History Main / ArbitraryMissionRestriction

* In "VideoGame/TheBattleCats", most levels in Cats of the Cosmos and the Advent and Cyclone Cat Awakening stages put certain restrictions on the player. These restrictions include not being able to use cats above or below a certain cost, only being allowed to have up to a certain number of cats on screen, and only being able to deploy cats of specific rarities (ex: Only Special, Uber Rare, and Legend Rare cats) among others.

* ''VideoGame/MetroidZeroMission'' the second (main) half of the story has Samus with no suit or weapons, and [[spoiler:she]] is forced to destroy the Space Pirate ship from the inside with a measly stun-gun.

Missions, quests, objectives, goals; they go by many names. Whatever name is used, virtually every VideoGame ever made has them. But some games don't just give the player an objective; they also give the player ''conditions''. When a VideoGame sends the player on a quest to complete an objective in an arbitrarily specific way, that's an [[TitleDrop Arbitrary Mission Restriction]].

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', Mr. Incredible is told to destroy the deadly Omnidroid, but also to not completely destroy it, as it's a very expensive piece of hardware. Mr. Incredible does pretty well within the parameters, as after the fight is over the robot is still mostly intact.

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'', when the eponymous thief enters the Cave of Wonders to fetch the magic lamp, he is allowed in, but told to "Touch nothing but the lamp." Upon entering, he finds a ''massive'' trove of treasure, but he abides by the condition. Fully justified in that when his pet monkey Abu does touch some of the treasure, [[OhCrap shit massively hits the fan]], they almost die, and then they are [[BuriedAlive trapped in the cave]] and must find a way to escape.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', Mr. Incredible is told to destroy the deadly Omnidroid, but also to not completely destroy it, as it's a very expensive piece of hardware. Mr. Incredible does pretty well within the parameters, as after the fight is over the robot is still mostly intact.
[[/folder]]

Missions, quests, objectives, goals; they go by many names. Whatever name is used, virtually every VideoGame ever made has them. But some games don't just give the player an objective; they also give the player ''conditions''. When a VideoGame sends the player on a quest to complete an objective in an arbitrarily specific way, that's an Arbitrary Mission Restriction.

* ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquer'': GDI Mission 12 in Tiberian Dawn tasks you with rescuing dr. Mobius from a damaged base under siege by Nod forces. The initial sequence shows the transport helicopter being shot down by SAM sites right north of the river near the base. Then you must use your initial small force to wipe out all SAM sites in the map before another helicopter can come. To complete the mission objectives you must go to catch all of them, even those far away on the northern edge of the map, way beyond their range of action. However, you actually could destroy just those initial 4 SAM sites to clear the landing site, as their in-game range is very short. But the game won't spawn any helicopter until any SAM is destroyed. It's possibly a case of MisaimedRealism as in real life SAM sites have a far larger range than what is depicted in-game and any rescue mission would cover all the air defences in an operational area.

* ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquer'': GDI Mission 12 in Tiberian Dawn task you with rescuing dr. Mobius from a damaged base under siege by Nod forces. The initial sequence shows the transport helicopter being shot down by SAM sites right north of the river near the base. Then you must use your initial small force to wipe out all SAM sites in the map before another helicopter can come. However, you actually could destroy just those initial 4 SAM sites to clear the landing site, as their in-game range is very short. But to complete the mission objectives you must go to catch all of them, even those far away on the northern edge of the map, way beyond their range of action. It's possibly a case of MisaimedRealism as in real life SAM sites have a far larger range than what is depicted in-game and any rescue mission would cover all the air defences in an operational area.

* A few quests in ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'' require the player to have some sort of handicap, like not bring any items with them or not wear any armor. The usual justification is the quest giver wants to challenge the player. One of the oddest examples is in ''Monster Hunter 4'', where an episodic quest requires them to gather Fulgurbugs for a client who really wants them. Oh, you want to satisfy the client with the Fulgurbugs you already have in your item chest? Too bad, there's a restriction saying that you have to go on a quest that bans bringing your own items with you!

* A few quests in ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'' require the player to have some sort of handicap, like not bring any items with them or not wear any armor. The usual justification is the quest giver wants to challenge the player. One of the oddest examples is in ''Monster Hunter 4'', where an episodic quest requires them to gather Fulgurbugs for a client who really wants them. Oh, you want to satisfy the client no swear with the Fulgurbugs you have in your item chest? Too bad, there's a restriction saying that you have to go on a quest that bans bringing your own items with you!

** While ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedOrigins'' does away with the optional objectives, it compensates with the gladiator arena tournaments preventing you from using your own weapons, instead forcing you to use crappy basic gear provided by the arena owner who gives only the flimsiest of excuses as to why he imposes this restriction on you. It makes an already annoyingly repetitive chain of side quests even more annoying, but at least these battles are entirely optional (unless you're going for HundredPercentCompletion or want the associated achievements).

* The Landing Zones in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidV''. Where, exactly, the helicopter can drop you off varies wildly between the story missions and the WideOpenSandbox mode, to the effect that the same area may have dozens of available landing options in free roam but only one or two during missions, without even so much as a "too many enemies in the area right now" HandWave.

* The entire ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'' series since at least ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoViceCity'' has featured these restrictions on story missions, such as mandatory stealth or no-killing restrictions that are sometimes only vaguely justified if justified at all.

* ''VideoGame/SaintsRow1'' has Hitman missions, requiring you not only to locate and take out a specified target but also to use a specified ''weapon'' in doing so. The Hitman missions in [[VideoGame/SaintsRow2 the sequel]] drops the specific weapon requirement.

* Published ''TabletopGame/{{Shadowrun}}'' adventures sometimes have Mr. Johnson seemingly arbitrary restrictions on the shadowrunners. For example, if the run involves sending a decker into the target's computer system to retrieve a file, Mr. Johnson may order that the decker is not to look at or copy any of the other files in the system, or keep a copy of the file for himself. However, most of these restrictions do serve a purpose. A piece of information valuable enough to put together a shadowrun over is definitely valuable enough that an enterprising runner might get it into their head to sell copies to other people than Mr. Johnson, and this is more often than not undesirable.

* In the military, Basic training often gives arbitrary restrictions to tasks that make what ''would'' be a rather easy job needlessly difficult if not [[UnwinnableByDesign outright impossible]]. The idea is to train troops to operate under duress, push themselves to the limit, and improvise or think on the fly when things go south. After all, how can one be expected to function in a combat environment if they can't handle the stressors of training?

* In ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'', the EX versions of Gummi Missions place certain restrictions on you, such as using specific blueprints or having a set amount of a single type of part equipped.
* ''VideoGame/KingdomHearts358DaysOver2'' lets the player replay previously-completed missions as "holo-missions," simulations provided by the Organization. After a certain point in the game an Ordeal Badge appears in most missions that, when collected, gives the player access to one of a set of holo-missions called "challenge missions." The mission can be completed normally, but it also has an optional objective that will earn the player "Challenge Sigils" that can be redeemed for in-game rewards. Challenge missions also impose mandatory restrictions such as raising the level of enemies/putting a {{Cap}} on the player's level, disabling attack magic, disabling healing, and so on. A few missions also have an "Ordeal Blazon" to collect for access to an even harder challenge.
* ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsX Kingdom Hearts Unchained χ]]'' has three challenges for each quest, along the lines of "Defeat all enemies in 1 turn" or "Complete without opening treasure chests". These conditions are optional, but they provide rewards if completed. Proud Mode quests take this a step further, as in addition to the three optional challenges, each Proud quest has a mandatory Keyblade choice, as well as mandatory conditions that dictate what special attacks can be used.

* ''[[VideoGame/ExtrapowerAttackOfDarkforce EXTRAPOWER Attack of Darkforce]]'': Your hero ranking, necessary for OneHundredPercentCompletion and unlocking the TrueFinalBoss. Often requires performing specific actions or attacks on specific enemies using specific characters, or taking specific decisions, that are either a thematically appropriate challenge for that character or something particularly heroic. An attached document in the game files lists the requirements.