We know that games have tropes as movies and TV, and some of the most popular by now are zombies and music.
As much I love the previous mentioned, there are some that I just feel hypnotized by the idea behind and make me want to know more of it. So I thought it would be a cool idea to share what are some things that make me feel very attracted by a title.

Pirates



Seriously, pirates. Strangely I have not seen much of them and be it the sky, the sea or being in a band of thieves in the city, the dark arts of robbery, greed and scurvy are pretty unexplored now. Sure, we got GTA and Saint's Row, but they do not cover the excitement behind a true dog's life. Pirates are wild, informal and pretty badass, it is almost impossible to not think being a pirate is awesome because the authority looks for you, there is always a hunt for adventure and tales that cross around the seas finding others from other places in the world without using modern technology. Pirates as simple they are to design in characterization, they are pure on what a player wants to be. I have said before that if there is something cooler than being the legendary hero, is to be a bad guy confronting a greater evil. Also, the sea is freaking ace.

Great Examples: Zack & Wiki: Barbado's Treasure, Drill Dozer, The Misadventures of Tron Bonne, Wario Land 4.


Psychic Powers



We use guns, we jump on enemies, wield swords, use spells and even a freaking tank when the chance appears. But what is the ultimate weapon? Your freaking mind of course! When I see psychic powers, I only presence something: YOU ARE GOD. With psychic powers you can do virtually anything because your mind controls it and there is almost no way someone can find the way to counter it because your mind is unpredictable (unless you make it so). There is a fine difference between magic and PSI, when we use magic we are so used to that idea that it does not feel credible or authentic; as soon we hear "magic" we know that it's a fairy tale gadget. However, when being psychic it just feels so damn cool, because it is a still unexplored territory in science fiction and there is still no way to disprove the possibility of its existence yet. Using anything from around you also gives you more excitement, more strategy. The mind is the ultimate frontier of exploration because there are no limits bordered in it like the universe so far.

Great Examples: Psychonauts, EarthBound, Bioshock


Wild West



Even if you find the family vacation to that park in Arizona corny, you have to admit something: cowboys are fucking badass. Don't believe me yet? Watch "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly", or any other wild west movie with Clint Eastwood. Cowboys are rude and awesome like the pirates, however while being a cowboy it feels much more rewarding to be the good guy because you feel feared and clever. Villains are dumb and taunting, but it doesn't matter for you, you are going to fill that bastard with 5 pounds of sun-stroke white lead. For some reason there are not enough games with cowboys in them, there were a bunch back then before 3D arrived to stay in our systems and they were pretty awesome for catching the same sensation from the old movies or just by themselves. Feel the noon sun under your face and look at your enemy grinning 20 yards away, the whole town watches silently the duel to see who is the real boss around here. Being trigger-happy never felt so good.

Great Examples: Wild Guns, Gun Smoke, Sunset Riders.


Science



I know it sounds too redundant, but when a game is being based on facts and theories rather than just made up shit, it feels much more exciting like I stated about psychic powers. Be them social sciences, chemistry or biology it makes it much more interesting to be dragged in the story as they tell about possibilities and alternate worlds or an alternate today to face in a new fear. We should stop messing around with what we don't know, but otherwise there would not be science, there would not be answers. That is also what debated the ignition of the Large Hadron Collider. Science is progress, but it could also risk what we love of our lives. Many have tried to make games based on current problems and make them looks like an excuse of the story and why you are fighting, but only a few have managed to do so without smothering it on your face so much. Are we taking the right way? Is our answer always logical? Or are we all doomed by the same cruel fears we are seeing coming in our present?

Great Examples: Half-Life, Fallout 3, Bioshock, Mother 3



Deep Jungle



This is surprisingly a very narrow trope, there are just very few games I can imagine that simply use the theme as a recurring stage and not a feeling. If there is something that really yells adventure, is a jungle. It is classic and profound enclosing of peril in which British explorers, conquerors and even the army has been crossing around. You can barely know what will come ahead, you feel surrounded but still feel nature on your patting on your shoulders. The jungle is not only palm trees, it is atmosphere and full of life. Grab your machete because the journey will be intense.

Great Examples: Donkey Kong Country, Pitfall!, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater


Space Shooting



It's easy: you shoot stuff, in space. How did a simple formula that got inspired by 1950s science fiction become so addictive? There is something that feels too appealing with going all PEW PEW PEW across the galaxy. I will also admit that even Halo is fun at doing it, but do you know what is one of the best things in it? The Phantom, that ship that is absolute shit on multiplayer is a damn lot of fun to use on campaign mode. Since Halo became so popular, many tried to take the same formula and give it a lot of excuses to make it work out as another one, and there have not been adequate shooters for a long time, so moving first-person shooters aside, the classic titles are also really great, especially by using a spaceship, every alien is feared if you have a ship with DUAL LASER BEAMS AND SMART BOMBS, PA-ZOW!!

Great Examples: Raiden, Ikaruga, Starfox 64


Good Old Silliness



And as serious games can become, we have to remember that video games could have not gone anywhere if it wasn't because of the children. As a fan of animation and cartoons, I think that there is always space left for being stupid or funny every now and then. Admit it, if you got into gaming it was because you have a sense of humor, you did not find it as a complex and top notch manner to express feelings with technology; you just like to blow up shit and mild absurdity as a dessert with sprinkles and lots of chocolate syrup on top. When a game does not take itself too seriously, the whole atmosphere feels less dense and easier to let it breath. Laugh, because you are supposed to be enjoying it!

Great Examples: Ratchet & Clank, Banjo-Kazooie, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga


That is all I can think so far. I love pretty much any game you put me in front to try, but there are always cases I feel completely transported inside of it and driven inside a place where many things are possible.

Do you have a favorite trope too? Tell me about it.