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Resident Bollywood Nerd
openPretending to be their twin to kiss someone Videogame
Isn't there a more specific trope for this than Twin Switch? Bed Trick seems extreme for a kiss
openA certain graphic style Videogame
There is a graphical style in computer games, I see showing up every once in a while in the last ten years, especially in games from single developers and smaller studios, mostly in 2,5 or 3D games.
It has a tendency towards pastel colours, surfaces with little details and weak or non-existing outlines. Donut County, Overland, Temtem and The Stillness of the Wind would be examples I got right at hand; I guess you will know some others too.
While it could be summed up as cost cutting, there seems to be a trope-like pattern to it, and I don't think it is meant to be just Stylistic Suck either. Is there any trope that covers this?
Edited by JerryopenTwo sounds from ThiefTDP that are logical for the in-game action but don't make sense in the context Videogame
In Thief: The Dark Project, you can parry with your sword enemy attacks, which will make the sound of the blade clashing. The thing is that you can not only parry guards, but anything that is attacking you: even zombies or spiders. And the sound played is always the same! Quite strange to hear a blade clashing against a spider fang or a rotting arm... yet it is logical from a gamecoding perspective, as it is the sound played when you parry an attack.
Another strange case. Two premises: 1) If you knockout somebody, the unconscious body can still play appropriate sounds as if you were interacting with someone standing up. If you hurt it with a weapon, you will hear the sounds of pain played when you damage somebody. If you drop in water, he will drown and you will hear the drowning sound. If you drop it in lava, well, sound of death immediate. 2) When you attack with fire a fire mage, he will comment that your effort are useless as he's invincible to fire damage (of course). In fact they can also walk into lava...
Now, if you knockout a fire mage, and drop him into lava, he will start to "receive damage" from it. But since he is immune to fire damage, he will actually get not hurt. So, instead of the hurt sound, the same voiceover will play stating that he cannot be harmed by you (even if technically unconscious). Again, it is technically following the logic of how these sounds were coded.
What trope could best fit these kind of oversights?
Edited by Connacht89openCold equals slow Videogame
Asking just in case I've missed a trope somewhere...
In games (and other works) using elemental attacks, there's sometimes a theme of cold/ice attacks slowing the target down, which is specific to that element.
In games like The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Marvel Mystic Mayhem this usually turns icy projectiles into a Status Infliction Attack.
Do we have anything that covers this?
Edited by Mrph1open"Killer Surgery" trope Videogame
This is a trope where I noticed, where a surgical operation is plotted out using a weapon, including a buzzsaw or a chainsaw weapon. Oftentimes if performed in real life there is a 0% chance of succeeding if it was real.
- Lenny Loosejocks Gets Abducted By Aliens: The Sluggees then proceed to execute Lenny with a giant buzzsaw, causing him to break free of the cuffs and escape to the control room.
- Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters: In the Dreamtime level, there's a scene where a clone of Qwark impersonating a doctor pulls out a chainsaw, causing Ratchet to panic and run away.
- Robot Chicken: Seen in both Chainsaw Surgeon and in action in Walt Disney Attacks.
Oftentimes, the target victims panic and flee during such scenes. What is the name of this trope and are there any other examples?
Edited by GilbertaopenDifficulty modifiers Videogame
When you Mix And Match modifiers that make the game harder,
Edited by inbeforedashopenRich girl with a decent money head looking into expenses and being stunned Videogame
Also called, as I jokingly put it 'Tsukuyo discovers adulting/gets sticker shock'
Basically the character involved, while raised rich, is also money minded. She understands hard work and budgeting, she is not the sort of girl who thinks money is endless. And for reasons she and her twin sister are looking to leave their families and live on their own somewhere because both of their lives suck.
However she starts doing some budgeting for how much rent and food would cost and she's incredibly stricken by it.
Looking for a trope that covers this without having Tsukuyo lack a concept of money's values.
openFictional Brands with Unique Names Videogame
Is there a trope for In-Universe brands that are not Bland-Name Product, Writing Around Trademarks or Brand X?
Fashion games like Style Savvy, Aikatsu, and the Pretty Series have fictional brands with unique names and unique clothing designs that bring out the characters’ personalities. (In general, most games developed by Syn sophia tend to have lots of fictional brands, and I know that Aikatsu is a Bandai IP.)
You can look at some examples below.
Aikatsu Brands:
https://aikatsu.fandom.com/wiki/Brands
Pretty Series Brands:
openNPC Roundup Sidequest Videogame
It's a subtype of the Fetch Quest that's a close cousin to the Herding Mission, but doesn't hit the same beats: One NPC is waiting for a group of others, and you need to find them all, talk to them, and send them back home. Some might be hiding out of sight, or require solving a puzzle to reach. In some cases they'll need to be convinced to head back, which leads to smaller sidequests nested within this sidequest.
You'll commonly see it as a parent waiting for their children to return home, or a boss whose workers have gone missing (especially if a Broken Bridge needs a whole crew to repair).
Comparing it to the tropes I looked at:
- It's distinct from the standard Fetch Quest, because gathering up Plot Coupons is usually more straightforward than playing a whole game of NPC Hide-And-Seek. After all, we expect (or hope) that an NPC is smarter than your standard inventory item, and so finding each one is usually its own little challenge.
- However, it's different from a typical Herding Mission, where the challenge is the minigame of getting the animal back to where it belongs. In these sidequests, once you've found the NPC and interacted with them, they'll usually just head to the destination on their own.
- Ditto on the Escort Mission. Or, well, on that note... sometimes they will actually follow you around (gathering troops in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth comes to mind), but this won't be part of the challenge. It'll be more of an abstract progress meter, if anything.
- It actually has a lot in common with Putting the Band Back Together, especially if the missing NPCs have enough character development. However, that's a trope for a whole narrative genre, whereas this is more about the mechanics of a quest setup.
openVideo game end-of-level statistic displayed but only actually seen to be greater than zero once. Videogame
My specific examples comes from the FPS/firefighting simulation "Real Heroes: Firefighter" which currently lacks an article here.
At the end of each level there are usual stats displayed like water sprayed, extinguishers used, lowest health reached, etc. But one of these stats named "Dragons Defeated" this is always zero except for the very final story level. Which takes place at an amusement park. The final section of this level has the player character, Probie, "defeat" a malfunctioning animatronic fire-breathing dragon. After finishing off the dragon with your hose the level ends and finally, the end-of-level stats lists: "Dragons Defeated: 1"
Is this statistic trope a thing?
openPopular dip Videogame
Is there a trope for tabletop games or video games where a particular Character Class is considered rather subpar and advised against as a dedicated path, but on the other hand is rather popular as a "dip", i.e. taking just the first few levels of it for substantial advantages?
openOne character actually first met another earlier, but didn't really think about it that much Videogame
Like in Grand Theft Auto V where Michael actually first saw Franklin as he gave some directions, but I'm pretty sure that's all he cared at the time. I thought I had to ask because it looks like one trope entry mentioned the part where Franklin got snuck up on is when he got to know him. I put video games because that's where I first noticed this.
Edited by HotScorpion
It's like I'm in some kind of... TV Tropes...
openPlot revolves around character piecing together important event they forgot Videogame
A character, through some kind of incident, forgets about a critical event. The story revolves around them piecing together what that event was.
For example, in OMORI, the player slowly learns over time how Sunny accidentially murdered Mari in the real world and tried to hide his tracks.
Edited by c1beat7per9minuteopenHealthbars Lowered Before Fight Videogame
When you fight an enemy but their healthbar has already been lowered when you meet them because they sustaiend wounds offscreen or something
openFan Jargon YMMV maybe? Videogame
From the page for Town of Salem:
- Acronym and Abbreviation Overload: Fans have abbreviated many of the roles and terms down in order to cut typing time in the chat, so much so that chatspeak can look like a foreign language to people who have never played the game before.
'Average Investigator Will: N1 2 FR/JS/VM/HM (RBd) N2 4 DC/DIS/SK/PM (TP'd) N3 8 SP/BM/JA/GA N4 9 VI/VE/MA/PI/AM 3 has no cc
Doesn't seem to count for the trope since it's talking about how the fans talk and not anything in the game itself.
openA game/show's last mission/episode shares the same name as the game/show Videogame
Exactly as the title says. Usually made this way to show things have come full circle and you're in for one of the best endings of all time - Example: Red Dead Redemption 2's final main mission is titled 'Red Dead Redemption'
Edited by MyNameIsRonaldopenSliding Scale Of AI-Player Subordination Videogame
Do we have a trope for games where the in-game AI can receive commands, and carry them out if possible? Often overlaps with Artificial Insolence and Artificial Stupidity.
For instance, in strategy games:
- In Empire Earth, you can mark a spot on the map, and allied AI players will send troops there if they can (or tell you it's not happening).
- In 40K Gladius, putting down a marker causes allied AI to more or less send units there.
- In Red Alert 3, the entire campaign gives you an AI co-commander that can be issued orders but also shares resources. This mechanic is completely absent in the expansion, even in skirmish mode.
- In Warcraft 3, AI allies will inform players of where they're sending their next attack, but can't be given orders.
openDifferent play styles in fighting games Videogame
I can't find a trope for this and am wondering if there is one for when a fighting game has different selectable playstyles with their own pros and cons.
- Street Fighter Alpha 3 is one of the earliest examples with their -ISM system. X-ISM, which is based on Super Street Fighter II Turbo, is the simplest, with a single super meter with only one level, a longer block meter, and additional damage output in exchange for taking more damage per hit. A-ISM, based on Alpha 2, has a three-part super meter giving players control over the strength of their supers, access to Alpha Counters for one super meter stock, and air blocking, but deals less damage than X-ISM and has a shorter block meter. V-ISM, introduced in Alpha 3, cannot use super combos, but instead has access to "Original Combos", a Super Mode that makes it easier to chain attacks into one another. Conversely, it deals the least average damage and has the shortest block meter of all the -ISMs.
- Capcom vs. SNK 2: Mark Of The Millennium has its own version of this in the form of its six Grooves:
- C-Groove, based on A-ISM from Alpha 3, has a three-level super meter, and can cancel level-2 supers into level-1 supers. Its subsystems include dashing, rolling, air guarding, counter attacks, and tactical recoveries.
- A-Groove, based on V-ISM from Alpha 3, has a single-level meter that powers Custom Combos, which function in the same way as V-ISM. Its subsystems include dashing, rolling, counter attacks, and safe falling.
- P-Groove, based on Street Fighter III, has a single-level super meter and access to Parrying, providing perfect defense when used well. Its subsystems dashing, small-jumping, and tactical recoveries.
- S-Groove, based on The King of Fighters '94, has the Super Move system which, in addition to allowing the player to manually charge their meter, affords unlimited access to level-1 supers at critical health. Its subsystems include running, dodging, small-jumping, counter attacks, and tactical recoveries.
- N-Groove, based on Advanced Mode from The King of Fighters '98, allows the player to collect stocks from their meter to either execute level-one supers or gain a temporary attack boost. Its subsystems include running, rolling, small-jumping, counter attacks, counter movement, and safe falling.
- K-Groove, based on Samurai Shodown and Garou: Mark of the Wolves, replaces the super meter with a Rage gauge that only fills when taking damage, but provides a powerful temporary attack buff when filled; as well as Just Defend, which can restore health when used properly. Its subsystems include running, small-jumping, and safe falling.
openSequel of alien origin Videogame
The longer a work of fiction goes on, the more likely it becomes that the plot was started by aliens all along or converges to somehow involve aliens from the very beginning. The original installment starts as a standard fantasy settings or has no fictional elements at all and only in the sequels do we find out aliens were involved.
Some well known examples:
Warcraft (The Burning Legion is made up of alien species.)
Doom (Demons were from hell at first but some installments give them alien origin.)
Assassin's Creed (Aliens created modern humans.)
Dragon Ball (In the original series, Goku was just an unusual child in a world of unusual people, Z reveals Goku is an alien sent to Earth with a purpose. Same thing happens to Piccolo who goes from demon in the original series to alien in Z.)
The closest thing I found is Fantasy Aliens, but this doesn't necessary imply any genre shift towards harder science fiction or that the aliens had a deeper impact on the plot or that the aliens were at first described as something other than aliens.
Edited by TriassicSurvivor

In Fallen London, the Constables have a "code of silence" forbidding any of their number from exposing bad behavior among their ranks to the public (which the player can deliberately break as a way of severing ties). I know Dirty Cop is a trope, but I'd like to know if there's a more general trope for an organization so protective of their own they won't act on misconduct they know is happening?
Edited by paradisedj32