History Main / PaletteSwap

* ''{{Film/Wreck-It Ralph}}'' used this for several of the background ''Sugar Rush'' racers.

* Capcom's ''[[CapcomvsWhatever Versus]]'' series do this, both mirror match style and new character style. The first ''MarvelVsCapcom'' features Comicbook/WarMachine, who is a palette swap of Comicbook/IronMan from ''Marvel Super Heroes''. Also, both ''VideoGame/MarvelSuperHeroesVsStreetFighter'' and ''MarvelVsCapcom'' use palette swaps in creating the secret characters. Sometimes an attempt would be made to make them logical characters--[=MSHvsSF=] featured a US Agent as a Captain America swap, for example--while others made no sense whatsoever. Orange Hulk anyone?

* Several of the ''{{Metroid}}'' games have enemies who are palette swaps of each other, though ''Super Metroid'' mixed it up by making some common enemies larger instead.
** The original Metroid on the NES had the varia suit just one of the power suit, which...*Gasp* DIDN'T HAVE PUFFY SLEEVES! THE HORROR!

** SNES Super Punch Out has Gabby Jay and Bob Charlie, Bear Hugger and Mad Clown, Piston Hurricane and Aran Ryan, Bald Bull and Mr. Sandman, Dragon Chan and Heike Kagero, Masked Muscle and Super Macho Man, and the Bruiser Brothers. The only original palettes are Narcis Prince and Hoy Quarlow.
** This virtually happens in all Punch-Out games, save for the Wii game, in which for the first time, all of the characters have distinct character models, although they still have similar appearances, indirectly referencing this trope.

This is seen in some platformers, but it most often appears in {{Role Playing Game}}s and {{Fighting Game}}s. In fighting games, this is commonly used to differentiate players using the same character, but it is also employed to create "new" characters. In the 8- and 16-bit era [=RPG=]s, it was pervasive: because of console limitations, disk and screen space were serious concerns. Palette Swapping was used to create a [[UndergroundMonkey large variety of different enemies]], often using different colors for various power levels. (The most famous group of these are probably the Slimes, topped by the powerful MetalSlime, of ''VideoGame/DragonQuest'' fame.)

This is seen in some platformers, but it most often appears in {{Role Playing Game}}s and {{Fighting Game}}s. In fighting games, this is commonly used to differentiate players using the same character, but it is also employed to create "new" characters. In the 8- and 16-bit era [=RPG=]s, it was pervasive: because of console limitations, disk and screen space were serious concerns. {{Palette Swap}}ping was used to create a [[UndergroundMonkey large variety of different enemies]], often using different colors for various power levels. (The most famous group of these are probably the Slimes, topped by the powerful MetalSlime, of ''VideoGame/DragonQuest'' fame.)

Not even modern games are entirely immune to this primarily 2D game pitfall, however. Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Games {{MMORPG}}s are often set in a very large world that must be populated by monsters. PaletteSwap to the rescue! By changing the size and textures used on the same model, the designers can make many types of monsters from only a few basic meshes. Sometimes even [[KingMook bosses]] are simply [[PaletteSwap re-textured]] and are huge versions of weaker monsters.

Palette Swaps are also used in {{Sprite Comic}}s, where they're known as recolors.

** ''[[VideoGame/MortalKombat3 Mortal Kombat Trilogy]]'' was seriously getting short on colours for male ninjas: Sub-Zero (blue), Scorpion (yellow), Reptile (green), Rain ([[StealthPun purple]]), Noob Saibot (black), Ermac (red), and Human Smoke (gray). In mirror matches, the twin was usually a slightly different shade of the same colour.

** Actual {{Palette Swap}}ing entered the ''Soul Calibur'' series with Custom Characters, as well as the ability to alter the colors worn by the standard fighters. Meanwhile, ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}} 5'' offered color choices along with custom items as unlockables.

* ''PerfectDark'' for the N64 had Joanna (the main character) and her head-swap Velvet (controlled by Player 2 during Co-Op Mode). Since they were both Carrington Institute agents, they both wore the same uniform.
* In ''[[VideoGame/TheConduit Conduit 2]]'', the models of the soldiers are all the same, but the armor they wear is chosen randomly.

* The Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, and the Super Game Boy (for the SNES) allowed users to PaletteSwap original Game Boy games entirely (at least the ones that weren't designed to take advantage of the color features of the devices).

* Being the second game Luigi first showed up in, ''VideoGame/WreckingCrew'' once again has him as a recolored Mario.

** Also from ''Days'': [[spoiler:Xion]] is a PaletteSwap of Roxas [[spoiler:minus the dual-wielding]].

* ''VideoGame/TheWorldEndsWithYou'' does this with the Noise. There are sometimes cosmetic differences between the various versions of each Noise species, and the boss versions of a few of the more powerful versions often have tattoos all over their bodies in addition to more threatening characteristics (bigger horns/tusks), but overall most Noise are palette swaps of about fifteen or sixteen different species. [[spoiler: Unlike all of the other bosses, who except for the two bat bosses and boss versions of normal Noise all have unique sprites, the BonusBoss is a PaletteSwap as well, of two of the bosses, one on each screen.]]

*** ''Anime/DigimonXrosWarsTheYoungHuntersLeapingThroughTime'' marks the debut of such a PaletteSwap as a main character in the anime - Ryouma Mogami's partner is [[http://www.wikimon.net/Psychemon Psychemon]], a rather [[RealMenWearPink garish]] PaletteSwap of a particularly famous former main character, [[Anime/DigimonAdventure Gabumon]].

* The Underlings of Sburb in ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'' are all the same basic few monster species given countless different colours themed after grist types, and all bearing [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot some combination of the attributes of the players' prototypings]]. Given that it's an ersatz RPG in webcomic form, it's probably a homage to the PaletteSwap practice in general.

* The villain in the ''TeenTitansTroubleInTokyo'' movie summoned several {{Palette Swap}}ped copies of previously created villains for the final battle.

* Many extras on SpongebobSquarepants are {{Palette Swap}}s of each other. For example, the My Leg and Deaugh fishes.

** Actually lampshaded and justified in ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'', where Skyquake and Dreadwing are explained as twins with two halves of the same spark, explaining why they look essentially the same, just with different colors.

[[folder:Fan Fic]]

* Pam, Alice, and Crimson from ''TotallySpies'' are Palette Swapped {{Expies}} of the Kisugi sisters from ''Manga/CatsEye''.

* Pam, Alice, and Crimson from ''TotallySpies'' are Palette Swapped {{Expies}} of the Kisugi sisters from ''Anime/CatsEye''.

* Capcom's ''[[CapcomvsWhatever Versus]]'' series do this, both mirror match style and new character style. The first ''MarvelVsCapcom'' features [[Comicbook/IronMan War Machine]], who is a palette swap of Iron Man from ''Marvel Super Heroes''. Also, both ''VideoGame/MarvelSuperHeroesVsStreetFighter'' and ''MarvelVsCapcom'' use palette swaps in creating the secret characters. Sometimes an attempt would be made to make them logical characters--[=MSHvsSF=] featured a US Agent as a Captain America swap, for example--while others made no sense whatsoever. Orange Hulk anyone?
** In VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom3 some of the palette swaps also double as {{Mythology Gag}}s.

* ''SkiesOfArcadia'' mostly averted this, save for a few types of enemies that reappear. However, it's played straight with the [[KillerRabbit Looper]] enemies - as Arcadia has [[WeirdMoon six colored moons]], a different colored Looper is founds depending on what region you're in[[hottip:*:They are:red Loopers in Nasr, green Loopers in Ixa'taka, blue Loopers in Yafutoma, purple Loopers in the Lands of Ice, yellow Loopers in Valua, and white/silver Loopers in the mostly empty region under the Silver Moon]]. There is also a far-reaching area in the world where you can find all six varieties of Looper, in addition to a [[GiantMook giant orange Looper]] that you must fight with your ship. Finally, a BonusBoss, Elcian, is a black Looper that is found in the Dark Rift.

** Nowi, Nah, and Tiki are green, red, and bright yellow-colored dragons, respectively.[[hottip:*:A female Morgan, if any of these women are her mother, can also become a dragon, but will always have Nowi's coloring]]

* Most wizard enemies in ''Dink Smallwood'' mods are darker recolors of Martridge the wizard from the original game. Occasionally one of the other characters or monsters gets color-swapped, such as the ice-blue pillbugs in ''Dink Smallwood's Christmas''.

** ''Donkey Kong Country 3'' also had Koindozers, which were similar to Klobbers from the second game, but were a palette swap of Koin (a Kremling that used a DK Coin as a shield). The rest of ''Donkey Kong Country'' follows suit with different coloured Kremlings and [[EverythingTryingToKillYou other mooks]], this gives away whether or not some are DemonicSpiders (the grey Klobbers that rob you of lives) or InvincibleMinorMinion[=s=] (Red Zingers and NighInvulnerable Green Zingers). Red Zingers could only be killed with [[GameBreaker Squitter]]'s webs (unreliable because Squitter is only in a few levels) , while Green Zingers could be killed with barrels as well.

* Some old games palette swap ''everything'' after each level to give the player a sense of progress. ''Desert Falcon'' for the Atari 2600 looped between about eight colors as enemies moved slightly faster, so even field below changed from yellow to green to pink. Even the NES version of ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}'' does this as the game's level increase.

** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' expanded on this by giving us ''four'' colors of Koopa. The original two colors retained their behaviors, while Blue and Yellow were a little different. Take note that a Koopa wears shoes that correspond to their shell color, which can change if a Koopa enters a different colored shell. Additionally, while Yoshi had a shell in his mouth that was a different color than green, he would have a certain power. We also see different colored Yoshis right off the bat. Yoshis other than green ones add the corresponding shell color's power as long as they have shells in their mouths, so you could actually have two at once. There's also a Koopa climbing into a Yellow Shell would become a color-flashing and resilient Koopa that relentlessly chases you down, and a Koopa stomped out of a Blue Shell would become a shell-kicker. The caped, flying Koopas are from red, green, and blue shells.

** ''Donkey Kong Country 3'' also had Koindozers, which were similar to Klobbers from the second game, but were a palette swap of Koin (a Kremling that used a DK Coin as a shield). The rest of Donkey Kong follows suit with different coloured Kremlings and [[EverythingTryingToKillYou other mooks]], this gives away whether or not some are DemonicSpiders (The grey Klobbers that rob you of lives) or InvincibleMinorMinion (Red Zingers and NighInvulnerable Green Zingers)

* Several of the ''{{Metroid}}'' games have enemies who are color swaps of each other, though ''Super Metroid'' mixed it up by making some common enemies larger instead.

In 3D game development, however, changing only the colors has mostly died off, but there are similar variations. Because animation is no longer tied directly to models, it is much easier to create new models and textures for a character while still using the same animation set. Clever code can even allow you to use differently sized characters with the same animations. However, this was ''not'' new to 3D: On the {{SNES}}, some {{RPG}}s were able to use the foreground and background layers to put something in front of the tiles, changing the appearance of the original monster "sprite",[[note]]Not actually sprites: They were actually animated background tiles overlaid with animated foreground tiles. Basically, a sprite can be moved 1 pixel left, a tile fits into a grid (usually 8x8, 16x16, or something in that line), so if you want to show a tile moving 1 pixel left, you either have to move the whole grid, or have another copy of the tile in the tileset which has everything moved 1 pixel left.[[/note]] making this aversion OlderThanTheyThink.

* Nerf blasters are often released in recolored versions as store exclusives, notably the Sonic Series from Toys R Us, the Clear Series from Target, and the legendary Red Strike series from Walmart, which was only for sale for one Black Friday and is now one of the most sought after and expensive repaints ever in Nerf history. Subverted in Walmart's Whiteout series in that they actually improve the blasters' performance.

* ''FireEmblemAwakening'': All of your allies' outfits for their classes tend to either be blue or have blue lining. There are a few exceptions, however:

** [[GenkiGirl Lissa]] has a yellow dress for her cleric and war cleric classes, and she gets a green and yellow sage robe - it's actually identical to her sister [[TheOjou Emmeryn's outfit]]. Her future son Owain also gets a dark yellow colored myrmidon/swordmaster outfit.