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{{trope}}
{{quote|''"In ''X2'', you save the galaxy, well sort of. You're the hero, everyone is in your debt. In game time, you play on for about 6 months to a year and amass a huge trading empire and an even huger battlefleet. Your personal ship is a Nova, or an M6, or an M2. Your combat rank is 'Ace of Aces' or better.''
''"Along comes ''X3''.''
''"WTF ? Suddenly you have no factories. No fleet. No race rank with anyone. You have gone from Hero to Zero with the insertion of a disc. Worse, your personal ship is gone and your flying this old fleatrap that can't get out of its own way, let alone keep you alive, and hey, it has no upgrades either and just 2 little popguns. And suddenly you're 'Harmless' instead of an 'Ace of Aces'."''|[http://apricotmappingservice.com/unbalanced.html ApricotSlice complaining about this trope] as applied to ''[[X (video game)|X2: The Threat]]'' and ''X3: Reunion''}}
Also known as being "[[Metroid
So your character is meant to be a [[The Witcher|famous monster slayer who is the subject of a number of ballads]], or a [[Knights of the Old Republic|famous general with great skill in battle]]. Well, we all know the developers are not going to just let you start at that high a level (well, maybe for [[A Taste of Power|a little while]])... so you know what happens next! Your character gets [[Laser-Guided Amnesia]], suffers a great injury, puts on a [[Power Limiter]] or messes with a [[Power Nullifier]]!
This can also be used to explain why your character goes [[From Nobody to Nightmare]] in a month or so, but if you have any allies that increase in level, this is often broken, as they level up just as fast.
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{{examples}}
== Video game examples ==
=== [[Action Adventure]] ===
* In ''[[Okami]]'', you play as a god in wolf form recently brought back from death, severely weakened [[Gods Need Prayer Badly|after 100 years of rapidly declining faith amongst mortals.]]
* The ''[[Castlevania]]'' series is known to explain this in it's games.
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** ''[[Curse of Darkness]]'' has Hector, former powerful servant of Dracula. He gave up all his powers and gear to settle down with his beloved, but then Isaac had her killed and Hector charged after him with just a short sword.
** ''[[Dawn of Sorrow]]'' goes halfway with it. Alucard explains the loss of all the souls collected in ''Aria of Sorrow'', but there's still no reason given for Soma not to [[Bag of Spilling|grab his Claimh Solais]].
* ''[[Cave Story]]'': If you're on track for the [[Golden Ending]], then upon entering the Last Cave "You feel a black wind blow through you. All weapons dropped to Level 1!" (Mercifully, by this point the player may have the
* ''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood|Assassin's Creed Brotherhood]]'' begins with [[A Taste of Power]] but after the attack on Monteriggioni, Ezio is badly wounded from a pair of gunshot wounds. When you regain control of him, it turns out his body cannot heal as fast as it used to, so he won't be able to perform at top efficiency, leaving you with five health squares; his armor and weapons were also lost during the siege.
** Fortunately however you keep the best of those weapons, the left-arm hidden blade that had a built-in pistol and poison blade, and Ezio is issued a basic straight sword upon waking up in Rome. As importantly, he also retains most of the moves from the previous game, along with the new kill streak moves that were introduced in ''Brotherhood'' before and during the attack on Monteriggioni.
=== [[Action Game]] ===
* In ''[[God of War]] II'', Kratos loses nearly all of his godly powers in the opening cutscene. Zeus eventually "helps" Kratos by giving him a sword. Kratos then, in order to get the sword out of the ground, had to drain all of his powers into the sword. The third game has Kratos eventually fall into the River Styx, where he is mobbed by the souls within several times before making it to shore. By then, he's been drained of whatever powers he had.
* In ''[[Conan the Barbarian|Conan]]'''s [[Justified Tutorial]], you start with a fully-armored Conan who makes short work of the nasty spirits in a tomb, but then he frees the wrong [[Eldritch Abomination]], washes up half-dead on an island without any armor or memory of what happened, and then spends the rest of the game recovering his armor and skills (the same spirits are much harder to beat when you get back to the tomb from the start of the game). To be fair, though, even starting-level Conan is pretty [[Badass]].
=== [[First-Person Shooter]] ===
* Prior to ''[[Dark Forces Saga|Jedi Knight II]]'', Kyle Katarn invoked this trope and sealed himself off from [[The Force]] for fear of falling to [[The Dark Side]] again.
* ''[[Left 4 Dead]] 2'' has a variation of this trope. After being dropped off to find some fuel for the boat in "Hard Rain", one of the survivors asks if someone brought the weapons with them. They quickly realize they forgot and left the weapons on the boat.
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* Prestige Mode in every [[Call of Duty]] game since ''[[Modern Warfare|Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare]]'', although you get extra custom class slots and are compensated with some bonus EXP along the way to help with leveling back up.
=== MMORPG ===
* In ''[[Mabinogi Fantasy Life|Mabinogi]]'', your character can "rebirth" at any time, starting over anywhere between age 10 and 17 and reverting to level 1. In a subversion, however, this is actually how you'rs suppossed to ''gain'' power. As you level, you earn AP, which you can spend to increase skill ranks, which in turn get you stat bonuses. While rebirth loses you all the stat points you gained from experience levels themselves, you keep your skill ranks and the bonuses, as well as your inventory. Then you get to take advantage of the fast level gain for a starting character to earn ''more'' AP.
=== [[Platform Game]] ===
* In the ''[[Metroid]]'' series, Samus starts every game with no [[Heart Container|spare E-tanks]], a minimum of equipment and must acquire new items to expand the area the player can explore. In a few cases such as [[Metroid Prime]], Samus starts out with [[A Taste of Power]] but an incident shortly during/after the introductory level resets the player to minimum status.
* X of the [[Mega Man X]] series usually subverts this in that, while he starts a new game without the armor, weapons, tanks, and other powerups from the last game, he has a tendency to keep abilities he's used before. As of X8, he's kept the first two dash powerups, and the fourth level charge shot power of the first game.
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* ''[[Sonic 3 and Knuckles|Sonic the Hedgehog 3]]'' ([[One Game for the Price of Two|and Knuckles]]) has the opening scene where Sonic gets the Chaos Emeralds knocked out of him. After collecting said Emeralds, you lose them again in the second half of the game. Though the next power up is a [[Game Breaker]].
=== [[Racing Game]] ===
* ''[[Blur (video game)|Blur]]'' has Legend Mode, which is similar to ''[[Modern Warfare]]'''s Prestige, except each time you enter Legend Mode, you unlock a special Legendary car that you get to keep on the next trip up the [[Character Level|fan level]] ladder.
=== [[Real Time Strategy]] ===
* Most RTS games don't allow the upgrades you've achieved in one mission to carry over to the next mission.
* Between the end of the first and the start of the second campaign of ''[[Warcraft]] 3'' Arthas goes from a L10 Paladin to L1 Death Knight.
** At least partially [[Justified Trope|justified]], in that he's having to learn/grow into an entirely new range of abilities.
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** Averted in the expansion, all heroes from the original game start out at level 10 (max). Though Arthas actually loses levels over the course of the Undead campaign due to the Lich King's weakening (until the final mission where he rapidly goes up from level 1 to 10).
=== [[Roguelike]] ===
* In the ''[[Pokémon Mystery Dungeon]]'' games, when you enter a particularly rewarding dungeon (such as getting Jirachi), you are forced to become level one for the dungeon. What makes it worse, is that the dungeon has 99 floors! It takes forever to do so, and usually if you're recruiting a pokemon, it starts out at a very low level, which is not too rewarding, unless you're going for 100% completion.
* In ''[[ZHP]]'', the protagonist resets to Level One every time he dies or completes a dungeon. However, what levels he gained in the dungeon are added to his "Total Levels" which gradually increase his base stats, meaning that his "Level One" starts to become a very, very powerful Level One.
=== [[Role
* ''[[The Witcher]]'' strongly implies that Geralt having come back from the dead ({{spoiler|he was killed by an angry mob in the end of the [[Lady of the Lake|last book of the original saga]], five years before the game begins, but apparently (badly) resurrected by his [[Mary Sue]] of an adopted daughter}}) is why he starts at level 1.
** Played straight ''[[The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings|The Witcher 2 Assassins of Kings]]''. There is no explanation given for why the same guy who had become a one-man-army by the end of the first game is getting his ass kicked every time he faces more than two opponents in the Prologue.
* ''[[Gothic]] II'' explains this by the [[No Name Given|Nameless Hero]] being resurrected after being buried under rocks for several weeks at the end of the first game.
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* In ''[[Geneforge]] 5'', the PC has forgotten everything about their past and all of their skills. The PC regains the skills but never regains their memory.
* ''[[Kingdom Hearts]]'':
** ''[[Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories|Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories]]'' slaps Sora, Donald and Goofy with a brand new mechanic, plus [[Easy Amnesia]] as they progress through castle that they spend the whole game in. In ''[[Kingdom Hearts II]]'' being asleep for a year explains the similar depowering. It [[Hand Wave
** ''[[Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days
* ''[[Vagrant Story]]'' has Ashley Riot, a famous Riskbreaker... who, after a deeply traumatizing event, locked away all of his memories of combat. Sidney forces him to remember it, freeing the first few abilities, and after that he regains them "from repressed memory" with each experience milestone.
* ''[[Shadow Hearts]]: Covenant'' has Yuri depowered by the Mistletoe Curse, forcing him to relearn and reclaim all of his Harmonixer forms one by one.
* ''[[
* Cecil from ''[[Final Fantasy IV]]'' is the captain of the Red Wings and a fearsome Dark Knight who starts the game at level 10. When he {{spoiler|becomes a Paladin}}, he goes down to level 1 again, but unless you have done some insane [[Level Grinding]] before then, he will be stronger than before.
* Galuf from ''[[Final Fantasy V]]''. He already saved two worlds thirty years ago, but he starts as a level one nobody without any classes learned due to amnesia, but then un-justified when he recovers from it and stays exactly same.
** Arguably, he is much older by the game's events, and additionally didn't learn classes, having not had the crystal shards that allow it. Furthermore, the amnesia thing
*** According to NPC chatter in one of the towns in the second world, Galuf ''did'' actually think to bring high-powered equipment with him, but somehow lost it all when his meteor crashed.
* Somewhat averted in ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]'', as Cloud starts at level 6 or 7 and levels up during the very first battle to boot. In fact no one starts at level 1 unless you exploit a glitch or a hack. Though you'd think Barret, leader of the <s>terrorist</s> activist group AVALANCHE ([[Spell My Name with an "S"|yes, all caps]]) would be stronger than level 7. However played straight in Cloud's {{spoiler|fake}} Nibelheim flashback. It's puzzling how a 1st Class SOLDIER is a mere Level 1 teenager.
** Well, Barret is the current leader of AVALANCHE. There used to be another but retired for certain reasons in yet another Compilation Game. And being Level 1 in the Nibelheim Flashback is actually a tip to what actually happened in there...
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** Granted, {{spoiler|this is more of a "''forced'' reboot to level one", which is ''quite'' uncomfortable for the character in question}}, but still.
* Lulu and Wakka from ''[[Final Fantasy X]]''. Before becoming Yuna's guardians, they were responsible for escorting other summoners, and despite not ever having finished the journey, they generally made it three-quarters of the way to Zanarkand. For no explained reason, they join your party with none of the abilities or stat increases that they should have earned on previous pilgrimages.
** In ''[[Final Fantasy X
* In ''[[Mass Effect 2]]'', this trope is used (and justified) because your ship and all your stuff got blown up and your character is brought [[Back
** Fortunately averted in ''Mass Effect 3''. If you import a save from the second game, the level you start at will be the level of the imported character.
*** On the other hand, you can do this deliberately in multiplayer. When you reach level 20, you can "promote" a character, increasing your War Assets in the single-player game but forcing you to start that character from level 1 again, a la ''[[Call of Duty]]'' prestige levels.
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* Played with in ''[[ZHP]]'': Your character starts every dungeon at level 1, but the level you're at when you finish the dungeon (or die; it doesn't matter) is added to your total level, giving you a boost to your stats the next time you go in.
* Used as a game mechanic in ''[[Dragon Quest IX]]''. First of all, levels are tied to your job; switching to one you haven't used yet sends you back to level 1 (but you get to keep your [[Point Build System|Skill Points]] and anything you bought with Skill Points). Then there's "revocation", resetting a level 99 job back to 1; the advantages to this are the chance to get even more Skill Points and it lets you get higher-valued maps for the [[Dungeon Crawling]] system.
* Subverted in On the ''Rainslick Precipice of Darkness'', you start at the last game's max level with the same stats. You move up from their, though your weapons are basic once again. Justified in that {{spoiler|Yours was destroyed in the intro of number 2, Tycho's 'potential bullets' ripped his gun apart and Gabe's were soaked in hobo piss.}}
* Done rather amusingly in ''[[Robopon]] Ring and Cross'', the sequel to ''Robopon Sun'', (as well as ''[[No Export for You|Star and Moon]]''). You play as the same character, going to another county to enter a tournament, yet you don't have any of the [[Mons]] you had from the first game. On the way to the aforementioned country, the main character suddenly realizes that he left them at home.
* Adol is back to level one, usually without the fancy equipment from the previous game, in each of the ''[[Ys]]'' games. Given how frequently he starts a game by being seriously injured and needing to spend several days in bed (Usually due to falling off a ship or the ship sinking outright), this is actually justified on occasion.
* In ''[[Chōsoku Henkei Gyrozetter: Wings of the Albatros]]'' the protagonist's father joins him before the first fight and his mother joins before the second. They were both very high level drivers in their day, but their licenses haven't been kept up to date and have regressed to the starting F class, their Gyrozetters are so obsolete as to be comparable to starter fodder, and they're just plain old out of practice, so they start exactly as powerful as their kids in all respects.
=== [[Simulation Game]] ===
* As noted in our page quote, the [[Player Character]] of ''[[X (video game)|X2: The Threat]]'' and ''X3: Reunion'' are the same guy, reset to level one with his former assets having gone poof.
=== [[Turn-Based Strategy]] ===▼
▲== [[Turn-Based Strategy]] ==
* ''[[Disgaea]]'' mentions at one point Laharl isn't back up to strength after oversleeping 720 days {{spoiler|because of Etna poisoning him}}
** The sequel also has Etna brought down from level 1000 to level 1 due to a summoning ritual gone bad. {{spoiler|It was her fault it went wrong anyway}}.
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* Many ''[[Super Robot Wars]]'' games that have continuing sequels, such as the ''[[Super Robot Wars Alpha]]'' series, ''[[Super Robot Wars Z]]'' series and ''[[Super Robot Wars Original Generation]]'' series, tend to do this. You could have had the best items, the greatest units, and all of the skills you need to really tear evil a new one, but come the next game, they toss it all away. A lot of the time, it's justified - the initial threat is gone, so there's no need for all of that now.
=== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ===▼
▲== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==
* Not exactly with video games, but in the ''[[Pokémon]]'' anime, Pikachu should be at an extremely high level, but always seems to return to level 1 at the start of a new series.
** Not to mention Ash himself, who, despite placing high in nearly every single League he's entered, no matter what awesome things he's done, is ''always'' treated as a rookie trainer whenever he enters a new region.
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** When listing Ash's accomplishments, the only ones mentioned are the ones from the current region. Before the start of Unova, he has earned 32 badges and 7 Frontier Symbols; He is Champion of the Orange League, placed Top 16 in the Indigo League, Top 8 in both the Johto League and Hoenn League, and ''Top 4'' of the Sinnoh League; It's implied he would have won had he beaten Tobias. He has faced off with and defeated or befriended at least one member of each Legendary species, aside from that ever-elusive Ho-oh, and several of some of them. He's still treated like he's a newbie with no experience, even by the writers.
=== [[Film]] ===
* In the original ''[[The Karate Kid]]'' series, Daniel is trained by Mr. Miyagi to become a karate champion, but in the second film, he is ''still'' getting his butt kicked in Okinawa with barely any evidence that he knows anything about fighting. Only the ice sheet chopping scene and the climactic fight have Daniel fight like he was trained by the [[Old Master]].
** Justified in that he's been learning for a few months, only having a few fights under tournament regulations. In Okinawa the people he fights have been learning for most of their lives and engage in street fights.
=== [[Web Comics]] ===
* In ''[[Alien Dice]]'', a brutal deconstruction of the [[Mons]] genre, both the dice and Lexx himself are reset at the beginning of each round. The dice starting out on whatever level their die initially landed and Lexx getting knocked back ten levels.
* In ''[[8-
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