History Main / KudzuPlot

** Orihime has a couple of unresolved references, including the implication that she can do something to destroy the Hougyouku (and her resolving to do just that).

* The more ''Manga/DGrayMan'''s plot progresses, the more complicated it gets with the new reveals only complicating what is already known. As the fandom says "everything we learn raised 6 more questions".

* ''Manga/OnePiece'', as it is a ridiculously {{Long Runner|s}} at over 1000 chapters with tons of characters-- and thus a ton of plot threads that will take a long time to come together. It's a common expression among fans that "[[MemeticMutation Oda never forgets]]" because it's extremely common for characters or plot devices to be introduced, forgotten about, and then [[ChekhovsGun become relevant again hundreds of chapters later]].

** What complicates this trope even further is that the author has stated that he's creating an entirely new universe in the Middle {{Superhero Prevalence Stage|s}}, shading towards Late. Therefore, when a new hero is mentioned or introduced, the reader doesn't necessarily know whether this is a cameo, after which they'll become the HeroOfAnotherStory[[note]] such as Hank Pym and Janet Van Dyne[[/note]], or whether they will go on to become an important part of the plot.[[note]] For example, Peter Parker appeared briefly in chapter 20 of Book 1, before returning in Chapter 29 of the second book for the arc that would kick off his OriginStory, then vanishing again, before reappearing in the second book's spinoff, ''Unfinished Business'', which includes more of his OriginStory[[/note]]

** [[spoiler:Frylock is implied to be a UsefulNotes/{{Transgender}} lesbian, trapped in the body of a talking box of fries/VCR.]] (Although this is subtly hinted at throughout the series, making this twist a RewatchBonus.)

* Music/{{Starbomb}}'s trio of songs titled "The Simple Plot of ---" that occur [[OncePerEpisode once an album]] have the main characters of the games sing about of the complex plots of first ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'', then ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' and finally ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsI''.

* ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear'', the [[CreatorDrivenSuccessor predeccessor]] to ''Franchise/BlazBlue'', is tied up in several ongoing plot strands at once with multiple factions and backstories that need to be understood in order to keep straight the current conflicts. Part of this complication is due to the fact there is a large importance on certain [[NonPlayerCharacter NPCs]] (particularly "That Man", one of the individuals responsible for the creation of the living weapons known as "Gears"), which can be hard to track in a fighting game where the focus would normally be placed on key playable characters each with their own agendas and goals. The main plot is arguably simple enough (mankind created Gears as the next step in human evolution > the Gears TurnedAgainstTheirMasters and began [[GreatOffscreenWar the nearly century-long Crusades]] > humanity tries to recover as the protagonist attempts to track down That Man while dealing with both a post-war GovernmentConspiracy and his own dark past as [[spoiler:another contributor to the Gear Project]]), though even that can get bogged down as each new game [[{{Revision}} adds more details and context to the overarching story]]. ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear2Overture'' is infamous for a MagiBabble-heavy narrative that seems to be only tangentially related to what's shown in ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearTheMissingLink GG1]]'', ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearX X]]'', and ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearXX XX]]''[[labelnote:*]]which can be boiled down to "[[NotJustATournament a plot]] to [[SealedEvilInACan unseal]] the leader of the Gears", "the daughter of the Gear leader is discovered, inciting an international incident", and "That Man's [[TheDragon Dragon]] tries to hijack the GovernmentConspiracy to eliminate perceived threats to her master", respectively[[/labelnote]], whereas ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearXrd Xrd]]'' took these same elements and [[ArcWelding welded them together with the events of the previous games]] while adding even more revelations to the pile (several of which [[SeriesContinuityError contradicted]], [[BroadStrokes skimmed over]], or [[CanonDiscontinuity outright ignored]] previously established plot points, mainly those from ''XX'' and ''Accent Core Plus'' but some {{retcon}}s even going as far back as the ''[=GG1=]'' and ''GGX'' era). This put anyone who was introduced to the series [[NewbieBoom via]] ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearStrive -STRIVE-]]'' in [[ContinuityLockout a bit of a predicament]], as that game assumes you're generally up to speed with what happened in the ''Xrd'' saga[[labelnote:*]]''-SIGN-'', ''-REVELATOR-'', and ''REV 2''[[/labelnote]], which in turn had its fair share of [[LateArrivalSpoiler Late-Arrival Spoilers]] (including those for an interquel pachinko title[[labelnote:*]]''Vastedge XT''[[/labelnote]] many players were not aware of). Much like ''[=BlazBlue=]'', ''Xrd'' and ''-STRIVE-'' do at least feature rather comprehensive glossary entries on pretty much every notable character and concept within the setting.

* The ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles'' series uses a Kudzu Plot in a very different way, with most of the unanswered plot threads spanning across the multiple games rather than the Kudzu Plot being self-contained to each game's story as in ''VideoGame/{{Xenogears}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Xenosaga}}'', [[spoiler:as each individual game is a tiny piece of a huge epic spanning a multiverse despite the individual casts and locations having practically nothing to do with each other]].

* ''WebAnimation/HololiveERROR'' zigzags this, as the Animated Manga generally leaves things ambiguous enough with copious amounts of MindScrew and obscuring the timeline with the narrative, however, it is subverted in the final chapter as it resolved all loose ends regarding Shino, but the Complete Edition of the game plays it straight, with Aogami high getting more messed up the more you explore, and it is not truly known whether this game exists after the end of the Final Chapter with some inconsistencies or on an alternate timeline altogether.

* ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear'', the [[CreatorDrivenSuccessor predeccessor]] to ''Franchise/BlazBlue'', is tied up in several ongoing plot strands at once with multiple factions and backstories that need to be understood in order to keep straight the current conflicts. Part of this complication is due to the fact there is a large importance on certain [[NonPlayerCharacter NPCs]] (particularly "That Man", one of the individuals responsible for the creation of the living weapons known as "Gears"), which can be hard to track in a fighting game where the focus would normally be placed on key playable characters each with their own agendas and goals. The main plot is arguably simple enough (mankind created Gears as the next step in human evolution > the Gears TurnedAgainstTheirMasters and began [[GreatOffscreenWar the nearly century-long Crusades]] > humanity tries to recover as the protagonist attempts to track down That Man while dealing with both a post-war GovernmentConspiracy and his own dark past as [[spoiler:another contributor to the Gear Project]]), though even that can get bogged down as each new game [[{{Revision}} adds more details and context to the overarching story]]. ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear2Overture'' is infamous for a MagiBabble-heavy narrative that seems to be only tangentially related to what's shown in ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearTheMissingLink GG1]]'', ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearX X]]'', and ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearXX XX]]''[[labelnote:*]]which can be boiled down to "[[NotJustATournament a plot]] to [[SealedEvilInACan unseal]] the leader of the Gears", "the daughter of the Gear leader is discovered, inciting an international incident", and "That Man's [[TheDragon Dragon]] tries to hijack the GovernmentConspiracy to eliminate perceived threats to her master", respectively[[/labelnote]], whereas ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearXrd Xrd]]'' took these same elements and [[ArcWelding welded them together with the events of the previous games]] while adding even more revelations to the pile (several of which [[SeriesContinuityError contradicted]], [[BroadStrokes skimmed over]], or [[CanonDiscontinuity outright ignored]] previously established plot points, mainly those from ''XX'' and ''Accent Core Plus'' but some {{retcons}} even going as far back as the ''[=GG1=]'' and ''GGX'' era). This put anyone who was introduced to the series [[NewbieBoom via]] ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearStrive -STRIVE-]]'' in [[ContinuityLockout a bit of a predicament]], as that game assumes you're generally up to speed with what happened in the ''Xrd'' saga[[labelnote:*]]''-SIGN-'', ''-REVELATOR-'', and ''REV 2''[[/labelnote]], which in turn had its fair share of [[LateArrivalSpoiler Late-Arrival Spoilers]] (including those for an interquel pachinko title[[labelnote:*]]''Vastedge XT''[[/labelnote]] many players were not aware of). Much like ''[=BlazBlue=]'', ''Xrd'' and ''-STRIVE-'' do at least feature rather comprehensive glossary entries on pretty much every notable character and concept within the setting.

* ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear'', the [[CreatorDrivenSuccessor predeccessor]] to ''Franchise/BlazBlue'', is tied up in several ongoing plot strands at once with multiple factions and backstories that need to be understood in order to keep straight the current conflicts. Part of this complication is due to the fact there is a large importance on certain [[NonPlayerCharacter NPCs]] (particularly "That Man", one of the individuals responsible for the creation of the living weapons known as "Gears"), which can be hard to track in a fighting game where the focus would normally be placed on key playable characters each with their own agendas and goals. The main plot is arguably simple enough (mankind created Gears as the next step in human evolution > the Gears TurnedAgainstTheirMasters and began [[GreatOffscreenWar the nearly century-long Crusades]] > humanity tries to recover as the protagonist attempts to track down That Man while dealing with both a post-war GovernmentConspiracy and his own dark past as [[spoiler:another contributor to the Gear Project]]), though even that can get bogged down as each new game [[{{Revision}} adds more details and context to the overarching story]]. ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear2Overture'' is infamous for a MagiBabble-heavy narrative that seems to be only tangentially related to what's shown in ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearTheMissingLink GG1]]'', ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearX X]]'', and ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearXX XX]]''[[labelnote:*]]which can be boiled down to "[[NotJustATournament a plot]] to [[SealedEvilInACan unseal]] the leader of the Gears", "the daughter of the Gear leader is discovered, inciting an international incident", and "That Man's [[TheDragon Dragon]] tries to hijack the GovernmentConspiracy to eliminate perceived threats to her master", respectively[[/labelnote]], whereas ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearXrd Xrd]]'' took these same elements and [[ArcWelding welded them together with the events of the previous games]] while adding even more revelations to the pile (some of which outright [[SeriesContinuityError contradicted]]/[[CanonDiscontinuity ignored]] previously established plot points, mainly those from ''XX'' and ''Accent Core Plus'' but some {{retcons}} even going as far back as the ''[=GG1=]'' and ''GGX'' era). This put anyone who was introduced to the series [[NewbieBoom via]] ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearStrive -STRIVE-]]'' in [[ContinuityLockout a bit of a predicament]], as that game assumes you're generally up to speed with what happened in the ''Xrd'' saga[[labelnote:*]]''-SIGN-'', ''-REVELATOR-'', and ''REV 2''[[/labelnote]], which in turn had its fair share of [[LateArrivalSpoiler Late-Arrival Spoilers]] (including those for an interquel pachinko title[[labelnote:*]]''Vastedge XT''[[/labelnote]] many players were not aware of). Much like ''[=BlazBlue=]'', ''Xrd'' and ''-STRIVE-'' do at least feature rather comprehensive glossary entries on pretty much every notable character and concept within the setting.

** ''Revengeance'', by virtue of being greatly distanced from the Snake([[LegacyCharacter s]])-centric MythArc of its predecessors, arguably manages to sidestep this issue completely. There are {{Continuity Nod}}s to previous events, mentions of Raiden's backstory that play a role in his actions over the course of the game, and one character from previous titles (Sunny from ''[=MGS4=]'') who appears late in the story (and in turn provides some insight about the current status of another character, [[spoiler:her adoptive father]] Otacon), but these details are largely glossed over, often relegated to Codec calls, and can be mostly ignored without consequence. As such, it's very common for people who never played any of the other games to jump right into ''Revengeance'' with little issue. Had the original plan for the game, an interquel between ''[=MGS2=]'' and ''[=MGS4=]'' titled ''Metal Gear Solid: Rising'', not been scrapped due to development difficulties, however, this might have been a different story.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII'' and [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII2 its]] [[VideoGame/LightningReturnsFinalFantasyXIII sequels]] also suffer from this pretty badly. The narrative starts simple (a rebellion against an oppressive government), but quickly introduces a lot of story elements that have complicated names. These elements end up poorly explained, [[LostInMediasRes aren't always given in chronological order]], and come with a labyrinthine backstory that's not even explained ''in'' the story itself, but in text files many players may not have even bothered reading. The characters all have histories that they hide from other characters and the audience for much of the series, only for these backstories to verve into unnecessary twists. The characters also state they are going to do something... and often end up doing the opposite. For instance, [[spoiler:they resolve to save Orphan only to decide to kill him mid-battle at the end of ''XIII'']]. Then ''XIII-2'' adds in {{time skip}}s, TimeTravel, and time paradoxes, culminating in [[spoiler:a [[DiabolusExMachina last-minute]] TimeCrash that sets up ''Lightning Returns'' and the eponymous protagonist's quest to save what's left of humanity by this point]]. The overarching plot becomes difficult to follow unless you boil it down to its simplest element: the story of the ''XIII'' trilogy is about humanity's fight against their oppressors, including [[GodIsEvil the gods]][[labelnote:*]]save [[BigGood one]] ([[DarkIsNotEvil Etro, the Goddess of Death]]) -- and even [[GodIsInept she]] [[NiceJobBreakingItHero makes a mess of things]] in her attempts to [[DivineAssistance help the heroes]] from beyond the mortal realm[[/labelnote]] and '''''[[ScrewDestiny fate itself]]''''', and ends with [[spoiler:mankind being reborn on a new world that lacks magic. [[EarthAllAlong A world that resembles the real world]]]]. This ultimate goal isn't made clear into the very last moments of the trilogy [[spoiler:where we see Lightning reborn in a humble countryside that looks like any mundane farmland out of our world]]. The amount of time it took to get to this end goal, along with how dense (and oftentimes contradictory) the lore is to many (first-time) players, factored into the "Lightning Saga" becoming one of the more {{contested|Sequel}} parts of the franchise.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII'' and [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII2 its]] [[VideoGame/LightningReturnsFinalFantasyXIII sequels]] also suffer from this pretty badly. The narrative starts simple (a rebellion against an oppressive government), but quickly introduces a lot of story elements that have complicated names. These elements end up poorly explained, [[LostInMediasRes aren't always given in chronological order]], and come with a labyrinthine backstory that's not even explained ''in'' the story itself, but in text files many players may not have even bothered reading. The characters all have histories that they hide from other characters and the audience for much of the series, only for these backstories to verve into unnecessary twists. The characters also state they are going to do something... and often end up doing the opposite. For instance, [[spoiler:they resolve to save Orphan only to decide to kill him mid-battle at the end of ''XIII'']]. Then ''XIII-2'' adds in {{time skip}}s, TimeTravel, and time paradoxes, culminating in [[spoiler:a [[DiabolusExMachina last-minute]] TimeCrash that sets up ''Lightning Returns'' and the eponymous protagonist's quest to save what's left of humanity by this point]]. The overarching plot becomes difficult to follow unless you boil it down to its simplest element: the story of the ''XIII'' trilogy is about humanity's fight against their oppressors, including [[GodIsEvil the gods]][[labelnote:*]]save [[BigGood one]] -- and even she [[NiceJobBreakingItHero makes a mess of things]] in her attempts to [[DivineAssistance help the heroes]] from beyond the mortal realm[[/labelnote]] and '''''[[ScrewDestiny fate itself]]''''', and ends with [[spoiler:mankind being reborn on a new world that lacks magic. [[EarthAllAlong A world that resembles the real world]]]]. This ultimate goal isn't made clear into the very last moments of the trilogy [[spoiler:where we see Lightning reborn in a humble countryside that looks like any mundane farmland out of our world]]. The amount of time it took to get to this end goal, along with how dense (and oftentimes contradictory) the lore is to many (first-time) players, factored into the "Lightning Saga" becoming one of the more {{contested|Sequel}} parts of the franchise.

** VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII and its sequels also suffers from this pretty badly. The series starts simple as a rebellion against an oppressive government, but it then introduces a lot of common story elements that have complicated names. These story elements end up poorly explained and come with mushroom trip of a backstory that's explained in boring text files. The characters all have histories that they hide from other characters and the audience for much of the series, only to resolve into unnecessary twists. The characters also state they are going to do something and end up doing the opposite. [[spoiler:For instance, they resolve to save Orphan only to decide to kill him mid battle at the end of the first game.]] Then the story adds in timeskips, time travel, and time paradoxes in the second game. It becomes difficult to follow unless you boil it down to its simplest element: [[spoiler:the story is about humanity's fight against their oppressors, including the gods and '''''fate itself,''''' and being reborn on a new world that lacks magic. A world that resembles our real world.]] This ultimate goal isn't made clear into the very last moments of the trilogy [[spoiler:where we see Lightning reborn in a humble countryside that looks like any mundane farmland out of our real world.]] Due to the amount of time it takes to get there, [=FF13=] and its sequels ended up poorly received due to people being completely unable to follow the plot.

* ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear'', the [[CreatorDrivenSuccessor predeccessor]] to ''Franchise/BlazBlue'', is tied up in several ongoing plot strands at once with multiple factions and backstories that need to be understood in order to keep straight the current conflicts. Part of this complication is due to the fact there is a large importance on certain [[NonPlayerCharacter NPCs]] (particularly "That Man", one of the individuals responsible for the creation of the living weapons known as "Gears"), which can be hard to track in a fighting game where the focus would normally be placed on key playable characters each with their own agendas and goals. The main plot is arguably simple enough (mankind created Gears as the next step in human evolution > the Gears TurnedAgainstTheirMasters and began [[GreatOffscreenWar the nearly century-long Crusades]] > humanity tries to recover as the protagonist attempts to track down That Man while dealing with both a post-war GovernmentConspiracy and his own dark past as [[spoiler:another contributor to the Gear Project]]), though even that can get bogged down as each new game [[{{Revision}} adds more details and context to the overarching story]]. ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear2Overture'' is infamous for a MagiBabble-heavy narrative that seems to be only tangentially related to what's shown in ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearTheMissingLink GG1]]'', ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearX X]]'', and ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearXX XX]]''[[labelnote:*]]which can be boiled down to "[[NotJustATournament a plot]] to [[SealedEvilInACan unseal]] the leader of the Gears", "the daughter of the Gear leader is discovered, inciting an international incident", and "That Man's [[TheDragon Dragon]] tries to hijack the GovernmentConspiracy to eliminate perceived threats to her master", respectively[[/labelnote]], whereas ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearXrd Xrd]]'' took these same elements and [[ArcWelding welded them together with the events of the previous games]] while adding even more revelations to the pile. This put anyone who was introduced to the series [[NewbieBoom via]] ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearStrive -STRIVE-]]'' in [[ContinuityLockout a bit of a predicament]], as that game assumes you're generally up to speed with what happened in the ''Xrd'' saga[[labelnote:*]]''-SIGN-'', ''-REVELATOR-'', and ''REV 2''[[/labelnote]], which in turn had its fair share of [[LateArrivalSpoiler Late-Arrival Spoilers]] (including those for an interquel pachinko title[[labelnote:*]]''Vastedge XT''[[/labelnote]] many players were not aware of). Much like ''[=BlazBlue=]'', ''Xrd'' and ''-STRIVE-'' do at least feature rather comprehensive glossary entries on pretty much every notable character and concept within the setting.