History Main / CollapsingLair

* In ''Film/TheWorldsEnd'', it's the titular pub, taking the entire town with it. [[spoiler: Probably a deliberate Taking You with Me ploy by the Network.]]

* ''Fanfic/TheImmortalGame'': After [[SuperpoweredEvilSide Nihilus]] is destroyed by the Elements of Harmony, her [[OminousFloatingCastle floating citadel]] falls apart and disintegrates.

* ''Fanfic/GuardiansWizardsAndKungFuFighters'':
** When his manor is attacked by Phobos' forces, [[KnowledgeBroker Ludmoore]] triggers a magical SelfDestructMechanism which blows up the building (destroying the whole villa in the process) just after everyone flees.
** After he stops being a PlayAlongPrisoner and breaks out of his cell in [[TheAlcatraz Cavigor]] during the Guardians' attack on the prison, [[spoiler: Drago]] reveals that as a contingency plan he flooded the walls and foundation with his fire magic, causing the whole thing to start to fall apart. This allows him to escape among the chaos.
* ''Fanfic/{{Empathy}}'':
** Yokai's lair on Akuma Island ends up totally collapsing due to damage sustained by the fight against him [[spoiler: and the Gorg.]]
** [[spoiler: The Gorg's ship slowly comes apart and ultimately explodes as a result of damage from its climatic fight against the heroes.]]
* ''Fanfic/ChildrenOfAnElderGod'' has this happen to R'yleh after the Children [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu kill Cthulhu]] during the FinalBattle -- without his presence warping things, the normal laws of reality kick back in, causing the city (and its whole island) to collapse under the weight of its AlienGeometries.
* In ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/5533543/36/Moon-Fire Moon Fire]]'' Riddle Manor starts collapsing after Snape kills Voldemort.
* ''Fanfic/BecomingATrueInvader'': During the showdown with [[ArcVillain Pel]], her temple is damaged enough that it ends up completely collapsing.

* Deconstructed in ''Film/NationalTreasure 2''. The ending plays out with a large amount of water flooding the treasure chamber, to set up a "treasure is found and lost forever"-scenario... only to cut to the main character cataloguing the contents of the water-free treasure chamber. It turns out that draining and re-excavating a temple in the middle of nowhere in the 19th or 20th century might be impossible, but in the US, under a major landmark, in the 21st? The cost could be hidden in the rounding errors of the National Park Service's budget, and the room, without the treasure, would probably pay for itself in increased tourist revenue.

* Parodied in the [[WebAnimation/HomestarRunner Strong Bad Email]] [[http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail173.html the paper]]: "How is this island sinking? I didn't even kill any end bosses!"

* Happens in the ''WesternAnimation/DangerMouse'' episode "All Fall Down," and indirectly attributed to Colonel K. Mac the Fork and Dudley Poyson built an earth shattering device which they activate. The building they're in collapses only as Colonel K had spilled some tea on the device's blueprint this altering its primary function.

* Happens a couple of times in ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'':

Why is this useful, apart from topping the FinalBattle with an exciting escape scene to safety (after which you can directly cut to the happy end celebrations)? Think about it. The BigBad has had a massive base, with several valuable gadgets, and many remaining lesser minions. You definitely do not want to drag out the story by having the hero deal with them one by one too, much less to put his hands on something that could [[StatusQuoIsGod change the status quo]]. Better just blow it all up. And best of all, once you do actually make it out alive, you get the immensely satisfying shot of [[TheRuinsICaused the hero looking on as the Supervillain Lair goes bye-bye in spectacular fashion]].

** Kyurem from the fifteenth movie subverts this. When his lair starts to collapse from the fight he had with Keldeo, he freezes the entire place after the heroes escape so that he could continue to [[IncrediblyLamePun chill]] in there.

[[caption-width-right:350:Yeah, I'm ''''skedaddling''''' outta here!]]

* Like in the games, ComicBook/MegaMan's confrontations with Dr. Wily tend to end this way. For example, Dr. Wily set off a self-destruct in his second fortress to try and kill Mega Man while he escaped and the third one fell apart because Wily tore it to bits trying to kill Mega Man with Gamma.

* In ''VideoGame/SpiderMan'', Spidey plugs up the vents that's spewing the chemicals allowing people to bond to symbiotes, then defeats Dr. Octopus and Carnage. When Monster Ock shows up, the base starts falling apart due to the build up and Spidey must escape from the base while making sure Monster Ock doesn't try to kill him.

* ''VideoGame/ForTheKing'': The [[TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon tower Haruzuel]] collapses when the heroes defeat the final boss within and end the flow of [[ChaosIsEvil Chaos energy]] into the world. [[spoiler:The collapse [[TheHeroDies kills the heroes]] in the endgame cutscene, leaving the Queen to honour them with a MemorialStatue.]]

* At the end of the "Dangerous Days" arc in ''Webcomic/SluggyFreelance'', the building Hereti Corp set the building they had used for the Aylee project to self-destruct. This is apparently standard Hereti Corp procedure for anything they might lose, even bagels.
%% * ''Webcomic/MinionsAtWork'': [[http://www.minionsatwork.com/2006/05/minions-5-unemployment-sucs.html Well, I see here your last place of employment self-destructed]]
* A rare protagonist (sorta?) example comes from ''{{Webcomic/Erfworld}}''. After the Coalition forces overwhelm Gobwin Knob and nearly destroy the city, Parson Gotti orders everyone into the caverns, then has their remaining casters link up to use their various magic powers to awaken the dormant volcano beneath the mountain. The resulting explosive eruption wipes out not only the city (which gets fixed soon after), but the entirety of the Coalition forces.
* ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'': The Dungeon of Dorukan collapses after the Order of the Stick defeats Xykon and [[spoiler:Elan activates the [[SelfDestructMechanism self-destruct rune]]]].

* Happens in ''Webcomic/{{Panthera}}'' when [[spoiler: Oosterhuis]] destroys the load-bearing columns of the underground facility when he loses his alias and his support, leaving Panthera [[spoiler: and several FBI agents]] in the collapsing room.

* Lord Milligan from ''Webcomic/CaseyAndAndy'' has set up a device to register his heartbeat and, if it's absent, will trigger explosives in his base. Quantum Crook takes Lord Milligan hostage in one instance to get the heroes to back off, knowing that Milligan is a CardCarryingVillain and would have invoked this trope.

* The golden temple in ''[[Webcomic/FifteenMinds Blue Moon Blossom]]'' where the bunny and dino found [[spoiler:the rabbit spirit]] starts to collapse as soon as [[spoiler:the spirit]] is released from the crystal it'd been sealed in.

* [[EvilOverlordList Evil Overlord Rule]] No. 107 : Even though I don't really care because I plan on living forever, I will hire engineers who are able to build me a fortress sturdy enough that, if I am slain, it won't tumble to the ground for no good structural reason.

* Standard for ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb'''s [[TwoLinesNoWaiting B story]] involving Dr. Doofenshmirtz and Perry the Platypus.

* ''WesternAnimation/ClerksTheAnimatedSeries'' parodied this when Dante and Randal escape from an ''Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom''-style mine, and Randal stops to pull a lever on the wall marked "do not pull". The entire mountain then begins to collapse.

* Dark Heart's lair in ''WesternAnimation/CareBearsMovieIIANewGeneration'', after [[spoiler:he makes a HeelFaceTurn]].
* Happens in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'', to ''the Vatican'', no less -- after Father Maxi blows his top at the complete idiocy and uncaringness of the Vatican officials and others who not only [[PaedoHunt molest children]], but [[ItMakesSenseInContext also worship a "queen spider"]], he tears the ancient "Holy Document of Vatican Law" (which he'd spent part of the episode tracking down) in two; somehow, this causes St. Peter's Basilica to collapse, killing much of the [[PedophilePriest Pedophile Priests]] in the room.
* ''WesternAnimation/SuperRobotMonkeyTeamHyperforceGo'': The Citadel of Bone, with a twist -- [[spoiler: it can pull itself back together afterwards.]]
* Used ''all the time'' in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries''. As an episode nears its end, you just know that the whole place Batman is currently at is about to explode, collapse or get destroyed in some contrived way.
** ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'' is ''even'' worse and moves this into [[UpToEleven outright trope abuse territory]]. It's almost assured that the final setpiece will explode into flames somehow. Trying to make a drinking out of this trope '''WILL''' kill you.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSmurfsAChristmasCarol'', Grouchy deals with a collapsing bookshelf in Gargamel's lair when Azrael chases after him.
* In the ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' episode "Daring Don't", the removal of the [[ArtifactOfDoom Rings of Destiny]] from the altar causes the collapse of Ahuizotl's temple.
* [[BigBad Cobra Commander's]] mansion in the final episode of ''WesternAnimation/GIJoeRenegades''.
* ''WesternAnimation/SupermanTheAnimatedSeries'': In the episode [[Recap/SupermanTheAnimatedSeriesS2E6IdentityCrisis "Identity Crisis"]], Lex Luthor uses a SelfDestructMechanism at the end of the episode to cause his lab to collaspe, destroying any evidence of his illegal Kryptonian cloning experiments.
%%* ''WesternAnimation/InspectorGadget'' has occasionally featured this in the first season, usually caused by [[CluelessDetective Gadget's incompetence or clumsiness]], most notably in "Sleeping Gas" and "The Coo-Coo Clock Caper."

%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1444904621069881900
%% Please do not replace or remove without starting a new thread.

* The Halcon research facility falls apart at the end of ''Anime/AppleseedExMachina'' for no apparent reason, other than to fulfill the cliché. In fact, it has no other reason even to exist!

* In ''Manga/PokemonDiamondAndPearlAdventure'', Jupiter blows up the Galactic base to prevent their secrets from getting out. But since this happens in volume 5 of an 8 volume series, when next we return to Veilstone, [[spoiler:Charon]] has rebuilt it to be what it was in the Platinum version of the game.

* ''Anime/YuGiOh'' gives us Seto Kaiba and his Battle Tower; after the finals, [[SoreLoser he blows it up!]] But just a few episodes before that, we have Gozaburo Kaiba, who triggers a meltdown so our heroes can't escape.

* Subverted in ''ComicBook/AllFallDown'': The Order of Despots' SupervillainLair on the Moon is still intact and fully operational two years later.
* Like in the games, ComicBook/MegaMan's confrontations with Dr. Wily tend to end this way. For example, Dr. Wily set off a self-destruct in his second fortress to try and kill Mega Man while he escaped and the third one fell apart because Wily tore it to bits trying to kill Mega Man with Gamma.
* In ''ComicBook/RedRobin'' Tim causes several League of Assassins lairs to collapse on his way out the door after infiltrating the league. It has the added benefit of trapping the mostly super-powered group of assassins currently chasing him and the civilian he is protecting underground for a while too.
* ''ComicBook/TheFurtherAdventuresOfIndianaJones'': In #25, the fake [[CityOfGold El Dorado]] turns out to a be a trap designed by the Incas to destroy the Spanish invaders. When the one real item of gold is removed, the entire complex collapses.
* In ''ComicBook/SherlockHolmesAndTheHorrorOfFrankenstein'', Dr. Pretorious sets the electrical equipment in his dungeon lab to overload as he is attacked by the FrankensteinMonster and his mate. Holmes and Watson, who have been locked out of the lab, make a mad scramble up the stiars and outside as the corridor starts to explode behind them. They just make it outside and dive for cover as the entire castle explodes and collapse in on itself.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheJungleBook1967'' features this occurance when Baloo & Bagheera fight the band of monkeys over Mowgli. Justified because of all the damage the ruined city endures during the squabble, with several pillars being destroyed.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheThiefAndTheCobbler'' has One-Eye's elaborate war machine falling apart, with the Thief still inside trying to get the Golden Balls.

* In ''Film/JupiterAscending'', the headquarters of Balem's corporation, located on Jupiter, begins to be demolished because the "grav-hull [was] ruptured," and "[t]he gas was reacting to the stockworks", due to Caine's vessel having punctured the barrier around the planet and crashed into several structures. Maybe it was a bad idea to establish a base of operations on a planet so naturally hostile to life and machinery alike.
* All the ''Franchise/IndianaJones'' movies have a large building getting destroyed (''Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk'' has part of the Chachapoyan temple, ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheTempleOfDoom'' has the mine, ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheLastCrusade'' has the inside of the Grail Temple, and ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheKingdomOfTheCrystalSkull'', the entire city of Akator).
* In the horror film ''Film/Suspiria1977'', after the head witch is stabbed, not only are all the other witches seen rolling around on the floor clutching at invisible neck wounds, but the whole ballet school tears itself apart, with furniture flinging itself through windows, walls cracking, beams falling and unlikely objects, such as statues and door knobs, simply exploding for no good reason. When Susan walks away at the end, the whole place is on fire.
* The destruction of the enemy mothership in ''Film/IndependenceDay'' with a [[TimeBomb tactical nuclear missile with a 30 second timer]].

* ''Film/OurManFlint''. Derek Flint's sabotage of the machinery in Galaxy's IslandBase causes it to blow up and destroy the base.

* At the end of ''Film/BeneathThePlanetOfTheApes'', a cobalt bomb in an underground mutant lair is detonated and wipes out not only the lair, but [[EarthShatteringKaboom all Earth]] (This was detonated by Col. Taylor himself-- which is ironic, since he cursed mankind for doing the same in the original ''Film/PlanetOfTheApes1968'' ([[EarthAllAlong "Statue of Liberty ruins" scene]]).
* ''Film/TheMummy1999'' ends with a temple collapsing after Benny accidentally activates the "sink into sand" system. ''The Mummy Returns'' ends with an oasis and the pyramid it houses vanishing into the desert, but due to LoadBearingBoss.
* In ''Film/ConanTheDestroyer'', an entire tower collapses shortly after the wizard's death with one character giving the hand-waved explanation, "It was all an illusion."
* Many ''Film/JamesBond'' movies end with Bond escaping from the villain's Collapsing Lair.
** In ''Film/DrNo'', this is first done when James Bond superheats the pool reactor setting the titular villain's hideout on a path to a terrific explosion.
** Turned on its head in ''Film/{{Skyfall}}'' where [[spoiler:the Collapsing Lair is BOND'S ancestral home.]]
** [[spoiler: Then in ''Film/{{Spectre}}'', [[BigBad Ernst Stavro Blofeld]] does this to the [[MonumentalDamage abandoned MI6 building in London]] to kill Bond after some EvilGloating. Also combined with an attempt to [[PyrrhicVictory ruin Bond's life if he survives]] by [[KillTheCutie trying to kill Bond's]] {{girl of the week}}, which if it succeeded, would have [[RecycledScript been reminiscent of]] ''[[Film/CasinoRoyale2006 Casino Royale]]''. As the building comes down, you can see the OhTheHumanity on the faces of other [=MI6=] characters such as M. Somehow, Bond still escapes to bring down Blofeld's escape helicopter. ]]
* ''Franchise/{{Alien}} franchise'':
** In ''Film/{{Aliens}}'', after Ripley sets the xenomorph queen on fire, the atmosphere processor starts to collapse due to ExplosiveOverclocking and finally blows up in a nuclear detonation.
** ''Film/{{Alien 3}}'' was the only time Ellen Ripley didn't destroy everything as she left. Ron Perlman's character in ''Film/AlienResurrection'' says it "must be a chick thing".
* The end of ''Film/{{Congo}}'' results in the convenient destruction of the "evil" gorillas' lair via volcanic eruption... despite the fact that it had been standing for hundreds of years before the protagonists got there. In the book it was caused by ''incredibly'' misjudged placement of mining charges by the heroes.

* In ''Film/MirrorMirror'', the Queen's magic mirror lair collapses after her death.
* Taken to extremes in ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' in which not only the Dark Tower and Black gate but a huge portion of Mordor in general just caves in, taking much of Sauron's army with it. [[note]]This is because they were maintained with the power of the One Ring; when it was destroyed, so were they.[[/note]]
* In ''Film/ThePinkPantherStrikesAgain'', Inspector Clouseau is accidentally catapulted into Dreyfus' castle and lands on the DisintegratorRay that is about to destroy England. Knocking it askew causes the machine to catastrophically malfunction, and everyone ([[spoiler: except Dreyfus, who's hit by the beam and thus doomed]]) flees as, piece by piece, the castle vanishes.
* In ''Film/TheWorldsEnd'', it's the titular pub, taking the entire town with it. [[spoiler: Probably a deliberate Taking You with Me ploy by the Network.]]
* A surreal version at the climax of ''Film/{{Labyrinth}}'' features gravity taking a holiday. Justified, since ItWasAllADream. Probably.
* At the end of ''Film/TheRockyHorrorPictureShow'', Brad, Janet and Dr Scott have to leave Frank's castle before it blasts off into space.

* Justified in ''Film/TheBlackHole'', which involves a MileLongShip being flown into the eponymous black hole by MadScientist Dr Reinhardt. When the ship's forcefield fails, a meteor storm and the intense gravitational pressures destroy the spaceship (though this is a case of the Collapsing Lair killing the villain, rather than the villain's demise triggering the destruction of the lair).

* ''Film/ItChapterTwo'': [[spoiler: When [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu Pennywise is killed]], Its underground lair, the cistern above it, and the house on Neibolt Street above that all collapse in on themselves.]]

* In ''Film/MissFisherAndTheCryptOfTears'', Phryne and Jack are attempting to return the emerald to the sarcophagus in the crypt. [[spoiler:Jonathon Lofthouse]] is attempting to help them, but then [[spoiler:Crippins]]--who has been revealed as the murderer--arrives and demands the emerald at gunpoint. AS [[spoiler:Jonathon]] drops the emerald into the coffin, he and [[spoiler:Crippins]] get involved in a GunStruggle. As they do so, an earthquake hits and the crypt and it starts to collapse. Phryne, Jack and Shirin are forced to flee. Phryne tries to go back for the other two, but Jack grabs her arm and pulls her clear as fall and completely seal the crypt once again.

* ''Film/GodToldMeTo'': [[spoiler: When Pete finally kills Phillips, the building they're in catches fire and starts collapsing, possibly because of all the energy deployed in the fight.]]
* ''Film/BlackWidow2021'': During the FinalBattle, [[spoiler: the Red Room's [[OminousFloatingCastle flying headquarters]] is sabotaged by destroying its engines, causing the whole facility to start blowing up, falling apart, and falling to the ground]].

* One of the possible results of destroying a Dungeon Core in ''Literature/AnOutcastInAnotherWorld''. Standard practice is to take the Core outside of its Dungeon before shattering it; otherwise, you risk dying after the hard part of finding the Core was already accomplished.

* Barad-dûr ([[IDontLikeTheSoundOfThatPlace The Dark Tower]]) in ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'' was over two thousand feet tall (some sources suggest over 4000!) and was held up by [[LoadBearingBoss Sauron's disregard of structural physics]]. Naturally, with the destruction of [[SoulJar The One Ring]] and [[BigBad Sauron]]'s demise, the tower came toppling down, as well as the Black Gate, which had been built with the same power.
* In C. S. Lewis's ''Literature/TheSilverChair'', the witch has spells to collapse her realm once she is dead. This is in some ways a good thing, [[spoiler:as the collapse allows her captive minions to return to Bism, which is even farther underground than the caverns.]] The protagonists figure that she purposely wove these spells into the cavern so that nobody could kill her without likely meeting their own demise soon afterward.

* The exorcism at the end of ''Literature/MedusasWeb'' ends with the creepy old house catching fire and burning to the ground. By that point, the surviving members of the family that lived there are frankly glad to see it go. Foreshadowed by ghost of the former owner having a penchant for quoting lines from "The Fall of the House of Usher".

* In ''Literature/CaptainUnderpants'', the spaceship self-destructs.
* In the [[Franchise/ConanTheBarbarian Conan]] story "Literature/TheTowerOfTheElephant," when Yag-kosha takes his revenge upon the sorcerer Yara by way of Conan, the titular tower, which Yag-kosha built for him in a single night, shatters into a million pieces after Conan escapes.
* In Creator/StephenKing's ''Literature/{{It}}'' this happens on a rather large scale. [[spoiler:When It dies, so does the magic that's apparently held up a lot of Derry's structure. It appears as if It was part of the town's very foundation. The weather goes crazy, the river turns into a flood and much of the city collapses into the ground.]]
** Not exactly; [[spoiler:the storm and flood start when the Loser's Club begins to battle with IT, and the destruction peaks at IT's death... but trails off rapidly. It seems that the act of actually ''defying'' IT was enough to unbalance things on a big scale.]]
* In Creator/DanAbnett's Literature/GauntsGhosts novel ''First & Only'', when the Inquisitor Heldane's pawn is killed, the psychic shock kills Heldane as well, and his unleashed psychic energies tore apart the BaseOnWheels he was on. Good thing for the Ghosts and their allies that Heldane used the pawn at a distance.
* In Creator/TadWilliams's ''Literature/MemorySorrowAndThorn'' series, the shock of the [[BigBad Storm King's]] destruction causes Green Angel Tower to collapse with the protagonists inside, naturally prompting an escape scene. [[AnyoneCanDie Some make it out, some don't.]] The story makes it somewhat ambiguous whether this is a case of NoOntologicalInertia or the aftereffects of the spell that summoned him, but it's striking that Green Angel Tower was the sole remaining [[TheFairFolk Sithi]] structure in the Hayholt and the exact place where Ineluki killed himself 500 years prior, becoming the Storm King. [[JustifiedTrope To be fair]], the series' FunctionalMagic is explicitly stated to work on the principle of NoOntologicalInertia.
* ''Literature/ForestKingdom'': In the ''Hawk & Fisher'' spinoff series' book 5 (''Guard Against Dishonor''), this trope turns nasty. As per tradition, the pocket dimension in which a deadly new drug is being prepared fails when the sorcerer that created it is killed by the Watch; untraditionally, this has worse consequences than just a dramatic race for the exit, as the pocket's collapse takes a crowded city tenement down with it, causing hundreds of civilian casualties. [[spoiler: This was deliberately planned by the drug lord who'd had the pocket dimension created, to discredit the Watch and make it easier to escape with the drugs in the midst of a disaster.]]

* Literature/{{Discworld}}:
** In ''Literature/TheColourOfMagic'', the Temple of Shub-Niggurath collapses after the eponymous EldritchAbomination is banished. It's suggested that as long as Shub-Niggurath was around, entropy itself was afraid to go near the place, but once Shub-Niggurath was gone it got stuck in and started making up for lost time.
** Parodied in ''Literature/FeetOfClay'', when freelance exterminator Wee Mad Arthur explains why he charges so much more for disposal of wasp nests. Being a gnome only a few inches tall, he plants squibs ''inside'' the nests and then has to fight his way to the exit before they blow.
* There are ''three'' of these in ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfPrydain''.
* In Christopher Stasheff's ''Her Majesty's Wizard'', after the main character recited a Shakespeare passage about the banishing of illusions, the castle of the lust witch Sayeesa faded into thin air, leaving only an empty crater and a number of no-longer-enthralled young men and women.
* The otherwise invincible [[SentientPhlebotinum Energized Protodermis Entity]] is defeated by collapsing its chamber into a chasm in ''Toys/{{Bionicle}} Adventures #6: Maze of Shadows''.
* In ''[[Literature/TheAdversaryCycle Nightworld]]'' this is explained as being due to the BigBad using his magic to counteract the laws of physics. When he dies, nature reasserts itself and the underground cavern starts to collapse due to the weight of the ground above.
** This also happens in ''Literature/{{Swellhead}}'' by Creator/KimNewman.

%%* One AlternateHistory of World War II has the first nuke dropped not on Japan, but on Berlin, to hasten a German surrender and decapitate the leadership. The story ends on Hitler trapped in his Bunker as it fails to withstand the impact of a weapon it wasn't built to counter. %%Incomplete example: What work does this happen in?
* At the end of ''Literature/TheBarbarianAndTheSorceress'', Rom and Kira are forced to flee an [[TempleOfDoom ancient temple]] to an EldritchAbomination as it collapses around them.
* The [[DeletedScene deleted original ending]] of ''Literature/{{Dracula}}'' featured Castle Dracula being destroyed by an uncanny earthquake and volcano-like cataclysm after the destruction of the eponymous vampire.

* ''Literature/TheHanSoloTrilogy'': Teroenza's treasure room suffers a great deal of damage in the first book, and the damage to the support pillars results in them and the ceiling collapsing (killing Zavval the Hutt in the process from everything landing on him). Unusually for the trope, the room gets rebuilt between books.

* In the ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' finale "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS7E22Chosen Chosen]]", Sunnydale itself is a Collapsing Lair.

* ''Series/MacGyver1985'': At the end of "Legend of the Holy Rose", the Temple of the Holy Rose collapses, burying all of Ambrose's miraculous artifacts (although Mac and the GirlOfTheWeek are outside at the time and so do not have to flee through the collapsing temple). Mac speculates that Ambrose had intended this to occur all along.

* The hall of the Mountain King and the cave trolls in Creator/HenrikIbsen's ''Peer Gynt''. "In the Hall of the Mountain King", the most famous piece from Edvard Grieg's incidental music to the play, depicts the diabolical dance of the trolls and the collapse of the halls.

* ''{{Franchise/Pokemon}}'':
** In ''VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite'', while you never see it happen, the Seven Sages claim that [[spoiler:N's Castle gets destroyed after [[BigBad Ghetsis]] is defeated.]] Following the TimeSkip, the ruins of it can be revisited in ''VideoGame/PokemonBlack2AndWhite2''.
** In ''VideoGame/PokemonXAndY'', [[spoiler:the secret headquarters of Team Flare is destroyed by the Ultimate Weapon as the heroes escape, with the entrance buried by rocks afterwards.]]
* ''VideoGame/{{Portal}}''. After you [[spoiler: throw all four of [=GLaDOS=]' core piece into the incinerator]], the room you're in blows up, and you end up outside the Center.
** See LoadBearingBoss.
** In the last two chapters of ''VideoGame/Portal2'' the Aperture Science facility becomes this, not because of your actions but because [[ArtificialStupidity Wheatley]], who was programmed to make bad decisions, has decided not to perform any of the maintenance functions needed to keep the place from falling apart.
* ''Franchise/TombRaider [[VideoGame/TombRaider 1]]'', ''[[VideoGame/TombRaiderII II]]'', and ''[[VideoGame/TombRaiderAnniversary Anniversary]]'', explicitly.
** In ''[[VideoGame/TombRaiderLegend Legend]]'', [[spoiler: Amanda gets trapped under the rubble with the shadow monster]], and the entire tomb collapses in on itself. You then proceed to return and attempt to drain it.
** In ''VideoGame/TombRaiderTheLastRevelation'', Lara [[OurHeroIsDead apparently falls to her death]] during the collapse of the Temple of Horus.
* In ''VideoGame/ShounenKinindenTsumuji'', after defeating the Big Bad and the Demon King the Demon Castle begins to destroy itself.
* One of the three endings of ''VideoGame/DeusEx'' involves the player blowing up an ElaborateUndergroundBase. The final cutscene is unclear on whether or not he makes it out alive.
* ''VideoGame/{{Metroid}}'' games often contain segments (especially at the end) where the player must guide Samus out of one of these before a timer runs out.

* {{Lampshade h|anging}}ung in ''VideoGame/SwordcraftStory 2'', where an NPC is trying to make the protagonist get something she lost without being obvious. So she tells her that the sword the protagonist is trying to get will cause the cave to collapse without the object. Another character on the scene remarks, "Ah, the load-bearing treasure!"
* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'', after defeating Ganondorf the first time. Made cooler by the fact that you get to fight Ganon on the wreckage. Made slightly more annoying by the Iron Knuckles and [=ReDead=] that like to paralyze you while the timer ticks down.
* Twice in ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights: NeverwinterNights/ShadowsOfUndrentide''. First, during the Interlude, the party is led into a trap and have a Netherese ruin come crashing down on them, and your mentor Drogan gives his life to save you and your companion. Then, in the finale, the ancient city of Undrentide once again falls from the sky once Heurodis is defeated, with the player forced to flee into a portal to the Plane of Shadows.
* In ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights2'', the base campaign ends with the King of Shadows bringing the dungeon down around your ears in his death throes. Before the expansion, this was implied to have been a literal case of RocksFallEveryoneDies, with the ending slides dealing with everyone but the party, who it seems never escaped the Vale of Merdelain. ''NeverwinterNights2/MaskOfTheBetrayer'' takes steps to soften this, starting on the reveal that the Knight-Captain at least was teleported away.
* ''VideoGame/MightAndMagic IV'' ends with this, although the party does get out safely.
* In the fifth and final episode of ''VideoGame/StrongBadsCoolGameForAttractivePeople'', after finally defeating Trogdor, his lair starts to collapse and WebAnimation/HomestarRunner literally says that Trogdor "must've been a load bearing dragon".
* ''VideoGame/HalfLife2'': Episode 1 is sorta this. In a nutshell, it involves going into the citadel to slow the timer(conveniently sped up by the combine) then getting the hell out of dodge before it does, making all of C-17 the Collapsing Lair.
* In the Roguelike game ''VideoGame/NetHack'', if there's an unrecoverable bug in the game, the dungeon collapses, and you lose the game, having "panicked"
* ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'': VideoGame/{{Fallout 1}} had two cases of bases with nuclear self destruct devices (perhaps the megalomaniacal bad guys wanted to make sure their plans would fail if they happened to die?). VideoGame/{{Fallout 2}} had at least one, sabotaging the computer that keeps the nuclear reactor from exploding. VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}} has a base that can be convinced to blow itself up, and in a DLC a mobile base that controls a KillSat that can command the kill sat to target the base itself.
** The player can also do this to Vault 101 and force its evacuation as the Evil solution to "Trouble on the Homefront".
** In ''Point Lookout'', the Calvert Mansion explodes at the end of "Thought Control", courtesy of the SelfDestructMechanism activated by Desmond.
** One of the mandatory objectives in the Legion and House questlines from ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' (and an optional one in the NCR and Yes Man branches) is to self-destruct the Brotherhood of Steel's bunker. You can also blow up the Powder Gangers' vault.

* Every endgame location in every ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' ever made. Sometimes this even happens twice, as in ''Code Veronica''. It's mostly [[JustifiedTrope justified]] since said locales typically contain laboratories crawling with viral abominations and are armed with fail-safe [[SelfDestructSequence self-destruct mechanisms]].
* ''[[VideoGame/KirbySuperStar Revenge of Meta Knight]]'' ends with the Halberd breaking down and Kirby fleeing on a Wheelie, while Meta Knight attempt to slow him down and [[TakingYouWithMe keep him from escaping]].
* ''VideoGame/KirbyStarAllies'' has [[spoiler:Zan Partizanne rupture the Jambastion's core after her defeat]], forcing Kirby and his friends to escape before the place falls down on them. Emphasis on ''friends'', as the Friend Circle, Friend Bridge and Friend Star require a full team in order to use, making a solo escape impossible. Unlike most other examples on this page, there's no time limit.
* ''VideoGame/VampireTheMasqueradeBloodlines'': Bloodlines had one near the end of the game, in the form of Vampire Hunter Grunfend Bach, who, after being beaten by the player, waits to greet you on your way out with a [[SelfDestructMechanism detonator]].

* ''Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2'' has a sequence very early in the game where the player's squad of four heroes must escape Castle Doom as it implodes, occasionally dropping large chunks of its innards onto the player's heroes as they go.

* ''VideoGame/MegaManClassic'': This happens to Skull Castle very often at the end of games in the original series.
** In the Game Boy ''Mega Man IV'', the area after the second battle with Ballade has you escaping from the Wily Tank as it blows away behind you.
* In ''VideoGame/TheGodfather: The Game'', you have to raid enemy compounds and sometimes their businesses, leave a TimeBomb at a specific spot and leave. If you succeed in escaping the place before the bomb goes, you get to see [[DamageIsFire flames on the (temporarily) out-of-commission building]].
* Happens several times in Wolfenstein 2009. The massive underground base in the caverns beneath the farm explodes after retrieving a crystal being used for research deep within - though it's kinda-sorta justified: the destruction is implied to be caused by the creatures you freed by getting the crystal rather than by the simple act of taking it. Later, the entire Cannery explodes after defeating a certain load-bearing boss (though this was a result of destroying several critical pieces of machinery, rather than the boss's death). It also happens at the end of the game, after defeating the last boss.
* Occurs in the Templar Archives after Altaïr kills Armand Bouchart in Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines.
* VideoGame/{{Unreal}}: After killing the final boss, although not so much collapsing as exploding while you run for the escape rocket.
* An early example could be found in the Atari 8-bit game ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caverns_of_Mars Caverns of Mars]]'' from 1981. After reaching a reactor in the cavern, the player sets it off and must escape before it explodes.
* [[spoiler: [[BaseOnWheels Clive's fortress]] collapses after you screw up the generator]] in Professor Layton and the Unwound Future.
* ''VideoGame/BionicCommando'': "This base will explode in 60 sec", after [[LoadBearingBoss killing Master D]].

* ''VideoGame/MedalOfHonor: Allied Assault'' has you demolish Fort Schmerzen in the final level by detonating a gas main, and [[BigDamnFireExit run for the exit]] while it's being rocked by explosions.

* In ''VideoGame/AlphaProtocol'', the GrandFinale takes place as the Alpha Protocol base is being "sanitized" in preparation for the agency closing its doors and opening up shop somewhere else under a new name. This process has less to do with paper shredders and more to do with time bombs. As you proceed through each section of the base, the bombs in the previous sections go off, [[BrokenBridge cutting you off from going back the way you came]].
* In ''VideoGame/{{Bastion}}'', ''every'' level does this after you grab whatever MacGuffin is there, with the exception of the proving grounds- which you can return to until you've earned all the rewards they offer- and [[spoiler: Who Knows Where,]] which you can return to however many times you like (although it's accessed through the Bastion).
* In the remake of ''VideoGame/SpyHunter'', the enemy base explodes after you {{EMP}} the DoomsdayDevice at the end.
* In the first ''Videogame/AloneInTheDark1992'', Pregzt's cavern starts collapsing after you KillItWithFire.
** ''Videogame/AloneInTheDarkTheNewNightmare'': The island blows up as Carnby and Aline make their escape by chopper, having [[LoadBearingBoss taken out]] the BigBad and re-sealed the [[SealedEvilInACan World of Darkness]].
* This happens to VideoGame/{{Riven}} when you re-open the Star Fissure.
* In ''Videogame/{{PN 03}}'''s ninth mission, after destroying Orchidee 2.0 and finding the Vanessa clone, a 5-minute self-destruct timer starts, [[BlackoutBasement the lights start flashing on and off]], and new enemies have spawned along the escape route.
* In ''VideoGame/BrainDead13'', [[spoiler:this is the result of Lance's pressing the [[BigRedButton Big Red "Flush" Button]] that can cause the castle to self-destruct after the final confrontation with [[LoadBearingBoss Dr. Neurosis]]]].
* At the end of ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare'''s first mission, "Crew Expendable", the Estonian freighter gets bombed by Russian MIG's and starts taking on water, forcing the player to run through the collapsing and sinking ship to the extraction chopper.
* Midway through ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare2'''s seventeenth mission, "Just Like Old Times", Shepherd sets his hideout Site Hotel Bravo to be detonated through Directive 1-1-6 Bravo.
* At the end of ''VideoGame/{{Flashback}}'', you [[EarthShatteringKaboom blow up the Morphs' homeworld]] with a nuclear charge set in the planet's core, and have to escape [[TimedMission on a timer]].
* In the [[MultipleEndings bad ending]] to ''{{VideoGame/Contra}}: Shattered Soldier'', a KillSat destroys Galuga Archipelago after you complete Mission 5, taking the heroes with it.
* Neo Bowser Castle collapses when the final boss is defeated in VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiDreamTeam

* The first three ''VideoGame/SpaceQuest'' games do this. In [[VideoGame/SpaceQuestITheSarienEncounter the first]], the Deltaur is destroyed by the activation of the Star Generator. In [[VideoGame/SpaceQuestIIVohaulsRevenge the second]], Vohaul sets his space station on a decaying orbit [[LoadBearingBoss just before he dies]]. In [[VideoGame/SpaceQuestIIIThePiratesOfPestulon the third]], destroying the Stealth Field Generator on Ortega triggers a series of volcanic eruptions.
* The Nui-Jaga scorpion nest containing the infected Comet balls in the ''[[VideoGame/{{Bionicle}} Mata Nui On-Line Game]]''. Toa Pohatu and the player only escape thanks to the [[MaskOfPower Mask of Speed]].
* The second-to-last level of ''VideoGame/DukeNukemForever'' is a two-parter that involves destroying the Hoover Dam in order to cut power to an alien wormhole. In the second half, you must escape its collapsing interior while waters rise and debris crashes down around you.
* In the fan game ''VideoGame/SonicChronoAdventure'', the [[FloatingContinent Sky Empire]] starts to get [[spoiler:overrun by Eggman's own magnetic mass, prompting Sonic and Rodolia to escape. {{Subverted|Trope}} because after the final battle in the city, the magnetic mass disappears, but Sky Empire miraculously floats for the next hundred years. It's also {{double subver|sion}}ted because the damages from the huge takeover prevent anyone from inhabiting in there.]]
* Happens 3 times in ''VideoGame/LostOdyssey''.
** The first dungeon to come crashing down is the Experimental Staff. After [[spoiler: Gongora]] wipes the floor with your party and leaves them for dead, he (or perhaps some of his men) activate the Experimental Staff's self-destruct system. As soon as the party manages to get back on their feet, the destruction begins, and you have 12 minutes to escape. There are numerous small tremors and a large amount of debris falling around you as you make your way out.
** Next to fall is Grand Staff, which is flying in the air at this point. After the "boss fight" with [[spoiler: Possessed Jansen, Gongora]] learns a valuable lesson: Pay attention to where you're going when flying an aerial structure. While he was occupied with the party, Grand Staff smashes into the side of the Tower of Mirrors. This doesn't dent his plans too much though, as he acquires the power he needed and once again leaves the party for dead, escaping through a portal just as the entire structure starts to fall apart. After the party pulls themselves together, you are once again tasked with a timed escape, this time you've got 8 minutes to get out. Unlike during the Experimental Staff escape, there are no large chunks of debris falling while making your way out. There are still tremors, however.
** The final thing to go bye-bye is none other than the Tower of Mirrors itself, though this one doesn't so much collapse as it does get sucked into itself. After defeating the final boss, the post-battle events result in the [[spoiler: gate to the immortals' world]] malfunctioning, eventually growing into a massive portal that sucks the entire tower into it. Escape is automatic as the party flees by airship, just barely making it out as the tower fragments into pieces, and then both the tower's remains and the gate vanish in an explosion.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Faria}}'', after you defeat the boss of a tower (invariably on the highest floor) and use the convenient exit located one screen up from it, the tower inexplicably crumbles to ruins.
* One chapter in ''VideoGame/GearsOfWar3'' requires you to overload a massive generator in order to shut down [[spoiler: a man-made maelstrom]]. As one might expect, this ends with you fleeing before it explodes, as the whole facility falls apart around you.

* ''VideoGame/HolyUmbrella'' subverts a couple of aspects of this trope: the Emperor Dondera is undefeated and on the loose when his castle is set to explode, and you don't have a chance of fleeing before time runs out (yet somehow things turn out all right).
* ''VideoGame/WordRealms'' discusses but ultimately averts this.
--> '''The Player''': I was sort of expecting the Castle to fall down. ({{Beat}}) Probably better get the hell out of here, regardless.

* In ''[[VideoGame/StreetsOfRage Streets of Rage 3]]'', when Dr. X's Robot Y boss is defeated (whether in time for the GoldenEnding or not), the last thing Dr. X does before dying is set off a SelfDestructMechanism in his base, determined to take Axel, Blaze, Skate, and Zan with him. Adam rescues them before the base explodes.
* ''VideoGame/{{Suikoden}}'' likes this trope. In the mainline games, after beating the FinalBoss, the dungeon starts to collapse because of the final battle, forcing the hero and his companions to abandon the place to save themselves.
** Averted in ''VideoGame/SuikodenV''.
* Happens to the floating city [[spoiler: Liber Ark]] at the end of The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky SC. Justified, as defeating the final boss results in the removal of the [[spoiler: Aureole]], which was the city's main source of power, and without it, it can no longer remain floating in the sky. Strangely, instead of simply falling, the city collapses in a more traditional manner, being rocked with tremors and breaking apart as the heroes and heroines flee for their lives.
* Near the end of Beyond Good & Evil, the Moon Transmitter's self-destruct sequence is activated, and you must flee back to your ship as the area is rocked by explosions.
* Happens to the Astra Facility at the end of Valley, as your actions result in its reactor melting down, forcing you to beat a quick retreat and find a way out before it's too late. There's no timer, but there are many fires and frequent tremors.
* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'':
** In ''VideoGame/SonicSpinball'', this is the basis of the final level, "Showdown". After Sonic destroys Robotnik's [[UnwillingRoboticization Veg-O-Machine]], his volcanic lair begins to sink into the ocean, and he [[VillainExitStageLeft decides to flee]]. Naturally, Sonic isn't having any of that and sends him back into the volcano as it sinks into the ocean completely.
** At the end of ''VideoGame/SonicBlast'', the Silver Castle sinks into the ocean as Sonic or Knuckles watches from a hill. In the BadEnding, [[VillainExitStageLeft Robotnik flees from the Silver Castle to plot his next evil plan]], but in the GoldenEnding, he doesn't.

* In the [[HundredPercentCompletion 102%]] ending of ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry2DiddysKongQuest'', Crocodile Isle sinks into the ocean as Donkey Kong, Diddy, and Dixie watch from a hill. As this happens, [[VillainExitStageLeft Kaptain K. Rool flees away on a raft to plot his next evil plan]], laughing wickedly as he does so.[[note]]In the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance remake, Funky drops a bomb on K. Rool to prevent that from happening, though given that he appears as the villain in ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry3DixieKongsDoubleTrouble'', [[JokerImmunity K. Rool still survives]].[[/note]]
* ''VideoGame/{{Onirism}}'': After beating the boss of Emily's Brewery and unlocking a new path, you find it ends with a destructible piece of machinery. Breaking it is the only way out and sets off an escape sequence where ''all'' machinery breaks as you pass near it, while you strive to outrun the Exact Time to Failure five-minute timer.

* Case 36 of ''VideoGame/CriminalCaseWorldEdition'' takes place in a [[Film/KingKong1933 Skull Island]] {{Expy}} where [[NebulousEvilOrganization SOMBRA]] MadScientist Marshall Metcalf has a base [[VolcanoLair inside an active volcano]]. [[ChekhovsVolcano Wanna guess what happens to it after the case is solved?]]

This may be due to a SelfDestructMechanism, or due to the lair having NoOntologicalInertia. Alternately, the hero's goal may been to deliberately ''cause'' (read: destroy) the Collapsing Lair, like by setting off a TimeBomb or pushing the BigRedButton that is invariably linked to said SelfDestructMechanism. Or perhaps the combination of the BigBad's NoHoldsBarredBeatdown and the hero's own HeroicSecondWind resulted in extensive damage to the lair's supports/foundations/[[GoingCritical reactors]]/[[MadeOfExplodium munitions]]/whatever, and it was going to start coming down anyway (when this happens in VideoGame form, we call it a LoadBearingBoss). Sometimes the BigBad will do this deliberately, in hopes of [[TakingYouWithMe taking the hero with them]]. If this is done after a stealthy entry, this overlaps with StartsStealthilyEndsLoudly.

** Kyurem from the fifteenth movie subverts this. When his lair starts to collapse from the fight he had with Keldeo, he freezes the entire place after the heroes escape so that he could continue to [[IncrediblyLamePun chill]] in there.

** It also happens to the Viridian City gym in "Battle of the Badge," after Togepi sets off one of Team Rocket's explosives.

* ''WesternAnimation/InspectorGadget'' has occasionally featured this in the first season, usually caused by [[CluelessDetective Gadget's incompetence or clumsiness]], most notably in "Sleeping Gas" and "The Coo-Coo Clock Caper."