History Main / CosmeticallyDifferentSides

** Averted with team roles, the Plants have more defense-oriented abilities (Peashooter and Sunflower's stationary turret attacks, Cactus' Wall-Nuts and Potato Mines, Chomper's Spikeweed) and take the defensive in the Gardens & Graveyards and Garden Ops modes. Likewise, the zombies are ones trying to attack and take over plant territory in Gardens & Graveyards (as with Garden Ops, but the zombies are all enemy {{Mooks}} in that mode). Both of these team roles harken back to the series' TowerDefense roots. [=GW2=] then plays this trope straighter, giving the Zombies their own Co-Op defensive mode (Graveyard Ops). [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration While this makes sense, given that the Zombies have taken over Neighborville in this game and the plants are trying to reclaim it]], it removes a unique gameplay feature the Plants had in favor of giving it to both. The Engineer also receives a stationary turret ability (replacing his drone, which was given to new zombie Captain Deadbeard) highly reminiscent of those used by two of the plant characters.

* ''VideoGame/TeamFortressClassic''
** ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' picks up the ball and runs with it. One side is working for a "heroically evil" demolition company; the other for an "evilly heroic" construction company. In practice, it's just a PaletteSwap: the companies are even named RED[[labelnote:*]]Reliable Excavation and Demolition[[/labelnote]] and BLU.[[labelnote:*]]Builder's League United[[/labelnote]]

** As a whole, the Plants have more defense-oriented abilities (Peashooter and Sunflower's stationary turret attacks, Cactus' Wall-Nuts and Potato Mines, Chomper's Spikeweed) and take the defensive in the Gardens & Graveyards and Garden Ops modes. Likewise, the zombies are ones trying to attack and take over plant territory in Gardens & Graveyards (as with Garden Ops, but the zombies are all enemy {{Mooks}} in that mode). Both of these team roles harken back to the series' TowerDefense roots. [=GW2=] then plays this trope straighter, giving the Zombies their own Co-Op defensive mode (Graveyard Ops). [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration While this makes sense, given that the Zombies have taken over Neighborville in this game and the plants are trying to reclaim it]], it removes a unique gameplay feature the Plants had in favor of giving it to both.

[[folder:Shooter]]

* [[AvertedTrope Averted]] in the ''VideoGame/{{ArmA}}'' series. While the different sides may have ''equivalents'' (all have service rifles, main battle tanks, transport helicopters, trucks, etc) all their equipment, vehicles and even the individual gear of the soldiers will have different stats from one another, and some might be objectively better then others. Some sides in various games (the FIA, [=ChDKZ=], NAPA, Syndikat and Takistani Militia) are guerrilla groups armed with outdated or improvised equipment. This is mostly because the ''[=ArmA=]'' series is a [[FacklerScaleOfFPSRealism Military Simulator]] first and foremost, and balance is thrown out the window - real life militaries will definitely attempt to be at least on equal footing to another military, but that doesn't mean they'll always succeed.
* ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield}}'' generally zig-zags this, starting off mostly averting it but gradually coming closer to this as the series progresses - your starting weapons will often be completely different depending on the faction, but later unlocks are available regardless of side and vehicles differ mostly in appearance.
* In ''VideoGame/{{BioShock 2}}'' there are two types of splicers, those who belong to 'the family' and 'feral' splicers. The only visually difference is a small butterfly badge/Brooch.
* ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'': Especially when the perk system was implemented. The only difference between the sides are uniforms and the accent of the announcer. But militia groups and insurgents have access to the same weaponry as professional armies... Which is especially jarring when you realize that a mere Brazilian favela gang is able to call in supply drops, gunship strikes, stealth bombers or even ''tactical nuclear strikes''.
* In the ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' multiplayer for ''[[VideoGame/{{Halo 2}} 2]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/{{Halo 3}} 3]]'', Elites and Spartans are exactly alike aside from the obvious cosmetic differences caused by the former being alien and the latter being human. This is especially so in ''3'', where Elites were changed to have the same hitbox as Spartans rather than the hitboxes they used as an enemy in singleplayer (Elite players complained that they seemed custom-designed to absorb every pellet from a shotgun blast at reasonably-close distances, Spartan players complained Elites couldn't be headshot from behind because of their more slouched position). ''VideoGame/HaloReach'' averts this, though - Elites are faster, have better shields, and complete RegeneratingHealth, but are bigger targets, in return for only being playable in specific Spartan vs Elite playlists.
* ''VideoGame/TeamFortressClassic''
** ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' picks up the ball and runs with it. One side is working for a "heroically evil" demolition company; the other for an "evilly heroic" construction company. In practice, it's just a PaletteSwap: the companies are even named RED[[labelnote:*]]Reliable Excavation and Demolition[[/labelnote]] and BLU.[[labelnote:*]]Builder's League United[[/labelnote]]
** Mercs even ''look'' the same - the only difference is the color of their uniforms and the stuff they use. [[UnusuallyUninterestingSight This is never remarked upon]], even in supplementary material, where there only seems to be one of each class.
** Justified: both teams are (secretly) controlled by the same person. And not-secretly, they belong to [[SiblingRivalry twins]].
* ''VideoGame/LawBreakers'' places players on the sides of the Law or as the Breakers with each game. Both sides have the same classes that play the same way, but each class is represented by a different character with their own background.
* The original ''VideoGame/StarWarsBattlefront'' and ''[[VideoGame/StarWarsBattlefrontII Battlefront II]]'' are classic examples. The troops, weapons and vehicles all for the most part look quite different, and they have ''minor'' differences in things such as fire rate or accuracy (like the Imperial blaster rifle firing faster, but naturally [[ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy becoming less accurate over long bursts]] than its Rebel equivalent, or the Republic V-Wing firing a shotgun-like burst for its primary weapon rather than the more focused blasts of the CIS bomber), but ultimately the only significant differences between the sides are almost exclusive to their unique units. This is especially pronounced in the fact that, in the movies, the Republic became the Empire, so the two sides use a lot of the same equipment against the other two with only the texture differentiating them, like their sniper rifle and the IFT fighter tanks.
* ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield}}'' started using this trope when it began making use of customizable loadouts similar to ''Call of Duty'', though there have been a few holdouts, such as ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield 3}}'' giving each side a specific starting weapon for each class with different attributes (e.g. USMC's Assault gets an M16 that fires faster but kicks slightly harder on the first shot than the RGF's AK-74) and making the ability to use the starting guns with either faction the last unlock, and ''VideoGame/BattlefieldHardline'' restricting several weapons to one side until you've killed upwards of a thousand enemies with it.
* ZigZagged (though mostly averted) throughout the ''VideoGame/PlantsVsZombiesGardenWarfare'' games with the two eponymous sides:
** ZigZagged; while each class has an obvious counterpart, their abilities differ or are switched around. For instance, while both are healers, Scientists in [=GW1=] lack an equivalent to the Sunflower's Heal Beam and must rely on setting Heal Stations or Mega Heal Bombs.
** Zigzagged with the [[SentryGun Zombot Turrets]] introduced in the first game. They're the Zombies' rough equivalent to the Plants' stationary potted plants, but come in less variety and are Engineer-exclusive.
** As a whole, the Plants have more defense-oriented abilities (Peashooter and Sunflower's stationary turret attacks, Cactus' Wall-Nuts and Potato Mines, Chomper's Spikeweed) and take the defensive in the Gardens & Graveyards and Garden Ops modes. Likewise, the zombies are ones trying to attack and take over plant territory in Gardens & Graveyards (as with Garden Ops, but the zombies are all enemy {{Mooks}} in that mode). Both of these team roles harken back to the series' TowerDefense roots. [=GW2=] then plays this trope straighter, giving the Zombies their own Co-Op defensive mode (Graveyard Ops). [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration While this makes sense, given that the Zombies have taken over Neighborville in this game and the plants are trying to reclaim it]], it removes a unique gameplay feature the Plants had in favor of giving it to both.
** ''Garden Warfare 2'' continues to zig-zag this trope. While some classes have been changed to act as more of a counterpart to a class on the other side(scientists, for example, now have their own heal beam), most of the new classes are unlike anything the other team has.
*** Roses and Imps both have a powerful crowd-control ability with a wide area-of-effect that renders opponents helpless. But while Roses are surprisingly un-{{Squishy Wizard}}s, Imps are {{Glass Cannon}}s with the lowest health pool in the game.
*** Citrons and Superbrains are both tanky and have lasers, but while citrons are more focused on [[LongRangeFighter ranged attacks]], superbrains [[CloseRangeCombatant are more focused on melee attacks]].
*** Kernel Corns were added to fill the [[GatlingGood "Dude with a Minigun"]] niche that the zombies covered with and All-Stars. But while both have a poweful rapid-fire minigun attack, All-Stars can place shields and tackle their opponents, Kernel Corns have missiles and artillery support.
*** At first, Captain Dreadbeard appears similar to the cactus, being a long-ranged fighter who can summon a drone. But while Cacti have little to no close-range abilities (instead gaining the ability to place walls and explosive mines), Dreadbeard [[MultiRangedMaster has a powerful shotgun and a powerful "barrel blast" that deals huge damage within a small area around him]], at the expense of lacking any defensive abilities.
*** Played straight by the Mooks- the Weeds and variants introduced in ''2'' are basically equivalent to the mook zombies and their variants.

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** As a whole, the Plants have more defense-oriented abilities (Peashooter and Sunflower's stationary turret attacks, Cactus' Wall-Nuts and Potato Mines, Chomper's Spikeweed) and take the defensive in the Gardens & Graveyards and Garden Ops modes. Likewise, the zombies are ones trying to attack and take over plant territory in Gardens & Graveyards (as with Garden Ops, but the zombies are all enemy {{Mooks}} in that mode). Both of these team roles harken back to the series' TowerDefense roots. [=GW2=] then plays this trope straighter, giving the Zombies their own Co-Op defensive mode (Graveyard Ops). [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration While this makes sense, given that the Zombies have taken over Neighborville in this game and the plants are trying to reclaim it]], it removes a unique gameplay feature the Plants had.
** ''Garden Warfare 2'' continues to zig-zag this trope. While some classes have been changed to act as more of a counterpart to a class on the other side counterpart (scientists, for example, now have their own heal beam), most of the new classes are unlike anything the other team has.
*** Roses and Imps both have a powerful crowd-control ability with a wide area-of-effect that renders opponents helpless. But while Roses are surprisingly un-{{Squishy Wizard}}s, Imps are [[GlassCannon Glass Cannons]] with the lowest health pool in the game.

** Played straight by the Mooks- the Weeds and variants introduced in ''2'' are basically equivalent to the mook zombies and their variants. Zigzagged with the [[SentryGun Zombot Turrets]] introduced in the first game. They're the Zombies' rough equivalent to the Plants' stationary potted plants, but come in less variety and are Engineer-exclusive.

* ZigZagged throughout the ''VideoGame/PlantsVsZombiesGardenWarfare'' games with the two eponymous sides:

[[folder: First Person Shooter ]]

[[quoteright:350:[[VideoGame/WarCraft https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Warcraft_2_8815.jpg]]]]

* In the 2-D ''VideoGame/FireEmblem'' games, the only difference between your enemies and your units is the coloring and facial portraits. Everything else is identical. Averted in Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn- most of your units have their own character models. It does, however, get interesting when you start fighting different enemy armies, who all share the same models. Why do Daein, Crimea, and Begnion all employ the same ten soldiers, again?
** This can be partially explained by the fact that the entire (human-inhabited part of the) continent was under Begnion rule until a few centuries before. (It's AllThereInTheManual. Or at least [[http://fireemblem.wikia.com/wiki/Begnion the wiki]].)
** Finally averted with ''VideoGame/FireEmblemFates''. Hoshido and Nohr have entirely different class trees, and they're anything but analogous - Hoshido having the [[FragileSpeedster Samurai]] while Nohr has access to [[JackOfAllStats Mercenaries]] is just one example. [[OneGameForThePriceOfTwo Which version you play]] will determine which side the lion's share of your units come from, although there are some units that always join you, and certain units and systems can cross-class between nations.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Chess}}'': many designer chess sets show striking differences in the appearence of the chess pieces between the the opposing sides. Their functionality, however, remains the same as for standard black/white chess pieces.

** This appears to be a recent development; as prior to the 2008 season NASCAR cars were essentially souped-up versions of production cars (the days of the famous "Race on Sunday, sell on Monday" motto).

* In TabletopGame/{{Xiangqi}}, the functionally equivalent pieces of the two sides are distinguished in Chinese by name as well as by color. Some red pieces' Chinese names uses obviously similar characters to their black counterparts, but in other cases the characters are completely different (but still have the same pronunciation). Some of the red pieces are named after important parts of an established government, while the equivalent black pieces evoke the idea of an invading army.

** This trope ''does'' apply to the religions in ''Civilization IV''. You can found one of seven religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Confucianism, Taoism, Christianity, and Islam), but they're all mechanically identical except for what Technology you need to found them. In the manual, the creators admit this was [[InvokedTrope done on purpose]] to [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools avoid offending anyone]] by [[UnfortunateImplications suggesting that any one religion was better than the other or feeding into inaccurate stereotypes]].

* [[AvertedTrope Averted]] in the ''[[VideoGame/{{ARMA}} ARMA series]]''. While the different sides may have ''equivalents'' (all have service rifles, main battle tanks, transport helicopters, trucks, etc) all their equipment, vehicles and even the individual gear of the soldiers will have different stats from one another, and some might be objectively better then others. Some sides in various games (the FIA, [=ChDKZ=], NAPA, Syndikat and Takistani Militia) are guerrilla groups armed with outdated or improvised equipment. This is mostly because the Arma series is a [[FacklerScaleOfFPSRealism Military Simulator]] first and foremost and balance is thrown out the window.

* In the ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' multiplayer for ''[[VideoGame/{{Halo 2}} 2]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/{{Halo 3}} 3]]'', Elites and Spartans are exactly alike aside from the obvious cosmetic differences caused by the former being alien and the latter being human. ''VideoGame/HaloReach'' averts this, though - Elites are faster, have better shields, and fully recharging health, but are bigger targets. ''2'' also had Elites use a different hitbox, but after complaints about how it seemed custom-designed to absorb every pellet from a shotgun blast (which makes sense considering Elites are enemies in at least part of the singleplayer), they gave Elites the same hitbox as Spartans in ''3''.

** Mercs even ''look'' the same. Only difference is the color of their uniforms and the stuff they use. [[UnusuallyUninterestingSight This is never remarked upon]], even in supplementary material.

** ''VideoGame/StarWarsGalacticBattlegrounds'' is slightly better about this but still pretty bad, due to being ''Age of Empires'' [[AC:[[RecycledInSpace in a galaxy far, far away]]]]. Cosmetically the factions are vastly varied, however in terms of gameplay, in the early game a battle droid (which in all other adaptions are laughably ineffective) is no different than a Wookiee (a more than two metre tall walking carpet that is known to tear people's arms out of their sockets). Later tech levels add actual differences, such as the Wookiees getting regeneration and large [[TheBerserker berserkers]] [[DualWield with a sword in each hand]].

** The [[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberianDawn first]] [[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlert three]] [[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberianSun games]] went so far as to allow the two factions to use many of the same buildings and units. Both factions used the same Construction Yard, the same Refinery, the same Riflemen, et cetera, while the only differences between the GDI Barracks and the Brotherhood's Hand of Nod were cosmetic (the differences between the units and defensive structures that were not shared was ''[[DownplayedTrope not]]'' just cosmetic, however). Later games would eventually eliminate all shared units, but some structures, like construction yards, would never have anything more than cosmetic differences.

* In TabletopGame/{{Xiangqi}}, the functionally equivalent pieces of the two sides are distinguished in Chinese by name as well as by color. Some red pieces' Chinese names uses obviously similar characters to their black counterparts, but in other cases the characters are completely different (but still have the same pronunciation).

** This trope ''does'' apply to the religions in ''Civilization IV''. You can found one of seven religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Confucianism, Taoism, Christianity, and Islam), but they're all mechanically identical except for what Technology you need to found them. In the manual, the creators admit this was [[InvokedTrope done on purpose]] to [[TropesAreTools avoid offending anyone]] by [[UnfortunateImplications suggesting that any one religion was better than the other or feeding into inaccurate stereotypes]].

The universe is too small for the intergalactic powers of the day. Their armies, developed on different planets by several different cultures, eventually come to an epic clash.

You'd think this situation would present certain issues of ballistics and firepower. Weapons made on places millions of light-years apart must be very different from each other. At ''least'' they'll have a different caliber.

You'd think.

Instead, the enemy walkers take the same amount of damage as your tanks and dish out just as much hurt. Okay, so they're shooting laser zaps instead of artillery shells, have different names, and almost certainly will have different looks... But in the end side A's [[CoolTank heavy tank]] has the exact same purpose and tactical function as side B's heavy {{hovertank}} and side C's heavy [[SpiderTank crawler]]. Ditto for A's scout vehicle, B's fast hovercraft and C's four-legged jumping crawler. There might be some minor race differences, and maybe one or two units that are genuinely different, but the end result is still a ridiculously improbable balance.

This trope is most often seen in RealTimeStrategy games whose designers are too lazy to think of alternate tactics for the various sides and/or ways to balance the differences; in fact, games such as ''VideoGame/StarCraft'' are ''praised'' for averting this trope. Having said that, the lengthy play-testing cycle of ''VideoGame/WarCraft III'', and the card bannings in ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'', show you one benefit to having only cosmetic differences: it's ''way'' easier to create a working CompetitiveBalance, since no side will ever end up with [[GameBreaker uber-powerful superunits]] the other can't counter. The strain on WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief and impact on strategy is just [[AcceptableBreaksFromReality something you have to live with]].

This is a lot more common in games set in real or historical settings, as it's rare for any human military to have a technological advantage for long without someone on the other side trying to copy it, and possibly one-upping it. At least at the infantry end. Once you get into vehicles, things tend to shift: a Tiger is imbalanced vs. a Sherman (which itself outmatches say, a Renault Ft), but they're all tanks.

* General Lionwhyte's forces in ''VideoGame/BrutalLegend'' are just reskinned versions of your own troops: Headbangers become Hairbangers, Razor Girls become Groupies, etc.. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] in that most of your forces were liberated from him, while most of the rest of the pairings are explicitly him copying you (for instance, he arms his Groupies with the exact same weapons you just armed your Razor Girls with) to drive home the point that you don't have anything he doesn't.
** Subverted later with the other two factions, the Drowning Doom and the Tainted Coil, which have their own unique units and strategies. DoubleSubversion in multiplayer, where pitting either of those factions against itself results in units mocking the other side for being fakers/ripoffs/etc., which was presumably the point of the battle. The aesthetics back it up: for instance, Drowning Doom has a zombie motif, but a second Drowning Doom faction is [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin literally]] a reskin in most cases, from white/blue/grey/etc. to pink (as in normal people dressed up as zombies).

* ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield}}'' generally zig-zags this, starting off mostly averting it but gradually coming closer to this as the series progresses - your starting weapons will often be completely different depending on the faction, but later unlocks are available regardless of side and vehicles differ mostly in appearance.

** Justified: both teams are (secretly) controlled by the same person. And not-secretly, they belong to [[SiblingRivalry twins]].

* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' originally subverted this by restricting the Shaman and Paladin classes to Horde and Alliance respectively, though this was tossed out starting with the first expansion, ''Burning Crusade''. However, each race varies slightly in base stats and racial abilities. The Paladin also had slightly different abilities on both sides, but this was was over as well by ''Wrath of the Lich King''.

** Zigzagged in multiplayer: While the units all use the same models and the same buildings no matter the civilization (possibly justified in that civilizations are chosen according to the starting era, going from Mediterranean/Middle-Eastern when they weren't too far apart to the G8 when modern buildings look much the same anywhere in the world), in practice units have different stats, as different civilizations specialize in different units (with variables such as attack, armor, HP, cost...). In the expansion, each civilization has its own power (infantry that can move through trees and cliffs, archers with fire arrows, towers that convert enemies, stealing upgrades from enemy civilizations, etc.), separating them further.

* Both played straight and averted in the original ''VideoGame/GroundControl'', since the two sides (the [[MegaCorp Crayven Corporation]] and the [[ChurchMilitant Order of the New Dawn]]) have, for the most part, the same types of units. However, Crayven vehicles (called [[CallARabbitASmeerp terradynes]]) are all of the traditional type (i.e. wheeled and treaded, armed with ballistic weapons) and tend to be slower but more heavily armored. All Order vehicles [[HoverTank hover]] (called hoverdynes) and are thus faster and more maneuverable but are trading that for less armor. The Order utilizes {{Energy Weapon}}s, which are a bit stronger than their ballistic counterparts but not significantly. A few units for the same "type" diverge. For example, Crayven special forces called Jaegers are a four-man highly-mobile team of snipers who also act as spotters for artillery. Their Order counterparts are the Templars, a large AmazonBrigade armed with anti-armor rocket launchers. The Order also has a unique AttackDrone carrier, while Crayven has a bomber capable of dropping a tactical nuke. The fire support units on both sides also differ in that the Crayven Firecracker specializes in {{Macross Missile Massacre}}s, while the Order Lacerta likes to BeamSpam (requiring a line-of-sight). All units also have special abilities that can be selected before the mission, which are unique to each faction.

** Homeworld: Cataclysm partly averts this, although it's justified -- the enemy you face is actually TheVirus, so having it chew up your ships and spit them back at you is par for the course. For example, the Beast utilizes Ion Array Frigates it captured from the Turanic Raiders. Besides having a single powerful beam weapon, they can also cloak. Meanwhile, the Somtaaw use Multi-Beam Frigates that are also highly maneuverable, literally dancing around their enemies, while their (individually weaker) ion beam turrets track fast-moving targets.

* Subverted by ''VideoGame/RiseOfNations.'' The various factions tend to look similar at first glance depending on the cultural grouping. On the other hand, not only do they have (at most four) unique units replacing "standard" types. But there are also subtle differences in unit design and architecture between countries even of the same grouping, such as Japanese fighter planes having red circles on their wings, American buildings looking "frontier-colonial" and German soldiers resembling their UsefulNotes/WorldWarI and UsefulNotes/WorldWarII counterparts.

** Even more hilarious when you realize certain units (like the Command Center) have the same logo painted on them, no matter what faction they belong to. Guess these come standardized.
** To a lesser extent, this applies to the Protoss Templars & Dark Templars. They have different units, but otherwise the exact same buildings. The Dark Templars don't even bother to paint theirs, well, ''dark''. And like the Terrans, there are two units of difference between them, but the player gets access to all of them, anyway.
*** Justified better with the Protoss, because they are very tradition-bound, normally discovering old technology rather than inventing something new.
*** Also justified in that the split was relatively recent compared to the fact that Protoss are absurdly long-lived, Dark Templar Matriarch Raszagal ''remembers'' the split. Despite being the oldest living Protoss, that means that we are only a generation or two out.

** Somewhat averted in the UED's victory cinematic, which depicted a Goliath with a under-slung missile pod instead of the twin machine guns they're normally depicted with. It implies that both units shared a similar base, but diverged due to the Korpulu's isolation.

* ''VideoGame/TotalAnnihilation'' has this as well. Core units tend to be a bit tougher, slower and more expensive than Arm units, but the differences are trivial. The only relevant difference is that Core has a superheavy tank (useful) while Arm has an immobilizing, non-damaging spider tank (useless). Justified in that each faction has units for every type of situation, ending up somewhere around the thick end of 75 units.
*** Of course, the fact that that immobilizing spider can bring that superheavy tank to a dead stop for other units to pound into scrap is far more useful than it sounds at first.

*** On top of that, each sponsor/faction has a specific advantage to encourage a certain playstyle - anyone playing as the [[FarEast Pan-Asian Cooperative]] will probably be pumping out Wonders like nobody's business, anyone playing as [[Usefulnotes/{{Brazil}} Brasilia]] will probably want to consider the military option, anyone playing as the [[NeoAfrica People's African Union]] will want to take advantage of flourishing cities due to the growth bonus, anyone playing as [[UnitedEurope Franco-Iberia]] will want to play the culture game, etc.

** Later played straight in ''VideoGame/StarcraftII'' where the Dominion ends up with upgrades and tech that is thought up by your OmindisciplinarianScientist.

* Played straight in ''Earth 2140'', where the [[EagleLand United Civilized States]] and the [[MakeTheBearAngryAgain Eurasian Dynasty]] are largely the same, with the difference being that the UCS uses robotic units and [[BrainInAJar brains in a jar]], while the ED uses cyborgs. Averted in the sequels: ''VideoGame/{{Earth 2150}}'' and ''Earth 2160'', especially with the addition of the [[LadyLand Lunar]] [[OneNationUnderCopyright Corporation]]. In ''Earth 2150'', the ED tends to ZergRush with good old-fashioned tanks, while the UCS uses powerful (but more expensive) mechs, and the LC utilizes {{Hover Tank}}s with {{Improvied Weapon}}ry.

* In TabletopGame/{{Xiangqi}}, the pieces of the two sides are distinguished in Chinese by name as well as by color. Some red pieces' Chinese names uses obviously similar characters to their black counterparts, but in other cases the characters are completely different (but still have the same pronunciation).