Roaming Enemy: Difference between revisions

#''The Wanderer:'' Patrols a specific area in the game. They may actively stalk the player or they might just move randomly until they find them. Distinguished in that the player may never even meet them.

#''Schrodinger's Encounter:'' The player will always encounter the enemy - it's just a matter of when. The point at which they turn up is fixed but decided randomly from several potential points ahead of time (typically when the game begins). Distinguished from The Wanderer in that the player won't be able to avoid them.

#''Fake Roamer:'' The game [[Gameplay and Story Segregation|pretends]] that this enemy is actively stalking you or wandering around but it really turns up at specific points in the game. You can identify it by the fact that it always turns up in the same place no matter how many times you play that part of the game.

 

** The most well-known, however, are the Devilsaurs in Un'goro Crater. Because they become visible at the same effective range as other monsters despite being fifty feet tall, they have gained a [[Memetic Badass|reputation]] for having taken Ninja levels. See also the [[That One Boss]] and [[Boss in Mook Clothing]] entries.

** The game also uses type 3 a lot, where specific enemies will only appear if you are on a particular quest.

** Pac-man Ghost AI - The cool thing about the Pac-Man ghosts, and what it's rare for the clones to pull off (even if they go for deterministic rather than random ghost movement), is that each had a separate AI which, while all of them were simple, the result was that they made for a very effective team. http://www.atariage.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=68707 has some details, as it turns out.

* Raikou, Entei, and Suicune from ''[[Pokémon]] Gold/Silver/Crystal''. They are encountered like any other random Pokemon but the area they appear in changes. Unusually for this trope the player is generally the one who tracks them down (and they have a habit of fleeing before you can catch them when they're encountered).

** This is recreated with Ultima Weapon in ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]''. You can at least chase him down, since he's visible on the world map.

** [[Bonus Boss|Omega]] and [[Updated Rerelease|Omega Mk. II]] from ''[[Final Fantasy V]]'' always roam the same room randomly. Not a problem when there's only one of them to run past --a definite problem in the [[Bonus Dungeon]] where an entire ''floor'' is filled with roaming Omegas.

* In the ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean]]'' video game (spiritual successor to ''Sea Dogs'') the Black Pearl would roam around the world map, and you could rarely find it as a kind of Easter Egg. Oddly, it doesn't become hostile unless you attack it.

* ''[[Spore]]'' has the Epic creatures. These are extremely large versions of otherwise "normal" creatures from the game's library, and are particularly dangerous. They spend their time roaming around the map and killing wildlife, but will turn their attention to you if you get too close.

* ''[[Dungeon of Doom]]'' had the [[Just for Pun|Wandering Eye]], an eyeball with arms, legs and a sword who could turn up at any point in the game. All other monsters were confined to a limited range of levels.

* ''Earthbound'' Uses this system, and will even give players or enemies first attack if one "tags" the other from behind.

 

* There's this guy in ''Baldur's Gate'' that, if you look at the right (or wrong…) gravestone three times, summons a load of exploding dudes with swords to kill you. I don't think they ever turn up anywhere else.

* From ''[[Final Fantasy VI]]'', the [[Blow You Away|Storm]] Dragon --it will fly out of its treasure chest the instant you open it, and fly circles within the cave until its speed and/or erratic pattern forces you into its path. ''Final Fantasy VI [[Updated Rerelease|Advance]]'' also adds the Esper Leviathan, who lurks in the ocean between Figaro and Nikeah, and can only be encountered by taking a ferry between the two ports.

* The [[Grim Reaper]] in ''[[Alex Kidd]] in Miracle World'' appears if you step on a skull block, or is randomly triggered by ? blocks.

 

* The Wandering Monster tables from ''[[Dungeons and Dragons]]'' are probably the best known example [[Tabletop Games]] wise.

* PuPu in ''[[Final Fantasy VIII]]''.

* The mugger in the dark alley in ''[[Leisure Suit Larry]]''.