History Main / GuiltBasedGaming

* ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' has this trope all over the place, going with its theme of blurring the line between the player and the player character. Killing certain characters (most notably [[TeamMom Toriel]] and Papyrus) will result in you getting some heartrending last lines from them and/or being yelled at, and if you kill anyone ''at all'' you can't get the GoldenEnding (though InUniverse, killing only a few people will have your actions acknowledged as self-defense). The [[KillEmAll Genocide]] run is a massive gauntlet of ''all'' the guilt-tripping the game can throw at you- the only person who acts nice to you is the BigBad [[YourApprovalFillsMeWithShame who generally taunts you for being nice]]. [[spoiler: And reloading saves ''will not help''- Flowey and to an extent Sans have RippleEffectProofMemory, and they remember your actions in previous playthroughs. Get the GoldenEnding and then go back to see the others? You'll get guilt-tripped for undoing all the good you did. Get the Genocide ending and try again for the GoldenEnding? Nope, your game is ''permanently tainted'' by the results of the Genocide ending and any time you reach the True Pacifist ending, the final cutscenes will end with the implication of ''everyone dying''. The game even guilts those who watch Genocide Run [[LetsPlay Let's Plays]], mocking them for their cowardice in being unwilling to do the dirty work themselves.]]

* ''VideoGame/PaperMario'': Just try [[spoiler:killing the last Whacka]]--or even hitting it ''once''--without feeling guilty. At first, the Whacka will complain loudly that you're hitting him, then it will [[spoiler:mention that it can't quite remember what happened the other day, implying minor brain damage and memory loss]] and after you hit it a few more times, the Whacka [[spoiler:starts happily singing complete gibberish, implying some form of insanity or brain damage.]] Hit it one more time, and the Whacka [[spoiler: dies.]] What's worse is that every time you hit the Whacka, it drops the Whacka Bump, probably the most powerful healing item in the game.

--->Don't quit: "I couldn't stop. I had to push on."
--->Quit: "But I was too tired to go on."\\

* All the ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' games have your support team screaming after you if you die- "Snake? SNAKE? SNAAAAAAAAAAAKE!!".

* In ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'', Bang Shishigami's storyline, when you lost against Hakumen, you can hear how Litchi Faye-Ling, after no longer seeing Bang as a disgusting StalkerWithACrush, frantically screaming his name (In the same tone of VideoGame/MetalGear as well. "Bang? Bang! BAAAAANGGG!!!").

* In the little-known FPS/adventure game ''VideoGame/IsleOfTheDead'', attempting to quit gives the prompt "Taking the coward's way out?" Confirm, and you get a brief scene of the protagonist '''blowing off his own head with a rifle''' (even if you haven't found the rifle yet). Oh, and then a mad scientist cackles evilly with lightning flashing outside his lair (which you also see every time you die).

--> ''"Dance, please! Daaaaaance!"'' \\

--> ''"Oh, nice, you're just gonna... just gonna hang out, do absolutely nothing."''
--> ''"Um... are you gonna do anything? Just gonna stare at me? Just gonna stand there? What are you doing?"''
--> ''"What are we doing? This is taking entirely too long - you doing nothing and walking around doing nothing... you are literally walking around in the same exact spot."''

-->'''[Boyfriend’s name]:''' ''”It’s not fun going out on my own.''”

-->'''Girl:''' やっと来てくれた。待っていたんだからね。(''Yatto kitekureta. Matte ita ndakara ne.'')

-->"Go ahead. Leave. When you come back, I'll be waiting with a bat."
-->"You're lucky I don't smack you for thinking about leaving."

-->'''VideoGame/SonicRoboBlast2''': ''"You're trying to say [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2006 Sonic2K6]] is better than this, aren't you?"''
* ''VideoGame/RiseOfTheTriad'' was probably the most over-the-top, where quitting was equated with suicide. You would be asked to swallow cyanide, drive off a cliff, drop a guillotine on yourself, and such and if you ''did'' quit, they'd play sound effect of just that happening. [[note]] This is only for the remake made in 2013. [[/note]]

* ''VideoGame/BookwormAdventures'' features a very sad Lex (the titular bookworm) pleading "Don't leave me!" when you try to quit. "How can you say no to such a cute face?"

--> '''Quit:''' This will implode your monitor, possibly doing you severe bodily harm.

* If you cancel your account in ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'', a crying orc peon appears and begs you to change your mind. It was probably intended to be mostly funny, but it could still [[VideoGameCaringPotential make you feel pretty crummy]].
--> Aww, look. You've made the peon cry.

-->"The Valkyr-case was anything but closed."\\
Don't quit: "I couldn't stop. I had to push on."
-->Quit: "But I was too tired to go on."\\

--> '''Merlin:''' Nice try, but you haven't found any clocks! How can you expect to return home this way?

-->'''Shale:''' ''Pigeon crap!''

--> Your daughter was a gift to you from the heavens, and you caused her to grow up to be sinful and wretched!

--> '''Bear:''' It's only a virtual world, I realize, but thoughts turn into reality, so the world I abandoned by resetting might have remained engulfed by evil.

* ''VideoGame/ChampionsOnline'' has an interesting variation - The account management page for cancelling your subscription depicts one of your characters looking sad and trying to guilt-trip you into staying with the game.

* ''VideoGame/BlackAndWhite'', particularly when you kill a human. ''Deaaatth....''

** If your daughter has an extremely high Sin level and gets into one of the less savory professions at the end of the game, her final letter to you and her patron deity's comments will accentuate your failures as a parent. (Your daughter was a gift to you from the heavens, and you caused her to grow up to be sinful and wretched!)

* ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'' loves this trope. Certain characters will leave if they disagree with your actions, of course, but one character in particular will either betray or fight for you if you win him over (and really, all it takes is a few dialogues). Plus, if you ever try to break up with one of the romances or send away followers that have become loyal to you...well, let's just say you want to have a recent save on hand, or you'll be bound to regret that decision.

** In a small mercy, though, it also mentions that [[spoiler:the one responsible for driving her to suicide is pulled out of class for questioning, and never comes back]].

* Dismissing a Felyne helper in ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'' will cut to a black screen with the [[PlayerPunch Felyne tearfully walking away all alone,]] then pausing as it asks you if you're really sure. [[TearJerker Say yes, and it'll run off into the distance,]] [[InelegantBlubbering crying its]] [[YouBastard little eyes out.]]
** [[spoiler: Say ''no'', however, and it'll joyfully run back to you [[MoodWhiplash as the screen turns bright and fills with flowers.]]]]

* In ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' games where your demons can change skills, if you refuse to let a demon change skill they'll protest. Even if it's a skill change to a skill that brings absolutely no benefit (e.g. a Pleorma skill for an element that the demon has no skills of). They still accept your decision though, even if it's out of reluctance.
** Generally, despite its well-deserved reputation for grim storytelling, the series isn't quite as sadistic about this in its demon negotiation and fusion mechanics as it could be. Specifically the games rarely push the player into considering the uglier ramifications of demon fusion (in fact, there are demons who in negotiations reveal that they ''would look forward'' to being fused). Even when you fuse your pet dog with a demon in ''Shin Megami Tensei I'', any guilt is left entirely to the player's imagination. That said, ''Shin Megami Tensei IV'' cranks it up a notch by introducing a new way to win over demons in negotiation: letting them kill a demon in your party or your stock they don't like. If you say yes, you'll hear a [[HellIsThatNoise blood-curdling scream.]] Still, the only real penalty for doing this is having to go through the trouble of reviving and healing the sacrificed demon.

* ''[[VirtualPaperDoll 3D]] [[HGame Custom Girl]]'' Upon starting the game, your virtual avatar will berate you for not visiting her if the game hasn’t been opened in a while. She cheers up quickly afterwards though.

** Which translates to: "He finally came. I was waiting for you."

* In ''3D Custom Girl'', the girl usually has a short line that she says to the player when they quit the game. Which one is actually said depends on how long the game is running, but one of the lines has the girl sadly bidding you goodbye before she is pulled back into her virtual world and the game exits.

* Dying in ''VideoGame/TheWonderful101'' ([[NintendoHard which happens a lot]], by the way), will have whichever Wonderful One you died as coming out of and crying over their fallen body as a ghostly angel with a {{Flatline}} in the background. Selecting "No" when asked to continue will prompt a message [[AreYouSure asking you if you're really sure you want to quit]]. Select "Yes" on this prompt and the weeping angel ascends to Heaven with a ding.

* Dying in ''VideoGame/TheWonderful101'' ([[NintendoHard which happens a lot]], by the way), will have whichever Wonderful One you died as coming out of and crying over their fallen body as a ghostly angel with a {{Flatline}} in the background. Selecting "No" when asked to continue will prompt a message asking you if you're really sure you want to quit. Select "Yes" on this prompt and the weeping angel ascends to Heaven with a ding.

* Dying in ''VideoGame/TheWonderful101'' ([[NintendoHard which happens a lot]], by the way), will have whichever Wonderful One you died as coming out of and crying over their fallen body as a ghostly angel with a [[Flatline]] in the background. Selecting "No" when asked to continue will prompt a message asking you if you're really sure you want to quit. Select "Yes" on this prompt and the weeping angel ascends to Heaven with a ding.

* Dying in ''VideoGame/TheWonderful101'' ([[NintendoHard which happens a lot]], by the way), will have whichever Wonderful One you died as coming out of and crying over their fallen body as a ghostly angel with a cardiogram's line in the background. What happens if the player clicks "No" is unknown. %% This is just a placeholder in case someone who knows what happens when the player clicks "No".

* Hovering over the "yes" button on ''Farm Mania 2'''s quit screen makes the game's sheep mascot shed a tear, while hovering over "no" makes its ears twitch and tail wag.

** Although this is sometimes misinterpeted, you might just simply be on the sidelines and hammering away at the opponents in a [[MacrossMissileMassacre Catapault or Vulture]].

** Their simulation games (''MOE Can Change!'', ''Animal Boyfriend'', the now defunct ''[=FairyDoll=]'', and ''Dream Girlfriend/Boyfriend'') punish the player for neglecting their character by making them sick, which not only keeps them from waking up for 12 hours, but also sharply tanks their affection and mood. This can be easily avoided by manually putting them to sleep before enough time has passed.[[note]]On the other hand, not only do these games give the player a “welcome back” bonus if you’ve been away for so long, but ''Dream Girlfriend'' and ''Dream Boyfriend'' in particular get rid of the 'sick' penalty altogether.[[/note]]

* In ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'', your fish will die if you don't feed them. Of course, that's the least of your worries - if you [[spoiler: dick around when your crew is kidnapped, many of them will die at the hands of the Collectors]], and you'll get chewed out by the remaining survivors for taking your time. [[spoiler: Dr. Chakwas always survives. Which means there is ''always'' a survivor to chew you out for letting everyone else die. Oh, and [[GuideDangIt since the game won't tell you that doing the Derelict Reaper mission will trigger the crew's kidnapping]], it's likely that you'll still have some Loyalty missions to finish, [[SadisticChoice forcing you to choose between the safety of the Normandy crew and the ground team.]] At least you can finish the missions for Legion and one other squadmate before your crew's heads are on the chopping block.]]
** On the other hand, both of these are based on in-game time, measured by completing missions. Outside of combat, {{timed mission}}s, and conversations that contain [[ActionCommands interrupts]], you can leave the game idle with no ill effects.

* The same is true of pretty much any pet simulation that isn't specifically geared towards children.
* Name a Website/{{Facebook}} game, and the odds are you're guilted into coming back to check on your cafe/farm/whatever, because if you don't do so in a timely matter, whatever you were working on rots and it doesn't earn you any money or experience points. This isn't an accidental feature.
** Note that's mostly a Zynga game feature, Kabam's games don't have that feature. However, if you run out of food in one of their games, your troops will desert you and you'll lose a ton of might, unless Kabam is doing something and has disabled troop desertion.

* If you don't use a particular character for a while in ''VideoGame/WarriorsOrochi 3'', they will complain about this. On the other hand, if you have been using someone a lot, they'll boast about their prowess.

*** Taken [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgPDkFbX2X0 to quite the degree]] in ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIV'' and Super SSFIV. Your character is panting heavily, barely able to stand but still trying to not give up, and once the time runs out they collapse to the floor in despair and anger, often screaming or punching the ground.(Pretty much the only one who's calm is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_hevttGT20#t=43s Cody]], [[Funny/StreetFighterIV who just lays down on the ground for a nap]])

* The flash TowerDefence ''VideoGame/BloonsTowerDefense 5'' has "If you quit, [[TheBadGuyWins the bloons win]]!" as the quit message. Note that either way, the bloons will win, as the game becomes an EndlessGame after beating the difficulty level.

** Also, when you're selecting your party, deselecting someone results in them looking dejected and cursing(mildly).
*** ''"Pigeon crap...!"'' -- Shale

** Try stealing other trainers' mons in the main series. You'll get the message "come on, now, don't be a thief." Of course you can't actually steal them in game without a cheat.

** ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots'' does the by-now standard scream, ''and then dissolves to static''. It's actually ''disturbing'' the first time. For some, every time. Not to mention that it flashes very brief glimpses of what was on the line as Snake is dying before the static. (It may not be the first thing to give rise to EpilepticTrees about it all being a VR simulation, but it does encourage them.)
*** Actually, it gets worse; Otacon does a standard "Snake? What's going on? Snake? Snake? SNAAAAAAAAAKE!" a few times but more often than not the message before the scream is "Answer me, ''please''!" or the even more depressing, "No! You can't die!"

* In ''VideoGame/PrincessMaker2'', if you overwork your daughter to the point where she dies, her patron deity will criticize you for not taking care of her health. Also, if your daughter has an extremely high Sin level and gets into one of the less savory professions at the end of the game, her final letter to you and her patron deity's comments will accentuate your failures as a parent. (Your daughter was a gift to you from the heavens, and you caused her to grow up to be sinful and wretched!)

* The entire story of ''VideoGame/Persona4'' is having the ability to rescue people from being killed. If you attempt to go to a previous dungeon when you currently need to rescue someone, your teammates will get angry with you for slacking off. If you choose not to rescue them, they DIE and Igor berates you. Also, you have the option of [[spoiler: killing Namatame by throwing him into the TV yourself.]] This leads to the Worst Ending, which is different than the plain Bad Ending. The punishment is that [[spoiler: Nanako is KilledOffForReal. Good luck with that. And as seen in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pI5AFPSfYmw this video,]] when you get the Worst Ending, Dojima makes you feel really guilty too.]]
** This is made even worse at one of the last rescues. The victim is [[spoiler: Nanako, who is your 'little sister'. If you worked hard to max out her social link, she tended to greet you every evening with "Welcome home, Big Bro!" Leaving her in the TV world simply isn't an option if you have even a shred of humanity.]] Not to mention every single one of your friends insists on the rescue every time you talk to them.
*** Also, in the last fight of the True Ending, if you've managed to max out Nanako's social link, [[spoiler: while you're 'dying', you get visions of your friends. Nanako's is along the lines of 'don't leave me, I'll be a good girl, I promise!']] even if you could, you probably wouldn't choose death with THAT hanging over your head.
*** Actually, to make this even ''worse'', [[spoiler: Nanako is scripted to be the LAST Social Link to appear in the "Dying" scene, so if all of these people you've become friends with weren't reason enough, are you actually able to say no after Nanako's plea?]]
*** Not to say that Nanako's the only one whose [[spoiler:plea for you to get up tugs at your heart-strings. How about [[{{Tomboy}} Ch]][[KickChick ie]], who starts off begging you not to leave her and telling you that she's scared? Or Naoki, who has already lost his older sister, saying he doesn't want to lose you too? How about Ai, who you helped become a better person, completely in disbelief at the idea of you dying? Can you say no to '''''any''''' of them?]]

* The ''Franchise/TombRaider'' games practically thrive on this trope. Between the [[TheManyDeathsOfYou spike traps, the T-Rex chomps, the shark attacks...]] All of this is now shown in increasingly [[{{Squick}} squicky]] detail with the graphical improvements, and the addition of [[ScrappyMechanic "Quick Time Events."]] The series creator specifically wanted a female lead because, in his words, "players would care more and want to protect her." Of course, that also means milking every last drop of player guilt when a mistake or a "challenging" level design leads Lara to some brutal death scene.

** During the optional sniper training segments, your instructor will YELL at you if you take too long to follow his directions, get things out of your inventory, or basically do anything other than practice shooting.

* In ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'', Bang Shishigami's storyline, when you lost against Hakumen, you can hear how Litchi Faye-Ling, after no longer seeing Bang as a disgusting StalkerWithACrush, frantically screaming his name (In the same tone of VideoGame/MetalGear as well. "Bang? Bang! BAAAAANGGG!!!"). Surely you wouldn't want Bang's honest efforts to win her heart go in vain and the poor Boobie Lady left in agony of seeing her new 'friend' die protecting her, right? Go on, continue. Maybe a happy ending awaits Bang and Litchi after that... [[YankTheDogsChain Or not (at least for Bang)]].
* In ''Videogame/Area51'', the GameOver scene is horrific as you watch one of your fellow comrades turn into a Kronn warrior and finishing you off. Or if you're misinterpreting that, the ''player character'' turning into a Kronn warrior and lunging forward to finish off ''the actual player''. Either way...ack.
** Would it be worse if you actually beat the game and you're greeted with this upon doing so? ''Because that's exactly what happens.'' In short, victory is meaningless and the cycle will only continue from there. Come to think of it, it might just [[FromBadToWorse get even worse.]] Or even '''[[NightmareFuel terrifying.]]'''
* ''VideoGame/PaperMario'': Just try [[spoiler:killing the last Whacka]] without feeling guilty. Hell, the game makes you feel guilty even after hitting it just once! At first, the Whacka will complain loudly that you're hitting him, then it will [[spoiler:mention that it can't quite remember what happened the other day, implying minor brain damage and memory loss]] and after you hit it a few more times, the Whacka [[spoiler:starts happily singing complete gibberish, implying some form of insanity or brain damage.]] Hit it one more time, and the Whacka [[spoiler: dies.]] What's worse is that every time you hit the Whacka, it drops the Whacka Bump, probably the most powerful healing item in the game.

* ''VideoGame/EliteBeatAgents''. [[Music/ChicagoBand "You're the Inspiration"]]. Did you just fail it? Have fun watching a ''little girl'', who '''''just''''' lost her father fall into '''deep. Depression.''' YouMonster
* ''VideoGame/AnimalCrossing'''s... Unique take on preventing SaveScumming by resetting the game without saving may count: Upon restoring you immediately get set upon (har har har) by Mr. Resetti, who proceeds to unleash a can of MotorMouth ranting on you. The more you reset, the harsher and longer his rants get; in fact, if you reset too many times, he threatens to reset your game and even ''pretends to do so''. Although it's not so much 'guilt-based' as 'horrify the little children-based gaming', frankly.
** The ''Animal Crossing'' series also has guilt-based town deletion confirmations. When you select the option to rebuild a town, the game will remind you that the town on your current save file will be erased, as will all the inhabitants. In most games, one of the town's inhabitants will panic when you first select the option, and will tell you what rebuilding a town entails with the fear and anxiety of someone who believes TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt is nigh. In the Gamecube game, the inhabitant will even flat-out say that ''no one in the town will survive''. This is downplayed in ''VideoGame/AnimalCrossingNewHorizons'', where deletion options are limited to deleting a resident's registration: the island and the inhabitants will remain, but not only will the player's home and belongings be deleted, but [[RetGone all of the inhabitants' memories of the player will also be erased]], as Tom Nook spells out matter-of-factly. There is no way to delete the "Resident Representative", the main player for the game; nor are there options in the game for actually deleting the island, which can only be done by deleting the game's save data from the Switch's storage.

* Parodied in [[http://tinysubversions.com/game/ywhtwt/ You Were Hallucinating The Whole Time]], an obvious lampoon of games like ''Spec Ops: The Line'' above. While the 3 games are presented normally, it then reveals that you really made things worse. YouMonster.
* Three Dog in ''VideoGame/Fallout3'' acts as the player's in-universe karmic barometer. Choose the good ending in sidequests and he'll be singing your praises, but go for the evil path in sidequests and he'll be calling you out as a menace for the rest of the game. This gets particularly complicated in the Tenpenny Tower quest, though, because he's decided to side with Roy and the ghouls even though Roy is a murderous, racist asshole who will kill the inhabitants of the tower (some of which aren't even that bad a people) if he gets his way, and even if you get the GoldenEnding that should make both sides happy he'll ruin it right after you leave.

* ''VideoGame/NekoAtsume: Kitty Collector'' has your current food gradually deplete over time as cats come to your yard. If you leave the game unattended for too long, your food will empty out and cats will stop visiting. Fortunately, that's the only bad thing that happens; refilling the food bowls is all it takes to start attracting cats again.

* ''VideoGame/EarthBound1994
'' has an instance where one of Jeff's classmates has gift-wrapped a bunch of cookies for a birthday party. Gift-wrapped presents are the main source of loot in this game, so you might think that one of them has something good. If you do open them, not only will you find nothing good, but the classmate will say that he 'can't believe you'd do something so nasty'.

** Did you neglect your virtual boyfriend for so long? ''Dream Boyfriend'' guilts you by periodically sending notifications about how lonely your boyfriend is without you.

* ''VideoGame/DontStarve'': "Wilson will miss you!"

* ''VideoGame/EarthBound'' is in fact the opposite. The game keeps encouraging you to take a break, though it still refers to not doing so as "working hard", which sends some mixed messages.

* ''VideoGame/EarthBound'' has an instance where one of Jeff's classmates has gift-wrapped a bunch of cookies for a birthday party. Gift-wrapped presents are the main source of loot in this game, so you might think that one of them has something good. If you do open them, not only will you find nothing good, but the classmate will say that he 'can't believe you'd do something so nasty'.

** Their simulation games (''MOE Can Change!'', ''Animal Boyfriend'', the now defunct ''[=FairyDoll=]'', and ''Dream Girlfriend/Boyfriend'') punish the player for neglecting their character by making him/her sick, which not only keeps them from waking up for 12 hours, but also sharply tanks their affection and mood. This can be easily avoided by manually putting them to sleep before enough time has passed. Oddly enough, these games also give the player a “welcome back” bonus—valuable items and currency, and a temporary work/study stat buff, plus a welcome back message from your avatar—if you’ve been away from the game for a long while.
** ''Dream Girlfriend'' and ''Dream Boyfriend'' straight up avert this penalty however by allowing the player to set an automatic bedtime in the former, and removing the "tired" penalty altogether.
*** Did you neglect your virtual boyfriend for so long? ''Dream Boyfriend'' guilts you by periodically sending notifications about how lonely your boyfriend is without you.

* ''VideoGame/EliteBeatAgents''. [[Music/{{Chicago}} "You're the Inspiration"]]. Did you just fail it? Have fun watching a ''little girl'', who '''''just''''' lost her father fall into '''deep. Depression.''' YouMonster.

* ''VideoGame/EliteBeatAgents''. You're The Inspiration. Did you just fail it? Have fun watching a ''little girl'', who '''''just''''' lost her father fall into '''deep. Depression.''' YouMonster.

* Yet another reason why ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' fans obsess over [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters individual characters.]] Some pairs of characters will have conversations revealing their [[{{Backstory}} backstories]] and interpersonal relationships. Some will have have paired endings ([[{{Shipping}} usually getting married.]]) Anyway if they die, you lose those conversations, lose the bonuses from relationships, and their ending is replaced with "Character died on Chapter 17."

* If you don't use a particular character for a while in VideoGames/WarriorsOrochi 3, they will complain about this. On the other hand, if you have been using someone a lot, they'll boast about their prowess.

Compare ItsAWonderfulFailure (the results of a failure are shown), WhatTheHellPlayer (the game calls you out on being a jerk), and YouBastard (the game doesn't stop you, but you're reminded that you shouldn't be enjoying whatever you're doing). Contrast AntiPoopSocking, when the game is encouraging you to take a break from playing.

* Websites that rely on advertisement revenue to stay afloat will sometimes try to shame you for using an adblocker by asking that you put their website on your whitelist. Others will beg you to support them by asking for donations if you want to disable ads without the use of an addon in your browser. The more aggressive and/or malicious websites will outright block you from browsing their content until you turn your ad blocker off. ''TV Tropes itself'' does this if you're not logged in. Most websites with these "ad-blocker blockers", unfortunately, will falsely accuse the user of using an ad-blocker if they have some sort of protection against tracking code enabled even if they don't use any tools for explicitly blocking ads, as many ad systems ''rely on'' collecting user data to serve ads, more-or-less shaming the user for trying to preserve their privacy.

* Websites that rely on advertisement revenue to stay afloat will sometimes try to shame you for using an adblocker by asking that you put their website on your whitelist. Others will beg you to support them by asking for donations if you want to disable ads without the use of an addon in your browser. The more aggressive and/or malicious websites will outright block you from browsing their content until you turn your ad blocker off. ''TV Tropes itself'' does this if you're not logged in. Most websites with these "ad-blocker blockers", unfortunately, will falsely accuse the user of using an ad-blocker if they have some sort of protection against tracking code enabled, as many ad systems ''rely on'' collecting user data to serve ads, more-or-less shaming the user for trying to preserve their privacy.