriend them, and if necessary, report the offending post to the site's administrative team. If they harass you, report that to site admins as well.
** Also, don't give anyone a SuicideDare or encourage someone to kill themselves or consider doing so, even as a [[BlackComedy "joke."]] If they decide to do it, ''you'' could face murder or manslaughter charges. Just don't do it, OK?
!!UsefulNotes.{{The2000s}}
* One of the internets most notorious, [[{{GIFT}} and infamous]], websites were born in this decade. Website/FourChan started out as an offshoot of ''Website/SomethingAwful'''s anime forums but quickly rose to popularity thanks to being able to post completely anonymously to the site. It didn't take long for the site to become more generalized with multiple sub-boards around different topics as the userbase grew. It also didn't take long before it became seen as [[WretchedHive the cesspool]] of the internet, gaining infamy for being a haven for Main/{{Troll}}s, [[TheInternetIsForPorn deviants]], and [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers political wackjobs of both extremes]]. "The hive" as the users would become known as would also become infamous for creating several hoaxes picked up by mainstream media, as well as [[InternetCounterattack hunting down particular individuals that manage to gain their wrath]]. Oddly despite, or perhaps, because of all this, it's one of the few non-mainstream social media sites in the modern age that manages to maintain a very large and active userbase to this very day.
!!UsefulNotes.VisualKei
* {{GIFT}}: Averted for the first round, as the genre came into existence in TheEighties. The Internet as such didn't exist until TheNineties and didn't penetrate much into Japan until around the late 90s - most fights of that era were [[BarBrawl IRL bar fights]]. When the genre resurrected as Neo-Visual Shock, it kicked in in full force.
!!UsefulNotes.VisualKei
* {{GIFT}}: One of the best places to find it in action within Visual Kei, precisely because almost everyone involved ''wants'' to be as potentially offensive as possible, and in some cases, this goes beyond throwing around triggers and CrossingTheLineTwice and back again to offend moralizers and the like into [[ItsPersonal personal abuse]] and cyberbullying.
!!UsefulNotes.VisualKei
* {{GIFT}}: You wouldn't think a subgenre based on TastesLikeDiabetes would have such issues. Unfortunately, online Oshare Kei fandom is a CrapsaccharineWorld. Gets especially bad when Oshare fans flame metalheads or vice versa, because only the most rabid fans out of both communities want to engage in a FlameWar (the sane people and insane but nice people are tired of them), so the most abusive behavior is often a given.
!!UsefulNotes.VisualKei
* {{GIFT}}: The issue here is TheBeautifulElite meets SeriousBusiness. Quite a few people who have brand outfits, perfect makeup, and the like ''aren't'' interested in helping others improve and get to their point - but in harshly mocking them at best, and threatening their lives at worst. It even sometimes expands to hating on people ''in other genres'' for "not being real" or for "looking awful," even if the other genre is one that allows for their appearance.
!!UsefulNotes.VisualKei
* {{GIFT}}: It's ''everywhere.'' Once people learned how easy it was and is to start a fight, the genre and bands related to it became a favorite hangout for {{troll}}s, and similar. This is not helped by that the ''genre itself'' inherently supports one of the most bitter conflicts within Visual: IHatePastMe versus IJustWantToBeSpecial, as it features people who truly, deeply, ''bitterly'' hate Visual and people affiliated to it at points, yet also attracts people who ''like'' Visual or who are still into elements of it.
!!UsefulNotes.VisualKei
* {{GIFT}}: One of the worst places to find it, ''especially'' in regard to X Japan's fandom both in Japan and in the West, which presents nearly almost ''every'' group of people known to get into massive conflict, ironically passing the band's [[BarBrawl old reputation]] onto the fans on the internet. Conflicts can become [[ItsPersonal personal]] ''very'' quickly, there are active cyberstalkers and the like as well as garden-variety {{troll}}s It's not a friendly or safe place for ''many'' people as a result, and is quickly earning a reputation as a place where bullies and trolls run the show - despite that there's quite a lot of people who ''don't'' want to fight and want to peacefully coexist and be a part of the fandom. Other bands in the genre's fandoms have ''some'' problems with it, as well, but not as many people to cause problems and not as many "factions" based around various controversies.
!!UsefulNotes.{{Xbox360}}
The release of the Xbox 360 is truly when online gaming came into its own. While internet connectivity for console have existed in some form or another since TheNineties, it was the success of the 360 and its Xbox Live ecosystem that finally normalized online. Xbox Live has been praised for its large community and user-friendly friend management and game launching interface, and there's a large variety of content on offer for download. On the other hand, much of the multiplayer base has been characterized as [[{{GIFT}} juvenile and unfriendly]] and there's a relative dearth of free downloadable content, with the multiplayer service itself requiring a Gold membership unless a particular game (such as [[Creator/ElectronicArts EA Sports]] games) has its own subscription service.
!!VideoGame.ARKSurvivalEvolved
* {{GIFT}}: Lack of player conduct enforcement has caused this to rear its ugly head on many of official servers. Even on unofficial servers, whether [=PvP=] is turned on or off, if the moderators are not very active, or worse, are complicit, people tend to go in this direction.
** A notable instance in [=PvP=] is "offline raiding", where an assailant waits until the dead of the night when nobody is online to wreak havoc. ORP (Offline Raiding Prevention/Protection) servers have since been released, but only a handful.
** PvE is not spared either -- mysterious walls spring up around spawn points, trapping newcomers as player-built structures can't be damaged by other players.
** On some unofficial servers, mods will use their admin rights to give themselves high-level equipment and tames when the average research level is still low. This effectively allows them to lord over 'civilian' players.
** Another aggravating occurrence in PvE servers is when players who've established themselves in an area place pillars or foundations around an area without actually building anything off them. Because other players not in their tribe cannot build within a certain radius of each pillar/foundation, entire areas end up being blocked for player development. Especially unfair when coastal areas in the south, areas that are known to be the best places for newbies to spawn, are the exact places that are blocked off.
** On some official [=PvP=] servers, the Alpha Tribe (the most powerful tribe on the server) will use the above tactics to aggressively monopolize and dominate the server, crushing anyone not allied with them and pushing all other tribes off the server. The typical end goal is to turn the server into the tribe's home base, from which they can safely launch raids on other servers for supplies or low-risk [=PvP=].
!!VideoGame.AllPointsBulletin
* {{GIFT}}: This game seems to attract a good deal of whiny teenagers, trolls, idiots and "hardcore" "bro" gamers.
!!VideoGame.{{Blockland}}
* {{GIFT}}: Many experienced users are ridiculously mean to newer ones.The same thing can happen in reverse, with newer users being immature and ridiculously mean.
!!VideoGame.CantrII
* {{GIFT}}: A few layers of anonymity, starting with each persons character not being linked to their account. The second layer, comes with the even more anonymous ingame radio. DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything It has indeed been called 4-chan on the forum, generally by detractors. Very few lolcat pictures, but one instance of ASCII art. But this is perfect for couch warriors, trolls and other attention seekers to quickly get their fix, and stir up molehills.
!!VideoGame.CantrII
* RunningTheAsylum: As mentioned in the introduction, the creator has largely left the game, leaving it to some staff to manage things. Over time, this has resulted in what has been referred to as the [[DrunkWithPower Internet]] [[ScrewTheRulesIMakeThem Illness]]. Basically, any [[{{GIFT}}normal person getting a chance to live out their powertrip fantasies, and going for broke]]. HilarityEnsues
!!VideoGame.DarkAndShatteredLands
* {{GIFT}} and {{GIRL}}: People are rarely who they appear to be in the game, though some are better in real life and some are worse.
!!VideoGame.{{Destiny2}}
* FantasticDrug: The lore for the Jade Rabbit heavily implies that some of the Guardians' weirder behaviors (namely, constant dancing, [[{{GIFT}} toxic personalities]], and "hero moments," which are of course derived from real-life player behavior as the lore has done in the past) are the side effects of one of these, originally created by Daito as a form of antidepressant to deal with the crippling existential horror of being a resurrected warrior [[LaserGuidedAmnesia with no memory of their past life]] and the fear of death that arises from being conditionally immortal.
!!VideoGame.{{Dota2}}
* EarnYourFun: Getting into Dota 2 in a nutshell, perhaps of the TrialAndErrorGameplay variety. The developers have tried to alleviate some of this by introducing a tutorial mode, but it's a long and steep learning curve no matter how the game is played.
** Dota 2 is ''extremely'' complex, and calling the game 'unwelcome' would be an understatement. Simply learning the names or the ''existence'' of all heroes and items is important, perhaps even required, and can take a long time. Then there's learning how/when to use any of those things, how they all mesh together, and then actually putting it into practice and getting ''good'' at ''any'' of it (even one hero can take a while), all the while probably going through a ''lot'' of face-crushingly horrible games, to say nothing of learning what the current metagame is at any given point in time and dealing with {{GIFT}}. Put all of that together, and you've got yourself a game with one ''gigantic'' skill curve on your hands. However, once you can start directly contributing to your team winning games, you can ''finally'' find out why Dota 2 is widely regarded as one of the most fun & rewarding games on the planet.
** And some says that the true reward of playing Dota is to be able to "watch the game". Dota 2's professional matches are highly entertaining, with high-skilled plays, absurd teamfights, funny moments, and many little things that can only be appreciated by understanding the game itself.
!!VideoGame.{{Dota2}}
* LaserGuidedKarma: Stories abound where one team dominated the whole game, who then proceeded to TrashTalk and [[{{GIFT}} utterly humiliate the losing side]], only to make ''one'' critical mistake which allowed the other team to turn the table and win the game.
!!VideoGame.EVEOnline
''EVE'' occasionally pops up in the [[http://eve.klaki.net/heist/ gaming]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEx0eJutrG0 press]] (and sometimes the [[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7905924.stm?lss mainstream press]]) for extraordinary feats of sabotage, theft and other devious exploits carried out by a player or group of players. Feats like this, that might get the responsible group banned in about any other MMO, are legal gameplay in ''EVE''. ''EVE'' was in fact [[StartMyOwn created by former players]] of ''VideoGame/UltimaOnline'' in response to its restrictions on [[PlayerVersusPlayer PVP]] and [[{{Griefer}} Griefing]][[note]]such as Trammel, the notoriety system, labeling potions so you can't give newbies purple ones to watch 'em blow up, etc...[[/note]] - in other words, the main selling point of ''EVE'' is the ability to apply VideoGameCrueltyPotential to '''[[{{GIFT}} other players]].'''
!!VideoGame.EVEOnline
* InGameBankingServices: players proposed banking services though, [[{{GIFT}} as befits the universe]], ''all'' of them were frauds, [[https://forums-archive.eveonline.com/topic/142571 whether by conception or by execution]]: since players had no way to ensure the bankers would actually pay up capital and interest and the bankers themselves had no way to force debtors to pay up their loans, along with the fact the game had plenty of liquidities circulating, banking was simply unpractical for the time being.
!!VideoGame.{{Gift2001}}
Not to be confused with either {{GIFT}} or TheGift.
!!VideoGame.LeagueOfLegends
* PickUpGroup: Solo Queue. This game takes this UpToEleven since it's next to impossible to encounter players in ways besides queueing up and getting placed in a PickUpGroup with them (external forums and chatrooms nonwithstanding). New players starting out have no choice but to get randomly matched with others and a player will still have to team up with randoms quite a bit throughout their career. Thankfully it can be averted (or at least mitigated) by encountering friendly/skilled players and adding them as friends so that pre-made groups can enter queue to reduce the chance of running into leavers, feeders, or trolls. [[{{GIFT}} Unless of course said player is the leaver, feeder, or troll.]]
!!VideoGame.Left4Dead
* MessageBoard: Safe room graffiti really acts like this, although people who leave the safe room usually don't return. Ever.
** Referenced in one of the safe room graffiti, wherein [[{{GIFT}} a ton of "posters" mock]] an [[PurpleProse over-the-top, saccharine love epitaph]]. [[MemeticMutation Cool story bro!]]
** Lampshaded in another chain of graffiti, after a group of messages angrily respond to someone writing [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters "WE ARE THE REAL MONSTERS"]], one survivor simply writes "I miss the internet."
!!VideoGame.Left4Dead
* {{Griefer}}: Per {{GIFT}}, you're guaranteed to come across them in public matches.
** Playing as the infected is basically griefing the survivors ''[[RuleOfFun as the goal of the game.]]'' The griefers are getting their kicks from the game itself most of the time!
!!VideoGame.Left4Dead2
* {{Griefer}}: Per {{GIFT}}, you're guaranteed to come across them in public matches. The most common type of griefer are players that shoot their own teammates to death, which is ''extremely'' common on Expert difficulty games due to the sheer friendly fire damage.
** Playing as the infected is basically griefing the survivors ''[[RuleOfFun as the goal of the game.]]'' The griefers are getting their kicks from the game itself most of the time!
** The ''Room for One'' Mutation gametype defies the normal logic of the game by only allowing one survivor to escape and encouraging team killing.
!!VideoGame.MultiUserDungeon
* {{GIFT}} and {{GIRL}}: Both have been showing up since the game's early days.
!!VideoGame.{{Roblox}}
* {{GIFT}}: Justified, usually. It's a site aimed mainly towards kids, so most of the time they're just... y'know... being kids.
!!VideoGame.SC2Mafia
* {{GIFT}}: Usually rampant on the first day of each game, where in most cases nobody can be trialled, and in all cases everyone lacks hard evidence. ''Most'' players settle down after that.
!!VideoGame.SCPSecretLaboratory
* HellIsThatNoise: Your survival as a human depends on listening for the noises that your enemies make. Hearing footsteps as a scientist can easily make you paranoid in wondering if MTF has come to rescue you, or if it's SCP-939 patroling the only path to freedom. On the SCP side of things, hearing the sounds of 173s stone body sliding against the floor, 096s constant sobbing and screaming, and 049s slow but sharp foot steps closing in on you is bound to get some people anxious. [[NightmareRetardant On a less (or more) horrific note]], there's the sound of some asshole (read: [[{{GIFT}} nearly everyone who gets the chance]]) playing [[SensoryAbuse extremely loud music over the facility intercom and blowing out the eardrums of the entire server.]]
!!VideoGame.SaintsRowTheThird
* {{GIFT}}: Discussed in "http://deckers.die" during Matt Miller's AGodAmI moment; the Boss quickly replies that he's nothing but "a bitch with a keyboard" IRL.
!!VideoGame.{{Splatoon}}
* {{GIFT}}: {{Defied|Trope}}. According to WordOfGod, avoiding online toxicity is why online voice chat is not available.
!!VideoGame.{{Spore}}
* VideoGamePerversityPotential: [[FanNickname The community has come to call]] any deliberately obscene creature "[[{{Pun}} sporn]]". Fortunately, there is a function to report and ban any atrocity that you've managed to unwittingly download.
** SchmuckBait: The "Bad Baby!" Achievement, which required a creation of yours to get banned from the servers. Unsurprisingly, every {{GIFT}} and their mother created the stuff. It got so bad, ''the achievement was actually deleted''.
!!VideoGame.TheNamelessMod
* {{GIFT}}: The unregistered users act like this, according to their bio in the tutorial level.
!!VideoGame.{{Transformice}}
* ItAmusedMe: It might as well be named ''Trolling: The Game''. [[note]]Though later updates have really started to crack down on the {{GIFT}} in action, which has been met with [[BrokenBase about as well as you'd expect]] considering {{Troll}}s were the game's main players during alpha and early beta. [[{{Griefer}} Griefing]] is still possible and allowed, but nowhere ''near'' as prevalent as it was in earlier versions of the game.[[/note]]
!!VideoGame.UltimaOnline
The first widespread commercial success in {{MMORPG}}s, first released in 1997 by Creator/OriginSystems. Developed based on Richard Garriott's ''VideoGame/{{Ultima}}'' series of games. Initially intended for each server to host roughly 300 players the game garnered unexpectedly huge numbers. Notable for its classless and level free skill based system whereby you could create a character with any combination of skills and gained power by using them. Instead of slaughtering monsters to raise your magic skill you used magic. Using a sword would raise your swordsmanship. Also notable was the game's emphasis on [[WideOpenSandBox Sandbox]] gameplay. Little overarching storyline existed. Player freedom and enforcement of good behavior was expected. Unfortunately the developers didn't [[{{GIFT}} realize what they were in for]]. Approximately 1% of their total playerbase rampaged through the game world slaughtering other players by the thousands. They got around this by creating a mirror world called Trammel where PVP was heavily restricted.
!!VideoGame.UltimaOnline
* {{Griefer}} - This game was legendary for how griefer-friendly it was in the old days, mainly due to the designers being unaware of the {{GIFT}} before they loosed the public on it. See also: TheGreatPlayerVersusPlayerDebate.
!!VideoGame.VacationSimulator
* TakeThat: The fact book states that, if you printed all of the comments of [[Website/YouTube BotTube]] and laid it end-to-end, the paper would stretch to the sun and back around 20 times and notes the value of the paper is worth much more than the [[{{GIFT}} comments]].
!!VideoGame.WatchDogs
* {{GIFT}}:
** [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] InUniverse - people are often pretty horrible and self-centered when they think no-one's listening.
** The Online Hacking targets can fall squarely into this trope. A lot of them seem to take great joy in taunting their victims via text message.
!!VideoGame.WelcomeToTheGameII
* {{GIFT}}: Played with, in that this is the deep web and relatively few "normal" people have access to it. The opening scene with Amalea involves a vote for whether she should live or die, while she's visibly terrified and fleeing for her life. The vote is ''overwhelmingly'' for her to be killed, and the chat of the stream will be populated mostly with requests for body parts to be sent to them, or talking about how well they get off to what's going on. That being said, the game still provides some people who vote "live" and the chat will occasionally have messages like "contacting the police/FBI" or "you guys are sick" pop up, showing that EveryoneHasStandards.
!!VideoGameCrueltyPotential.MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGames
-->You have shown me the face of true evil, <player name>
** The Horde version of the War of the Thorns storyline in ''Battle for Azeroth'' has a quest where you team up with Lorash, an undead blood elf assassin, and help him sack Astranaar by marking the night elf guards so he can kill them. You can also mark the vendors, [[DevelopersForesight causing him to comment that he likes your coldness]]. Also, killing them ''is'' the canon course of action; if you play the Alliance version, you're told that the civilians weren't spared.
** The Alliance version of the quest chain in Silithus in 8.0 has you murder goblin workers in cold blood. Since you're technically speaking not at war yet, and Silithus is neutral territory, this is pretty bad.
** If you actually think about it, the extremely popular Deadmines dungeon is very cruel. These poor guys just want to get paid for rebuilding your sweet capital city. And if you're that rogue who pickpockets them but leaves them alive (you know who you are) then you are really quite a scumbag. Seriously, those people have families! The ''Cataclysm'' version lampshades it by having the daughter of the original final boss return (so not only were you a douche, but you weren't that smart about it; NiceJobBreakingItHero)
** The entire Death Knight starter area plays with this trope. It is played straight at first when you mark targets to be taken down by poison arrows. The game also lets you murder the workers to your heart's content. You are supposed to be in the Scourge, after all. It is subverted later in that, according to their dialog, what you're doing to the Scarlet Crusaders is not as bad as what their superiors do to them. Given that you are at one point sticking them with a magical brand until they faint, this is perhaps the most disturbing part of this whole extremely disturbing area. Given the looks of the place that you rescue Koltira Deathweaver from later, this claim is believable. But the trope is then played straight later on when you mercilessly mow down an entire army of Crusaders with their own cannon. Even later, the questline has you demonstrate your loyalty by killing an Argent Dawn NPC who is set up as your best friend.
** As long as a player is flagged for [=PVP=], they can attack [=NPCs=] of the opposite faction with impunity. Of course, [[{{GIFT}} some]] [[{{Griefer}} players]] [[ForTheEvulz delight]] in such behavior.
!!VisualNovel.ChaosHead
* {{GIFT}}: Takumi is a memer who can be pretty mean and arrogant on the internet, when in reality he's a passive, paranoid and quiet teen with social anxiety who rarely can get a word in edgewise in conversations.
!!VisualNovel.DigitalALoveStory
* {{GIFT}}: Even before the rise of boards dedicated to being total pricks, there were stupid people on the internet, as exemplified by a fan of ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' and how he thinks [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration this new bald guy is a complete pussy, compared to Kirk]], a black hat hacker desperately trying to convince the rest of the board that he and his mates won a hacking war, and some kid who thinks he's got everything figured out and lectures the board on how JapanTakesOverTheWorld... and can't tell the difference [[WhatAnIdiot between Chinese and Japanese.]]
!!VisualNovel.REAlistair
* {{GIFT}}: Merui can't immediately rule out any of the guys as Alistair because, as she acknowledges, people who are nice in real life might very well cut loose and act like jerks online. [[spoiler:It's not actually true of any of the three guys: Shiro in his [=FionaWings=] persona is a voice of reason and a friend to Merui; Travis is, if anything, more polite online than he is in person, and Derek genuinely is that much of a jerk (unless his feelings for Merui redeem him), it's just hidden beneath a charming front.]]
!!VisualNovel.SteinsGate
* {{GIFT}}: While Hououin Kyouma and John Titor basically act the same as their real-world counterparts, [=KuriGohan=] is sarcastic, vulgar and condescending.
!!VisualNovel.SteinsGate
* ShoutOut:
** Daru's dialogue is occasionally peppered with references to various anime and video games, and before the group manages to settle on D-Mail as the name of their time machine, some of the names they come up with reference ''Anime/TheGirlWhoLeaptThroughTime'' and ''Film/BackToTheFuture''. His usual response to Okabe's more outlandish demands is even "[[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureDiamondIsUnbreakable But I refuse!]]".
** Immediately as Suzuha introduces herself to Okabe in an [[TotallyRadical incredibly outdated manner]], he commented on how [[TimeStandsStill time itself has stopped moving]], as if somebody had just activated [[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure The World]]. As he does this, a negative filter washes over the background behind Suzuha.
** [[Anime/MobileFighterGGundam Shining Finger]], Moeka Kiryuu's nickname, given by Okabe. The first person to directly point out the reference, complete with the "My hand glows with an awesome power" line, is Daru, who is voiced by none other than [[Creator/TomokazuSeki Domon Kasshu]] himself.
** The name "D-Mail" was thought up after Mayuri came up with "[[Film/BackToTheFuture Delorean]] Mail".
** In the visual novel, Kurisu mentions as one of the impossibilities of time travel the sheer amount of energy it would take to move at light speeds would almost certainly be at least [[Film/BackToTheFuture 1.21 gigawatts]].
** Suzuha says, [[Film/TheGoonies "Heeey You Guuuuys!"]] near the start of the series.
** Faris makes a mention in episode 2 of [[Anime/MobileFighterGGundam months of harsh training in the Guyana Highlands and the death of her master.]] The dub adds another one right after -- "[[WesternAnimation/HeManAndTheMastersOfTheUniverse1983 I have the power!]]"
*** Also in episode 2, the dub has Kurisu make a mention of [[Series/DoctorWho time-jumping in a blue police box]] leading up to her lecture.
*** In the same episode 2, when Okabe runs a web search about John Titor, one of the results is titled "John Smith" and tells something about "[[LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya Suzumiya Hahi...]]".
** Kurisu's "One more word and I'll make your neocortex into a flower pot!" line may come from the MO of the first barcode killer of ''Manga/MPDPsycho''.
** Okabe mentions "Maybe you should make an [[{{GIFT}} APA analysis]] on [[Website/FourChan /b/]]". It's changed in the dub to him suggesting that she's checking out her [[{{Website/Reddit}} AMA threads]].
** Kurisu comments in the dub if Okabe "could be any more of a [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Wesley]]". He teases her about this after realizing what she just said. In the sub, she quotes [[Manga/DeathNote Yagami Light]] instead.
** In Episode 12, Okabe says in the dub that Suzuha won the cake unfairly. Quote, "Therefore, [[VideoGame/{{Portal}} the cake is a lie]]!"
** In the VN, Okabe accuses Suzuha of being an Organization assassin - code name: [[Manga/{{Golgo 13}} Miss Golgo]].
** The future gadgets are inspired by whatever game or anime Okabe and Daru were watching; such as ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'', ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'', and ''Franchise/LupinIII''.
** The English dub of the anime references ''Film/{{Airplane}}'' when Okabe attempts to talk "street" to someone in an alley, who promptly responds by apologizing that he doesn't speak jive.
** During Suzuha's ending in the visual novel, she references ''Film/GroundhogDay'' by name, explaining that one of the few forms of entertainment available in SERN's dystopian future is watching old movies.
** At the end of Mayuri's route in the ''Hiyoku Renri no Darling'' spin-off, Daru wants to name Okabe's child "[[LightNovel/{{Oreimo}} Kuroneko]]". Which is doubly amusing considering [[Creator/KanaHanazawa Mayuri's seiyuu]].
** In the VN, one of the users in the @channel chat with Titor says this:
!!WMG.AvatarTheLastAirbenderBending
* Thought - telepathic communication. Can influence, though not control, other people's thoughts, or just plain talk to them over long distances. They can talk telepathically to nonbenders, though only thoughtbenders can initiate contact. Thoughtbenders are very valuable for every army as messengers and coordinators. They may work as therapists or psychiatrists. A secondary power might be dreambending. They could psych out the enemy with horrible nightmares, or get paid to provide wonderful dreams of your choice. (Culture?)
** I'm leaning towards some sort of Native American culture.
** This troper was thinking more of a Russain-communist culture, but one that actually works. See, the thought benders are very dangerous, with the ability to bend people's wills and all. If one were to go rogue, that would mean big trouble for the world. So the thought benders are all constantly kept in check via a hive mind of the entire nation as one. They are philosophers and thinkers, constantly analyzing and speculating the world at large to come up with more knowledge - like an entire nation of WMG. They seem stoic and cold from an outside perspective, but that's only because they experience conflicts and emotion on a deeper level. Thought is the element of control.
*** This society combined with the ability to communicate in groups over vast distances would create a sort of "internet culture", where there are drawbacks to the reduced individuality, but the anonymity and equality makes everyone more at ease and more willing to share their true opinions ([[{{GIFT}} though this might not always be a good thing.]]) A nation like this might be rather isolationist, because anyone who couldn't participate in their giant group debates would be of little interest to them. They could develop a class system, though, where the farmers/laborers have no time to contribute to this nationwide forum.
!!WMG.HarryPotterGovernment
* It's worth noting, in all this FanWank, that there's something not taken into account, and that's that, while a Wizard might be more than a match for a muggle with a gun, a muggle with a highpowered sniper rifle firing on a wizard who doesn't know he's even around is probably going to come out on top. Even if a shield charm stopped every bullet ever, and you could get it up before someone could shoot, you're not going to be able to stop a bullet from someone you don't even know exists.
** This also goes the other way around; the Muggle with the high-powered sniper rifle is equally defenseless against a wizard who's scouted the area (magic would probably help a lot in finding a hidden sniper if you think it's a good precaution to check) and sneaks up behind him. This actually works against the WMG, however; all the wizards who would want to counquer the muggle world don't have this sense, they're too busy feeling superior to think about doing anything about the muggle with a gun than stand in front of him. The kind of wizard that's of the right mind to learn how the muggle world ticks and make this situation work for him would have no interest in doing so.
*** According to the epilogue, there is a Supersensory Charm.
*** Magic in Literature/HarryPotter actually has a hard time detecting non-magical objects. But this discussion is CompletelyMissingThePoint: There are about 10000 muggles for one wizard and those are '''definitely''' not the odds the Wizarding World wants to face. A wizard with a wand will not win over 10000 muggles with guns. A HP wizard is definitely not strong enough for that, so they defer to secrecy.
*** Mind you, ''all'' wizards can use magic, when all muggles are not soldiers...
*** It is equally ludicrous to suggest that all wizards both could and would use either lethal magics, or other spells combat-effectively:
*** Outside of duelling clubs and secret DADA lessons, even the ability to cast Shield Charms and Stunning Hexes is far from universal - remember in Book 7 the Ministry ordering 300 Shield Hats from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, and how they were "still getting massive orders" [[note]](as well as their other Defence stuff being "such a money-spinner")[[/note]]? I'd compare it to much like how in RL, attendance of self-defence training is far from universal...
*** As such, I imagine well below 50% of the wizarding population would be willing to actively seek out opportunities to fight, the rest would... hide and try to avoid being found/drawing attention to themselves? You know, like they did in their houses during Voldemort's reign, and how they still currently do from the Muggles under the Statute of Secrecy, with massive obscuration and mind-affecting (e.g. Muggle-repelling) charms?
*** Therefore, wizarding behaviour is quite realistically plausible within known facets of human nature, even without conspiracies from the top. Most humans simply aren't personally interested in war (or at least, [[WarIsHell all the nasty practical things that would come with]]), and would prefer peace (or at least, comfortable safe(r) lives) - even when they have personal hatreds.
*** Extending on this logic, in a bit of a sidetrack just for the fun of it - in a way, the Death Eaters' cloaks and masks were probably also a large part of their success, just as much as the Dark Mark, as they allowed members to act on their prejudices and hatreds ''without'' facing personal consequences and retribution (much like the KKK, perhaps, although I don't claim much historical knowledge - or like a nastier and more serious version of the {{GIFT}}).
*** Also, remember Moody's Foe-Glass? It seems actually quite ''simple'' to detect threats and enemies. It never says that the glass only detects wizards, and why would it? And this kind of magic surely can exist in spell form, or at least in more portable form.
** A related idea: A wizard builds his wand into a shotgun, thus enchanting every shot fired with a spell. An Avada Kedavra blast would mean that every little piece of buckshot carries an instant-death curse. This would be bad.
*** Yep. But it would be much harder for him to cast lots of other stuff. Even the darkest wizard wouldn't deprive himself of a shield charm.
!!WMG.JohnDiesAtTheEnd
The current version of the universe that John and Dave inhabit has realistic and exaggerated war-game simulations that people can "play" simply by buying an electronic box and some media discs. This system may have developed some form of internet-based interactivity system in a later rewrite of the universe, creating a culture of [[{{GIFT}} nigh-sociopathic pseudonymous children]] with [[AGodAmI varying grades of megalomania]] from which a member was flung back in spirit to the early 20th century where he (or she or it) inhabited a rudimentary biological ArtificialIntelligence. This would help explain why Korrok not only [[AliensSpeakingEnglish uses "local" slang and epithets when overshadowing or talking directly to teens from John's and Dave's world, but also in what seems to be its daily life]].
!!WMG.NineteenEightyFour
* Observe that Big Brother is powered by the {{GIFT}}, like [[ComicBook/VForVendetta V]], although he uses it for pure power...
!!WMG.NineteenEightyFour
To be more precise, V for Vendetta takes place during the Revolution. V's killings are in fact nothing more than the elimination of political enemies. Sutler is Goldstein, and after Sutler's, Creedy's, and V's deaths, someone else claims to be V, fills in the power vacuum using the power of the {{GIFT}} and becomes Big Brother. Remember that both V and Big Brother are powered by the {{GIFT}}, and The Party in the movie version of ''1984'' also uses the letter V as its symbol. Winston may or may not be a descendant of Sutler (or [[ActorAllusion John Hurt]]).
!!WMG.RalphBreaksTheInternet
Through one way or another, the heroes [[TrappedInTVLand get sucked into the world wide web]], and get bounced around various {{Expy}}s of famous online games, like VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft, VideoGame/TeamFortress2, VideoGame/CallOfDuty[=/=]VideoGame/{{Battlefield}}, etc., with Ralph and his crew often going various {{ArtShift}}s with the games ([[UnusuallyUninterestingSight often getting written off as either]] [[VirtualPaperDoll avatars made from in-game customization, or fan-based modding]]). The main conflict will arise with having to deal with players who have cases of {{GIFT}} ([[{{Bowdlerise}} there's no cursing or sexual content, naturally]], but the intent to annoy or bully other players would be at the forefront - some of it PlayedForLaughs {{Troll}}ing, others being [[DarkerAndEdgier considerably more nasty]], [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain like mocking certain players for being foreign, handicapped, etc.]]), and eventually allying with underdog players who want to stop these {{Troll}}s from ruining their games. An overall BigBad may be an {{Expy}} of Youtube's infamous "[[BigBrotherIsWatching Content ID]]" system, [[GoneHorriblyWrong which goes haywire and starts to tear the very internet apart]], EldritchAbomination style - and since EverythingIsOnline, that doesn't just threaten games, but virtually the entire world!
!!WMG.RealLife
See the WMG/TVTropes WMG entries and there are some theories that TV Tropes will grow up to become a LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya -like RealityWarper. TV Tropes might have the ability to predict fiction and influence outcomes, but the fact is, however, TV Tropes is just a wiki that is mostly for fiction, unlike others that are mostly empirical such as Google, Yahoo and Wikipedia. The Internet as a collective, on the other hand, can also process empirical FACT. The Internet do this by absorbing our intellect through Forums, {{Flame War}}s, ordinary blogging, online encyclopedias such as the freely-edited Those Other Wikis such as Wikipedia, etc. while providing us with the {{GIFT}} of anonymity and freedom from bodily discrimination (like Ad Hominem attacks). Also, machines are being connected over the Internet, and almost everything from marketing to dialogue is done over the Internet. As more and more humans are assimilated into its collective, it is highly likely that the Internet's ability to influence outcomes using both fiction and pre-existing empirical fact (aka processing data) will [[TheSingularity evolve, merge with Humanity, gain the ability to control reality and merge with the natural unconsciousness, finally creating the all-powerful]] [[Anime/SerialExperimentsLain Wired]].
!!WMG.RealLife
[[WMG: The [[{{GIFT}} anonymity]] provided by the Internet is a part of a GambitRoulette by [[Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion Seele]] as an [[AssimilationPlot Instrumentality]] attempt]]
!!WMG.RealLife
[[WMG: [[Website/FourChan Anonymous]] was originally created by [[ComicBook/VForVendetta V]] as an aid in his quest to spread [[{{GIFT}} Anarchy]]....]]
!!WMG.RealLife
* Please tell me you did not just do that.
** We all do it, when you see the internet you are actually facing a TomeOfEldritchLore which serves as a guide to an AssimilationPlot where your identity is changed to IAmLegion which in turn gives you the feeling of AGodAmI and allows you do anything ForTheEvulz and get away with it like bashing identity-exploiting ideologies such as Scientology. This.... is called The {{GIFT}}.
!!WMG.SerialExperimentsLain
* Let me explain. The anime gives references to the Internet, the Schumann Resonance (Earth's electromagnetic field) and man's ability to produce psychic power when wired together. Over time, as we are getting more and more addicted to technology, it influences the nature of Earth (from green nature utopia to a wired CrapsackWorld), so somehow we are either just complete jerks worshipping cyberspace, or somehow our psychic powers are being harnessed by cyberspace, giving it the ability to influence the world. The best example would be Wiki/TVTropes itself, which has the power to influence fiction even though it is just a wiki with [[EpilepticTrees over-the-top theories]].
** If SEL was real, then there would be the EldritchAbomination that is Lain Iwakura, who is watching us masturbate.
*** Lain isn't real, since the Wired of RealLife is still too weak to invade human privacy directly (the internet still feeds on second-hand psionic power, NOT from living souls, and there's the problem about China). Cyberspace can influence matter and events, but not man's power of free will (unless somebody hacked China's great firewall and acquired massive psychic potential from the most populous people on earth....).
*** Cyberspace (Wired) doesn't just lack the ability to limit free will, in fact it gives man [[{{GIFT}} too much free will]]......
*** That would be a perfect example of limiting human free will. That multiple people assume the same behaviour-pattern out of perceived sense of anonymity is a demonstration of how the loss of self-identity can cause people to act more like a JerkAss collective than individuals in control of themselves.
!!WMG.SerialExperimentsLain
The WMG: The real BigBad of the entire plot isn't Eiri, but Anonymous, being the dominant IAmLegion entity that he is. Lain might be the collective anthropomorphic manifestation of Anonymous' own creation, the Lolcats. Obviously, Lain, who actually watched Arisu masturbate and is also the God of the Wired, is Ceiling Cat. In the SEL Universe, Eiri is a member of Anonymous. Consumed by the power of the {{GIFT}}, he tried to use both his psychological knowledge of the collective unconscious and his knowledge with computers to access the collective unconscious and personify it into Lain / Ceiling Cat. Through Lain / Ceiling Cat, they will preach the message of anonymity, and [[BiblicalMotifs maketh anonymous disciples of all nations]]. However, Lain sacrificed herself to forgive our sins and prevent the awakening of Anonymous from the nether abyss. If Eiri and Anonymous succeeded, however, through the collective unconscious Eiri will awaken Anonymous from his abyssal slumber as a group of anonymous kids over Website/FourChan into an actual [[TheLegionsOfHell Legion of Demonic Invaders from Hell]] [[ApocalypseHow who will purge]] [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the world with]] [[FireAndBrimstoneHell fire, brimstone]] [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and endless memes]] and can only be identified and expected through this quote: ''[[IAmLegion I Am Legion, For We Are, Many]]''........
!!WMG.TVTropes
* Maybe it's because you can confess and remain anonymous. Call it {{GIFT}} [[JustForFun/XMeetsY meets]] RuleThirtyFour.
!!WMG.TheBible
[[WhatAnIdiot He]] [[CuriosityKilledTheCast who]] [[BiblicalMotifs goeth to]] [[WretchedHive /b/]] [[GoMadFromTheRevelation shall go mad]] [[{{GIFT}} from the]] [[{{Squick}} sinfulness]]. [[BloodyBowelsOfHell Beneath this]] [[FireAndBrimstoneHell fiery lake of immorality]] [[SpeakOfTheDevil is Anonymous]], [[IAmLegion The Legions]] [[TheLegionsOfHell Of Hell]] [[SealedEvilInACan which is waiting to be]] [[OhCrap unleasheth]] [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt for the end of times]] ([[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and your reputation]]).
!!WMG.TheStrangeCaseOfDrJekyllAndMrHyde
The whole Mr Hyde personality is him exploring his more malevolent side without fear of consequence. However, thanks to the [[{{GIFT}} anonymity of the Internet, he could easily just go on the most horrific parts of the Internet and enjoy personal consequence free mayhem.]]
!!WMG.TwitchPlaysPokemonRed
Because he can't see, he uses his voices (The Mob) as a sort of guide around the region. [[{{GIFT}} This being the Mob that's guiding him,]] It likely wasn't a good idea.
!!WMG.VForVendetta
* Alternatively, since [[TheRevolutionWillNotBeVilified The Revolution]] [[{{GIFT}} Of Anonymous People]] [[TheRevolutionWillNotBeVilified Will Not Be Vilified]], the anonymous V's in the film or Evey in the graphic novel become Big Brother (it is also possible that the Proles also remained in anarchy or merged with V and the Revolution, since in 1984 proles and animals are free). The people who opted for a totalitarian state were just given what they wanted: a totalitarian state turned UpToEleven. Oh, and Winston Smith is supposed to be a replacement Evey.
!!WMG.VForVendetta
[[{{GIFT}} Well because people will be inspired by V's anonymity and with that anonymity, will do what Anonymous does]]. After all, Norsefire or No Norsefire, HumansAreBastards.
!!WarpThatAesop.LiveActionTV
* "iMeetFred": If you share your opinion and it makes everyone overreact, you're wrong and deserve to be beaten up with a tennis racket.
** It is perfectly okay to ostracize others for [[OpinionMyopia their unpopular opinions]] [[{{GIFT}} just ask anyone on the Internet]].
!!WarpThatAesop.{{Tropes}}
* CausticCritic:
** Critics who give out abrasive and scathing reviews on works are hilarious!
** The best way to win views on the Internet is to act like a PsychopathicManchild [[OpinionMyopia who thinks their opinion is above everyone else's]]. Bonus points if it's not even an act, and [[{{GIFT}} you really are a Psychopathic Manchild who thinks their opinion is above everyone else]].
!!WarpThatAesop.{{Tropes}}
* {{GIFT}}, {{Griefer}}, InternetToughGuy, and {{Troll}}:
** Being a total douchebag on the internet is fun, especially when you'll never get in trouble for it like in real life.
** If someone insults, harasses, or antagonizes you on the internet, don't bother get offended, otherwise you're just a whiny sensitive little bitch who deserves more abuse and bullying online.
!!WarpThatAesop.{{Tropes}}
* WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings: The number of [[{{GIFT}} angry]] {{man child}}ren on TheInternet will never change, and as such no website should ever allow its users to have privileges. Ever.
!!WeAreNotAlone.TropesEToL
* {{GIFT}}: [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_disinhibition_effect Online disinhibition effect]]
!!WebAnimation.BurntFaceMan
* {{GIFT}}: Burnt Face Man tries hiding out on an internet forum from [[ItMakesSenseInContext enraged snail worshippers]], but is promptly banned by the forum's obnoxious members.
!!WebAnimation.DotDotDot
* FreezeFrameBonus: A review by [=Axman13=] [[spoiler:[[TakeThat years]] [[{{GIFT}} old]]]].
** GO AHEAD! I don't care! [[spoiler: [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial Yes I do. :(]]]]
** Q: the athore coments al totol lies! A: [[spoiler: [[EvenTheSubtitlerIsStumped what the]] [[CurseCutShort fuc--]]]]
!!WebAnimation.ExtraCredits
* {{GIFT}}: Not by name, but the episode "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dt9GwmOWoqo Harassment]]" lays out some ideas on how these people can be expunged from the gaming community. The later episode "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9A8VJBh_Yc Toxicity]]" discusses the way people treat each other online, including this.
!!WebAnimation.ResidentEvilMusicals
* TakeThat: Many examples.
** The ''Teh Stream'' series has a number of targets of this, mainly involving {{GIFT}}'s and Social Justice Warriors.
** There are some videos in which the author expresses her hatred towards the newer games, these videos consist of her curb-stomping the main cast of these games into oblivion while triumphant music plays on the background. ''No Hope Left'' even has a segment where the author laments about how {{Creator/CAPCOM}} has turned the franchise into crap at the expense of their fans to get money from the ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' audience.
** One scene from the 6th episode of ''Survivor'' has the cast complaining about the author adding more characters to the mix and not caring about her old ones. She justifies their treatment by claiming she has learned with the best ({{Creator/CAPCOM}}).
!!WebOriginal.TendiesStories
* DarkerAndEdgier: In early stories, Anon wasn't too violent and the worst he would get was assaulting his mother with his body waste. As the time went on however, [[{{GIFT}} as is usually the case with 4chan]], the stories became progressively darker, with Anon getting more cruel and sociopathic in many of them, and often including themes of murder, rape, or suicide.
!!WebVideo.AFK
* {{GIFT}}: This behavior sadly translates across into the world which the gamers find themselves in, as the more sociopathic ones are only too happy to kill and rob others there as well.
!!WebVideo.AskASlave
* {{GIFT}}: The comments section of each and every video seems to attract this, to one degree or another. Parodied in one of the second-season videos, where people commenting from home attack Lizzie Mae from every conceivable angle, but then just start quarrelling with each other.
!!WebVideo.CrashCourse
* AcceptablePoliticalTargets: John pretty much [[InvokedTrope declares open season]] on any slavery apologetics in the comments section of the Slavery video. [[{{GIFT}} This did nothing to stop them from descending on the comments section like a swarm.]]
** He also takes a few potshots at UsefulNotes/VladimirPutin.
** The episode of World History on nationalism and the Meiji Restoration has him directly proclaiming that he likes paying taxes towards public education because he "doesn't like living in a country with stupid people".
!!WebVideo.DarkSimpsons
* {{GIFT}}: {{Subverted|Trope}} in "Seymour Butts", where Bart is sent to Moe's - which he prank called just before - to pick up Homer. Moe was instantly able to recognize Bart's voice from the prank calls, and shoots him on the spot.
!!WebVideo.DarkSimpsons
* {{Troll}}: {{Deconstructed|Trope}} in "Seymour Butts", where Bart is sent to Moe's - which he prank called earlier - to pick up Homer. Moe immediately recognizes his voice and shoots him on the spot. While this may be the LogicalExtreme of what may happen, this isn't too unexpected an outcome of when trolls are forced to confront the people they've antagonized, without [[{{GIFT}} the protection of anonymity]].
!!WebVideo.DarksideOfTheInternet
* AnAesop:
** Don't give in to {{GIFT}}! [[spoiler:(if you would do it in the real world too, congratulations! You're a complete {{Jerkass}}!)]]
** Also: NewMedia [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools are tools]].
!!WebVideo.DarksideOfTheInternet
* {{Documentary}}: This time, it is. It touches on several subjects, including:
** ActorRoleConfusion
** {{GIFT}}
** InternetToughGuy
!!WebVideo.DigimanzTheAdventureToo
* SpaceWhaleAesop: Dissatisfied with the video almost being over without any real resolution, T.K. demands that each of the Digi-Destined come up with AnAesop each learned in the video, regardless of whether it actually related to what happened.
** T.K. decides that he learned teamwork is important.
** Kari learned that actions speak louder than words.
** Cody learned that he has to orient himself to hope. Considering [[TraumaCongaLine what he had to go through]], nobody can blame him.
** Ken ended up being too busy dealing with his evaporated blood to contribute.
** Yolei screams that you shouldn't "[[BrickJoke blow loads]]" when you're angry.
** Davis learned that the InternetToughGuy {{Troll}}s the {{GIFT}} creates can often leak into the real world by inspiring people to be cruel even without the safety of internet anonymity, and the best way to fight this is to be more understanding of other human beings. [[spoiler:Which is why more people should be having sex. [[ContemplateOurNavels Also, when a woman puts a fleshlight into her body, does that make her a lesbian?]]]]
!!WebVideo.FiftyWaysToDieInMinecraft
* TakeThat:
** Death 13 in part 1 happens when Redstone Ned watches the Franchise/StarWars holiday special. It happens again in the Christmas edition.
** Death 24 in part 3 is "Working for [[Creator/ElectronicArts EA Games]]", where a worker dies of overexertion after being forced to work day and night without sleep.
** Death 34 in part 3 is "Standing Between a Wild Creator/{{Activision}} and a Nickel", where a businessman, making a very animalistic growling noise, slaughters someone [[{{Greed}} for the reason stated above]].
** Death 9 in part 4 is caused by [=YouTube=] [[{{GIFT}} hate comments]].
** Death 17 in part 4 occurs after [=JayRiott=] references two Nintendo games back to back, leading to a "short-sighted money grab" copyright strike. This was before the company became more lenient with their [=IPs=].
** Death 20 in part 5 is "LA Traffic", where someone waits in gridlocked traffic for so long that they decompose into a skeleton.
** Death 8 in part 6 boils down to "Liking [[Franchise/StarWars Jar Jar Binks]]". Uniquely, this is one both against his fans and haters. The fan is [[TheDitz portrayed by Stu]] and the hater came in and killed him with a lightsaber simply because Stu stated that [[DisproportionateRetribution he found Jar Jar funny in his own home with no one else in sight]].
** Death 39 in part 6 is a jab at long, unskippable [=YouTube=] ads (specifically ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' ones). For good measure, there's a quick jab at how the animators didn't even lip sync all of the character's syllables.
** Death 24 in part 7 is a jab against annoying people on the Internet who put others down for not beating ThatOneBoss on their first try.
** Death 31 in part 8 is one against the dialogue of ''VideoGame/MinecraftStoryMode''.
** Death 14 in the Halloween edition is one against Creator/{{EA Games}}, referring to its CEO's smile as "a truly cursed image".
!!WebVideo.JohnnyReviewsTonight
* {{GIFT}}: Shown briefly in the VideoGame/{{Portal 2}} review.
!!WebVideo.JustBetweenUs
* {{GIFT}}[=/=]HateDumb: Alluded to in "Don't Read The Comments", where Allison and Gaby become paranoid about how they come across, even though the whole point of the show is that they're parodying their real selves.
!!WebVideo.MuppetViralVideos
* PopUpTexting: "Beaker's Ballad" has [[NoFourthWall internet comments appearing in the air next to him]], really tormenting him, and [[{{GIFT}} laughing as he gets set on fire]].
!!WebVideo.OutsideXbox
* {{GIFT}}: Discussed in a roundabout way with [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hk8x0a0K9uw "7 Things Bound to Happen When You Play Healer"]], where Ellen and Luke list off examples from popular games about how players treat their support characters (which is to say, as if they were gravel underneath their boots).
!!WebVideo.{{React}}
* MsFanservice: The series has had many beautiful reactors through the years (even inspiring [[https://www.reddit.com/r/reactgirls/ their own]] [[Website/{{Reddit}} sub-Reddit]], which [[{{GIFT}} for]] [[PaedoHunt obvious reasons]] [[EveryoneHasStandards has a tough stance on comments]]), but the ones who occasionally turn up in revealing clothes (e.g shirts that are sleeveless, with plunging necklines, or/and [[FormFittingWardrobe just plainly tight]]) and are generally appealing/popular to the male ([[EvenTheGirlsWantHer and even female]]) fanbase are/were Alix, Becca, Blair Fowler, Brittany, Haley, Izzy, Jayka[[note]]who even got a MaleGaze from a male reactor onscreen[[/note]], [[OneSteveLimit the second]] [[GenderBlenderName female]] Jordan, Kaelyn, Lia, [[OneSteveLimit the older and original]] Madison, Marlhy, Mikaela, [[OneSteveLimit the third and oldest]] Morgan, Rachel, Riley, Sabrina D., Sophia, [[OneSteveLimit the older and original]] Sydney, Tori, and Justine Ezarik.
!!WebVideo.SwordArtOnlineAbridged
* BeleagueredBoss:
** Heathcliff is the leader of the most powerful guild in the game. Unfortunately, most players are extremely representative of the worst [[LeeroyJenkins stereotypes]] [[{{Griefer}} of MMO]] [[LootDrama players]] ([[{{GIFT}} the protagonist included]]), causing him no end of headaches. [[spoiler:Their idiocy plays a part in his VillainousBreakdown, although Kirito points out that someone who plays a multiplayer game with permanent invulnerability has no place criticizing others dying stupid deaths.]]
!!WebVideo.SwordArtOnlineAbridged
* CoolAndUnusualPunishment: What Schmitt's more... "verbose" commenters have threatened to inflict on him for his video-game reviews back in the real world. Nothing out of the ordinary, given the rule of {{GIFT}}, but the nature of the Death Game within Aincrad leaves him ProperlyParanoid that they might find him and make good on their threats. Using his spine as a pitching wedge and hacking off all of his limbs to ride him "like some kind of meat toboggan" are just two of the inventive ways they've threatened him in the past.
!!WebVideo.TJAProjects
* HeterosexualLifePartners: TJ and Amy.
** Both in-game and out-of-game. After [[{{GIFT}} a viewer reported them to child services]], the two purportedly had problems convincing them that they weren't a couple.
!!WebVideo.TheReviewers
%% * PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Rickhead. Because {{GIFT}}.
!!Webcomic.BugMartini
* {{GIFT}}: [[http://www.bugmartini.com/comics/buy-for-an-eye/ Much popular than]] [[EyeScream gouging one's eyes out.]]
!!Webcomic.KidRadd
* {{GIFT}}: Very much present in the chatrooms where Radd serves as an avatar. He's rather dismayed at the immaturity and rudeness used in those conversations.
!!Webcomic.{{Nedroid}}
* {{GIFT}}: Implied in the AltText of [[http://nedroid.com/2011/11/whats-in-a-name/ this strip]]--Beartato's new name will be chosen by internet poll, and turns out to be "Fartballs".
!!Webcomic.PennyArcade
* {{GIFT}}: The [[http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2004/03/19/ Trope Namer.]]
!!Webcomic.SabrinaOnline
* BerserkButton: Zig Zag has several.
** Bringing up her past as anything other than a set of facts (and even that chafes).
** It's also hinted that Zig doesn't take kindly to anyone who tries to [[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline209.GIF hurt her or her friends.]]
** An arc launched in December 2010 implies she doesn't take kindly to the {{GIFT}} in action.
** In June 2014, a psychiatrist states outright that she has several buttons that can cause her to react adversely.
!!Webcomic.SabrinaOnline
* Hypocrite: The comic had a series of strips [[http://sabrina-online.com/2010-04.html in December 2010]] which has Zig Zag go on a tirade ala ''Film/JayAndSilentBobStrikeBack'' (the two heroes in that film go on the road and beat up everyone who ever criticized them on the Internet). Zig Zag gets offended by comments received online about her, and [[http://sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline566.GIF Comic 566]] involves her beating up a guy who said mean things about her because he thinks [[{{GIFT}} he can say anything on the Internet without consequences.]] The Hypocrisy stems from the fact that Zig Zag is the owner and star of her own porno company, an industry that has historically relied on First Amendment rights to stay in business, the actors of which were constantly under belittlement and lawsuits pertaining for their rights to work in adult films, and sometimes assaulted for doing so. What Zig Zag just did was commit real-world, premeditated, first-degree assault against a random guy who, while they were certainly unpleasant, did not deserve physical violence. [[http://sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline569.GIF Comic 569]] has Zig Zag mention that, yes, lots of people '''did''' press changes against her, and [[http://sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline681.GIF we eventually learn]] that Zig Zag was convicted and paid a fine.
!!Webcomic.SabrinaOnline
* ImageBoards[=/=]{{Troll}}: A [[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline553.GIF two]]-[[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline554.GIF part]] discussion.
** {{GIFT}}:Brought up almost by name in the second half.
*** The "anonymity" part has been [[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline563.GIF subverted]] and Zig [[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline564.GIF got]] [[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline565.GIF her]] [[http://www.sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline566.GIF revenge]]
*** Zig Zag eventually learns to [[http://sabrina-online.com/strips/SabOnline580.GIF use their own weapons against them.]]
!!Webcomic.SoYoureACartoonist
%%* {{GIFT}}: He's [[http://www.syacartoonist.com/comic/bingo made a bingo card]].
!!Webcomic.SomethingPositive
* CuteKitten: Choo-Choo-Bear and friends. Sometimes bluntly deconstructed, which on one occasion has resulted in death threats against the author (see {{GIFT}} entry below).
!!Webcomic.SomethingPositive
* {{GIFT}}:
** A [[https://somethingpositive.net/comic/kitty-kwiz/ set of]] [[https://somethingpositive.net/comic/kitty-kwiz-2/ Kitty Kwizzes]], comics which humorously explained how [[CatsAreMean cats control their human puppets]]...er...masters, [[https://somethingpositive.net/comic/getting-catty/ apparently]] made some readers so angry that Randy received ''death threats'' over them.
** And InUniverse, Davan shows Rory [[https://somethingpositive.net/comic/never-read-the-comments/ precisely why he's not allowed online unsupervised despite being 12]]. People were flinging rape and death threats at each other in the comments section of a picture for ''a cupcake''.
!!Webcomic.WinterMoon
* {{GIFT}}: Risa is a far more aggressive and manipulative person online than she is in real life.
!!Website.DragonCave
* {{GIFT}}: The 2010 Christmas event involved decorating trees and rating other people's trees on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest score a tree could get; 30 users would win a new "prize" breed. (These were highly desired, since, with only 5, 10, or 15 of the respective dragon on the site at the start, they would be the rarest dragons on the site at the time of their release and their offspring would be extremely valuable.) The results imply that when given anonymity, people were willing to rate others low in order to hurt everyone else's chances of winning the contest, or just to troll: out of almost 2.3 million votes cast, the average vote was only 3.74, and even the highest-rated tree had a score of 6.23.
!!Website.{{Facebook}}
* {{GIFT}}: Mostly averted, since the site requires users to use their real names. But that doesn't stop some people from being {{Jerkass}}es anyway—additionally, Facebook isn't always ''that'' vigilant, so a few users can slip past the censors using fake names and cause trouble.
!!Website.{{Facepunch}}
* {{GIFT}}: Many members tend to use their secondary accounts as an anonymous way to call out other members or even admins.
** Of course, banned and perma'd users who abuse this method to start a new slate will have their alternate account banned on the spot.
!!Website.FlameWarriors
* {{GIFT}}: This is mentioned in [[JerkAss Jerk's]] bio and it's one of the reasons why he's, well, a Jerk.
!!Website.IMDb
[[http://www.imdb.com The Internet Movie Database]], a website founded in 1990 that records every movie ever released, along with television series and episodes, video games, actors, voice actors, major characters, and so on and so forth. Every movie has its own little forum for heated and aggressive exchanges to take place. And like any other site, you will sometimes find {{Troll}}s and {{Sockpuppet}}s (for absolute troll-magnets, look no further than the "Politics" and "Soapbox" subforums). The {{GIFT}} became so prevalent in the boards that parent company Amazon [[http://variety.com/2017/digital/news/imdb-message-boards-shut-down-1201977581/ decided to shut them down in 2017]][[https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2017/02/rip-imdb-message-boards.html]], but they appear to have been successfully archived.[[http://archiveteam.org/index.php?title=The_Internet_Movie_Database]]
!!Website.LiveJournal
* {{GIFT}}: During the site's hayday, instances of this were dubbed across the Internet as "[=LiveJournal=] Drama" and inspired the creation of, among other things, ''Encyclopedia Dramatica'' itself ([[NetworkDecay though it later expanded its interests to other forms of internet drama, not just LJ]])
!!Website.NicoNicoDouga
* {{Troll}}: Since comments scroll across the video instead of being forced to the comments section which you can ignore, naturally, this can and often is [[{{GIFT}} used in the exact way you'd expect.]] Thankfully, it's ([[SurprisinglyGoodEnglish usually]]) not a problem if you don't know Japanese. If the comments get too inflammatory or controversial (or if there are simply so many that it begins to make it hard to see the video), the uploader may insert a tag in the keywords which roughly translates to "it is recommended to hide the comments" as a warning.
!!Website.{{Reddit}}
* {{GIFT}}: The large userbase and loose moderation leads to many, many examples of the GIFT in action.
!!Website.{{Slashdot}}
* {{GIFT}}: It was extremely common to post links to shock sites, usually through redirects.
!!Website.SomethingAwful
* {{GIFT}}: Goons are, generally speaking, not known for their manners.
!!Website.{{Sploder}}
* {{GIFT}}: Normally defied, since this is a kid-friendly website.
** Except for some instances where you can destroy a random character ForTheEvulz.
!!Website.UrbanDictionary
* {{GIFT}}: Letting the Internet at large define (and often make up out of whole cloth) often sexual and offensive slang terms makes this a ForegoneConclusion.
!!WesternAnimation.MegasXLR
Action cartoon ''Megas XLR'' -- created by the minds behind MTV's ''WesternAnimation/{{Downtown}}'' -- serves up an [[AffectionateParody affectionate spoof]] of "guy culture", science fiction, {{anime}}, and pretty much anything considered "cool" in TheEighties. If you consider ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' the {{Deconstruction}} of the HumongousMecha genre, then consider ''Megas XLR'' the Demolition (and, possibly, the American precursor to ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann''). ''Megas'' remains one of the few mecha shows to get unanimous praise from Website/FourChan's [[{{Anime}} /a/]], [[WesternAnimation /co/]], and [[HumongousMecha /m/]] boards.[[note]] For 4chan, that ''[[{{GIFT}} really]]'' says something, [[FandomRivalry especially given that those three boards tend to have very divergent tastes.]][[/note]]
!!WesternAnimation.RalphBreaksTheInternet
* {{GIFT}}: Yesss fails to mention the first rule of the internet: Don't read the comments. [[spoiler:Ralph stumbles into the comments section and is soon bombarded by haters. Despite the reaction on his face, he says he's not bothered by it since he's been disrespected as a villain his entire life]].
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings.LiveActionTV
* Alton Brown of ''Series/GoodEats'' had this problem, no less than twice. First when he decided to open up an email portal on his website and was promptly rushed with [[{{GIFT}} all sorts of unsavory things.]] The portal was closed down. Years later, he finally relented and opened up a Twitter account with similar results. He seems to have returned to Twitter, however.
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings.{{Nintendo}}
* As documented on this page, poor player activity led to Nintendo initially banning voice chat in random online modes in games such as ''VideoGame/MarioKart8'' and ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'', despite many games with online multiplayer allowing it anyway. WordOfGod confirmed this reason in the case of ''VideoGame/{{Splatoon}}'', as the Director cited [[{{GIFT}} negative personal experiences with voice chat in other shooters as the reason not to include it in his game]]. Fortunately, they relented for ''VideoGame/Splatoon2'', albeit only among teammates, and lifted the ban altogether for all Nintendo Switch Online games.
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings.{{Nintendo}}
* This is the reason why the UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS has an automatic word filter. Back in the DS games, people were naming anything that they ''could'' name [[UnfortunateNames profane insults]] [[{{GIFT}} directed at other players online]]. This affected ''VideoGame/AnimalCrossing: Wild World'' and ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'' very badly, and came to a head when an unidentified {{troll}} used a hacked cartridge to send ''Diamond and Pearl'' players a Gengar themed around black stereotypes, with the n-word as its nickname (more information on that incident [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hXJw6Kr4JY here]]). The new censor [[ScunthorpeProblem has some flaws]], but it seemed to be working. [[HereWeGoAgain Then people started]] [[LoopholeAbuse intentionally misspelling profanity...]]
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings.{{Nintendo}}
* ''{{Franchise/Pokemon}}''
** ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'':
*** In an unusual variation, this happened ''unintentionally''. In an effort to stop hacked Pokémon (which were frequently Legendaries) from being sent over the GTS, Nintendo accidentally banned ''all'' Legendaries from being sent over the GTS. Needless to say, the backlash forced Nintendo to apologize and revert the change, but [[StreisandEffect the damage was done, and hackers who could take advantage of a loophole that still allowed hacked Pokémon to be offered became even more encouraged to do so]].
*** In a more intentional example, these games introduced Chatot, whose signature attack (Chatter) made use of the DS microphone so you could have it play your own voice while using the attack. Naturally, fans took advantage of this to make Chatot say inappropriate things, leading to Chatot getting banned in online battles and the feature being outright being removed in Generation VI. This may have also played a hand in Chatot's sharp decrease in prominence in both the games and the anime (even compared to the other Generation IV Mons), as the gimmick was all it really had going for it.
** ''VideoGame/PokemonXAndY'':
*** In both ''X and Y'' and ''[[VideoGame/PokemonRubyAndSapphire Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire]]'', players could customize their messages and communicate with "Shout Outs". Of course, people abused this feature and sent either [[{{GIFT}} cruel]] or [[VideoGamePerversityPotential inappropriate]] messages, often bypassing the swear filter by using corruptions of swear words. As a result, VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon severely restricted the ability to customize your messages by only allowing the player to pick from a few pre-set messages, and the Shout Out feature was removed entirely.
*** In ''X and Y'', players found out that, if the egg and the game copy have the same shiny value, they're guaranteed to hatch a shiny. Due to this, computer software was made to view egg contents. While some complained that it devalued shinies, it wasn't harmful to others playing the game. However, cheaters found a way to use the exact same exploit to create software to view their opponents' teams, moves, and abilities in battle. [[NoFairCheating Game Freak and Nintendo did not take kindly to this]] and patched the whole exploit, killing both pieces of software.
** ''VideoGame/PokemonGo'':
*** The game has a tracking feature that would show players hints pointing to nearby Pokémon, without revealing the species. Unfortunately, people developed third-party apps to read the tracking data and display the specific locations and species of all nearby Pokémon, [[NoFairCheating forcing the developers to have those sites be taken down]].
*** After a few careless players kept playing the game while driving, causing car accidents and injuries to people in the process, the developers began implementing measures to prevent players from playing ''Go'' while driving. This ultimately led to eliminating the ability to catch Pokémon or even use item-granting Pokéstops when traveling over a certain speed, rendering the app almost completely useless while driving. This has been a case of [[BrokenBase controversy]] from players who played the game as passengers in a vehicle and/or whose only access to Pokéstops were ones they passed on the road and otherwise wouldn't think of using the app while driving or players with the Pokémon Go Plus device.
*** Playing of the game has been banned on some physical properties because some players either couldn't behave themselves or played the game in locations where playing the game is in poor taste (such as places of worship or the National Holocaust Memorial Museum). Aside from the property owners disallowing the use of the app while on the premises, Niantic also complies with requests by owners and managers to have their Pokéstops and/or Gyms removed. This also applies to private residences after a lawsuit was made from homeowners that got sick of players loitering around their property, which meant that anyone submitting a potential stop would automatically be rejected if it was within 40 feet of someone's house.
*** Belgian Internet carrier Proximus stopped offering free data on pre-paid cards after one person [[https://www.geek.com/tech/one-pokemon-go-player-got-all-of-belgium-banned-1667630/ though it would be a good idea to test his theory about whitelisting and get the whole country (temporarily) banned by Niantic while using the carrier]].
** ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'': Mere days before the two games' official release, some people got a hold of the game and ROM dumps began circulating the Internet. Nintendo not only cracked down on these ROM dumps, but also punished everyone who thought it would be a good idea to attempt to use the pirated games' online features by permanently banning them from using their 3DS' online features - much to the dismay of people who ''legitimately'' bought it before its official release.
** ''VideoGame/PokemonSwordAndShield'':
*** A T-shirt design contest was held before the game's release, where the winning design would be featured as a wearable shirt in the games. Unfortunately, this was rendered completely pointless when it was discovered that the winner [[http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2019/05/random_usd10000_pokemon_competition_winner_reportedly_found_to_have_violated_the_ruleshad used his winning design on smartphone cases in the past]], which went against the rules of the contest as the design had to have not been used anywhere else before. This caused the winner to be disqualified, the shirt with the design [[DummiedOut to be removed from the games]], and the final games to have no fan-designed T-shirt in them at all.
*** While fan outcry [[BrokenBase isn't entirely unheard of within the franchise]], the outcry against these games reached a point where [[EngineeredHashtag #BringBackNationalDex]] was hijacked to promote falsified stories against Masuda and issue death threats against him, Game Freak, the Pokémon Company International, and Nintendo. When the games were leaked and streamed on the internet, the hatred only intensified, with the hashtag [=#ThankYouGameFreak=] either being countered with the spiteful [=#FuckYouGameFreak=] or being hijacked to turn it into an expression of [[SnarkingThanks sarcastic praise]] toward them instead of genuine praise. This resulted in [[https://www.destructoid.com/amid-controversy-the-pokemon-sword-shield-launch-event-has-been-canceled-572141.phtml launch events for the game to be canceled]] in fear of the main developers’ safety[[note]]This could have also been caused by the aftermath of the infamous Creator/KyotoAnimation arson attack, which caused many companies in Japan to increase provisions for the safety of their employees - it’s likely The Pokémon Company did this to prevent a protest at the event from turning violent.[[/note]].
*** Content from the game and its strategy guide was leaked from 4chan and spread across the internet at the dawn of November 2019, which led to [=#GameFreakLied=] going viral after it was discovered that, among other things, many [[https://twitter.com/Blazingflare/status/1194437128739930113 returning Pokémon models]] and animations in ''Sword and Shield'' were reused from earlier games, despite Masuda claiming that the total number of Pokémon was cut to improve the game's graphics and animation work. A week and a half after launch, [[https://www.forbes.com/sites/thomasbrewster/2019/11/25/who-leaked-sword-and-shield-secrets-pokmon-lawyers-want-to-catch-em-all/#6eef6e27751f Game Freak and the Pokémon Company International]] took measures to hunt down the leakers, and 4chan's new manager was compliant with authorities to this end.
!!WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings.{{Other}}
* Website/{{Tumblr}}
** It's surprisingly common for bloggers to wipe their blogs and/or change their usernames if a post they write instigates a massive amount of backlash. Such backlash is much more frequent when the topic of social justice is brought up.
** Similarly, bloggers may disable anonymous comments or asks entirely if certain people abuse the {{GIFT}} as an excuse to harass people. While disabling anon usually cuts down on the vitriol, it also means that those who might not have an account or are too shy to come forward with their name attached can no longer do so even if their intent is completely benign.
** The person who's known on the site as "xkit Guy" used to offer popular xkit extensions for Tumblr users to revert unpopular site design changes. That is until bloggers who were frustrated at his slowness of updating decided to deluge him with abuse and hatemail — culminating in a [[KnightTemplar dubious accusation of harassment]] — and ultimately drove him off the site.
!!WorldOfWarcraft.TropesFToL
* {{GIFT}}: The game's chat is notorious for the racism, homophobia, and lewdness from childish players (who are not all children by the way). Particularly in the Barrens and City Trade channels. The latter connects between all of a faction's capital cities, Shattrath City and Dalaran, meaning that all players looking for raids, trying to recruit for them, or buying or selling goods have to put up with it.
** Technically the City Trade channel connects ALL capital cities. If you're a Hordie on a raid in Stormwind, you will still see the Trade Chat of all the Horde cities.
!!WorldOfWarcraft.TropesSToZ
* VideoGameCrueltyPotential:
** Just remember that every time you killed Varian Wrynn, you did so in front of his son.
** In the above-mentioned Forsaken quest in the Sludge Fields, instead of freeing the human captives you can [[WhatTheHellHero bash their skulls in with a shovel]]. [[MercyKill It ends their suffering]], right?
** There's nothing more satisfying than a battle quest where you must mount an invincible flying dragon to get about 200 kills. Often this mount has an obscenely powerful [=AoE=] attack. You must get those kills, but you can then remain on the mount and keep blasting the enemy army while they keep respawning for as long as you like.
** At the end of Badlands questing, [[spoiler:you receive the late Rheastrasza's egg as a trinket, the flavor text on which asks you to keep the hatchling safe. You can sell or disenchant it like you would any other trinket, though given what you went through to get it, you'd have to be either completely heartless or just indifferent]].
** You ''could'' let Ji be executed by the Kor'kron in the Siege of Orgrimmar by waiting around for a bit, then watch as Aysa dies attempting a RoaringRampageOfRevenge, but you'd really have to go out of your way to do this and most raiders will never take that long.
** As long as a player is flagged for [=PVP=], they can attack [=NPCs=] of the opposite faction with impunity. [[{{GIFT}} Some]] [[{{Griefer}} players]] [[ForTheEvulz delight]] in such behavior.
** A minor one in Gorefiend's chamber in Hellfire Citadel: at the upper level, there are orc and draenei prisoners in cages. You can kill the former as an Alliance character and the latter as a Horde character, [[FateWorseThanDeath sending their souls to be eaten by Gorefiend the same as when you kill the fel orc mobs in the same area]].
** In Sinfall, there's a dredger sitting on a ledge above a bottomless pit that you can punt him into.
** Every wing of Torghast has soul remnants that you can liberate for a primary stat buff. The ones in the Upper Reaches and Soulforges, however, give you the choice of liberating them or destroying them for Phantasma.
** Also in Torghast, the Brokers sell Ravenous Anima Cells that can turn non-elite [=NPCs=] into an Anima Cell. You can use them on the Brokers themselves for a quick 400 Phantasma.
!!WorseThanItSounds.TVTropes
* [[spoiler:{{GIFT}}]]: Witness the power of the internet in broadening the scope of conversations that would never happen in real life.
!!XMeetsY.TabletopGames
* ''TabletopGame/{{FATAL}}'' can be summed up as ''D&D'' meets hardcore porn and math textbooks. But that's an insult to ''D&D'' and math textbooks, and most hardcore porn.
** ''FATAL'' is European folklore meets untreated schizophrenia meets I'd really rather not think about what else.
** ''FATAL'' is ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' written by [[{{GIFT}} all the most bigoted, obnoxious white guys]] on Website/FourChan.
!!YMMV.AllisonPregler
* MisBlamed: A lot of people who blame Lupa for allegedly kicking Spoony off of TGWTG either don't seem to realise or even care ([[{{GIFT}} or do know but want to attack her anyway]]) that Spoony himself has said Lupa [[http://www.twitlonger.com/show/i6dop4 did not]] [[http://spoonyexperiment.com/2012/09/15/to-boldly-flee-part-1-spoony-commentary/ get him fired]]. In addition, quite a few people accuse her of being the one to tell Spoony to go and kill himself, when in reality it was Creator/LordKaT who made the remark, and Allison went out of her way to tell people that [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome wasn't cool]] the second she heard about [=LordKaT=]'s comment. [[http://tgwtgsecrets.tumblr.com/post/30068873697/reply-to-ive-been-needing-to-get-this-off-my-chest Welshy puts the story straight here]]. The worst part is, no one fired Spoony, he quit when he realized that after being suspended for a month, his ad revenue hadn't actually gone down.
!!YMMV.{{Bambi}}
* MemeticMutation:
** Thumper's "If you can't say something nice, don't say nothing at all," line is used a lot nowadays, for [[{{GIFT}} obvious reasons]].
** Within the studio, the line "Man is in the forest" became a tongue-in-cheek code amongst the animators for when Walt Disney was coming by to look at their work.
** [[ItWasHisSled Bambi's Mother's death]] is very commonly referenced or parodied in works that reference this film.
** It is ''extremely'' common in real life to name pet or captive deer Bambi or Faline.
!!YMMV.BlackMirrorHatedInTheNation
* HarsherInHindsight: This whole episode is a vicious commentary on {{GIFT}} culture the Internet has going on, that how death threats and hatred can personally affect their targets, even if it's behind a screen. Just a year later, in ''Series/GameOfThrones'', Blue's actress Faye Marsay, who plays The Waif, got some serious messages on the Internet due to the HateSink she was supposed to be on the show, [[https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a811141/game-of-thrones-actress-faye-marsay-quits-social-media-after-abuse/ which forced her to quit social media]], as the Internet failed to separate her character and her real life out of it.
!!YMMV.BlackMirrorUSSCallister
* EsotericHappyEnding: As noted on the main page entry, OnlyTheLeadsGetAHappyEnding. But even setting aside the problems of their real life counterparts, the crew are still stuck forever in a created universe populated by {{GIFT}}[=-afflicted=] douchebags like [=Gamer691=]. The rules of their new existence free from Daly's mod, such as whether they're now capable of dying permanently, are also left unclear. Downplayed, in that none of those same douchebags have nearly as much power as Daly did and, as shown, the crew can just leave if things get threatening.
** Another implication bordering on FridgeHorror is that [[spoiler:the lead designer and key figure of the company that made the ''Infinty'' game is dead]], which makes the in-universe future of ''Infinity'' very uncertain. Even without that in mind, how long would it take for the game to be inevitably rewritten or shut down, erasing the whole crew from existence in the process?
*** It's unlikely that the ''Infinity'' game as a whole is at risk. If the episode is anything to go off, though Daly invented it, it seemed like Dudani and the other programmers were the ones actively coding everything. Additionally, considering how large the office is, it's unlikely that ''Infinity'' is Callister's only source of revenue even if it's their most popular game.
!!YMMV.{{Chikara}}
* WhyFandomCantHaveNiceThings: The original official Chikara forums were the fan-run [=ChikaraFans=]. And the owner and moderators fell afoul of the {{GIFT}} and started acting like Internet Big Deals and running the forums like a fiefdom. So Chikara ended the affiliation with [=ChikaraFans=] and created their own official forums, [=Chikara101=]. Predictably, the guys who ran [=ChikaraFans=] turned completely against the promotion, renamed the forum to the Jorge Rivera Appreciation Society[[note]]this was shortly after the incident where Jorge "Skayde" Rivera screwed with CHIKARA shortly before King of Trios 2010[[/note]] and then the Tuck Hanson Fanclub[[note]]Tuck Hanson was a indy wrestler in training who was unhappy with his time at the Wrestle Factory and posted a call-out on the [=Chikara101=] boards[[/note]] and used the boards for mudslinging and outside-kayfabe rumors until the owner let the domain die.
!!YMMV.CinemaSins
* BrokenBase:
** Don't even touch the shitstorm that followed the announcement of Brand Sins. Either it's an intriguing concept that aims to explore more aspects of society, or it's a long and boring series whose topic is ill-suited by the Cinema Sins style, with an irritatingly voiced narrator. Either way, {{GIFT}} applies.
** Even among fans of the franchise, there's debate over which "style" of Cinema Sins is better. The Old Format was shorter and focused more on actual FridgeLogic, while the new format has longer videos with many of the sins falling under RuleOfFunny or nitpicking.
** Jeremy's Dear Hollywood videos already have this going due to his abrasive attitude, but the "F*ck Disney" and "F*ck Hollywood" videos in particular are divisive due to Jeremy accusing the industry of killing creativity over remakes and sequels and proclaiming that people who enjoy these films and other remakes and sequels [[OpinionMyopia are doing so as well.]] This sparked debate between people who agreed with him and those angry at him for overreacting and making a myopic statement, noting that remakes and sequels are nothing new and on how bad original works are nothing to praise. After all, he still finds plenty of sins with films that are more original. Another crowd even sees him as borderline hypocritical, noting that Jeremy has branched ''[=CinemaSins=]'' into multiple forms such as Music Video Sins and Brand Sins, and makes a living nitpicking off the work of others, or the fact both he and Chris got their start writing clickbait articles, which hollows his "dumbing down of entertainment" complaint.
** Jeremy's now deleted video where he accused Screen Junkies of ripping off his Before and After reviews with their now deleted Review Crew video, which contained ProductPlacement has become this. While there are those who side with him, others have called him out for being immature, especially considering the Screen Junkies claimed to have not seen his series and included the ProductPlacement due to it being from a sponsor, in addition to pointing out that car review shows have been done by other people before. The fact both deleted their videos and appeared to make up has only made the matter more contentious.
** UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump's cameo from ''[[Film/HomeAlone Home Alone 2: Lost in New York]]'' got [[UpToEleven 1,000,000,000 sins]] (In comparison, the ''Ocean's Eleven'' scene where Danny Ocean is in a phone booth next to the Trump Plaza gets 10 sins). Some appreciated the TakeThat aimed at the president, while others saw it as a political cheap shot and felt Jeremy was signaling that Trump supporters, or right-wingers in general, were not welcome in his fanbase.
*** For that matter, Jeremy becoming more political in later videos, which is split between those who agree with his views and those who don't. Those who agree with his views usually say that these views are relatively uncontroversial with opposition to them being minimal. Those who disagree with his views argue that while he has every right to voice his views and opinions, a web series whose premise is identifying flaws in movies is hardly the appropriate place.
!!YMMV.{{Cracked}}
* HeartwarmingInHindsight: In their September 2018 article "[[https://www.cracked.com/blog/4-ways-corporations-are-turning-us-into-jerks/ 4 Ways Corporations Are Turning Us Into Jerks]]", Cracked criticized Disney's decision to fire Creator/JamesGunn from ''Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3'' due to [[{{GIFT}} pressure from internet mobs]], arguing that [[BlackComedy his jokes made before he was hired by Disney/Marvel]] were falsely equated with Roseanne Barr's racist tweets made during the short-lived ''Roseanne'' revival on ABC. In March 2019, Disney announced that they would be rehiring Gunn for ''Vol. 3''.
!!YMMV.DarksideOfTheInternet
* {{Anvilicious}}: Giving in to {{GIFT}} is bad. Online personas might not be the same as RealLife people, but words still hurt. (And Cyberbullying is ''extremely'' bad.)
!!YMMV.DerrenBrown
* {{GIFT}}: A variant, again in the ''The Experiments'' episode ''The Gameshow'' shows how people degrade into cold heartless bastards when given anonymity and given the chance to vote the outcome of someone's night out. It also uses the same formula (the audience knows/thinks that they're being televised live, and are given "phantom" masks to hide their identity).
!!YMMV.Die2Nite
* BrokenBase: Not in the normal sense, but the community is split into the German, French and English versions and intentionally kept divided by the developers. Having an account on more than on version is a bannable offence, mainly since, in practice, {{GIFT}} proved that the first thing most people would do with it is {{troll}} the other country's forums with tasteless UsefulNotes/WorldWarII jokes.
!!YMMV.DoubutsuSentaiZyuohger
* HilariousInHindsight:
** Zyuoh Elephant is the first elephant-themed Ranger in ''Sentai'', coming after ''Gaoranger'', ''Gekiranger'', and immediate predecessor ''Ninninger'' all had green elephant mecha; and ''Gekiranger''[='s=] adaptation ''Series/PowerRangersJungleFury'' even had its own similar-looking Elephant Ranger.
** The fact that this show debuted a month before the US release of ''WesternAnimation/{{Zootopia}}'' is pure, furry-filled coincidence.
** Ginis has a [[WeaponOfMassDestruction WMD]] that he deliberately named "Gift", intended as a NonIndicativeName… unless you know of the other meaning of {{GIFT}} nowadays.
** One recently-revived ancient mecha gets a massive reaction at the sight of an ancient enemy from its time suddenly revived - are we talking about Zyuoh Whale upon seeing [[spoiler:Azald]], or [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamIronBloodedOrphans the Gundam Frames in response to Mobile Armor Hashmal?]]
** So people joked about Kohei Murakami's character Bard causing some misunderstandings[[labelnote:note]]He played Masato Kusaka in Series/KamenRiderFaiz, a very memetic character.[[/labelnote]], whether betraying the gang or doing something that would cause infighting. Hell, his character already somewhat started that as early as #11. But then comes [[spoiler:#46]], and even though it has been established since then that Bard is a good guy, the fact that he caused a severe misunderstanding that affected a character's backstory has fans laughing in glee. The extra irony being that it was also established that Bard [[ContrivedCoincidence didn't do it on purpose, either]].
*** In short, while Kusaka is a BitchInSheepsClothing and VillainWithGoodPublicity, Bard is (ironically, like Takumi) [[spoiler: the complete inverse: a HeroWithBadPublicity and unassuming GuardianAngel]].
** When Bangray becomes obsessed with wanting to break Yamato's connections and send him into "despair," it makes him sound a lot like a [[Series/KamenRiderWizard Phantom.]]
** In a rare case of Franchise/PowerRangers doing it first, the series ends with [[spoiler:Zyumans and humans living together]] just after ''Series/PowerRangersDinoCharge'' did the same thing with [[spoiler:humans and dinosaurs.]]
** Not only did a character voiced by Creator/NobuyukiHiyama fight against a yellow-armored, lion-themed, HotBlooded ScreamingWarrior like [[Anime/GaoGaiGar Guy Shishioh]] (whose father is also named Leo and who also has a friend who [[ThePowerOfRock plays the electric guitar]] in [[MusicalAssassin Mic Sounders the 13th]]), said warrior is also allied with a red, bird-themed warrior with a WhipSword like [[Anime/PanzerWorldGalient Galient]] and their respective series were featured for the first time together in ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsBX'' which was released just eight months before "[[Recap/DoubutsuSentaiZyuohgerEp08SavannasMelody Savanna's Melody]]" aired. Had Yabaiker last until the [[Recap/DoubutsuSentaiZyuohgerEp09ADayDoesNotEnd next episode]], he would have met [[DrillMole Cube Mogura/Mole]], which is a DrillTank just like [=DrillGao=], [=StraightGao=], and [=SpiralGao=] (the latter two are also modeled after moles).
!!YMMV.EveOnline
* {{GIFT}}: Let's say this...if there is one thing that'll bug you about EVE, it's the sickening amount of dickery that happens in this game... unless [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential it's what you signed on for in the first place]].
!!YMMV.{{Halo}}
* {{GIFT}}: Like all online video games, Halo's online portion has had issues with {{Griefer}}s. Unfortunately due to its popularity, the GIFT has been placed at the forefront, to the point that they are actually MisBlamed for "creating" it.
!!YMMV.{{Halo}}
* {{Misblamed}}: Halo's userbase has been misblamed for the creation of the "juvenile and unfriendly" gamer. Apparently people haven't heard of the [[{{GIFT}} Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory]], which has been in existence long before Halo was even thought of. Halo just brought the issue to light if anything.
!!YMMV.KannagiCrazyShrineMaidens
* OvershadowedByControversy: The series is better known for the horrendous over-reactions {{Otaku}}s had to Nagi (''[[PerverseSexualLust a fictional character]]'') having had a boyfriend at least once. Leading to very vile SlutShaming [[{{GIFT}} online]] and the author's health declining even worse.
!!YMMV.LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit
* MemeticMutation: [[http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/intimidation-game Intimidation Game]], which created the following:
** "GO HOME, GAMER GIRL."
** "They leveled up." The line is equal parts {{Narm}} and tastelessness to the point that it unintentionally CrossesTheLineTwice.
** "Prepare to be slaughtered" along with the K.O.B.S. mask in general.
** "There is no reset button in real life."
** The use of the phrase "darknet" (in lieu of the proper term deep web) is parodied often.
** The K.O.B.S. taunts "LEVEL UP!" and "GAME ON NYPD!" gained traction pretty quickly.
** The CaptainErsatz website [[Website/{{Reddit}} Red]][[ImageBoards chan]][[{{GIFT}} it]] gained traction on Reddit and 8chan, with certain gaming-related subforums on both sites using the moniker as an AppropriatedAppellation. Redchan.it even linked to an 8chan board for a time.
** "I read on Kotaku that it [[ShowWithinAShow the Amazonian Warriors game]] was better than ''[[VideoGame/{{Civilization}} Civ 5]]'' with the ''Brave New World'' expansion pack!" The ProductPlacement-laden line inspired a bunch of {{snowclones}}.
** "Where? Where does he play them!?" Delivered with [[SeriousBusiness the same urgency]] as "[[Series/TwentyFour Tell me where the bomb is!]]" or "[[Film/TheDarkKnightRises Tell me about Bane! Why does he wear the mask?!]]"
** The POV gun-aiming scene at the end of the episode has been photoshopped to include the settings and [=HUDs=] of popular FPS games.
** This [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zd8vzIRQLLM one scene]] from the Season 4 episode "Lowdown" has been making the rounds.
!!YMMV.LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnitS16E14IntimidationGame
* MemeticMutation: Created the following:
** "GO HOME, GAMER GIRL."
** "They leveled up." The line is equal parts {{Narm}} and tastelessness to the point that it unintentionally CrossesTheLineTwice.
** "Prepare to be slaughtered" along with the K.O.B.S. mask in general.
** "There is no reset button in real life."
** The use of the phrase "darknet" (in lieu of the proper term deep web) is parodied often.
** The K.O.B.S. taunts "LEVEL UP!" and "GAME ON NYPD!" gained traction pretty quickly.
** The CaptainErsatz website [[Website/{{Reddit}} Red]][[ImageBoards chan]][[{{GIFT}} it]] gained traction on Reddit and 8chan, with certain gaming-related subforums on both sites using the moniker as an AppropriatedAppellation. Redchan.it even linked to an 8chan board for a time.
** "I read on Kotaku that it [[ShowWithinAShow the Amazonian Warriors game]] was better than ''[[VideoGame/{{Civilization}} Civ 5]]'' with the ''Brave New World'' expansion pack!" The ProductPlacement-laden line inspired a bunch of {{snowclones}}.
** "Where? Where does he play them!?" Delivered with [[SeriousBusiness the same urgency]] as "[[Series/TwentyFour Tell me where the bomb is!]]"
*** Or "[[Film/TheDarkKnightRises Tell me about Bane! Why does he wear the mask?!]]"
** The POV gun-aiming scene at the end of the episode has been photoshopped to include the settings and [=HUDs=] of popular FPS games.
** [[AC:Executive Producer: Dick Wolf]] is also mocked. After a whole episode about gaming culture, the phrase "Dick Wolf" ties into [[Webcomic/PennyArcade a certain meme from a popular video game webcomic]].
!!YMMV.LoveSimon
* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic
** While Abby is arguably an exception, Nick and Leah play with the ConflictBall. [[spoiler:All three realize after the holiday break that Simon's been lying to and matchmaking them, as well as using Abby as a bartering chip to keep his secret. While they collectively [[WhatTheHellHero tell him off for it]], this is the first time they've spoken to their best friend in ''weeks'', after he was ForcedOutOfTheCloset on the biggest possible stage (which, though he didn't take their calls, further supposes that none of them bothered to ''come to his house'' over the holiday to console him, despite ample ability to do so). Simon points out he was being ''blackmailed'' into keeping Nick away from Abby, in addition to ''genuinely'' (if obliviously) believing Leah would be happy with Nick. Leah's reasons for being upset (getting her hopes up over Simon only to feel rejected when he encouraged her to date Nick) fall entirely under the umbrella of IncompatibleOrientation, despite her professing not to care that Simon's gay. At no point do any of the trio express interest or resentment towards ''Martin'''s part in the manipulations after Simon identifies him as the blackmailer, and they simply look on as he's being publicly humiliated by school bullies. Abby is justifiably angry at being used, betrayed, and forced to endure Martin's uncomfortable presence -- made worse by the fact that Simon's manipulations comprise almost half of her friendship with him by that point -- but Simon's oldest friends ultimately seem petty for drawing out his anxiety, cutting him off during what they knew to be his lowest point, and leaving him to fend for himself (it doesn't help that she very briefly tries to make Simon into her PetHomosexual by egging him into calling the football players at homecoming "fine" in an exaggerated, sassy voice, clearly not the reason Simon trusted her to be the first person he told this incredibly big secret to). Simon's visible uncertainty watching the three after Cabaret indicates that at least Abby and Nick still hadn't forgiven him by that point.]]
** For that matter, most of the students using that school blog. Nobody in the film questions the fact that it's used almost exclusively for gossip more than anything school-related. Worse, it ''names'' the students being gossiped about while bloggers are [[{{GIFT}} allowed to remain anonymous]]. Even before he [[spoiler:uses Simon as his fall guy]], Martin is essentially cyber-bullied by all of the unflattering remixes and memes of his embarrassing stunt at homecoming, and what he does is only slightly worse than what most of the other bloggers are using it for (and unlike the audience, the students doing it don't want to see him [[LaserGuidedKarma taken down a peg for doing something wrong]]. They're just [[TeensAreMonsters picking on an unpopular kid]]). This may be intentional, however, considering how [[spoiler:Simon]]'s ComingOutStory ends up inspiring more students to start using the blog for good and sharing their own stories of insecurity.
!!YMMV.MadMaxFuryRoad
* MemeticMutation:
** The [[http://feministmadmax.tumblr.com/ "Feminist Mad Max"]] meme. Kind of like "Good Guy Greg", but focused on Max respectfully helping Furiosa.
** "WITNESS!!!" [[note]](when a War Boy is about to go out in suicide attack and his comrades answer to him)[[/note]] Several people have been responding to [[spoiler: Nux's HeroicSacrifice]] with variations of "I will witness you!" and "I have witnessed you!"
** Spraying [[http://www.amazon.com/Wilton-710-5521-Silver-Color-Mist/dp/B005KTVG86/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1432691879&sr=8-1&keywords=wilton+silver+color+mist Color Spray]] to be all Shiny and Chrome when you enter Valhalla. The word "Chrome" being used to mean anything good or cool is also on the rise.
** The iconic shot of Max [[https://prodwpids-idrivesafely.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/mad-max-fury-road-pole-vault-gif.gif swinging on a pole]] whilst [[StuffBlowingUp everything explodes]] in the background.
** It's become popular to state on online message boards that the movie is actually a non-fiction documentary depicting a normal day in [[EverythingTryingToKillYou Australia.]] [[note]] Going along with Australia's MemeticBadass DeathWorld reputation online. [[/note]]
** Thanks to Immortan Joe, declarations of "'''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BX-FMvt83fA MEDIOCRE!]]'''" have become popular among fans of the film, especially when used against the movie's detractors.
** [[LackOfEmpathy "DO NOT, MY FRIENDS, BECOME ADDICTED TO WATER!]] [[CondescendingCompassion IT WILL TAKE HOLD OF YOU, AND YOU WILL RESENT ITS ABSENCE!"]]
*** Adding to this, it's common to caption pictures of Nestlé or its CEO with this quote, because not only is the company responsible for extracting water from drought-stricken areas for their bottled water, but one of their CEO's outright said that water being a human right was an extremist position.
** The out-of-context subtitle [[https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-FfrCeKaGSj0/Ve5OK45TZVI/AAAAAAAAIA0/rX7ObEtMADE/w1174-h884/Screen%2BShot%2B2015-09-07%2Bat%2B7.55.18%2BPM.png "Men yelling indistinctly"]] (often complete with a non-plussed screenshot of Furiosa) is getting serious rounds as shorthand for [[{{GIFT}} the realities of the internet]].
** The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhKUDe3K_vY Bullet Farmer]]'s [[ChewingTheScenery over-the-top speech]] after [[spoiler: he gets blinded.]]
** Captioning extremely silly [[MacGyvering MacGyvered]] vehicles with "Gonna die historic on the Fury Road."
** "[[https://media.giphy.com/media/K0AnEB2t2EM/giphy.gif Uh, Uh... that's bait.]]" [[note]]A .gif of Max's reaction to an ObviousTrap has taken on a life of its own in message board circles, usually used as a way to point out Flame Bait or obvious trolling[[/note]]
** [[PlayingAgainstType From the director of]] ''Film/{{Babe}}'' [[PlayingAgainstType and]] ''WesternAnimation/HappyFeet'' [[note]] It's become fairly popular to note the irony of the fact that a blisteringly popular, explosively successful, R-Rated violent action extravaganza was directed by a 70-year old man who hasn't made a film rated higher than PG since ''Film/TheWitchesOfEastwick'' in ''1987''.[[/note]]
** "He was scanning the horizon!": used as a reaction to people getting overexcited at their crush/idol/etc. looking at them. Especially popular with the "Senpai noticed me!" meme.
!!YMMV.{{Minecraft}}
* ItsPopularNowItSucks:
** After Notch received an interview in a popular PC magazine and was plugged on the ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' blog, [[http://www.minecraftforum.net/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=21336 some people]] called the demise of the game. The cries of "Notch is a sellout!" became even more common among fans once he announced ''Minecraft'' would come to the UsefulNotes/Xbox360, which happened because of the game's huge success. Even more so when the game was ported to 8th Generation platforms.
** With all the popular ''Minecraft'' let's players on Website/YouTube, it's not uncommon to see at least three or more million view ''Minecraft'' videos in the related videos section. This, however, has made some gamers absolutely sick of seeing or hearing about the game entirely; especially from the Nintendo community.
** While it never really had a target age group to begin with, ''Minecraft'' in the early days of Indev, Alpha, and Beta was relatively obscure and was mostly played by college students and computer geeks. Once it became a household name and was released on almost every game console available, it became really popular with very young children and a handful of the original players were annoyed by this. A part of it being that they find the younger players to be [[{{GIFT}} annoying or immature]], while others are annoyed about the general public pegging ''Minecraft'' as a "kiddie game".
** This has subsided during ''Minecraft's'' PopularityPolynomial, with the previous generation of players having grown up and had started to play the game again.
!!YMMV.MonteFjanton
* AcceptableTargets:
** Helena Bergström and Colin Nutley, because Felix believes them to be untalented and nepotism almost always being involved around their movies.
** The Sune reboot and the Åsa-Nisse films, because they made a lot of money in the box office despite them, to Felix, being very abysmal movies.
** The raggare subculture. Once in a while the members of the channel will also poke fun at ''buskis''-comedy[[note]]A Swedish genre of (usually) live-action theater which focuses more on LampshadeHanging and ToiletHumour than plot and characters[[/note]].
** The Guldbagge Awards.[[note]]An annual reward on a much smaller scale but similar to the Oscars.[[/note]] According to Felix, there just aren't a lot of award-worthy Swedish movies, which results in The Guldbagge Awards awarding what sucked the least and not movies that are actually good.
** [[{{GIFT}} Youtube comments]].
** The Swedish Film Institute, because it's very selective when it comes to what movies they fund - on principle, they don't fund horror movies, and they notably denied ''Den blomstertid nu kommer'', but they readily fund questionable indie projects and funneled millions into generic, safe movies such as ''Halvdan viking''.
!!YMMV.MrTARDISReviews
* HePannedItNowHeSucks:
** His negative review of ''Series/ComeFlyWithMe'' produced a huge backlash against him. Trilbee did a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqaokTUiZVM response video]] to [[{{Jerkass}} one user]] [[SmallNameBigEgo who was using]] [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech the negative backlash]] [[{{GIFT}} as a stick to beat him with]].
** His reviews of the ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' movies get this from [[FanCommunityNickname Twi-Hards]]. Some people also feel that he goes too far in bashing the books and their fans. (Trilbee himself would later acknowledge and apologise for his past treatment of Twilight fans in the epilogue of one of his [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SxRlwVz1pNU&t=853s videos]].)
** Whenever he does a negative review of an episode of ''Series/DoctorWho'', he'll get people attacking him for hating the episode.
** He was one of the few critics to give ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan'' a negative review, which produced backlash from the film's fanbase. It doesn't help that [[BerserkButton he never stops talking about it]].
** His SoOkayItsAverage verdict on ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises'' has given him some flack from the film's fans. It's worth noting in this case, his view on the film [[CriticalDissonance matches that of the majority of internet critics]].
*** He's noted that this seems to be the reaction whenever he reviews a comic book movie he can't rave about. ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier''? He didn't like it enough. ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan2''? Shouldn't have hated it. ''Film/IronMan3''? Loved it, and no one cared.
** And now his [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjLuqb65Nds negative review]] of ''Film/StarTrekIntoDarkness'' has earned him some ire.
!!YMMV.{{Pokemon}}
* StopHavingFunGuys: Some [[TournamentPlay competitive players]] mock people who play with their favorite monsters and insist that the series [[SeriousBusiness isn't for kids.]] Though this seems to be more a product of {{GIFT}} than anything, as most prominent members of the competitive community, such as most Pokétubers and contributing members of Website/{{Smogon}}, actually applaud players who make use of lesser-seen Pokémon and often try to do so themselves (though they can be less receptive if they believe said players are using such Pokémon poorly). After all, the alternative is seeing [[PlayerPreferredPattern the same dozen or so Pokémon]] [[BoringButPractical over and over]] [[ComplacentGamingSyndrome AND OVER]] again.
!!YMMV.ProtestTheHero
* HarsherInHindsight: "Sex Tapes" was written about [[{{GIFT}} the selfishness and sociopathic nature of online voyeurism]] and how fast and far one person's nudes or (often ostensibly private) amateur porn video can spread. The song was written roughly around 2009 or 2010, back when things like revenge porn, hacked webcams, and stolen nudes and videos were starting to become a problem, but well before events like The Fappening would demonstrate just how serious a problem it had become.
!!YMMV.RalphBreaksTheInternet
* {{Narm}}:
** The [[spoiler:zombie apocalypse]] was supposed to be tense, but [[spoiler:the goofy grins on the zombie Ralphs' faces]] make it hard to take them seriously.
** The scene where Ralph reads the mean comments about him is supposed to be a TearJerker, but the scene is so poorly executed to some that it just comes off as funny. For one thing, the commenters don't know that Ralph is an individual, so in reality they're getting heated and making personal insults about a ''video game meme.''[[note]][[TruthInTelevision Not that this stops certain people on the actual internet from being overly offended by the most minor and harmless of things like this in real life.]][[/note]] Secondly, a movie for children can't exactly get into [[{{GIFT}} the worst of Internet comments,]] so anybody who's ever been in a comment section on sites like [=YouTube=] has seen much worse that calling someone a "loser" or a "worthless bum."
!!YMMV.RalphBreaksTheInternet
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Fix-It Felix Jr. and Sergeant Calhoun parenting the ''Sugar Rush'' racers could have been a fun little subplot, but it's never brought up again until the end; even then it's never revealed to the audience exactly how they handled them, or how the couple and the racers felt about Vanellope leaving ''Sugar Rush''. As it turns out, the writers (sort of) agreed -- this sub-plot was supposed to be a much bigger part of the movie, but ultimately was left on the cutting room floor to help reduce the movie's run-time.
** Contrary to a lot of initial expectations when the film's premise was first revealed, there is not a single scene in the film that heavily focuses around the presence of online gaming, barring the presence of the OriginalGeneration game ''Slaughter Race'' and a throw-away reference to ''VideoGame/{{Fortnite}}''. Ralph visiting an online game network such as Steam was a VERY popular scenario that was often tossed around by fans in order to imagine the number of video-game cameos it could offer, akin to the iconic "Bad-Anon" scene from the original. However, this is still fertile territory for a third film should one be made.
** [[{{GIFT}} The nature of internet comments]] is briefly touched on, but only in a short scene that has little bearing on the plot and is quickly forgotten. Given this film is about the internet, they could have done a lot more to explore its darker side.
** Even though ''Wreck-It Ralph'' is a Disney movie in real life, there are no references to it in Oh My Disney! This could have led to some really meta jokes like another Ralph and Vanellope being there or Turbo appearing as a PunchClockVillain.
** Imagine how much more interesting the plot would be if Ralph ''didn't'' get the wheel in time, causing him to see himself as even more of a failure than ever. Also, as a result of this, [[spoiler:since Vanellope can get properly coded into ''Slaughter Race'', it could have also been a place for the ''Sugar Rush'' characters to let their legacies live on in the form of bonus content, or maybe DLC]].
** Many fans of Franchise/TheMuppets weren't pleased that their only presence in the film is Kermit's head on a sign and Beaker appearing on a poster - no actual Muppets appear.
!!YMMV.{{Scum}}
* ItsTheSameNowItSucks: A good chunk of the criticisms level toward ''Dog Pound'' were this (well, at least on [[{{GIFT}} IMDB]]; the actual critical consensus toward it was generally positive). Naturally, the rest of the criticism was [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks They Changed It, Now It Sucks]].
** Roy Minton, who wrote both versions of ''Scum'', thought this about the film, insofar as they cast a lot of the same actors that had been in the TV version two years earlier (in particular Creator/RayWinstone, John Blundell and Phil Daniels.) Minton thought it was more upsetting to see guys barely out of their teens being that violent; when they were 20 or older, it seemed less unnatural.
!!YMMV.{{Shitsurakuen}}
* WhatMeasureIsANonBadass: [[ShrinkingViolet Tomoko]] is a fourteen year old girl in a nightmarish situation... A number of forum goers have decided that she is a useless coward who shouldn't have the privilege of being Sora's slave and deserves whatever happens to her next. Some of those same forum goers have complained about the male characters all being utter bastards. And then there are the ''[[{{GIFT}} really]]'' [[{{GIFT}} scary internet dwellers]] (thankfully not many) who actually think a school like this is a ''good idea''.
!!YMMV.{{Smite}}
* MemeticMutation: Whenever a God Reveal on the Youtube channel is released, you will always hear someone saying something along the lines of "Still waiting for Jesus."
** The Voice Guided System, similar to voice commands found in, say, VideoGame/CounterStrike, though they are more expansive and generally more intuitive (they can also change based on your god and skin, [[RevenueEnhancingDevices if you've bought the voice pack]]). Players are liable to state the keyboard path to a voice command in conversation - for example, complimenting someone with "VER" ([[{{GIFT}} or sarcastically complimenting them]]), which leads to "You rock!"
*** VER VVX ("You rock!", "Cancel that!") is a particularly infamous abuse of the system for rude purposes.
** Ymir's emoticon "Hi!" might be normal, until Hi-Rez released a mini-series called 'Smite Machinima' where Ymir does and says absolutely nothing except his "Hi!" once per episode and using his actual voice clip while others use voice acting. Fans always thought that Ymir and his "Hi" is the best and most hilarious part in the series, and now attaches that greetings to Ymir all day long for hilarity.
** Mentioning [[BestialityIsDepraved Cerberus and Freya together]]. You see, someone hacked into Smite's twitter account and [[https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DiANvecV4AAYgOi?format=jpg&name=large posted a sentence quite unsafe for work]]...
** Before he was reworked, Guan Yu's Taolu Assault will let out sounds of gongs being hit rapidly. These sounds ends up being called 'Bongos', and Guan Yu has been associated with those terms, such as "Bongos of Death". Even if after the rework wherein he does not produce the sound again, the 'bongos' are sure to be mentioned if someone makes a reference to Guan Yu GameBreaker release state.
** Fenrir is known for being stuck in DevelopmentHell before he was finally made playable. However, this DevelopmentHell stuck in the mind of fans that anytime there's a new God announcement, they still refer to "Still waiting for Fenrir" or "New God Fenrir". It lived on so much that [[AscendedMeme Hi-Rez decided to elevate this]] as [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMKm2ThMBz4 an April Fools joke for 2018.]]
** A carryover from the AdaptationalDisplacement from Myth/ClassicalMythology, Nike is often referred as 'Goddess of Shoes' because of the more popular brand of shoes that shares the same name and is associated with slogans from it like "JUST DO IT".
** Go anywhere in the Smite community and say that God X needs a buff. One of the suggestions for buffing will be "Give X a gun", guaranteed. [[note]]This meme came from one of Hi-Rez's official casters, Aggro, that jokingly said Khepri (a ''giant beetle'') should have a gun. It picked steam again with Kuzenbo's god release, which definitely needed buffs but people jokingly said he didn't because he already had "[[https://hydra-media.cursecdn.com/smite.gamepedia.com/e/e3/Kuzenbo_Purchase_Recommended_1.ogg these guns]]".[[/note]]
** Kaldr is the real god, Skadi is his pet. You see, Kaldr is a very significant part of Skadi's kit, especially in damage potential, so naturally people joke that Skadi's the sideshow by comparison.
** He Bo's high-damaging basic abilities lead many to joke he in fact has three ultimates. Some go so far as to say he has four ultimates, since Atlas of the Yellow River practically provides the benefits of two Relics along a line.
** People either mistake [[DudeLooksLikeALady Ne Zha as a girl]] (not helped that he's actually voiced by a woman), or they joke that he actually is a girl.
** [[WesternAnimation/{{Mulan}} Let's get down to business...]][[labelnote:Explanation]]The song from Mulan is pretty popular to accompany Chinese deities, but this gets even more elevated when Mulan herself is announced.[[/labelnote]]
!!YMMV.{{Splatoon}}
* BrokenBase:
** The complete lack of voice chat. This decision faced much backlash due to most online shooters, such as ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' and ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield}}'', allowing voice chat; people argue that having no voice chat prevents effective coordination during games and that shooters which include the function have "mute" functions to filter out problematic players. However, there are many who supported the decision, as many of these games tend to have online players who [[{{GIFT}} do nothing but talk down to and insult others]] (this was in fact the producer's stated reason for its exclusion), and argue that most non-pickup teams use third-party software anyway. Others also noted since the game does global rather than regional matchmaking, it's highly likely that your teammates will often be from different countries, rendering the option for voice chat moot since [[LanguageBarrier you'll all be speaking different languages]]. This especially became the case if you're a Westerner still playing the game after the release of [[VideoGame/Splatoon2 the sequel]], as this game's community would quickly come to consist mostly of Japanese players.
** The game having Toys/{{amiibo}} support. On one hand, it was expected that Nintendo would add amiibo support for this game and most fans were thrilled about the ''Splatoon'' characters getting their own figures. On the other hand, due to the DemandOverload problems with new amiibo at the time, many were turned off from the fact that the high demand would mean that certain gear and other things the amiibo unlock might become incredibly difficult to attain. Taken to its logical extreme when [[http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2015-05/27/amiibo-shipment-stolen a shipment of Splatoon amiibo and special editions of the game got stolen in the UK]] just before launch day.
** The game's online features and maps being limited at launch with free expansions coming afterwards. Some people didn't mind the initial lack of features and maps knowing the lineup would be expanded, while others saw this as paying full price for a large "demo" of online multiplayer until the expansions are released, or Nintendo just really wanting to get the game out for the beginning of summer when they really should've held it back to release it "complete". When it turned out that much of the later-released content was complete and already in the game at launch, it sparked an additional debate about "on-disc DLC", and rather it was right for Nintendo to prevent players from accessing the full game right away.
** The music in the North American advertisements for the game were quite polarizing, especially [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ke05YELaAgA the "Squid Kid" ad]]. Those in favor of them found the songs to be quite catchy and liked that they harkened back to the aesthetics of 1990s children's television, which was part of the appeal to some of the older audience for the game. Those who hated them thought that the European and Japanese commercials, which use the in-game music, are more than serviceable, with some taking particular offense to the repeated "YOU'RE A KID, YOU'RE A SQUID" lyric, believing that it embraced a [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids "kiddy"]] image that some older gamers would rather avoid.
** The required use of the Gamepad. Some people thought it enhanced the experience and, as a much-touted feature of the Wii U, it was about time Nintendo started using the thing more. Others were disappointed that local multiplayer isn't really possible, since the Wii U only supports one Gamepad.
** The usage of motion controls falls into this. There are some who prefer the motion controls over dual analog, saying that it's much more accurate than simply using the right stick to aim. Then there are others who are completely adverse to the sensitivity of said motion controls, and claim that it's too much to handle alongside the more traditional dual analog approach. However, the motion controls can be turned off, so this becomes somewhat of a moot point.
** After the introduction of the Tower Defense Ranked Battle mode came the realization that Ranked Battle modes, like Turf War maps, rotate every four hours, with players in Ranked Battles being stuck with the mode chosen until the next rotation. Some players called foul, saying that this is an unacceptable cut to the choices available to players, while others defended the move by pointing out that it helps reduce the possibility of [[ComplacentGamingSyndrome players gravitating to one particular mode at the expense of the others]].
** The developers stating shortly after release that customization will stay limited to clothing, skin color, and eye color, as they wanted to keep the base inkling designs consistent during the period in which the game is still brand new. Some really wished the devs would just add stuff like new hairstyles or body types regardless, while others agreed with the developers' statements by saying the base inkling designs are already so likable there's no need for any radical changes just yet. Different hairstyles, pants, and a wider array of skin and eye colors would ultimately be saved for the sequel.
** During the period in which Urchin Underpass was briefly taken off the rotation for a redesign in August 2015, discussions erupted. Arguments ranged from "But I loved this map! It was perfect!", to how the middle area is way too easy to defend and requires too much team coordination to break into for a game without voice chat, particularly in Splat Zones; to how that shouldn't have been an issue since there are three points of entry into the area; to how that still doesn't help because the map is too charger-friendly, even more than Moray Towers, another map that is a fan favorite in spite of that. There was also the very important issue of [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking whether it is OK for the trees near the spawn points to be moved to the middle of the map.]]
** New weapon types being announced ended up with one of two opinions: either the game needed to have its balance shaken up since specific weapons appeared to be much more common than others, or it's going to ruin the same specific weapons because they're not the "best" any more.
** The fourth North American Splatfest was ''Franchise/{{Transformers}}'' ProductPlacement. Some people didn't mind it and found it fun, while others feared that it'll open the gate for more rampant product placement within the game, mirroring the Japanese version which had already had two such Splatfests. The predominant reaction was simply one of disbelief, however. The later ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' Splatfest garnered an even more polarizing reaction.
** The 2.2.0 update was not very popular with Roller users since their weapons received a huge nerf to their abilities.[[note]]Their ranged attacks were adjusted to only OneHitKill if people were caught in the center of it, meaning Rollers now required much more accuracy to be effective.[[/note]] Other players were glad that they were nerfed, as they felt they were too easy to use prior to the update.
** Playable Octolings. Early on, playable Octolings were easily ''the'' most requested addition to the game, it being rare to go on ''any'' site related to ''Splatoon'' without seeing one discussion of the species being playable. What made this a Broken Base topic was the backlash that those who wanted playable Octolings received, as that part of the community would only get louder and louder throughout the game's various updates, annoying others who used to be indifferent on the subject into actively being against the idea out of spite. Despite game files suggesting that the developers were seriously considering it for this first game, Octolings wouldn't be made playable until ''Splatoon 2'''s "Octo Expansion".
** Bring up the possibility of a weapon tier system at your own risk. While CharacterTiers in general tend to create pretty big {{Broken Base}}s in communities, it's easily doubly so with ''Splatoon''. A large portion of the player base argues that all the weapons in the game are well balanced, and as such there's no way to create a reliable tier system for the game, especially with each ranked mode prioritizing different strengths and weaknesses of different weapons. Others argue that, while more balanced than most other games, there are ''still'' certain weapons that shine better than the rest, and are really strong contenders for any of the modes, and as such, a tier system ''is'' viable. Others, who while agreeing that there are weapons that are stronger than others, don't want a tier list in place because of it causing a ComplacentGamingSyndrome with people picking the tier one weapons only in hopes of easy wins. Meanwhile, there are others who think a tier system would help new players and further develop the competitive community for the game... In short, everyone falls into every possible camp when it comes to the possibility of a tier system in this game.
** Which Squid Sister is better? Callie or Marie? This question has [[SeriousBusiness sparked many debates]], with the game's final Splatfest actually being based around the conflict.
!!YMMV.StarTrekOnline
* FandomRivalry:
** Already suffering from this. Not helping is the fact that ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'' has gone Free To Play as well, leading to something of a revival of the Ur-fandom rivalry.
** Also has an internal one between the players who prefer the Federation, players who prefer the Klingons and the players who prefer the Romulans. Federation players usually want the cloaking ability the Klingons and Romulans have, the Klingon and Romulan players want the expansive set of ships the Federation has and the Federation and Klingon players wish the Romulan players weren't so overpowered.
** The main STO forums vs. the /r/sto Reddit forums. The Reddit forumers don't like the main STO forums because, 9 times out of 10, a single post can devolve into a circlejerk of complaints, attacks and other facepalm-worthy moments. The main STO forumers don't like the Reddit forums because they feel that the forums is nothing more than a circlejerk of praise towards Cryptic and that nothing could ''ever'' go wrong with the game.\\
\\
It should be noted that these are both a major case of AccentuateTheNegative: in the main forums, there are other places where players don't curse Cryptic's name in anger and act like complete nut cases and a lot of that is focused in the General Discussion section and in the Reddit forum, there are players are critical of the game, but show it in a way that doesn't invoke the {{GIFT}} like the forums do (though there are a few players there who ''do'' and will even get critical if you ever dare try to downvote them.)
!!YMMV.SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU
* GoddamnedBats:
** Metal characters in Classic Mode in 3DS ''can'' become this; the thing is that not only do they go for the obvious "higher resistance but more weight" that would usually be associated with them, but they come with the annoying advantage of not flinching when hit with normal attacks at lower percents, which means that characters whose usual weakness is being [[FragileSpeedster frail]] become a LightningBruiser and characters with [[MightyGlacier slow-charging but powerful]] smash attacks now can't be stopped by just hitting during the charge. They also can use items with the same ease as a player and now [[ObviousRulePatch their extra weight is not balanced by hilariously fast falling speed]], which means you can't just throw them out of the stage and watch as they are helplessly dragged down by their own weight while trying to recover. Donkey Kong's Hand Slap is notable for its ridiculous damage output, which makes short work of almost any metal character.
** Smash Run is infested with these.
*** Every Pokémon enemy qualifies: Chandelure takes no damage and ''becomes stronger'' if it's hit by one of the many fire- or darkness-based attacks in ''Smash Bros'', Cryogonal's Ice Beam instantly freezes you and is hard to dodge, Gastly can't be hurt if your character doesn't have a projectile, Koffing has a large attack radius and can lower your stats, and Petilil can put you to sleep.
*** [[Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog Eggrobos]] will either fire a quick blast or a laser that covers the entire screen while moving up or down. This is made worse by being a very common AirborneMook that will back away if you get too close.
*** Fire [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Bubbles]] and especially Ice Bubbles are difficult to fight due to being covered by an aura that will burn you or freeze you if you don't time your attacks perfectly. Being common airborne enemies that will actively charge at you doesn't help.
*** If you damage a [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Cucco]] too much, it will summon a flock of invincible Cuccos that will attack you relentlessly, making it difficult to accomplish anything. Even a defeated enemy bumping into one will provoke it, and they love to spawn right next to a group of enemies, making it very easy to hit them by accident.
*** All of the [[VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising Skuttlers]] have a ton of health and are quite common. The regular Skuttlers are aggressive attackers who will flinch you with a quick attack or launch you with a stronger one. [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking They're also dangerously good at gimping you when you try to recover.]] The Skuttler Cannoneers fire homing rockets that launch you, bombs that launch you, or lasers that flinch you. The Skuttler Mages have an unblockable ranged attack that will lower your stats if you don't dodge at the right time, or a multi-hit melee attack that also lowers your stats and is nearly impossible to escape if you get caught.
*** Paratroopas can be very annoying to deal with, particularly in large numbers, as they attack rather quickly, and in large numbers, they may not give you enough time to dodge [[CycleOfHurting before another one attacks you]]. Of course, large waves of them is the game's preferred way of spawning them, making dealing with them all the more difficult.
*** Bacuras. They don't deal that much damage (only 4%), but they make up for that by hitting with a meteor smash. Also, they are completely [[InvincibleMinorMinion invincible]] and can reflect projectiles. What makes them a real pain to deal with is that they can easily get in the way of navigating the Smash Run area. When trying to go up, they can be hidden off screen and be ready to hit with only a split-second's worth of time to react to. If they are among the randomly-selected enemy roster, they will also spawn frequently too and always show up in groups.
*** The Ghosts from Find Mii. On its own poses little threat, but if you have projectiles, you're in trouble. They also follow you around if you try to run from it, and slowly back away if you try to shoo it out. And God help you if you eat Super Spicy Curry around them...
** In a non-Smash Run example, there are characters who can pull off combos that can render you helpless. The fighting Miis in the MultiMookMelee are severe offenders. This is particularly egregious when you're trying to do the challenge where you have to defeat a set number of them in three minutes, as it wastes your precious seconds.
** In the online For Glory mode, lower-skill players become this. These players tend to constantly roll around, throwing out a projectile or Smash attack every so often, then continue rolling. Even when the other player is far more skilled, the defensive, low-skill player will still manage to draw out the match even if they eventually lose, which becomes an annoyance to the higher-skill player (especially if they make use of tactics that are very hard to beat out via unorthodox-spamming certain moves).
*** With the above example, an inverted case also tends to be a higher-skill player for the lower-leveled ones, since they most likely would spend more time trying to [[{{GIFT}} trash talk their anonymous opposition]] and will be bound to pick an (in)famous low-tier for disrespect to gain an edge while either winning or losing (Ganondorf and Charizard tend to be popular choices due to also being heavyweights). The nature of For Glory's usual lag exacerbates these matters further quite a bit depending on one's connection. Both of these cases, however, mainly tie into the matchmaking system, which often pits players who've been practicing non-stop against those who can barely recover back on stage (hence a lot of memetic For Glory montages).
** Also in For Glory (and sometimes For Fun as well), taunt parties or matches that are otherwise not devoted to fighting. For one thing, when going into one, there will usually be no indication that it's a goof-off match, and a player who actually tries to fight is likely to have the other players all gang up on and beat the stuffing out of the "offending" player who came in expecting a normal match. Matches like this are very annoying for the players who want to, you know, actually play the game, as they are forced to sit through the match doing nothing but begrudgingly join in the fun lest they risk getting a ban for quitting out of one.
!!YMMV.SuperSmashBrosUltimate
* ScrappyMechanic:
** Merely defeating a spirit on the Spirit Board isn't enough — you then have to play a mini-game where you attempt to shoot a spirit through a shield. If you miss, you have to wait until the spirit reappears on the board and win the battle again just for another shot at it. You can pay in-game currency to try again, but only once. This feels like arbitrary padding, especially if the spirit battle was especially difficult. This can be a bit easier if you have enough Shield Spacer and/or Sluggish Shield items, especially against a Legend spirit, but those don't come very often, be it by either getting them though random drops or buying them on the Shop.
** Challenger's Approach allows you to try for a rematch against any unlockable fighters you've lost to without having to redo the actual unlocking conditions. Sounds like an AntiFrustrationFeature, right? Well, not really. It only appears randomly after fighting a few battles in other modes, and likewise has a high chance of disappearing again after a rematch, whether you win or lose. Good luck on the later unlocks.
** The "Preferred Rules" setting in the online quickplay mode gets flak for not allowing players to strictly enforce certain rules, so you can (for example) ask for a 1-on-1 fight with no items and get matched up rather quickly into a free-for-all battle with items that you can't leave without a penalty. This was especially common in the game's first week of release. Also, there are four options for preferred stage type, and you must pick from one of those four options, so asking for Battlefield ''or'' Omega, or having no preference for stage type while having a preference for other rules, is impossible.
** Once again, preventing several of the most difficult Challenges from being bypassed using Golden Hammers renders them pretty much worthless.
** The replay viewer:
*** It doesn't let you quickly seek to specific points in the replay; if you want to look at a particular part of it you have to watch the entire replay up to that point.
*** It is the only way to make gameplay videos without a capture card, since this game does not allow making 30-second clips with the Switch's capture button. Furthermore, because the completed videos are not put in the usual folder for screenshots and videos, they do not appear in the Switch's photo/video viewer; to post them on social media, you'll have to turn your Switch off first (not just put it in sleep mode) and remove the [=microSD=] card to obtain the video files. While this does allow for videos that are more than 30 seconds long and run at high-res 60 FPS, many would rather just use a one-touch capture button and put up with the 30-second 30 FPS limitations.
*** Have a lengthy replay you want to convert to a video, and just want to stick with the default settings? Well, tough, because you're going to have to press a button at some point, lest the system go into sleep mode, which not only renders the conversion null and void, but gives you a prompt to delete the replay (which you could very well do by accident).
*** The only way to save other players' replays online is through Shared Content. Sadly, no replay seen through Spectate or Tourney Mode gives you the option to save it, no matter how engaging it was. Unless you have a capture card, these matches are likely LostForever. If you're lucky, one of the players decided to upload those replays in Shared Content, so in some cases, it's a matter of looking through Shared Content's online archive of uploaded videos.
** In an online arena (lobby), there is a queue you put your icon in to join upcoming matches. There are several things you can do that will take you out of the queue and make you rejoin at the back of it if you want to get back in the queue, including changing your fighter, changing your preferred stage and its music (if the lobby allows player-picked stages), viewing detailed rules, and changing the lobby music. Yeah, that's right: You can get bumped from the front of a 4-person queue to the back, and thus have to wait another one to five matches for your turn, just for ''simply changing the lobby music''.
** For whatever reason, in arenas where the lobby picks stages based on the players' selected Preferred Stage, the game will ''never'' pick a player whose level is set to Random unless ''all'' players in the ring also have theirs set to Random. If only one person in the arena has a specific level selected, everyone will be forced to play that level ad nauseam. Prior to version 3.1.0, this also applied to the music selection as well, with the random music setting randomly picking ''one'' song and always playing that, rather than picking songs on a match-by-match basis.
** The buffering in the game is highly contested due to several things. To summarize, the old buffering system of ''Brawl'' and ''Smash 4'' was retained, but a new "hold" buffering system was added on top, where a held input will be inputted on the first actionable frame regardless of how long ago the input was put in after the player's prior action. This makes certain commands easier, but also makes other commands harder to input, sometimes leading to misinputs, as well as making it more scary to attempt to do things such as tech (as you might accidentally do an airdodge) or mash out of grabs or burials (because then it will read your mashing as an input when you escape, leaving you vulnerable). This has led to complaints of people talking about how the game feels slippery as a result, which is frustrating since it makes combos more difficult than they should be. An example is the advertised short hop aerial attack (which has been nicknamed as the shortcut method), as while having an instant aerial is nice, it leads to a lot of situations where you wanted to do a full hop aerial, but the game reads a jump input and an aerial input in the same vicinity as a short hop aerial, and the shortcut method is ineffective against shorter characters, where it's better to just do a short hop than an aerial.
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoMam_nH_54&start=788 The buffer system for short hop aerials]] does your input based not on where your control stick was when you buffered the attack, but on where it is when the buffered input goes through. This has a distressing frequency to cause players to input one aerial, only to receive something completely different; even neutral aerials with the C-Stick/right stick can happen if a player uses one of those sticks to do an aerial while not pushing any direction on the control stick.
** Want to level up your Spirit using Snacks? Prepare yourself to pay Spirit Points every time you use one. And don't get fooled on buying snacks in stores, you still have to pay for them just for ''using'' them. You'll get free snacks after every fight anyway, which makes some people question why they are sold in the first place.
** When your opponent quits during the middle of a Quickplay match, they're replaced with a CPU who doesn't reward you with any GSP if you win. The disconnecting player also doesn't lose any GSP and is only penalized with a time limit before they can play online again, making people who RageQuit the second things stop going their way a common sight online.
** It's possible to get temporarily locked out from online battles if the game disconnects, even when it's not the player's fault in any way.
** An arena's host can kick people at will. It sounds very useful in the right hands, but [[{{GIFT}} it constantly ends up in the wrong hands]], whether it be [[SoreLoser kicking players after losing a match]] to avoid the rematch, kicking players after ''winning'' a match to avoid the rematch, [[ItsAllAboutMe kicking other players who enter the ring to make room for themselves or get a rematch instantly]], or [[{{Scrub}} kicking players who play characters they don't like]].
** While many fans consider this version of Stage Builder the best one in the series, it has drawn some criticisms.
*** You can't copy and paste your shapes. This makes making symmetrical stages frustrating as you have to eye the screen closely to make your stage have symmetry.
*** The eraser erases the entire shape you made instead of just parts of it, like various art programs on the computer. This makes it difficult to make a creation that doesn't have any blocks sticking out in, for example, a picture of character you want to make.
** Spirit Collectors who don't care for World of Light have their own issue in that you can only get Boss Spirits by beating the boss in that mode. The main problem lies in the Dracula and Marx Spirits, which evolve. Since both are in the second half of the game, this means playing through a good chunk of the game twice if you want to have both forms of Marx and both Dracula and Soma Cruz in your inventory.
!!YMMV.SwordArtOnline
* AcceptableTargets:
** Perverts in general. In response to the fact that ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet, many male players are depicted as flocking to and hitting on the few females there are, which is often presented as annoying and creepy. This is especially prevalent in GGO, which has a lower female playerbase than most, where many of them make a bunch of pervy comments towards female players and one is outright shown [[MaleGaze leering at Sinon's body while hitting on her]]. Even Klein, who's one of the main characters and whose perversion is PlayedForLaughs, often ends up as a ButtMonkey whose appreciation of women isn't exactly portrayed as a positive characteristic of his. It's even worse with full on rapists, who are, [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil for very good reasons]], often HateSink characters who end up dismembered messes by the end. [[spoiler:The only real exception is Kyouji, and that because he's more of a JerkassWoobie as opposed to the CompleteMonster that Sugou was.]]
** [=PKers=], or to simplify, players who spend most of their time in online games killing other players, are also not portrayed positively. In the first arc, any and all [=PKers=], some of which even starting a guild dedicated to it, are essentially {{Serial Killer}}s due to the death game nature of Sword Art Online, with many going on to become [[BigBad Big Bads]] in other arcs like [[spoiler:''Phantom Bullet'' and ''Alicization'']]. Even in later arcs where the games lack life-and-death stakes, [=PKers=] are typically shown to take being [[{{GIFT}} G.I.F.Ts]] to great extremes and are even portrayed as outright creeps, such as the Salamander Players led by Kagemune who are heavily implied to be "Women Hunters", players who take advantage of the combat system to avoid setting off the Anti-Harassment code to harass female players and [[{{Squick}} sometimes derive pleasure from killing them]].
!!YMMV.TeamFortress2
* {{GIFT}}: Like all online games, ''Team Fortress 2'' has had its issues with {{GIFT}}-utilizing {{Griefer}}s. Ironically, you will still hear fans of the game proclaiming that [[NoTrueScotsman the game is "Serious Business Free" and that "this is the nicest gaming community ever."]] While one look at the Valve official forums or the Steam Community Discussions section can tell them otherwise (the forums are endlessly locked in an civil war, while the discussions are infamous for being infested with hate), they just [[SelectiveObliviousness ignore this]]. Woe to the poor newbie gamer (or even pro gamer) that does take this to heart, and run into the Griefers deriding him to "suck less", "cry moar noob", "go back to your kiddy consoles" and such. Another popular taunt to use is "Free to Play", implying that the player (no matter how much time or skills they have) is nothing but a newbie that just got the game because it was free and can't do a damn thing against "better" players.
!!YMMV.TheStrangeCaseOfDrJekyllAndMrHyde
* ValuesResonance: As mentioned on the main page, a lot of modern-day readers see parallels between Hyde and [[{{GIFT}} those who use anonymity on the internet as an excuse for behaving badly without consequences]], with some likening Jekyll to a person's normal account and Hyde to an alt account they use for {{Trolling}}.
!!YMMV.{{Transformice}}
* BrokenBase:
** The addition of cosmetics initially caused quite a rift between players; mainly because they can be bought with cheese you successfully brought back to the hole, thus actually giving incentive to playing the game instead of just dicking around, the latter of which made up a large part of Transformice's initial userbase. The same thing happened when Shaman levels and abilities were introduced since it incentivized actually helping mice players instead of [[{{Griefer}} sealing off the hole or summoning the anvil God on your turn]]. Those against it hated said it took out what people largely found fun about the game initially ([[{{Griefer}} screwing over other players]]) while those for it liked how it promoted ''actually playing the game'' instead of being dicks to everyone in the room. Largely [[DownplayedTrope downplayed]] nowadays, as the initial player base has long since either moved on or taken to playing the game as it was intended.
** Of all things, the game creators and Mods cracking down on the {{GIFT}} in action. Considering {{Troll}}s made up a ''large'' part of the game's earlier demographic in alpha and beta stages, it's only natural it'd be met with scorn from those who considered this game to be "Trolling: The Game". Naturally though, non-trolls find it nice the community isn't made up of people screaming profanities and racial slurs at each other anymore, enjoying the game for what it is and welcome the more mature and well mannered community that formed in later updates.
** The common idea to allow one to use [[RevenueEnhancingDevices strawberries]] to buy EXP for the shaman. Some think it's a good idea since the amount of EXP needed to level up gets ''batshit insane crazy'' at around levels 25-30, and the EXP doesn't better balance itself out in accordance to this. Others hate the idea since they don't want the game to become [[BribingYourWayToVictory pay-to-win]], since all the stuff you can buy with money already is just cosmetic stuff that doesn't give people who can afford it an unfair advantage over those who can't.
** The CGI adaption. Dear God, the CGI adaption. It ranges from those who think it looks good, those who find it funny and have high hopes, to those who's response was ''"OH GOD KILLITWITHFIRE!!"''. The CGI, in particular, has gotten a lot of criticism, with some finding the models of the mice incredibly derp-ish and the jerky frame rate for an animated adaption rubbing some the wrong way. Not to mention the dark jokes they have...
!!YMMV.{{Transformice}}
* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: It's hard to bring up an update that ''doesn't'' have people claiming this, but several key things since the early alpha version include: backgrounds, more peaceful sounding music, mice costumes, [[RevenueEnhancingDevices ability to buy strawberries with real money to buy costumes for your mouse]], and the general increased focus on cracking down on blatant trolling and the {{GIFT}} in action.
!!YMMV.UltimaOnline
* NeverLiveItDown: The game is best remembered for Lord British getting killed and how the developers underestimated the power of the {{GIFT}}.
!!YouKeepUsingThatWord.AToG
* '''[[UsefulNotes/HighFunctioningAutism Autistic]]''', at least on the Internet, gets used to mean "'retarded' only less so" more and more often in recent years - while less for perceived stupidity and more for social awkwardness (so you'll never find someone calling an inanimate object autistic even online), the general effect is the same. "Autistic" can also be used to refer to someone who has an exceptional focus on a particular activity, even if the person being described does not have an autism spectrum disorder at all. This is most likely due to the {{GIFT}}; anonymity means both that people feel freer to use "autistic" to mean "asshole" despite the UnfortunateImplications, and that people feel freer to use autism as an excuse for ''being'' an asshole (whether they're actually diagnosed or not), which only perpetuates the stereotype.
!!YouKeepUsingThatWord.AToG
* '''[[UsefulNotes/PoliticalIdeologies Conservative]]''' should not be used to describe someone who is opposed to change of any sort, let alone somebody who wants to turn the clock back to an earlier era. That is a '''reactionary''', and such people are actually quite rare nowadays[[note]]outside the Internet, [[{{GIFT}} of course]][[/note]]. A conservative merely argues that things should not be changed if it is not absolutely necessary to do so, or that change should come as gradually as possible. Many conservatives in the past have been willing to accept economic reform (and, to a lesser extent, social reform) as long as the cultural norms of civilization itself were left untouched.
** "Conservative" and "liberal" have come to mean very different things than when the terms were more or less established in the French revolution; ''les conservateurs'' were those opposed to the social ideals of the revolution and wanted to "conserve" the monarchy -- and, incidentally, sat on the right wing of the French parliamentary chamber -- while ''les libéraux'' were those intent on "liberating" the people from monarchic rule. In the past few decades, conservatives have been more about binding personal liberties ("conserving" the social order) while disestablishing the state ("liberating" people -- in theory, anyway -- from rulership), while the liberal side of the equation seems to maintain its intent to open up social freedoms while maintaining (or even ''increasing'') the role of the state. This is the problem with defining a multi-dimensional question on a simple left/right axis. Political theorist David Nolan (creator of the Nolan chart, which corrects for the inconsistencies of the left/right axis) has suggested that ''populist'' be substituted for what most Americans refer to as ''liberal'' - fitting, since American liberalism is usually thought to have split into its "classical" and "modern" wings in the 1890s, when the Democratic party (cautiously) co-opted the People's (or "Populist") party in order to blunt the accusation from socialists and others that they were no different from the Republican party.
*** [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_liberalism ''Classical'' liberalism]], interestingly, is a political philosophy in which the freedom of the individual person is prized over all other ideals -- however, the freedom of any individual stops at the point where it begins to infringe upon the freedom of ''other'' individuals ("liberal" still has this sense in mainland Europe; in North America "libertarian" is closer, though not quite synonymous). How this intersects with the modern Anglosphere's liberal paradigm, which favors increasing safety regulations (up to and including seat-belt laws), is an interesting question.
*** It gets even more complicated, because "conservatism" also is often used in philosophy as a description of behaviour based on some non-negotiable principles or values and thus it is more a opposition of "opportunism" or "pragmatism". The values may be of any kind, so it is completely possible to be a "conservative liberal" (this is the description actually used by at least several European libertarian parties) if one considers liberty to be a non-negotiable value. In this vein, a conservative liberal will vote in favour of any solution that maintains liberty at the cost of safety, while conservative securitarian may be eager to forfeit freedom to increase security. The name "conservative" comes from the fact that such people did not wanted to ''change'' their values but rather tried to find new applications for them.
** Intertwined with the above controversy is the common blurring of the line between ''society'' and ''culture''. The "social" structure is just that - a structure, an artificial construct created by humans to preserve law and order according to an arbitrary standard; whereas "culture" is more organic, more universal (at least in theory), and primarily concerned with anything humans do that is not necessary for survival (religion, art, entertainment). One can be both culturally liberal in believing that artists have the right to create pornography and socially conservative in insisting that that pornography never be distributed to - let alone involve - children. Similarly, one can be culturally conservative by remaining a good Christian or Jew or Buddhist, but socially liberal if those religious beliefs lead one to oppose the status quo in the name of a higher standard of justice (anti-abortion protesters, for instance).
!!ZeroPunctuation.TropesEToH
* {{GIFT}}: Yahtzee actually cites the [[Webcomic/PennyArcade original formula]] then alters it by subtracting 'Anonymity' and 'Audience'. Or in other words, [[HumansAreBastards Normal Person = Total Fuckwad]].
