History Main / MiniGame

Fun fact: [[Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment Namco Bandai]] actually [[DisneyOwnsThisTrope held a U.S. patent]] on using this trope in a LoadingScreen, which explains why their games usually feature fully-realized minigames that resemble some of their classic hits. [[https://www.eff.org/fr/deeplinks/2015/12/loading-screen-game-patent-finally-expires Said patent expired in 2015]].

* ''VideoGame/{{Shenmue}}'' had a variety of minigames to play, including darts, pool, a QTE-based boxing game, and fully emulated versions of classic Sega games like ''SpaceHarrier'' and ''HangOn''.

* The ''Mortal Kombat'' franchise has several mini games:
** Chess Kombat
** Endurance
** Motor Kombat
** Puzzle Kombat
** Test Your Balance
** Test Your Luck
** Test Your Might
** Test Your Sight
** Test Your Slice
** Test Your Strike

* The UrExample of fighting games, VideoGame/KarateChamp, has three. One involves {{Brick Break}}ing, another has your character breaking or dodging stuff thrown at him, another involves knocking out [[ALoadOfBull a rushing bull]].

Fun Fact: [[Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment Namco Bandai]] actually [[DisneyOwnsThisTrope held a U.S. patent]] on using this trope in a LoadingScreen, which explains why their games usually feature fully-realized minigames that resemble some of their classic hits. Thankfully, [[https://www.eff.org/fr/deeplinks/2015/12/loading-screen-game-patent-finally-expires said patent expired in 2015]].

Some [[Main/PartyGame Party Games]] even consist entirely of Mini Games, usually bizarre and highly varied - such as ''VideoGame/WarioWare'', ''VideoGame/CookingMama'', ''VideoGame/BishiBashi'' and the ''Ape Academy'' series. You might not get the same mileage out of a Mini Game package as you would from a hundred-hour RPG, but that doesn't mean they're not fun.

[[caption-width-right:256:[[SidetrackedByTheGoldenSaucer Saving Dream Land can wait]] until I get that plushie!]]

More specifically, it's a specific type of highly temporary UnexpectedGameplayChange in a video game, in order to break up the tedium of doing exactly the same thing over and over - as a result, they hardly ever Main/GenreShift to anything even faintly close to the original game's genre. They're one of the oldest video game tropes, and one of the most persistent.

* ''VideoGame/BugFables'': In Chapter 2, the Harvest Festival lets Vi play Whack-a-Worm, where she must hit worms with her Beemerang before they burrow back into the ground in the time limit. Once Kabbu gets his boulder-breaking ability, the party can visit an area where the game can be played at any time. Also, once the Ant and Termite Kingdoms reestablish relations in Chapter 6, the termites will open a "Termacade" in Ant Kingdom City with two mini-games: "Flower Journey" (a clone of ''VideoGame/FlappyBird'') and "Mite Knight" (a TwoPointFiveD MazeGame). The player can earn tokens from the Termacade games that can be redeemed for prizes.

[[caption-width-right:256:Saving Dream Land can wait until I get that plushie!]]

[[folder:First Person Shooter]]

[[folder:Role Playing Game]]

* ''Videogame/Mortal Kombat Franchise'' has several mini games:

* ''VideoGame/{{Persona 5}}'': Various human parameter increasing activities like the batting cages and video games involve lining up ui elements, hitting buttons at the right time or hitting them as fast as you can. This is a notable evolution from previous [[Franchise/ShinMegamiTenseiPersona Persona]] games, which featured no such thing when doing after-school activities (other than ''VideoGame/{{Persona 4}}'''s FishingMinigame) and were instead passive. Mini-games include a FishingMinigame, BettingMiniGame, RacingMiniGame and a PopQuiz.

* ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedAltairsChronicles'' contains its share of minigames. One involves [[{{Pickpocketing}} removing a key from an enemy's bag]], and another involves pushing pressure points on an enemy's back at the right time and in the right sequence to make them yield to Altair.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' runs a gamut of mini games throughout its duration with varying levels of quality. These include one which requires you to perform [[Main/CPRCleanPrettyReliable CPR]] on a little girl through use of a pressure gauge, another pits Tifa and Scarlet [[DesignatedGirlFight in a bitch-slapping fight]] and another is an infuriating puzzle sequence involving untying Tifa out of a chair with only her head and her legs.

** It should be emphasized that ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' ran a gamut of mini games in and of itself, with varying levels of quality. One mandatory example required you to perform [[Main/CPRCleanPrettyReliable CPR]] on a little girl through use of a pressure gauge, which may be the dumbest idea for a mini game ever. Another pit your party's lead female hero against the resident [[TheEmpire Evil Empire's]] lead female villain in a bitch-slapping fight, which may be the ''best idea for a Mini Game ever''. Previously, there was an interesting puzzle sequence involving getting her out of a chair she was tied to with only the use of her head and legs.
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'' had a horribly implemented card game that most people don't remember because it wasn't clearly explained, there were no rewards outside of a card player ranking, and the ranking system made it so difficult to max out that the only person in the world who bothered to do it discovered that the game designers never even anticipated it happening as he was rewarded with a glitch.

[[folder: Other]]