History Main / MutuallyExclusivePowerups

* In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThracia776'', the Wrath and Vantage skills cannot be combined on one character (attempts to do so will have Vantage take precedence). This is due to the fact that Vantage causes a character to always attack first, while Wrath can only activate if the character is attacking after the enemy.

* In Creator/{{Sunsoft}}'s ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'' LicensedGame for the UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis, Superman's Sonic Punch and Hyper Spin powers share an activation button, and getting the icon for one power takes away the other. Heat Vision replaces both as well as Jump in the flying levels, but this is only a temporary side effect of the UnexpectedGameplayChange.

* ''VideoGame/MileHighPinball'' for the Nokia UsefulNotes/NGage allowed players to collect Bucks and purchase PowerUps, but only one could be active at any time.

* You cannot have both piercing bombs (which penetrate walls) and remote control bombs in ''VideoGame/{{Bomberman}}'', with the exception of the first ''Super Bomberman'' game. The bomb kick and walk over bomb powerups are also mutually exclusive.

* ''VideoGame/{{Civilization}} VI'' has a handful. The base game has the Encampment, where the player can either choose a Barracks[[note]]increased experience for melee, ranged, and anti-cavalry units[[/note]] or Stables[[note]]increased experience for cavalry units[[/note]], and the Theater Square, where the player can choose between two buildings that hold two different types of Great Works: the Art Museum[[note]]Great Works of Art[[/note]] or the Archeology Museum[[note]]Artifacts[[/note]]. The second expansion, Gathering Storm, adds a fourth tier of buildings to the Industrial Zone: Power Plants, each of which use a different resource[[note]]Coal, Oil, or Uranium[[/note]] to power nearby cities. Thankfully, you can change which Power Plant you have if one ends up straining your resources, but it takes up precious Production in a city to do so. The base game also has the Holy Site, where you can choose up to nine different final tier buildings, but the city's majority relgion is the one that chooses the building, and the religion must have chosen the building. The Neighborhood district added a MEP in the first expansion between the Food Market[[note]]Food[[/note]] and the Shopping Mall[[note]]Tourism, Gold, and Amenities[[/note]].

* In ''VideoGame/DefenseOfTheAncients'' some items have "Orb Effects" that increase the power of an item in some way. Heroes are only allowed to have one Orb effect at a time.
** This is actually a limitation of the ''VideoGame/WarcraftIII'' engine. Effects that modify the appearance of a ranged attack's projectile don't stack. [=DotA=] decided to use this trait as a balancing mechanic for items. And while multiple effects from multiple buffs can stack, two different ones won't stack if they're both based on the same buff.

* ''VideoGame/{{Civilization}} VI'' has a handful. The base game has the Encampment, where the player can either choose a Barracks[[note]]increased experience for melee, ranged, and anti-cavalry units[[/note]] and Stables[[note]]increased experience for cavalry units[[/note]] and the Theater Square, where the player can choose between two buildings that hold two different types of Great Works the Art Museam[[note]]Great Works of Art[[/note]] or the Archeology Museam[[note]]Artifacts[[/note]]. The second expansion, Gathering Storm adds a fourth tier of buildings to the Industrial Zone, Power Plants, each which use a different resource[[note]]Coal, Oil, or Uranium[[/note]] to power nearby cities. Luckily, you can change which Power Plant you have if one ends up straining your resources, but it takes up precious Production in a city to do so. The base game also has the Holy Site, where you can choose up to nine different final tier buildings, but the city's majority relgion is the one that chooses the building, and the religion must have chosen the building. The Neighborhood district added a MEP in the first expansion between the Food Market[[note]]Food[[/note]] and the Shopping Mall[[note]]Tourism, Gold, and Amenities[[/note]].
** The first expansion, Rise & Fall adds a new district adds a double layer of Mutually Exclusive Power Ups with the Government Plaza. The first is once you reach a new tier of governments and started using one of them, you can build a new tier set of buildings in a constructed Government Plaza, each with their own unique and powerful bonuses. In addition, you get a legacy Policy Card based on whichever government you had when the finishing construction the building.

** In the NES version of the first game and its sequel ''Super C'', the bullet speeds of all of your weapons can be increased with the "Rapid Bullets" power-up. However, this upgrade is lost when the player changes to another weapon. This doesn't apply to the arcade version of the first game, in which the increased bullet speed is carried over from one weapon to another until the player loses a life due to the rarity of the Rapid Bullets power-up in that version.
** In the arcade version of ''Super Contra'', as well as ''Contra 4'' for the DS, all of the weapons in the game can be upgraded once by picking the same power-up twice in a row. However, the extra firepower is lost when the player picks up a different weapon.

** In ''Contra Advance'', the GBA version of ''Contra III'', the player drops his previous weapon whenever he picks up a new one, allowing him to revert back to his previous weapon if the new one is not to his liking, much like in the post-''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaDraculaX Dracula X]]'' ''Castlevania'' games. This was mainly added to make up for the lack of dual wielding in the GBA port.

* ''VideoGame/{{Bug}}'' had the four kinds of [[SuperSpit Spit Wads]]. One was a regular shot, one was a double shot, one gave a shot that bounced along the floor, and the last was rapid fire. You could only have one at a time.

** The later ''VideoGame/MegaManZero'' series' [[ElementalRockPaperScissors elemental chips]] can only be used one at a time, though it's not as much an issue since changing it out is as simple as going to the pause menu and swapping them. ''Zero 2'' onwards zig-zags this for EX skills, as they can all technically be active at once; however, while saber-related skills complement each other by being activated with a button combo and/or in specific circumstances, all the buster-related skills are used by simply charging the Buster Shot, thus which one you actually get depends on which elemental chip you're using. Same for the unique Cyber-Elf in the fourth game: normally, while it has up to seven different levels for each ability, the player can only get one bonus for each ability (e.g. setting it to level 3 for Animal abilities, letting you shoot fire at enemies, doesn't give you level 1's increased running speed or level 2's slower wall-sliding). However, if the player fully raises the Elf and sets one of its abilities to max level, or plays in Ultimate mode, they promptly gain every preceding ability in that line.

* ''Series/DoubutsuSentaiZyuohger'': Zyuoh Eagle has four different modes that he can switch between. His second form gives him the ability to fly, his third form changes him to Zyuoh Gorilla and gives him super strength, and his fourth form changes him to Zyuoh Whale gives him water powers and a powerful HandCannon. [[spoiler:At least until the final episode reveals that he actually has a fifth form that combines all three powers.]]

* ''Anime/PokemonJourneysTheSeries'': The rules of World Coronation Series explicitly restrict trainers to using one of [[SuperMode Mega Evolution]], [[LimitBreak Z-Move]] or [[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever Dynamax]] per match. A trainer can send out a Pokémon capable of each, but once they use a power-up the other two are off limits to give a fighting chance to opponents with access to only one (or none at all). [[spoiler:However, Leon defies this in the FinalBattle, requesting that Ash be allowed to cut loose on him with everything he's got. The officials acede to his request.]]

* ''Anime/PokemonJourneysTheSeries'': The rules of World Coronation Series explicitly restrict trainers to using one of [[SuperMode Mega Evolution]], [[LimitBreak Z-Move]] or [[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever Dynamax]] per match. A trainer can send out a Pokémon capable of each, but once they use a power-up the other two are off limits to give a fighting chance to opponents with access to only one (or none at all).

* ''VideoGame/KnightEternal'': Each party member has to choose between two emblems, which unlock different branches on their skill tree.

* The haircuts in ''VideoGame/RockyRodent''.

* The NES/Famicon ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden'' series. For the third game they let you see what the item was before you broke the sphere it was stored in, making it easier to avoid picking up an item you didn't want by mistake.

* ''VideoGame/DukeNukem II''. Duke can only carry one special weapon: (L)aser, (F)lame Thrower, or (R)ocket Launcher. Picking up a different weapon replaced the current one. Worse, there's also the infrequent (N) powerup, which returns you to Duke's default gun.

* In the ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' games up to and including ''Harmony of Dissonance'', you can only carry one subweapon at a time. In the games before ''Rondo of Blood'', the subweapon you had before disappears. From ''Rondo'' on, you drop the previous subweapon onto the ground, and can pick it up again in the event you change your mind about changing weapons, or picked up the new one by accident. Also, in games where the Double Shot and Triple Shot items exist, you automatically lose these if you change subweapons. Sometimes just getting these items in the first place means that you have to stick with one subweapon for an extended period of time.
* ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'':
** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwords'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwordsAdventures'' only allow each player to have one item other than their sword at a time. If you pick up another one, the first item is dropped in its place.
** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'': In the Game Boy Colour remake, there is a BonusDungeon where Link can choose between either a red tunic that lets him deal more damage, or a blue one that lets him receive less damage.
* [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] in ''VideoGame/{{Control}}'': The Board only gives you access to one powerup in The Foundation DLC: You have to choose between the ability to psychically grow crystal formations ("Self") or to destroy them with your gun ("Weapon"). However, you are later given the other power by an entity called FORMER. The Board isn't happy about it, but they let you keep it once they realize that they messed up by not letting you have both powers in the first place.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Glider}} PRO'', batteries and helium are mutually exclusive. Both are controlled by the same key, and helium wasn't in the initial release of the game.

* ''VideoGame/RiseOfTheTriad'': Not only can you only have one active powerup at a time and grabbing a new one replaced the old one (apart from the bulletproof or asbestos vests, which are still mutually exclusive to each other), you can only have one missile weapon at a time. If you run across a bazooka while you are holding an Excalibat, for instance, you will leave the Excalibat on the floor as you grab the bazooka.

* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' franchise:
** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3'' added the mutually exclusive raccoon/tanuki/frog/hammer suits to the original game's Fire Flower. In ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'', the flower and cape are mutually exclusive (though the Select Button box makes this less problematic). In ''VideoGame/NewSuperMarioBros'', the flower, blue shell, and Mini Mushroom are mutually exclusive, and getting the Mega Mushroom deletes whatever powerup you had. A strange exception is that if you get a Tanuki suit while using a P-Wing, the P-Wing effect will transfer from the Raccoon to the Tanuki.
** In ''VideoGame/SuperMario64'', the Wing Cap and Metal Cap are mutually exclusive to each other (as far as anyone can tell; the two powerups almost never appear in the same area), but the Vanish Cap is not. Indeed, one particular star requires using the Vanish and Metal Caps together.
** In ''VideoGame/SuperMarioSunshine'', you always have FLUDD's Squirt nozzle, and can have only one of the secondary nozzles (Hover, Rocket or Turbo; the first one is the default) at once.
** In ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy2'', there's the various suits and Yoshi.
** In ''VideoGame/SuperMarioMaker'', Mystery Mushroom characters cannot use any of the other power-ups in the game (though they can at least ride in the Kuribo Shoe). Thus, if you get a Super Mushroom or Fire Flower while playing as one of them, the character will revert to being Mario upon contact. Sorry, no Fire [[Franchise/FireEmblem Marth]] for you.
** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioMaker2'': Each game style has, in addition to the Mushroom and the Fire Flower, at least two unique powerups (with the second batch added via an update). It is not possible to combine them, so you'll have to make sure you're using the right powerup for the current situation. The ''Super Mario Bros.'' game style has ''four'' specialized powerups: The Big Mushroom, [[VideoGame/SuperMarioLand Superball Flower]], [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Master Sword]] and [[VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2 SMB2 Mushroom]]; the latter three powerups have BackgroundMusicOverride attributes based on their games of origin, so by technical necessity the trope is justified for them.
** Subverted in the RomHack ''Kaizo Mario 64'', where all three caps are available in certain levels, and collecting all three simultaneously grants a silver shimmering flight capable Mario that can smash through enemies at will.
* The shields of ''VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles''. This applies to pretty much every ''Sonic'' game that has multiple shield types.

* The hats in the first ''VideoGame/WarioLand''. Of course, there weren't many levels that required specific hats to be beaten, it really just came down to the play style of the player.

* ''VideoGame/{{Bug}}'' had the four kinds of [[SuperSpit Spit Wads]]. One was a regular shot, one was a double shot, one gave a shot that bounced along the floor, and the last was rapid fire. You could only have one at a time.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Athena}}'', the different types of weapons, which are frequently dropped by mooks, automatically replaced your current weapon if you touch them. Switching weapons is annoying, as the new weapon will be on the lowest level, where it takes multiple hits to kill enemies and in most cases can't even destroy blocks.

* The Special Items in ''VideoGame/WizardsAndWarriors'', which (with one exception) are all used with the Select button. Also, the Battle Ax replaces your Dagger of Throwing once you find it.

* ''VideoGame/SpongeBobSquarePantsSuperSponge'' allows you to swap between equips and power-ups but you can only use one at a time and you can equip and unequip whenever to change to another weapon. You must drop the other items on the ground and leave them behind if you choose to continue on with your chosen weapon.

* In the puzzle game ''VideoGame/MarbleBlastGold'', the marble can only hold one powerup at a time. Partially averted as the powerup usually holds for a couple seconds after its use, so it's very easy to use several in rapid succession for extra effect (e.g. a super-speed followed by a super-jump, to get a very fast, long and high jump).

* In the ''VideoGame/GranTurismo'' series, on the rare occasions where you can even try, you cannot equip NA Tune, Turbine kits and later on Superchargers at the same time.

* ''VideoGame/{{Spelunky}}'' features both a literal version of this trope -- you can't equip the [[IWantMyJetPack jetpack]] and the [[BadassCape cape]] simultaneously; picking up one causes you to drop the other -- and a more figurative version: the Spelunker can only carry one item in his hands. Deciding whether you want to carry a pick or a pistol is challenging enough, but it can be a real [[InventoryManagementPuzzle pain in the ass]] when you're trying to carry around a DamselInDistress and a [[DarknessEqualsDeath flare]] as well.

* ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes'' used to have a similar occurrence, with Scrapper and Tanker defense powersets like Invulnerability, Stone Armor. All have powers that resist or defend against specific damage types (Smashing/Lethal, Fire/Cold, Psionic, etc.), and the first issue only allowed one shield to be toggled at one time...mercifully, this aspect was dropped fairly early.
** It still exists in a more limited form. Stone Armor's Granite Armor is still exclusive with all the other armors in that set, and its Grounded ability de-toggles running and jumping powers. More generally, certain abilities that fit in the same power "slot" can't be active at once (e.g., you generally can't have two different Flight abilities activated at once, or two different Stealth abilities, or two different Jumping abilities, etc).
* ''VideoGame/KingdomOfLoathing'', with the 2013 revamp of skill classes, added a set of self buffs that act like this, known as Facial Expressions. Every class has two, with the old skill Snarl of the Timberwolf becoming one of them.

* In various ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWars'' games, there are Mutually Exclusive [[SecretCharacter Secret Characters and robots]]; for example, in ''Z'', you can unlock either the [[Anime/{{Xabungle}} Xabungle Unit-2]] or [[Anime/EurekaSeven Ray and Charles]] depending on your route split choices, and there are many secrets exclusive to one of the protagonists.
** VideoGame/ShinSuperRobotWars: Let the Taikuu Maryuu be attacked by the Shiki Death Squad in Scenario 25 of the Earth route to get Fortified Layzner in scenario 33 of the Earth route. Otherwise, get the Layzner Mk. II. Also, the upgrades to the [=V2=] you'll get later depend on whether any shuttles get shot down in Scenario 21 of the Space Route.
* ''{{VideoGame/Gauntlet}}: Dark Legacy''. The items seemed to be divided into ten groups, but there were far more than ten items. So you could easily end up replacing a very good item with a very bad one.

* ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'':
** Pokémon have only one item slot, and giving it an item when it's already holding something will replace the item it's holding. This means one can't give it a berry to heal damage ''and'' an item that boosts their strength.
** Arceus and Silvally can change types with specific items, but this comes at the cost of them being unable to use other hold items. This also applies to certain Pokémon with alternate forms (i.e. Giratina, Kyogre and Groudon) or Mega Evolutions, the one exception being Rayquaza (and even then, giving it a Z-Crystal stops it from being able to Mega Evolve, so it can't do that ''and'' use a Z-Move).
* ''VideoGame/FireEmblemHeroes'': There are 4 Skill slots for each character labeled A, B, C, and S, with each slot only allowing you to equip one Skill for a total of 4. Every Skill in the game is also designated for a specific slot (e.g. Vantage and Quick Riposte are B Skills), so this means there are a number of Skills that are mutually exclusive with each other.
* In ''VideoGame/BoxxyQuestTheGatheringStorm'', each character can equip one special accessory, and some of the accessories have effects that only work if they’re equipped by Catie, the party leader. So, for example, you can’t have both the Speedy Shoes (which allow you to sprint) and the Seeker’s Compass (which reveals hidden items) active at the same time.

* The spaceship in ''VideoGame/RType'' can only hold one of the three lasers at a time.
* Double and Laser are exclusive in ''VideoGame/{{Gradius}}'', as are Ripple and Laser in relevant sequels (In other games, Ripple is considered a type of Laser).
* In the ''VideoGame/{{Parodius}}'' games, Bell Power cancels your ship's shield equivalent.
* ''VideoGame/FireShark'' has three powerups, the blue which provided a weak but fast spread shot, green which provided a narrow but extremely strong laser, and red which give your plane the strong flamethrower which swept the entire area.
* ''VideoGame/{{Tyrian}}'''s Arcade Mode and Super Arcade Mode have this. In order to power up your weapon, you have to collect the same color powerup that your ship is using. Grab the wrong color (easy to do at times) and you're stuck with a new, low-level weapon.

* ''Warblade'', a very deep and complex shmup, allows you to keep one weapon at a time. If your ship either explodes or touches a skull, your weapon downgrades and your stats lower a bit. This leads to UnstableEquilibrium situations. It truly sucks when you're perfectly fine with your War 1 Plasma weapon and you pick up a double shot powerup by mistake. Weapons more powerful than Quadruple Shot must be bought from shops, where they're pretty darn expensive, too. The most expensive one costs 3000 credits, but that's still nothing compared to the cost of re-buying all your powerups if your ship explodes if you're well established.. Let me see... 30000 super autofire + 15000 alien lock +3000 weapon + 1625 stat bonuses. So about 50000 credits.
* NES game ''Twin Eagle'' had four different weapon power-ups--conveniently color coded--that could be powered up three times. Getting the same power-up would increase it, but getting a different power-up would change weapon type while keeping the equivalent level.

* In ''VideoGame/AttackOfTheMutantPenguins'', you can only hold one kind of special item at a time.
* ''VideoGame/{{Civilization}} V'': Any given city can have a nuclear power plant or a solar plant, but not both. These have the exact same effect (increasing city production), but the nuclear power plant requires Uranium and the solar plant doesn't, providing an unusually subtle GreenAesop: ecology helps you save resources that are limited[[note]]And devote more of them to bombing other people. Well, we said ''green'' aesop, not ''pacifist'' aesop.[[/note]].
* ''VideoGame/{{Civilization}} VI'' has a handful. The base game has the Encampment, where the player can either choose a Barracks[[note]]increased experience for melee, ranged, and anti-cavalry units[[/note]] and Stables[[note]]increased experience for cavalry units[[/note]] and the Theater Square, where the player can choose between two buildings that hold two different types of Great Works the Art Museam[[note]]Great Works of Art[[/note]] or the Archeology Museam[[note]]Artifacts[[/note]]. The second expansion, Gathering Storm adds a fourth tier of buildings to the Industrial Zone, Power Plants, each which use a different resource[[note]]Coal, Oil, or Uranium[[/note]] to power nearby cities. Luckily, you can change which Power Plant you have if one ends up straining your resources, but it takes up precious Production in a city to do so. The base game also has the Holy Site, where you can choose up to nine different final tier buildings, but the city's majority relgion is the one that chooses the building, and the religion must have chosen the building. The Neighborhood district added a MEP in the first expansion between the Food Market[[note]]Food[[/note]] and the Shopping Mall[[note]]Tourism, Gold, and Amenities[[/note]].
** The first expansion, Rise & Fall adds a new district adds a double layer of Mutually Exclusive Power Ups with the Government Plaza. The first is once you reach a new tier of governments and started using one of them, you can build a new tier set of buildings in a constructed Government Plaza, each with their own unique and powerful bonuses. In addition, you get a legacy Policy Card based on whichever government you had when the finishing construction the building.
** There's also MEP on Districts with the two Entertainment ones, the Entertainment Complex and the Water Park. Both pretty much do the same thing, but the Entertainment Complex can only be built on land and has some Wonders connected to it while the Water Park must be built on the Coast. Also, their second tier buildings give Science, but from different sources.
* ''VideoGame/StarcraftII'':
** ''VideoGame/WingsOfLiberty'': Protoss and Zerg-inspired upgrades aren't mutually exclusive, instead each techtree has two mutually-exclusive upgrades (such as increasing attack speed with every attack upgrade or increasing HP with every armor upgrade) or unit choices (such as a ground-attack robot panther or a massive dropship). Individual unit upgrades aren't exclusive, but they all cost credits (and you can't get enough credits to buy everything). Unlike later games, you're stuck with the upgrades you chose during the campaign, including if you redo individual missions.
** In ''VideoGame/StarcraftIIHeartOfTheSwarm'', several units get a mutation and an evolution but can only select one of each. While you can change which mutation each gets between missions, evolutions are permanent. For example, once you choose whether your Hydralisks can evolve into the anti-armor Impalers or the anti-infantry Lurkers, you're stuck with that choice (at least for that playthrough: playing a single mission at a time lets you choose the upgraded form you want). But you can change between greater range, more health, or increasing their attack speed any time between missions.
* In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThracia776'', the Wrath and Vantage skills cannot be combined on one character (attempts to do so will have Vantage take precedence). This is due to the fact that Vantage causes a character to always attack first, while Wrath can only activate if the character is attacking after the enemy.

* ''Series/DoubutsuSentaiZyuohger'': Zyuoh Eagle has four different modes that he can switch between. His second form gives him the ability to fly, his third form changes him to Zyuoh Gorilla and gives him super strength, and his fourth form changes him to Zyuoh Whale gives him water powers and a powerful HandCannon. [[spoiler:At least until the final episode reveals that he actually has a fifth form that combines all three powers.]]

* The "Threewave CTF" GameMod for ''VideoGame/QuakeI'' and ''VideoGame/QuakeII'' have the Runes[[note]]shaped after the game's own runes in ''I''; the Disruptor Shield, [[RegeneratingHealth Auto Doc]], [[SuperSpeed Time Accelerator]] and [[QuadDamage Power Amplifier]] in ''II''[[/note]]. Players can hold one at a time, and they last until the players toss them, get fragged or commit suicide.
* The Holdable items in ''VideoGame/QuakeIIIArena''[[note]]Personal Teleporter and [[HealThyself Medkit]][[/note]], ''[[ExpansionPack Quake III: Team Arena]]'' and their SpiritualSuccessor ''VideoGame/OpenArena''[[note]]both of which include, in addition to the Medkit and the Teleporter, the [[SuicideAttack Kamikaze]] and Invulnerability[[/note]] work this way. As their name implies, you can hold them and use it when you need it (provided you don't suicide or get fragged), but you can only hold one of these at a time. The same goes for the ''Team Arena''/''[=OpenArena=]''[='=]s Runes[[note]]Ammo Regen, [[QuadDamage Doubler]], [[MightyGlacier Guard]], and [[FragileSpeedster Scout]][[/note]], which work the same as the [=Q2CTF=] Runes. In ''Quake Live'', the Ammo Regen rune is replaced by the Armor Regen rune, which slowly regenerates armor rather than ammo.

* In the ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' games up to and including ''Harmony of Dissonance'', you can only carry one subweapon at a time. In the games before ''Rondo of Blood'', the subweapon you had before disappears. From ''Rondo'' on, you drop the previous subweapon onto the ground, and can pick it up again in the event you change your mind about changing weapons, or picked up the new one by accident.
** Also, in games where the Double Shot and Triple Shot items exist, you automatically lose these if you change subweapons. Sometimes just getting these items in the first place means that you have to stick with one subweapon for an extended period of time.

** In the Game Boy Colour remake of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'' there is a BonusDungeon where Link can choose between either a red tunic that lets him deal more damage, or a blue one that lets him receive less damage.

* ''VideoGame/{{Spelunky}}'' features both a literal version of this trope -- you can't equip the [[IWantMyJetPack jetpack]] and the [[BadassCape cape]] simultaneously; picking up one causes you to drop the other -- and a more figurative version: the Spelunker can only carry one item in his hands. Deciding whether you want to carry a pick or a pistol is challenging enough, but it can be a real [[InventoryManagementPuzzle pain in the ass]] when you're trying to carry around a DistressedDamsel and a [[DarknessEqualsDeath flare]] as well.