History DeliberateValuesDissonance / VideoGames

* Kratos in ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' is a brutal, selfish, bloodthirsty mass-murderer who, over the course of the franchise, manages to progress from "asshole" to "complete psychopath". By modern standards, he's a NominalHero in the best possible light and an outright VillainProtagonist otherwise. By classical standards, he's a perfectly accurate representation of a bonafide hero, as the worth of heroes in antiquity was defined by their might and glory, ''not'' by their moral character. Even as an original character, he fits right into the source material... except for the [[KillTheGod deicide]]. ''That'' would immediately get him labelled a villain and monster even by their standards since he's putting himself above the gods and committing the ultimate ''hubris''.
** In the [[VideoGame/GodOfWarPS4 fourth game]], centered around Myth/NorseMythology, Kratos learns that those who die a dishonorable death are sent to Helheim. While he initially assumes it only applies to criminals, cowards and the likes, he's slightly shocked to learn that it actually means "''everyone'' that didn't die in battle" and that for example, [[LifeWillKillYou dying of old age]] sends you there as well. In Spartan customs; [[OldSoldier Eld]][[OldMaster ers]] are venerated because they had leapt into battle countless times and came back alive that it served to build upon their legends: that the only thing that could truly take these valiant warriors would be Death himself. It is the whole reason why ''"Beware of an old man in a profession where men die young"'' is a common and well-known phrase.[[note]]Some Nordic customs had taken this flaw into account and had amended themselves so "dying holding a weapon" counted as a show of valor, so simply giving your grandfather his old axe as he passed away in his bed counted.[[/note]]
-->'''Kratos:''' It is dishonorable to grow old?\\

*** Speaking of Tali; Quarians are collectivists to an extent that can make some Westerners uncomfortable. It's outright stated in 2 that quarians who return to the Fleet under duress are expected to [[SomethingTheyWouldNeverSay give the wrong passwords]] and [[ShootTheHostage let themselves be blown out of the sky,]] rather than endanger the fleet. Later on, when [[spoiler:the crew steals the Normandy]] and Shepard asks if Tali's Admiral father would protect her, Tali casually replies that not only is [[spoiler:ship theft]] a ''capital'' offense among the Quarians, her father would likely insist on executing her ''personally'' [[AntiNepotism out of principle]]. Also, if you listen to Tali's dialogue, she never gives an "I" answer, unless asked specifically about herself.

*** The Voss are a dogmatic alien race whose culture is comprised of many arcane rules and traditions, most of which are based on their unflinching belief that the visions of their [[{{Seers}} Mystics]] are infallible. If a Mystic predicts it, then the Voss believe it will happen, one way or the other. And while they acknowledge that prophecies [[ProphecyTwist can be misinterpreted]], the idea that a Mystic can be ''straight up wrong'' is simply inconceivable. [[spoiler:The Imperial Agent storyline shows the Star Cabal exploiting this belief to manipulate the Voss by creating a fake prophecy.]] The end of the Jedi Consular storyline on Voss also demonstrates this: After someone attempts to kill a Mystic, the Voss at the scene immediately declare that, in accordance with the laws of the Voss, the assassin will be executed by being thrown off a cliff. The Consular can express dismay at the barbarity of the punishment, but even the Consular's Voss friend sees nothing wrong with it and the assassin is taken away to have the sentence carried out.

* ''VideoGame/SamAndMaxTheDevilsPlayhouse'': Mixed with HumorDissonance. In "The Tomb of Sammun-Mak", Egyptians of the early 1900's find people who cut cucumbers lengthwise laughable to the point of being punchlines in their newspaper comics. [[IdenticalGrandson Sameth and Maximus]], however, don't see the humor in it and just leaves them bewildered.

** Because of the rampant discrimination in the game's time period, homophobia is a major plot point in Charles' route, where he struggles with his homosexuality [[spoiler:because of his father's discrimination. In his good ending, Charles comes out to him but gets kicked out of the family, but he's actively fighting for LGBT+ rights with his sister (and you if you marry him as a boy).]]

* Creator/Suda51 had this concept in mind when he designed ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroes''. Case point: the name Travis Touchdown. It sounds like an over-the-top cool name in Japan, and an incredibly stupid one in the US. Some of Suda and [[Creator/GrasshopperManufacture his company]]'s other games, especially ''VideoGame/{{Killer7}}'', also explore the ValuesDissonance between western and Japanese players.

* If you decide to go for a GayOption with one of your classmates in ''VideoGame/GrowingUp'', the game will remind you that same-sex marriage was illegal in the US during the 90s since you're [[ModernStasis still stuck in that time period despite you and your partner becoming adults]], but despite that, they'll still marry you. In fact, homophobia is a major plot point in Charles' route, where he struggles with his homosexuality [[spoiler:because of his father's discrimination. In his good ending, Charles comes out to him but gets kicked out of the family, but he's actively fighting for LGBT+ rights with his sister (and you if you marry him as a boy).]]

* ''VideoGame/Warhammer40000RogueTrader'' has three {{Karma Meter}}s. Heretic is ObviouslyEvil, with human sacrifice, daemonic pacts, and other acts of brazen [[ChaosIsEvil Chaos allegiance]], but this trope shows up in the difference between Dogmatic and Iconoclast choices. Dogmatic choices are involve behaving the way Imperial citizens are expected to behave: xenophobic, intolerant, unforgiving, authoritarian, with some [[ShootTheDog nasty but necessary]] actions mixed in. The Iconoclast decisions involve acting in the way a person with a modern moral compass would: empathetic, egalitarian, tolerant, and curious. When determining how suspicious the Imperium is of the player's actions, [[AllCrimesAreEqual no differentiation is made between Heretic and Iconoclast choices]] (though when it comes to how ''individuals'' react, Iconoclasts tend to get softer reactions; many Iconoclast decisions gets you seen as naive and dangerously soft, but not as actually ''intending'' harm by Imperial standards).

* ''VideoGame/Warhammer40000RogueTrader'' has three {{Karma Meter}}s. Heretic is ObviouslyEvil, with human sacrifice, daemonic pacts, and other acts of brazen [[ChaosIsEvil Chaos allegiance]], but this trope shows up in the difference between Dogmatic and Iconoclast choices. Dogmatic choices are involve behaving the way Imperial citizens are expected to behave: xenophobic, intolerant, unforgiving, authoritarian, with some [[ShootTheDog nasty but necessary]] actions mixed in. The Iconoclast decisions involve acting in the way a person with a modern moral compass would: empathetic, egalitarian, tolerant, and curious. When determining how suspicious the Imperium is of the player's actions, [[AllCrimesAreEqual no differentiation is made between Heretic and Iconoclast choices]].

* ''VideoGame/SamAndMaxTheDevilsPlayhouse'': Mixed with HumorDissonance. In "The Tomb of Sammun-Mak", Egyptians of the early 1900's find people who cut cucumbers lengthwise laughable to the point of being punchlines in there newspaper comics. [[IdenticalGrandson Sameth and Maximus]], however, don't see the humor in it and just leaves them bewildered.

* ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'':

** In the [[VideoGame/GodOfWarPS4 fourth game]], centered around Myth/NorseMythology, Kratos learns that those who die a dishonorable death are sent to Helheim. While he initially assumes it only applies to criminals, cowards and the likes, he's slightly shocked to learn that it actually means "''everyone'' that didn't die in battle" and that for example, [[LifeWillKillYou dying of old age]] sends you there as well. In Spartan customs; [[OldSoldier Eld]][[OldMaster ers]] are venerated because they had leapt into battle countless times and came back that it served to build upon their legends: that the only thing that could truly take them would be Death himself. It is the whole reason why ''"Beware of an old man in a profession where men die young"'' is a common and well-known phrase.[[note]]Some Nordic customs had taken this flaw into account and had amended themselves so "dying holding a weapon" counted as a show of valor, so simply giving your grandfather his old axe as he passed away in his bed counted.[[/note]]

** Not shown in the game itself, but in the spin-off short movie ''Lineage'' for ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedII'' features Lorenzo de Medici having a prisoner brutally tortured to reveal his information about an upcoming political assassination, but he is still a good guy, both in the movie and in the game. In Renaissance Italy such brutal methods, along with backstabbings, poisonings and similar cloak-and-dagger manoeuvring were the norm among nobles and other prominent individuals.

* Kratos in ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' is a brutal, selfish, bloodthirsty mass-murderer who, over the course of the franchise, manages to progress from "asshole" to "complete psychopath". By modern standards, he's a NominalHero in the best possible light and an outright VillainProtagonist otherwise. By classical standards, he's a perfectly accurate representation of a bonafide hero, as the worth of heroes in antiquity was defined by their might and glory, ''not'' by their moral character. Even as an original character, he fits right into the source material...except for the [[KillTheGod deicide]]. ''That'' would immediately get him labelled a villain and monster even by their standards since he's putting himself above the gods and committing the ultimate ''hubris''.

** [[HumansThroughAlienEyes Humans get this from other races too]]; to the Alliance, asking for a seat at the Council table is a) warranted since they have enough national power to challenge another council race, and b) a diplomatic way of establishing themselves as equals and making sure they won't be pushed around (much like modern nations joining the nuclear club), but the Council races tend to see them as essentially galactic [[ObnoxiousEntitledHousewife Karens]] who ignore every sign that things don't work that way (you generally have to start as a client of one of the Big Three) because they feel entitled to the top spot.