History Main / VictoryFakeout

* ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' exploits this when the player satisfies the conditions necessary to fight [[spoiler: Giga Bowser]] at the end of Adventure Mode in ''Melee''. Bowser does his typical "dying" animation where he falls offstage, and the player character [[VictoryDance celebrates as always...]] but then [[spoiler: Bowser's statue rises back up and flakes off from Giga Bowser's body underneath]], revealing the ''true'' final boss. One of the conditions for additional boss challenges in Classic or Adventure Mode [[HardModePerks is playing on Normal difficulty or higher,]] adding an extra layer of surprise.

* In ''VideoGame/Cuphead'', upon beating his second phase, Goopy le Grande looks defeated and gets an InstantGravestone... which is his third and final phase, and attacks by sliding over to you and falling on top of you. More than one new player has died to Goopy after letting their guard down.

* TrueFinalBoss [[spoiler: Irisu]] from ''VideoGame/RabiRibi'' pulls this. Once she's on her last few thousand HP, she goes into a VillainousBreakdown, simply jumping around the arena and flailing ineffectually with her net, making her seem easy to finish off. [[spoiler: Then she heals herself back to full, renders herself invulnerable to all damage and begins her final phase.]]

* ''VideoGame/PerfectDark'': You've saved the alien Elvis, saved the President, and as the ending cut scene cuts in, you're off to a meeting between the Maians, the United States President, and the head of the Carrington Institute. The music swells.... and the Skedar forces break through the Institute's walls. Lampshaded by Joanna Dark: "Looks like someone doesn't know when to quit!"

* ''VideoGame/SekiroShadowsDieTwice'': after a long, arduous battle with the Guardian Ape, you climb atop its back and [[OffWithHisHead deliver a Shinobi execution fit for a monkey king.]] You take a breather for a moment as it lies, headless, in the pond. Wait a minute. [[LosingYourHead Why is it moving? Oh, no. Oh, nooo...]]

* ''VideoGame/SekiroShadowsDieTwice'': after a long, arduous battle with the Guardian Ape, you climb atop its back and [[OffWithHisHead deliver a Shinobi execution fit for a monkey king.]] You take a breather for a moment as it lies, headless, in the pond. Wait a minute. Why is it moving? Oh, no. Oh, nooo...

* In ''VideoGame/SeikenDensetsu3'', one of the [[BigBadEnsemble three potential final bosses]], Archdemon, appears to [[MadeOfExplodium explode and die in a large explosion]] after defeating him, like the other bosses, only for him to reappear in his next form.

* ''VideoGame/SekiroShadowsDieTwice'': after a long, arduous battle with the Guardian Ape, you climb atop its back and [[OffWithHisHead deliver a Shinobi execution fit for a monkey king.]] You take a breather for a moment as it lies, headless, in the pond. Wait a minute. Why is it moving? Oh, no. Oh, nooo...
** [[LetsPlay/VideoGameDunkey Dunkey]] [[https://youtu.be/sp7Ofgpfxoc?t=337 sums up this moment pretty well.]]

* In the third ''VideoGame/MegaManStarForce'' game, when [[FinalBoss the Crimson Dragon]] is defeated the first time, the following cutscenes depict Mega Man being knocked out and waking up in a BlankWhiteVoid where the two of them go another round, but this time it's a ForegoneVictory as both Mega Man and the Crimson Dragon's health will floor at 1 and the battle will only end when you deliver the final blow with Black End Galaxy or Red Gaia Eraser.

* In ''VideoGame/StarFox64'', during the boss battle in Sector X, you succeed in defeating the boss and taking its health down, complete with Slippy saying, "Yippee! You did it!" as usual, but then... [[spoiler:Fox says, "Huh? What?" just as the boss suddenly comes back to life and says "The view is clear" while giving a FingerWag to Fox. The boss theme becomes more remixed as the boss tries its hardest to kill you, but should you take too long during the second phase of the battle, Slippy will end up pulling a LeeroyJenkins moment that will send him to Titania, forcing you to fly to that planet the minute you defeat the boss.]]

* ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsIII'' has it as a series first for the series' first ''three phase'' boss. After killing Father Ariandel and Friede, the boss' {{Leitmotif}} stops (and on your first playthrough of the fight, you get a Titanite Slab), and you'd expect ''Heir of Fire Destroyed'' to pop up as with every other non-Lord of Cinder boss. Then Father Ariandel starts talking, Friede gets back up surrounded by abyssal black flames, and finally the boss music slams back on for the final phase: Blackflame Friede.

Subtrope of HopeSpot and SequentialBoss. If the enemy feigns surrender in the process, this trope overlaps with ISurrenderSuckers. Compare YourPrincessIsInAnotherCastle and TrickBoss. If the player character dies during an actual victory scene, it's a KaizoTrap.

* ''VideoGame/BattleGaregga''[='=]s FinalBoss, Glow Squid, appears to be defeated, complete with the background music fading out..but in the midst of its ChainReactionDestruction, the cockpit detatches itself from the fuselage and starts to choatically bounce all over the screen while spewing projectiles everyone in a last-ditch attempt to stop you, while the music starts back up. It repeats this same feat when fought as a BonusBoss in ''VideoGame/ArmedPoliceBatrider''.

* ''VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising'' has Hades, who tears the fake credits apart after defeating Medusa.

* [[BigBad Gill]] from ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'' may count, if you're unprepared for his infamous resurrection ability.

* ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' exploits this when the player satisfies the conditions necessary to fight [[spoiler: Giga Bowser]] at the end of Adventure Mode in Melee. Bowser does his typical "dying" animation where he falls offstage, and the player character [[VictoryDance celebrates as always...]] but then [[spoiler: Bowser's statue rises back up and flakes off from Giga Bowser's body underneath]], revealing the ''true'' final boss. One of the conditions for additional boss challenges in Classic or Adventure Mode [[HardModePerks is playing on Normal difficulty or higher,]] adding an extra layer of surprise.

** Subverted with the fight against Crocomire. When you pushes it into the lava pit, it get stripped into bones and sinks into the lava, and then the battle music stops. However, when you head back to the spiked wall. Crocomire's skeleton suddenly cracks open the wall... and promptly collapses.

* ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIV'' has the battle with King Kenji. As his HP comes close to zero, Kenji's battle sprite suddenly vanishes and he cries out "I lost..." The game then asks you if you want to pick up the remote...'''[[SchmuckBait don't do it]].''' GenreSavvy players will notice that the battle interface and theme are still present, and that Kenji hasn't gone through the standard boss explosion animation yet. Players who pick up the remote anyway are treated to getting sucker-punched with an attack that deals Physical damage and inflicts the infectious, strength-reducing Sick status, while choosing not to fall for the trap results in Kenji getting frustrated at your savviness, reducing his Defense.

-->-- ''Franchise/MonsterInMyPocket''

* Carnage returns to attack the player's {{Spider-Man}} and Venom during the credits sequence in the ''VideoGame/MaximumCarnage'' game.

!!'''These examples are pretty much all unmarked spoilers. Procede with caution.'''

* ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' exploits this when the player satisfies the conditions necessary to fight [[spoiler: Giga Bowser]] at the end of Adventure Mode in Melee. Bowser does his typical "dying" animation where he falls offstage, and the player character celebrates as always... but then [[spoiler: Bowser's statue rises back up and flakes off from Giga Bowser's body underneath]], revealing the ''true'' final boss. One of the conditions for additional boss challenges in Classic or Adventure Mode [[HardModePerks is playing on Normal difficulty or higher,]] adding an extra layer of surprise.

* Baby Bowser pulls the same stunt in ''VideoGame/YoshisIsland'', thanks to Kamek and his MakeMyMonsterGrow trick.

* The page quote comes from ''VideoGame/MonsterInMyPocket'', an old {{NES}} game by Creator/{{Konami}}, when you defeat [[BigBad Warlock]]. The usual stage cleared screen is shown, and then the ending begins to play, but then Warlock suddenly comes back and ''you then fight him on a giant televison screen''. After beating him again, your character simply exclaims "[[AWinnerIsYou Yeah...]]" and then the credits roll.

* The final stage of the main quest in ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind'' leads to the confrontation with Dagoth Ur. After Nerevarine bests him in single combat, he disappears and mock the hero for believing they could actually kill a god. Of course, if the player paid attention to the main plotline, they already knew their goal was not to kill Dagoth Ur, but to destroy his [[ArtifactOfDoom source of power]]. You then proceed to the next room to do exactly that, while avoiding attacks from a revived Dagoth Ur.