The Computer Is a Cheating Bastard/Playing With

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


Basic Trope: In a video game where you can face the computer in a match, the computer seems to have advantages that you don't.

  • Played Straight: In the hit Fighting Game Troper Wars, the CPU always manages to kick your ass due to the fact that his character has projectiles. When that character is human controlled, it doesn't have a projectile attack.
  • Exaggerated: The CPU can dodge attacks. You can't.
  • Justified: The dev team wanted to make the most difficult game ever.
  • Inverted: The computer cheats to give the player an advantage.
  • Subverted: The CPU-controlled characters are kicking your ass... but it turns out you have the difficulty on Hard. You turn the difficulty down a notch and you start to stand more of a chance.
  • Double Subverted: ... here comes the Easy Mode Mockery!
  • Parodied: The game flat-out tells you that it will cheat to win.
    • When you start a match, the CPU opens up a cheat menu during gameplay and types in "GOD" or "WIN"
  • Deconstructed: The CPU is so freaking cheap that the poor saps who bought it rally together and boycott the company that made it, who then lose millions.
  • Reconstructed: There are large rewards for beating the cheap-ass AI, encouraging the gamers to rally together and find a way to win.
  • Zig-zagged: The CPU cheats to varying degrees (including none) within the same game to adjust for the player's skills in order to keep him engaged. If the player is breezing through, it'll turn up the difficulty; if the player can barely get out of the starting spot, it'll ease up.
  • Averted: The CPU plays fair and is on an equal footing with the human characters.
  • Enforced: (During development) "Hey, this section is a little too easy. I think I'll turn up the accuracy of the enemy snipers juuuuuust a tad..."
  • Lampshaded: During the characters' single player loss dialogue, they point out that they shouldn't have lost; not because of pride, but because the enemy was breaking the rules of the fight!
  • Exploited: Whenever you notice the CPU cheating, you can press a button to have him arrested.
  • Invoked: It's much cheaper to give the A.I. inherent advantages than to make it competent.
  • Defied: (During development) "Okay team, make sure the CPU fights fair. If it doesn't, well, it could hurt sales a lot."
    • People make cheat codes to make the game less impossible.
  • Conversed: ???
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