History Main / OneHitPointWonder

* ''VideoGame/Divekick'': This game is the FightingGame version of this. It takes only one well-placed Dive Kick to end anyone.

* ''VideoGame/DiveKick'': This game is the FightingGame version of this. It takes only one well-placed Dive Kick to end anyone.

* In paintball, if you get shot and the pellet splatters onto you, you're out. Ideally, this means getting hit at all is an instant out, but this trope gets subverted if the shot bounces off of you without bursting.

* In paintball, if you get shot and the pellet splatters onto you, you're out. Emphasis on "splatters on you"; it is possible to survive a shot if you get hit but the pellet fails to burst.

* ''BlastCorps'': The truck carrying nuclear missiles are this. If ANYTHING touches it, the missiles explode.

** Although you typically have several lives in the conventional ''Touhou'' games (starting with at least three), in the FirstPersonSnapshooter games ''Shoot the Bullet'' and ''Double Spoiler'', one hit will end the game--that is, end the scene in which you're playing. There's nothing more soul-crushing than taking 9 photographs on a 10-photograph scene and then dying as your camera zooms in to take the last one.

* ''ChoujinSentaiJetman'': This LicensedGame has two secret difficulty levels that reduce the life meter to one.

* ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiBowsersInsideStory'': While not showing one health, does this when the GlassCannon type Daredevil Boots are equipped as an item. You have doubled attack, but one hit kills you outright. This is essentially a downgrade of ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga]]'''s "Great Force" item, which doubled your attack power but halved your defense. (A One-Hit-Point Wonder is automatically more fragile than a GlassCannon, no matter how frail the GlassCannon is.)

* ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'':
** Shedinja is a unique example of this in a game that doesn't usually use it. While lifebars do exist in-game, Shedinja only ever has a single hit point, making its own life bar rather pointless. It's kept from being a [[JokeCharacter novelty Pokémon]] by its ability, "Wonder Guard", which protects it from all damage that isn't super effective. Nonetheless, the first attack that damages it defeats it outright (see TheLawOfDiminishingDefensiveEffort). It's also completely vulnerable to indirect damage (including damage from things like StandardStatusEffects, recoil, weather, Spikes)... really anything but regular damage. Still, it gives Shedinja the odd honor of being not so useful in the standard metagame (due to the popularity of entry hazard Stealth Rock), yet fairly useful in the Ubers metagame, where few Pokémon even carry anything to KO it.
** In Doubles and Triples, it's possible to change his ability to Sturdy. This is useful because in Gen V onwards, it acts exactly like a Focus Sash: the Pokémon is guaranteed to survive a lethal attack with exactly one hit-point as long as it has full life, the difference being that Focus Sash stops working after one hit, but Sturdy doesn't. Because Shedinja only has one hip-point to begin with, it will always have full life, from EVERY attack. The only way to kill it is status effects or weather.
** Plus, any powerful Pokémon with a Focus Sash or Focus Band can survive a would-be fatal hit with exactly 1 HP. With enough luck, a powerful enough Pokémon can sweep through an entire opponent's team with just 1 HP. Blaziken and Heracross are the most known for this, gaining a bonus on an attack called Reversal that hits harder the lower your life is.
** Some tactics turn a 1 HP Pokémon into KO-ing machines. Like [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ye7b3bOQ6lY Magikarp]], or a Level 1 [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPdwIpvsv-8 Rattata]]. No opponent worth his salt will fall for it, but it's still funny to see Level 1 Rattata banned from tournaments. Now that Sturdy acts as a Focus Sash, people now run a level 1 Aron with Sturdy, Endeavor, and a Shell Bell in a sandstorm. Sturdy prevents Aron from going down in one hit. Endeavor takes the foe's HP to equal the user's. Shell Bell restores 1/8th of the damage dealt by the holder's attack, so when Aron uses Endeavor it will heal up to full health so Sturdy will work again. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJxvmtCwAZY Shown in this video.]]

* OlderThanTheNES:
** Every single [[TheGoldenAgeOfVideoGames classic 1980's arcade game]], from ''SpaceInvaders'' (released in 1978) to ''VideoGame/SpaceHarrier'', was like this. Back then, the whole idea of gradually taking damage didn't even exist in video games. It's probably easier to list the exceptions:
** ''1943: The Battle of Midway'' (and in the 90's, the sequels ''1941: Counter Attack'' and ''1944: The Loop Master''.) gives you a life meter, but ''do'' note that these games give you just ''one'' life - lose it and it's game over.
** ''1942 Joint Strike'' gives you a life meter ''and'' multiple lives, but no continues.
** ''{{Gauntlet}}'' (Atari Games) and Dragon Buster (Namco) were among the first arcade games to have a LifeMeter system (though in the former, your health was displayed numerically, rather than as a bar, although the latter had both). Later, ''{{Rampage}}'' had a LifeMeter as well.
** In ''Crazy Climber'', a falling object doesn't kill you if both hands have a secure grip. (It dislodges one hand.)
** Some games allowed you to take two (or more) hits before dying. Usually, the first hit destroys your shields/armor/whatever, and the second kills you. Arcade games of this type include ''Toy Pop'', ''VideoGame/GhostsNGoblins'', ''Blaster'', the ''StarWars'' and ''Franchise/StarTrek'' arcade games, and ''Black Tiger''.
** Some classic arcade games let you command multiple ships at once, or [[CombiningMecha join ships into a more powerful ship]]. Each ship was a One-Hit-Point Wonder, but losing one ship didn't end your turn if you had another. The most famous is ''VideoGame/{{Galaga}}'', but ''Space Duel'', ''Moon Cresta'', ''Eagle'', ''Tac Scan'', ''Star Gunner'', ''Slap Fight'' and several ''Galaga'' sequels also worked this way.
** The arcade version of ''RollingThunder'' has a life gauge with eight hit points, but it's nothing more than a cruel joke. A single touch by an enemy will reduce the player's life gauge by four points, while enemy bullets and laser traps will kill him instantly. So in reality, the player only has two hit points. The NES port and the sequel had a more honest representation of the player's health, while in the Genesis-exclusive ''Rolling Thunder 3'', the player actually has three hit points on the Normal difficulty (allowing him to survive at least one enemy bullet per life).

* ''OperationFlashpoint'':
** This game plays this one in a similar way; as a result, there's not even a health bar.
** However, not every hit is always fatal: depending on where the player is hit, it may make him unable to stand up and run normally (if hit on the legs) or render the aimpoint extremely wobbly (if the arms are no longer healthy).
** The game handled this in an interesting way. A hit on a certain part of the body would have a percentage chance to kill and a percentage chance to injure. For example, a headshot had 99% chance to both kill and injure, whereas limbs had 30% chance to kill and 85% chance to injure. This means that while any shot can kill, and most shots will injure, it is theoretically possible to survive a huge amount of gunfire (although highly unlikely). Large explosive weapons, like tank shells, which hit every body part with splash, would almost certainly kill.

* ''VideoGame/IWannaBeTheGuy'':
** This freeware game, made from various NES and SNES sprites, takes this as far as possible. Almost everything that touches the player character will cause him to explode [[LudicrousGibs in a shower of red pixels]], except the [[VideoGame/{{Castlevania}} Medusa heads]] and [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Cheep Cheeps]] which knock him around (usually into something dangerous). Being hit by a flying Delicious Fruit or AGlassOfChianti is just as deadly as crashing into one of the innumerable SpikesOfDoom.
** Lampshaded in the FanSequel ''I Wanna Be The Fangame'', where the Kid is brought into a ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' battle screen, and his LifeMeter starts at 1/1.

** ''CastlevaniaOrderOfEcclesia'' has the death ring, an accessory which grants a massive attack boost, but turns Shanoa into a One-Hit-Point Wonder. Very useful in a game that gives {{Bragging Rights Reward}}s for defeating bosses without getting hit [[NintendoHard once]]

* ''MegaManBattleNetwork 5'': Megaman can keep corrupting himself with Dark Chips (Each use of them subtracts 1 of his max Hit Points) until he becomes a ''literal'' One Hit Point Wonder. Though the enormous firepower of Dark Chips is enough to say the same about most enemies, if not bosses.

* ''VideoGame/IceClimber'': Had many strange creatures and things kill you in one hit, such as the Topis, falling icicles, and a polar bear with pink shorts and sunglasses! No, really!

* ''Knights of the Sky'': The original edition of this WWI-style air combat sim from 1992 had 1 HP planes (including yours, of course). To be honest, their real counterparts were not much more durable either.




* ''VideoGame/HammerinHarry'' (''Daiku no Gensan''): Genzo in the original arcade game and ''Hammerin' Hero''. In most of the other games, he does, in fact, have a health bar of some sort... but in those games, he's down in one hit unless he has a hard hat to absorb it.

* ''VideoGame/MetalSlug'': Characters die in one hit from bullets, melee weapons, or getting run over by a tank. Unless you pick one particular character in ''Metal Slug 6.''

* ''Owata'' (aka ''[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin The Life-Ending Adventure]]''): This infamously NintendoHard Flash game features a 1HPW with a PunnyName ("Owata" sounds like "Owatta", which basically means "it's over"). You will not be able to get to the end without TrialAndErrorGameplay and/or a guide.

* ''VideoGame/LittleBigPlanet'': Has Sackboy, who basically explodes if he comes in contact with any of the various hazards in the game. The exception is fire, which he can bounce on once before being burnt to a crisp.



* ''VideoGame/{{Jumper}}'': This series takes this trope, uses it, loves it, becomes one with it. It also does the same with MalevolentArchitecture and becomes many times harder because of the most evil game mechanic known to man -- the golden arrows, which allow you to make more than one DoubleJump in midair. This leads to aerial "jump mazes", usually completely surrounded by hazards, requiring pixel-precise jumps to pass it. Yes, it's [[NintendoHard as hard as it sounds]] and, yes, this is part of the fun.

* ''VideoGame/{{Iji}}'':
** Has the Sudden Death sectors, which are ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin. Oh, and you have to complete them to unlock one of the game's secrets.
** You can still survive being shot with machinegun fire and hyper pulse. The good news is that enemies has the same health as you, even bosses.

* ''{{Oddworld}}'': In the first two games, anything (including the player character) could be killed by anything else with one hit. Unless they're being slapped or licked. That takes more hits.

* ''My Hero'': An interesting example is the game for the arcade and Sega Master System. While during the level the titular hero as well as the {{mooks}} can be killed in one hit, the boss battles feature life meters for both the hero and the boss.

* ''VideoGame/MondoAgency'': This freeware game is a rare modern 3D example.

* ''VideoGame/{{Jackal}}'': Apparently being hit by a single bullet will destroy a jeep, every time.

* ''Poyo'': This freeware platformer by Lazrael plays this completely straight, but balances it out because the stages are all pretty short.

* ''MuramasaTheDemonBlade'': The [[HarderThanHard Shigurui difficulty level]] turns your character into this. Although to balance it out, any time you're not in a bossfight, DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist and as long as you have at least 1 sword intact, you can block pretty much any attack and not die from it. You can also do it in midair during some attacks, making it seem that the character is casually shrugging off an attack that should've killed'em several times over.

* ''PhantomBrave'': The Risk debuff turns anyone into this: any attack, no matter how weak or strong, either kills them instantly or misses them. Quite annoying when a randomly-generated dungeon gives this debuff to a roomful of enemies that you would one-hit kill anyway...

* ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'':
** The gummi ship minigame has one of these. Your reward for getting 100% completion on all levels is the Crown/G gummi piece, which, when equipped, starts you off in "berserk mode". The catch is that you become the embodiment of that trope.
** In ''358/2 Days'', equipping the Extreme ring sets your HP to one, but gives you infinite use of {{Limit Break}}s.
** re:Coded has an unlockable cheat that makes ''everyone'' into an example of this trope.

* ''HotelDuskRoom215'': Interrogation sequences. If even one answer you pick causes the person to [[TurnsRed turn red]], 90% of the time you're headed for a GameOver.

* ''ManicMiner'' and ''VideoGame/JetSetWilly'': Willy, the protagonist in these classical platformers.





* ''MetroidOtherM'':
** Hard mode. You only start with 99 energy (one Engergy Tank) and 5 Missiles; all extra Energy Tanks, Missile Expansions, and Accel Charges are gone. By halfway through the game, most enemies and bosses will do more than a whole energy tank's worth of damage, killing you in a single strike. [[spoiler: Good luck fighting the Metroid Queen this way.]]
** Thank goodness they added the checkpoint feature, so you don't go all the way back like most games, as well as the Sensemove dodge (completely avoid damage, similar to Smash Bros.). Not quite as Nintendo Hard as it otherwise would be, but still extremely hard. Of course, some attacks get past Sensemove (such as Metroid Queen's flames) by having simply too large/lasting of hitboxes to avoid.
** Also, probably nice that you don't have the Extra Final Boss, [[spoiler: Phantoom]], in Hard mode. It's near enough to Nintendo Hard with all expansions, but trying it in a OHKO situation? Sure, it'd be neat and bragging rights...

* ''IndianaJonesAndTheTempleOfDoom'': In this arcade game, pretty much everything can kill Indy in one hit. In the NES version, CollisionDamage from enemies and falling onto ground will merely stun Indy, but other hazards will kill him outright.

* ''VideoGame/{{Killer7}}'': Every enemy in [[HarderThanHard Killer8 mode]] can kill the Smiths in one hit (except, luckily, most of the bosses, probably because of [[PuzzleBoss the different ways they're fought]]).

* ''VideoGame/MeatBoy'': The protagonist is this, everything from salt to sawblades will kill him on contact.

* ''VideoGame/MegaMan: Powered Up'': many missions in Challenge Mode only gave Mega Man 1 HP.

* ''VideoGame/{{Miner 2049er}}'': Bounty Bob would die instantly from any type of harm, be it CollisionDamage or falling more than 1.5 times his height.

* ''VideoGame/KungFuMaster'': InvertedTrope: the player has a life bar but most of the {{Mooks}} go down in one hit. Also applies to ''Spartan X 2''.

* ''VideoGame/HotlineMiami'': The protagonist is killed by a single hit. Doesn't help that the game is incredibly fast-paced. However, there are unlockable masks that allow you to take a few more hits than usual.


* ''VideoGame/HighwayHunter'': Your car is this in Hard difficulty. The lifebar is replaced with a [[VideoGameLives lives meter]], life powerups are extra lives instead, and your weapon reverts to the V-Laser each time you're hit.

* ''Ninja Spirit'': In the TurboGrafx16 version, Moonlight has five hitpoints in PC-Engine mode, but only one hitpoint in Arcade mode.

* ''VideoGame/{{Jetpack}}'': All enemies and traps will kill the player in one hit.

* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'':
** Most sidescrolling games did this. Unless Mario gained a powerup, he died with one hit. ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2'' is an exception, with a life meter, but it's a DolledUpInstallment. The 3D games added a true life meter.
** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy'' does this in its daredevil runs, where Mario's LifeMeter has only one hit point. This is usually reserved for a repeat of a completed boss battle.
** The final star in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy2'' takes a level that was ''already'' NintendoHard with three hitpoints and three check-points, and throws in a Daredevil Comet ''and removes the checkpoints''. It borders on being PlatformHell.


* ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiBowsersInsideStory'': While not showing one health, does this when the GlassCannon type Daredevil Boots are equipped as an item. You have doubled attack, but one hit kills you outright. This is essentially a downgrade of ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga]]'''s "Great Force" item, which doubled your attack power but halved your defense. (A One-Hit-Point Wonder is automatically more fragile than a GlassCannon, no matter how frail the GlassCannon is.)

* ''VideoGame/SilverSurfer'': As quoted above, this game, exacerbated by the fact that [[DeadlyWalls touching walls will kill you]]. Made even more annoying by the fact that one of the Silver Surfer's superpowers is being {{Nigh Invulnerab|ility}}le! [[EverythingTryingToKillYou The rubber ducky will kill you.]]

* ''VideoGame/RainbowSix'': Most games in the this series use a variation. It only takes one solid hit to incapacitate a character -- and, in the single-player campaigns for your team, possibly ''kill'' them, permanently removing them from the game. Less solid shots, such as to extremities, take ''two'' hits instead, and hamper the target on the first hit. ''GhostRecon'' works much the same way.

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI'':
** Actually plays this trope the other way around at one point. About halfway through the game, you will be controlling one character on a small island. The random battles consist of two monster types that have a single hit point each. On top of that, they start the battle with a [[StandardStatusEffects HP Sap effect]], meaning they often die before anyone gets a turn. They're almost completely useless for anything but decursing an item that requires you fight 255 battles with it equipped, but you can steal Elixirs or Megalixirs from them if you're fast enough.
** They do have one extremely useful benefit; if Gau ever ran into them in the Veldt (where almost every enemy in the game would reappear), he could imitate them. If Strago was in the party when Gau did so, he could learn a couple GameBreaker spells (like Mighty Guard, which made boss battles a complete joke).
** However, it's also possible to be afflicted with Zombie status on that same island (there's a formation of monsters in the desert that doesn't belong to this trope). Since Zombie makes your character uncontrollable, and you'll only have ''that one character'' at the time, you're potentially a One-Hit-Point Wonder until you get off the island. Or until you equip a Ribbon.
** The monsters, should they get a chance to hit you, do about average damage for this point in the game. So despite the lameness of their HP stat and their Seizure status, they can pose a challenge for a Level 1 character.

* ''SigmaStarSaga'':
** This {{sh|ootEmUps}}mup / {{RPG|Elements}} hybrid is an odd example. Your ''character'' has a lifemeter, but the animation for getting hit shows his ship exploding and a new one flying in from offscreen, like in most shmups.
** Averted with the onset of a ''two'' hit wonder: a boxy-carrier. One hit causes it to crack open and fall apart, revealing a small and nimble warship.
** It is justified/handwaved by the plot: The Alien Empire for which the hero works has enough resources to build countless [[WeHaveReserves living ships]] but is lacking decent ''pilots'', so the pilots are teleported from ship to ship and can [[LifeMeter sustain]] the teleportations.

* ''{{Ristar}}'': This old SegaGenesis/Megadrive game featured this. The highest ({{s|elfImposedChallenge}}ecret) difficulty level not only turned the titular character into a 1HP Wonder, but also a One-''Life'' Wonder; one touch is literal instant death, and all health and 1ups are converted to gems. However, as compensation, the game gives unlimited continues in this mode, meaning death only sends one back to the start of the level.

* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'': The very first game had anything that was harmful kill you in one hit. Body Armor let you survive up to 3 bullets though.

* ''GuitarFreaks'' and ''{{Drummania}}'':
** Have the Risky option. If you turn it on, you can set it to 1, 2 or 4 before the song starts, then if you get that many POOR and MISS judgments combined, you fail instantly (but unlike other Bemani games, you can play out the rest of your songs, although you can no longer earn the Extra Stage).
** ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution [=X2=]'' also added a Risky option. When turned on, you get the One More Extra Stage life meter, but you can play out the rest of your songs even if you fail.

* ''VideoGame/RocketKnightAdventures'': The [[HarderThanHard hardest difficulty setting]] starts you off with one life, no continues, and everything kills you in one hit. Take any damage at all, and it's an instant GameOver.



* ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'':
** Similarly to ''Super Mario'', the title character is a One-Hit-Point Wonder, except when he has at least one ring on him, or a barrier.
** Having multiple rings, unfortunately, is no more effective in terms of protecting Sonic than is having only one ring.
*** However, [[SonicTheHedgehogTripleTrouble in some]] [[SonicUnleashed games]], the number of rings does matter. The odd game or two makes it so you lose only a portion of your rings when hit, provided you've collected a lot beforehand. Other games make your rings fly farther and farther away the more you get hit in a single level, making them tougher to recollect.
*** SonicChronicles, an RPG-style game that uses HP bars, has an example, interestingly enough. [[spoiler:It's the final boss battle against Imperator Ix, when both he and Sonic are in their Super forms. If you don't flawlessly execute your Action Commands and take him out in one turn, he regenerates his HP and you have to try again. Fortunately, Ix has the same problem, so as long as you can do "good enough" at the Action Commands when it's his turn, you can keep going as long as you have the patience]].

* ''VideoGame/ShiningForce'':
** Has this in the form of [[JokeCharacter Jogurt]], who has exactly one point in ''every single statistic''. Though his hit points can be raised through items.
** Jogurt was largely a SelfImposedChallenge, though successfully defeating an enemy with him awards you with the Jogurt ring, which doesn't do anything but change the sprite of another character into Jogurt.
** It should be noted, Jogurt has 7 movement, which is higher than most characters. Still, since you can't boost any of his stats nor level past 1 (other than by equipping Rings... leaving him still doing effectively 1 damage), he's still the most useless character. Unless you want to work super hard to earn lots of Jogurt Rings to sell for 'unlimited' chump change (less than earned from the defeated enemies...).

* ''VideoGame/{{Gaiares}}'': At least until you get a shield, then you're a 6-or-so-hit-point-wonder. unless you die on the final stage, which has no such shield item, which is one of the reasons why that stage (which is ONLY a boss fight) is [[ThatOneBoss/ShootEmUp That One Boss]]. Oddly enough, your TOZ can block some bullets.

* ''VideoGame/{{Glider}}'': These games would make you lose a glider if you hit almost anything that wasn't a prize. Having aluminum foil in ''Glider PRO'' would [[BodyArmorAsHitPoints shield you to some extent]], but foil wasn't a guaranteed find and would be hard or literally impossible to keep.

* ''{{Gradius}}'': If you don't have a force field, the only things your plane can touch without blowing up are power-ups.

* ''VideoGame/{{GoldenEye 1997}}'':
** Had this as an optional game mode in multiplayer, aptly named "Film/LicenceToKill."
** It also has Scaramanga's gun (from ''Film/TheManWithTheGoldenGun''), which is a weapon that basically turns the entire world into One Hit Point Wonders, because it instantly kills anything it hits. If you know your Bond, you'll know this is because Scaramanga was such a good shot, he never needed to shoot anyone twice. In the game, even shooting someone in the foot with it will instantly kill them, but the gun has only one bullet. There's also a golden [=PP7=], which acts like the golden gun, but with 7 bullets.
*** Though it wasn't programed as "this gun kills everything in one hit." It was programmed as "this gun does a ''lot'' of damage". Play with max health handicaps and a body armor pickup. If they shoot you in the foot, you live. A torso show will still kill you, though. Also, Janus is [[FakeDifficulty immune to the effects of the Golden Gun]]. Janus can be killed from the golden gun on the last (non-bonus) level if you shoot him during one of the windows when he's vulnerable.
*** You could also play with no guns in license to kill mode with everyone running around judo chopping. This essentially turned multiplayer into a game of lethal bumpercars mixed with a ''Series/TheBennyHillShow'' sketch.


* ''VideoGame/SystemShock 2'': If you play on Impossible difficulty as an OSA operative, you start with 10HP... which is coincidentally the exact amount of damage done by the very first enemy you encounter, a pathetically weak (on any other difficulty) pipe-wielding parasite zombie. While there are enemies that deal less damage, the fact that you're a one-hit-kill at the very ''start'' of the game means that the Impossible OSA path definitely qualifies for this trope.

* ''RatchetAndClankUpYourArsenal'':
** While you had hit points in the rest of the game, one of the deathmatch types at Annihilation Nation, appropriately named "One Hit Wonder", forces you to kill waves of enemies without taking a single hit.
** ''[[RatchetAndClankGoingCommando Going Commando]]'', the previous installment, had a similar gametype available in its arenas. Ratchet didn't ''die,'' per se, but he did have to start the round over if he wanted credit for completing it (and he would, naturally, need to buy new ammo).
*** However, in these games you have access to energy shields which allow you to take hit(s) before losing these challenges.

* ''[[Franchise/{{Terminator}} T2]] The Arcade Game'':
** Has the level after Cyberdyne in which if the T-1000's police helicopter rams into the protagonists' SWAT van '''''even once''''', the player has to start the level over. Definitely worse than [[ThatOneLevel That Truck Level]].
** Of course, the helicopter was itself something of a one-hit wonder, as far as deflecting the attack went. Whereas that damn truck...you knew where it was, but good god, it was hard to stop.

* ''VideoGame/{{Spelunker}}'': This game is infamous as one of the easiest-to-die characters in video game history. If you don't jump or jump wrong when you get off the elevator, you die. If you step into a pit that's as deep as your ankles, you die. The obscure arcade and Famicom sequels averted this. The remake, ''Spelunker HD'', makes earning extra lives very easy, because you're expected to die so much.

* ''[[WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes Bugs Bunny]]: Crazy Castle'': This old GameBoy and NES game has Bugs running around dozens of floors of a castle where the other Looney Tunes have been brainwashed or something, and running into one of them just once sends you back to the start of the level. Only two items can circumvent this: one that temporarily lets you walk ''through'' other characters and one that temporarily lets you walk through and ''kill'' other characters. Made worse in that some characters follow you around and a few ''float through walls and floors.''

* ''SlyCooper'': This game was another example of this, even though you could get up to two horseshoes to withstand additional hits. The sequels actually gave you a health bar, though.

* ''StarRaiders'': In this classic Atari videogame, the ship goes down in one hit from an asteroid or enemy photon. Fortunately the ship's energy can retain a shield which changes hits from fatal to merely damaging some key component of your ship (at easier levels, there's a chance it won't even hurt). The shield itself is a damageable component, so you are at least two photons away from death.

* ''TimeCrisis'': Almost every enemy in this series can be killed with one shot anywhere, including the finger.

* ''Spacewar!'': Probably the UrExample of this trope in video gaming was this 1961 game, which was created for the PDP-1 computer, and which had its players dueling each other while maneuvering in the gravity well of a star. If you got hit with a missile from the other guy or hit the star, you were dead. There is only one PDP-1 still in existence, though the game has been ported to numerous platforms ever since.

* ''VideoGame/StarcraftII'': The arcade machine in the cantina segment of this game has the game ''Lost Viking'', a BulletHell type shooter. Although you can gain power ups to give you additional "health" you are usually will die to one hit of anything.

* ''VideoGame/GrabbedByTheGhoulies'':
** Gives you a life bar at all times, but will change the number of hit points you start with on a room-by-room basis, and several rooms give you only 1. Usually however, these rooms will come without a prescribed challenge besides reaching the open door on the other side, with only a small number of low-level enemies to evade if any at all. [[NintendoHard Not always, though.]]
** There is also a [[PoisonMushroom trick power-up]] that temporarily reduces your health to 1. It will return to its previous total in a few seconds if you can survive.



* ''GalacticCivilizations II'':
** It is possible to design a ship armed to the teeth but with just one HP. This is accomplished by using the cargo hull as the base. This is usually done out of desperation in the early stages of the game in order to fight off a much stronger enemy (like the Dread Lords) until you can research bigger and stronger hull types. The ship usually ''will'' be destroyed but may deal significant damage to the enemy. Combine a few of these in a fleet, and you got yourself a disposable armada. Granted, the costs are higher than those of smaller ships, but desperate times call for desperate measures. Also, putting defenses on these is usually pointless, unless you can put more defenses than the enemy has firepower.
** This is actually the recommended strategy for fighting Dread Lords: they kill everything in one hit anyway (their weapons are just that powerful: even at the top of the tech tree no defense can stand up to them), so you might as well forgo defenses and concentrate entirely on offense.




* ''FASTRacingLeague'': Your vehicle can only hit any obstacle once before turning into a flaming wreck. Strangely this does not apply to hitting the course walls or other racers, who do no damage, only to flying to the side of the course, hitting walls set to block off your path or running into the flamethrowers which all kill you instantly.

* ''SpyroTheDragon'': In the original games at least, should count. Without Sparx, one hit and he's a goner.

* ''VideoGame/TheTowerOfDruaga'': Gilgamesh.

* ''VideoGame/TokiTori'': The eponymous chick dies in one hit from an enemy or {{spikes|OfDoom}}. Since the game is a PuzzlePlatformer, it is mandatory to find out ''how'' to avoid the monsters; avoiding them is the easy part.

* ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'': Does this in the NES game, and other games often make you a one hit point wonder in hard mode, such as in ''Buster Busts Loose'' for the SNES and ''Babs' Big Break'' for the GameBoy,

* ''VideoGame/{{Rygar}}'': Had one-hit deaths in the arcade version, though the NES version had a life meter.

* ''VideoGame/RaymanOrigins'': Every playable character. You can collect a heart powerup, which makes you able to take one extra hit.

* ''VideoGame/TheFairylandStory'': The only thing that hurts Ptolemy but doesn't kill her is the wizard's spell, which weakens her with the first hit.

* ''VideoGame/RollAway'': The ball is inflatable and so is easily destroyed by heat, spikes and ''captivators''.

* ''GhostRecon: Advanced Warfighter 1'': In Hard mode, all enemies aim for the head and thus kill in one hit.

* ''VideoGame/SyobonAction'': This is a PlatformHell Super Mario Bros clone that takes the difficulty UpToEleven. Naturally, you die in one hit. Fortunately, you have unlimited lives.

* ''VideoGame/{{ESWAT}}'': Uses BodyArmorAsHitpoints. You die in one hit without the titular PoweredArmor, and you don't have it in the first few missions, which have you working your way up in rank. This is averted in the SegaGenesis version (''City Under Siege''), where you have a shorter life bar in the Captain and Chief missions.

* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'':
** Most sidescrolling games did this. Unless Mario gained a powerup, he died with one hit. ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2'' is an exception, with a life meter, but it's a DolledUpInstallment. The 3D games added a true life meter.
** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy'' does this in its daredevil runs, where Mario's LifeMeter has only one hit point. This is usually reserved for a repeat of a completed boss battle.
** The final star in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy2'' takes a level that was ''already'' NintendoHard with three hitpoints and three check-points, and throws in a Daredevil Comet ''and removes the checkpoints''. It borders on being PlatformHell.

* ''UltimaUnderworld II'': Krilner the Coward is a character who only has 1 hit point. You can confirm this by casting a certain spell on him to read his statistics.

* ''BushidoBlade'':
** This game is that rare FightingGame where both you and your opponent are a OneHitPointWonder... at least in theory. In practice, only a couple of moves had this quality, and it usually took a few hits before the lethal blow.
** Talking about fighting game examples... [[SNKvsCapcom SvC Match of the Millenium]] had this as a minigame.
** ''Karate Champ'' on the NintendoEntertainmentSystem also has this, in order to keep things more realistic... except it's the '''match''' or '''round''' that is over when you hit or get hit by the opponent...but '''not the opponent''' himself.

* ''Way of the Exploding Fist'': The original game had this too, but it was emulating traditional martial arts tournament style, where any telling blow ended the round with a point for the striking opponent.

* ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry 3'':
** The "Heaven or Hell" difficulty in this game grants this quality to every single character - Dante and all of his enemies. Yes, even the bosses. What makes it tricky is that Dante can die from taking damage off environmental obstacles, which of course do nothing to enemies. And then there are some enemies which need to be struck at a weak point, whereas Dante has no such advantage.
** "Hell or Hell" mode in the fourth game plays this the traditional way, although to compensate for it, you get a stock of 3 AutoRevive items to help you that are replenished whenever you reach a checkpoint.

* ''VideoGame/{{Bomberman}}'':
** Most of the early games made the titular hero a OneHitPointWonder. He can survive one hit if he has the "Heart" power-up, which acts as a shield. Starting with the {{Nintendo 64}} era, Bomberman got a lifebar.
** What makes this funny is that he could be one-shotted by bumping into ''balloons'', [[EverythingTryingToKillYou of all things]] (Granted they are cute monster balloons, but still...), making his case very obscure.
** "Standard" mode in ''Act Zero'' plays like this, with the added condition of only giving the player one life to go with it. Should you get hit by any bomb blast (including [[HoistByHisOwnPetard your own]]) without a shield, your game is over (made extra-frustrating because the single-player mode is ''very'' long, and the player is not provided with any continues or {{save point}}s of any sort -- got killed on level 98? Back to level one for you!).

* ''VideoGame/DragonsLair'':
** In the NES version, the player actually has a life bar, but most hazards in the game kill him instantly, such as touching a stationary, ordinary door. In fact, the ONLY two enemies in the game that do not spell instant death are the bats and the skulls. Why did they bother?
** AvertedTrope in ''Dragon's Lair 3D: Return to the Lair'', where Dirk not only has a life bar, but he also has mana and can take some hits from all enemies before dying, though BottomlessPits do spell instant death.
** The original version of ''Dragon's Lair'', as well as ''VideoGame/SpaceAce'' and ''VideoGame/BrainDead13'', on the contrary to the above example, give that wonder in its '''solid''' look. The latter game, however, has unlimited lives, meaning that DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist indeed.

* ''Delta Force'': In these games, you can only take one, maybe two shots if you have armor. However, the enemies also can't take more than 1 high-powered shot, even to limbs (which is more realistic than other games, if you think about it), and they tend to be uninteligent, relatively stationary, and terrible shots.

* ''VideoGame/WinBack'': Featured an unlockable "Sudden Death Mode" wherein a single bullet was all it took to send you or any enemy to an early grave. Amusingly, this led to encounters with simple guards becoming white-knuckle standoffs, while most boss characters wound up on the floor before they even finished taunting you.

* ''Combat School'': On the last level, you have a life bar, but everything in the level (being shot, touching an enemy, touching something on fire, etc.) kills you instantly. Except the final boss, whose hits aren't fatal -- so ''that's'' what the life bar is for...

* ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution'':
** [[TrueFinalBoss One More Extra Stages]] force you to play with the "Sudden Death" modifier; if you get one Good, Bad, Miss, or NG, you instantly fail the song. The same applies to ''Dance [=ManiaX=]'' 's Extra Stages. DDR's Oni/Challenge mode is like this as well, but you get three chances to screw up before the fourth fails you, and you get a chance back after clearing certain songs.
** The normal Extra Stage in ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution [=SuperNOVA 2=]'' could be anywhere from this to a four-hit-point-wonder, depending on how well you did on your final stage. ''DDR X'' ups the minimum to two instead, but the maximum is still four. Considering some of the songs are loaded with FakeDifficulty (Pluto on the CS version being a major offender - stops are less predictable than CHAOS from DDR [=SuperNova=]), you're kinda screwed.

* ''VideoGame/{{Beatmania}} IIDX'': Hazard Mode. Break your combo? FAIL.

* ''VideoGame/BubbleBobble'' series:
** Even [[EverythingTryingToKillYou wind-up-toys can kill you]]. Keep in mind that ''Rainbow Islands'' and ''Parasol Stars'' ditch the bubble dragons for human protagonists. ''Who also die when they touch anything.'' This carries on when the bubble dragons return for ''Symphony'' and ''Memories'', both made in 1994-95. And in ''Symphony'', when [[AndYourRewardIsClothes the characters turn back into humans, they can still die easily.]]
** To access any secrets, {{No Damage Run}}s (thus, No Death Runs) are a necessity too.

* BulletHell:
** These games, such as ''VideoGame/{{Ikaruga}}'' or ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}}'', will typically kill the player if a single bullet touches their hitbox. Though you generally have several lives and don't lose any progress when you die, meaning that lives basically work as HP.
** Although you typically have several lives in the conventional ''Touhou'' games (starting with at least three), in the FirstPersonSnapshooter games ''Shoot the Bullet'' and ''Double Spoiler'', one hit will end the game--that is, end the scene in which you're playing. There's nothing more soul-crushing than taking 9 photographs on a 10-photograph scene and then dying as your camera zooms in to take the last one.

* ''VideoGame/{{Bubsy}}'': Though not in the sequel. [[TheManyDeathsOfYou At least every death gives you a different death animation]].

* ''DeadlyRoomsOfDeath'': In this series, the player and everybody else has one hit point, with the exception of very large enemies that [[AsteroidsMonster shrink when you hit them]] (snakes and the rock giant). In addition, some enemies can't be killed with any of your own weapons. Added to this that it is a turn based tactical game with tiny turns, to the point of being a puzzle game, and it was designed by a bunch of total sadists, the series is one of the hardest around. DROD RPG uses HP for the player and the monsters, and employs deterministic statistic-based combat mechanics, which also cause a need for difficult strategizing.

* ''{{X-COM}}'': Your soldiers actually have life bars but, until they are experienced and get armor (and it takes a while), for practical purposes they might as well be one of these. The health bars average between 40 and 60 health points, and the weakest alien weapon (Plasma Pistol or Sonic Pistol) does 80 damage. An extremely lucky soldier will survive a single hit, be knocked unconscious from the pain, and then die the following turn from bleeding out. ''Apocalypse'' actually tends to make this an Averted Trope, however, as your soldiers start with basic armor that can actually resist a few shots.

* ''AnUntitledStory'': Completing the game on [[IdiosyncraticDifficultyLevels Masterful]] difficulty unlocks [[HarderThanHard Insanity]] Difficulty. Technically, you start with 100 HP and can get over 1000 if you collect all of the hearts, but everything deals so much damage that you die in one hit whether it be the FinalBoss or a simple snail.

* ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong'':
** Jumpman (later renamed [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario]]), from this arcade game. Not only will he die from touching one of the various hazards (barrels, spring-things, fire, pies), he'll also die if he falls several feet.
** ''Donkey Kong Junior'' doesn't fare much better.
** ''Jumpman'', a game for the Commodore 64 not related to Mario, is like this as well. Getting hit, jumping or walking off a ledge, climbing into solid wall, and a few other things are instant kill. Just don't set run speed to 01.
** All three ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry'' games, although if you have your friend then you switch to him/her when you die.
*** The second game did have an example of a boss with only one hit. [[spoiler:When you refight K.Rool in Krocodile Kore.]]
*** In ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryReturns'', [[spoiler:there is a Mirror Mode where Diddy Kong doesn't appear at all and Donkey Kong only has one heart instead of the normal two hearts.]]
**** Also played straight in the same game's [[UnexpectedGameplayChange rocket and minecart sections]]. If you're on the minecart or rocket and you get hit ''once'' - you instantly lose a life regardless of your heart meter. [[NintendoHard Of course, you can expect that to happen if you're not careful.]]

* ''VideoGame/{{Dizzy}}'': In the first three games of the series. (In the second game, ''Treasure Island Dizzy'', you only had one life, too. The fourth game, ''Magicland Dizzy'', added a LifeMeter, but some of the hazards - in most games including [[SuperDrowningSkills water]] - remained instantly fatal.)

* ''Franchise/CrashBandicoot'': The title character ''lives'' ([[{{Pun}} Or rather dies]]) by this trope (at least in earlier installments), sure you can get Aku-Aku masks to take up to two extra hits, but those tend to be rare unless you die several times in a row between checkpoints (where you're then given a freebie mask upon respawning). Regardless, when Crash is by himself, he croaks at even the slightest contact with an enemy or hazard... even seemingly harmless ones like ''turtles'' and ''skunks''.

* ''VideoGame/CrystalQuest'': Has no armor, but its sequel has five different types as powerups. Most only protect against one kind of hazard, leaving you a One Hit Point Wonder to everything else.

* ''{{DEFCON}}'':
** ''Every'' unit in this game, quite realistically. How many torpedo hits do you think a sub can take? To balance this, the chance to hit is quite low.
** This was done because the developers felt that tracking hit points for every single entity in the game would bog it down too much, so instead gave things varying chances to be hit.

* ''BattleKidFortressOfPeril'': This game, as a natural consequence of being heavily inspired by ''VideoGame/IWannaBeTheGuy''.

* ''ChocobosDungeon'' (''Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon''): Has optional mind zones where both you and monster's max hp are dropped to 1. The latter stages are even worse since it only your max hp which is set to 1 while the enemies have more HP than you.

* ''{{DJMAX}} Portable'': In this series, as well as ''DJMAX Trilogy'', some missions have you clearing a song or set of songs without missing a single note; instead of allowing you to continue having failed the mission, the game simply throws you an instant GameOver. There's also one particular mission in ''DJMAX Portable 2'', "Just 1%", where getting a MAX 1% (the lowest judgment you can get from hitting a note) is an instant game over as well. ''DJMAX Portable 3'' offers modifiers called "1 BREAK: GAME OVER" and "1%: GAME OVER", which have the same effects.

* ''VideoGame/DarkCastle'': Duncan died in one hit from anything in the first game. ''Beyond Dark Castle'' combine the level timer with a LifeMeter to allow Duncan to survive some hits at the expense of time.

* ''ChipsChallenge'': In this puzzle game, any enemy and obstacle can kill you upon contact, making the levels harder than [[NintendoHard they already are]].

* ''ChoujinSentaiJetman'': This LicensedGame has two secret difficulty levels that reduce the life meter to one.

* ''BlastCorps'': The truck carrying nuclear missiles are this. If ANYTHING touches it, the missiles explode.

* ''VideoGame/DiveKick'': This game is the FightingGame version of this. It takes only one well-placed Dive Kick to end anyone.

* ''VideoGame/{{Wardner}}'': The protagonist, except in the Famicom Disk System version.

* ''VideoGame/CaptainSilver'': The protagonist, except in the Famicom version.

* ''VideoGame/{{X}}'': [[DestructibleProjectiles Missiles]] in most of the ''X-Universe'' series will be destroyed by a glancing blow from the weakest gun in the game. The latest game ''X3: Albion Prelude'' gives them a health bar, however. Also, M5 scoutships are effectively this when faced with the flak guns on a capital ship, and in the first two games every ship was one of these if its shields went down (''X2: The Threat'' added hull armor as a mechanic).

* ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'': AvertedTrope in this game, although played straight in ''Action Doom''.

* ''Bucky O'Hare'' This game for the NES had the player dying in one hit when playing on the hidden hard mode.

* ''VideoGame/ZoneOfTheEnders'': A late mission sees Jehuty's [=AI=] Ada infected with a virus. While in this condition, any kind of damage will instantly destroy Jehuty, forcing the player to resort to sniping enemies from afar or risk a game over.
* ''VideoGame/AnotherWorld'': This Eric Chahi game (known as ''Out Of This World'' in US) [[NintendoHard worked this way]]. Some combat elements, such as the blaster pistol capable of creating blaster shields, made it rather complicated to get through certain firefights, almost qualifying it as a PuzzleGame. The unsuspecting player is in for a surprise if he tries to run past the worms crawling on the ground in the first area.

* Creator/ApogeeSoftware:
** Three of this company's early CGA games: ''VideoGame/ArcticAdventure'', ''Pharoahs Tomb'', and ''Monuments Of Mars''. One hit from anything would mean losing a life
** Not to mention that to run the game faster, enemies are circumscribed by their hitboxes to simplify collision detection, so you had to compensate for invisible death-squares around every bad guy. The game even calls this "F.A.S.T. technology" and brags about it in the instructions.

* ''AceCombat'': If HarderThanHard mode examples count, player aircraft in this game go down with just one missile hit when played on the highest difficulty (except in ''X: Skies of Deception'' where a high enough defence allows you to get away with 90+ , maybe 80+ % damage taken... not that many planes are both that survivable and still good dogfighters). Enemy aircraft, on the other hand, remain just as durable as on normal difficulty.

* ''VideoGame/AdventureIsland'': This game does this. Even though you have what looks like a LifeMeter, it's actually the timer. One hit kills you. Tripping on rocks also decreases the meter. Averted in ''VideoGame/AdventureIsland: [[WiiWare the Beginning]]'', in which taking hits knocks time off the meter.

* An interesting example is the game ''My Hero'' for the arcade and Sega Master System. While during the level the titular hero as well as the {{mooks}} can be killed in one hit, the boss battles feature life meters for both the hero and the boss.

* ''VideoGame/AlexKidd'': Except in ''Shinobi World'', one hit from something and he turns into a ghost, floating to the top of the screen waving his arms with a humorous "mwoop mwoop mwoop" sound. The {{Narm}} almost stops you from being pissed off at being killed from one hit by making you laugh.

* ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedBrotherhood'': In the Wanted multiplayer mode, everyone dies in one hit.

* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'':
** Non-video game example: In the 4th edition of this tabletop game, there's a "minion" class of monster who basically has the same stats as a normal NPC/monster of its type, but only 1 hit point. They basically have two purposes: to give the [=PCs=] a horde of easily dispatched enemies so the players can feel all BadAss, or to [[WeHaveReserves run interference for a more powerful enemy]].
** In the earlier games, it was quite possible for a first-level player character to be this. [[SquishyWizard First-level magic users were especially prone to being this]] due to having the smallest hit dice in the game and their inability to equip any armor, leading to a tendency to die if an enemy so much as ''looked'' at them funny. This was partially fixed in version 3.5 with the rule that all characters get their maximum hit die roll at first level.

* ''VideoGame/AdventuresOfLolo'' (''Adventures of Lolo/Eggerland''): Lolo of the series is one, as well as Lala, when she's playable.

* ''Atomic Runner'': Chelnov from the Megadrive/Arcade game is probably the wimpiest example of this trope. Not only does any given enemy or bullet kill him, but so can the [[WhatanIdiot candles]] you [[EverythingTryingtoKillYou obtain power ups]] from. So much for the Atomic Armor!

* ''VideoGame/PunchOut'': In case you thought the game wasn't NintendoHard enough, a special mode in this game makes you lose the match if you get punched even once. The only exception to this being Aran Ryan's rope-glove attack when you knock him down.

* ''VideoGame/{{Amagon}}'': Amagon can't take a hit without dying. When he transforms into Megagon, he gains a life bar.

* ''Zelda'': The "three-heart run" is a popular challenge with players of this franchise. After the boss of each dungeon in a ''Zelda'' game, there is one heart container, which increases the player's maximum health. Eschewing these heart containers leaves the player with three hearts throughout the entire game, hence the name. However, enemies in later parts of the game might be programmed to take off more than three hearts per hit, in expectation of the player having enough hearts. As a result, if an enemy that takes off more than three hearts hits a player playing through a three-heart run, the player will die instantly. This is especially inconvenient when there are multiple enemies that do such damage in the same room, which could be common in later dungeons.

* ''VideoGame/AquaRhapsody'': If a single enemy touches the castle, the castle will spontaneously explode.

* ''VideoGame/TheAdventureOfLittleRalph'': Ralph dies from a single hit from any enemy, unless he has a shield which allows him to take one more hit. This is justified in that Ralph spends most of the game as a young child, [[spoiler:and in boss battles after the middle of the game, he turns back into a man and can take a large number of hits without dying. Then Ralph randomly turns back into a boy afterwards.]]

* As quoted above, ''VideoGame/SilverSurfer'', exacerbated by the fact that [[DeadlyWalls touching walls will kill you]]. Made even more annoying by the fact that one of the Silver Surfer's superpowers is being {{Nigh Invulnerab|ility}}le!
** [[EverythingTryingToKillYou The rubber ducky will kill you.]]
* The ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' Shedinja is a unique example of this in a game that doesn't usually use it. While lifebars do exist in-game, Shedinja only ever has a single hit point, making its own life bar rather pointless. It's kept from being a [[JokeCharacter novelty Pokémon]] by its ability, "Wonder Guard", which protects it from all damage that isn't super effective. Nonetheless, the first attack that damages it defeats it outright (see TheLawOfDiminishingDefensiveEffort). It's also completely vulnerable to indirect damage (including damage from things like StandardStatusEffects, recoil, weather, Spikes)... really anything but regular damage. Still, it gives Shedinja the odd honor of being not so useful in the standard metagame (due to the popularity of entry hazard Stealth Rock), yet fairly useful in the Ubers metagame, where few Pokémon even carry anything to KO it.

* OlderThanTheNES: Every single [[TheGoldenAgeOfVideoGames classic 1980's arcade game]], from ''SpaceInvaders'' (released in 1978) to ''VideoGame/SpaceHarrier'', was like this. Back then, the whole idea of gradually taking damage didn't even exist in video games. It's probably easier to list the exceptions:

* ''BushidoBlade'' is that rare FightingGame where both you and your opponent are a OneHitPointWonder... at least in theory. In practice, only a couple of moves had this quality, and it usually took a few hits before the lethal blow.

** ''Karate Champ'' on the NintendoEntertainmentSystem also has this, in order to keep things more realistic... except it's the '''match''' or '''round''' that is over when you hit or get hit by the opponent... but '''not the opponent''' himself.
* The original ''Way of the Exploding Fist'' had this too, but it was emulating traditional martial arts tournament style, where any telling blow ended the round with a point for the striking opponent.
* Most games in the ''VideoGame/RainbowSix'' series use a variation. It only takes one solid hit to incapacitate a character -- and, in the single-player campaigns for your team, possibly ''kill'' them, permanently removing them from the game. Less solid shots, such as to extremities, take ''two'' hits instead, and hamper the target on the first hit. ''GhostRecon'' works much the same way.
* ''OperationFlashpoint'' also plays this one in a similar way; as a result, there's not even a health bar.

* The "Heaven or Hell" difficulty in ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry 3'' grants this quality to every single character - Dante and all of his enemies. Yes, even the bosses. What makes it tricky is that Dante can die from taking damage off environmental obstacles, which of course do nothing to enemies. And then there are some enemies which need to be struck at a weak point, whereas Dante has no such advantage.

* Most early ''VideoGame/{{Bomberman}}'' games made the titular hero a OneHitPointWonder. He can survive one hit if he has the "Heart" power-up, which acts as a shield. Starting with the {{Nintendo 64}} era, Bomberman got a lifebar.

* A late mission in ''VideoGame/ZoneOfTheEnders'' sees Jehuty's [=AI=] Ada infected with a virus. While in this condition, any kind of damage will instantly destroy Jehuty, forcing the player to resort to sniping enemies from afar or risk a game over.
* The Eric Chahi game ''VideoGame/AnotherWorld'' (known as ''Out Of This World'' in US) [[NintendoHard worked this way]]. Some combat elements, such as the blaster pistol capable of creating blaster shields, made it rather complicated to get through certain firefights, almost qualifying it as a PuzzleGame. The unsuspecting player is in for a surprise if he tries to run past the worms crawling on the ground in the first area.
* ''VideoGame/IWannaBeTheGuy'', a freeware game made from various NES and SNES sprites, takes this as far as possible. Almost everything that touches the player character will cause him to explode [[LudicrousGibs in a shower of red pixels]], except the [[VideoGame/{{Castlevania}} Medusa heads]] and [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Cheep Cheeps]] which knock him around (usually into something dangerous). Being hit by a flying Delicious Fruit or AGlassOfChianti is just as deadly as crashing into one of the innumerable SpikesOfDoom.

* Speaking of ''VideoGame/{{Castlevania}}'', ''VideoGame/HauntedCastle'' version M on default settings comes close; two hits from a skeleton's bone throwing attack will kill you.

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI'' actually plays this trope the other way around at one point. About halfway through the game, you will be controlling one character on a small island. The random battles consist of two monster types that have a single hit point each. On top of that, they start the battle with a [[StandardStatusEffects HP Sap effect]], meaning they often die before anyone gets a turn. They're almost completely useless for anything but decursing an item that requires you fight 255 battles with it equipped, but you can steal Elixirs or Megalixirs from them if you're fast enough.

* In the NES version of ''VideoGame/DragonsLair'', the player actually has a life bar, but most hazards in the game kill him instantly, such as touching a stationary, ordinary door. In fact, the ONLY two enemies in the game that do not spell instant death are the bats and the skulls. Why did they bother?
** Averted in ''Dragon's Lair 3D: Return to the Lair'', where Dirk not only has a life bar, but he also has mana and can take some hits from all enemies before dying, though BottomlessPits do spell instant death.
* The actual ''Dragon's Lair'' as well as ''VideoGame/SpaceAce'' and ''VideoGame/BrainDead13'', on the contrary to the above example, give that wonder in its '''solid''' look. The latter game, however, has unlimited lives, meaning that DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist indeed.
* In ''MegaManBattleNetwork 5'', Megaman can keep corrupting himself with Dark Chips (Each use of them subtracts 1 of his max Hit Points) until he becomes a ''literal'' One Hit Point Wonder. Though the enormous firepower of Dark Chips is enough to say the same about most enemies, if not bosses.
* In the ''Delta Force'' games, you can only take one, maybe two shots if you have armor. However, the enemies also can't take more than 1 high-powered shot, even to limbs (which is more realistic than other games, if you think about it), and they tend to be uninteligent, relatively stationary, and terrible shots.
* The {{sh|ootEmUps}}mup / {{RPG|Elements}} hybrid ''SigmaStarSaga'' is an odd example. Your ''character'' has a lifemeter, but the animation for getting hit shows his ship exploding and a new one flying in from offscreen, like in most shmups.

* The old SegaGenesis/Megadrive game ''{{Ristar}}'' featured this. The highest ({{s|elfImposedChallenge}}ecret) difficulty level not only turned the titular character into a 1HP Wonder, but also a One-''Life'' Wonder; one touch is literal instant death, and all health and 1ups are converted to gems. However, as compensation, the game gives unlimited continues in this mode, meaning death only sends one back to the start of the level.
* In ''VideoGame/LaMulana'', if you equip the ''F1 Spirit 3D'' and ''VideoGame/{{Contra}}'' [=ROMs=] (in that specific order), you will die after taking one hit. This is in stark contrast to the latter half of the game, where you will probably have so much health that dying becomes completely irrelevant, except against a boss. (Ironically, the ''Contra'' ROM is for the {{MSX}}2 version, which averted this.)
* ''VideoGame/IceClimber'' had many strange creatures and things kill you in one hit, such as the Topis, falling icicles, and a polar bear with pink shorts and sunglasses! No, really!
* The very first ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'' game had anything that was harmful kill you in one hit. Body Armor let you survive up to 3 bullets though.
* ''VideoGame/WinBack'' featured an unlockable "Sudden Death Mode" wherein a single bullet was all it took to send you or any enemy to an early grave. Amusingly, this led to encounters with simple guards becoming white-knuckle standoffs, while most boss characters wound up on the floor before they even finished taunting you.
* On the last level in ''Combat School'', you have a life bar, but everything in the level (being shot, touching an enemy, touching something on fire, etc.) kills you instantly. Except the final boss, whose hits aren't fatal -- so ''that's'' what the life bar is for...
* The ninja in ''VideoGame/{{N}}: The Way of the Ninja'' is about as flimsy as wet cardboard - there's an X-Box Live achievement which requires you die 2,000 times in the single-player mode. It's easier than it sounds.
* [[TrueFinalBoss One More Extra Stages]] in ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution'' force you to play with the "Sudden Death" modifier; if you get one Good, Bad, Miss, or NG, you instantly fail the song. The same applies to ''Dance [=ManiaX=]'' 's Extra Stages. DDR's Oni/Challenge mode is like this as well, but you get three chances to screw up before the fourth fails you, and you get a chance back after clearing certain songs.

* ''VideoGame/PopNMusic'''s Cho-Challenge mode has the DEATH norma, which when activated will cause a miss to wipe out your life meter. However, this doesn't end the stage; you just have to rebuild your life meter all the way back up. For extra [[SarcasmMode fun]], activate the "COOL or BAD!" norma, which removes all timing judgments except for COOL and BAD, so if you're outside the timing window for a COOL...
* ''[[VideoGame/{{Beatmania}} Beatmania IIDX]]''. Hazard Mode. Break your combo? FAIL.
* ''GuitarFreaks'' and ''{{Drummania}}'' have the Risky option. If you turn it on, you can set it to 1, 2 or 4 before the song starts, then if you get that many POOR and MISS judgments combined, you fail instantly (but unlike other Bemani games, you can play out the rest of your songs, although you can no longer earn the Extra Stage).

* The Prinnies in ''PrinnyCanIReallyBeTheHero'' have only one hit point if you play on Hard Mode, though you'll have a [[WeHaveReserves lot of them.]] Easy Mode allows you four hit points; doesn't make the game any easier.
* Original edition of Knights of the Sky, WWI-style air combat sim from 1992, had 1 HP planes (including yours, of course). To be honest, their real counterparts were not much more durable either.
* Three of Creator/ApogeeSoftware's early CGA games: ''VideoGame/ArcticAdventure'', ''Pharoahs Tomb'', and ''Monuments Of Mars''. One hit from anything would mean losing a life

* ''VideoGame/BubbleBobble'' series. Even [[EverythingTryingToKillYou wind-up-toys can kill you]]. Keep in mind that ''Rainbow Islands'' and ''Parasol Stars'' ditch the bubble dragons for human protagonists. ''Who also die when they touch anything.'' This carries on when the bubble dragons return for ''Symphony'' and ''Memories'', both made in 1994-95. And in ''Symphony'', when [[AndYourRewardIsClothes the characters turn back into humans, they can still die easily.]]

* ''VideoGame/RocketKnightAdventures''[='=] [[HarderThanHard hardest difficulty setting]] starts you off with one life, no continues, and everything kills you in one hit. Take any damage at all, and it's an instant GameOver.
* BulletHell games, such as ''VideoGame/{{Ikaruga}}'' or ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}}'', will typically kill the player if a single bullet touches their hitbox. Though you generally have several lives and don't lose any progress when you die, meaning that lives basically work as HP.

* Similarly to Super Mario, ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' is a One-Hit-Point Wonder, except when he has at least one ring on him, or a barrier.

* ''VideoGame/ShiningForce'' has this in the form of [[JokeCharacter Jogurt]], who has exactly one point in ''every single statistic''. Though his hit points can be raised through items.

* ''VideoGame/{{Gaiares}}'', at least until you get a shield, then your a 6-or-so-hit-point-wonder. unless you die on the final stage, which has no such shield item, which is one of the reasons why that stage (which is ONLY a boss fight) is [[ThatOneBoss/ShootEmUp That One Boss]]. Oddly enough, your TOZ can block some bullets.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Glider}}'' games would make you lose a glider if you hit almost anything that wasn't a prize. Having aluminum foil in ''Glider PRO'' would [[BodyArmorAsHitPoints shield you to some extent]], but foil wasn't a guaranteed find and would be hard or literally impossible to keep.
* In ''{{Gradius}}'', if you don't have a force field, the only things your plane can touch without blowing up are power-ups.
* ''VideoGame/{{Bubsy}}'', though not in the sequel. [[TheManyDeathsOfYou At least every death gives you a different death animation]].
* Genzo from ''[[VideoGame/HammerinHarry Daiku no Gensan]]'' in the original arcade game and ''Hammerin' Hero''. In most of the other games, he does, in fact, have a health bar of some sort... but in those games, he's down in one hit unless he has a hard hat to absorb it.
* ''VideoGame/MetalSlug'' characters die in one hit from bullets, melee weapons, or getting run over by a tank. Unless you pick one particular character in ''Metal Slug 6.''
* If HarderThanHard mode examples count, player aircraft in the ''AceCombat'' go down with just one missile hit when played on the highest difficulty (except in ''X: Skies of Deception'' where a high enough defence allows you to get away with 90+ , maybe 80+ % damage taken... not that many planes are both that survivable and still good dogfighters). Enemy aircraft, on the other hand, remain just as durable as on normal difficulty.
* The infamously NintendoHard Flash game ''Owata'' (aka ''[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin The Life-Ending Adventure]]'') features a 1HPW with a PunnyName ("Owata" sounds like "Owatta", which basically means "it's over"). You will not be able to get to the end without TrialAndErrorGameplay and/or a guide.
* ''VideoGame/AdventureIsland'' does this. Even though you have what looks like a LifeMeter, it's actually the timer. One hit kills you. Tripping on rocks also decreases the meter. Averted in ''VideoGame/AdventureIsland: [[WiiWare the Beginning]]'', in which taking hits knocks time off the meter.
* ''VideoGame/LittleBigPlanet'' has Sackboy, who basically explodes if he comes in contact with any of the various hazards in the game. The exception is fire, which he can bounce on once before being burnt to a crisp.
* ''VideoGame/{{GoldenEye|1997}}'' had this as an optional game mode in multiplayer, aptly named "Film/LicenceToKill."

* In the ''DeadlyRoomsOfDeath'' series, the player and everybody else has one hit point, with the exception of very large enemies that [[AsteroidsMonster shrink when you hit them]] (snakes and the rock giant). In addition, some enemies can't be killed with any of your own weapons. Added to this that it is a turn based tactical game with tiny turns, to the point of being a puzzle game, and it was designed by a bunch of total sadists, the series is one of the hardest around. DROD RPG uses HP for the player and the monsters, and employs deterministic statistic-based combat mechanics, which also cause a need for difficult strategizing.
* In ''VideoGame/SystemShock 2'', if you play on Impossible difficulty as an OSA operative, you start with 10HP... which is coincidentally the exact amount of damage done by the very first enemy you encounter, a pathetically weak (on any other difficulty) pipe-wielding parasite zombie. While there are enemies that deal less damage, the fact that you're a one-hit-kill at the very ''start'' of the game means that the Impossible OSA path definitely qualifies for this trope.
* ''VideoGame/{{Jumper}}'' series takes this trope, uses it, loves it, becomes one with it. It also does the same with MalevolentArchitecture and becomes many times harder because of the most evil game mechanic known to man -- the golden arrows, which allow you to make more than one DoubleJump in midair. This leads to aerial "jump mazes", usually completely surrounded by hazards, requiring pixel-precise jumps to pass it. Yes, it's [[NintendoHard as hard as it sounds]] and, yes, this is part of the fun.
* ''VideoGame/{{Iji}}'' has the Sudden Death sectors, which are ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin. Oh, and you have to complete them to unlock one of the game's secrets.

* Your units in ''{{X-COM}}'' actually have life bars but, until they are experienced and get armor (and it takes a while), for practical purposes they might as well be one of these. The health bars average between 40 and 60 health points, and the weakest alien weapon (Plasma Pistol or Sonic Pistol) does 80 damage. An extremely lucky soldier will survive a single hit, be knocked unconscious from the pain, and then die the following turn from bleeding out. ''Apocalypse'' actually tends to avert this trope, however, as your soldiers start with basic armor that can actually resist a few shots.
* In ''RatchetAndClankUpYourArsenal'', while you had hit points in the rest of the game, one of the deathmatch types at Annihilation Nation, appropriately named "One Hit Wonder", forces you to kill waves of enemies without taking a single hit.

* In the first two ''{{Oddworld}}'' games, anything (including the player character) could be killed by anything else with one hit. Unless they're being slapped or licked. That takes more hits.
* In ''AnUntitledStory'', completing the game on [[IdiosyncraticDifficultyLevels Masterful]] difficulty unlocks [[HarderThanHard Insanity]] Difficulty. Technically, you start with 100 HP and can get over 1000 if you collect all of the hearts, but everything deals so much damage that you die in one hit whether it be the FinalBoss or a simple snail.
* ''[[Franchise/{{Terminator}} T2]] The Arcade Game'' has the level after Cyberdyne in which if the T-1000's police helicopter rams into the protagonists' SWAT van '''''even once''''', the player has to start the level over. Definitely worse than [[ThatOneLevel That Truck Level]].
** Course, the helicopter was itself something of a one-hit wonder, as far as deflecting the attack went. Whereas that damn truck...you knew where it was, but good god, it was hard to stop.
* Jumpman (later renamed [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario]]), from the ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong'' arcade game. Not only will he die from touching one of the various hazards (barrels, spring-things, fire, pies), he'll also die if he falls several feet.

* The freeware game ''VideoGame/MondoAgency'' is a rare modern 3D example.
* ''VideoGame/AlexKidd''. Except in ''Shinobi World'', one hit from something and he turns into a ghost, floating to the top of the screen waving his arms with a humorous "mwoop mwoop mwoop" sound. The {{Narm}} almost stops you from being pissed off at being killed from one hit by making you laugh.
* ''VideoGame/{{Dizzy}}'' in the first three games of the series. (In the second game, ''Treasure Island Dizzy'', you only had one life, too. The fourth game, ''Magicland Dizzy'', added a LifeMeter, but some of the hazards - in most games including [[SuperDrowningSkills water]] - remained instantly fatal.)
* ''VideoGame/{{Jackal}}''. Apparently being hit by a single bullet will destroy a jeep, every time.
* Franchise/CrashBandicoot ''lives'' ([[{{Pun}} Or rather dies]]) by this trope (at least in earlier installments), sure you can get Aku-Aku masks to take up to two extra hits, but those tend to be rare unless you die several times in a row between checkpoints (where you're then given a freebie mask upon respawning). Regardless, when Crash is by himself, he croaks at even the slightest contact with an enemy or hazard... even seemingly harmless ones like ''turtles'' and ''skunks''.
* The freeware platformer ''Poyo'' by Lazrael plays this completely straight, but balances it out because the stages are all pretty short.
* The [[HarderThanHard Shigurui difficulty level]] in ''MuramasaTheDemonBlade'' turns your character into this. Although to balance it out, any time you're not in a bossfight, DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist and as long as you have at least 1 sword intact, you can block pretty much any attack and not die from it. You can also do it in midair during some attacks, making it seem that the character is casually shrugging off an attack that should've killed'em several times over.
* ''VideoGame/CrystalQuest'' has no armor, but its sequel has five different types as powerups. Most only protect against one kind of hazard, leaving you a One Hit Point Wonder to everything else.
* ''VideoGame/{{Spelunker}}'' is infamous as one of the easiest-to-die characters in video game history. If you don't jump or jump wrong when you get off the elevator, you die. If you step into a pit that's as deep as your ankles, you die. The obscure arcade and Famicom sequels averted this. The remake, ''Spelunker HD'', makes earning extra lives very easy, because you're expected to die so much.
* ''[[WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes Bugs Bunny]]: Crazy Castle'' (an old GameBoy and NES game) has Bugs running around dozens of floors of a castle where the other Looney Tunes have been brainwashed or something, and running into one of them just once sends you back to the start of the level. Only two items can circumvent this: one that temporarily lets you walk ''through'' other characters and one that temporarily lets you walk through and ''kill'' other characters. Made worse in that some characters follow you around and a few ''float through walls and floors.''
* ''Every'' unit in ''{{DEFCON}}'', quite realistically. How many torpedo hits do you think a sub can take? To balance this, the chance to hit is quite low.

* The Risk debuff in PhantomBrave turns anyone into this: any attack, no matter how weak or strong, either kills them instantly or misses them. Quite annoying when a randomly-generated dungeon gives this debuff to a roomful of enemies that you would one-hit kill anyway...
* SlyCooper was another example of this, even though you could get up to two horseshoes to withstand additional hits. The sequels actually gave you a health bar, though.
* ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'''s gummi ship minigame has one of these. Your reward for getting 100% completion on all levels is the Crown/G gummi piece, which, when equipped, starts you off in "berserk mode". The catch is that you become the embodiment of that trope.

* ''BattleKidFortressOfPeril'', as a natural consequence of being heavily inspired by ''VideoGame/IWannaBeTheGuy''.
* The classic Atari videogame ''StarRaiders'', the ship goes down in one hit from an asteroid or enemy photon. Fortunately the ship's energy can retain a shield which changes hits from fatal to merely damaging some key component of your ship (at easier levels, there's a chance it won't even hurt). The shield itself is a damageable component, so you are at least two photons away from death.
* Almost every enemy in the ''TimeCrisis'' series can be killed with one shot anywhere, including the finger.
* ''HotelDuskRoom215'', interrogation sequences. If even one answer you pick causes the person to [[TurnsRed turn red]], 90% of the time you're headed for a GameOver.
* Willy, the protagonist in the classical platformers ''ManicMiner'' and ''VideoGame/JetSetWilly''.
* ''[[ChocobosDungeon Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon]]'' has optional mind zones where both you and monster's max hp are dropped to 1. The latter stages are even worse since it only your max hp which is set to 1 while the enemies have more HP than you.
* Probably the UrExample of this trope in video gaming was the 1961 game ''Spacewar!'' which was created for the PDP-1 computer, and which had its players dueling each other while maneuvering in the gravity well of a star. If you got hit with a missile from the other guy or hit the star, you were dead. There is only one PDP-1 still in existence, though the game has been ported to numerous platforms ever since.
* The arcade machine in the cantina segment of ''VideoGame/StarcraftII'' has the game Lost Viking, a BulletHell type shooter. Although you can gain power ups to give you additional "health" you are usually will die to one hit of anything.
* ''VideoGame/GrabbedByTheGhoulies'' gives you a life bar at all times, but will change the number of hit points you start with on a room-by-room basis, and several rooms give you only 1. Usually however, these rooms will come without a prescribed challenge besides reaching the open door on the other side, with only a small number of low-level enemies to evade if any at all. [[NintendoHard Not always, though.]]

* In the Wanted multiplayer mode of ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedBrotherhood'', everyone dies in one hit.
* In the ''{{DJMAX}} Portable'' series, as well as ''DJMAX Trilogy'', some missions have you clearing a song or set of songs without missing a single note; instead of allowing you to continue having failed the mission, the game simply throws you an instant GameOver. There's also one particular mission in ''DJMAX Portable 2'', "Just 1%", where getting a MAX 1% (the lowest judgment you can get from hitting a note) is an instant game over as well. ''DJMAX Portable 3'' offers modifiers called "1 BREAK: GAME OVER" and "1%: GAME OVER", which have the same effects.
* In ''GalacticCivilizations II'', it is possible to design a ship armed to the teeth but with just one HP. This is accomplished by using the cargo hull as the base. This is usually done out of desperation in the early stages of the game in order to fight off a much stronger enemy (like the Dread Lords) until you can research bigger and stronger hull types. The ship usually ''will'' be destroyed but may deal significant damage to the enemy. Combine a few of these in a fleet, and you got yourself a disposable armada. Granted, the costs are higher than those of smaller ships, but desperate times call for desperate measures. Also, putting defenses on these is usually pointless, unless you can put more defenses than the enemy has firepower.

* Non-video game example: In the 4th edition of ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'', there's a "minion" class of monster who basically has the same stats as a normal NPC/monster of its type, but only 1 hit point. They basically have two purposes: to give the [=PCs=] a horde of easily dispatched enemies so the players can feel all BadAss, or to [[WeHaveReserves run interference for a more powerful enemy]].

* Duncan died in one hit from anything in the first ''VideoGame/DarkCastle''. ''Beyond Dark Castle'' combine the level timer with a LifeMeter to allow Duncan to survive some hits at the expense of time.
* In FASTRacingLeague your vehicle can only hit any obstacle once before turning into a flaming wreck. Strangely this does not apply to hitting the course walls or other racers, who do no damage, only to flying to the side of the course, hitting walls set to block off your path or running into the flamethrowers which all kill you instantly.

* Most sidescrolling ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' games did this. Unless Mario gained a powerup, he died with one hit. ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2'' is an exception, with a life meter, but it's a DolledUpInstallment. The 3D games added a true life meter.

* While not a Mario offshoot, ''VideoGame/CommanderKeen'' was designed with Mario in mind, and the title character is just as vulnerable. One hit and the Defender of Earth is dead. Ditto ''Dangerous Dave'', another early John Romero game.
* ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiBowsersInsideStory Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story]]'', while not showing one health, does this when the GlassCannon type Daredevil Boots are equipped as an item. You have doubled attack, but one hit kills you outright. This is essentially a downgrade of ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga]]'''s "Great Force" item, which doubled your attack power but halved your defense. (A One-Hit-Point Wonder is automatically more fragile than a GlassCannon, no matter how frail the GlassCannon is.)
* Hexers can become this in VideoGame/EtrianOdyssey, if you try to maximize the damage for their Revenge skill--255% of the damage they've taken will be dealt to the enemy, but the Hexer will not survive a single blow.
* In ''UltimaUnderworld II'', Krilner the Coward is a character who only has 1 hit point. You can confirm this by casting a certain spell on him to read his statistics.
* In an non-VideoGame example, ALL of the pieces in TabletopGame/{{Chess}} are this. [[{{Mooks}} The wimpy little pawn]] can easily take out [[LightningBruiser the queen]] in a single hit.

* Hard mode for ''MetroidOtherM''. You only start with 99 energy (one Engergy Tank) and 5 Missiles; all extra Energy Tanks, Missile Expansions, and Accel Charges are gone. By halfway through the game, most enemies and bosses will do more than a whole energy tank's worth of damage, killing you in a single strike. [[spoiler: Good luck fighting the Metroid Queen this way.]]

* ''SpyroTheDragon'', in the original games at least, should count. Without Sparx, one hit and he's a goner.
* Lolo of the ''[[VideoGame/AdventuresOfLolo Adventures of Lolo/Eggerland]]'' series is one, as well as Lala, when she's playable.
* Gilgamesh in ''VideoGame/TheTowerOfDruaga''.
* In the ''IndianaJonesAndTheTempleOfDoom'' arcade game, pretty much everything can kill Indy in one hit. In the NES version, CollisionDamage from enemies and falling onto ground will merely stun Indy, but other hazards will kill him outright.
* The eponymous chick in ''VideoGame/TokiTori'' dies in one hit from an enemy or {{spikes|OfDoom}}. Since the game is a PuzzlePlatformer, it is mandatory to find out ''how'' to avoid the monsters; avoiding them is the easy part.
* Chelnov from the Megadrive/Arcade game ''Atomic Runner'' is probably the wimpest example of this trope. Not only does any given enemy or bullet kill him, but so can the [[WhatanIdiot candles]] you [[EverythingTryingtoKillYou obtain power ups]] from. So much for the Atomic Armor!
* In the puzzle game ''ChipsChallenge'', any enemy and obstacle can kill you upon contact, making the levels harder than [[NintendoHard they already are]].
* In ''VideoGame/{{Killer7}}'', every enemy in [[HarderThanHard Killer8 mode]] can kill the Smiths in one hit (except, luckily, most of the bosses, probably because of [[PuzzleBoss the different ways they're fought]]).
* ''VideoGame/MeatBoy'' is this, everything from salt to sawblades will kill him on contact.
* ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'' does this in the NES game, and other games often make you a one hit point wonder in hard mode, such as in ''Buster Busts Loose'' for the SNES and ''Babs' Big Break'' for the GameBoy,
* ''VideoGame/{{Rygar}}'' had one-hit deaths in the arcade version, though the NES version had a life meter.
* In ''VideoGame/MegaMan: Powered Up'', many missions in Challenge Mode only gave Mega Man 1 HP.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Miner 2049er}}'', Bounty Bob would die instantly from any type of harm, be it CollisionDamage or falling more than 1.5 times his height.
* In case you thought the game wasn't NintendoHard enough, a special mode in ''VideoGame/PunchOut'' makes you lose the match if you get punched even once. The only exception to this being Aran Ryan's rope-glove attack when you knock him down.
* The ''ChoujinSentaiJetman'' LicensedGame has two secret difficulty levels that reduce the life meter to one.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Amagon}}'', Amagon can't take a hit without dying. When he transforms into Megagon, he gains a life bar.
* The truck carrying nuclear missiles in ''BlastCorps'' are this. If ANYTHING touches it, the missiles explode.
* ''VideoGame/DiveKick'' is the FightingGame version of this. It takes only one well-placed Dive Kick to end anyone.
* The protagonist of ''VideoGame/{{Wardner}}'', except in the Famicom Disk System version.
* The protagonist of ''VideoGame/CaptainSilver'', except in the Famicom version.
* The "three-heart run" is a popular challenge with ''Zelda'' players. After the boss of each dungeon in a ''Zelda'' game, there is one heart container, which increases the player's maximum health. Eschewing these heart containers leaves the player with three hearts throughout the entire game, hence the name. However, enemies in later parts of the game might be programmed to take off more than three hearts per hit, in expectation of the player having enough hearts. As a result, if an enemy that takes off more than three hearts hits a player playing through a three-heart run, the player will die instantly. This is especially inconvenient when there are multiple enemies that do such damage in the same room, which could be common in later dungeons.
* Every playable character in ''VideoGame/RaymanOrigins''. You can collect a heart powerup, which makes you able to take one extra hit.
* In ''VideoGame/AquaRhapsody'', if a single enemy touches the castle, the castle will spontaneously explode.
* In ''VideoGame/TheFairylandStory'', the only thing that hurts Ptolemy but doesn't kill her is the wizard's spell, which weakens her with the first hit.
* The ball in ''VideoGame/RollAway'' is inflatable and so is easily destroyed by heat, spikes and ''captivators''.
* [[DestructibleProjectiles Missiles]] in most of the ''[[VideoGame/{{X}} X-Universe]]'' series will be destroyed by a glancing blow from the weakest gun in the game. The latest game ''X3: Albion Prelude'' gives them a health bar, however. Also, M5 scoutships are effectively this when faced with the flak guns on a capital ship, and in the first two games every ship was one of these if its shields went down (''X2: The Threat'' added hull armor as a mechanic).
* Averted in ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'', although played straight in ''Action Doom''.
* Inverted in ''VideoGame/KungFuMaster''; the player has a life bar but most of the {{Mooks}} go down in one hit. Also applies to ''Spartan X 2''.
* The ''Bucky O'Hare'' game for the NES had the player dying in one hit when playing on the hidden hard mode.
* Ralph from ''VideoGame/TheAdventureOfLittleRalph'' dies from a single hit from any enemy, unless he has a shield which allows him to take one more hit. This is justified in that Ralph spends most of the game as a young child, [[spoiler:and in boss battles after the middle of the game, he turns back into a man and can take a large number of hits without dying. Then Ralph randomly turns back into a boy afterwards.]]
* The protagonist of ''VideoGame/HotlineMiami'' is killed by a single hit. Doesn't help that the game is incredibly fast-paced. However, there are unlockable masks that allow you to take a few more hits than usual.
* In ''GhostRecon: Advanced Warfighter 1'''s Hard mode, all enemies aim for the head and thus kill in one hit.
* Your car from ''VideoGame/HighwayHunter'' is this in Hard difficulty. The lifebar is replaced with a [[VideoGameLives lives meter]], life powerups are extra lives instead, and your weapon reverts to the V-Laser each time you're hit.
* ''VideoGame/SyobonAction'', a PlatformHell Super Mario Bros clone that takes the difficulty UpToEleven. Naturally, you die in one hit. Fortunately, you have unlimited lives.
* In the TurboGrafx16 version of ''Ninja Spirit'', Moonlight has five hitpoints in PC-Engine mode, but only one hitpoint in Arcade mode.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Jetpack}}'', all enemies and traps will kill the player in one hit.
* ''VideoGame/{{ESWAT}}'' uses BodyArmorAsHitpoints. You die in one hit without the titular PoweredArmor, and you don't have it in the first few missions, which have you working your way up in rank. This is averted in the SegaGenesis version (''City Under Siege''), where you have a shorter life bar in the Captain and Chief missions.
* ''VideoGame/{{RefleX}}'' is particularly cruel with this trope. [[spoiler:In Area 7, a rather brutal encounter with a boss results in the player ship receiving an upgrade to firepower and an infinite-use reflect shield...but for the rest of the game, the player ship has no armor. This is a game that does not have extra lives. If a single attack touches your hitbox, GameOver.]]

** ''VideoGame/PopNMusic'''s Cho-Challenge mode has the DEATH norma, which when activated will cause a miss to wipe out your life meter. However, this doesn't end the stage; you just have to rebuild your life meter all the way back up. For extra [[SarcasmMode fun]], activate the "COOL or BAD!" norma, which removes all timing judgments except for COOL and BAD, so if you're outside the timing window for a COOL...
** ''[[VideoGame/{{Beatmania}} Beatmania IIDX]]''. Hazard Mode. Break your combo? FAIL.
** ''GuitarFreaks'' and ''{{Drummania}}'' have the Risky option. If you turn it on, you can set it to 1, 2 or 4 before the song starts, then if you get that many POOR and MISS judgments combined, you fail instantly (but unlike other Bemani games, you can play out the rest of your songs, although you can no longer earn the Extra Stage).

* ''VideoGame/{{RefleX}}'' is particularly cruel with this trope. [[spoiler:In Area 7, a rather brutal encounter with a boss results in the player ship receiving an upgrade to firepower and an infinite-use reflect shield...but for the rest of the game, the player ship has no armor. This is a game that does not have extra lives. If any attacks touch your hitbox, GameOver.]]

* BulletHell games, such as ''VideoGame/{{Ikaruga}}'' or ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}}'', will kill the player if a single bullet touches their hitbox. It helps that [[HitboxDissonance the hitbox is significantly smaller than the sprite]].

** Some classic arcade games let you command multiple ships at once, or [[CombiningMecha join ships into a more powerful ship]]. Each ship was a One-Hit-Point Wonder, but losing one ship didn't end your turn if you had another. The most famous is ''Galaga'', but ''Space Duel'', ''Moon Cresta'', ''Eagle'', ''Tac Scan'', and several ''Galaga'' sequels also worked this way.

Some games will give the One-Hit-Point Wonder access to a OneHitpointShield, [[BodyArmorAsHitpoints body armor]] or other powerups that allow them to take extra hits, but they still count as examples of this trope, provided that the character does not ''start off'' with said method of taking an extra hit.

Some games will give the One-Hit-Point Wonder access to shields or other powerups that allow them to take extra hits, but they still count as examples of this trope, provided that the character does not ''start off'' with said method of taking an extra hit.

** ''PopNMusic'''s Cho-Challenge mode has the DEATH norma, which when activated will cause a miss to wipe out your life meter. However, this doesn't end the stage; you just have to rebuild your life meter all the way back up. For extra [[SarcasmMode fun]], activate the "COOL or BAD!" norma, which removes all timing judgments except for COOL and BAD, so if you're outside the timing window for a COOL...
** ''[[{{Beatmania}} Beatmania IIDX]]''. Hazard Mode. Break your combo? FAIL.

* Three of Apogee Software's early CGA games: ''VideoGame/ArcticAdventure'', ''Pharoahs Tomb'', and ''Monuments Of Mars''. One hit from anything would mean losing a life

* Another HarderThanHard mode example - ''RocketKnightAdventures''' hardest difficulty setting starts you off with one life, no continues, and everything kills you in one hit. Take any damage at all, and it's an instant GameOver.

* ''MetalSlug'' characters die in one hit from bullets, melee weapons, or getting run over by a tank. Unless you pick one particular character in ''Metal Slug 6.''

* ''LittleBigPlanet'' has Sackboy, who basically explodes if he comes in contact with any of the various hazards in the game. The exception is fire, which he can bounce on once before being burnt to a crisp.

* Lolo of the ''[[AdventuresOfLolo Adventures of Lolo/Eggerland]]'' series is one, as well as Lala, when she's playable.
* Gilgamesh in ''TheTowerOfDruaga''.

* Most games in the ''RainbowSix'' series use a variation. It only takes one solid hit to incapacitate a character -- and, in the single-player campaigns for your team, possibly ''kill'' them, permanently removing them from the game. Less solid shots, such as to extremities, take ''two'' hits instead, and hamper the target on the first hit. ''GhostRecon'' works much the same way.

*** However, [[SonicTheHedgehogTripleTrouble in some]] [[SonicUnleashed games]], the number of rings does matter.

-->--''WebVideo/TheAngryVideoGameNerd'' on ''VideoGame/SilverSurfer'' for the {{N|intendoEntertainmentSystem}}ES