Chaos Architecture: Difference between revisions

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'''Maria:''' As friendly as ever I see. It's strange... this castle is different than I remember it.<br />

'''Alucard:''' [[Trope Namer|This castle is a creature of Chaos. It may take many incarnations.]]<br />

'''Maria:''' Then I can't rely on my memories, huh? Oh well, I'll do my best. Good luck.|''[[Castlevania Symphony of the Night]]''}}

'''Maria:''' Then I can't rely on my memories, huh? Oh well, I'll do my best. Good luck.|''[[Castlevania: Symphony of the Night]]''}}

A TV show usually has a number of recurring locations: the protagonist's house, his workplace, the [[Local Hangout]], you name it. Soon enough, the appearance of these locations becomes very familiar to the viewer... until this trope happens.

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== Film ==

* When a new director took over on [[The Film of the Book]] of ''[[Harry Potter (~~Film~~)|Harry Potter]] and the Prisoner of Azkaban'', [[They Just Didn't Care|he completely and totally disregarded]] everything shown in the first two movies, and Hogwarts' architecture and layout was suddenly wildly changed. While Hogwarts has a mild bit of [[Chaos Architecture]] going for it in-universe, one would think someone might remark on things like the fact that Hagrid's hut is in a ridiculously different location than previously shown.

* When a new director took over on [[The Film of the Book]] of ''[[Harry Potter (film)|Harry Potter]] and the Prisoner of Azkaban'', [[They Just Didn't Care|he completely and totally disregarded]] everything shown in the first two movies, and Hogwarts' architecture and layout was suddenly wildly changed. While Hogwarts has a mild bit of [[Chaos Architecture]] going for it in-universe, one would think someone might remark on things like the fact that Hagrid's hut is in a ridiculously different location than previously shown.

* The look of Gotham City in ''[[Batman (~~Film~~)|Batman]]'' is drastically different than in ''[[~~Batman Returns (Film)|~~Batman Returns]]'', despite having [[Tim Burton|the same director]]. Gotham in ''[[~~Batman Forever (Film)|~~Batman Forever]]'' has a noticeably different design æsthetic, where Art Deco is taken to surreal and impractical extremes. Then that's turned up to 11 for ''[[Batman and Robin (~~Film~~)|Batman and Robin]]''. Also, the buildings surrounding previously seen buildings change.

* The look of Gotham City in ''[[Batman (film)|Batman]]'' is drastically different than in ''[[Batman Returns]]'', despite having [[Tim Burton|the same director]]. Gotham in ''[[Batman Forever]]'' has a noticeably different design æsthetic, where Art Deco is taken to surreal and impractical extremes. Then that's turned up to 11 for ''[[Batman and Robin (film)|Batman and Robin]]''. Also, the buildings surrounding previously seen buildings change.

* This also happens between ''[[Batman Begins]]'' and ''[[The Dark Knight]]''. In Begins, Gotham is much more Gothic/fantasy-looking. In ''TDK'', it looks like...Chicago. Justified, since the most surreal vistas belong to the Narrows, an area based on the slums of Hong Kong, which is effectively destroyed at the end of ''Begins''. Other than that there is no great change between the films.

* There are at least three irreconcilably different versions of Metropolis in the five ''[[Superman (~~Film~~)|Superman]]'' films, despite the fact that in all five Metropolis is [[New York City]] [[Serial Numbers Filed Off|in everything but name]].

* There are at least three irreconcilably different versions of Metropolis in the five ''[[Superman (film)|Superman]]'' films, despite the fact that in all five Metropolis is [[New York City]] [[Serial Numbers Filed Off|in everything but name]].

== Literature ==

* The geography of Arda (particularly Middle Earth) changes significantly several times between (and within) ''[[The Silmarillion]]'' and ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''. The world is said to have suffered severe alterations during the struggle between Melkor and the Valar (including the catastrophic destruction of two mountains at both ends of the world, which in turn led to widespread destruction by fire, and the desolation of the original homeland of the Valar; the destruction of Melkor's first fortress also had severe consequences). The War of Wrath at the end of the First Age led to the continent of Beleriand being almost completely ruined and sunken (only a small portion of its eastern edge remained). And the most severe modification was towards the end of the Second Age, where not only was the island of Númenor sunk (which in turn caused severe seismic effects across Middle Earth), but the actual shape of the world was changed; the continent of Aman was removed from Arda, and the formerly [[Flat World]] was made into a sphere.

* In [[Piers Anthony]]'s ''[[~~Xanth (Literature)|~~Xanth]]'' series, the Good Magician Humfrey's castle presents new challenges to each person who arrives with a question for him, frequently changing structure drastically (for instance, in ''Centaur Aisle'' it appears as a glass mountain). In the book ''Question Quest'', which focuses on Humfrey's life, he reveals that the castle was built with all these different structures and then magically compiled into one. Humfrey takes his challenges seriously.

* In [[Piers Anthony]]'s ''[[Xanth]]'' series, the Good Magician Humfrey's castle presents new challenges to each person who arrives with a question for him, frequently changing structure drastically (for instance, in ''Centaur Aisle'' it appears as a glass mountain). In the book ''Question Quest'', which focuses on Humfrey's life, he reveals that the castle was built with all these different structures and then magically compiled into one. Humfrey takes his challenges seriously.

== Live-Action TV ==

* ''[[~~Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV)|~~Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'':

* ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'':

** In Season Seven, the Sunnydale High School basement keeps shifting, rendering maps useless.

** Damn Hellmouth kept altering things, seeing as it was ''right there''. Must have made it heck for any janitors to find the broom closet.

** As a purer example of the trope the ''whole town'' changed radically from season to season, and no-one ever remarked on it. For example, it had a seaport in earlier seasons and is completely landlocked by the finale.

* Nearly every series of ''[[~~Red Dwarf (TV)|~~Red Dwarf]]'' alters the architecture of the ship.

* Nearly every series of ''[[Red Dwarf]]'' alters the architecture of the ship.

** Starbug, while still rather claustrophobic, is far bigger in series 6 and 7 than earlier series, apparently growing a few new rooms; in 7, this is justified by the battle with the Future Dwarfers warping the structure of the Bug to TARDIS proportions. And let's not even get into the Blue Midget and its legs (though the latter was apparently justified by Nanomachines rebuilding Red Dwarf).

* [[Battlestar Galactica Reimagined|Caprica City]] looked quite different in its [[Series Finale]] incarnation than it did in the 2003 Miniseries. Some of the building models remained but as a whole, the whole skyline was different.

* The hospital in ''[[Scrubs]]'' looked completely different between the pilot and second episode. Interestingly, the same building is used in a number of other shows, notably [[Childrens Hospital]] <ref>Yes, the punctuation is deliberately wrong.</ref> at the moment. They've remodeled the inside and avoid shooting rooms in the same way Scrubs did to avoid it feeling too similar.

* The Wolfram & Hart building in ''[[~~Angel (TV)|~~Angel]]'' has no less than three completely different versions of its interior. While the first transformation (between the season 4 episodes "Habeas Corpses" and "Home") is somewhat justified and certainly noticed, the second one (between the season 4 finale "Home" and the season 5 premiere "Conviction") is not.

* The Wolfram & Hart building in ''[[Angel]]'' has no less than three completely different versions of its interior. While the first transformation (between the season 4 episodes "Habeas Corpses" and "Home") is somewhat justified and certainly noticed, the second one (between the season 4 finale "Home" and the season 5 premiere "Conviction") is not.

* Ben's house on ''[[~~Lost (TV)|~~Lost]]'' changes layout multiple times between it's first appearance in season 3 and it's last appearance in season 6.

* Ben's house on ''[[Lost]]'' changes layout multiple times between it's first appearance in season 3 and it's last appearance in season 6.

* Both the model house and Lucille's place in ''[[Arrested Development (TV)|Arrested Development]]'' have different layouts in the pilot.

* Both the model house and Lucille's place in ''[[Arrested Development (TV series)|Arrested Development]]'' have different layouts in the pilot.

* In ''[[~~Charmed (TV)|~~Charmed]]'', Piper got a job in an Italian restaurant in the pilot, but from the second episode onwards she works in a different restaurant named "Quake". While both the set and the outside shots are different, it is implied to be the same place.

* In ''[[Charmed]]'', Piper got a job in an Italian restaurant in the pilot, but from the second episode onwards she works in a different restaurant named "Quake". While both the set and the outside shots are different, it is implied to be the same place.

* The interior of the local high school changes completely between seasons 2 and 3 of ''[[8 Simple Rules]]''. Changes in layout are particularly noticeable during the scenes in the principal's office.

* ''[[Eureka]]'' had the inside of Global Dynamics change MASSIVELY between the pilot and the actual series.

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* The interior of the Millers' house in ''[[Still Standing]]'' is completely different in the pilot.

* The Hub in ''[[That 70s Show]]'' was just not the same place in the pilot.

* The living room and the kitchen of the Banks' house in ''[[The Fresh Prince of Bel Air]]'' completely changed after the first season - most notably they were no longer seperated by a door, the living room was much larger, and both rooms now had an exit to the garden.

* The living room and the kitchen of the Banks' house in ''[[The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air]]'' completely changed after the first season - most notably they were no longer seperated by a door, the living room was much larger, and both rooms now had an exit to the garden.

* Maxwell Sheffield's house in ''[[The Nanny]]'' is different in the pilot.

* The sets for ''[[The Odd Couple]]'' and ''[[Happy Days]]'' were completely changed when they went from a [[Single Camera]] setup to Filmed Before A [[Studio Audience]], without the characters moving to a different apartment/house (also Arnold's Drive-In on ''[[Happy Days]]'' - the other permanent set). Oh, and one time [[Justified]] when Arnold's burned to the ground and they built a new Arnold's.

* The pilot of [[The Cosby Show]] used a very generic living room set, although the adjacent kitchen and other rooms are the same as used in the rest of the series, with a bit of redecorating.

* The architecture of CTU in ''[[~~Twenty Four|~~24]]'' changes several times over the course of the series. During the jump from the pilot episode (which was filmed months before any other episodes were commissioned) to the entirety of season one, the office added several more cubicles and additional rooms that weren't previously seen. During the jump to season 3 to season 4, the entire layout of the office changes into a much more open-space setting, with a situation room located right next to the office cubicles (instead of in its own wing, as before), and different layouts of video monitors, decor and architecture. It’s potentially justified in regards to the interior of CTU LA. The building takes heavy damage from a bomb during Day 2. There was a three year [[Time Skip]] going into the third season with the building mostly the same. It's not until Day 4 that the building has been fully changed. One fan theory is that it was renovated over time and that due to the nature of it being the regional headquarters of a major government building that it wasn't as simple as shutting the place down and relocating during the work. From the fourth season until the final season in Los Angeles the main CTU set was unchanged and remained consistent. Special note should be given to the situation room and the office of the agent in charge. The locations of both places on the main floor of CTU have been consistent since Day 1. A straighter example of this trope comes into play when you look at the exterior of the building. At some times CTU has had a typical multistory garage. At others it's had a fairly wide open parking lot.

* The architecture of CTU in ''[[24]]'' changes several times over the course of the series. During the jump from the pilot episode (which was filmed months before any other episodes were commissioned) to the entirety of season one, the office added several more cubicles and additional rooms that weren't previously seen. During the jump to season 3 to season 4, the entire layout of the office changes into a much more open-space setting, with a situation room located right next to the office cubicles (instead of in its own wing, as before), and different layouts of video monitors, decor and architecture. It’s potentially justified in regards to the interior of CTU LA. The building takes heavy damage from a bomb during Day 2. There was a three year [[Time Skip]] going into the third season with the building mostly the same. It's not until Day 4 that the building has been fully changed. One fan theory is that it was renovated over time and that due to the nature of it being the regional headquarters of a major government building that it wasn't as simple as shutting the place down and relocating during the work. From the fourth season until the final season in Los Angeles the main CTU set was unchanged and remained consistent. Special note should be given to the situation room and the office of the agent in charge. The locations of both places on the main floor of CTU have been consistent since Day 1. A straighter example of this trope comes into play when you look at the exterior of the building. At some times CTU has had a typical multistory garage. At others it's had a fairly wide open parking lot.

* A few sets have been changed radically on ''[[Neighbours]]'', most obviously Number 30 Ramsey St, which was rarely seen in 1985 and seemingly unoccupied until 1988. Another was Daphne's restaurant which was completely changed at the start of 1986. Both examples are the result of the sets being destroyed after Channel 7 cancelled the series, although the main three houses at the time were recreated more closely by Channel 10.

* In ''[[Doctor Who]]'' the huge and mostly unseen TARDIS interior changes shape, as can be most clearly seen by comparing the various different appearances of the control room. The exterior, despite being stuck as a police box, also undergoes minor changes like altering the window size. The changing interior is eventually explained as The Doctor occasionally altering the TARDIS' desktop theme, as well as the destruction and repair of old rooms.

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== Video Games ==

* The [[Trope Namer]] is ''[[Castlevania]]'', where it was explained that the castle itself was a "Creature of Chaos", constantly changing for different people. This also explained how [[NPC|NPCs]] [[Already Undone for You|got to areas]] it took the player special abilities to get to. Heck, that's how the castle changes every ''game''.

* ''[[~~Megaman~~ Battle Network]]'' is a curious example of this trope, as Lan's hometown stayed the same between the first three games. Then, starting with the fourth, all the buildings and the school's location were changed around. It then stayed like this until the end of the series. The Internet in said games, however, changed every time. [[Justified Trope|Just like in real life]], the Net is ever changing.

* ''[[Mega Man Battle Network]]'' is a curious example of this trope, as Lan's hometown stayed the same between the first three games. Then, starting with the fourth, all the buildings and the school's location were changed around. It then stayed like this until the end of the series. The Internet in said games, however, changed every time. [[Justified Trope|Just like in real life]], the Net is ever changing.

* ''[[Ultima]]'':

** Actually, it had three continents disappear after the first game, with the geography more or less stabilizing by the fourth game. Nevertheless, the mere passage of centuries does not explain how the individual towns do not resemble each other in the slightest. Castle Britannia, for example, is constantly adding and removing floors throughout the games.

** The disappearance of at least one of the continents, the Lands of Danger and Despair, is explained {{spoiler|when you visit it in ''Ultima VII Serpent's Isle''.}}

** Lord British says they rebuilt the castle in U7. Also, he's the sovereign, near-immortal and possess vast magic powers - who's to say that he doesn't just enjoy rebuilding the castle?

* ''[[Knights of the Old Republic]] II'' averted the trope by revisiting Dantooine, a key planet in the original game, and leaving the area almost identical to the way it was in the original game, though the Jedi Academy is now in ruins, and the colony's other buildings were repurposed by new colonists. The player's ship, the ''Ebon Hawk'', was also identical to its original appearance. Players complained about [[~~Bio Ware~~]] reusing maps ([[Did Not Do the Research|even though the sequel was made by Obsidian]]).

* ''[[Knights of the Old Republic]] II'' averted the trope by revisiting Dantooine, a key planet in the original game, and leaving the area almost identical to the way it was in the original game, though the Jedi Academy is now in ruins, and the colony's other buildings were repurposed by new colonists. The player's ship, the ''Ebon Hawk'', was also identical to its original appearance. Players complained about [[BioWare]] reusing maps ([[Did Not Do the Research|even though the sequel was made by Obsidian]]).

** The re-purposed buildings are, however, much closer together then they were in the first game.

** Korriban

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** ''Wrath of the Lich King'' changed the geography of the Eastern Plaguelands, adding a coastline and the ruins of previously-unseen towns -- a non-instanced version of the death knight starting zone.

** ''Cataclysm'' explicitly justified a major reshaping of Azeroth's geography, as Deathwing's emergence caused [[World Sundering|devastation on a vast scale]]. The developers also used it as an opportunity to revamp quest flow, resolve/introduce storylines, and enable flying mounts in the original zones.

* ''[[~~Final Fantasy X 2 (Video Game)|~~Final Fantasy X 2]]'':

* ''[[Final Fantasy X 2]]'':

** Mostly averted, which used largely the same areas as ''[[~~Final Fantasy X (Video Game)|~~Final Fantasy X]]'', but removed the [[Insurmountable Waist-Height Fence]] from certain places. Most new areas are the result of further exploration of areas left largely unmapped in FFX.

** Mostly averted, which used largely the same areas as ''[[Final Fantasy X]]'', but removed the [[Insurmountable Waist-Height Fence]] from certain places. Most new areas are the result of further exploration of areas left largely unmapped in FFX.

** Further, the one area from the first game that ''was'' completely made over had a perfectly logical reason: In the first game, you get there right as the place is wiped off the map, and by X-2, they've rebuilt it.

** Water Areas are removed however. You can't swim though the path Wakka takes Tidus to get to Besaid the first time or out at the beach. Justified as you only have one character with that sort of lung capacity from the first game in your party, and she can't go where her allies can't follow.

* Ditto with ''[[Baten Kaitos]] Origins'' -- same towns and world map as the first game, but most of the dungeons from the first game are inaccessible and new ones can be found in areas that were empty or inaccessible in the first game.

* {{spoiler|Shadow Moses Island}} is largely the same in ''[[Metal Gear Solid 4]]'' {{spoiler|as it was in the original ''[[Metal Gear Solid]]'', save for some cosmetic makeovers to fit the two-generation leap, some blocked paths, some expansions (the snowfield), and whole new areas (the casting facility and the shipping docks).}}

* {{spoiler|Shadow Moses Island}} is largely the same in ''[[Metal Gear Solid 4 Guns of the Patriots]]'' {{spoiler|as it was in the original ''[[Metal Gear Solid]]'', save for some cosmetic makeovers to fit the two-generation leap, some blocked paths, some expansions (the snowfield), and whole new areas (the casting facility and the shipping docks).}}

* In ''[[Creatures]] 2'', there has apparently been a massive volcanic eruption, accounting for the planetary facelift.

* The ''[[.hack|.hack//]]'' installments that occur after ''//tasogare no udewa densetsu'' make use of a second The World after the first crashed permanently -- with all new versions of old areas.

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** One particularly [[Egregious]] example where this trope fits is Vault 15. In the eighty years since The Vault Dweller came here, a mountain has inexplicably come into existence.

* In the first three ''[[Police Quest]]'' games, the layout of the Lytton police headquarters (and the city itself) changed considerably between each game.

* ''[[~~Kingdom Hearts II (Video Game)|~~Kingdom Hearts II]]''

* ''[[Kingdom Hearts II]]''

** Thev game re-used many of the same "worlds" as the original, but with radically different layouts. Even specific locations within the worlds, such as the Bazaar in Agrabah, are redesigned.

** ''358/2 Days'' is entirely made of recurring worlds, often with somewhat different layouts (read: smaller, but with more platforming), though Twilight Town is near identical to the original, and [[Peter Pan|Neverland]] is entirely different (because it actually takes place ''in'' Neverland this time, instead of Hook's Ship and London).

** The world for the page quote, however, is partially justified. Hollow Bastion was a [[Doomed Hometown]], and the past residents had spent the year in between games moving back in and renovating.

** In ''[[~~Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep (Video Game)|~~Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep]]'', a prequel to the first game, Neverland, Disney Castle (though it's more of the town), Radiant Garden, and {{spoiler|Castle Oblivion}} are very different from their prev... uh, future incarnations.

** In ''[[Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep]]'', a prequel to the first game, Neverland, Disney Castle (though it's more of the town), Radiant Garden, and {{spoiler|Castle Oblivion}} are very different from their prev... uh, future incarnations.

** One of the gates (the one opposite the Coliseum itself) in Olympus Coliseum leads somewhere different [[Kingdom Hearts (~~Video~~ ~~Game~~)|in]] [[Kingdom Hearts II ~~(Video Game)~~|each]] [[Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep ~~(Video Game)~~|game]].

** One of the gates (the one opposite the Coliseum itself) in Olympus Coliseum leads somewhere different [[Kingdom Hearts (video game)|in]] [[Kingdom Hearts II|each]] [[Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep|game]].

** [[Aladdin (Disney)|The Cave of Wonders]] ''never'' looks the same way twice. Kinda [[Justified Trope|justified]] seeing as how, y'know, a ''Genie'' used to live there. Who KNOWS what kind of crazy magic that place has?

** [[Aladdin (Disney film)|The Cave of Wonders]] ''never'' looks the same way twice. Kinda [[Justified Trope|justified]] seeing as how, y'know, a ''Genie'' used to live there. Who KNOWS what kind of crazy magic that place has?

* The eponymous city in ''[[Neverwinter Nights 2]]'' looks nothing like it did in the first game; this is largely justified by the near-total destruction of the city at the end of the first game, though even buildings that were left intact have changed noticeably.

* ''[[~~Golden Sun (Video Game)|~~Golden Sun]]'':

* ''[[Golden Sun]]'':

** Averted in the RPG games, where the first opus only takes place on one and a half continents, while the second one takes place [[Expansion Pack World|all over the world]] ''except'' those one and a half continents.

** There is one small strip of coast on the original continent accessible in the second game, but the dungeon involved wasn't accessible in the original.

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** Happens in the third game, Dark Dawn. The geography of Angara and presumably all of Weyard is radically altered by [[World Sundering|the events]] at the end of The Lost Age. This conveniently solves the problem of the entire world being more or less explored out by the end of the GBA games. How come we didn't see all these ancient kingdoms in the previous games? [[A Wizard Did It|The Golden Sun did it.]]

*** It's a bit more justified than that. The ''Golden Sun'' effectively overdosed the world on [[Functional Magic|magic]]. When that happened, ''everything'' changed. Mountain ranges shot up, an active volcano was bulldozed by its power, waterfalls between ''different levels of the same ocean'' sprung up... and a good portion of the eroded world was restored. It's implied that all of the old technology was excavated from the restored lands following the Golden Sun's rise.

* Seen in any ''[[~~The Legend of Zelda (Franchise)|~~The Legend of Zelda]]'' game that happens in the Kingdom of Hyrule: the overworld retains some details yet is always different.

* Seen in any ''[[The Legend of Zelda]]'' game that happens in the Kingdom of Hyrule: the overworld retains some details yet is always different.

** This was actually done fairly well between ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time ~~(Video Game)~~|The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time]]'' and ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess ~~(Video Game)~~|The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess]]'', with the kingdom simply being a bit larger and the places more evenly distributed. The game also justifies why {{spoiler|Midna}} wouldn't recognize the Palace of Twilight, her own home, by her commenting that Zant's dark magic warped it.

** This was actually done fairly well between ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time|The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time]]'' and ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess|The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess]]'', with the kingdom simply being a bit larger and the places more evenly distributed. The game also justifies why {{spoiler|Midna}} wouldn't recognize the Palace of Twilight, her own home, by her commenting that Zant's dark magic warped it.

** One exception: ''[[Zelda II ~~the~~ Adventure of Link ~~(Video Game)~~|Zelda II the Adventure of Link]]'' had the "original" Hyrule of the first game recreated at the far southern end of the map, though it looks a lot smaller than in the first game; each tile represents a bigger area in II compared to ''[[The Legend of Zelda (~~Video~~ ~~Game~~)|The Legend of Zelda]]''. ''[[The Legend of Zelda a Link To ~~T He~~ Past ~~(Video Game)~~|The Legend of Zelda a Link To T He Past]]'' also has this "original" Hyrule recreated at the northern end of the map, again at a much smaller scale.

** One exception: ''[[Zelda II: The Adventure of Link|Zelda II the Adventure of Link]]'' had the "original" Hyrule of the first game recreated at the far southern end of the map, though it looks a lot smaller than in the first game; each tile represents a bigger area in II compared to ''[[The Legend of Zelda (video game)|The Legend of Zelda]]''. ''[[The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past|The Legend of Zelda a Link To T He Past]]'' also has this "original" Hyrule recreated at the northern end of the map, again at a much smaller scale.

* [[Justified Trope]] in season two of the ''[[Sam and Max Freelance Police|Sam and Max]]'' adventure game from Telltale Games. The neighborhood was rearranged violently by a giant robot in the opening scene of episode 1.

* Mostly [[Justified Trope]] in the ''[[Exile]]''/''[[Avernum]]'' series.

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* In ''[[Dreamfall]]'', the sequel to ''[[The Longest Journey]]'', the Zoe goes to the starting area of the first game and it is very similar in layout to the old game except with a bit more details that would supposedly have been between the area transitions of the first game. Most other changes were justified by the fact that the neighborhood since the first game also went from being a bohemian artsy neighborhood to a run down slum in the 15 years between ''Dreamfall'' and ''The Longest Journey'' and what made that area interesting was seeing how it changed. We also go to see the upper floors of the border house, April Ryan's home in the first game.

* ''[[Phantasy Star]]'' 1, 2 and 4 fall under this trope with regards to Motavia and Dezolis. Motavia, though, has a logical explanation: {{spoiler|the introduction and destruction of Mother Brain.}} Subtly averted in ''PS IV'', where {{spoiler|the inner Air Castle is identical in layout to the one in PS I, although it's hard to tell because the dungeon exploration in the first game took place in first person view.}}

* ''[[~~Pokémon Gold and Silver (Video Game)|~~Pokémon Gold and Silver]]''

* ''[[Pokémon Gold and Silver]]''

** The player can go to Kanto from the first generation (''[[Pokémon Red and Blue]]''). Most of the changes are at least somewhat feasible: lots and lots of [[Insurmountable Waist-Height Fence|Insurmountable Waist Height Fences]] are destroyed, for example, as well as a family relocated due to the construction of a bullet train ([[wikipedia:Shinkansen|Shinkansen]]) system. Others, such as Mt. Moon changing from a labyrinth to a path with a single fork and Viridian Forest becoming a ''hedge maze'', are just a little impossible. The most memorable change is perfectly possible, but hilariously crass: Pokémon Tower gets changed from a solemn, haunted graveyard for Pokémon to a ''radio tower''. Apparently the three floors or so of graves were relocated to Mr. Fuji's tiny basement.

** There's also Cinnabar Island. Everything was destroyed in a volcanic eruption; all that's left is a rebuilt Pokémon Center, with the gym relocated to the Seafoam Islands. Cerulean Cave is also entirely inaccessible, though since it's likely the work of the Mewtwo that had been there in Gen I, if you look around where the entrance should be you can find a special item.

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** In ''Homecoming'', Alchemilla Hospital looks vastly different and is a mental hospital as opposed to a normal hospital, probably because the game was made by a completely different developer.

** One of the crazier examples would be ''Shattered Memories'', where whenever you enter the nightmare world, everything freezes over and the architecture goes completely insane. It's most obvious during the mall and pawn shop levels, the former of which features the buildings on the street doubling on top of each other, and the framework for further building on top of that, such as the hardware store and cafe becoming veritable towers of ice. In the latter, what was once a small pawn shop, about the size of a two-story, two bedroom house is now the most ridiculous Escher-esque [[Magical Mystery Doors]] [[Mind Screw]] [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsftWwYSe8E&feature=related you're likely to see.]

* In the [[~~Four X|~~4X]] game ''[[Civilization]]'', buildings in the cities would change their places during time. In some cases this might be justified - but with Wonders of the World?!?

* In the [[4X]] game ''[[Civilization]]'', buildings in the cities would change their places during time. In some cases this might be justified - but with Wonders of the World?!?

* ''[[Pikmin]]'':

** The main setting of the games, the "Distant Planet," changes rapidly and radically between the two games... which is rather conspicuous, considering that Olimar apparently departed for the planet again ''immediately'' upon returning back to his home planet of Hocotate. He makes mention of this a handful of times in his journal entries about the treasures and creatures he encounters.

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** Also of note is that in ''[[Pikmin]] 2'', it's made far more blatant that the "Distant Planet" is Earth than it was in the first game. Accordingly, many of the changes seem to be clear signs of human development encroaching on the former wilds. As for the time scale, it's somewhat implied that the Distant Planet is distant enough for the trip to take quite a while.'

* When you go back to Tristram in ''[[Diablo]] II'', it's mostly the same, though the bridge is ruined so you can't get across the river. Even {{spoiler|Wirt's body}} and Cain's cage are in roughly the same place the characters were in the original game. Hell looks different, but hey, it's Hell, and once you get to the River of Flame, things start looking a bit more familiar.

* The ''[[Grand Theft Auto]]'' series has ''three'' Liberty Cities: the one from the original game, the one from ''[[~~Grand Theft Auto III (Video Game)|~~Grand Theft Auto III]]'' and ''Liberty City Stories'', and the one from ''Grand Theft Auto IV''. All are supposed to be New York City stand-ins.

* The ''[[Grand Theft Auto]]'' series has ''three'' Liberty Cities: the one from the original game, the one from ''[[Grand Theft Auto III]]'' and ''Liberty City Stories'', and the one from ''Grand Theft Auto IV''. All are supposed to be New York City stand-ins.

** For that matter, ''Vice City'' was also a level in the original GTA, it's ''nothing'' like in the [[Grand Theft Auto Vice City ~~(Video Game)~~|eponymous game]]. ''San Andreas'' appeared in the first GTA, too, but that one is obviously not referring to the same place as in ''[[Grand Theft Auto San Andreas ~~(Video Game)~~|GTA: San Andreas]]'', as the former is a city and the latter is a state. Such naming conflicts are [[Truth in Television]].

** For that matter, ''Vice City'' was also a level in the original GTA, it's ''nothing'' like in the [[Grand Theft Auto Vice City|eponymous game]]. ''San Andreas'' appeared in the first GTA, too, but that one is obviously not referring to the same place as in ''[[Grand Theft Auto San Andreas|GTA: San Andreas]]'', as the former is a city and the latter is a state. Such naming conflicts are [[Truth in Television]].

** It's completely justified in the fact that they all take place in different canons.

* Played realistically straight in ''[[~~Golden~~ ~~Eye~~ 1997 ~~(Video~~ ~~Game~~)|Golden Eye 1997]]''. You visit the same place twice. It's seven years between visits, so naturally they've added extensions to the place, but the old parts of the building remain the same, so much so that when you navigating your way round with relative ease, your companion asks if you have been there before.

* Played realistically straight in ''[[GoldenEye 007 (1997 video game)|Golden Eye 1997]]''. You visit the same place twice. It's seven years between visits, so naturally they've added extensions to the place, but the old parts of the building remain the same, so much so that when you navigating your way round with relative ease, your companion asks if you have been there before.

* Mostly justified in ''[[City of Heroes]]'', where zone overhauls are either works in progress (Faultline) security countermeasures (Rikti Warzone), or were there all along (universities).

** The exception is door missions, which are assigned a random map each visit. You can exit part one of a two-door mission, turn around, and enter THE SAME DOOR to access a completely different map.

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* The 'underground Church', a notorious location in the television show ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' is far, far different in the video game. Of course, video games don't have a special effects budget but... it's canon earthquakes screw with the place all the time (it is in California).

* ''[[Resident Evil]]''. Many of the games criss-cross the same territory covered in previous missions and or games. Different branching paths are explained by the after-effects of previous zombie battles or the puzzle-mad craziness of the city's founders.

* ''[[~~Tales of Symphonia (Video Game)|~~Tales of Symphonia]]'':

* ''[[Tales of Symphonia]]'':

** While it's perfectly understandable that the world map itself would've changed between and its sequel, ''Dawn of the New World'', individual cities have also changed.

** The Chaos Landscape between ''Dawn of the New World'' and ''[[~~Tales of Phantasia (Video Game)|~~Tales of Phantasia]]'' may seem extreme, as Olive, the desert oasis town in the latter game, is nowhere ''near'' Triet's location in the former, instead ending up somewhat closer to Asgard's location, but 4,000 years is a pretty long time for things to happen, especially given the climatic and ecological changes that accompany a society of iron age or higher. It would be stranger if nothing had changed at all- just look at the past four millennia IRL.

** The Chaos Landscape between ''Dawn of the New World'' and ''[[Tales of Phantasia]]'' may seem extreme, as Olive, the desert oasis town in the latter game, is nowhere ''near'' Triet's location in the former, instead ending up somewhat closer to Asgard's location, but 4,000 years is a pretty long time for things to happen, especially given the climatic and ecological changes that accompany a society of iron age or higher. It would be stranger if nothing had changed at all- just look at the past four millennia IRL.

** Also averted at the same time. Most of the dungeons you visit in both games have near-identical layouts, right down to the puzzles used. The only differences occurring for the most part are those required due to changes in the gameplay mechanics.

* The second ''[[Jak and Daxter]]'' game established the layout of [[Wretched Hive|Haven City]] and the location and layout of Haven Forest. The third game left the dock the same, radically redesigned the rest of the city in ways you can't justify with the massive destruction going on (come on, a relatively pleasant area with canals suddenly materialising?), and moved Haven Forest right up next to the city with significant redesign. Although it may simply be a different area of the forest, this doesn't explain how the center of the city was given a massive urban beautification program in the middle of a three-way war, while chunks of the palace were ''still falling''.

* Mostly averted in ''[[Banjo ~~Tooie|Banjo-~~Tooie]]''. ''Spiral Mountain'' and ''Gruntilda's Lair'' from [[Banjo Kazooie|the first game]] are accessible and remain mostly the same. The only difference is that an earthquake, caused by Gruntilda's sisters plowing through a wall in the Hag 1, has added a lot of debris and caused a cave-in in the lair, making sure the game-designers didn't have to recreate the entire overworld from the first game.

* Mostly averted in ''[[Banjo Tooie]]''. ''Spiral Mountain'' and ''Gruntilda's Lair'' from [[Banjo-Kazooie|the first game]] are accessible and remain mostly the same. The only difference is that an earthquake, caused by Gruntilda's sisters plowing through a wall in the Hag 1, has added a lot of debris and caused a cave-in in the lair, making sure the game-designers didn't have to recreate the entire overworld from the first game.

* ''[[Super Mario Bros]]'':

* ''[[Super Mario Bros.]]'':

** Nearly every single game in ''[[Super Mario Bros]], [[Paper Mario (~~Video Game~~)|Paper Mario]], [[~~Mario and Luigi (Video Game)|~~Mario and Luigi]], [[~~Mario Kart (Video Game)|~~Mario Kart]], [[~~Mario Party (Video Game)|~~Mario Party]]'' and all spinoffs takes place in the Mushroom Kingdom. You however would not know it, since whole towns apparently appear, disappear and get moved around, places like Peach's Castle, Luigi's Mansion and Bowser's Castle get completely rebuilt once per game, and various landmarks can appear one game and be gone the next.

** Nearly every single game in ''[[Super Mario Bros.]], [[Paper Mario (franchise)|Paper Mario]], [[Mario and Luigi]], [[Mario Kart]], [[Mario Party]]'' and all spinoffs takes place in the Mushroom Kingdom. You however would not know it, since whole towns apparently appear, disappear and get moved around, places like Peach's Castle, Luigi's Mansion and Bowser's Castle get completely rebuilt once per game, and various landmarks can appear one game and be gone the next.

** There -are- a few things that carry over between games. Peach's Castle typically has a town of some sort around it where all the Toads seem to live, though it's layout and what it's actually called vary. Bowser typically resides in a place with a ton of Lava, and Luigi's Mansion can rebuild itself... It doesn't explain ''anything'' else though. Many newer Mario Games avoid this by moving to new locations, like [[Recycled in Space|SPACE]].

** Note that these games don't actually have any continuity. This is [[Word of God|official]].

** One thing that seems to be becoming consistent in the Mushroom Kingdom is the front garden of Peach's Castle. ''[[~~Super Mario 64 (Video Game)|~~Super Mario 64]]'', ''[[~~Mario Kart 64 (Video Game)|~~Mario Kart 64]]'', and ''[[~~Super Mario Galaxy (Video Game)|~~Super Mario Galaxy]]'' all feature nearly identical versions of the front garden, except that in ''Galaxy'', some of the further back parts are closed off and the cannon is gone.

** One thing that seems to be becoming consistent in the Mushroom Kingdom is the front garden of Peach's Castle. ''[[Super Mario 64]]'', ''[[Mario Kart 64]]'', and ''[[Super Mario Galaxy]]'' all feature nearly identical versions of the front garden, except that in ''Galaxy'', some of the further back parts are closed off and the cannon is gone.

** And house of the Mario Bros. stays mostly consistent through all the [[Role Playing Game|RPGs]], starting with [[Super Mario RPG ~~(Video Game)~~|the first]] and up to [[~~Super Paper Mario (Video Game)|~~Super Paper Mario]].

** And house of the Mario Bros. stays mostly consistent through all the [[Role Playing Game|RPGs]], starting with [[Super Mario RPG|the first]] and up to [[Super Paper Mario]].

* A rather weird example appears in the game ''Hitman: Contracts'': several of the missions are re-hashed versions of missions which originally appeared in an earlier game in the series, ''Hitman: Codename 47''. The layout of individual buildings and overall levels is of varying difference to the original missions. However, it's not the case that the protagonist is re-visiting these locales: they merely appear to him in flashback as he sleeps. It also helps that he's remembering them [[Unreliable Narrator|incorrectly]].

* Largely averted in ''[[~~Deus Ex (Video Game)|~~Deus Ex]]''. Locations retain their models between visits, with all changes being justified and generally minor(-ish). The second game has you return to both places from the first game and the same locations within the second game; changes are foreshadowed and <s>logical</s> blatantly made to work with the low ram system the game was built for.

* Largely averted in ''[[Deus Ex]]''. Locations retain their models between visits, with all changes being justified and generally minor(-ish). The second game has you return to both places from the first game and the same locations within the second game; changes are foreshadowed and <s>logical</s> blatantly made to work with the low ram system the game was built for.

* Similarly, in [[Deus Ex Human Revolution ~~(Video Game)~~|the prequel]], locations you can visit more than once change very little between visits. The largest changes are probably in Detroit, due to an anti-augmentation riot outside the Sarif Industries building.

* Similarly, in [[Deus Ex: Human Revolution|the prequel]], locations you can visit more than once change very little between visits. The largest changes are probably in Detroit, due to an anti-augmentation riot outside the Sarif Industries building.

* ''[[Halo]]''

** The series makes you go through the control tower on Installation 04 ''three'' times. The first time you're ascending it to place Cortana there, two levels later you back to rescue Cortana (and your own ass). The level is gone never to be seen again...Or is it? {{spoiler|The very last level of ''Halo 3'' has you returning to the control room where you intentionally activate the ring to stop the Flood.}} In the first game, the tower and the surrounding area is pretty much the same both times, albeit in a state of decay after the Flood hits it. {{spoiler|In the third game the tower and control room are identical to how it was in the first game, but the surrounding area has changed quite a bit. For example, that walkway on the mountains wasn't there the first time. Justified though, since this technically isn't the same place, but a rebuild of the old place, since Master Chief obliterated the original structure in the first game.}}

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* Very, very, '''very''' much so in ''The Godfather: The Game'' and its sequel. The first game had a distinctive [[Wide Open Sandbox]] layout that covers all five boroughs, with the Corleone compound set in a very secluded section of Little Italy, surrounded by trees on prime real estate. The sequel, on the other hand, completely does away with the first game's layout, totally redesigning the New York area, limiting you to only a small section of the inner city and adding an airport connecting you to the similarly limited Miami and Havana areas. The compound itself, previously set apart, is also heavily redesigned and positioned a stone's throw away from the downtown/Manhattan/Brooklyn(?) buildings.

* So many places in ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]'' between the original game and the Compilation. Kalm town. The Shinra Mansion, especially the basement... there are probably more.

* Justified in ''[[~~Shin Megami Tensei (Franchise)|~~Shin Megami Tensei]]: [[~~Persona 3 (Video Game)|~~Persona 3]]'', with Tartarus, as it, like the shadows, breaks down at the end of every midnight hour, and thus comes back at the start of the next midnight hour, meaning that there is a likely chance of the tower, besides important points such as the entrance, will completely change in their layout. They also state/imply (could be wrong on this) that the tower is a shadow as well, and that would add a more reasonable justification for the change, as all shadows are based on human emotion and events day to day change there would be reason for the tower, one of the largest shadows, to change.

* Justified in ''[[Shin Megami Tensei]]: [[Persona 3]]'', with Tartarus, as it, like the shadows, breaks down at the end of every midnight hour, and thus comes back at the start of the next midnight hour, meaning that there is a likely chance of the tower, besides important points such as the entrance, will completely change in their layout. They also state/imply (could be wrong on this) that the tower is a shadow as well, and that would add a more reasonable justification for the change, as all shadows are based on human emotion and events day to day change there would be reason for the tower, one of the largest shadows, to change.

* Donkey Kong Island went through some minor changes between [[Donkey Kong Country]] and [[Donkey Kong 64]], being a bit scaled down and empty due to technical limitations but still clearly the same island. Then [[Donkey Kong Country Returns]] made a huge change to the place, removing [[Our Founder|the likeness of DK's face]] from the mountain, melting the [[Patchwork Map|icy summits]] and adding a huge volcano and prehistoric world.

* Can be seen in a variety of areas between the original ''[[Tomb Raider]]'' game and [[Video Game Remake|Tomb Raider Anniversary]]. One of the most striking is a fire puzzle in Midas' Palace: what was little more than a sewer with a few flaming pillars that were laughably easy to hop across in the original, became a gigantic room filled with ornate rotating platforms spewing jets of flame in all directions. A more jarring example: Lara's mansion looks quite different in every game, ending up looking something like [[The Movie]] version in Tomb Raider Legend.

* [[Maniac Mansion]] and its sequel, [[Day of the Tentacle]], both take place in the same mansion. However, the mansion (which has been owned by the Edisons for at least 200 years) has less floors in the sequel than it does in the original. Even stranger, [[Day of the Tentacle]] has you going back 200 years and forward 200 in time, and the mansion is laid out roughly the same in both of those time periods, too!

* ''[[~~Portal 2 (Video Game)|~~Portal 2]]'' shows a much different and more complex version of the Aperture Science Enrichment Center than in the first game. Of course, it's been a ''very'' long time between games and much of it has fallen into ruins, but the game also shows that the entire Enrichment Center is composed of mobile, infinitely reconfigurable test chambers, so the trope is explicitly justified.

* ''[[Portal 2]]'' shows a much different and more complex version of the Aperture Science Enrichment Center than in the first game. Of course, it's been a ''very'' long time between games and much of it has fallen into ruins, but the game also shows that the entire Enrichment Center is composed of mobile, infinitely reconfigurable test chambers, so the trope is explicitly justified.

* [[Harry Potter (~~Video~~ ~~Game~~)|The video games of each Harry Potter movie]] - as the technology has gotten better and the games have changed to follow the respective storylines, things in the sandbox style Hogwarts of ''[[Chamber of Secrets]]'', ''[[Prisoner of Azkaban]]'' and ''[[Order of the Phoenix]]'' are very different (''Philosopher's Stone'' and ''Goblet of Fire'' were more level based games).

* [[Harry Potter (video game)|The video games of each Harry Potter movie]] - as the technology has gotten better and the games have changed to follow the respective storylines, things in the sandbox style Hogwarts of ''[[Chamber of Secrets]]'', ''[[Prisoner of Azkaban]]'' and ''[[Order of the Phoenix]]'' are very different (''Philosopher's Stone'' and ''Goblet of Fire'' were more level based games).

* ''[[Dragon Age]] Origins'' and ''[[Dragon Age 2]]'' more-or-less avert this; the sequel takes place in an entirely separate part of the world, pretty much a kingdom and a half away. ''[[~~Dragon Age II (Video Game)|~~Dragon Age II]]'' features not one but two timeskips, and most of Kirkwall stays the same with just minor changes (for instance, a manor that had the north wing blocked off now has the south wing blocked off, etc.) This includes certain things you'd EXPECT to change... Fenris, for instance, never bothers to so much as pick up the scattered debris from "his" house's previous owner's hasty exit.

* ''[[Dragon Age]] Origins'' and ''[[Dragon Age 2]]'' more-or-less avert this; the sequel takes place in an entirely separate part of the world, pretty much a kingdom and a half away. ''[[Dragon Age II]]'' features not one but two timeskips, and most of Kirkwall stays the same with just minor changes (for instance, a manor that had the north wing blocked off now has the south wing blocked off, etc.) This includes certain things you'd EXPECT to change... Fenris, for instance, never bothers to so much as pick up the scattered debris from "his" house's previous owner's hasty exit.

* ''[[Guild Wars]]'' and ''[[Guild Wars 2]]'' take place in the same world, with lots of locations shared between the two. Landscapes have changed and some small villages (notably Beetletun) have prospered between games. Changes are largely justified though - 250 years have passed between games, and the rise of the Elder Dragons have caused shifts to the layout of different regions. Lots of newly-named areas exist, but when comparing the maps from the two games, many are found in areas that weren't accessible in the first game.

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* ''[[Family Guy]]'':

** Once in a while the Griffins' house experiences an architecture shift for no reason. For example, when Peter catches a bullfrog to make Chris feel better, but then has to throw it out because he accidently killed it, the door which he came from disappears and reappears as a window where he throws out the frog http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=[[DX Ha C Eh Oi WU]]

** Averted in one episode with Peter's "Thinking Grenades". [[Seth ~~Macfarlane~~]]'s commentary on the scene says that he originally planned to have the scene in the bar, but there was no window by their table.

** Averted in one episode with Peter's "Thinking Grenades". [[Seth MacFarlane]]'s commentary on the scene says that he originally planned to have the scene in the bar, but there was no window by their table.

* Spongebob's pineapple, Squidward's Easter Island home, and Patrick's rock are constantly subject to change depending on the episode. Patrick's rock is justified on account of Patrick making most of the furniture out of sand.

** The interior of the Krusty Krab is rather consistent, though.

* [[~~Daria (Animation)|~~Daria]]'s house constantly changes throughout the series due to animation errors.

* [[Daria]]'s house constantly changes throughout the series due to animation errors.