History DivergentCharacterEvolution / VideoGames

** Similarly initially all the toads used the same transformations, mostly blunt objets like ram horns, boots, and wrecking balls. ''Battlemaniacs'' gave them individual themes, with Rash prefering razor sharp weapons like axes and claws, while Pimple took the bludgeoning techniques UpToEleven using anvils and stone fists. When the arcade game came in, Zitz used his greater intellect to create technology like bulldozers and power drills.

** Character-specific example: In ''Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light'', axe fighters Bord and Cord had ''identical'' portraits. ''VideoGame/FireEmblemMysteryOfTheEmblem'' and the DS remakes give them increasingly distinct appearances, and the same was done for Dolph and Macellan.

** The Shaman and the Paladin class both inverted and played this straight. The Shaman was originally Horde-only, just as the Paladin was Alliance exclusive. While both classes are {{Magic Knight}}s, the problem was that they functioned in entirely different manners and it turned out to be a pain to balance out. They tried several things, including making the two classes more and more similar. This was not really liked (particularly as the classes have very different functions outside of buffing), and the first expansion gave both factions access to them, the Alliance gaining Draenei shamans and the Horde getting Blood Elf paladins. They were then free to start their divergent evolution without worrying about wrecking the faction power balance.
** The sixth expansion to the game, ''Legions'', plans on overhauling many of the class specializations so they stand out more. One of the best examples is the Rogue class specializations ("specs" for short). Before, all three specs were more-or-less the same ''(Subtlety relied on Stealth a bit more than the other two, Assassination used poisons sometimes, Combat was some sort of weird jack-of-all-trades)''. In ''Legions'', Subtlety was revamped to focus even more on Stealth, even [[CastingAShadow using the shadows themselves]] to attack the enemy. Assassination focused on heavy bleeding and poisoning to drain the life out of their targets. Combat was renamed "Outlaw" and eschewed Stealth almost entirely ''(Ambush is pretty much their only Stealth-attack)'', focusing more on [[CombatPragmatist cheap shots and dirty tricks]], including bringing a gun to a knife fight and literally bribing an enemy with (fool's) gold so he fights as an ally for a short time.
** Hunters are also being heavily differentiated in ''Legions''. Beast Mastery is still classic Hunter, combining ranged attacks with your loyal attack animal, but Survival Hunters get rid of most of the ranged attacks, preferring to grab a melee weapon and fight right next to his/her pet. Marksmanship Hunters can skip having a pet entirely, and emphasize ranged attacks, focusing on high-damage sniping.

* Although there was never a game that featured the singular character, early versions of ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' had Genji and Hanzo's designs and abilities rolled into a single cyber-samurai character named Genji. Eventually, a diverge was made to give the character's name, cybernetics, and more ninja-like powers to Genji, and the remaining bowman characteristics were given to Hanzo.

* In ''VideoGame/PacManParty'', the four iconic ghosts of VideoGame/PacMan were given more distinctive looks in order to differentiate one another. No longer were they simple {{Palette Swap}}s of one another. Each of the ghosts had distinctive "hairstyles". Blinky retained the basic ghost shape, Inky was made skinnier, Pinky was given more feminine features, and Clyde became fat and huge.

** In the original Arcade version of Soul Edge, Mitsurugi was in the game by default, but he could be replaced by Hwang if the owner of the cabinet wished. This was done primarily for the Korean market, where samurai are a touchy subject due to previous conflicts between them and Japan. In this version of the game, the two characters share the same moves. However, when a new version of Soul Edge was created due to the original being widely considered too hard, Hwang was added to the main roster (along with boss character Cervantes), and his moveset was differentiated substantially. This was carried through to the Playstation version (renamed Soulblade in Europe), where Hwang ended up having his own clone character, Han Myong, who only appeared in that game.
** Following on from the above example, in the first Soul Calibur, Arthur was the optional replacement character for Mitsurugi, and when he appeared as an unlockable character in later games, his moves were changed somewhat too.
** Siegfried and Nightmare had their movesets almost entirely differentiated in ''III''. Nightmare had started as a hidden costume for Siegfried in Soul Edge/Blade, became a separate character in Soul Calibur and was back to ''different costumes for the same character'' in the second.

** As an inversion, because the create-a-character classes were different enough from the originals for them to be ''missed'' in ''Soulcalibur IV/V'''s create-a-modes. Many fans of ''III'' were pissed that their characters had to fight the exact same way as the main cast.

** [[VideoGame/SuperMarioLand Daisy]] was so similar to Princess Peach in her original appearance that many fans assumed she was the same character. ([[Film/SuperMarioBros The movie]] doesn't help the confusion, either.) Daisy has since been split off into a more tomboyish cowgirl portrayal, especially shown in games such as ''Mario Strikers''. She's also become a [[BetaCouple potential]] [[PairTheSpares love]] [[MasculineGirlFeminineBoy interest]] for Luigi. Daisy was originally nearly a palette swap of Peach, with the only exception of being redesigned for the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64 era to have slightly tanned skin while Peach was fair skinned. By ''Mario Party 4'' and later, Daisy's skin became fair like Peach's again, but Daisy's hair was shortened to neck length, she received a different hairstyle, a wider face, a brand new voice actor in ''Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour'', and her eyes were made larger in comparison to Peach's eyes. Her body frame was also changed to look chubbier than Peach's in ''Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash''.

** Luigi is the former {{Trope Namer|s}}. He was originally a PaletteSwap of his brother Mario created for [[ColorCodedMultiplayer multiplayer]], and identical to him in every way. Since then, Luigi's become taller and more slender than his brother and he has a different gameplay style, being able to jump higher at the cost of low-traction. Their personalities have drifted apart as well; Mario eventually developed into a HotBlooded adventurous type, while Luigi became more reserved, developing a second-banana complex, a fear of ghosts, and a tendency towards [[TheChewToy bad luck]]. He is also said to harbor dark secrets and hidden resentment. [[EnsembleDarkhorse Some fans prefer Luigi]] to the perceived squeaky-clean Mario for this reason. Luigi's development into a different character started with both versions of ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2''. The Japanese version saw him gain his higher jumps and worse traction playstyle for the first time while the US version, being a re-skin of the [[NoExportForYou Japan-only]] ''VideoGame/DokiDokiPanic'', gave him a taller look to distinguish him from Mario along with the Mama character's high-jump ability (possibly because this was a trait he already had in the Japanese version). While ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3'' and ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' had Luigi back to being just Mario in green during gameplay, his official art used the tall design and when ''Mario 3'' and ''Mario World'' got updated graphics for ''VideoGame/SuperMarioAllStars'', Luigi got his taller and thinner design back.

** Luigi is the former {{Trope Namer|s}}. He was originally a PaletteSwap of his brother Mario created for [[ColorCodedMultiplayer multiplayer]], and identical to him in every way. Since then, Luigi's become taller and more slender than his brother and he has a different gameplay style, being able to jump higher at the cost of low-traction. Their personalities have drifted apart as well; Mario eventually developed into a HotBlooded adventurous type, while Luigi became more reserved, developing a second-banana complex, a fear of ghosts, and a tendency towards [[TheChewToy bad luck]]. He is also said to harbor dark secrets and hidden resentment. [[EnsembleDarkhorse Some fans prefer Luigi]] to the perceived squeaky-clean Mario for this reason. Luigi's development into a different character started with the US version of ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2'' (a re-skin of the [[NoExportForYou Japan-only]] ''VideoGame/DokiDokiPanic''). Because Doki Doki Panic featured multiple characters with differing abilities, rather than a ColorCodedMultiplayer, Luigi was given a taller look to distinguish him from Mario and received the high-jump ability originally belonging to the Mama character. While ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3'' and ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' had Luigi back to being just Mario in green during gameplay, his official art used the tall design and when ''Mario 3'' and ''Mario World'' got updated graphics for ''VideoGame/SuperMarioAllStars'', Luigi got his taller and thinner design back.

** Siegfried and Nightmare had their movesets almost entirely differentiated in ''III'' after being nearly identical in the first game and ''different costumes for the same character'' in the second.

* ''VideoGame/MegaManX3'' gave Zero his first playable appearance, where he played like X but with a Beam Saber upgrade (which X could gain later in the game). In the next game, Zero traded his Z Buster style for a purely close range style to completely distance himself from his partner.

* The [[SameSexTriplets Kuniang sisters]] from ''VideoGame/{{Strider}}''. In the first game, the three use the same {{Palette Swap}}ped sprite and have the same attack, and only their leader (Ton Pooh) got an official description and dialogue, the other two being merely {{Filler}} for the boss fight. In ''Strider 2'', the three were given different designs and hairstyles, with Bei Pooh becoming a FemmeFatale with a large ponytail, Sai Pooh getting a pigtailed childish look and Ton Pooh retaining the original design. Finally, the 2014 ''Strider'' gave each a WeaponOfChoice and fleshed out the two sister's personalities, turning [[SpellMyNameWithAnS B/Pei]] into an AxCrazy BloodKnight and Nang Pooh[[note]]Though Sai Pooh got replaced by Nang Pooh, for all intents and purposes they are the same character.[[/note]] becoming the [[OnlySaneMan Only Sane Woman]] keeping both her more hot-headed sisters in check.

** In ''VideoGame/KirbyAndTheAmazingMirror'', Dark Meta Knight was simply a PaletteSwap EvilTwin of Meta Knight and shared the latter's fighting style. Later games give him a more threatening look with tattered wings and a scarred mask. He also received a brand-new fighting style that emphasizes wild and reckless attacks to contrast Meta Knight's finesse and restraint, along with mirror-based attacks to [[IncrediblyLamePun reflect]] his origins as a resident of the Mirror World.

** While not "characters" in the traditional sense, Bomb Kirby and Mirror Kirby were originally PaletteSwaps of Sword Kirby and Beam Kirby, respectively. Newer installments of the ''Kirby'' series have given Bomb Kirby and Mirror Kirby more distinct designs to make it easier to tell them apart.
** Something similar happened with Ninja Kirby and Stone Kirby, both used the same sprite: Kirby with a samurai hat but with different body colors. Later installments have changed this to have Ninja Kirby wear a Naruto-esque Robe and Stone Kirby to wear a stone crown with bull horns, dismissing the samurai hat idea entirely.

* Giana's sister in ''VideoGame/TheGreatGianaSisters'' started out as simply a green-haired {{Palette Swap}} of her. ''VideoGame/GianaSistersTwistedDreams'' revamped her design to be more individual. While Giana has blonde hair in a bob and wears a blue dress, Maria has her green hair in a long ponytail with a ribbon in it and wears a red dress. Her design in the endless runner spinoff ''Dream Runners'' however dials her back to essentially a palette swap, however all the characters in that game look near-identical.

* When Jeanne Alter was first introduced in ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'', she was pretty much a direct copy of the standard Jeanne but in black--same class, similar skills and stats, and even her artwork was basically a slightly modified PaletteSwap. It was basically just her personality that differed; an unstable but oddly endearing CardCarryingVillain as opposed to a saintly IdealHero. When she became a BreakoutVillain and was PromotedToPlayable, nearly all of this was dropped; though she was still a doppelganger in appearance, she had entirely new artwork and animations, more tweaks in her outfit and ascensions, and an entirely opposite focus (Jeanne being a passive StoneWall Ruler while Jalter is an aggressive GlassCannon Avenger).

* When Jeanne Alter was first introduced in ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'', she was pretty much a direct copy of the standard Jeanne but in black--same class, similar skills and stats, and even her artwork was basically a slightly modified PaletteSwap. It was basically just her personality that differed; an unstable but oddly endearing CardCarryingVillain as opposed to a saintly IdealHero. When she became a BreakoutVillain and was PromotedToPlayable, nearly all of this was dropped; though she was still a doppelganger in appearance, she had entirely new artwork and animations, more tweaks in her outfit and ascensions, and an entirely opposite focus (Jeanne being a passive StoneWall Ruler while Jalter is an aggressive GlassCannon Avenger).

* ''VideoGame/FireEmblem'':
** In what may be [[GoMadFromTheRevelation a shocking discovery]] for recent ''Fire Emblem'' fans, [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness in the]] [[VideoGame/FireEmblemAkaneia first game]] the FragileSpeedster Pegasus Knights promoted into the MightyGlacier Dragon[=/=]Wyvern Rider class, making the latter simply an upgrade of the former (and just as dodgy). Eventually ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemJugdral Genealogy of Holy War]]'' put an end to this madness by making them different classes, albeit the previous game started this process by giving Pegasi a decent Resistance (Magic Defense) stat that they lost when promoting (this also applies to the remake of the first game).
** Character-specific example: In the original versions of Marth's games, axe fighters Bord and Cord had ''identical'' portraits. The remakes give them much more distinct appearances, and the same was done for Dolph and Macellan.

* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'':
** Luigi is the former {{Trope Namer|s}}. He was originally a PaletteSwap of his brother Mario created for [[ColorCodedMultiplayer multiplayer]], and identical to him in every way. Since then, Luigi's become taller and more slender than his brother and he has a different gameplay style, being able to jump higher at the cost of low-traction. Their personalities have drifted apart as well; Mario eventually developed into a HotBlooded adventurous type, while Luigi became more reserved, developing a second-banana complex, a fear of ghosts, and a tendency towards [[TheChewToy bad luck]]. He is also said to harbor dark secrets and hidden resentment. [[EnsembleDarkhorse Some fans prefer Luigi]] to the perceived squeaky-clean Mario for this reason. Luigi's development into a different character started with the US version of ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2'' (a re-skin of the [[NoExportForYou Japan-only]] ''VideoGame/DokiDokiPanic''). Because Doki Doki Panic featured multiple characters with differing abilities, rather than a ColorCodedMultiplayer, Luigi was given a taller look to distinguish him from Mario and received the high-jump ability originally belonging to the Mama character. While ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3'' and ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' had Luigi back to being just Mario in green during gameplay, his official art used the tall design and when ''Mario 3'' and ''Mario World'' got updated graphics for ''VideoGame/SuperMarioAllStars'', Luigi got his taller and thinner design back.
** [[VideoGame/SuperMarioLand Daisy]] was so similar to Princess Peach in her original appearance that many fans assumed she was the same character. ([[Film/SuperMarioBros The movie]] doesn't help the confusion, either.) Daisy has since been split off into a more tomboyish cowgirl portrayal, especially shown in games such as ''Mario Strikers''. She's also become a [[BetaCouple potential]] [[PairTheSpares love]] [[MasculineGirlFeminineBoy interest]] for Luigi. Daisy was originally nearly a palette swap of Peach, with the only exception of being redesigned for the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64 era to have slightly tanned skin while Peach was fair skinned. By ''Mario Party 4'' and later, Daisy's skin became fair like Peach's again, but Daisy's hair was shortened to neck length, she received a different hairstyle, a wider face, a brand new voice actor in ''Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour'', and her eyes were made larger in comparison to Peach's eyes. Her body frame was also changed to look chubbier than Peach's in ''Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash''.
** Another example from the ''Mario'' series is the Koopalings Lemmy and Iggy. While the two looked [[http://images.wikia.com/egamia/images/4/45/Lemmy_Koopa.gif rather]] [[http://images.wikia.com/egamia/images/c/cb/Iggy_Koopa.gif similar]] in earlier games, Iggy's appearance in ''VideoGame/NewSuperMarioBrosWii'' has him looking... well, like [[http://images.wikia.com/nintendo/en/images/9/99/Iggy_Koopa_Super_Mario_Wii.jpg this]]. It's also notable that Iggy seems to have apparently gone insane... Well, [[SanitySlippage more insane...]]
** Wario was once simply an evil Mario, but has since become more of a greedy AntiHero.
** Goombas were given an [[YouDontLookLikeYou odd change in appearance and behavior]] in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld''. These Goombas would eventually be renamed to Galoomba and would occasionally appear in future games alongside the original Goombas. This is a DubInducedPlotHole being fixed as they were always different in Japan.
** Tiny Kong was originally a short, kiddie Kong similar to her sister Dixie Kong. When ''VideoGame/DiddyKongRacing DS'' came out, Tiny's design was tweaked in order to replace Banjo's on the roster. Tiny's new design is much taller and even more anthropomorphic-looking than her sister's.
* ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'':
** This trope's original name, "Luigification," came from ''Smash Bros.'' fandom, referring to Luigi becoming less of a Mario MovesetClone between the original ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros64'' and ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosMelee''. Naming it after Luigi was very fitting even ignoring ''Smash Bros.'', as noted above.
** In ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosBrawl'', the characters that were clones in ''Melee'' got more of this to the point that there are no true clones in ''Brawl''; there are only semi-clones. This continued onward into ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'', with Dr. Mario becoming more of a MightyGlacier compared to Mario than in ''Melee'', while retaining similar (but not the same) movesets. Roy also received significant changes when he was released as DLC, gaining a different stance and attack animations from Marth and turning him into a true LightningBruiser.
** In ''Brawl'', Giga Bowser, as Bowser's Final Smash, had all of the same moves, just made significantly more powerful. In ''for 3DS/Wii U'', Bowser has been redesigned to be closer to his appearance in the main ''Mario'' series, with many of his moves changed to make him less bestial and more agile; Giga Bowser, on the other hand, remains exactly the same as in ''Brawl'', the contrast further accentuating his monstrous, feral nature.
** The effects of character evolution can be seen clearly in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'', which branded {{Moveset Clone}}s as "Echo Fighters". Characters that were blatant clones in ''for 3DS/Wii U'' and hadn't had time to diverge from the originals, Lucina and Dark Pit, were reclassified as Echoes of those originals; while those that ''had'' diverged continued to be considered separate characters.
* ''Franchise/StreetFighter'':
** Ryu and Ken originally played [[MovesetClone the exact same way]] in ''VideoGame/StreetFighterI''. They have since been differentiated in both moveset and characterization. Although they are both use the [[{{Shotoclone}} same fighting style]], Ryu is now a [[KamehameHadoken Hadoken]] specialist and usually fights defensively, while Ken is more aggressive and prefers the {{Shoryuken}}. The divergence got a lot bigger in ''VideoGame/StreetFighterV''. While Ryu is relatively close to how he was in previous games, Ken went through some radical changes, utilizing a much more aggressive moveset and [[SuperMode V-Trigger]] compared to Ryu. He also no longer wears his trademark gi, which only drives the point further. Similarly, Nash plays nothing like he did in the Alpha series, thus diverging himself from a Guile clone.
** ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'' introduced twin brothers Yun and Yang. Originally, they played identically (to the point that they shared the same slot in the player select screen; you'd select Yang with a kick button), but in ''2nd Impact'', Yun and Yang were officially made into separate characters with different Special Moves and Super Arts.
* ''VideoGame/SoulSeries'':
** Siegfried and Nightmare had their movesets almost entirely differentiated in ''III'' after being nearly identical in the first game and ''different costumes for the same character'' in the second.
** In ''III'', Amy (making her debut as a playable character), Li Long and Hwang Seong-Gyeong (returning) had the generic create-a-character Rapier, Nunchaku and Chinese Sword movesets; thus they had far fewer moves than normal characters, were largely semi clones of Raphael, Maxi, and Yun-Seong, respectively, and aside from Hwang had no side throws. In ''SCIII: Arcade Edition'', the three were shifted into more intricate arcade-worthy characters. This served as the last time that Li Long and Hwang were playable, while the loss of the create-a-character specific weapon disciplines in ''IV'' meant that Amy had nothing to be compared to.
*** Zig-zagging the trope, Li Long and Hwang's appearances in ''Soulcalibur IV'' and ''Broken Destiny''[='s=] Quick Match mode have them use the same moves as their replacements Maxi and Yun-seong respectively.
** As an inversion, because the create-a-character classes were different enough from the originals for them to be ''missed'' in ''Soulcalibur IV/V'''s create-a-modes. Many fans of ''III'' were pissed that their characters had to fight the exact same way as the main cast.
** Lizardman was almost entirely a clone of Sophitia in his first appearance, only evolving as the series went on. Later he'd get a more animalistic style, including a crawl stance. In ''V'', he ditched the shield entirely for two axes.
** Kilik and Seong Mi-na were very similar at first, but they evolved into two different characters, although still sharing some moves, as time went on. The true point was ''VideoGame/SoulcaliburVI'', where Seong Mi-na gains many unique moves and even inherits moves from Xiba in ''V'', making them play little like each other apart from their base weapon.
* ''VideoGame/WarCraft'':
** Orcs and Humans were pretty identical in the first two games, but in ''Warcraft III'', humans are the JackOfAllStats while orcs have powerful but expensive units and weak magic.
** In ''Warcraft II'', the two races were identical in every aspect, except their respective {{Magic Knight}}s (Paladin and Ogre-mage) and true [[SquishyWizard mages]] (Mage and Death Knight) had different spells. The Orcs had most of the advantage with Bloodlust over Healing, but Mages had some tricks up their sleeve in the late-game with Invisibility and Polymorph.
* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft''
** The Shaman and the Paladin class both inverted and played this straight. The Shaman was originally Horde-only, just as the Paladin was Alliance exclusive. While both classes are {{Magic Knight}}s, the problem was that they functioned in entirely different manners and it turned out to be a pain to balance out. They tried several things, including making the two classes more and more similar. This was not really liked (particularly as the classes have very different functions outside of buffing), and the first expansion gave both factions access to them, the Alliance gaining Draenei shamans and the Horde getting Blood Elf paladins. They were then free to start their divergent evolution without worrying about wrecking the faction power balance.
** The sixth expansion to the game, ''Legions'', plans on overhauling many of the class specializations so they stand out more. One of the best examples is the Rogue class specializations ("specs" for short). Before, all three specs were more-or-less the same ''(Subtlety relied on Stealth a bit more than the other two, Assassination used poisons sometimes, Combat was some sort of weird jack-of-all-trades)''. In ''Legions'', Subtlety was revamped to focus even more on Stealth, even [[CastingAShadow using the shadows themselves]] to attack the enemy. Assassination focused on heavy bleeding and poisoning to drain the life out of their targets. Combat was renamed "Outlaw" and eschewed Stealth almost entirely ''(Ambush is pretty much their only Stealth-attack)'', focusing more on [[CombatPragmatist cheap shots and dirty tricks]], including bringing a gun to a knife fight and literally bribing an enemy with (fool's) gold so he fights as an ally for a short time.
** Hunters are also being heavily differentiated in ''Legions''. Beast Mastery is still classic Hunter, combining ranged attacks with your loyal attack animal, but Survival Hunters get rid of most of the ranged attacks, preferring to grab a melee weapon and fight right next to his/her pet. Marksmanship Hunters can skip having a pet entirely, and emphasize ranged attacks, focusing on high-damage sniping.
** Gnomes were originally nothing more than shorter Dwarves with different class options, until the lead-up to ''Cataclysm'' finally gave them some focus by making the liberation of their lost capital city Gnomeregan a major in-game event. Post-''Cata'', Gnomes were given their own starting area, New Tinkertown (the reclaimed portions of Gnomeregan, named after the Gnomish district in the Dwarven capital Ironforge), and with Goblins becoming a playable race for the Horde, greater emphasis is placed on their rivalry.
* In the ''VideoGame/StarFox'' series, all of Fox's wingmen were pretty much the same at the beginning, other than in personality. This was changed in the unreleased ''VideoGame/StarFox2'', which allowed you to choose your character, with each flying a different ship with different properties. It reverted back in ''VideoGame/StarFox64'', where you could only play as characters other than Fox in multiplayer, and that being a purely cosmetic choice. Things stayed that way until ''VideoGame/StarFoxAssault'', which gave the players different stats on the ground (health, running speed, accuracy with weapons) and different strengths in vehicles (Falco was the best Arwing pilot, Slippy was the best Landmaster driver, Fox was a JackOfAllStats, etc.). ''VideoGame/StarFoxCommand'' took things even further and finally incorporated the different ships choices from ''Star Fox 2''.
* ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'':
** In ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2'', Sonic and Tails played the same way. Starting with ''[[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Sonic the Hedgehog 3]]'', Tails was given his own play style (he is unable to use the shield power-ups as double jumps, but gains a limited flying ability). Tails' play style has gotten to the point of being unrecognizable in some of the more recent games, most memorably walking in a mecha in ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2''.
** Also, Shadow in ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2006''. His techniques went from being very similar to Sonic in ''Sonic Adventure 2'' and ''VideoGame/SonicHeroes'' to a different style. However, the fact that he became slower could raise different questions.
** ''VideoGame/SonicGenerations'' has a variation involving stages. [[VideoGame/SonicHeroes Seaside Hill]] was originally a complete throwback to [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog1 Green Hill Zone]], having palm trees and checkered soil, but since Green Hill Zone has reappeared playing up those elements, Seaside Hill in ''Generations'' plays up the ruins and water aspect more and even adding underwater elements.
** Amy was originally a spunky but sweet girl. After Cream was introduced in ''Sonic Advance 2'' less focus was put on Amy being TheHeart and more emphasis was put on her spunk and attitude. This ended up {{flanderiz|ation}}ing her into being more a [[HairTriggerTemper temperamental]] BrattyHalfPint than she originally was. Cream took over as the sweet little girl of the franchise. With time this was reversed. After ''Sonic Generations'' more emphasis was put on Amy's nice side and her energy was dialed down, while Cream was DemotedToExtra.
** When reintroduced in ''VideoGame/SonicGenerations'', Classic Sonic was simply Sonic as a child. By ''VideoGame/SonicForces'' he is a completely separate Sonic from a parallel dimension. He's also differentiated from his Modern design by being a HeroicMime.
* Inverted in the ''VideoGame/FZero'' series. The series originally featured four characters with markedly different play styles, but as the cast expanded to include LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters, those original four have drifted to the middle, becoming little more than mildly differentiated [[JackOfAllStats Jacks of All Stats]].
* In ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters'', Kyo and Iori, like Ryu and Ken, were essentially clones of each other in their original appearance, but their gameplay styles began to diverge as times went by: Kyo lost his fireball and gained more powerful normal moves while Iori became quicker and more mobile.
** And then, by ''The King of Fighters XII'', Iori had lost his fire powers completely, while Kyo pretty much lost his fiery "Rekka-style" moves and had regained his fireball... (Though in ''XIII'', the Rekka-style Kyo and Flames Iori are available as [[DownloadableContent DLC]] alongside the more "classic" Kyo and the flameless Iori.)
** Even more so, Clark and Ralf from the same series (working for an actual honest-to-gosh ColonelBadass, Heidern) start as nearly identical wrestler/brawler characters, but over the years have differentiated so that Ralf has more punching-based "brawling" special moves and fewer and less-effective command throws (although still more than the average character) and Clark has become almost a pure wrestler, with more throws and almost no other special moves. At the same time, their personalities were distinguished, with Clark being the quiet, sensitive, friendly guy and Ralf being quite the BoisterousBruiser. They are both still complete badasses, of course, and compared to the rest of the cast, effectively {{Badass Normal}}s.
*** Even more so when you realize this: in a game where most characters have element-based superpowers and genetically altered genes, Ralf is the only character that has a ''[[MegatonPunch special move that can remove almost two-thirds of your health bar]]''. (And in some circumstances it can take off all of your health bar from 100%!)
*** Also, both were the protagonists of ''VideoGame/IkariWarriors'', [[DubNameChange Paul and Vince]], who both played and looked identical.
** The same goes for Mature and Vice, Rugal's {{Sexy Secretar|y}}ies who [[AscendedExtra made the jump to playable status]] as members of Iori's team in ''KOF '96''. While they already had clear signs of differentiation from the beginning (Mature is a speed-based character, Vice is a grappler), every appearance of theirs since then (excluding ''XIII'' due to [[ArtShift the shift to redrawn, HD sprites]]) has furthered the gap.

* In ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsAlpha'', the player built up their own character by selecting genders, choosing a face (from four males and four females), giving them names, and adding a personality (Cool, Shy, Weird, or HotBlooded) and accompanying voice. The ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsOriginalGeneration'' sub-series combined these factors and fleshed them out into the characters Kusuha Mizuha, Brooklyn "Bullet" Luckfield, Rio Mei Long, Ryoto Hikawa, Leona Garstein, Tasuku Shinguji, Yuuki Jaggar, and Ricarla "Carla" Borgnine (which were the default names associated with each character archetype/gender combination).
** ''Alpha 2'' and ''3'' then adopted the Kusuha and Bullet characters as the canon heroes of ''Alpha'' (with the "player" and main character assumed to have been Kusuha) and developed them even further, taking their story and character development to appropriate extremes.
** It's worth noting that ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWars4'' did this, as well. However, only two of the eight "standard" characters (those being Irmgult "Irm" Kazahara and Ring Mao) have been included in ''Original Generation'' at this time. As a MythologyGag, in OG (and their cameos in ''Alpha'') they're ''significantly'' older than they were in the games they first appeared in, and instead of being a standard couple as per ''4'' and its re-releases, they bicker LikeAnOldMarriedCouple.
* Elves in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'' were short humans with pointed ears. In ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII'', the elves have acquired a much more distinct facial structure and a cultural preference for [[DoesNotLikeShoes going barefoot]] (compare [[http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100116162230/dragonage/images/3/33/NPC-Marethari.png Marethari in Origins]] to [[http://images.wikia.com/dragonage/images/b/b6/MarethariDAII.png Marethari in DA2]]).
* ''VideoGame/MetalSlug'' is a very well known case of progressive Divergent Character Evolution. In the first game, Tarma is basically just a PaletteSwap of Marco, who even had the same death scream as him. In ''2'', although Fio is not an exact Palette Swap of Eri, she also has the same death scream as her. In ''X'' and ''3'', every character had a different death scream at last, and was given some backstory. And finally, in ''6'', they were completely differentiated by being given different in-game abilities.
* ''VideoGame/VirtuaFighter'''s Sarah and Jacky Bryant have very similar fighting styles at first. Throughout the sequels however, they have developed far different fighting styles and backstories over the course of five games. Sarah's official fighting style has been changed from Jeet Kune Do to just Martial Arts (or more specifically, what the Japanese definition of the English term "Martial Arts").

* The all-girl fighting series ''VideoGame/VariableGeo'' has done this exactly twice. Initially, [[TheHero Yuka]] and [[{{Ninja}} Chiho]] played very similarly to one another, with the only real difference between them being their differently animated special moves. However, as the series went on, Chiho developed into more of a GlassCannon by playing up her ninja-ness and giving her new abilities while Yuka remained largely the same [[JackOfAllStats balanced]] character. When Yuka was sidelined for a later game's story mode, she was [[SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute replaced]] with Tamao, an [[AscendedFanboy Ascended]] HeroWorshipper who copied all of Yuka's moves. The following game had them diverge by once again keeping Yuka more or less the same, while turning Tamao into a borderline JokeCharacter who botched her attacks and had to improvise on the fly to stay in the game.
* The original Creator/{{Konami}} ''VideoGame/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtlesTheArcadeGame'' tried to balance the characters: Raphael is the fastest (but with the shortest range), Michelangelo is [[MightyGlacier the strongest (but slowest)]], Donatello has the most range (but is the weakest) and Leonardo [[JackOfAllStats is the second in all attributes]]. The later games had Raph becoming the strongest and Mike the fastest, as it fits their personalities more.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Raiden}}'' and its sequels, the red Raiden (1P) and blue Raiden (2P) play identically except in ''Raiden DX'', in which the two ships differ in which axis they move faster along (Red is faster vertically, Blue is faster horizontally). In ''VideoGame/RaidenFighters'', the two ships are significantly different; the red Raiden (Raiden mk-II) uses the [[FanNickname toothpaste laser]] and a delayed-detonation bomb for its weapons, while the blue one (Raiden mk-II Beta) uses missiles, [[TierInducedScrappy spread shots with no rapid-fire capability, and a weak cluster bomb]].
* In early versions of ''VideoGame/AkatsukiBlitzkampf'', Adler was a palette swap of Elektrosoldat, but when he was turned into his own character his moves got radically different inputs and properties. Similarly, in the arcade version Perfecti is no longer a palette swap of Mycale - she is instead an entirely different character with no shared moves.

* The first ''VideoGame/TwistedMetal'''s character roster contained a dune buggy called Pit Viper which spat out acid blobs as a special attack. However, when the time came for the sequel, instead of repeating the same move (projectiles were extremely common as it stood), they gave it a new one (a jump-based slamming attack) to differentiate it more from other vehicles, and they also redid its color scheme, calling the vehicle Grasshopper from then on.

* Done with several boss characters in ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}}'':
** Kunimitsu was initially a [[ViewerGenderConfusion gender-neutral]] PaletteSwap of Yoshimitsu, but in the second game was clearly modeled as female and given a slightly different moveset. The first ''Tekken Tag Tournament'' uses her ''Tekken 2'' persona and moves with a few additional touches, but in ''Tekken Tag Tournament 2'' she was given a brand new move set that differentiates her from Yoshimitsu.
** Jin started as a SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute for his father Kazuya, but with a few moves from his mother Jun (who was also absent). Jin got his own fighting style when Kazuya came back in ''4''.
** Anna started out as what amounted to an alternative costume for her sister Nina. Nowadays Anna has an almost entirely different moveset, and some of the moves she still shares with Nina have been given a personal twist. Notably, she was only included in ''Tekken 3'' at the last minute, whereas other clone characters weren't, which meant they significantly changed her moves from that point on.
** In the first two games Lee was a clone of Marshall Law with the occasional special move. From ''Tekken Tag Tournament'' onward, he grew to be a more distinctive character with better combos.
** Jack and P-Jack had the same moves in the first ''Tekken'' game, although P-Jack was more powerful and looked cooler. In the second, P-Jack can fly whereas Jack-2 can't. This was carried over to Gun Jack and all the Jacks afterwards, as well as being retroactively applied to Jack-2 when he appeared in ''Tekken Tag Tournament''.
*** In the first game, Jack, P. Jack, Kuma and Ganryu used almost entirely the same moveset. This was expanded slightly in ''Tekken 2'', giving them individual special moves, but they still had a lot of the core moves. P. Jack notably introduced his flight ability. ''Tekken 3'' sought to resolve the similarities by getting rid of clone characters, so it removed Ganryu, only included one Jack (Gun Jack) who had P. Jack's introduced moves, and introduced Kuma's son, [[{{Flanderization}} who can't hit as hard as the original Kuma]] and has some [[JokeCharacter comedy special moves]], as well as his clone, Panda. Ganryu was absent from ''Tekken 4'' as well but had an updated moveset when he returned in ''Tekken 5''. Also in ''Tekken 5'', Kuma and Ganryu were both given different punch moves to differentiate them from Jack-5. By ''Tekken Tag Tournament 2'' you can play as all four and they are all sufficiently different.
** In ''Tekken 4'', Miharu Hirano once shared the moveset of her friend Ling Xiayou. It's not until ''Tekken Tag Tournament 2'' where she finally becomes her own character and different moveset variations. Not to mention that she got ProgressivelyPrettier.
* ''VideoGame/{{Metal Gear Solid 2|SonsOfLiberty}}'''s Raiden starts out playing identically to Snake. It isn't until the very end of the game that he gets the sword that allows him to showcase his ImplausibleFencingPowers, which Snake doesn't possess. His switch from being a gameplay clone of Snake to having his own play style is actually part of the plot.
* ''VideoGame/MegaManX3'' gave Zero his first playable appearance, where he played like X but with a Beam Saber upgrade (which X could gain later in the game). In the next game, Zero traded his Z Buster style for a purely close range style to completely distance himself from his partner.
** ''[[VideoGame/MegaManX7 X7]]'', with Axl's debut appearance. Aside from his Copy, dodge, hovering and a couple of different guns, Axl was very similar to X in style and how he used enemy weapons. ''[[VideoGame/MegaManX8 X8]]'' modified Axl's play style: he retained his Copy, dodge and hover moves, while getting the unique ability to aim his gun in the eight cardinal directions (though he had to stand/hover in one place while firing, unlike X). For each boss defeated, he instead received a new gun that fired projectiles based on a secondary attack each boss used, with different looks and properties from X's, and without needing weapon energy to boot.
* ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' contains an interesting example that applies to the series as a whole. One of the basic concepts behind BN was the idea of a divergent timeline [[ForWantOfANail where Dr. Light turned to network technology rather than robotics]]. This idea informed the series up until ''Battle Network 4'', which introduced an alternate version of Classic Mega Man character Duo... problem is, Duo shouldn't have ''had'' an alternate version, [[NonSequiturCausality since he's from outer space]]. From then on, Battle Network was less and less informed by the Classic series, and its sequel SpinOff, ''VideoGame/MegaManStarForce'', didn't even bother to look back.
* Happens in the ''VideoGame/SengokuBasara'' series with Matsu and Kasuga. Both formerly used Kenshin and Sasuke's movesets before gaining their own in the second game. Similarly, a few [=NPCs=] who used polearms merely had copies of either Toshie or Shingen's movesets before actually getting their own.
* In ''VideoGame/RhythmHeaven'' for the GBA, the Space Dancers and Cosmo Dancers were interchangeable, the Cosmo Dancers only representing a higher difficulty level. In the DS version, both sets of dancers received minor redesigns and hobbies, with the Space Dancers being the focus of the Rhythm Rally games and the Cosmo Dancers being the focus of the Space Soccer games.

* When ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom2'' came out, this trope came into play with Iron Man and War Machine (who debuted in the previous game as a palette swap of the former). Originally, War Machine had a very similar moveset, with one extra special move (a ducking laser) and one extra Hyper. However, even with that game, there was a secret palette swap (Hyper Armor War Machine) that used missiles for his special attacks instead of lasers. So when Iron Man and War Machine were used in the same game, they went with his alternate missile-heavy moveset for War Machine while keeping Iron Man's original laser-heavy moveset.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Battletoads}}'' and ''Battletoads and VideoGame/DoubleDragon'', the toads all played the same, and while large sprites and artwork gave them individual designs, their in-game sprites were just recolors. ''Battletoads in Battlemaniacs'' gave them different combos and finishing moves (though they still functioned the same) and their sprites now reflected the different designs from the artwork. The arcade game took this even further with by making Rash a FragileSpeedster, Zitz a JackOfAllStats, and Pimple a MightyGlacier, all with their own moves.
** Similarly initially all the toads used the same transformations, mostly blunt objets like ram horns, boots, and wrecking balls. Battlemaniacs gave them individual themes, with Rash prefering razor sharp weapons like axes and claws, while Pimple took the bludgeoning techniques UpToEleven using anvils and stone fists. When the arcade game came in, Zitz used his greater intellect to create technology like bulldozers and power drills.
* In the original ''VideoGame/ValkyrieProfile'', Lenneth was the only playable valkyrie, so there was no need to set her apart from her sisters. She could use swords and bows in battle. Hrist appears as an enemy in the game as well, but she's just a PaletteSwap of Lenneth, with black armor and hair and a red Nibelung Valesti. In [[VideoGame/ValkyrieProfile2Silmeria the second game]], all three valkyries are playable. Lenneth loses her ability to use bows, and they become the weapon of choice for Silmeria. Hrist uses spears in battle, a weapon that Lenneth couldn't use at all in the first game. All three sisters use swords for Nibelung Valesti, though.
* The Materials of the ''VideoGame/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaAsPortable'' games. When they were originally introduced as a trio of {{Evil Twin}}s in ''The Battle of Aces'', they were basically {{Palette Swap}}s of the three Aces except with different stats. When they returned in ''The Gears of Destiny'' sequel due to [[BreakoutVillain popular demand]], they received their own unique move sets to differentiate them from their originals. This gets several {{Lampshade Hanging}}s in sequel and the [[AllThereInTheManual supplementary materials]] related to it, such as the Materials explaining that the time they spent [[FromASingleCell recovering from their deaths]] was used to devise their own fighting styles and spells, and other characters pointing out that for copies, they don't actually act, fight, or even look that much like the people they were supposed to be based on.
* Zigzagged throughout the ''Franchise/{{Disgaea}}'' series. In the [[VideoGame/DisgaeaHourOfDarkness first]] game, many of the basic creatable classes have male-female variation, which except for sprites and ''tiny'' Stat variations, are exactly the same. In the [[VideoGame/Disgaea2CursedMemories second game]], each class is given different unique passive abilities to differentiate them, and there are more variations to the Stat spread of the male-female variants (like how the Male Warrior has better HP and DEF and is better at [[AnAxeToGrind Axe]] while the Female Warrior has more HIT and SPD and better with [[BladeOnAStick Spears]]). The [[VideoGame/Disgaea3AbsenceOfJustice third game, however]] introduces ''more'' male-female variants to the existing single-gender classes (for example now there's a male version of the previously female-only Archers), with differing Evilities and secondary weapon (the male archer can also learn Sword skills while the female can learn Spear skills), but nearly identical Stats. The [[VideoGame/Disgaea4APromiseUnforgotten fourth game]] then removes nearly all gender variants introduced in the third game.
* In ''VideoGame/PacManParty'', the four iconic ghosts of VideoGame/PacMan were given more distinctive looks in order to differentiate one another. No longer were they simple {{Palette Swap}}s of one another. Each of the ghosts had distinctive "hairstyles". Blinky retained the basic ghost shape, Inky was made skinnier, Pinky was given more feminine features, and Clyde became fat and huge.
* In ''VisualNovel/HigurashiWhenTheyCry Matsuri'' [[spoiler:Hanyuu's daughter]] Oka looked exactly like Rika except that her hair was darker. In the Kotohogushi-hen arc in ''Kizuna'' for the UsefulNotes/NintendoDS she received a slight redesign and also received her own artwork.
* "Soap" [=MacTavish=] was the typical silent protagonist for the British missions in ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty 4: VideoGame/ModernWarfare'' who played identically to, and was effectively interchangeable with, Paul Jackson from the American missions. In ''Modern Warfare 2'' and ''3'', he was made into a non-player character for several missions, and accordingly given a strong personality and voice actor.
** Price's first playable level in ''[=CoD4=]'' likewise had him play identically to Soap, right down to being silent despite the dialogue he gets in the rest of the game. When he's playable again for the finale of ''3'', he's taken a cue from the ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyBlackOps'' cast and talks just as much under your control as he did when an NPC, and for the first half of the mission he's also given NighInvulnerable Juggernaut armor that Soap and all the other player characters never had access to.
* ''VideoGame/KidIcarus'' has a rather strange example in that it originated in an entirely different series: Pit has a PaletteSwap in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosBrawl'' which gave him black hair and black wings, but it differed in appearance only. In ''VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising'' they took that palette swap and turned him into the anti-hero Dark Pit, with an entirely different personality and having layers of depth. In the ''Kid Icarus'' canon Dark Pit spends the first 15 minutes of his existence thinking he's the real Pit, and for most of the game [[CloningBlues he's really bitter about being a clone]], seen by the world as little more than an EvilKnockoff. Eventually he finds out that GoodFeelsGood (in contrast to regular Pit who indulges in the KnightInShiningArmor image) and settles into a comfortable rhythm. Things came full circle in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'', in which Dark Pit is a separate character from Pit, but with almost no difference in moveset (which the following game would term an "Echo Fighter") and little opportunity to display the difference in personality.
* ''VideoGame/PunchOut'' has a fair few characters that have evolved over the years, the most notable being [[FightingIrish Aran Ryan]]. In the SNES game, he was a bland palette swap of Pizza Pasta who fought by the rules. In the Wii game, he's a ''[[AxCrazy complete lunatic]]'' who [[{{Heel}} threatens Mac, the referee and the audience]]. He breaks just about every rule of boxing, from using his elbows to loading his gloves with horseshoes to tying a rope to one of said horseshoe gloves and ''using it as a flail.''

* The ''{{VideoGame/Persona 3}}'' and ''{{VideoGame/Persona 4}}'' crossover, ''VideoGame/PersonaQShadowOfTheLabyrinth'', did this for both its main protagonists and the {{Mission Control}}s Fuuka and Rise.
** The protagonists of ''3'' and ''4'' are both identical in their base games in that they can change their Personas constantly, and thus they have no fixed stats or skillset, unlike their teammates who only have one Persona each. In ''Q'', however, everyone can equip a sub-Persona in addition to their main ones, so both protagonists are given differing builds. The P4 hero is a JackOfAllStats who specializes in [[ShockAndAwe lightning magic]], while the P3 hero's stats are generally higher than the rest of the party and specializes in [[PlayingWithFire fire magic.]] The P3 hero's higher stats are likely to compensate that he starts off weak to two elements (one being the instant-killing [[CastingAShadow dark element]]).
** The two support characters, Fuuka and Rise, served identical roles in their games, although in the ''Golden'' re-release of ''P4,'' Rise was given additional battle-assisting skills that Fuuka never got in ''P3.'' In ''PQ'', Fuuka's skills revolve around [[TheMedic healing]], while Rise's skills streamline and make battles more efficient (she can cut SP costs for on round, and her ultimate skill makes the party completely immune to damage for a turn).
* ''VideoGame/BloodyRoar 2'' handles this rather oddly: for starters, the clone character, Shenlong, is [[CloningBlues a literal clone]] of the returning character Long. On top of that, it's ''Long'' who gets a new moveset, while Shenlong has Long's moves from the first game. From ''3'' on they switched, with Long getting his old moves back and Shenlong getting a similar but simplified moveset. Similar cases involve Yugo and Uriko, whose movesets changed rather drastically in the second game (Yugo going from an untrained kid to a professional boxer, Uriko going from a BrainwashedAndCrazy {{Super|Soldier}}-{{Child Soldier|s}} as the FinalBoss to a playable student of the aforementioned Long) and, respectively, Fang (secret character in ''Extreme'' who shares Yugo's moveset from the first game) and Uranus (secret character in ''3'' onwards who is essentially a playable version of final-boss Uriko). More traditional examples involve Shina (the adopted daughter of Gado) and the second Bakuryu and Kohryu (respectively the {{legacy|Character}} and a resurrected mecha-clone of the original Bakuryu), who play rather similarly to, but still distinctive from their originators. Not to mention as well Jenny and Stun, who are straight-up [[SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute replacements]] for Fox and Mitsuko and keep their general playstyles while adding more moves to make them unique.
* Subfactions were introduced in the later ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquer'' games to give the existing factions diversity in multiplayer matches; previous games with different countries/factions/whatever simply had one or two slightly-changed attributes that [[GuideDangIt you are never made aware of]] (''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlert'') or one unit/ability no one else gets or has to rely on tech buildings to use (''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlert2'').
* ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'': Zig-zagged with Nu-13 and Lambda-11. Nu was written out after the first game, with Lambda replacing her with some balance changes (Nu was still present as her [[SuperMode Unlimited Form]]). Lambda was written out after the second, with Nu coming back with the ability to use both movesets, ''then'' in the UpdatedRerelease, Lambda came back, Nu lost the extra moves, and while the two do still have very similar movesets, their Drives (character specific gimmick) and Overdrives (temporary power up) work differently, Lambda going for quality and Nu for quantity.
** This extends to their characterizations. Both started as [[CloningBlues tortured]] [[EmptyShell automatons]] who obeyed without question and eventually became childlike, but in different ways. Nu is a [[OmnicidalManiac world-hating]] {{Yandere}} who wants to kill/screw/fuse with her [[VillainousIncest "brother"]] Ragna [[MasochismTango and views their fights as a budding romance]]. Lambda is mostly innocent and [[TheWorldIsJustAwesome curious about the world]], has a healthy relationship with her [[BigBrotherInstinct "big sister"]] Noel and only fights because Kokonoe [[ShootTheDog reluctantly orders her to.]]
** [[spoiler: Defied for the following pairs; Jin and Hakumen, Noel and Mu-12, Tsubaki and Izayoi, Hazama and Terumi; despite those pairs being ''the exact same person'', they have nothing in common (sans Jin and Hakumen sharing a super)]]
* The VideoGame/GundamVsSeries has an odd example of this with [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing Wing Gundam Zero]]. Firstly, ''Gundam vs. Gundam Next'' had only the TV version, but the home version added the ''Endless Waltz'' version, which was given unique traits. The sequel series ''Gundam Extreme Vs.'' started with only the movie version (which was a CompositeCharacter of the ''Next'' incarnations), but ''Extreme Vs. Full Boost'' brought back the TV version, which required '''re'''-divergence. Ironically, this lead to the two swapping some of their traits: In ''Next'', Wing Zero TV was ranged-centric and fired continuous beams from its [[{{BFG}} twin buster rifle]] while Wing Zero EW was more melee-focused and fired beam shots; in ''Extreme Vs.'' it's the other way around. Other changes include Wing Zero EW being more agile (since it's not a TransformingMecha) while Wing Zero TV has the ZERO System as a temporary buff that negates enemy tracking.
* In the original ''VideoGame/ConquestOfTheNewWorld'', all European powers were created equal, and only the High Native player functioned differently. In the Deluxe Edition, this was changed to give each power (including the Natives) a buff, causing each power to play slightly differently. For example, the French get better native relations and dominant cavalry, while the Dutch are masters of finance and the European trade.
* Genbei "Jaguar" Yagyu inverts this trope between ''Neo VideoGame/{{Contra}}'' and ''Contra [=ReBirth=]''. In ''Neo'', he's slower but more powerful than series protagonist Bill Rizer, and you can unlock the option to replace one of his guns with a powerful but melee-range katana. In ''[=ReBirth=]'', he not only plays identically to Bill, but dresses like him, too.
* ''VideoGame/StarCraft'' was derisively called ''VideoGame/WarCraft'' "IN SPACE!", but the two have diverged over the years with the former staying mostly true to its RTS roots while ''Warcraft'' has transformed into [[VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft an MMORPG]].
** Parodied by a StopPokingMe line from Artanis:
-->'''Artanis:''' This is ''not'' Warcraft in space! It's much more sophisticated!
* The ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlertSeries'' started as a possible prequel spin-off of the ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberianSeries''. ''Red Alert 2'' made that portion of the franchise known for being DenserAndWackier.
* When ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriors'' first came out, an art book revealed that the developers had toyed around with the concept of a female version of Link before rejecting it. When making the ''Legends'' UpdatedRerelease, they brushed off the concept and made a new CanonForeigner character called Linkle. Instead of just being Link only female, like the original concept art portrayed, Linkle's final design bears some similarities to Link (green clothes, blond hair, pointy ears) but also some sharp contrasts: Link is a legendary hero while Linkle only ''thinks'' she's one, Linkle is a GenkiGirl in contrast to how (adult) Link tends to be TheStoic, and Link is primarily a swordsman but Linkle is TheGunslinger with dual crossbows.
* Franchise/DonkeyKong and Mario started on [[VideoGame/DonkeyKong the same game]] but the latter got [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros his own game franchise]] known for its speed and wide open levels while the former remained a slow-moving puzzle game. DK got a second lease on life when ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry1'' was released on SNES and he finally got his own fast-paced game complete with distinct gameplay and style.
* ''Franchise/{{Kirby}}'':
** While not "characters" in the traditional sense, Bomb Kirby and Mirror Kirby were originally PaletteSwaps of Sword Kirby and Beam Kirby, respectively. Newer installments of the ''Kirby'' series have given Bomb Kirby and Mirror Kirby more distinct designs to make it easier to tell them apart.
** Something similar happened with Ninja Kirby and Stone Kirby, both used the same sprite: Kirby with a samurai hat but with different body colors. Later installments have changed this to have Ninja Kirby wear a Naruto-esque Robe and Stone Kirby to wear a stone crown with bull horns, dismissing the samurai hat idea entirely.
** In ''VideoGame/KirbyAndTheAmazingMirror'', Dark Meta Knight was simply a PaletteSwap EvilTwin of Meta Knight and shared the latter's fighting style. Later games give him a more threatening look with tattered wings and a scarred mask. He also received a brand-new fighting style that emphasizes wild and reckless attacks to contrast Meta Knight's finesse and restraint, along with mirror-based attacks to [[IncrediblyLamePun reflect]] his origins as a resident of the Mirror World.
* The ''Franchise/{{Doom}}'' series has the Hell Knight, introduced in ''Doom II'' as a less durable palette-swapped [[EliteMook Baron of Hell]] that fought exactly the same by throwing green fireballs. In ''VideoGame/{{Doom 3}}'' they got a different appearance and served the same role as the Baron of Hell, being a more durable enemy that still threw green fire. Come [[VideoGame/{{Doom2016}} the 2016 game]], the Hell Knight is now a CloseRangeCombatant with similar looks to its ''Doom 3'' incarnation and lacks a fireball attack, while the Baron of Hell fights with both close and long range green attacks while still retaining [[BigRedDevil its looks from the first game]].
* In ''VideoGame/{{Paladins}}'', Cassie originally used a bow as her weapon. When another archer was added in the form of Sha Lin, Cassie was later redesigned with a crossbow to differentiate the two. It helps that Cassie's bow acted more like a crossbow in the first place, lacking the ChargedAttack expected from bows.
* Although there was never a game that featured the singular character, early versions of ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' had Genji and Hanzo's designs and abilities rolled into a single cyber-samurai character named Genji. Eventually, a diverge was made to give the character's name, cybernetics, and more ninja-like powers to Genji, and the remaining bowman characteristics were given to Hanzo.
* An inverted example from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' and ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII'': Cloud Strife and Squall Leonhart. While they both start as difficult and selfish people, and undergo significant development during their respective games, they actually had very distinct personalities. Cloud is a cocky, arrogant tough guy with plenty of light and goofy moments, while Squall starts off as a solitary {{jerkass}} who puts up a false wall of confidence to hide his emotional turmoil. Then you look at any version of them from ''Advent Children'' onwards, and they've practically swapped: Squall is the confident, snarky one and Cloud is constantly brooding, plagued by crushing doubt.
* Giana's sister in ''VideoGame/TheGreatGianaSisters'' started out as simply a green haired {{Palette Swap}} of her. ''VideoGame/GianaSistersTwistedDreams'' revamped her design to be more individual. While Giana has blonde hair in a bob and wears a blue dress, Maria has her green hair in a long ponytail with a ribbon in it and wears a red dress. Her design in the endless runner spinoff ''Dream Runners'' however dials her back to essentially a palette swap, however all the characters in that game look near-identical.
* In ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'' series has a Justified example when this happened to Peryite, the [[OurGodsAreDifferent Daedric Prince]] of [[{{Plaguemaster}} Pestilence]], Tasks, and Order, upon the introduction of Jyggalag, Daedric Prince of Order, in ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion Oblivion]]'''s ''Shivering Isles'' expansion. Peryite's association with "Order" became downplayed and replaced with "Natural Order", essentially the cycle of growth and decay. Meanwhile, Jyggalag came to represent the idea of "Perfect Order", essentially inorganic stasis. The implication is that Peryite became tasked with representing the greater scope of "order" while Jyggalag was [[spoiler:[[SealedInsideAPersonShapedCan sealed as]] [[MadGod Sheogorath]]]], because [[SomeoneHasToDoIt Someone Had To Do It]]. It also helps to explain why Peryite is looked down upon as a "loathesome" ButtMonkey by the other Daedric Princes, who are primarily [[OrderVersusChaos chaotic in nature]]. Come ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]]'', Peryite's quest fully emphasizes his association with [[MysticalPlague pestilence]].

** [[VideoGame/SuperMarioLand Daisy]] was so similar to Princess Peach in her original appearance that [[{{Fanon}} many fans assumed she was the same character]]. ([[Film/SuperMarioBros The movie]] doesn't help the confusion, either.) Daisy has since been split off into a more tomboyish cowgirl portrayal, especially shown in games such as ''Mario Strikers''. She's also become a [[BetaCouple potential]] [[PairTheSpares love]] [[MasculineGirlFeminineBoy interest]] for Luigi. Daisy was originally nearly a palette swap of Peach, with the only exception of being redesigned for the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64 era to have slightly tanned skin while Peach was fair skinned. By ''Mario Party 4'' and later, Daisy's skin became fair like Peach's again, but Daisy's hair was shortened to neck length, she received a different hairstyle, a wider face, a brand new voice actor in ''Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour'', and her eyes were made larger in comparison to Peach's eyes. Her body frame was also changed to look chubbier than Peach's in ''Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash''.