This is discussion archived from a time before the current discussion method was installed.
I've always heard this referred to as the "Velvet Rope Principle" and yet velvet ropes aren't even referred to....
Shouldn't this be Insurmountable Waist High Fence?
I'd think the fact that they can't just walk around the wall should be noted...
Seconding this trope was definitely "Insurmountable Waist High Fence"
Seven Seals: Both "waist height fence" and "waist-high fence" are correct, they just use slightly different grammar. The latter is definitely more common, though.
I don't think this trope should apply to cases like the Diablo example given on the page. It's not like there's a big open world outside the town of Tristram that could have been accessed if only the character could jump. In my opinion, the Diablo thing conforms to the letter of the trope, I guess, but not the spirit. I think the trope should only apply to instances where the character needs to pass something but can't do it with the powers he already has, not the boundaries of the entire game world. You might as well say every single game falls under this trope. Or that each separate floor of Diablo 1's dungeon applies because your character can't pull out the rocks in the wall and dig around looking for gold.
Veruca's father was rather fat... perhaps his waist-high fence had a good reason to be insurmountable? Or at least, he couldn't have climbed it faster than it could be unlocked...
What the... that link is worrying me...
