History Main / FogOfWar

* The ''VideoGame/AdvanceWars'' games featured Fog of War, but only on certain maps or settings. This fog actually affects AI, since it will ignore units that are hidden in forests or reefs by the fog ([[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard except in the first two games]]). Recon units have extra vision radius, infantry and mechs get an extra square if [[IHaveTheHighGround they're on mountains]], and in ''Dual Strike'', Sonja gives all her units extra vision.

A feature of many {{Strategy Game}}s that keeps the player from seeing everything that happens on the game map by limiting his knowledge of "enemy" units and movements to those areas where he has (or has recently had) units of his own. Some games enhance the effect by having a "partial" fog over areas that the player's explored at least once, but without any units in range at the time to observe.

[[caption-width-right:350:I don't understand why it is always so overcast in this game.]]

A feature of many [[StrategyGame strategy games]] that keeps the player from seeing everything that happens on the game map by limiting his knowledge of "enemy" units and movements to those areas where he has (or has recently had) units of his own. Some games enhance the effect by having a "partial" fog over areas that the player's explored at least once, but without any units in range at the time to observe.

* The entire challenge of the [[BoardGames Board Game]] ''TabletopGame/{{Battleship}}''. Neither of you can see your opponent's units, and your opponent is only allowed to inform you, after each shot, whether it hit or missed.

* Strangely enough, the manga OnePiece had begun a war in which mist was constantly seen sneaking on to the screen from no one knows where.

* ''VideoGame/SinsofaSolarEmpire'': Planets and the legal phase jumps between them have to be explored. A ship or building provides intel for the entire gravity well, but planets without a presence will only show your most recent intel. [[strike:The TEC faction]] any factions can also research the ability to detect incoming ships from one or two phase jumps away. Vasari's 8th level tech (super tech) can detect jumps from anywhere in the map.

* In the various ''SpaceEmpires'' games, viewing a star system's map only lets you see stars and planets and other stellar bodies. You can't see enemy or neutral units or colonies unless you have a unit or ship of your own in the system.

* The naval warfare simulator "PT-boats: Knights of the sea" has this on two levels, first there's the range at which ships can detect (and usually engage) enemy units, as shown in the map screen, but in addition there's also literal fog limitting visual contact in the first and third person views available.
* ''SinsofaSolarEmpire'': Planets and the legal phase jumps between them have to be explored. A ship or building provides intel for the entire gravity well, but planets without a presence will only show your most recent intel. [[strike:The TEC faction]] any factions can also research the ability to detect incoming ships from one or two phase jumps away. Vasari's 8th level tech (super tech) can detect jumps from anywhere in the map.

* [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] in ''Star Wars: EmpireAtWar'' with infantry sight ranges and vehicle sensor (or whatever) ranges. One particularly annoying bug in the expansion ''Forces of Corruption'', at least with the Zann Consortium, is the Fog of War lifting for no explained reason what-so-ever, allowing a player with their faction's space special weapon (Ion Cannon, Hypervelocity Cannon, and Plasma Cannon for Rebellion, Empire, and Consortium, respectively) to blow up enemy ships LONG BEFORE THOSE SHIPS WOULD BE WITHIN SIGHT RANGE.

** /VideoGame/StarcraftII gave the Terrans the Sensor Tower, which causes enemy units to show up as blips in the fog of war, without revealing what they are. It shows up as a honking big circle on everyone's minimap though.

** StarcraftII gave the Terrans the Sensor Tower, which causes enemy units to show up as blips in the fog of war, without revealing what they are. It shows up as a honking big circle on everyone's minimap though.

* ''{{X-COM}}'' reveals the terrain as it's explored, but doesn't show which parts are not visible at the moment, while aliens are only visible if they're within your troops' line of sight. After you've explored the entire map, it becomes frustrating trying to find that last alien when you're not even sure where to look. This problem is averted in the [[XComEnemyUnknown reboot]], where after a certain number of turns the enemy will come to you.

* The turn-based ''VideoGame/{{Civilization}}'' games (including kissing cousin ''SidMeiersAlphaCentauri'') use a Fog of War; one of the diplomatic options available is trading your explored map knowledge with other cultures.

* PC example: ''{{DEFCON}}: Everybody Dies'' only allows you to see enemy units that enter within range of your and your allies' radar. You cannot tell where the enemy's defensive units are unless you send some offensive units within radar range -- which allows both sides to see each other.

* The ''FireEmblem'' series, starting with ''Thracia 776'', has maps with fog. It can be literal fog, nighttime darkness, or in some cases other weather effects (up to blizzards and sandstorms), but it functions with the same fog-of-war rules as ''Advance Wars'', sans units being able to hide on certain terrain. In some of the games, Thieves and classes coming from them (like Assassins and Rogues) get to see much farther in the fog, and sometimes you can get Torches and Torch staves to temporarily dissipate the fog/darkness. ([[MyRulesAreNotYourRules Enemies will have no trouble hunting you down in that darkness, though.]]) Every single one of these is [[ThatOneLevel met with groans of disgust]] by the disgruntled fans.

* ''{{Achron}}'' has an interesting variation, because the fog only blocks vision of units. You can still hear units in the fog, and you can see crates and particle effects from weapons. This is explained that the units are actually camouflaged so they can only be seen at short distance.

* In the RTS TotalAnnihilation, most of the fixed base defenses and artillery units can't even see as far as they can fire, so in order for them to operate effectively, you have to set out patrols of scout units around the perimeter to keep the Fog cleared. Fortunately, the game's excellent command interface makes this a piece of cake, no matter how large or convoluted the perimeter.
** Also, in the spiritual successor VideoGame/SupremeCommander, this can be taken to extremes -- the maps being so much bigger, and many of the weapons having realistic range (one experimental unit has a range of over 100 kilometers), it's possible to bombard positions that are right on the other side of the biggest maps, although the best accuracy is achieved when using either radar or spy planes to provide visual targeting information.
*** Both games had Fog of War, where there was no vision from units, but only Total Annihilation had the unexplored shroud.

->''You glance through the mist obscuring the battlefield (there always seems to be mist on a battlefield -- some say it's to obscure the [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall parts that haven't finished loading yet]], but you don't know what that means).''

* DarkReign was one of the first games to use complex fog of war, making it possible to set ambushes by hiding below cliffs, in depressions in the ground, behind hills, etc.

* The AdvanceWars games featured Fog of War, but only on certain maps or settings. This fog actually affects AI, since it will ignore units that are hidden in forests or reefs by the fog ([[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard except in the first two games]]). Recon units have extra vision radius, infantry and mechs get an extra square if [[IHaveTheHighGround they're on mountains]], and in ''Dual Strike'', Sonja gives all her units extra vision.

* The entire challenge of the [[BoardGames Board Game]] ''TabletopGame/{{Battleship}}''. Neither of you can see your opponent's units, and your opponent is only allowed to inform you, after each shot, whether it hit or missed.
* At least two chess variants, with sub-variants:

* ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'' has a Heartless called the [[IronicName Illuminator]] whose only ability is to create this. The problem? Your fighting Barbossa. He's invincible until you take down the Illuminator, which can respawn.

* Strangely enough, the manga OnePiece has recently begun a war in which mist is constantly seen sneaking on to the screen from no one knows where.

-->-- ''KingdomOfLoathing''

* ''JaggedAlliance 2'' has a partial FogOfWar. After exploring a sector on the map, any enemy movement through that sector is quite visible. However, you will not know the strength or size of the enemy group until it comes within range of your militia (or attacks you). This is changed somewhat with much later mods, where enemies may be completely invisible on the map until spotted by a militia unit.

* Anime illustration: In an episode of ''[[SuzumiyaHaruhi The Melancholy Of Haruhi Suzumiya]]'', the SOS-dan was challenged to a computer game with this limitation. Yuki quickly figures out that the opposing side has cheated by removing the Fog Of War on their side, hacks the system, and levels the playing field.

* ''{{Harpoon}}'', has realistic FogOfWar, which is to say knowledge of (for example) [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brevity_code#B bandits]] (or [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brevity_code#B bogeys]]) is limited by how they are detected; a contact ping on radar may just give distance, bearing and heading. A visual sighting might be necessary to determine its nationality and intent. [[labelnote:more...]]Being a tactical naval simulator, ''Harpoon'' borrows a lot of features from traditional simulations (like the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silent_Hunter Silent Hunter]] series of submarine games), including 1:1 time scale, and handling each sensor contact individually.[[/labelnote]]