Times where somebody gets informed that "This is Not a Game" in Video Games.
- In Advance Wars 2, this trope manifests itself during the Yellow Comet campaign mission "A Mirror Darkly" involving Sonja and Lash, in which the former calls out the latter:Lash: Oh well, I still have plenty of pieces to play with.
Sonja: P-Pieces?! I can't believe you said that! This [war] isn't a game! You're not on some kind of playground!
Lash: Oh, but it IS a game. A wonderfully fun game between you and me! - In Azure Striker Gunvolt 3, Kirin has to constantly remind Shiron that the operation they are doing isn't a game whenever he starts to say that some of the techniques she learned reminded him of a video game.
- In BoxxyQuest: The Gathering Storm, Tyalie’s entire outlook is based on defying this. Life is totally a game, (and she knows it), so she’s determined to have as much fun with it as she possibly can, and wants to make sure that everyone else is having fun too!Catie: How can you still be treating this like a game? It's not a game, at least not from where I'm standing.Tyalie: Sure it is! Life isn't easy, but it doesn't have to be so full of gloom and suffering. Have fun with it - the good and the bad, because it's all part of an experience that will never come again!
- A Cut USA General from Command & Conquer: Generals: Zero Hour has lines left over in the game's files. Amongst these is "What? Do you think this is a game? Well, do ya?" Lampshaded, in that moments afterward he prompts the player "not to answer that," thus finding a hole in that wall we never see.
- Double Switch features this clever wordplay in the event of a Game Over, courtesy of Lyle the Repairman.Lyle the Repairman: You thought this was just a GAME, didn't you?! Well, it's OVER for you!
- Final Fantasy:
- Rinoa in Final Fantasy VIII is called out twice during the first disc, first by Squall and later by Quistis, over the lack of professionalism they see in her approach to resistance against Galbadia. Rinoa herself is already very well aware that it's not a game, but she lacks the training and experience that the SeeDs have had, and it takes her a while to understand just how far in she is over her head.Rinoa: "Who said this was a game...? I understand what's going on..."
- Final Fantasy XIII gives us this:Lightning: Keep running—it's die or turn Cie'th. There's no place for l'Cie to hide. No…they want a fight? Let's take it to the Sanctum's door!
Sazh: This isn't a game!
Lightning: No. That's for damn sure. It started with Serah. The fal'Cie took her. Now I'm a l'Cie. And the Sanctum's hunting me, an enemy of the state. But who's pulling their strings? A fal'Cie. Eden. Cocoon's sustainer and guiding light. It probably ordered the Purge, too. Pulse and Sanctum fal'Cie? They're all the same. And we're all the same to them: expendable. I'm not dying a fal'Cie slave.
- Rinoa in Final Fantasy VIII is called out twice during the first disc, first by Squall and later by Quistis, over the lack of professionalism they see in her approach to resistance against Galbadia. Rinoa herself is already very well aware that it's not a game, but she lacks the training and experience that the SeeDs have had, and it takes her a while to understand just how far in she is over her head.
- Fire Emblem:
- This is ultimately the point of between Robin (The Player Character) and Virion's support arc with one another in Fire Emblem: Awakening. Virion and Robin play chess, and Virion always wins. When Robin mentions that Virion should be the one giving orders, he tells Robin to check the board because he can only win at great cost and half the moves he makes in this game could not be used in a real battle because knowledge of Chess does not mean one can win a battle.
- In Fire Emblem: Three Houses, early on in the Blue Lions route, Dimitri expresses eagerness at seeing his professor Byleth and Byleth's father, the renowned mercenary and former captain of the Knights of Seiros, Jeralt the Blade Breaker, fight side by side. Byleth can tell him, "This isn't a game," and regardless of which choice is made, Dimitri apologizes for saying something so childish, before mentioning that his parents are dead.
- In Fire Emblem Engage, during Merrin and Yunaka's supports, Merrin complains that Yunaka won't let her do a monologue in the middle of their sparring matches. Yunaka replies that a real enemy would go in for the kill while Merrin was busy monologuing, and says that even if they're sparring, "It's a bad habit to make light of combat."
- In Golden Sun: The Lost Age, if Felix consistently antagonizes Kraden by saying no to certain questions thoughout the game, he'll eventually flip out and give an epic rant to this effect:Kraden: What!? Are you INSANE!? Or maybe you think you're funny? Because you're not! Maybe this whole quest is just a game to you, but it's not to me! Are you bored!? Do you want to go home!? FINE! That's it! Then let's go home!
- Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories has Nurse Bob going "Now, look, life ain't a cartoon! And it sure as hell in a handbasket ain't no game!"
- In Jak 3: Wastelander, the monk Seem tells Jak and Daxter "This isn't a game!", and they respond by giving a side glance to the camera.
- At the end of Kingdom Hearts Coded, Data Roxas is enraged that Sora is determined to live with and accept hurt for his friends, saying he’ll end up falling to darkness and that it’s not a game.
- In The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, the King of Hyrule used this phrase almost verbatim on his daughter, frustrated that she hasn't made more progress unlocking her sealing magic and is instead trying to study the Guardians and other ancient technology. Unfortunately, Zelda is fully aware of what's at stake and is completely serious about preparing to stop Calamity Ganon, so all the King's lecture does is worsen her feelings of inadequacy.
- On one Side Quest in Mass Effect, Shepard has to convince a woman to stop working as an informant because her sister is worried about her. At one point, Shepard says "This isn't a game, Jenna. These people are dangerous!".
- Naomi says a variant of it in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots while images of the logos of all the previous canonical games come up on the screen.
- In NEO: The World Ends with You, Rindo starts to use the phrase "this isn't a game" on his friend Fret, but upon remembering that the Deadly Game they're trapped in is literally called the Reaper's Game, realizes this isn't the best choice of words and stops himself short.
- In Persona 3, near the start of the game, Mitsuru sighs and exasperatedly tells Akihiko that hunting Shadows isn't a game. In Persona 3 Reload, she says almost the same thing in a random Tartarus conversation with Akihiko.
- In Persona 4, teen detective Naoto Shirogane drops by the main characters to inform them that the murders they have been investigating have apparently been solved, and that their 'game' is about to end. Of course, by this point many of them have either lost friends or nearly been killed themselves over the course of the investigation, and Rise (the latest kidnapping victim) angrily points out that if anyone thinks of it as a 'game' it would be Naoto, not them.
- Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time:Prince: If you want to be useful, try finding a book that'll tell us how to get out of here.
Farah: This isn't that kind of game.
Prince: Game? She thinks this is a game! - Spider-Man (2000):Spider-Man: This isn't a game, Mysterio! The symbiotes will destroy everything in their path unless I can stop them!
- During StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm, during Sarah Kerrigan's trolljob in the first mission (which is basically a tutorial that goes Off the Rails In-Universe), Valerian will remark: "This isn't a game, Kerrigan!"
- System Shock 2, said by your Mission Control: "Why do you move so slowly? Do you think this is some kind of game?"
- The phrase "This isn't a field trip" is used twice in Tales of Symphonia. The first time is when Kratos escorts Colette, along with her friends Genis and Lloyd, into the monster-infested Temple of Martel, immediately after saving the three from being killed by the first boss. Raine says the line a second time to curb Genis' enthusiasm when the group arrives on Tethe'alla.
- In Thwaite, in a No-Damage Run in progress, one of the villagers thinks the action is just an elaborate fireworks show, and another has a hard time convincing him otherwise.
- Wheelman: The very first line spoken: "You think this is a game? Move!"
- In World of Warcraft, Varian says this in response to Jaina, with the player's help, exiling all the Sunreavers from Dalaran and bringing the Kirin Tor into the Alliance.Varian: I can't fault you for following orders. In fact, I can't really fault Jaina for acting on her own behalf, for once. But still... we aren't playing a game here. We are dealing with war, with people's lives, with the future of the Alliance itself.
