History VideoGame / IAmAlive

* XMeetsY: ''TheRoad'', video game style.

* HeWhoFightsMonsters: A meta-example. The main character remains "good" throughout the story, but the ''player'', on the other hand, may just start killing everyone they run across, even the survivors who only want you to leave them alone. Your mileage may vary, of course.

* FriendlyFireproof: Surprisingly averted. Enemies can and ''will'' accidentally kill their friends with gunfire if they get too bunched up, making combat easier. This can be hard to pull off, though, as enemies tend to spread out to avoid this sort of thing.

* ImAHumanitarian: Some of the more desperate scavengers have resorted to cannibalism in lieu of continuing to eat on the dwindling supply of canned goods. You can find some "meat" in a couple of rare places in the game. It's the best possible healing item, filling up your health and stamina capacity... but it isn't rat and there's no more livestock. If you eat any, the end screen will take 5% off of your score and outright calls it human meat.

* FriendlyFireproof: Surprisingly averted. Enemies can and ''will'' accidentally kill their friends with gunfire if they get too bunched up, making combat easier.

* ShootOutTheLock: A couple of places are locked with a padlock you can shoot to open. However, bullets are very dear; you should be absolutely certain you need what's beyond. A couple of the victims can only be rescued this way, too.

* WeaponForIntimidation: Half of the mileage you'll get out of your gun is using it to intimidate machete-wielding mooks after you've shot the ones carrying guns. This can either be used to force them to kneel for a PistolWhipping or to back them up to a fire or cliff, into which you can then kick them. However, it should be noted that enemies will eventually try to call your bluff if you go too long without firing. Averted with your bow, which is deadly but rarely intimidating.

** Two occasions have survivors offer you some of their stash. Take more than they offered and they'll chew you out. You'll also lose the bonus to your score that you'd otherwise get.

* AnnoyingArrows: Averted in gameplay; an arrow is just as good as a bullet to kill someone. Played with in character reactions; unlike with a gun, your bow will rarely intimidate anyone, unless they're isolated, probably because they don't take it seriously due to this trope.

** ActionCommand: How this mechanic plays out.

* ContinuingIsPainful: You're given a finite number of retries for the checkpoints in a level (9 maximum). If you run out, you have to restart from the beginning of the level. However, if the checkpoint has a retry pickup nearby, you can abuse that for an infinite number of retries in that section.

* DarkerAndEdgier: see WhatCouldHaveBeen below. Apparently, the second premise trailer of this title in 2011 (surviving in a post-apocalyptic era) have received a bit more positive reception from some viewers because this version is ''a more believable survival scenario.''
* DeadlyGas: The dust in some lower areas of the city causes a stamina decrease just by being in it, though this can be lessened by wearing a gas mask, as the protagonist and some of the other survivors do.

* EleventhHourSuperPower: In the final level, to make up for the fact you lose your pistol, you get a second arrow for the bow.

* MookChivalry: Averted; if you're engaged in a machete BladeLock with an enemy, his buddies will whack you from the sides and interrupt you. Therefore, engaging in melee should only be done as a last resort or on the last remaining enemy in a group.

** Averted in the final levels, where, if you conserve ammo, you should have about 13 bullets left; in the scheme of things, is about the closest you can get to a GameBreaker.

* DevelopmentHell: It was first announced at E3 2008, and since then has been delayed repeatedly, changed developers, been completely revamped, and missed a number of projected release dates. It has finally received an official release date of March 7, 2012 on [[XBoxLiveArcade XBLA]].

* {{Handguns}}: The first weapon available.

* HeWhoFightsMonsters: A meta-example. The main character remains "good" throughout the story, but the ''player'', on the other hand, starts getting paranoid just about after people stop trying to bully him for items and start trying to kill him right away. Your mileage may vary, of course.

* AttackItsWeakPoint: The way to kill the completely armored final boss is to shoot him in his leg, an InstantKill.
* AttemptedRape: One of the survivor encounters in the Hotel involves shooting the perpetrator through a wall.
* AwesomeYetPractical: The Hunter's Bow. You only get one shot at a time, but you never need collect more ammo (just get the arrow back out of what you shot), and it can easily be used in conjunction with your more intimidating pistol to whittle down larger groups of machete-wielding mooks.

* DifficultySpike: Used to demonstrate how powerful the survivor camp hunters are. Just about all of them have fully loaded pistols, resistance to surrendering when aimed at, and employ a fully armored man as their leader. The game actually gives the player at least two health kits (probably one of the rarest items in the game), because [[BossInMooksClothing you'll need it]].

* DownerEnding: [[spoiler:The ending scene shows a women who is apparently the main character's wife, crying. The scene pans out to show all of your main characters collected items on a table, implying he died. There is no word on how he died, but anything is likely, and DownloadableContent has not been announced to clarify. Granted, it's still pretty much [[DeadManWriting explicitly stated]] in the beginning of the game.]]
** [[spoiler:TheHeroDies]]

* GoodSamaritan: The twenty victims spread throughout the game reward your charity with a bit of backstory and a Retry. The main character is considered one by [[spoiler:Mei's mother, Linda, for helping Mei]].

* MacheteMayhem: One of the weapons you can use. Enemy scavengers are usually armed this way as well.
* MenAreTheExpendableGender: Women aren't all noncombatant victims, but the only armed and dangerous women you'll meet are of the "territorial lone survivor protecting their stash" type. All gangs are male.

* ShotgunsAreJustBetter: Averted. It is equally deadly compared to the pistol and bow.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: The original premise of this game involving trying to survive six days ''after an [[EarthquakesCauseFissures earthquake]] in [[TheWindyCity Chicago]].'' Apparently, the developing team didn't think this scenario to be a believable survival setting. The name of the protagonist is Adam Collins, an ordinary office employee who gets caught in the mess unlike the protagonist in the game's final release who had [[spoiler:to travel by foot since the dust made air travel almost impossible.]]
* [[spoiler:[[WhatHappenedToTheMouse What Happened to Henry?]]: Henry's wheelchair is found near the end, but he is not seen again. The implication seems to be that the gang at the pier found and killed him.]]

** A friendly survivor on a derelict ship offers you some rat meat and wine for free, but has some choice words if you steal the water bottle and second helping of rat meat from his bunk.

* AttemptedRape: One of the survivor encounters in [[spoiler:the Hotel]] involves shooting the perpetrator through a wall.

* AnnoyingArrows: Averted in gameplay; an arrow is just as good as a bullet to kill someone. Played with in character reactions; unlike with a gun, your bow will not intimidate them, probably because they don't take it seriously due to this trope.

* TheWikiRule: [[http://iamalive.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page Has one, but has 30+ articles, including from the pre-release, retail form of the game.]]
* WeaponForIntimidation: Half of the mileage you'll get out of your gun is using it to intimidate machete-wielding mooks after you've shot the ones carrying guns. This can either be used to force them to kneel for a PistolWhipping or to back them up to a fire or cliff, into which you can then kick them. However, it should be noted that enemies will eventually try to call your bluff if you go too long without firing. Averted with your bow, which is deadly but is not intimidating.

** Also, the helicopter and its pilot in the "Strangers" chapter. The hero sees a newly crashed helicopter on top of a building and theorizes that the pilot jumped out before it went down. There is no way to examine the wreckage any closer, there is never any sign of the pilot, and neither the crash or the pilot are ever mentioned again. (In fact, the incident is so strange and unrelated to anything else in the game, it's just shy of being a BigLippedAlligatorMoment.)

* DifficultySpike: Used to demonstrate how powerful the survivor camp hunters are. Just about all of them have fully loaded pistols, resistance to surrendering when aimed at, and employ a fully armored man as their leader. The game actually gives the player at least two health kits (probably one of the rarest items in the game) [[BossInMooksClothing you'll need it]]

* ISurrenderSuckers: Many encounters involve letting a hapless enemy get close, throat-slashing them with your machete, then taking out anyone else with a gun and dealing with the remainder.

** Averted in the final levels, where, if you conserve ammo, you should have about 13 bullets left, which in the scheme of things, is about the closest you can get to a GameBreaker.

* TwentyBearAsses: There are 20 victims in the game, and most of the time, they need you to bring them a specific healing item you may have picked up. One strange man asks for five hard-to-find items like meat and an inhaler, but at least he hands you a loaded shotgun as your reward.

* [[AintTooProudToBeg Ain't Too Proud To Beg]]: Type 2 for many enemy survivors, to the point where forcing a surrender at gunpoint a game mechanic used in order to conserve ammunition.
* AnnoyingArrows: Presumably thought by enemy survivors based on how the bow does not intimidate them, but averted. Just like the firearms, one arrow is enough to kill.

* GoodSamaritan: The main character is considered one by [[spoiler:Mei's mother, Linda, for helping Mei]].

* HeWhoFightsMonsters: A meta-example. The main character remains “good” throughout the story, but the ''player'', on the other hand, starts getting paranoid just about after people stop trying to bully him for items and start trying to kill him right away. Your mileage may vary, of course.
* ImAHumanitarian: Some of the more desperate scavengers have resorted to cannibalism in lieu of continuing to eat on the dwindling supply of canned goods.
** You can find some "meat" in a couple of rare places in the game. It's the best possible healing item, filling up your health and stamina capacity...but it's not chicken, cow or dog... uh oh.
*** If you eat any, the end screen will take 5% off of your score. It outright calls the meat human meat.
* ImprobableAimingSkills: Averted. Your character mentions he's never fired a gun before in his life, and it shows. His aim is below average, and even if the iron sights are dead-on you can still easily miss a headshot at anything more than about 15 feet, wasting a valueable bullet. It's always best to just go for torso shots (which still incapacitate in 1 hit), unless you're dealing with an armored enemy.
* InstantDeathBullet: Horribly averted. It only takes one bullet to mortally wound someone, but they may not die right away, and they may instead be left writhing on the ground in agony. You have the option of performing a MercyKill on them with your machete, if you so choose.

* Macguffin: The Survivor Camps, where the protagonist's family is heavily implied to be. Not too long in the story you'll find you aren't the only one searching for it...

* OneBulletLeft: A common situation, considering the scarcity of bullets meaning that the main character finds them one at a time, if at all.

** TapOnTheHead: Where he hits them. Though it is implied to be nonfatal (hence the need to make the enemy surrender first), there is no way to be sure.
* PuzzleBoss: Or "puzzle every enemy encounter," anyhow. You are regularly surrounded by three or four armed men, and you'll need to keep your wits about you to take them all out, ''especially'' if you only have one bullet left.

* ShotgunsAreJustBetter: Averted. The pistol, bow, and shotgun both are one-hit fatal woundings.

* SlashedThroat: The stealth kill from behind with the [[MacheteMayhem machete]].
* SprintMeter: The white meter. It decreases as you run, climb/hang from your hands, or do anything else with more than average physical exertion, and depletes its maximum when empty, causing further exertion.

* WeaponForIntimidation: Aside from shooting people, this is the other use for your gun. Getting people to back off (and then kicking them off a cliff) is one common way.

* XMeetsY: TheRoad, video game style.
* YouBastard: Lone survivors are often territorial (and sometimes guarding a healing item), but not actually out for your blood unless you get too close. If you wind up killing them (either by accidentally pissing them off or on purpose) they may mutter some final accusation at you, like "Murderer!" before croaking. Even some surviving people in the vicinity of the kill may react with fear even if non hostile and also call you out on it.

* TheArcher: With the Hunting Bow.

* NoodleIncident: "The Event," the cause of which is a total mystery. The only thing you know is that it caused terrible earthquakes and unleashed never-ending dust clouds.

* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: If you explore around, you can find a gorilla-like dancing mutant living down in the dust cloud. He's never explained and doesn't play any role in the main plot, and clashes somewhat with the otherwise realistic tone of the story. Late in the game you can actually talk to him (he's surprisingly eloquent), and trade 5 difficult-to-find items to him for a pump-action shotgun.

* CombatPragmatist: In the "Encounters" trailer, the main character strongly advises taking this stance on violent altercations. Use surprise to kill the first of the enemies in a group, identify any other gun-wielders and shoot them immediately, and use psychological pressure to get the rest of them to fold (usually by killing the "leader" of a group). If at all possible, intimidate them into backing up into a cliff or a fire that you can kick them off of/into. This may seem pretty dirty, but it's a dirty world, and if you let your guard down, these bastards ''will'' kill you.

* DownerEnding: [[spoiler: The ending scene shows a women who is apparently the main character's wife, crying. The scene pans out to show all of your main characters collected items on a table, implying he died. There is no word on how he died, but anything is likely, and DownloadableContent has not been announced to clarify.]]

** It's hardly a surprise, though, seen how [[spoiler:it's pretty much [[DeadManWriting explicitly stated]] right at the beginning]].

* FriendlyFireproof: Surprisingly averted. Enemies can and ''will'' accidentally kill their friends with gunfire if they get too bunched up. Hey, if that means less enemies to kill, [[CombatPragmatist that's a good thing, right?]]

* HeWhoFightsMonsters: A meta-example. The main character remains “good” throughout the story, but the ''player'', on the other hand, starts getting paranoid just about after people stop trying to bully him for items and start trying to kill him right away. [[YourMileageMayVary Your mileage may vary, of course]].

* NoFEMAResponse: Subverted. The government ''tried'' to send military and relief efforts early on after the Event. But within ''one year,'' any semblance of civilization, let alone emergency aid, had long crumbled.

* DownerEnding: [[spoiler: The ending scene shows a women who is apparently the main character's wife, crying. The scene pans out to show all of your main characters collected items on a table, implying he died.]]