History Main / CollisionDamage

Not to be confused with the real-time model damaging employed in modern 3D games. See also OneHitPointWonder.

** Except in the original Japanese versions, where you get three hit points per life. Since, like, forever. The option's never even once made the transition. If the Konami Code still works in the Japanese version of Contra, that'd be like having 90 lives!

* ''VideoGame/{{Borderlands}}'' games [[InvertedTrope inverts]] this with vehicles, which do heavy damage to any enemy they touch while in motion. Running down enemies also does some damage to the vehicle, but this is negligible except for boss monsters or large hordes.

* The ''{{Rayman}}'' games (at least the non-Rabbid titles) have this.
** Justified in ''{{Rayman Origins}}'' - all enemies actually perform an attack animation whenever you touch them.

* In ''[[VideoGame/WithFriends Running With Friends]]'', running into a small obstacle or runner without a take-out move will cause a stumble instead of knocking you out completely. You're fine if you can avoid stumbling again for 5 seconds or so, but if you stumble again the bull that's chasing you during that time will run you over, ending the game.

* Even older than the ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong'' example is ''{{Pac-Man}}.'' One touch from a ghost monster caused the titular character to shrivel up and evaporate, but with power pellet, the tables turned, allowing Pac to chomp the baddies.

** In a rare [[SubvertedTrope subversion]], Knuckles will take collision damage from ''you'' if he lands on you out of a glide (which makes him helpless in normal gameplay).

* ''VideoGame/SilverSurfer'' was NintendoHard because just touching a wall would result in the character's death. Often the lethal parts were indistinguishable from the background. Especially odd, because the Surfer is one of [[AdaptationDecay the most powerful and nearly invincible characters]] in the MarvelUniverse.

* The final boss of ''{{Blood}}'', Tchernobog, will instantly eradicate the player upon contact similar to the bosses found in ''VideoGame/DukeNukem3D''.

-->--''Videogame/KingdomOfLoathing''

* In the original ''CrashBandicoot'' games this often resulted in a specific death animation. The first game had Crash spinning around and falling to the ground, the second had Crash turn into an angel, and the third would be some comedic sequence that you would always want to watch a second time.

** Justified in ''{Rayman Origins}}'' - all enemies actually perform an attack animation whenever you touch them.

Perhaps the character bruises easily. Perhaps the enemy is toxic. Perhaps they weren't able to give the enemies an attack animation. Or perhaps the character is just obsessive-compulsive.

* In the 2D ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' games, most enemies had the Touch of Death. This largely went away after the move to 3D made clearer attack animations possible.

* Contact with enemies in ''VideoGame/{{Iji}}'' deals armor damage over time. However, thanks to MercyInvincibility and a large health meter, it's still possible to simply run through some levels without dying.
** Which you will have to do sometimes if you want to get the alternate "Pacifist" ending.
* ''VideoGame/CaveStory'' has a good deal of this; enemies like birds often appear in large swarms, making it hard not to get hit.

* ''VideoGame/SilverSurfer'' was NintendoHard because just touching a wall would result in the character's death. Often the lethal parts were indistinguishable from the background. Especially odd, because the Surfer is one of the most powerful and nearly invincible characters in the MarvelUniverse.

* ''Smurf Rescue'' is famous for doing this with, among other things, picket fences and ''tufts of grass''.

* Seen in ''VideoGame/CarBattlerJoe'', but only in the first battle as your car isn't weaponized.
* Everything in ''VideoGame/MagicalWhipWizardsOfPhantasmalForest'' will damage you from any direction for the same amount of damage. It doesn't matter whether it's a dragon, a pumpkin, or the lance of a knight.
* In the ''IndianaJones and the Last Crusade'' game for the Master System, Indy takes some damage from bullets and continuous damage from falling. What happens if he touches any enemy? ''[[FridgeLogic Instant death.]]''

* Anything that moves in the ''VideoGame/{{Glider}}'' games can cause CollisionDamage ([[OneHitpointWonder almost always fatal]]), which can also result from crashing into many kinds of immobile objects, such as furniture or [[NotTheFallThatKillsYou the floor]].

* Averted in ''VideoGame/MarsMatrix'', in which your ship will simply fly on top of an airborne enemy instead of crashing into it. Due to the game's scoring and weapon powerup system revolving around chaining together cubes that come out of destroyed enemies, this feature is a necessity.
* In ''VideoGame/BubbleBobble'', if Bub or Bob touches any enemy that is not encapsulated in a bubble, he will die comically and immediately.

* In ''VideoGame/{{F-Zero}} GX'', touching certain things in the course scenery will blow your machine up into pieces, even if the object is otherwise non-lethal to the touch or you touch it at a snail's pace.

* In ''{{Carmageddon}}'' you just need to ''touch'' the pedestrian to kill them.
* Rally-X had this. If one of the enemy cars touched you before you collected all the flags, you die.

* In ''VideoGame/HaloCombatEvolved'', vehicles moving past a certain speed (which is very very low) do 10000 damage to whatever they hit. The Master Chief has 75 shields and 75 health.
** Sword lunges at a wall can kill the user.
** The ''VideoGame/{{Halo 3}}'' beta had a form of this, wherein players who set the characters' speed as high as it would go had them running at super-fast speeds and pasting themselves on anything they ran into.
* Some recent games (usually ones with advanced physics engines) have brought this trope to next-gen gaming. In ''VideoGame/{{Crysis}}'', for instance, you can take damage from sprinting into any inanimate object. Which leads to the SuperSoldier protagonist dying from collision with a dumpster. In a nice subversion, your enemies are also affected by collision damage, so you can take down a KPA soldier with a well-placed chicken to the face.
** Super-sprinting into a tree and dying is possibly the most humiliating thing ever.
** ''{{Section 8}}'' also has this with the Overdrive ability. However, damage to ''yourself'' when running into things is minimal. Run into an enemy, however, and he instantly dies. [[CosmeticAward And you get an Achievement]]!

* ''VideoGame/{{Borderlands}}'' games inverts this with vehicles, which do heavy damage to any enemy they touch while in motion. Running down enemies also does some damage to the vehicle, but this is negligible except for boss monsters or large hordes.
* In ''VideoGame/DukeNukem3D'', if the player decides to venture too close to any of the bosses, in other words ''touching'' them, at the end of each episode, he'd be killed instantly regardless of health. However, this only applies at a certain height; at ground level the player would die instantly but if he'd be suspended in midair, by using the Jetpack as an example, while touching any of the bosses from the torso and above no damage would be inflicted.
** This is attributed to all the bosses being big enough to simply step on Duke when he gets too close.
* In ''NightmareHouse'', the player is encountered by [[LivingShadow shadows]] that do not move. If the player touches them, they lose 5-10 points worth of health.
* In ''[[VideoGame/DarkForcesSaga Dark Forces 2]]'', collision damage was applied to the player in ''any'' direction so long as he was moving fast enough; long falls naturally damaged you, but Force Jumping into a low ceiling or running into a wall with Force Speed also did damage. ''Jedi Knight II'' and ''Academy'' did away with this, instead opting to place multiple BottomlessPits in nearly every level.

* A specific platformer example is ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'', where even the lowliest [[TheGoomba Goomba]] could kill you by running into you. Getting hit with a power-up active cost you the power-up but let you keep going. [[InvertedTrope And then]] there's the [[InvincibilityPowerUp Starman]] powerup....
** [[ZigZaggingTrope Zig-zagged]] in ''VideoGame/WarioLand''. Wario can stun or kill most enemies just by bumping into them, without harming himself. However, most of these enemies either have [[TheSpiny spiky protection]] or carry sharp weapons, which ''do'' harm Wario if he touches them. The trick is to attack them from an unprotected side (usually from behind or below).
* The original ''VideoGame/MegaMan'' played with this at least with bosses. Smaller bosses like Ice Man and Cut Man would also take collision damage if they touched you (They even got pushed back), while larger ones like Guts Man didn't. It's played completely straight with enemies, though.
* This is one of the main reasons why ''VideoGame/MegaMan3''s Top Man's weapon is the worst in ''Mega Man'' history in the eyes of many fans. You couldn't get close enough to damage enemies with it without them damaging you also, unless the attack kills the enemy.
** This also made Spark Shot laughably useless. It stuns enemies in an electric field, but you still take collision damage if you touch them. Too bad, since if you didn't the weapon would be a GameBreaker since you could one-shot every difficult enemy and just run past.
** Special mention should probably also go to the Doc Robot fights in ''3'', namely Quick Man. To wit, the best strategy for winning the fight meant actively trying to get hit by his boomerangs - which did only minor damage - so that the resulting MercyInvincibility would protect you from the inevitable collision damage from an enemy much faster than you that would otherwise kill you in 2-3 hits.
** ''VideoGame/MegaManPoweredUp'' allows you to play as the Robot Masters after unlocking them. When you do so, a Wily-built Mega Man copy serves as a replacement boss for your character. And you take damage when you touch him. Hmm...
* A more amusing example was perhaps ''Super VideoGame/{{Metroid}}'', where Ridley's sprite was given almost comically diminutive wings that amazingly still provide him with the ability to fly, because if they were the proper size, the impact detection for collision damage would make him impossible to get close to without being struck by them.
** ''Metroid'' is also notable for including the Screw Attack, a permanent upgrade that lets you reverse collision damage back at weak enemies.
* In ''VideoGame/NinjaSenki'', your character is the only ninja in the game unable to deal collision damage. The rest will gleefully damage you, as well as their non-ninja allies. The only enemies unable to do so are the bamboo-hat-wearing gunners in Section 8 of the game, which are completely defenseless up close.
* Touching {{Mook}}s in the ''VideoGame/{{Kirby}}'' series of games would result in ''both'' the player and the enemy taking damage.
** In ''VideoGame/KirbySuperStar'', Kirby has a "guard" technique to reduce or neutralize damage from attacks, including collision damage. Guarding while bosses are contacting Kirby can cause them to [[DeathOfAThousandCuts slowly take collision damage]] instead. This was {{Nerf}}ed somewhat in the DS remake.
** In ''VideoGame/KirbysEpicYarn'', collision damage is removed altogether, allowing to ride on enemies and bump into them.

* ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryReturns'' uses a somewhat interesting variation: while pretty much everything in the game deals basic collision damage straight-up, there are a few enemies that play an attacking animation when DK or Diddy touches them (such as Tikis biting them).
* In ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaSymphonyOfTheNight'', when Alucard first enters the castle, if you fully unequipped your gear, you could use Collision Damage to fly so far back it was possible to skip the room with the Death cutscene and keep all your equipment. This does, however, require a cheat that cuts all stats but Luck (which turns up to 99).

* ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' reverses the equation and smashes through enemies when he's spinning.
** The Sonic Boost move introduced in ''VideoGame/{{Sonic Rush|Series}}'' and brought to glory in ''VideoGame/SonicUnleashed'' is a more precise example. Sonic's spin needs to watch the spiky bits of enemies, but the Boost goes straight through every unguarded enemy.
** The older Sonic games also play this straight, however, to the point that the final boss in ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2'' will kill you if it steps on the very tip of your toes. Apparently, Sonic's oversized shoes can be fatal if pinched.

* Played with in some of Creator/{{Taito}}'s older games:
** In ''VideoGame/TheFairylandStory'', Ptolemy doesn't die if she stays on her enemies' heads (until they jump, anyway) and can actually use them as means of transportation.
** In ''VideoGame/TheNewzealandStory'', only enemies with spikes could kill the main character by touching him.
* The ''{{Rayman}}'' games (at least the non-Rabbid titles) have this.

* This is rather prominent in ''VideoGame/{{Banjo-Kazooie}}'' and its sequels, even though most enemies have actual attacks and attacking animations. As a matter of fact, in Banjo-Tooie's Terrydactyland level, after becoming a baby t-rex, the bargasaurus enemies won't attack you and you can even talk to them, but, confusingly, they still do contact damage. Another similarly confusing example is that, if you approach Mingy Jongo as any character other than Banjo and Kazooie together and touch him, you will take damage despite the fact that he's '''sleeping'''.
* ''VideoGame/{{Braid}}''. Touch an enemy and you can see Tim [[DeathThrows grimace in pain as he flies off the screen]], though you can also GoombaStomp them [[GoombaSpringboard to jump higher]].
* Ogmo from ''{{VideoGame/Jumper}}'' series is just a suspectible to this as [[SpikesOfDoom getting impaled]], being electrocuted, burned or shot. Deaths by a contact with an enemy (boss or not) are counted as being "bossed".
* ''VideoGame/CrystalCaves'' not only uses this, but there are two enemies (a pink snake and a green thing that looks like a jumping cactus) which leave behind corpses when they die, and these corpses still do CollisionDamage. In several levels, it is very important that you kill them when they're in exactly the right spot (where you can jump over them) or else they'll block your way, dooming you to take damage.
* ''Videogame/SecretAgent''. A minor cute fact: the ceiling fans look just like decoration, but will also deal CollisionDamage when jumped into.
* This happens in the BlinxTheTimeSweeper series, but it's pretty fairly balanced by the fact that the good targeting system makes it very easy to snipe enemies.
* Played straight in the entire ''Franchise/WonderBoy'' series except ''VideoGame/MonsterWorldIV'', where only enemies that look painful (on fire, for example) hurt to touch.
* ''VideoGame/JourneyToSilius'' takes this to its logical conclusion by featuring land mines that don't explode. Touching them just damages you.
* In ''VideoGame/JazzJackrabbit'' touching an enemy will result in a lost heart. In the second title you can slightly avoid this by hitting them with a buttstomp, an uppercut (Jazz) or a karate dash (Spaz).
* ''EccoTheDolphin'', which could get really annoying in levels with a ton of jellyfish or sharks all over the place.

* Happens in the ''JakAndDaxter'' series of games. Simply touching an enemy, even if they're not facing you, gives the same effect as if they were attacking you: a loss of hit points and being knocked back.
* Donkey Kong and his fellow Kongs in the ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry'' series will typically die if they run into an enemy. This trope can be inverted if you run into them while carrying a barrel, in which case the enemy will be the one to suffer the CollisionDamage. In the first game, Diddy carries the barrels out in front of him, while Donkey carries them above his head. If Diddy runs into an enemy head-on or Donkey runs into them from below, they'll lose the barrel but the enemy will die.
* The original ''CrashBandicoot'' games were well known for this often resulting in a specific death animtion. The original had Crash spinning around and falling to the ground, the second had Crash turn into an angel, and the third would be some comedic sequence that you would always want to watch a second time.

* Played straight by Skulls and Armas in ''VideoGame/AdventuresOfLolo'', but averted by all other enemies, who either have long-range attacks or just can't kill you (directly, anyway).

* The Ultimate Chimera from ''VideoGame/{{Mother 3}}'' is a perfect example of this trope. Any small physical contact will result in the player and his cohorts instantaneously being mutilated and killed.
* Earlier ''VideoGame/{{Ys}}'' games played this straight ''and'' inverted it -- getting hit by enemies causes damage, while damaging them involves making the protagonist, Adol, run into them at an angle.

* The Game Gear game ''TailsSkypatrol''. Contact with enemies wouldn't kill you; you would simply spin out of control and begin crash-landing, but you could recover with good timing. Contact with a solid surface, though, was instantly fatal. Which is odd, because flying into ceilings or walls - or, God forbid, ''walking'' - doesn't hurt Tails at all in any other game.
* In some Psikyo {{S|hootEmUps}}TGs, notably the ''{{Strikers 1945}}'' series, collision damage would only make your ship power down a level instead of instantly kill you like a bullet would. Players could abuse this to milk the appearance of targets containing powerups for extra points during boss fights or to [[DynamicDifficulty control the game's rank]].
* Similar to the Psikyo shoot-em-ups, ''TriggerheartExelica'' will not penalize your life counter if you collide with an enemy ship -- but you lose medals and can possibly alter your score, difficulty, and ending, just as losing a life can.

* ''VideoGame/{{Action52}}'' is infamous for having spectacularly bad (and inconsistent) collision damage in its shoot-em-up games, to the point where it is arguably their greatest flaw. In ''Action 52'', this is saying something.
** In ''Streemerz'', even touching money bags causes damage.

* Averted in ''Atomic Robo-Kid''. Enemies that fly into you don't kill you, just slow you down a little.

* Seen in ''CarBattlerJoe'', but only in the first battle as your car isn't weaponized.

* Donkey Kong and his fellow Kongs in the ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry'' series will typically die if they run into an enemy. This trope can be inverted if you run into them while carrying a barrel, in which case the enemy will be the one to suffer the CollisionDamage. In the first game, Diddy carries the barrels out in front of him, while Donkey carries them above his head. If Diddy runs into an enemy head-on or Donkey runs into them from below, they'll lose the barrel but the enemy will die.

** In ''VideoGame/KirbySuperStar'', Kirby has a "guard" technique to reduce or neutralize damage from attacks, including collision damage. Guarding while bosses are contacting Kirby can cause them to slowly take collision damage instead. This was {{Nerf}}ed somewhat in the DS remake.

* {{MapleStory}}: And HOW! Worse off if your DEF is low, playing the [[GlassCannon archer, pirate or thief classes]], or worse, a [[SquishyWizard mage]].

* In the 2D ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' games, most enemies had the Touch of Death. In the 3D games, most enemies didn't.

* ''VideoGame/LaMulana'' has plenty of it. However, it doesn't actually impact your LifeMeter very much, so it would take a ''very long'' time for a bat to kill a player. It's hardly a minor annoyance, though, since it can easily push you into a pit, and if you're standing on a ladder you ''will'' get knocked all the way down. Unsurprisingly, colliding with most of the bosses is much more damaging than touching a mook.
* Contact with enemies in ''VideoGame/{{Iji}}'' deals armor damage over time. However, thanks to MercyInvincibility and a large health meter, it's still possible to simply run through some levels without dying.

* Averted in ''Underwurlde'', where enemies can merely push Sabreman around.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Borderlands}}'', a vehicle driving at any speed will disintegrate any enemy it comes in contact with. However, enemies killed in this fashion earn the player considerably less experience points than ones killed with more traditional weapons.
** Running into larger enemies, like bosses or [[EliteMook Badass]] enemies, may destroy the vehicle (and you, subsequently) if you try to run them down.

* ''VideoGame/CaveStory'' has a good deal of this; enemies like birds often appear in large swarms.

* In ''SAS Combat Simulator'' on the Amstrad CPC, upon starting the game, you were immediately swarmed by vast numbers of enemy soldiers. Your "SAS Commando" would instantly die if he touched one of them. (The fact that they also shot at you wasn't helpful either). However, part way through the first level, you could get a jeep powerup. Not only was this "jeep" a virtual tank, that made you immune to bullets, the collision-damage was reversed: now enemies died if they ran into you (even if you were stationary). But if you were hit by a grenade (or completed the level), you lost the jeep. This resulted in the most uneven difficulty curve ever seen.