Video Game Cruelty Punishment/Playing With

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Basic Trope: Video Game lets players do horrible things, but these actions have consequences.

  • Straight: Dirk kicks Ichigo's adorable kitten Fluffles just because he can. Ichigo responds via giant strawberry-shaped fireball.
  • Exaggerated: Dirk kicks Ichigo's adorable kitten Fluffles -- who immediately turns into a hissing whirlwind of DEATH and chases him around while Ichigo and the rest of the party insult and berate him. Then, after Fluffles has her way with him, Ichigo blows him up. And glares at the screen while scolding his body about how horrible and OMG MEAN he was, and who'd do such a thing to a sweet little kitty anyway?!
  • Justified: You were warned beforehand that Ichigo was not to be trifled with; doing so was an act of Stupid Evil.
  • Inverted: You are actually rewarded for being as evil as possible.
    • Or you are punished for being good.
  • Subverted: You are warned that you'll be punished if you kick Fluffles, but when Dirk does, nothing bad happens to him.
  • Double Subverted: ...Until he's in trouble later on, and Ichigo decides not to help him because he was so mean and nasty earlier, leaving him to his fate.
  • Parodied: Fluffles displays Glowing Eyes of Doom, and we are then treated to a long distance shot of a nuclear explosion.
    • The video game makes the television sprout a hand and proceeds to slap the player who's sitting on the couch while scolding him for being cruel.
  • Deconstructed: The nation you've been torturing with your king/god power by selling off all the crops for insane prices and then executing random people who spoke against you decides they've had enough and rebel. They then throw you in the darkest prison cell and torture you out of spite.
  • Reconstructed: You get out eventually, but you have a limp, a scar, or some other reminder of your crimes.
  • Zig Zagged: There are punishments for some actions, none for others. Some punishments seem completely over-the-top, while others seem like little more than a slap on the wrist. And certain things come back to bite Dirk when the player least expects it...
  • Averted: Nothing bad happens to you even though you are hitting innocent villagers with your sword for fun.
  • Enforced: The programmers want to ensure players know that bad behavior is bad.
  • Lampshaded: "What, you really thought karma wouldn't bite you in the ass if you did such an obviously despicable thing?"
  • Invoked: "Maybe I'll get a funny Nonstandard Game Over if I burn down the orphanage!"
  • Defied: "No, we are not punishing the player if there's no logical reason for such a punishment to take place. If he wants to shoot a villager, don't make the villager pull a bazooka on him."
  • Discussed: "Dude, going nuts with the minigun in the crowded village square? Bad idea. Something bad's probably going to happen if you do."
  • Conversed: "I'm sorry a few civilians got killed, but why does the mission have to end immediately? That stolen mecha prototype is still out there!"
  • Played For Laughs: All the consequences are hilariously over-the-top (leading players to actively seek them out, which may be partly defeating the purpose, but eh...).
  • Played For Drama: The Big Bad of the setting is a sealed godlike Eldritch Abomination that gets more powerful every time someone commits an act of cruelty, and no, raising your Karma Meter by doing good deeds won't erase your past evils. Do enough evil, and said Big Bad gets powerful enough to break free, and immediately shows up to "reward" you for your contribution to his new reign of terror.

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