History Main / PacifistRun

* Despite its reputation for [[LudicrousGibs spectacular violence]], ''VideoGame/SoldierOfFortune'' allows the player to pull this trope off by [[BlastingItOutOfTheirHands blowing weapons out of the enemies' hands]], rendering them non-threatening. The ironic part? This is possible thanks to the GHOUL engine, the very same component responsible for the {{Gorn}}.

** In ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3'', you can avoid killing the bosses. They have non-lethal hit bars, and you get a [[MercyRewarded special bonus]] for defeating a boss with non-lethal force, but if they were [[PlotlineDeath supposed to die]], they commit suicide in the following cutscene. However, there is one exception: [[spoiler: Even if you defeat The Boss nonlethally, the game still forces you to kill her.]] Alternately, even using lethal force against bosses who survive the encounter either way ([[spoiler:Ocelot and Volgin]]) [[DevelopersForesight doesn't count as a kill]], allowing you to "kill" them and still perform a pacifist run (you just don't get their camouflage this way).

Also see ThouShaltNotKill, a super-trope of sorts. {{Stealth Based Game}}s and {{Stealth Based Mission}}s often feature this trope alongside StealthRun. When the game scolds you for not taking a more peaceful option, see WhatTheHellPlayer. Can be related to VideoGameCaringPotential.

* Under the rules of the ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'' speedrunning site [[http://doom2.net/~compet-n/index.cgi Compet-n]] (adopted by other sites like the [[http://www.doomworld.com/sda/doom_sda.htm Doomed Speed Demos Archive]],) one of the demo categories is "[[http://doom.wikia.com/wiki/UV_pacifist UV pacifist]]," where the player must complete a level on the "Ultra-Violence" (Hard) difficulty setting without harming any monsters. (Monster infighting and unintentional {{telefrag}}s are allowed.)

* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'' makes this easier than other games in the series because of two factors: The [[{{Invisibility}} Magic Cape item]], and the fact that the game doesn't use the KillEnemiesToOpen the way out, as much as other games in the series.

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics'' has the Orator job class, which possesses a few abilities that allow you to recruit enemy units to join your army. With a maximum of five units to a given fight, this usually only comes in handy when (a) a unit has suffered FinalDeath and needs replacing or (b) there's a particular monster you want to [[SummonBiggerFish turn on your enemies]]/[[VideoGameCrueltyPotential poach for rewards]]. However, a semi-popular challenge run is to enlist an Orator as soon as is reasonably possible and get through the entire game [[VideoGameCaringPotential with only the deaths absolutely necessary]] (which pretty much amounts to {{Eldritch Abomination}}s and mastered {{Jerkass}}es).

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* Playing ''VideoGame/{{Postal}} 2'' without ever killing anyone gives you the end-of-game rank "Thank you for playing, JESUS!" The game developers actually considered this a point of pride: the franchise was a big target of MoralGuardians, so in their view, the fact that the game ''could'' be finished nonlethally but players chose to murder half the populace anyway was [[YouBastard probably a sign that people are just jerks.]]

* ''Videogame/{{Metro 2033}}''

** For even more of a challenge, try to get the Test of Faith achievement/trophy on the hardest difficulty setting. [[SugarWiki/CrowningMomentOfAwesome It's very satisfying.]]

* This is the point of the missions involving the Spirit of Kindness in ''Yoshi Topsy-Turvy''. The less enemies you kill, the better Happiness Medal you get.

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kvT0dywaF8 Someone achieved this]] with the original VideoGame/SuperMarioBros1 -- not only a pacifist run, but also a NoDamageRun deliberately arranged to complete the game with ''only 500 points,'' the least possible.

* In the majority of Franchise/TheElderScrolls you can pass the game without killing or killing only the bosses.

* As in other vertical shooters, this is a common type of run in the ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}}'' series despite the fact that the games actively punish trying to do this. Most {{Final Boss}}es and {{Bonus Boss}}es have their final spellcard become incredibly difficult if you take too long, but have long enough timers that the average player will never see this. And there'll generally be a few patterns that will just get worse with time, and the occasional wave of enemies that will exit through the bottom of the screen, where the player is, if not killed.

* Many Tabletop [=RPGs=] enable you to avoid conflict through stealth, negotiation or deception, and may reward a nonviolent approach with additional ExperiencePoints. Of course, there's no guarentee that your plans will survive contact with [[RandomNumberGod the dice]], [[KillerGameMaster the gamemaster]], or [[WeAreStrugglingTogether your fellow players]].

* Many Tabletop [=RPGs=] such as ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' do offer non-violent ways to deal with enemies, being talking, bluffing, appealing and so forth. It is possible to go through an entire game having never fought. Now, whether the [[RandomNumberGod dice]] let such rolls be successful, the DM [[RailRoading rail roads]] you into killing for the sake of their plot and whether or not your fellow players [[{{Munchkin}} will kill everything in sight for the EXP]] is an entirely different situation altogether.
* Slightly odd tabletop example: In ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'''s fourth edition, player characters who reduce an {{NPC}} enemy to zero or less hit points always have the option to decide then and there to only knock that enemy out instead of killing them. Stop to think about that for a moment: with this rule in force, any given scenario played through could fairly trivially ''become'' a pacifist run, the possibility is just something that doesn't seem to as much as occur to most players. Probably because the idea of ripping the target's life-force out or disintegrating them in a non-lethal manner is so counter-intuitive.

*** Notably, a full non-combat run through the game doesn't necessarily let the player finish with truly clean hands. Reaching any ending still forces some level of moral compromise on the player's part: the Omertas questline can be skipped but otherwise its Speech solution involves convincing Cachino to open fire for you; when siding against Mr. House you're given an alternative to directly killing the man, by disabling him from the computer interface that lets him interact with the world, but doing so is CruelMercy and is said to reduce him to a "year of life at most"; destroying the Brotherhood of Steel is mandatory for House and the Legion, and while this can be accomplished with stealth and setting their base to self-destruct, it still results in the death of anyone in there.

** In the sequel, ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosMelee, this bonus still exists, and is joined by another bonus called "Switzerland" which requires not being attacked as well (complete neutrality). Yet another bonus is called "Peaceful Warrior," which lets you attack an enemy but not KO them. And all of these are necessary for HundredPercentCompletion. There are [[WinsByDoingAbsolutelyNothing some AI quirks]] in certain stages that help with getting these.

** For even more of a challenge, try to get the Test of Faith achievement/trophy on the hardest difficulty setting. [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome It's very satisfying.]]

* ''VidoeGame/WatchDogs2'' gives all the tools for a pacifist run. Hacked power conduits, shock gadgets, the stun gun and melee attacks all non-lethally subdue enemies, and drones can often complete an objective without Marcus even being in the danger zone. However, this isn't directly incentivised by the game, perhaps because it plays like a SelfImposedChallenge - not only do lethal explosives have a much wider radius, stunned enemies will wake up by themselves after a couple of minutes or when roused by a buddy, and not using steam pipe explosions in car chases removes the most effective way of disabling an enemy vehicle.

The inverse of this is the [[KillEmAll Genocide Run]], in which the player goes around killing everything that moves. This is only possible if enemies are limited in number and don't {{respawn|ingEnemies}}, hardly meaningful if fighting every enemy is a practical or absolute requirement, and rarely acknowledged in games that meet both of these requirements.

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** It's actually one of the selling points of the game that you can finish the entire thing without firing a gun at anyone, which is unique among first-person-perspective games (discounting medieval and fantasy games and the ''Myst'' series and its clones).

** For even more of a challenge, try to get the Test of Faith achievement/trophy on the hardest difficulty setting. It's very satisfying.

* This is half of what it's like to try and be a benevolent god in ''VideoGame/BlackAndWhite.'' The other half is being nice to your villagers.

* The ''VideoGame/{{Thief}}'' games, on higher difficulties, often ''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.
** Doesn't apply to the 2nd game, as [[spoiler:one of the objectives is to kidnap a person. The only way to do that is to knock him out. both games features Big bads in need of killing, though both times indirectly.]] However, beyond these exceptions, it's possible to complete the game without killing or knocking out anyone else.

* ''VideoGame/{{Oddworld}}: Stranger's Wrath'', being a BountyHunter themed game, allows you to choose between killing an enemy, or simply stunning them long enough for you to trap then in your [[BagOfHolding bounty bag]]. Live enemies are worth more than dead enemies. Challenges could include bringing in all bounties alive, bringing in all outlaws alive, or bringing in all enemies in the game alive. Minor challenges could also include never attacking a non hostile NPC for Moolah, or neglecting to collect two optional Moolah rewards that require robbing innocents. [[spoiler:Due to a GenreShift late in the game, this becomes more difficult. You are required to kill several enemies (including the BigBad) during the final levels. In addition, the previously pacifistic Bounty Bag is replaced with a Bait Bag that is used to breed your living ammo. Guess what they eat?]]

* ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' doesn't normally lend itself to Pacifist Runs, since you need kills to level up. However, ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThracia776'' allows you to non-lethally KO enemies and capture them - in fact, you can steal their equipment and use it for yourself when you do! The only limitation is that, in order to capture a foe, the enemy's Build stat must be lower than that of the unit doing the capturing (Then again, Finn, who has ''20'' Build, is available from the start of the game), and when you use the capture command, the capturing unit will have his stats reduced for the turn.

* Playing ''VideoGame/{{Postal}} 2'' without ever killing anyone gives you the end-of-game rank "Thank you for playing, JESUS!" The same holds true of the expansion pack, ''Apocalypse Weekend'', but it's all theoretical since it's impossible to actually beat the game without killing anyone. It's more linear and combat-oriented than the original ''Postal 2'', and there are several characters you have to kill to proceed. Even the ''zombies'' count as kills, and there are at least 2 different missions where you have to destroy a certain number of them to proceed forward.

* Playing ''VideoGame/{{Postal}} 2'' without ever killing anyone gives you the end-of-game rank "Thank you for playing, JESUS!"
** The same holds true of the expansion pack, ''Apocalypse Weekend'', but it's all theoretical since it's impossible to actually beat the game without killing anyone. It's more linear and combat-oriented than the original ''Postal 2'', and there are several characters you have to kill to proceed. Even the ''zombies'' count as kills, and there are at least 2 different missions where you have to destroy a certain number of them to proceed forward.
* 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 be injured to the point that she'll retreat and open the door she guards, 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).
** The game acts as if you killed the first character even if you circumvent her, due to the game's intent of railroading you into killing. However, given the nature of the game one could always claim that she was killed by someone else for her failure and/or knowing too much after you escaped and were being framed for the killing.
** Two of the endings however, require the death of the BigBad. One ending is explicit, as the [[spoiler: player presses a button that causes him to blow up quite violently]] where as the other he dies as a result of the player [[spoiler: blowing up the final level. The third ending might have him die, but the game never states his fate.]]

* ''VideoGame/DeusExInvisibleWar'' picks this up, as even plot-critical deaths are optional. The benefits manifest differently depending on which faction wants them dead and how their death affects gameplay (keeping one person alive grants access to a weapon you won't seriously need till the end), but ultimately there are no required kills. A hidden bonus is that the wrap party has a lot more patrons the less people you kill.
* ''VideoGame/DeusExHumanRevolution'', like its predecessors, can be played in a pacifist manner, by circumventing enemies or knocking them out with gas grenades, tasers, tranquilizers, and fists, 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 (even in the UpdatedReRelease you can't actually prevent their deaths due to conventions). 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. Though, technically, you only kill two of them (the first and last ones kill themselves in the cutscenes following their defeats).
** The Director's Cut went one step further, making the pacifist fighting methods a little easier to use in the boss fights. The base game itself encourages the pacifist run through giving bonus EXP for non-lethal takedowns.
* ''VideoGame/DeusExMankindDivided'': Every enemy can be taken down non-lethally, particularly since the game features additional non-lethal offensive options as well as opportunities to talk down would-be enemies. The final and only boss of the game [[spoiler:Viktor Marchenko]] can even be defeated non-lethally provided you can prevent him from activating [[InstantArmor Titan Armor]].
* 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 mainly on assist kills while healing others, supplemented by the healing itself (1 point awarded per 600 Health healed) and Übercharging. Depending on the game mode, there are other means of earning points: capturing the Intelligence, capturing a Control Point, pushing the Payload Cart for 10 seconds and reviving others (Mann Versus Machine). Given the fact that the entire enemy team would attempt tearing you a medically redundant new behind as Medics are high-priority targets, it's just as tough as it sounds.
** However, you can cheat by playing most of the round as another class, getting a high enough scoreboard position, switching to Medic, and then getting a single point without hurting anyone directly.

** Two of the original game's achievements are awarded for relying on stealth instead of violence: Invisible Man (earned by completing "Frontline" without killing any [[ThoseWackyNazis Fourth Reich]] or [[DirtyCommunists Red Line]] soldiers) and "Merciful" (infiltrate "Black Station" without killing any of the Reich soldiers stationed in there[[note]]in [[UpdatedReRelease Redux]], knockouts aren't allowed either[[/note]] or raising an alarm). Notably, there's ''another'' achievement ("Hedge-Hopper") for doing [[GenocideRun the exact opposite]] 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 [[KarmaMeter moral points]], which counts towards the hidden/good ending.

* Aside from the bosses, it is possible to get through most ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' games without ever killing anyone, though you are forced at one point to fight off a horde of enemies without access to nonlethal weaponry. In ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'', this just earned the player a suitably passive animal codename after the end credits. In the later games, you are given rewards for keeping enemy fatalities to a minimum.
** This became considerably easier with tranquilizer weapons in later games, resulting in an even more difficult variation: No Tranquilizer Run.

*** In the case of the Cobra Unit, specifically, their "[[http://metalgear.wikia.com/wiki/Microbombs microbomb]]" blows up, and they say their codename. In that order.
** ''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.

** ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4'' is the first game in the series to let you do a true no-kills run, not even story kills.

* The remake of ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil'' for the UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube has what is called "One Dangerous Zombie" mode, wherein a zombie completely strapped with explosives constantly follows you around through the game. Attack him even passively, and you get a game over. For the series proper, you obviously need to kill bosses in the main plotlines, but for standard {{Mook}}s and some of the minigames, you're free to try this challenge out.
** The bitch is that "One Dangerous Zombie" isn't a selectable mode; it's automatically foisted on you during a NewGamePlus whether you like it or not. The good news, as it were, is that said zombie disappears once you leave the mansion and go to the guardhouse.
* Players do this in ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil4'', but it's more a Minimal Kills run. While there are more enemies that can be circumvented than one might expect, there are still many, many enemies that ''must'' be killed to advance, starting with the first enemy in the game.
** There's also the Mine Cart section: Every passenger, besides Leon, dies at the end and the "kills" are credited to the player.

* The first two ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' games are notable for the possibility of not needing to directly kill anyone, although this is more TechnicalPacifist as the endgames for both require you to nuke the base of the main antagonists, knowingly killing hundreds of people. The FinalBoss of ''VideoGame/Fallout2'' Frank Horrigan must be killed but you can have companions or several defecting Enclave officers do it.

* ''VideoGame/DoomTheRoguelike'' enforces this behavior on players in the Angel of Pacifisim challenge by simply disallowing any use of weapons. The player wins by running through all the levels and finally nuking the Spider Mastermind (the player gets the nuke at the start), and to ease things up (somewhat), the player gets a levelup after descending every third stairs. This encourages players to enter certain special levels that have the entrance and exit close to each other, and any and all monsters killing themselves or others (through infighting, running through lava or [[TooDumbToLive shooting barrels while standing next to them]] are credited to the player, with an according experience gain.
** However, there are [[UpToEleven extra challenges]] that take this concept to the extreme - the Archangel of Pacifisim takes away the "levelup at every third floor" mechanic, and even worse, the Angelic Pacifist badge requires the player to win the game with exactly ''one kill'' (that one being the Mastermind) - if any monster is killed by other monster's attack, or even more unluckily, if a monster is generated on acid or lava, you can just kiss your run goodbye.

* In ''VideoGame/PrinceOfPersia1'', it was possible to get past the guards by careful use of parrying and moving forward. This meant they were still there if you had to go back the way you came. The FinalBoss was the only enemy you had to kill.

** Even if your pacifism only applies to humans, and [[WhatMeasureIsANonHuman possibly ghouls and mutants]], it's impossible to complete ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' without murdering at least one person. Three of the four endings require killing Mr. House, and in the ending where you work for Mr. House, you have to [[spoiler:destroy the Brotherhood of Steel.]]
*** Though you ''can'' still do a TechnicalPacifist run, and it is possible to have an ''in-character'' pacifist run. [[spoiler:You technically don't have to ''kill'' Mr. House; you can disconnect him from the control systems instead. Unfortunately, that process exposes him to the air, which will inevitably lead to his death from infection within a year, but you're not told that until ''after'' disconnecting him.]] That said, several mission objectives, both in the main story and the big sidequests, do have HardCodedHostility factions sitting on top of them, so again, the only real way to do a PacifistRun is to take the TechnicalPacifist method of having a companion do all the killing, which hardly counts.

Also see ThouShaltNotKill, a super-trope of sorts. {{Stealth Based Game}}s and {{Stealth Based Mission}}s often feature this trope. When the game scolds you for not taking a more peaceful option, see WhatTheHellPlayer. Can be related to VideoGameCaringPotential.

* Two of ''Videogame/{{Metro 2033}}'''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 opposite]] 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.
** The [[VideoGame/MetroLastLight sequel]] also has multiple achievements and morality points for a pacifist run or StealthRun, or both at the same time. It's possible to go the entire game, barring the last level, without killing any human enemies or being detected, thanks to the ruthlessly efficient silent takedown that involves [[TapOnTheHead punching your schmuck of choice in the face]]. You essentially have to do this to get the good ending.