History SlidingScaleOfGameplayAndStoryIntegration / RolePlayingGames

* In the first ''VideoGame/{{Paper Mario|64}}'' game, the local RecurringBoss, Jr. Troopa, is so dead-set on defeating Mario that when you travel to a far-off island, he swims across the entire ocean ''twice'' just to reach you (he missed the boat Mario leaves on so that's once to reach the island, and a round trip without him resting at all once Jr. Troopa realizes Mario's already left before he made it). When he finally catches up with you, he reveals his brand-new upgrades that make him one of the best defended enemies in the game... except that he's so exhausted from his swimming, his HP plummets to a fairly low number. [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall Something that he's quite shocked to find out, actually.]]

*** Godrick's sworn knights have mostly been lost with only the remaining few holding positions outside his castle, and he has to make due with banished knights, sell swords, exiles and even commoners. Most of these are scattered about his territory with little cohesion or direction.

** Summonable allies can be available if their side quests take them through the area you are traversing. One notable ally, Selene, is for a boss fight very much in the obvious way that avoiding it and doing all her quest to that point is almost laughably easy for you solo.[[labelnote:why]]The Red Wolf of Radagon is the sub boss of Liurnia's main dungeon that you are almost funnelled into. Selene's quest involves beating the Carian Manor and defeating Radahn, both tasks most find far more dangerous than the Library of Liurnia.[[/labelnote]]

* ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsII'' is much more about the player characters identity and the fact one can lose it to the Undead Curse than the more mythologically focused ''I''. There is actually some gameplay before character creation to let you know that the player character had a life before the game and respeccing is possible for the first time in a Souls game. A certain coffin can spontaneously change everything about your characters appearance, right down to their physical gender.

** There is no mid-boss on the way to Seath the Scaleless. As he is a dragon that turned on his own kind for the dragon-hating gods of Andor Londo, most that aren't already a part of his forces don't want anything to do with him. Of those forces, most are abroad trying to kidnap more test subjects and are not hanging around Seath's estate as a result.

* ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' in general is a better example of this as your proficiency in a particular skill isn't just useful for its basic uses (e.g. science is primarily for hacking computers), but can be used to interact with the world at large (e.g. teaching people to synthesize drugs). This even even extends to perks. For example, having the Strong Back perk allows you to convince the Happy Trails caravan merchant that you can handle carrying larger load.

* In ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'', you keep coming back to life as many times as necessary to complete [[NintendoHard the game]] because you're a victim of the Undead Curse, which renders people immortal, but if they ever lose hope/purpose, they'll turn into mindless creatures called Hollows. So, why doesn't the player character ever turn Hollow? Well, they do... if their player quits the game.
** The hollow mechanic also affects your allies in the world. Many of them end their sidequest in death as they give in to the curse. Without you needing their help they hollow without purpose.
** The level up system through taking the souls of defeated enemies is, InUniverse, something that everyone can do- and in fact, several bosses also take advantage of it; for example, the second phase of the Ornstein & Smough fight, after you kill one, has the other absorb the dead one's soul to heal to full health and get a buff (Ornstein becomes giant, or Smough gains lightning attacks). Soul power increases with strength, which is why bosses give you much more power compared to normal mooks.
** The coop function of bringing in players is acknowledged in universe as the world's stability in time and space as unpredictable. This allows several characters to be from other worlds as they go about their own journeys without you seeing them outside of certain events.
** New Londo has no bonfires to rest by. This is because the place has been abandoned by the gods and flooded. Pointedly, they are the only Great Soul not protected by the Lordvessel and one could defeat them at any point they wish.
** There is no mid-boss on the way to Seath the Scaleless. As he is a dragon that turned on his own kind for the dragon hating gods of Andor Londo, most that aren't already a part of his forces don't want anything to do with him.

** Fitting his status as a StarterVillain, Godrick's Great Seal that enhances all stats by 5 reflects that he has no true power on his own. While very useful in the early to mid-game, when the softlocks on stats start showing up later you will find the benefits from Radahn's or Morgott's much more useful.
** Radahn was said to be one of the greatest warriors among the demi-gods until the final battle with his sister Malenia infected him with so much Scarlet Rot that he lost his mind and ruined his body. While a major foe to face early on, compared to the other demi-gods still at the top of their game he is significantly weaker. And fitting his affliction Scarlet Rot is highly effective on him. It's already brought him to the brink, so more will put him over the edge.
** A lot of Malenia's stats are based on the LogicalWeakness she has as a HandicappedBadass; she has insane rot resistance because she's dealt with it her whole life (and you're trying to weaponize Scarlet Rot against its own [[ItSucksToBeTheChosenOne chosen Empyrean]]), but she's still been deathly ill since she was born, so she can't resist other status effects very well, and has zero fire resistance as the Rot is WeakToFire as a rule. She also has relatively low Poise (heavy emphasis on the 'relatively'; it's only low by endgame standards) because for all her skill, she's only a few feet taller than most humans, while her relatives in the 13-20 foot range have too much sheer mass to be staggered- something reflected in the trailer, where Radahn is able to stagger her and break her artificial arm with a heavy blow.

** Maliketh has remarkably low hp and poise for an endgame boss who is a 20 foot tall wolf-knight. Doing his sidequest beforehand shows that sealing the Rune of Death has given him a HorrorHunger that can only be (temporarily) sated with Deathroot- and there's only 9 of those in all of the Lands Between. [[WorfHadTheFlu He's been starving for who-knows-how-long before he fights you]].
** Enemy friendly fire is determined by their in-universe attitudes and actions. Most wildlife and soldiers will fight each other but the large dogs in Caelid are so feral that they can damage each other but won't target each other. Same for the Golems, who are so autonomous that they don't register each other as enemy or ally and can deal damage to each other by accident. Uniquely, the swordmistresses of Nox can be attacked and even grabbed by their Large Ant mounts.

*** Godrick's sworn knights have mostly been lost with only a few holding positions outside his castle, and he has to make due with banished knights, sell swords, exiles and even commoners.
*** Rennala took multiple losses in the backstory and the academy is currently locked off from the outside world. Her home is mostly held by mages and automaton creations, with a single knight that was sworn to her blocking off access to her library.
*** Rykard the Lord of Blasphemy has no knights in his service, the set is found on a corpse. His dungeon is instead held by serpent knights and automated contraptions.
*** Morgott is considered the best statesman of the demigods and it shows in the Leyndell knights being found everywhere. Leyndell is also the one place the injured and infirm are taken care of in all the Lands Between.
** Malenia's personal army, the Cleanrot Knights, are known as some of the most powerful and capable knights in the entire war and thus found in multiple areas and have quite probably the highest numbers of any knight. Fitting for their leader their armor has some of the highest Scarlet Rot resistance of any set and their unique weapons have resistance buffs too.
** Summonable allies can be available if their side quests take them through the area you are traversing. One notable ally, Selene, is for a boss fight very much in the obvious way that avoiding it and doing all her quest to that point is almost laughably easy for you solo.[[labelnote:why]]The Red Wolf of Radagon is the sub boss of Liurnia's main dungeon that you are almost funnelled into. Selene's quest involves beating the Carian manor and defeating Radahn, both tasks most find far more dangerous than the Library of Liurnia.[[/labelnote]]

** Absol is said to [[TheCassandra be able to predict disasters]], and sure enough it is found in areas where disaster has/is going to happen. Hoenn Route 120, [[note]] Right before [=Team Magma/Aqua=] steal the orb that lets them summon [[OlympusMons Groudon/Kyogre]] [[/note]] [=Mt.=] Coronet [[note]] [[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl Cyrus]] is trying to remake the universe in his image [[/note]], Unova Route 13 [[note]] Near [[DraconicAbomination Kyurem]]'s lair which itself gets attacked two years later [[/note]], Kalos Route 8 [[note]] Close to Geosenge Town, Xerneas/Yveltal, and the Ultimate Weapon]] [[/note]], and Tapu Village [[note]] In ruins when you find it, plus Team Skull kidnaps Lillie and Nebby there [[/note]].

** Absol is said to [[TheCassandra be able to predict disasters]], and sure enough it is found in areas where disaster has/is going to happen. Hoenn Route 120, [[note]] Right before [=Team Magma/Aqua=] steal the orb that lets them summon [[OlympusMons Groudon/Kyogre]] [[/note]] [=Mt.=] Coronet [[note]] [[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl Cyrus]] is trying to remake the universe in his image [[/note]], Unova Route 13 [[note]] Near {{Dracolich Kyurem}}'s lair which itself gets attacked two years later [[/note]], Kalos Route 8 [[note]] Close to Geosenge Town, Xerneas/Yveltal, and the Ultimate Weapon]] [[/note]], and Tapu Village [[note]] In ruins when you find it, plus Team Skull kidnaps Lillie and Nebby there [[/note]].

** Absol is said to [[TheCassandra be able to predict disasters]], and sure enough it is found in areas where disaster has/is going to happen. Hoenn Route 120, [[note]] Right before [=Team Magma/Aqua=] steal the orb that lets them summon [[OlympusMons Groudon/Kyogre]] [[/note]] [=Mt.=] Coronet [[note]] [[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl Cyrus]] is trying to remake the universe in his image [[/note]], Unova Route 13 [[note]] Near [[Dracolich Kyurem]]'s lair which itself gets attacked two years later [[/note]], Kalos Route 8 [[note]] Close to Geosenge Town, Xerneas/Yveltal, and the Ultimate Weapon]] [[/note]], and Tapu Village [[note]] In ruins when you find it, plus Team Skull kidnaps Lillie and Nebby there [[/note]].

** Absol is said to [[TheCassandra be able to predict disasters]], and sure enough it is found in areas where disaster has/is going to happen. Hoenn Route 120, [[note]] Right before [=Team Magma/Aqua=] steal the orb that lets them summon [[OlympusMons Groudon/Kyogre]] [=Mt.=] Coronet [[note]] [[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl Cyrus]] is trying to remake the universe in his image [[/note]], Unova Route 13 [[note]] Near [[Dracolich Kyurem]]'s lair which itself gets attacked two years later [[/note]], Kalos Route 8 [[note]] Close to Geosenge Town, Xerneas/Yveltal, and the Ultimate Weapon]] [[/note]], and Tapu Village [[note]] In ruins when you find it, plus Team Skull kidnaps Lillie and Nebby there [[/note]].

** The {{prequel}} ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep'' gives the player a substantial array of Spells, Special Attacks and {{Super Mode}}s at the very beginning of the game, and also revamps gameplay to make it easier to use them in combat more often. [[note]] Unlike in previous games, all Combos and Spells recharge automatically, and none of them consume Magic Points[[/note]] This is because the three protagonists (Terra, Aqua and Ventus) are all experienced Keyblades wielders with years of training under their belts, unlike the relative newbie Sora.
** Near the climax of ''Birth by Sleep'', the battle between Terra and [[spoiler: Master Eraqus]] is one of the few times in the series that the player can wield [[CastingAShadow the elemental power of Darkness]]. "Dark Impulse" turns out to be one of the most powerful [[SuperMode Command Styles]] in the game, but the player has no control over when it can activate. [[note]] It activates automatically during combat in place of "Critical Impact", but ''only'' during that particular boss battle[[/note]] The idea that Darkness offers tantalizing power -- but [[EvilIsNotAToy is nearly impossible to control]] -- is one of the single biggest themes in the ''Kingdom Hearts'' mythos. Hence, Terra can only use it when he's on the verge of [[spoiler: losing his soul to Master Xehanort's influence]], and he absolutely cannot rein it in once it starts flaring up.

* ''VideoGame/{{Deltarune}}'': In Chapter 2, Noelle is afraid of mice, which is utilized in puzzles where you need to scare her so she jumps over barriers. After the last of these puzzles, Noelle says that she isn't scared of mice anymore, and actually thinks they're cute now. If you go back to fight a Maus enemy, this is reflected by a new ACT for her. She can compliment the mice, allowing you to spare them after one turn, which is faster and easier than the method you had before.

** Yuna, the WhiteMage, is a SquishyWizard who needs to complete a pilgrimage (see: "the whole first half of the game" above). The rest of the party is her PraetorianGuard. To reinforce the idea that they're here to protect her, each of them can exploit TacticalRockPaperScissors against a specific type of enemy: Tidus's swiftness lets him catch four-legged baddies, Auron's {{BFS}} lets him slice through armored foes, BlackMage Lulu can handle elemental enemies, LongRangeFighter Wakka knocks flying enemies from the sky, and Rikku's VideoGameStealing skill can be used to dismantle robots. Each of them can OneHitKill these enemy types, which comprise the bulk of random encounters throughout gameplay. Meanwhile, Yuna herself is strong against literally nothing; she's either used for healing spells or is TheBigGuy trotted out to use SummonMagic (as Aeons in this game serve as {{Meat Shield}}s).

** Malekith has remarkably low hp and poise for an endgame boss who is a 20 foot tall wolf-knight. Doing his sidequest beforehand shows that sealing the Rune of Death has given him a HorrorHunger that can only be (temporarily) sated with Deathroot- and there's only 9 of those in all of the Lands Between. [[WorfHadTheFlu He's been starving for who-knows-how-long before he fights you]].

** Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy has remarkably low poise for a two-story man-snake. Which actually makes sense, snakes don't have ways to stabilize themselves as they lie on the ground and Rykard's limbs erupt from within the giant snake. He has no pelvis to pivet on to hold himself up.

** Similarly the stat gains from level ups stop steadily going up around level 60 and randomly go up or down depending on chance. Training alone will eventually plataeu and it can be actually detrimental if done to excess. This is revisited in other games where stats stop going up in later levels, but here is the only time it might actually make you weaker.

** Cloud is noted in-story to be extraordinarily strong as an Ex member of Soldier, even next to the rest of the party who are some of the most capable people on the planet. In game he is coded to be at a higher level then the rest and even on the same level he is stronger then them across nearly every stat.
** At points in the story Tifa and Cid take over as party leader and dialogue changes to match whoever is in control. In a neat bit Tifa won't have a choice in helping Fort Condor, as she is far more altruistic then Cloud.

** In a similar instance to the above, the rematch against [[spoiler:Black Waltz Number 3]] has similar stakes; they are tasked with returning Dagger to Brahne, and if they succeed in killing the rest of the party, instead of attacking, it will start hitting ''itself'' due to a combination of its mission (the only foe left is the one they're supposed to bring back alive) and some rather severe malfunctioning, by virtue of having their ass handed to them earlier. It's possible to win the fight by just letting your other members get killed, then wail on it with Dagger until it kills itself. This also doubles as a convenient [[AntiFrustrationFeatures anti-frustration feature]], since there's a lenghty several minute cutscene between the last savepoint and this bossfight which you'd have to watch every time you lost this fight, if it were possible.

** Confidants generally give you a boost to Personas of the same arcana when you fuse them and a whole bunch of other character-specific bonuses. Prosecutor Sae Nijima, the woman interrogating you in the frame story, is added to your Confidants list in early July; however, since you didn't properly meet her until November, she provides diddly-squat for you until you catch up to the interrogation.

** Some Traineirs will have their own unique AI when battling the player. Young Trainers like kids or newbies won't have an effective strategy for battling while stronger Trainers like Ace Trainers and the Elite Four will use more advanced strategies and may even swap out Pokémon or use items. The Rich Boy trainers will use Max Potions or Full Restores to heal their Pokémon, even though their team has far too little HP to make those items worth using, and their team are likely holding Nuggets (which you can steal). Considering that Rich Boys (and similar [=NPCs=]) are wealthy, it makes sense that they would use expensive items to flaunt their wealth.

* In ''VideoGame/StarOceanTheSecondStory'', Ashton has abyssmal luck and somehow manages to get the two-headed dragon he was trying to kill grafted onto his back: his natural luck stat is a mere 17 regardless of how high his level is, and this is in a game where most endgame stats easily break quadruple digits.

** The BigBad of the Marauder storyline is a feral Aurochs known as Kujata. Part of the reason Kujata is so dangerous is because its victims are inexplicably ''very'' hard to heal and often die from their wounds while being treated. When the time comes to actually fight and kill it, you learn Kujata places the Infirmity debuff on you with every attack -- which drastically reduces how effective healing magics are, making it a race against time because your partner's efficiency at healing the grevious blows you take is nearly nullified.
** The game playfully points out the oddity of the Player Character always having between 3 and 7 people blessed with the Echo and just as strong as them at any given time to justify group content. MUCH later in Shadowbringers you learn that [[spoiler: The Warrior of Light is a reincarnation of Azem, the "Shephard to the Stars" of the ruling class of the Precusor society of Amaurot. Azem's powers were explicitly to work together, empower, and summon allies at will, which carries over to the Player Character's tendency to gather up friends to help tackle obstacles. When the full power of Azem is unlocked in one of the most climactic battles of the story, they gain the ability to summon said allies from as far away as other dimensions, and can even transcend death by calling on the soul of Emet-Selch, one of Azem's best friends. The "Summon friend" spell of Azem's crystal continues to be used well into ''Endwalker'' to justify having party members to fight by your side as the locations of trials and dungeons become increasingly improbable and eventually outright impossible for other adventurers to be around.]]

** A side quest in ''Endwalker'' tasks you with gathering a very poisonous plant that can gravely poison you on mere touch unless you use a pair of gloves to extract the plant without harming yourself. You can still gather the plant without the gloves and doing so will inflict a ''very'' strong poison debuff on you whose damage is higher than your natrual HP regeneration, meaning it's possible to outright die from the poison.

*** At the start, they enforced this hardcore by having the Maw be exceptionally dangerous in all respects with the "Eye of the Jailer" mechanic where doing certain things would draw the attention - and eventually ire - of the Jailer's enforcer, a giant mechanical eye of the same name, leading to significantly worse things to befall you until you have a damage over time effect chunking your HP and negating your healing done to force you to leave ''immediately'' less you die and be forcefully ejected. In 9.1, as part of efforts to actively defeat the Jailer, the players with the help of Odyn's Val'kyr deal significant damage to the Eye of Jailer and force it to retreat for repairs, which removes the associated mechanic entirely and permanently.

** Characters like the computer programmer, Soona, and the consulant, Trant Heidelstam, for example, show the downsides of having too much Interfacing and Encyclopedia, respectively, becoming obsessed by minutiae and indifferent to the actual people around them, and [[{{Delinquent}} Cuno]] and [[TheStoryteller Idiot Doom Sprial]]'s HiddenDepths include a creative, artistic streak which the Detective's own Conceptualization can recognize.

** The party Blue Mage, Strago has a case of this. The game tells you that to teach Blue Magic in this game, you have to see the copyable spell being cast. What this means is that ''Strago'' has to see the spell being cast, so being struck by the blind status effect when the spells are cast means he won't be able to learn them. More importantly though, this means that if you have Relm in a party and her Sketch copy uses its Lore spell, Strago will learn it without having to put himself or other party members in danger.

** The party Blue Mage, Strago has a case of this. The game tells you that to teach Blue Magic in this game, you have to see the copyable spell being cast. What this means is that ''Strago'' has to see the spell being cast, so being struck by the blind status effect when the spells are cast means he won't be able to learn them.