History WrongGenreSavvy / VideoGames

** In ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Spirit Tracks]]'', Zelda assumes she's going to play the typical DamselInDistress role after her physical body is stolen, even lampshading how it's "something of a family tradition." This is one of the only games in the franchise where Zelda is playable. Needless to say, it isn't long before she finds herself stepping into an ActionGirl role instead.

* ''VideoGame/VampireTheMasqueradeBloodlines'' has a few cases where characters new to the supernatural side of things think the world they are in works by common horror tropes. Most notable would be one of the thin-bloods, who thinks a full blood transfusion or killing the head vampire can cure him from vampirism. [[{{Jerkass}} The player can milk his gullibility for all it is worth.]]

%%** A third is Grünfeld Bach's view of [=LaCroix=]. Bach considers [=LaCroix=] a storybook monster, and expects him to show up to slaughter his way through the Society of St. Leopold if he pushes hard enough. However, [=LaCroix=] is a very human character - a petty, egotistic schemer with an ego the size of a country and nothing to back it up, who happily cowers in his tower and sends his patsies out to do the heavy lifting.
* In ''VideoGame/Uncharted2AmongThieves'' Harry Flynn basically tells Elena that she is this. [[spoiler: This ends badly for Elena.]]
-->'''Flynn:''' Sorry love, but this isn't a movie. And you're not the plucky girl who reforms the villain and saves the day.

** Another semi-example would be Stretch, a fellow hoodlum who thinks he controls Franklin and Lamar's lives. While he might qualify as Lamar's BigBad (if only because Lamar's so dumb and therefore repeatedly falls for Stretch's attempts to get him killed), he's more a BigBadWannabe otherwise, as Franklin's got much bigger problems to deal with ([[CorruptCorporateExecutive corrupt businessmen]], [[InterserviceRivalry warring government agencies]], and [[TongsAndTriads Chinese gangsters]]) and often forgets Stretch even exists; he's basically tossed in as an afterthought during the "Deathwish" ending after Trevor brings him up.

* ''VideoGame/UntilDawn'':
** Once the main characters realize that there's a killer on the loose, Emily insists to Matt that they should not go back to the lodge, as that's what he'd be expecting them to do. [[spoiler:Considering that the ''actual'' threat wasn't a slasher killer, but something far more supernatural and monstrous, the lodge was actually the safest place on the mountain.]]
** After learning about [[spoiler:the {{wendigo}}es]], the main characters initially assume that [[spoiler:they are like [[OurZombiesAreDifferent zombies]] -- and that Emily, should she be bitten by a wendigo during her chase scene, is [[ZombieInfectee infected]]. They're wrong, but they only learn that ''after'' you're given the option to [[StakingTheLovedOne kill her]].]] Sam is the only one willing to give Emily the benefit of the doubt and tries calming the others down, and needless to say, Emily is quite justifiably ''furious'' afterwards.
* ''VideoGame/MassEffectAndromeda'': Liam, being a movie buff, thinks Peebee's declaring LetsSplitUpGang might result in her death by spike pit (it doesn't), and more seriously during his LoyaltyMission, where he thinks that if you rush into a situation with [[IndyPloy no real plan]], it's still "supposed" to work because they're the heroes. What happens is everything goes seriously screwy.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Okami}}'', Issun initially believes in BeautyEqualsGoodness in regards to women. He immediately trusts Rao because of her GagBoobs and distrusts Queen Himiko who (initially) refuses to show her face. [[spoiler: Rao has been DeadAllAlong and is impersonated by the evil Ninetails and Himiko is actually good, trying to save her city and people (and also happens to be quite beautiful).]]
* Dutch in ''VideoGame/RedDeadRedemptionII'' thinks himself and his gang as Robin Hood and his Merry Men who are always able to stay one step ahead of the law and is seen as chivalrous bandits to those who are oppressed. Unfortunately, due to Dutch's leadership and his own destructive tendencies, the gang is constantly on the run from authorities who are able to easily track down the gang and cause them to be feared rather than adored by the people. Dutch also attempts to fight a military patrol, thinking it would be like fighting a rival gang, only for the gang to be almost overwhelmed and killed when the rear guard shows up.
* Early on in ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroesIII'', FU has the UAA establish the Galactic Superhero Rankings as a challenge to Earth. Travis Touchdown, who's [[HereWeGoAgain become weary of the usual killing game routine at this point]], reasons that he can prevent this from starting and get the invaders to leave if he kills FU right off the bat. Unfortunately for him, FU is still the game's BigBad, and things go south quickly when he gives Travis and his friends a brutal beating.

* Hellen Gravely from ''VideoGame/LuigisMansion3'' ultimately has her plan fall apart because of this. She though that Luigi would bravely attempt to face King Boo when at the very start of the game, not realizing that [[CowardlyLion Luigi's]] first instinct would be to ''[[ScrewThisImOuttaHere run away]]''. Luigi ultimately jumps down a laundry chute at the end of the hall, [[ForWantOfANail allowing him to escape King Boo's clutches and setting in motion the events of the game]].

* While Monika in ''VisualNovel/DokiDokiLiteratureClub'' certainly understands RomanceGame tropes are in play, she says some inappropriate things that backfire on her because she misses an important point about how the genre works. You won't understand why until the big twist, though, so be warned about the next spoiler. [[spoiler: She actually [[MediumAwareness knows it's a game]], and she thinks the other characters are therefore not real, so she expects the player to laugh along with her when she jokes about the horrible things that happen to them -- because she doesn't realise it's the kind of game with VideoGameCaringPotential and ''not'' VideoGameCrueltyPotential. (This interpretation is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPw9cMWkAMs&t=3s affirmed]] by WordOfGod.) It's probably not the kind of game she plays herself at all.]]

* While Monika in ''VisualNovel/DokiDokiLiteratureClub'' certainly understands RomanceGame tropes are in play -- she's put in the role of something like the matchmaker character, after all -- she says some inappropriate things that backfire on her because she misses an important point about how the genre works. You won't understand why until the big twist, though, so be warned about the next spoiler. [[spoiler: She actually [[MediumAwareness knows it's a game]], and she thinks the other characters are therefore not real, so she expects the player to laugh along with her when she jokes about the horrible things that happen to them -- because she doesn't realise it's the kind of game with VideoGameCaringPotential and ''not'' VideoGameCrueltyPotential. (This interpretation is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPw9cMWkAMs&t=3s affirmed]] by WordOfGod.) It's probably not the kind of game she plays herself at all.]]

* While Monika in ''VisualNovel/DokiDokiLiteratureClub'' certainly understands RomanceGame tropes are in play -- she's put in the role of something like the matchmaker character, after all -- she says some inappropriate things that backfire on her because she misses an important point about how the genre works. You won't understand why until the big twist, though, so be warned about the next spoiler. [[spoiler: She actually [[MediumAwareness knows it's a game]], and she thinks the other characters are therefore not real, so she expects the player to laugh along with her when she jokes about the horrible things that happen to them -- because she doesn't realise it's the kind of game with VideoGameCaringPotential and ''not'' VideoGameCrueltyPotential. (This interpretation is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPw9cMWkAMs&t=3s affirmed]] by WordOfGod.) It's probably not the kind of game she plays at all...]]

* While Monika in ''VisualNovel/DokiDokiLiteratureClub'' certainly understands RomanceGame tropes are in play -- she's put in the role of something like the matchmaker character, after all -- she says some inappropriate things that backfire on her because she misses an important point about how the genre works. You won't understand why until the big twist, though, so be warned about the next spoiler. [[spoiler: She actually [[MediumAwareness knows it's a game]], and she thinks the other characters are therefore not real, so she expects the player to laugh along with her when she jokes about the horrible things that happen to them -- because she doesn't realise it's the kind of game with VideoGameCaringPotential and ''not'' VideoGameCrueltyPotential. (This interpretation is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPw9cMWkAMs&t=3s affirmed]] by WordOfGod.)]]

* While Monika in ''VisualNovel/DokiDokiLiteratureClub'' certainly understands RomanceGame tropes are in play -- she's put in the role of something like the matchmaker character, after all -- she says some inappropriate things that backfire on her because she misses an important point about how the genre works. You won't understand why until the big twist, though, so be warned about the next spoiler. [[spoiler: She actually [[MediumAwareness knows it's a game]], and she thinks the other characters are therefore not real, so she expects the player to laugh along with her when she jokes about the horrible things that happen to them, because she doesn't realise it's the kind of game with VideoGameCaringPotential and ''not'' VideoGameCrueltyPotential. (This interpretation is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPw9cMWkAMs&t=3s affirmed]] by WordOfGod.)]]

* While Monika in ''VisualNovel/DokiDokiLiteratureClub'' certainly understands RomanceGame tropes are in play -- she's put in the role of something like the matchmaker character, after all -- some of her dialogue later on is really dissonant has the opposite effect from what she wants on the other party because she misses an important point about how the genre works. You won't understand why until the big twist, though, so be warned about the next spoiler. [[spoiler: She actually [[MediumAwareness knows it's a game]], and she thinks the other characters are therefore not real, so she expects the player to laugh along with her when she jokes about the horrible things that happen to them, because she doesn't realise it's the kind of game with VideoGameCaringPotential and ''not'' VideoGameCrueltyPotential. (This interpretation is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPw9cMWkAMs&t=3s affirmed]] by WordOfGod.)]]

* While Monika in ''VisualNovel/DokiDokiLiteratureClub'' certainly understands RomanceGame tropes are in play -- she's put in the role of something like the matchmaker character, after all -- some of her dialogue later on is really dissonant because she misses an important point about how the genre works. You won't understand why until the big twist, though, so be warned about the next spoiler. [[spoiler: She actually [[MediumAwareness knows it's a game]], and she thinks the other characters are therefore not real, so she expects the player to laugh along with her when she jokes about the horrible things that happen to them, because she doesn't realise it's the kind of game with VideoGameCaringPotential and ''not'' VideoGameCrueltyPotential. (This interpretation is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPw9cMWkAMs&t=3s affirmed]] by WordOfGod.)]]

* While Monika in ''VisualNovel/DokiDokiLiteratureClub'' certainly understands RomanceGame tropes are in play -- she's put in the role of something like the matchmaker character, after all -- some of her dialogue later on is really dissonant because she misses an important point about how the genre works. You won't understand why until the big twist, though, so be warned about the next spoiler. [[spoiler: She actually knows it's a game, and she thinks the other characters are therefore not real, so she expects the player to laugh along with her when she jokes about the horrible things that happen to them, because she doesn't realise it's the kind of game with VideoGameCaringPotential and ''not'' VideoGameCrueltyPotential. (This interpretation is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPw9cMWkAMs&t=3s affirmed]] by WordOfGod.)]]

* While Monika in ''VisualNovel/DokiDokiLiteratureClub'' certainly understands RomanceGame tropes are in play -- she's put in the role of something like the matchmaker character, after all -- some of her dialogue later on is really dissonant because she misses an important point about how the genre works. You won't understand why until the big twist, though, so be warned about the next spoiler. [[spoiler: She actually knows it's a game, and she thinks the other characters are therefore not real, so she expects the player to laugh along with her when she jokes about the horrible things that happen to them, because she doesn't realise it's the kind of game with VideoGameCaringPotential and ''not'' VideoGameCrueltyPotential.]]

* Early on in ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroesIII'', FU has the UAA establish the Galactic Superhero Rankings as a challenge to Earth. Travis Touchdown, who's become weary of the usual killing game routine at this point, reasons that he can prevent this from starting and get the invaders to leave if he kills FU right off the bat. Unfortunately for him, FU is still the game's BigBad, and things go south quickly when he gives Travis and his friends a brutal beating.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Okami}}'', Issun initially believes in BeautyEqualsGoodness in regards to women. He immediately trusts Rao because of her GagBoobs and distrusts Queen Himiko who (initially) refuses to show her face. [[spoiler: Rao has been DeadAllAlong and is impersonated by the evil Ninetails and Himiko is actually good, trying to save her city and people.]]

** In ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII'', Knight Commander Meredith believes she's surrounded by abominations, doing everything she can to, in her eyes, protect the innocent from evil mages, while Anders sees himself as a revolutionary fighting for the rights of the oppressed, and Cassandra thinks Hawke is TheChessmaster who orchestrated the beginning of the mage rebellion. In reality, Hawke is an ActionSurvivor who, while extremely influential, was basically along for the ride, Meredith is a literal KnightTemplar who [[ColdBloodedTorture at the very least ignores the abuse of the mages under her care]] and [[AFateWorseThanDeath overuses the Rite of Tranquility]], and Anders is an abomination who JumpedOffTheSlipperySlope and manipulated Hawke into [[spoiler: helping him perform terrorist acts.]]

* In ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'', King Cailan establishes himself as a great admirer of the Grey Wardens, and expresses his eagerness to fight alongside them to defeat the darkspawn like in all the stories he has read. Unfortunately for Cailan, ''Dragon Age'' is [[BlackAndGrayMorality not that kind of fantasy]]. Anybody who has read ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' and is aware that it was a great influence in this game will dub King Cailan "[[spoiler:King RedShirt III]]" after hearing him speak for about 10 seconds.