History Main / PlotCoupon

** This game also has Banana Coins, with each Kong having their own color of coin. In order to progress, a certain number of these must be collected and traded for "moves" (such as the ability to press stronger switches). Not enough coins means no move (and thus no progression) for you! [[note]]You don't exactly need to go out of your way to locate them though; they're everywhere, and there are even special versions that give five of them to each Kong when picked up, "hidden" in obvious patches of "DK"-marked dirt![[/note]]

** ''ViideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds'': The three Pendants, and then the paintings of the Seven Sages [[spoiler: and Zelda.]]

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'': Three Spiritual Stones followed by the Six Medallions. And in a more literal example of this trope, Zelda gives you a letter that allows you to pass by a certain guard.

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'': Three Spiritual Stones followed by the Six Medallions.
*** In a more literal example of this trope, Zelda gives you a letter that allows you to pass by a certain guard.

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'': Three Spiritual Stones followed by the Six Medallions. And more literally, Zelda gives you a letter that allows you to pass by a certain guard.

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwords'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap The Minish Cap]]'': Four Elements.

** ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwords'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap The Minish Cap]]'': Four Elements.

* In ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows'', Harry has to track down ''two'' sets of Plot Coupons before he can finish off [[BigBad Voldemort]]. The second set was strictly optional, but as long as Voldemort's already looking for one of them...

** Although the real mission required her to find everyone on the planet. Sort of counts.
** Done straight when the Fourth Doctor spent [[StoryArc an entire season]] chasing the segments of the Key to Time.

[[folder: Video Games ]]

* The Jiggies in ''{{Banjo-Kazooie}}'', which are used to complete the jigsaw puzzles in Gruntilda's Lair to open new worlds. Used again in ''Banjo-Tooie'' as proof that you are worthy to complete the challenges of Jiggywiggy, who seems to be the master of all things Jiggy. Naturally, these challenges open up new worlds.

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'': Eight Instruments of the Sirens.
** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'': Three Spiritual Stones followed by the Six Medallions.
** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'': Four Mask Remains
** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames'': Eight Essences of Time (''Ages'') and Nature (''Seasons'')

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap'': Four Elements.

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'': The three tablets, the three Sacred Flames, and the four parts of the Song of the Hero.

** Even closer to the trope, in ''Ocarina of Time'', Zelda gives you a letter that allows you to pass by a certain guard.

* The 3-D Platforming {{Mario}} games also use this trope. ''VideoGame/SuperMario64'', ''VideoGame/SuperMarioSunshine'', and ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy'' all have you looking for 120 stars. [[spoiler: In Galaxy, you even have to get them all a second time to with Luigi to unlock the ''121st'' star for the 100% completion.]] However, none of these games actually require you to get them all to see the ending.
** In ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy2'', you also have to collect 120 stars and then [[spoiler: find 120 more green stars to unlock the Grandmaster Galaxy, which has the last two stars, leaving you with a grand total of 242 stars for 100% completion.]] In both Galaxies, power stars are justified as being fuel.
* The coins in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioLand2SixGoldenCoins''. These are special coins from boss battles, not the normal kind found in ?-Boxes.

* Each ''{{Metroid}} Prime'' games has a set of items that must be collected in order to access the final level. Fortunately, neither ''Metroid Prime'' or ''Metroid Prime 3'' force you to get them in the main quest, and ''Prime 2'', despite having a set of keys for TheDragon of each energy controller (which aren't Plot Coupons themselves), only told you to find them when you needed them, many times along with you doing something more important/interesting.
** The big exception here are the Octoliths in ''Prime: Hunters'', where you must find them all at very specific plot points, and in a specific order.

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'': Three Fused Shadows, then the Four Mirror Fragments.

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'': The three tablets, then the three Sacred Flames.

* The whistle in ''Literature/JesperWhoHerdedTheHares''.

* The Eye of Rom, the single ruby earring used in Haldane empowering rituals, becomes one of these in ''[[{{Deryni}} Deryni Rising]]''. During their preparations for Kelson's ritual, Morgan and Duncan learn from Kelson that it was buried with his father. The trio have to pay a visit to the royal crypt to retrieve it before they can begin the ritual sequence. [[RuleOfDrama Of course, it isn't as simple as that...]]

* In TeresaEdgerton's ''[[{{Celydonn}} The Grail and the Ring]]'', the titular grail. (It is not the Holy Grail, but a grail carved out of a single large sidhe-stone, a substance that grants it magical powers.) Subverted in that [[TheWisePrince Prince Tryffin]], when tracing the object's history in [[AlternateUniverse the Inner Celydonn]], [[spoiler:actually collects a "shadow" of the grail, not the original]]. It's strongly implied that [[TheWatcher Dame Ceinwen]] [[spoiler:disposed of the original in the Marches-Between-Here-and-There to keep it from making any more trouble, then couldn't find it again when it might have been useful]].
* In ''TheAncestralTrail'', the pods and, later, omni pieces.
* In Austin Grossman's ''SoonIWillBeInvincible'', [[MadScientist Doctor Impossible]] must collect three of these to construct his latest DoomsdayDevice.

* {{Lampshade|Hanging}}d and double-subverted in ''UnLunDun'' by ChinaMieville. The book of prophecy claims that, in order to defeat the BigBad, they must collect a chain of these. The initial subversion comes when the protagonist decides this will take too long, and skips to the last link in the chain. The double-subversion comes when she realizes that she actually ''needed'' the Plot Coupons after all. Fortunately, she is able to TakeAThirdOption to get around this.

* Each volume of Susan Cooper's ''Literature/TheDarkIsRising'' requires tracking down one or more {{Plot Coupon}}s, all of which are named in a poem presented in the second volume.

** ''Literature/SilverOnTheTree'' had a mini-PlotCoupon sequence to retrieve the actual PlotCoupon (the crystal sword), the user of which had to be protected by the Signs.

* {{Lampshaded}} and double-subverted in ''UnLunDun'' by ChinaMieville. The book of prophecy claims that, in order to defeat the BigBad, they must collect a chain of these. The initial subversion comes when the protagonist decides this will take too long, and skips to the last link in the chain. The double-subversion comes when she realizes that she actually ''needed'' the Plot Coupons after all. Fortunately, she is able to TakeAThirdOption to get around this.
* In ''Literature/KeysToTheKingdom'', there are parallel sets of {{Plot Coupon}}s such that one of each set must be retrieved in each book: the Key held by that day's Trustee, and the [[DismantledMacGuffin portion of the Will of the Architect]] being held prisoner by said Trustee.

* ''Literature/TheAdversaryCycle''. In ''Nightworld'' the protagonists have to assemble sword of the kind used to defeat Ransolm in ''The Keep'', using the broken parts of prior magic artifacts. This is made more difficult than usual given that TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt is happening and giant flesh-eating monsters are roaming the earth gobbling up anything that moves, [[GiantFlyer including aircraft]].

* ''Literature/TheAdversaryCycle''. In ''Nightworld'' the protagonists have to reassemble another sword of the kind used to defeat Ransolm in ''The Keep''. This is made more difficult than usual given that TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt is happening and giant flesh-eating monsters are roaming the earth gobbling up anything that moves, including aircraft.

* ''TheAdversaryCycle''. In ''Nightworld'' the protagonists have to reassemble another sword of the kind used to defeat Ransolm in ''The Keep''. This is made more difficult than usual given that TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt is happening and giant flesh-eating monsters are roaming the earth gobbling up anything that moves, including aircraft.

* ''Lara Croft: TombRaider'' had the pieces of the Eye of the Illuminati.

* Most Bioware games are, to a large extent, about retrieving plot coupons rather than the plot itself: In ''KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'', the player has to find all Star Maps to get behind the villain's military strength; to retrieve these Maps, he always has to do something that involves finding out about the game's background and/or solving problems unrelated to the actual plot, like a Wookiee civil war or a conflict with Tusken raiders. The main plot will only go on after finding one of these coupons. ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'' has the player finding a few rather large coupons in the form of allied armies - to get these, he, just like in KOTOR, has to solve several local problems unrelated to the main plot. In ''MassEffect2'', most of the game revolves around finding living breathing coupons aka squad members - the actual plot is few and far between and only moves on after gathering a certain amount of members.

[[quoteright:300:[[Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Plot_Coupon_9082.jpg]]]]