The 25 Unspoken Rules Every Video Game Player Knows

There was nothing behind this waterfall.

There are no official rules for playing video games.

Nobody hands you a rulebook when you buy a console.

There is no international gaming organization that sends representatives to your house to make sure you're playing correctly.

And yet, somehow, we all know.

We know that when a game tells us there is a point of no return, we immediately panic.

We know that if an NPC says, "Follow me," they are about to walk at exactly the wrong speed (and a bunch of bad guys will appear to impede your progress).

We know that when a character says they'll meet us somewhere later, they will stand in that exact location for the next three weeks without eating, sleeping, or questioning their life choices.

These are not official rules.

But they are rules.

Somewhere along the way, every gamer learns them.

Welcome to The 25 Unspoken Rules Every Video Game Player Knows.

Rule #1: If It Glows, Pick It Up

We don't know what it is.

We don't know who left it there.

We don't know whether it belongs to someone.

We don't know if touching it will unleash an ancient evil.

But it glows.

Therefore, it is ours.

A glowing sword? Ours.

A glowing mushroom? Ours.

A mysterious glowing orb floating six feet above the ground?

Especially ours.

Video games have taught us that glowing objects are important, valuable, and probably intended specifically for us.

Real life has not adopted this rule, and frankly, that's disappointing.

Rule #2: Every Locked Door Will Eventually Be Your Problem

At first, you walk past it.

Locked.

Fine.

You continue playing.

Then, thirty minutes later, you find a key. Sometimes the key will have a chess piece design.

Suddenly, you remember.

The door.

You don't remember where you found it.

You have no idea how to get back.

You may have explored six other buildings since then.

But somewhere in the back of your mind, you know.

There is a locked door waiting for you.

And you will not know peace until you open it. Be ready to zombies.

Rule #3: If the Game Says "Point of No Return," Stop Everything

This is the most terrifying sentence in all of gaming.

Are you sure you want to continue? You will not be able to return after this point.

Absolutely not.

Not until we've done everything.

Every side quest.

Every collectible.

Every conversation.

Every item.

Every suspicious corner of the map.

We may have ignored half of these things for the previous 40 hours.

Doesn't matter.

The moment the game tells us we can't come back, suddenly we become completionists.

Rule #4: You Must Check Behind the Waterfall

This is non-negotiable.

There is a waterfall.

What is behind it?

Probably nothing.

But what if there is something?

What if there's a secret cave?

A treasure chest?

A hidden boss?

Sephrioth's real mother?

An ancient civilization?

An entire second game?

You don't know until you check.

And if there isn't anything behind the waterfall, you will still be slightly disappointed.

Because honestly?

There should have been.

Rule #5: "Follow Me" Is Never Going to Be Convenient

The NPC has three possible speeds.

Too slow.

Too fast.

Or somehow both.

If you walk, they get ahead of you.

If you run, you slam directly into them.

If you stop for half a second to examine something, they continue walking without you, despite supposedly needing your help.

Sometimes they will stop every few seconds to make sure you're following.

Sometimes they will walk into a room, disappear around a corner, and leave you wondering if you've gone the wrong way.

And occasionally, they will say:

"Hurry!"

Excuse me.

I have been trying.

Rule #6: If You Can Enter a House, You Are Allowed to Search It

There is something deeply strange about video game morality.

You can be the world's greatest hero.

You can save an entire kingdom.

You can defeat monsters.

You can rescue children.

And then you walk into a stranger's house and immediately begin opening their cabinets.

What's in this dresser?

What's under the bed?

Why is there money in this person's kitchen?

Can I take it?

Should I destroy these pots?

Apparently, yes.

And nobody says a word.

Rule #7: Every Barrel Deserves to Be Destroyed

We don't make the rules.

We just break barrels.

There could be nothing inside.

In fact, there is usually nothing inside.

But that one time?

There was gold.

Or ammunition.

Or a healing potion.

And that's enough.

Every barrel is now a potential investment opportunity.

Rule #8: If a Character Says "I'll Wait Here," They Will Wait Forever

Think about the dedication.

You tell someone:

"Wait here."

Then you leave.

For five minutes.

Then an hour.

Then several days of in-game time.

You save the world.

You visit three countries.

You complete seventeen unrelated quests.

Eventually, you return.

And there they are.

Standing exactly where you left them.

"Ready when you are."

Honestly, video game characters have more patience than any human being who has ever lived.

Rule #9: The Last Healing Item Must Be Saved for Something Worse

You are nearly dead.

You have one healing potion.

Or a Megalixer.

Use it?

No.

What if something worse happens?

And then you continue through the game at approximately three percent health.

Every enemy is now a potential death sentence.

Every staircase is a challenge.

You find another healing item.

You don't use that one either.

Because now you have two.

And obviously, you'll need both later.

Rule #10: You Must Reload the Save If You Accidentally Make the Wrong Choice

Sometimes we live with our decisions.

Other times, absolutely not.

You thought the dialogue option meant one thing.

It meant something else.

Your character says something horrifying.

Someone dies.

Your favorite character hates you.

The game autosaves.

Panic.

If possible, we are going back.

Did our choices have consequences?

Technically.

But we also have a save file.

Rule #11: You Will Spend Ten Minutes Customizing a Character You Will Never See Again

You adjust the hair.

The eyes.

The nose.

The chin.

The skin tone.

The facial hair.

You carefully rotate the character to inspect them from every possible angle.

Perfect.

Then you start the game.

It's first-person.

Or third-person, so all you can see is your character's back.

Excellent.

Rule #12: If You Can Pet the Dog, You Must Pet the Dog

This may be the closest thing gaming has to an actual law.

There is a dog.

You approach.

The game gives you an option.

Pet

You pet the dog.

You were going to save the world.

It can wait.

The dog comes first.

Rule #13: The Creepy Basement Is Never Optional

Nobody wants to go into the basement.

Not the player.

Not the protagonist.

Possibly not the developers.

But eventually, we all know what has to happen.

The flashlight comes out.

The music changes.

There is a noise.

And someone says:

"Did you hear that?"

Yes.

We heard it.

We're not happy about it.

We're going downstairs anyway.

Anyway, that's how you get Vincent Valentine.

Rule #14: If You Hear a Noise Behind You, Do Not Turn Around Immediately

This is important.

Turning around immediately means the game gets what it wants.

No.

First, stop moving.

Look around suspiciously.

Ask your partner if they heard it.

Wait a few seconds.

Then slowly turn around.

Nothing.

Obviously.

So you continue walking.

And then something attacks you.

It could also be a mannequin.

Rule #15: You Will Distrust the Tutorial

The game says:

"Press X to jump."

Sounds innocent enough.

But we've played games before.

Why do we need to jump?

What is coming?

Is there going to be a pit?

Why did they specifically teach us this mechanic?

Something terrible is going to happen later.

And when it does, you'll say:

"That's why they taught us how to jump."

Rule #16: Every Suspiciously Large Room Contains a Boss

You walk through a narrow hallway.

You enter a massive room.

There is absolutely nothing inside.

The doors lock behind you.

You look at your partner.

Your partner looks at you.

Nobody needs to say anything.

We know.

Boss fight.

We were playing Donkey Kong Bananza the other day. "Wow, that big empty circle looks like a great place for a boss fight." It was.

Rule #17: If You Find a Note, You Must Read It

It doesn't matter how long it is.

It could be the diary of someone you've never met.

It could be a shopping list.

It could contain the most important information in the game.

It could say:

Milk
Eggs
Kill Jonathan
Bread

You have to read it.

Because somewhere in gaming history, somebody skipped a note and spent the next four hours wondering what they were supposed to do.

We will not be that person.

You must also joke, "I hope this note doesn't say '4 itchy tasty' on it..."

Rule #18: You Must Explore the Wrong Direction First

The game wants you to go east.

The objective marker points east.

Your companion is standing east.

Naturally, you go west.

Why?

Because there might be something there.

And what if you go east first and trigger a cutscene?

Then you might never get to see what was west.

So west it is.

Rule #19: You Cannot End the Game Until You Have Checked Every Room

"Are you ready?"

No.

"What else is there?"

I don't know.

But there could be something.

"There is literally nothing left to do."

That's what they want us to think.

You check anyway.

And sometimes you find nothing.

But sometimes?

A collectible.

And for that brief moment, you feel like the greatest explorer in history.

Rule #20: You Will Hoard Every Useful Item Until the Game Is Over

This is one of gaming's greatest traditions.

You collect:

• 47 healing potions

• 19 grenades

• 12 special ammunition types

• 6 temporary power-ups

• 3 items you have absolutely no idea how to use

And you save them.

For later.

Later comes.

You save them for later.

Eventually, you defeat the final boss.

The credits roll.

You check your inventory.

You could have ended the last fight in approximately nine seconds.

Rule #21: Falling From a Great Height Is Usually Fine, Until the Game Decides It Isn't

You can jump off a roof.

Fine.

Fall down a cliff.

Fine.

Drop 30 feet into a river.

Fine.

Step off a six-foot ledge?

Dead.

There are rules.

We don't understand them.

But they're there.

Probably.

Rule #22: If an Enemy Doesn't Die After One Attack, Something Is Wrong

You attack.

They fall down.

You wait.

Nothing.

Good.

You turn around.

They get back up.

Of course they do.

From this moment forward, you will not trust anything on the ground.

You will stare at bodies.

You will shoot bodies.

You will walk around bodies.

You may check them several times.

We have learned.

Rule #23: The Real Enemy Is the Inventory System

The dragon?

Manageable.

The ancient evil?

We'll figure it out.

The inventory?

Completely impossible.

Why can we carry 14 weapons, 300 bullets, three full meals, a collection of ancient artifacts, and enough treasure to bankrupt a small nation...

But not one additional herb?

Explain yourself.

Rule #24: If the Music Changes, Stop Moving

This is advanced gaming survival.

The room looked safe five seconds ago.

Then the music changed.

Nobody move.

Something has happened.

Maybe an enemy appeared.

Maybe you triggered an event.

Maybe the game is about to reveal something horrible.

Or maybe the soundtrack just changed for no reason.

Doesn't matter.

We're investigating.

Rule #25: No Matter How Much You Complain, You're Going to Keep Playing

This is the final rule.

You'll complain about the controls.

You'll complain about the inventory.

You'll complain about the boss.

You'll complain about the character who walks too slowly.

You'll complain about the character who walks too quickly.

You'll complain about the locked door.

You'll complain about the puzzle.

You'll say:

"This game is ridiculous."

And then, ten minutes later:

"Okay, one more hour."

Because that's what we do.

We complain.

We panic.

We hoard healing items.

We destroy perfectly innocent barrels.

We search every stranger's house.

We refuse to use our most powerful weapons.

We investigate behind waterfalls.

And somehow, we love every minute of it.

The Real Unspoken Rule

The truth is, gaming is full of habits that make absolutely no sense when you stop and think about them.

But that's also what makes them fun.

Every player has their own version of these rules.

Maybe you reload every conversation until you get the perfect outcome.

Maybe you have to search every room.

Maybe you refuse to use consumable items.

Maybe you can't leave an area until you've collected absolutely everything.

Maybe you have one completely irrational gaming habit that nobody else understands.

That's the beauty of it.

There may be no official rulebook.

But somehow...

We all know the rules.

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What is the one unspoken rule you always follow when playing video games?

Tell us in the comments, and don't lie. We know at least some of you are still carrying 99 healing potions into the final boss fight.