Deliberately Different Description

Flavor Text is a common occurrence for items in Video Games, and sometimes they can be Tenuously Connected... Or it's just functional text, describing how to use the item.

In any case, they usually follow some sensible pattern, especially if the item is part of a set. But sometimes there's just something different about the description. Usually hinting there's something similarly different about the item.

Tenuously Connected Flavor Text overlaps with this often, since the trend is for Flavor Text to be more connected than that.

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Examples:

Tabletop Games

• Magic: The Gathering: Unlike modern cards' Flavor Text, several cards from older Core Sets had flavor text from actual, real-life literature, completely free of both the context of the card and the original quote. For example, Dark Banishing (a card about obliterating one's life force) gets flavor text from Romeo and Juliet:
  "Ha, banishment? Be merciful, say 'death,' For exile hath more terror in his look, Much more than death."

Video Games

• Alchemy Swordsmith: The description for the third level of "Cost of Flames", like some of the other third level upgrades, gets into referencing modern memes. In this case, it stops talking about how it would cost less to make alchemical flames, and is just "IT'S FREE REAL ESTATE".
• The Borderlands series:
  • Borderlands: The Eridian weapons, whose Flavor Text is all in binary, instead of English or in other human language words. Except Eridian Blasters, which are described thusly:
    "Pew Pew Pew!"
  • Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!: The Legendary "Celestial [Base Class Name]" Class Mods, which usually have Flavor Text, because that's usually part of being a Legendary item:
    • Celestial Class Mods are the only one of the three types of Legendary Class Mods with the possibility of Flavor Text.
    • The Legendary "Celestial Baroness" Class Mod has no Flavor Text, making it match all of Aurelia's other Legendary Class Mods, but different from everyone else's Celestial Class Mods.
• BoxxyQuest: The Shifted Spires: The 2 visually-non-existent-but-still-take-up-an-item-slot items appear as blank, description-less spaces in the inventory, but are clearly existing since they take up a space and can be ante-d up in the Arena.
• The Card City Nights series, for special cards:
  • In the first game, the Tutorial cards just say what kind of card they are, unlike other cards with text, which is Flavor Text:
    "This is a [Type] Card"
  • Some irregular cards in the second game:
    • The Hacked card, "Jenny Bunny X" is Tenuously Connected Flavor Text that's so tenuous that it's not even about the card:
    ......... This card CRACKED by da OneManPsyEye ......... Greetz n xoxo to SERIOUS SCIENTIST ......... Freedom is gratis! .........
    • The Final Boss's deck has the A Lemon card, which names the player character's name outright in the Flavor Text:
    "You don't know me. But I know you. [Name]."
• Chantelise: For things that aren't fitting the general elemental set:
  • The Darkness Crystal, where other crystals talk about how the sword swings are changed:
    This crystal is shrouded in shadow and mystery... [Enables... screw it. use it at your own risk]
  • The non-Elemental Emblems. The elemental emblems' Flavor Text pattern is:
    "This emblem draws on the power of [Element]. [Emblem description]"
    • Food:
      This emblem draws on the power of ... food? Shouldn't this be a potato?
    • Coin:
      This emblem draws on the power of CAPITALISM. Go for the gold!
• Control:
  • The Mission descriptions. This occurs when the Missions are self-explanatory:
    • The "What a Mess: Take a Break" Mission, where as Jesse lampshades the lack of description and the obviousness of the quest, and how it takes place in the room where she receives it. It doesn't even note on the map where its supposed to take place, assuming that players will immediately complete it because it's so easy, as otherwise they would have no hints beyond the name on how to complete it.
      Jesse: I guess I just, take a seat?
    • The "Take Control" mission has no long description, which uses Federal Bureau of Control letterhead, in the Missions section of the menu because its provided by the Heads-Up Display information instead, when the tasks are activated, and those same tasks are listed in the Mission's shortened description, which is a barebones description of the task.
  • The "Untapped Potential" Conceptual Material is described as "Anomaly", instead of the Sector / Event where it's received like others, because it comes from Mini Bosses, without defined location.
• Cookie Clicker: The British tea biscuits each add an element to their stereotypically British descriptions as they get more expensive...except the last one, leading to the following sequence:
  1. British tea biscuits: "Quite."
  2. Chocolate British tea biscuits: "Yes, quite."
  3. Round British tea biscuits: "Yes, quite riveting."
  4. Round chocolate British tea biscuits: "Yes, quite riveting indeed."
  5. Round British tea biscuits with heart motif: "Yes, quite riveting, old chap."
  6. Round chocolate British tea biscuits with heart motif: "I like cookies."
• Eternal Senia: Hydrangea After The Rain: Manastones usually remark on what they feel like when touched, based on the Red Lotus and Aqua Manastones, respectively:
  A stone with fire within. It's warm to the touch.
  —> A stone with fire within. It's cold to the touch.
  • The Windhaste Manastones' don't have a sensation on touch:
    A stone with wind within. You feel... nothing when you touch it.
  • Radiance Manastones don't say anything about touching them at all:
    A stone with light within. Ah! Shiny!
  • Sable Manastones' don't have a sensation on being touched, but an effect:
    A stone with darkness within. You will slowly sink into darkness when you touch it.
• Hearthstone: The Flavor Text on most cards are generally fourth wall-breaking jokes and references. The exception are the majority of Hero cards, which have completely serious quotes from or about the depicted character.
• The Sealed Ampoule: Of the four Medicines to cure Status Effects, the "Medicine of Harmony" is the only one useful outside the game and the "Medicine of Calm" is the only one that doesn't end its description with a message on how it's could be, or not, used outside the game:
  • Medicine of Harmony:
    Cures Discomfort.
    Relieves light pain and upset nerves, and stops HP decrease. Works well against burns, itchiness, headaches due to low air pressure, and stickiness due to humidity.
  • Medicine of Calm:
    Cures Benevolence.
    The affection felt toward enemies suddenly fades, making attacks land more effectively.
    Yesterday's friend is today's foe.
  • Medicine of Memory:
    Cures Forgetfulness.
    The fog is lifted from your memory, allowing you to use skills again. Unfortunately, it doesn't actually improve your memory.
  • Medicine of Bravery:
    Cures Fear.
    Your fear of the enemy wanes, enabling you to move every turn. Doesn't work against fear of heights, needles, etc.

Web Original

• Mortasheen: The pages for the various monsters generally have elaborate descriptions of their backstories and abilities. This includes the seven "Devilbirds", which have characteristics based on the Seven Deadly Sins. The exception is the Devilbird of Sloth (depicted as an unhatched egg), which has only a single sentence: "The Devilbird of Sloth doesn't do anything."

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