History Main / PacifistRun

* In ''VideoGame/DeusEx'', only two characters ''have'' to be fought in order to complete the game; neither have to be killed and both can be circumvented. The first can have an injured NPC open the door they guard, and the second can be knocked unconscious and is also quite willing to blow himself up for you due to poor AI. The rest can be stunned or [[SkippableBoss circumvented]] in various fashions. The game encourages pacifism in the first level by having characters react positively to you if you don't slaughter everything in sight, but after that there's no longer any explicit encouragement, and it's strictly a matter of pride (although you ''will'' get bitched out for slaughtering civilians).

* Two of ''Videogame/{{Metro2033}}'''s achievements are awarded for relying on stealth instead of violence: Cross "Frontline" without killing any soldiers (of [[DirtyCommunists either]] [[ThoseWackyNazis faction]]) to get "Invisible Man", and infiltrate "Black Station" without killing any guards to get "Merciful." Notably, there's ''another'' achievement for doing the exact [[LeaveNoSurvivors oppposite]] in "Frontline," so you'll have to master both styles of play if you're going for OneHundredPercentCompletion. Avoiding killing human opponents also gives you hidden points, which counts towards the hidden/good ending.

* ''VideoGame/{{Ikaruga}}'', by virtue of inheriting twenty years of evolution in the [[ShootEmUps shooter genre]], allows the player to complete the game without ever firing a single shot. Your reward is the rank of Dot Eater.

In games that give you a choice between using lethal or non-lethal force in order to overcome enemies, the former method is usually the most convenient. Some gamers [[SelfImposedChallenge like to play through such games]] while avoiding any killings that are not absolutely required, even if [[BraggingRightsReward there is no real reward]] for doing so.

-->''"This is a diary of my attempt to conquer this new size of galaxy, without resorting to violence. This time I'm going for peace."''
-->[[BewareTheNiceOnes *A hundred turns later*]]
-->''"Time for Plan B. Plan B isn't a Death Star. It's not something that destroys planets. It's something that destroys'' '''stars.'''"

* ''{{Dishonored}}'' has an achievement for going through the entire game without killing anyone (not even the zombie-like plague victims) - "Clean Hands." That said, you still need to subdue some important people - and doing so non-lethally will often condemn them to a FateWorseThanDeath.

* Suprisingly possible in ''{{Eador}}'', TBS similar to ''HeroesOfMightAndMagic'', ''MasterOfMagic'' and ''AgeOfWonders''. You can capture most provinces by bribing guards, making alliances with local population/thugs/baron. Even if you've started battle you haven't to kill opposition: most units can be frightened (usually by magic) so they simply run away and the battle is won. If your empire becomes powerful enough other Lords may just give up and you've won the scenario.

** The game actively encourages players to attempt this; not only does pacifism net you a better ending, it also makes the game somewhat easier, as there are less guards and weepers to circumnavigate. It also turns the final quest into something of an anti-climax, however.

* A common and useful GameBreaker in ''FinalFantasyVIII'' is simply to junction 100 [[TakenForGranite Break]] spells to your weapon's elemental attack and hit enemies with that when you otherwise just can't run away. Doing this keeps you from gaining experience and levels, which helps in the long run once you find decent spells to junction to your physical stats.

** Even if your pacificism only applies to humans, and [[WhatMeasureIsANonHuman possibly ghouls and mutants]], it's impossible to complete ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' without murdering at least one person. 3 of the 4 endings require killing Mr. House, and in the ending where you work for Mr. House, you have to [[spoiler: destroy the Brotherhood of Steel.]]

* One player managed to do this in ''MightAndMagic 7'' as shown [[http://groups.google.com/group/comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.rpg/msg/a9c3e4fb68765b6d here]].
* In ''PlanescapeTorment'', you can get through the whole game having to fight only four (And the zombie at the beginning who has the key out of the starting room!) characters, and you don't necessarily have to ''kill'' any of them. You're forced to "kill" the first character you have to fight this way, but it's just a NonLethalKO. Then again, this should come as little surprise in a game where a major objective is to find out why ''you'' can't die.
* ''VideoGame/UltimaIV'' encourages this somewhat, you still have to fight monsters to get Valor points, but letting them run away instead of killing them gives you Compassion points. Additionally, killing enemies that aren't evil (hungry or defensive animals and the like) will ''decrease'' your virtue points.
* In ''UltimaVI'', it's quite possible to complete the main quest without killing anybody. There are only few monster occupied areas that you must visit to advance the plot and it's possible to avoid combat in those by using invisibility rings and potions to slip by enemies unnoticed.
** In ''Ultima VII'', you only have to kill [[spoiler: Hook, Elizabeth and Abraham]] at the end.

* ''UltimaIV'' encourages this somewhat, you still have to fight monsters to get Valor points, but letting them run away instead of killing them gives you Compassion points.
** Additionally, killing enemies that aren't evil (hungry or defensive animals and the like) will ''decrease'' your virtue points.

** If your pacificism only applies to humans, and [[WhatMeasureIsANonHuman possibly ghouls and mutants]], it's impossible to complete ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' without murdering at least one person. 3 of the 4 endings require killing Mr. House, and in the ending where you work for Mr. House, you have to [[spoiler: destroy the Brotherhood of Steel.]]

* In ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'', the Medic class achievement "First Do No Harm" entails reaching the top of the scoreboard in a game of six or more players on a team without killing anyone, instead relying on assist kills while healing others. Given the likelihood of spies looking to tear you a medically redundant new behind, it's just as tough as it sounds.

-->[[SlowlySlippingIntoEvil *A hundred turns later*]]

-->-- [[http://www.computerandvideogames.com/195920/blog/galactic-civilizations-diary-days-1-26/ this]] LetsPlay of ''[[GalacticCivilizations Galactic Civilizations 2]]''.

-->*A hundred turns later*

-->-- [[http://www.computerandvideogames.com/195920/blog/galactic-civilizations-diary-days-1-26/ this]] Let'sPlay of GalacticCivilizations 2.

* ''VideoGame/DeusExHumanRevolution'', like its predecessors, can be played in a pacifist manner, except for a handful of forced boss battles. Unlike the first two games though, the bosses can't be circumvented so you have to fight and kill them. (The upcoming Wii U version and the UpdatedRerelease for PC based on it will have optional methods to non-fatally subdue or at least skip past bosses.) There is an achievement for doing a pacifist run (excepting the boss battles). Storyline wise, it makes sense, because the bosses are absolutely insane and have very much crossed the MoralEventHorizon.

* ''{{Dishonored}}'' has an achivement for going through the entire game without killing anyone (not even the zombie-like plague victims) - "Clean Hands." That said, you still need to subdue some important people - and doing so non-lethally will often condemn them to a FateWorseThanDeath.

* Aside from the bosses, it is possible to get through most ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' games without ever killing someone. (The first one is an exception -- you are forced to fight off a horde of guards at one point without access to nonlethal weaponry.) In the original, this just earned the player a suitably passive animal code name after the end credits. In the later games, you are given rewards for keeping enemy fatalities to a minimum.
** This became considerably easier with the Tranquilizer weapons in later games, resulting in an even more difficult variation -- No Tranquilizer Run.
** In ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2'', since only two of the bosses are actually story-killed by you, no real difference is made whether you stamina-kill them or not (only that a stamina-kill doesn't show up on your score as a real kill). Interestingly, not-killing Fatman, one of the story-killed bosses, results in him passing out at the end of his dying speech instead of dying. When Ocelot remarks on Fatman's death later on, the line is the same, but the implication is that Ocelot killed him rather than you, which provides a neat clue as to Ocelot's [[DoubleAgent real alignment]].

** ''Metal Gear Solid 4'' also allows you to take out all of the bosses using non-lethal means. Unlike the other games though, it actually affects the cutscene afterward. The difference is really subtle leading to many players thinking Kojima was lying when he said you could save them.

** Including two dif

** The game is also notable for there being scenarios that have made players willingly ''abandon'' their Pacifist Runs. It's kind of hard to keep using limited force when witnessing atrocities like [[spoiler: the Belltower massacre at the Alice Garden Pods]] or [[spoiler: Malik's murder]]. Some players reported that [[spoiler: finding Malik's corpse in the Harvester den]] led to a complete murder spree against them.

* The ''{{Thief}}'' games, on higher difficulties, sometimes ''require'' you not to kill anyone in a mission. Ideally, you do so by just getting around without being noticed. If you must pop someone, though, you have a blackjack which can knock the unaware victim out in a single strike. You can play through the 1st game ''and'' 2nd game without knocking out anyone or anything, let alone killing them. In rare missions, you may be restricted from even knocking out people, or from even being detected.

** Someone achieved this with the original SuperMarioBros -- not only a pacifist run, but also a NoDamageRun deliberately arranged to complete the game with ''only 500 points,'' the least possible.

** All ''VideoGame/{{Gradius}}'' bosses -- including the final bosses -- self-destruct after a certain time, as well. [[AntiClimaxBoss Most of them don't fight back anyway]].

* There are three ways to gain [[ExperiencePoints AP]] in ''VideoGame/{{Ingress}}'': Building portal infrastructure such as resonators and portal links, hacking enemy portals, and attacking enemy portals with weapon items. It is possible, though potentially tedious, to achieve [[{{Cap}} Level 8]] without ever using weapons.