History Main / ConcussionFrags

Of course, this isn't how it works in Real Life. Real frag grenades throw shrapnel, with an injury radius of fifteen meters and the ability for individual fragments to reach out to 250; these fragments, of course, are no more likely to throw you into the air than a normal bullet ([[BlownAcrossTheRoom let us rephrase that...]]). The Hollywood portrayal of grenades are closer to concussion grenades, which rely upon sheer explosive force; this makes them deadly in enclosed spaces, but reletively non-lethal in open terrain.

* In ''ComicBook/RedRobin'' Tim is decidedly unimpressed and annoyed when he runs into Detonator, who uses grenades in close quarters combat. Despite Tim lampshading just how dangerously stupid this is, Detonator and his team never even seem to be worried about becoming injured when he lobs grenades just feet from them.

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[[folder: Table Top Games ]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

-->'''Archer''': [[TemptingFate Relax, Lana, it's only a smoke grenade.]]

->''"There ain’t a magical wall at 15 meters—had a hole punched in my cheek at about 90 meters over a year ago back on Ballast. Could’a lost an eye or even been killed. Remember when you hear that call or a thump to keep your head down.”''
-->--Franchise/{{Halo}}

* ''VideoGame/JaggedAlliance2'' is a major offender, but then it's hard to find a weapon that ''doesn't'' have [[ShortRangeLongRangeWeapon a strangely short range]] in that game.

* ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'' seems unsure about what its grenades do. Sigint outright states that they frag, but actually getting hit by one results in a backflip and a burn. Hit an enemy with one, and he'll spend about two seconds in the air before bouncing around on the ground a bit. Humorously, the descriptions for the frags throughout the series generally states that they have an effective range of two feet. The grenades do, however, have a much larger blast radius when standing. Going prone will minimize their effect.

* Played straight in ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil4'', where the pressed-steel, generic fragmentation grenades blow enemies about 15 feet across the map.
** Averted in ''[[VideoGame/ResidentEvil5 5]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/ResidentEvilRevelations Revelations]]'', where they visually resemble real life concussion grenades.

* ''Franchise/StarWars'' games typically do this when grenades are involved. This is justified in the lore when thermal detonators are used for this purpose, since their blasts are from a miniature fusion reaction rather than a regular explosion, and they are specifically designed to have an ArbitraryMaximumRange. Strangely, the series also has actual concussion grenades that work more like real-life ones, and they are used right alongside thermal detonators in several games despite having few physical or mechanical differences other than "a grenade but weaker"; some even use them as dedicated anti-armor grenades.

Of course, this isn't how it works in Real Life. Real frag grenades throw shrapnel, with an injury radius of fifteen meters and the ability for individual fragments to reach out to 250; these fragments, of course, are no more likely to throw you into the air than a normal bullet ([[BlownAcrossTheRoom let us rephrase that...]]). The Hollywood portrayal of grenades are closer to concussion grenades, which rely upon sheer explosive force; this gives them a much shorter range than frags, which is why modern militaries rarely use them.

This is usually considered an AcceptableBreakFromReality in video games, since frag grenades that behaved realistically would be extremely frustrating to play against.

* ''[[VideoGame/GoldenEye1997 GoldenEye 007]]'' has grenades and a grenade launcher. Much like everything else that explodes (which is [[MadeOfExplodium just about everything that isn't a static part of the level]]), using one results in a rolling fireball lasting several seconds, but no shrapnel.

-->'''Archer''': [[FamousLastWords Relax, Lana, it's only a smoke grenade.]]

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Remember, this only applies to grenades that look like or are referred to as frags. If things are exploding when they shouldn't, the object is MadeOfExplodium. For stun grenades, see BlindedByTheLight. May cause an ImpairmentShot in video games. When frags are presented realistically, expect a bad case of The Coconut Effect. Subtrope of ArtisticLicenseExplosives.

* ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerGenerals'': A scrapped gameplay mechanic would have allowed infantry to stun and capture enemy infantry. The only remnant of this are the US Ranger's flashbang grenades, which do high splash damage to infantry, and are the US' method of instantly clearing out buildings (compared to China's flamethrowers and the GLA's nerve gas).

* ''VideoGame/KillingFloor''[='=]s standard grenades hav no shrapnel on explosion, and even set things that they don't immediately kill on fire for a short time (albeit this is purely a visual effect, rather than dealing any damage over time). ''VideoGame/KillingFloor2'', in contrast, differentiates between the Support class' frag grenades and the Commando class' HE grenades. Frag grenades' fragments can bounce off terrain to continue traveling, and will pinball in tight hallways very lethally. They use different damage types (piercing and explosive respectively) that will have varying multipliers against advanced Zeds (for example, Scrakes take half damage from explosive, but full damage from piercing).

* In the ''VideoGame/MedalOfHonor'' series, both the American frag grenades and the German concussion grenades launch enemies across the room or into a backflip.

* The ''VideoGame/{{Unreal}}'' series has the Flak Cannon's SecondaryFire, which averts this. Alternate fire shoots out a primed shell as an impact grenade, and it sends shrapnel flying in every direction, and a lucky shot can hit even players far away with a stray flechette.

* Played straight in the ''Team Fortress'' series. The Scout has access to concussion grenades in ''VideoGame/TeamFortressClassic'', and those do barely scratch damage while [[BlownAcrossTheRoom sending anything affected flying]]. The Soldier's frag grenades behave like your run-of-the-mill concussion frag, and the Demoman's dynamite packs [[Administrivia/TheSameButMore do the same with more damage and a larger radius]]. (All of these grenades were planned to appear in the sequel, but were DummiedOut.) In ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'', the Demo's grenades produce no shrapnel, and neither does the Soldier when using the Kamikaze taunt (the only way he can use the grenades on his chest).

Remember, this only applies to grenades that look like or are referred to as frags. If things are exploding when they shouldn't, the object is MadeOfExplodium. For stun grenades, see BlindedByTheLight. May cause an ImpairmentShot in video games. When frags are presented realistically, expect a bad case of TheCoconutEffect.

* The ''VideoGame/{{Unreal}}'' series interestingly plays it both ways with its combination shotgun/grenade launcher in the Flak Cannon. The grenades fragment just fine, well enough to completely shred a target or two when most of the fragments hit - so long as you use the primary fire to detonate the grenade right in the weapon and launch the fragments out like a shotgun blast. SecondaryFire, which launches the grenade out as an actual grenade, reveals the grenades' flaw: They fragment into so few pieces that individual shards are unlikely to do more than ScratchDamage, requiring a more or less direct hit to get results approaching what the primary fire can do (the upshot is a direct hit and instant kill is still possible from a further range with secondary fire, due to launching the grenade as a single projectile in a predictable arc rather than several of them in a semi-randomized burst).

* Played straight in the ''Team Fortress'' series. The Scout has access to concussion grenades in ''VideoGame/TeamFortressClassic'', and those do barely scratch damage while [[BlownAcrossTheRoom sending anything affected flying]]. The Soldier's frag grenades behave like your run-of-the-mill concussion frag, and the Demoman's dynamite packs [[Administrivia/TheSameButMore do the same with more damage and a larger radius]]. In ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'', the Demo's grenades produce no shrapnel, and neither does the Soldier when using the Kamikaze taunt (the only way he can use the grenades on his chest).
* ''VideoGame/XCOMEnemyUnknown'': Played straight with the basic frag grenade. The Needle Grenade introduced in ''[[ExpansionPack Enemy Within]]'' downplays this, working a bit more like an ''actual'' frag grenade – its explosion has a larger radius, but if there's any cover between the grenade's detonation and the target, no damage is dealt.

* The ''VideoGame/{{Unreal}}'' series interestingly plays it both ways with its combination shotgun/grenade launcher in the Flak Cannon. The grenades fragment just fine, well enough to completely shred a target or two when most of the fragments hit - so long as you use the primary fire to detonate the grenade right in the weapon and launch the fragments out like a shotgun blast. SecondaryFire, which launches the grenade out as an actual grenade, reveals the grenades' flaw: They fragment into so few pieces that individual shards are unlikely to do more than ScratchDamage, requiring a more or less direct hit to get results approaching what the primary fire can do (the upshot is a direct hit and instant kill is still possible from a further range with secondary fire, due to launching the grenade as a single projectile rather than several of them in a burst).

* Grenades which are clearly frags explode into fireballs, while an invisible wall prevents the shrapnel from traveling more than two feet. Alternatively, the explosion may look realistic and have fairly realistic range, but somehow manage to blow things across rooms.
* Concussion grenades are used as a type of stun grenade instead of being lethal. In video games, they'll likely act like a type of flash-bang with a different status ailment (like not being able to turn or move).

* In ''ComicBook/RedRobin'' Tim is decidedly unimpressed and annoyed when he runs into Detonator who uses grenades in close quarters combat. Despite Tim lampshading just how dangerously stupid this is Detonator and his team never even seem to be worried about becoming injured when he lobs grenades just feet from them.

* ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'': Frag grenades have a fairly realistic explosion visuals, but the explosion can launch vehicles airborne, making it a hard counter to the Warthog, and killing someone will launch them through the sky.

* ''VideoGame/KillingFloor2'' differentiates between the Support class' frag grenades and the Commando class' HE grenades. Frag grenades' fragments can bounce off terrain to continue travelling, and will pinball in tight hallways very lethally. They use different damage types (piercing and explosive respectively) that will have varying multipliers against advanced Zeds (for example, Scrakes take half damage from explosive, but full damage from piercing).

* The ''VideoGame/{{Unreal}}'' series interestingly plays it both ways with its combination shotgun/grenade launcher in the Flak Cannon. The grenades fragment just fine, well enough to completely shred a target or two - so long as you use the primary fire to detonate the grenade right in the weapon and launch the fragments out like a shotgun blast. SecondaryFire, which launches the grenade out as an actual grenade, reveals the grenades' flaw: They fragment into so few pieces that individual shards are unlikely to do more than scratch damage without a direct hit.

* Played straight in the ''Team Fortress'' series. The Scout has access to concussion grenades in ''VideoGame/TeamFortressClassic'', and those do barely scratch damage while [[BlownAcrossTheRoom sending anything affected flying]]. The Soldier's frag grenades behave like your run-of-the-mill concussion frag, and the Demoman's dynamite packs [[TheSameButMore do the same with more damage and a larger radius]]. In ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'', the Demo's grenades produce no shrapnel, and neither does the Soldier when using the Kamikaze taunt (the only way he can use the grenades on his chest).

* ''VideoGame/RainbowSixSiege'' is another interesting example of a game doing both portrayals alongside each other, but in a different way: Frag grenades will damage the environment in a realistic way, leaving a consistent pattern of shrapnel holes in surrounding walls just like a real frag would, but in terms of damage it behaves the same way as in other games, only doing damage within a limited radius and not via shrapnel. Hence, the grenades behave like frag grenades relative to the environment, and concussion grenades relative to the players.