History Main / ExperiencePoints

* ''VideoGame/CaveStory'' does this for weapon levels; experience (triangular coins) is collected from enemies, and is lost by getting hit. The Spur is charged up instead of relying on experience and the Nemesis level sup easliy yet gets weaker as it levels up. [[spoiler: In the Last Cave (Hidden) and Sacred Grounds, where all weapons are brought back to LEvel 1, these two weapons will be the most used.]]

* ''VideoGame/CaveStory'' does this for weapon levels; experience (triangular coins) is collected from enemies, and is lost by getting hit. The Spur is charged up instead of relying on experience and the Nemesis level sup easliy yet gets weaker as it levels up. [[[spoiler: In the Last Cave (Hidden) and Sacred Grounds, where all weapons are brought back to LEvel 1, these two weapons will be the most used.]]

->"[[LevelingUp XP!]]", thought the knight.

->"[[LevellingUp XP!]]", thought the knight.
-->-- ''MMO folklore''

->"[[RPGsEqualCombat Kill monsters]], get experience!"
-->'''Hero''', ''RPGWorld''

* In VideoGame/RatchetAndClank, slain enemies leave behind [[NanoMachines Nanomites]], which [[EvolvingWeapon improve the weapon you used]].

* In ''VideoGame/TheElderScrolls'' series, starting from ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIDaggerfall'', XP is only earned via StatGrinding. Killing bandits and wolves won't get you XP but killing enough with a bow to rank up your Archery will. Likewise, making a bunch of weapons/armor at the Blacksmiths, making potions via Alchemy or even selling a bunch of stuff will also get you closer to leveling up.

* ''VideoGame/CaveStory'' does this for weapon levels; experience (triangular coins) is collected from enemies, and is lost by getting hit.

** Then there was the time Sara forced them to crossplay. They spent most of the session luring men out of the tavern and jumping them for XP and treasure. In a later Sara game, they played the rpg of ''BuffyTheVampireSlayer'', after getting tired of playing second fiddle to the ChosenOne (Buffy), they discovered they could kill her, wait for a new ChosenOne to appear and ambush them creating an infinite XP loop.

* VG Cats Explains XP [[http://www.vgcats.com/comics/?strip_id=214 here.]]

* ''{{Minecraft}}'' Had [[ExperienceMeter Experience Orbs]] that you get from [[RPGsEqualCombat Killing Monsters]], Unlike other games that use EXP, the only use for EXP in this game is [[SpellBlade Enchanting]] [[ScrappyMechanic Weapons]] and tools. These and range from [[CriticalHit Higher Critical hit ratios]], Extra Dammage to the undead and [[FlamingSword Fire Dammage]] although some [[GameMod Mods]] adds extra uses for EXP.

* In ''{{Persona}}'' games, your Personas increase in power separately from the main character, and not every game worked the same way.

** In P2, you only have your character level to worry about, but Personas still have the 8 ranks and need to be used to improve their rank.
** In P3 and P4, the main character's Personas have levels and gain XP along with the character, though they always need much more XP to level up, encouraging you to trade up as soon as possible. The other party members have their character level and persona level tied together.

* ''Minecraft'' Had [[ExperienceMeter Experience Orbs]] that you get from [[RPGsEqualCombat Killing Monsters]], Unlike other games that use EXP, the only use for EXP in this game is [[SpellBlade Enchanting]] [[ScrappyMechanic Weapons]] and tools. These and range from [[CriticalHit Higher Critical hit ratios]], Extra Dammage to the undead and [[FlamingSword Fire Dammage]] although some [[GameMod Mods]] adds extra uses for EXP.

* ''VideoGame/Minecraft'' Had [[ExperienceMeter Experience Orbs]] that you get from [[RPGsEqualCombat Killing Monsters]], Unlike other games that use EXP, the only use for EXP in this game is [[SpellBlade Enchanting]] [[ScrappyMechanic Weapons]] and tools. These and range from [[CriticalHit Higher Critical hit ratios]], Extra Dammage to the undead and [[FlamingSword Fire Dammage]] although some [[GameMod Mods]] adds extra uses for EXP.

* Minecraft

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* In ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' and ''DevilMayCry'', one gains experience points for killing people, smashing things, and also extra points for hitting things repeatedly without pause, or with a variety of attacks. Subverted, in that its not intangible points you're collecting, but crimson-colored goodies that are spent towards new abilities.

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* ''SystemShock 2'', ''VideoGame/DeusEx'' and ''VampireTheMasqueradeBloodlines'' all award fixed amounts of XP not for slaying enemies but for particular achievements on the way towards the next major objective. The two latter ones also grant additional points for solving the problems in a non-standard way or finding hidden routes.

* The ''CallOfDuty: ModernWarfare'' series has this for its multiplayer, alongside a military-rank-themed CharacterLevel system. Earn XP from kills and from completing challenges.

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** In ''CrisisCore: FinalFantasyVII'' Zack levels up whenever the slot machine that grants him special attacks comes up 777, apparently at random. In fact, it does keep track of experience points, though never shows the player their total, and the probability of it coming up 777 is based on how much experience above the threshold for the next level you have.
** ''FinalFantasyVIII'' had the interesting variation that when Squall leveled up, [[DynamicDifficulty every monster in the game would as well]]. Therefore the goal is not to level-up to get more powerful, but use the magic junction system to improve your stats.
** ''FinalFantasyX'' uses AP points that allow you to move across a character grid and use power ups on it.
*** ''FinalFantasyXIII'' has the similar Crystarium system where Crystal Points earned in battle are used to connect to a system of nodes for each of the classes a character has. It's possible to spend a small amount of CP on ability or stat increase and change to another node as long as it connects to a previously unlocked one.

* ''[[DemonsSouls Demon's Souls]]'' uses Souls as a dual currency/experience points. You can spend them on items and weapon upgrades… or spend them on improving your stats, eventually gaining Soul Levels as you do.

* ''NeverwinterNights'' had a particularly bizarre method of giving experience, as it was altered by your companions. In weird, arbitrary ways. Killing alone gave you more experience than if you had an NPC ally, but less experience than if you had a summoned creature. A wizard or sorcerer's familiar gave you more experience than alone, but less than using a summoned creature. Using a familiar and a summon in concert gave you more experience than using only a familiar but less than just having a summon. A druid's animal companion on the other hand, made you gain less than you would alone, and summoning a creature made you gain even less. Oh and barring one or two areas where enemies can respawn infinitely, there's a limited amount of experience available, so this matters.
* In RatchetAndClank, slain enemies leave behind [[NanoMachines Nanomites]], which [[EvolvingWeapon improve the weapon you used]].

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* One series of strategy game to feature these is ''HeroesOfMightAndMagic''.

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* ''GrandTheftAutoSanAndreas'' uses XP that can actually increase or decrease depending on actions.

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* A cartoon from ''KnightsOfTheDinnerTable'' (perhaps from the comic) has a line about getting excited from getting points for doing one's own stitches, so the player says he's going to take them out and do it again.

** In [[spoiler:Homestuck]] a fridge levels up after being thrown at imps. It makes more sense in-- ... [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext actually it doesn't]].

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* Used in the ''WorldOfWarcraft'' episode of ''SouthPark''. The boys power up by spending over a month slaughtering boars in Elwynn Forest, which only gives you 2 experience points each (but kill a billion of them…).

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** The second ''KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' game hangs a lampshade on this in a rather chilling deconstruction: [[spoiler:the main character possesses the ability to gain strength from the force connections of everyone you kill, which means you're basically feeding on their deaths.]] It's a very disturbing revelation for a light side player.

CharacterLevel is its SisterTrope, and ClassAndLevelSystem is the SuperTrope for both. Compare StatGrinding, in which you get better at a skill or ability by actually using it.

* As belies its spin-off nature, there were experience points in ''{{Pokemon}} Pinball''. Upon activating the "evolve Pokemon" event, if the Pokemon involved evolved by gaining levels in the main series, then "Ex" icons would appear on the board for you to collect.

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* In ''{{WolfQuest}}'', you get experience points when you kill coyotes, hares, elk, etc., and also when you do things such as mark territory. With enough points, you earn rewards: the ability to name your pups, easier to mark territory, a bonus den choice, or even a pure white pup (despite the parents' colors).

* Blur has ExperiencePoints and CharacterLevels in the form of Fans and Fan Levels. You get more fans by winning races in higher places, pulling off stunts, and wrecking other drivers.

* The ''{{SaGa}}'' games don't use experience points--Human characters simply get an increase to stats related to what they did in each battle--cast a lot, max JP and intellect increases, use melee attacks, Strength and max WP goes up. Monsters and Mechs get stats based on what form they're in and what they're wearing respectively. Mystics change based on what monsters they've absorbed.

* In ''VideoGame/DarkCloud'' and ''VideoGame/DarkChronicle'', your characters don't gain experience, but their ''weapons'' do.
* ''[[DemonsSouls Demon's Souls]]'' uses Souls as a dual currency/experience points. You can spend them on items and weapon upgrades… or spend them on improving your stats, eventually gaining Soul Levels as you do.

* The online mode in MetalGearSolid4, uses a slight twist. Each character has levels, and levels determine who you get automatically matched up against, but all EXP is, in fact, based on the player's overall performance, rather than a basic EXP scale. That means that it ranks your ratios from each match, and determines how much EXP you gain. To make things fair, if you don't preform above a set scale, then you can lose EXP and levels.

* In ''Fanfic/WithStringsAttached'', Jeft the gamer talks occasionally about Stress Experience, or S Ex, that his characters receive.

* ShockSocialScienceFiction, designed to play out a new ThreeActStory every session, gives Protagonists an extra die every time they fail their Intent roll. Antagonists, in comparison, are able to roll up to six dice per conflict, but have a very limited supply and don't get any more.

* Used downright horribly by ''{{FATAL}}'' in which these points are given only by doing things related to the class you're leveling. The problem comes when it takes 83 years to level up a clerk, and a whore has to reach level 20 by giving ''millions'' of blowjobs.

* ''{{Shadowrun}}'' explicitly states that Karma is a representation of the ability to choose your own life. You can trade this commodity with some supernatural entities as well as using it to power magical effects.
* The old MarvelComics RPG put out by TSR had Karma. Player characters would get Karma at the end of every adventure chapter if they accomplished mission objectives, which they could spend on either permanently raising attributes and abilities or on modifying dice rolls in-game. Karma could also be contributed to a community pool in order to help your teammates out in a tight spot. However, being heroes, they lose Karma if they fail objectives or do heinous things. They will lose ALL of their experience points (with the exception of any Karma specifically set aside, either before a session begins or after it ends, in a sort of "savings account" toward improving your character later on) if they kill anyone, including villains, and even if it was by accident (thanks to an unlucky roll of the dice, for example). Interestingly enough, the character of [[AntiHero Wolverine]] is the only one immune to losing Karma if he kills someone.

* MouseHunt: The 'levels' are called ranks. "Rank Percentage" is gained to "rank up", mostly from catching mice, and there is a significant amount of time between moving up from one rank to another. While each mouse has a certain amount of points, it is NOT directly proportional to the amount of "rank percentage" earned. "Rank percentage" also cannot be lost.

** Finding ridiculous ways to abuse the system to gain XP or other bonuses probably accounted for a good third of the jokes, at least in earlier strips. Bob started his own religion and managed to gain a level before the first game session just by recruiting fellow PC's to his religion. They also once started a monster farm to mass produce killable monsters for the XP.

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** ''ShinMegamiTensei: If'', the predecessor to the ''Persona'' series, had "guardian demons" that modified your stats and skills. As you fought, you gathered guardian points, and whenever you died, you were brought back with a new guardian demon based on how many guardian points you had. Too few points, and your guardian demon was weaker, while maxing out your guardian points meant you got a significantly stronger demon. Yes, this means you were ''required'' to die periodically to become stronger.

* ''{{Iji}}'' has Nano points, which are found lying around as well as dropped by almost all enemies.
* ''{{Okami}}'' lets you spend the experience, or [[GodsNeedPrayerBadly praise]], to level up your stats (health [[[ThePowerOfTheSun Solar Energy]]], MP [[[ArtInitiatesLife ink]]], wallet and [[VideoGameLives astral pouch]]). Unlike most, if not all other examples, you get praise by [[VideoGameCaringPotential feeding animals, reviving dead plants, and restoring nature wherever you go, or just by helping people.]] In fact, killing things is one of the only things you can do in the game that generally ''doesn't'' yield experience.

* ''[[DemonsSouls Demon's Souls]]'' uses Souls as a dual currency/experience points. You can spend them on items and weapon upgrades… or spend them on improving your stats, eventually gaining Soul Levels as you do.