History DependingOnTheWriter / VideoGames

** The Yoshi species can either speak in full sentences; or they can only communicate through PokemonSpeak.

* ''VideoGame/DragonQuestI'': The Hero is either from a small village in Torland who washed up on the shores of Alefgard (Alfregard in the GBC version) or an Alefgard native who had been training for the day he might be able to fight. Either way, he was already aware of his lineage, despite not having any way to prove it until he found his ancestor's seal in a perilous poison swamp.

** What is "Super Mario"? It changes a lot, really. Sometimes Mario's normal form is "small Mario" and he becomes a giant with a Super Mushroom and other games have "Super Mario" being the default and "small Mario" being him shrunk down.

** Bowser is often like this. While other characters change personality in most adaptations and spinoffs as well, Bowser is a character who's completely different between the main series and many spinoffs. In the [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Main Platformers]], he's a competent EvilOverlord and CardCarryingVillain with the occasional humorous moment. In the ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigi'' series he can be anything from a BoisterousWeakling who's only truly competent when he's working with the [[GoodIsNotDumb good guys]] to a competent if blunt BoisterousBruiser [[AFatherToHisMen father to his men]] whose only defeats are delivered by the brothers themselves. In the ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' series, he's a NobleDemon with an unrequited crush on the Princess and doesn't like it when other villains [[TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou infringe on his territory]]. ''VideoGame/MarioParty'' has him as an AttentionWhore CardCarryingVillain who's only capable of PokeThePoodle levels on villainy and who [[InferioritySuperiorityComplex probably just wants to be loved]]. In ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'', he's a terrifying monster with little if any humor to him at all, but even that's inconsistent as by the fourth installment they [[LighterAndSofter began to anthropomorphise and lighten his character a lot.]] Other spinoffs tend to have him as a FriendlyEnemy of Mario's (he named GoKartingWithBowser, after all). The cartoons and anime series vary his personality per episode, and his size varies between appearances.

* ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}}'' may have used the trope InUniverse. A computer in the ruins of Hubris Comics in D.C. contains a letter to the editor that, depending on your interpretation, seems to call out a writer for turning a well-developed comic book villain (the [=AntAgonizer=]) into a ForTheEvulz nutcase. (Since we never see the comics in question, this could also be in-universe DracoInLeatherPants. The Fallout wiki leans towards this interpretation.)

* ''VideoGame/{{Prototype}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Prototype 2}}'' had different teams of writers, and the protagonist of the first and the antagonist of the second is arguably an example of this. In the first game, Alex Mercer was an amoral but not expressly evil creature that gradually gained a conscience as events played out. He risked his life to stop Manhattan from being destroyed by the Infection, and later Blackwatch, expressing disgust at those who played god with peoples' lives for their experiments. He was blunt, concise, impulsive, not much of a thinker, and socially awkward to the point of hilarity. Come the second game, and he's suddenly a smooth-talking evil-genius-archetype planner that plots to recreate humanity in his image.

* ''VideoGame/KantaiCollection'' the game proper has very little lore, leaving a lot up to the interpretation of fans and spinoff writers. As a result, the tone of fanworks and spinoff works varies from very dark horror and tragedy to lighthearted comedies and anything in between. Other things also change between interpretations; origins of the ship girls and Abyssals - [[Fanfic/PacificWorldWarIIUSNavyShipgirls Aliens?]] Mystic rituals and spirits? [[Fanfic/AmbiencePlatoonMoebiusFour Super]][[Fanfic/AmbienceAFleetSymphony -science?]] Do projectiles remain proportionately small to human size, like in the anime, or do they expand to full size as per Kant-O-Celle Quest? What about the girls and Abyssals themselves? Are conventional forces relevant, or only as much cannon fodder as in kaiju films? Are the Abyssals a worldwide threat or merely a Pacific problem? So on and so forth.

* ''Franchise/FireEmblem''
** VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening features ''hundreds'' of conversations between over forty playable characters, each one being completely unique (at least for a single playthrough). So naturally, details become muddled or mixed up across across the many support conversations. Mostly this includes little things like how pronounced a character's quirks are, i.e: how violent Henry is, how flirty Inigo acts, or how hopelessly Cordelia swoons after Chrom (sometimes its the entire focus of a support, other times it's not mentioned at all like in her talks with the Avatar for example). Other examples include how big the Shepherds actually are in-universe, and whether they include normal soldiers behind the scenes, going back and forth between calling them 'our little group' and 'we're an army.'

* ''Franchise/StreetFighter''

*** How much Bowser remembers Luigi is this as well. Some games, particulary the ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigi'' games, have him (and all his army too, for that matter) outright forget who he is and adress him as "green 'stache", while in other games such as the ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' and ''VideoGame/MarioParty'' series, he remembers both Luigi's name and his overall character.

** Shadow was originally a quiet and stoic individual who was motivated by the loss of a close friend, and then trying to find out his own identity after gaining amnesia. His self-titled game characterized him as 90sAntiHero who [[ItsAllAboutMe only cares about himself]] and will [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder turn on anyone, friend or foe, to get what he wants]], and then the Last story of that game characterizes him back to his original persona, and that stuck for a few years. Then after 2010, he TookALevelInJerkass and now only seems to care about stroking his own ego as the "Ultimate Lifeform". His relationship with other characters is never consistent either; sometimes Shadow sees Sonic as a WorthyOpponent and respects him as an equal even if they don't always see eye to eye, and other times he has nothing but contempt for Sonic and constantly wishes to one-up him. Rouge and Omega are either Shadow's closest friends who he cherishes, or they're just tools that he uses to further himself.

** Jaina Proudmoore started going through this after the destruction of Theramore. She briefly swung to genocidal hatred of the Horde before being talked down, after which she was cold to the Horde but willing to cooperate with their more neutral members such as the Blood Elves. Then she went into a murderous rage and purged Dalaran of all Horde for a crime she couldn't ''prove'' the resident Sunreavers helped commit. Again she was talked down into cooperating with the Horde to get rid of Garrosh only to immediately suggest killing ''all'' the Horde's leaders and continuing the war. She left at the start of ''Legion'' because she couldn't work with the Horde, even in the face of a demonic invasion, only to return in ''Battle for Azeroth'' significantly mellower and ends up willingly working with Thrall to reform the Horde.

* Bolo from the ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'' series suffers from this. In the first game and ''Pirate's Curse'', he is made out to be an absolute doofus whose few accomplishments are usually by accident, whereas in ''Risky's Revenge'', ''Half-Genie Hero'', and ''Seven Sirens'', he’s as capable as Shantae’s other friends and is just a bit dim from time to time.

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'': Being a franchise that's been active for over twenty-five years, with various writers working on the series, as well as numurous adaptations, this is pretty common for the series and the source of much frustration for the fanbase. It affects the entire cast to an extent, but standout examples include...
** Sonic himself was originally marketed as a spunky, MascotWithAttitude in America, but his actual personality in games, while somewhat irreverent (he'd actually quit the game if you took too long in VideoGame/SonicCD) was still pretty muted and therefore, up for interpretation as the Japanese marketing toned down the attitude somewhat. Starting in VideoGame/SonicAdventure, Sonic's personality was adjusted to being more of a laid-back StockShonenHero, and that personality stuck until VideoGame/SonicColors which reestablished a lot of the spunk and attitude that the character had in the 90's.
** Tails was Sonic's adorable sidekick who struggled to keep up with him, but still held tons of admiration for his hero. VideoGame/SonicAdventure saw Tails strike out on his own as a hero without relying on Sonic's help, and fully evolved into TheSmartGuy of the group. After VideoGame/SonicUnleashed and VideoGame/SonicColors, Tails became somewhat more abrasive and sarcastic towards Sonic's antics, as well as becoming a NonActionGuy who stands back and let's Sonic do all of the heavy lifting.

** In his debut, in VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles, Knuckles was a chuckling, and mischievous rival to Sonic. VideoGame/SonicAdventure and onward established him as an AloofAlly who only helps Sonic out of necessity and convenience, and then later on after VideoGame/SonicHeroes sees Knuckles acting as a helpful friend towards Sonic. Even his attitude towards his duties has changed, he originally took his job as a guardian more seriously and only left his post when forced to, but nowadays his role and duties are rarely acknowledged and Knuckles just shows up as if it's the most natural thing in the world. He was also originally presented as a serious foil to Sonic, but now is mostly PluckyComicRelief.

** Shadow was originally a quiet and stoic individual who was motivated by the loss of a close friend, and then trying to find out his own identity after gaining amnesia. His self-titled game characterized him as 90sAntiHero who [[ItsAllAboutMe only cares about himself]] and will [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder turn on anyone, friend or foe, to get what he wants]], and then the Last story of that game characterizes him back to his original persona, and that stuck for a few years. Then after 2010, he TookALevelInJerkass and now only seems to care about stroking his own ego as the "Ultimate Lifeform". His relationship with other characters is never consistent either; sometimes Shadow sees Sonic as a WorthyOpponent and respects him as an equal even if they don't always see eye to eye, and other times he has nothing but contempt for Sonic and constantly wishes to one-up him. Rouge and Omega are either Shadow's closest friends who he cherishes, or they're just tools that he uses to further himself. Needless to say, this only contributes to his status as a BaseBreakingCharacter.

* In ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' Trish’s personality as Dante’s partner was somewhat different in Kamiya’s vision when portrayed in ''Viewtiful Joe''; Trish was more of a traditional partner who follows the hero, Dante, being the voice of reason and expressing deep concern for him, coupled with jokes that Trish was being too “motherly”. Trish in Itsuno’s vision, and effectively the canon version of Trish as it stands, is more of a playful independent spirit, who while undoubtedly loyal to Dante she isn’t above playing tricks and teasing him, such as increasing his debt and delivering Sparda right onto the enemies hands to make things more fun; still Dante has also been adjusted accordingly, being able to take all of Trish’s playfulness.

** Ninja girl Ibuki historically is portrayed as a competent ninja and fighter but her willingness to fight and fighting skill can vary greatly. Also while she is one of the most acrobatic characters often shown in the air from high places in ''Street Fighter V'' she suddenly develops a fear of heights. Also her breast size varies from appearance to appearance.

** In his debut, in VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles, Knuckles was a chuckling, and mischievous rival to Sonic. VideoGame/SonicAdventure and onward established him as an AloofAlly who only helps Sonic out of necessity and convenience, and then later on after VideoGame/SonicHeroes sees Knuckles acting as a helpful friend towards Sonic. Even his attitude towards his duties has changed, he originally took his job as a guardian more seriously and only left his post when forced to, but nowadays his role and duties are rarely acknowledged and Knuckles just shows up as if it's the most natural thing in the world. He was also originally presented as a serious foil to Sonic, but now is mostly PlucklyComicRelief.

** In his debut, in VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles, Knuckles was a chuckling, and mischievous rival to Sonic. VideoGame/SonicAdventure and onward established him as an AloofAlly who only helps Sonic out of necessity and convenience, and then later on after VideoGame/SonicHeroes sees Knuckles acting as a helpful friend towards Sonic. Even his attitude towards his duties has changed, he originally took his job as a guardian more seriously and only left his post when forced to, but nowadays his role and duties are rarely acknowledged and Knuckles just shows up as if it's the most natural thing in the world.

** Shadow was originally a quiet and stoic individual who was motivated by the loss of a close friend, and then trying to find out his own identity after gaining amnesia. His self-titled game characterized him as 90sAntiHero who [[ItsAllAboutMe only cares about himself]] and will [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder turn on anyone, friend or foe, to get what he wants]], and then the Last story of that game characterizes him back to his original persona, and that stuck for a few years. Then after 2010, he TookALevelInJerkass and now only seems to care about stroking his own ego as the "Ultimate Lifeform". Even his relationship with Sonic is never consistent; sometimes Shadow sees Sonic as a WorthyOpponent and respects him as an equal even if they don't always see eye to eye, and other times he has nothing but contempt for Sonic and constantly wishes to one-up him.

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'':
** Amy Rose. Sometimes she's a normal girl who has a rather affectionate crush on eponymous hero, but still cares about her friends and their well-being. Other times, she's an obsessive and clingy StalkerWithACrush who thinks about nothing but Sonic, threatens people with violence when they don't inform her of his whereabouts, and may even ''hallucinate'' that he's around when he isn't.
** In the 90's, Knuckles was the chuckling, mischievous rival to Sonic. In the first half of the 2000s, he was the no nonsense AloofAlly to Sonic, and nowadays he's the DumbMuscle UnknownRival to Sonic.
** Sonic. Sometimes he's more of a straight laced NiceGuy, other times he's a cocky braggart. This is most noticeable when comparing his westernized TotallyRadical persona to the laid-back one depicted in ''Adventure''. Recent games have reached a middle ground.
** Tails is usually a friendly, somewhat shy and nerdy sidekick, but is unusually snarky in ''VideoGame/SonicColors'', and TookALevelInJerkass in ''VideoGame/SonicLostWorld'' for [[ConflictBall no apparent reason]].

** Wario is a villain in his debut in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioLand2SixGoldenCoins'' and ''VideoGame/MarioAndWario'', in ''VideoGame/WarioLand'' he's more of an AntiHero with near-superpowers, and in ''VideoGame/WarioWare'' he is a normal person who's merely a greedy jerk.

* Bolo from the ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'' series suffers from this. In the first and third games, he is made out to be an absolute doofus whose few accomplishments are usually by accident, whereas in the second, fourth and fifth ones, he’s as capable as Shantae’s other friends and is just a bit dim from time to time.

* Dan Hibiki in ''Franchise/StreetFighter'' is always the worst martial artist of the cast, but to what degree this is can vary. Sometimes, Dan is actually a very good martial artist by human standards (though he's also a goof) who is just massively OvershadowedByAwesome when everyone else is inhumanly skilled and fit. Other times, he's a complete MilesGloriosus who has no skill to speak of and can barely fight at all.

* ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'':

* Bolo from the ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'' series suffers from this. In the first and third games, he is made out to be an absolute doofus whose few accomplishments are usually by accident, whereas in the second and fourth ones, he’s as capable as Shantae’s other friends and is just a bit dim from time to time.

** Bowser is often like this. While other characters change personality in most adaptations and spinoffs as well, Bowser is a character who's completely different between the main series and many spinoffs. In the [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Main Platformers]], he's a competent EvilOverlord and CardCarryingVillain with the occasional humorous moment. In the ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigi'' series he can be anything from a BoisterousWeakling who's only truly competent when he's working with the [[GoodIsNotDumb good guys]] to a competent if blunt BoisterousBruiser [[AFatherToHisMen father to his men]] whose only defeats are delivered by the brothers themselves. In the ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' series, he's a NobleDemon with an unrequited crush on the Princess and doesn't like it when other villains [[TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou infringe on his territory]]. ''VideoGame/MarioParty'' has him as an AttentionWhore CardCarryingVillain who's only capable of PokeThePoodle levels on villainy and who [[InferioritySuperiorityComplex probably just wants to be loved]]. In ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'', he's a terrifying monster with little if any humor to him at all, but even that's inconsistent as by the fourth installment they [[LighterandSofter began to anthropomorphise and lighten his character a lot.]] Other spinoffs tend to have him as a FriendlyEnemy of Mario's (he named GoKartingWithBowser, after all). The cartoons and anime series vary his personality per episode, and his size varies between appearances.

** Bowser is often like this. While other characters change personality in most adaptations and spinoffs as well, Bowser is a character who's completely different between the main series and many spinoffs. In the [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Main Platformers]], he's a competent EvilOverlord and CardCarryingVillain with the occasional humorous moment. In the ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigi'' series he can be anything from a BoisterousWeakling who's only truly competent when he's working with the [[GoodIsNotDumb good guys]] to a competent if blunt BoisterousBruiser [[AFatherToHisMen father to his men]] whose only defeats are delivered by the brothers themselves. In the ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' series, he's a NobleDemon with an unrequited crush on the Princess and doesn't like it when other villains [[TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou infringe on his territory]]. ''VideoGame/MarioParty'' has him as an AttentionWhore CardCarryingVillain who's only capable of PokeThePoodle levels on villainy and who [[InferioritySuperiorityComplex probably just wants to be loved]]. In ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'', he's a terrifying monster with little if any humor to him at all. Other spinoffs tend to have him as a FriendlyEnemy of Mario's (he named GoKartingWithBowser, after all). The cartoons and anime series vary his personality per episode, and his size varies between appearances.

* Bolo from the ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'' series suffers from this. In the first and third games, he is made out to be an absolute doofus whose few accomplishments are usually by accident, whereas in the second and fourth ones, he’s as capable as Shantae’s other friends and is just a bit dim from time to time.

** Roy was written in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBindingBlade'' as mostly mature, intelligent, peaceable, and underconfident. When he appeared in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosMelee'', owing in part to him having been based on early drafts, he was made much more of a hot-headed StockShounenHero, which [[AdaptationDisplacement bled into the fandom as a whole]]. His appearances in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemHeroes'' seems to be an attempt to synthesize the two, borrowing a lot of Roy's ''Smash'' mannerisms.

** Bowser is often like this. While other characters change personality in most adaptations and spinoffs as well, Bowser is a character who's completely different between the main series and many spinoffs. In the [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Main Platformers]], he's a competent EvilOverlord and CardCarryingVillain with the occasional humorous moment. In the ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigi'' series he can be anything from a BoisterousWeakling who's only truly competent when he's working with the [[GoodIsNotDumb good guys]] to a competent if blunt BoisterousBruiser [[AFatherToHisMen father to his men]] whose only defeats are delivered by the brothers themselves. In the ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' series he's a NobleDemon with an unrequited crush on the Princess and doesn't like it when other villains [[TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou infringe on his territory]]. ''VideoGame/MarioParty'' has him as an AttentionWhore CardCarryingVillain who's only capable of PokeThePoodle levels on villainy and who [[InferioritySuperiorityComplex probably just wants to be loved]]. In VideoGame/SuperSmashBros, he's a terrifying monster with little if any humor to him at all. Other spinoffs tend to have him as a FriendlyEnemy of Mario's (he named GoKartingWithBowser, after all). The cartoons and anime series vary his personality per episode, and his size varies between appearances.
** In ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' spinoffs, Wario's more a villain, in ''VideoGame/WarioLand'' more an AntiHero with near super powers, and in ''VideoGame/WarioWare'' he is a normal person who's merely a greedy jerk.
** The sentience of Bob-ombs varies from game to game. Same thing with every other {{Mook}}.

** Peach's character changes quite a bit: ''VideoGame/SuperMarioSunshine'' casts her mostly as a Cloudcuckoolander, whereas in ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario'' she's a DeadpanSnarker, and other games place her at various points in between. She also flip-flops between PrincessClassic and RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething, in large part depending whether she is a playable character. Likewise, her abilities are heavily dependent on the writers. In the first game, the manual states that her powers are the only thing that can undo Bowser's magic, though we never actually get to see it. In later games, she either has actual powers (''VideoGame/SuperMarioRPG'' where she can heal, cause status effects, and inflict big damage), limited powers that only serve to assist Mario (''VideoGame/PaperMario'' series where she gives Mario a boost in the finales), or have none at all.

** Some of the Koopalings personalities also vary a bit. In ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiPaperJam'', the first game to give them speech, Roy is BookDumb, Ludwig is a SmallNameBigEgo and Morton comes across as OnlySaneMan. The [[VideoGame/PaperMarioColorSplash next game]] to feature them however portrays Morton as the DumbMuscle who uses HulkSpeak, Roy as savvy and Ludwig as a GadgeteerGenius.

* Nero in the ''Franchise/FateSeries'' ranges heavily. She presents herself as a cheerful, [[BoisterousBruiser boisterous]], [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething battle-ready Emperor]] [[HundredPercentAdorationRating who is loved by all]] and drips with AwesomeEgo. In some appearances, this is mostly a front for her massive InferioritySuperiorityComplex and her guilt over her [[MyGreatestFailure complete failure]] as a ruler. In others, it's taken at face value.