Kleptomaniac Hero: Difference between revisions

** The very first puzzle in ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass|The Legend of Zelda Phantom Hourglass]]'' requires you to break into and rob the treasure vault of the kindly old man who just took you in, thus gaining an item necessary for you to travel north and kill wildlife in order to reach the town to the east. Why? Because it's better than waiting for a [[Broken Bridge]] to be fixed. In fact, when you make it to the town, the bridge is already fixed. Nice going.

** ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword|The Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword]]'' tries to break this habit as well. You can open the cabinet in your Knight Academy dorm room for a free blue Rupee, but opening other people's cabinets rewards you with the message "You really shouldn't look through other people's things..." Since the surface has been going through an apocalypse for a few thousand years at this point in the timeline, there are no houses to vandalize, but you ''can'' break the pots in an ancient temple holding something very, very important and plot-related (protip: one of them always contains a fairy). There are hardly any pots in the residential quarters of Skyloft. Even sitting in other people's chairs gets you called out (Gortram scolds you for sitting in his chair, Fi says that [[Deadpan Snarker|you really should find that thing you were looking for before you take a rest]]). Most notably, breaking the chandelier with the heart piece on it in the Lumpy Pumpkin gets you a hilarious facial expression from the owner, a good talking-to, and [[Sidequest|unpaid work until you pay the thing off.]]

*** However, you can still fall asleep in anyone's bed without anyone caring, so this Link is less kleptomaniac than narcoleptic.

* Lampshaded in the PS2/Xbox "remake" of ''[[The Bard's Tale]]'', right towards the beginning. After opening his first chest, the narrator will comment on how horrible it is that The Bard is stealing, and the two will engage in a brief argument over it. Helpfully, all of the "junk" that The Bard finds (wanted posters of himself, animal hides, etc) will be automatically converted into silver, since the game understands that most... okay, ''all'' players would just sell those items at the store for money.

** This applies to just about all of [[Sierra|Sierra's]] adventure games, however.

* Lampshaded in ''Trail of Anguish'' (www.rinkworks.com/adventure):

He squints for a few seconds before he sees them. Then he replies, "Nah, it's okay. Everyone's on an adventure of some sort, after all." You nod, only now noticing that he's somehow concealing a bicycle, a bungee cord, and a horse in his pocket. Looks exciting. }}

* The first ''[[Simon the Sorcerer]]'' game had tons of items you'd accumulate, most of which were used maybe ''once'', and then stayed in your inventory instead of being lost. There are two times in the game where you (thankfully) lose your possessions though, and the assorted crap forms a HUGE pile.

* Strong Bad in ''[[Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People|Strong Bads Cool Game for Attractive People]]''. It's justified, though, since it's entirely in-character for [[Card-Carrying Villain|him]].

* Initially [[Lampshade Hanging|lampshaded]] in ''[[Anchorhead]]'', as you're an every(wo)man-style character.

You're not here to burglarize the place. }}

 

** In ''[[Icewind Dale]] II'' it's quite hilariously lampshaded; in the final dungeon if you happen to be carrying around dead bodies (there are some that can be put in your inventory) you can intimidate a late game boss by showing them to him.

*** You need, point of fact, a dead woman, a dead man, and a dead cat. The boss will (rightfully so) consider you to be utterly deranged and let you pass without incident. The cat is also used in an early conversation near the start of the game:

'''[[Hello, Insert Name Here|Player Character:]]''' I was kind of hoping it might be the solution to someone's problem and that I could learn something from the experience. I guess not this time.<br />

'''Anson:''' If I were you -- thank the Gods I'm not -- I'd get out of the cold before your brain freezes anymore than it has. When a fool goes to carrying a dead cat around, that's when you need to start asking yourself some serious questions. }}

** And sometimes it's just strange, period. One mission involves exploring ancient ruins of a long-abandoned Quarian colony. In one room you find an "ancient wall safe"—which has, yes, credits in it.

** It gets parodied later on though, when you run into Conrad Verner.

'''Conrad''': Hey, don't say it like that! I talk to people, y'know? Ask them if they have big problems that only I can solve. You'd be surprised how many people are just waiting for someone to talk to them. ''(looks around)'' Sometimes I poke through crates. You know, for extra credits. }}

** On a related note, ''[[Mass Effect 2]]'' research activities require mining planets and collecting the metals necessary to buy the upgrades, which you do by scanning planets and firing off probes—regardless of whether the worlds are colonized or who actually owns the mining rights.

* The ''[[Gothic]]'' series certainly ''allows'' [[The Hero]] to act on his thieving tendencies, but the owner of the house will hear the rummaging and come running in (no matter how far away he or she initially was) and attack if you refuse to stand down. The fact that every NPC in the vicinity - including those you have to avoid killing - chips in is an extra deterrent.

* Lampshaded in ''[[Eternal Sonata]]'', after attempting to take from yet another barrel Polka says:

* In ''[[Fable]]'', you'll be arrested if you pick up an item belonging to someone else. Since shopkeepers display their items on counters, accidentally picking one up instead of interacting with the owner happens annoyingly often. You'll have to go into stealth mode to try and satisfy your kleptomania.

** Getting the shopkeepers drunk helps with the shoplifting process.

** Lampshaded in the ''Miles Edgeworth Case Files'' manga. Franziska asks Edgeworth for the criminal record of a defendant she's prosecuting. Edgeworth suggests that she could just have taken it, but she says she "would never imitate the foolishness of a certain sham defense lawyer".

* Lampshaded in the [[RPG]] [[Visual Novel]] ''[[Monster Girl Quest]]'':

'''Luka''': There have been some who have abused that privilege. I don't think someone like that is a true hero, though. }}

 

== Literature ==

* ''[[Mogworld]]'', a book focusing on NPCs in an MMORPG, lampshades this. Turns out local villagers are not very fond of adventurers, and among their long list of complaints against them is this.

 

 

== Web Comics ==

* Thief from ''[[8-Bit Theater (Webcomic)|Eight Bit Theater]]'' does this early on in the series just to prove a point about his character (as if it wasn't obvious.)

'''Thief''': ''"They left everything that was nailed down. I did not."'' }}

* Parodied in [http://www.hejibits.com/comics/one-mans-trash/ this] [[Hejibits]] comic.

* The eponymous character of ''[[Sarab]]'' loots his kill in an [[Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game|MMORPG]].

* Naturally, appears in ''[[Adventurers]]!'' The homeowner's lack of objection is justified:

'''Commoner #2:''' Hello! His sword is as big as '''me'''. }}

* Encouraged in the video game-like sections of [[Homestuck]], even though you usually don't have an inventory. Occasionally explanations are offered:

 

 

* Hilariously parodied, and [[Deconstructive Parody|deconstructed]] in College Humor Original [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kedjhnguKhc RPG Heroes are Jerks].

* ''[[The Spoony Experiment]]'' sometimes makes fun of this in games, such as during his review of ''[[Phantasmagoria 2]]'' - in which the main character is an office worker.

** One chapter of his ''[[Final Fantasy X]]'' review ends with him looting an apparently endless supply of potions from a chest (one at a time). The next video starts with him still doing this, and he now has a long white beard and wonders why [[Idiot Hero|Tidus]] doesn't just take the whole chest. Later on he turns this into [[Hypocritical Humor]] by suggesting that the characters loot the bodies of some disaster victims, pointing out that Tidus apparently has no problem stealing from the living.