Top 10 Noob Traps You Totally Fell For in Games

#10: That 1st Goomba - “Super Mario Bros.” (1985)

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A Goomba? How could one of the most pathetic video game enemies cause anyone problems? Well, look at it this way. Back in ’85, gaming was still a relatively new medium. The very first-time players got their hands on an NES controller, odds are that it was also the first time they leaped into the land of the Mushroom Kingdom in the now classic ‘Super Mario Bros’. Within seconds of starting the game, a Goomba waddles in from the right and you’d be surprised how many people walk straight into it. How were they supposed to know it was an enemy? How were they supposed to know how to jump? And so, a ‘noob trap’ was born!

#9: Day 3 - “Papers, Please” (2013)

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‘Papers, Please’ isn’t a simple game. Playing as a border control officer is a stressful and demanding task that requires attentiveness. Day 3 however just gets…nuts. A citizen named Jorji will arrive with no documentation whatsoever, which completely defies the rules of the game thus far. What the player needs to do is open the rulebook and use the discrepancy highlighter to mark the rule that states individuals trying to enter need a passport, and then further mark the empty countertop to dismiss this citizen. Don’t worry, this isn’t the last time you’ll see Jorji.

Admittedly, Skyrim can be overwhelming to take in for any novice, as its scale and wealth of things to do are an assault on the senses. Newbies just getting a hang of things are surely bound to wander around, not being particularly wary of the dangers that await them. Sure, they probably know there are monsters and all that, but they wouldn’t expect to keep an eye on the floor in an early dungeon to see those oh-so incredibly obvious pressure plates leading to insta-death by a spiked door smacking them straight in the face. Skyrim is packed with wonders to behold; so, y’know, watch your step so that you can live long enough to see it all.

#7: It’s Dangerous to Travel Alone! - “Divinity: Original Sin” (2014)

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This role-playing game allows the player deep customization options for their in-game avatars, in order to obtain the strongest skill sets possible to face the challenges ahead. Thankfully, the game begins in a town, which grants the player the time necessary to heighten their abilities, grind for XP and even more importantly, form a formidable enough party of allies to travel with. Well, any gamers feeling impatient and just wanting to rush to the ‘good stuff’ are in for a big surprise, as the enemies outside the confines of the starting town will overwhelm any player without teammates by their side. It’s the game’s special way of communicating to the player: “no, you aren’t ready for this yet!”

The ‘Souls’ series is known for its intentional lack of handholding and the trend started with ‘Demon’s Souls’. Barely a few minutes into the game, the player suddenly finds themselves face to face with a gruesome, towering opponent and before they are able to even wrap their heads around the situation, a lethal battle begins. At this point, the player is still learning the controls, has low level weaponry and equipment and is completely outclassed by the Vanguard demon in every way. But that’s the point: the game is letting you know the rules of its world, and that you need to play with smart and effective decisions. It’s a noob trap with purpose!

#5: Not Using Stealth - “Deus Ex” (2000)

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Upon its release, the first-person perspective was generally reserved for the shooter genre; so anyone coming into ‘Deus Ex’ expecting ‘GoldenEye’ was in for a rude awakening. ‘Deus Ex’ is a game about precision and patience, with a heavy emphasis on the stealth mechanics. The player needs to think before they act and not rush in to fights guns blazing. In the opening stage, anyone who is far too trigger happy and attempts to take down every enemy they see will quickly realize that’s not how this game works. Confrontation is to be avoided as much as possible here and the opening areas of ‘Deus Ex’ demonstrate this to any of the uninitiated in its audience.

Even before ‘Grand Theft Auto III’, this game introduced players to the possibility of exploring an open 3D environment. You can go where you please! See what you want! Well, it all sounds awesome…but you’ll need to complete the tutorial level first – sounds easy, right? Wrong! The game instructs the player to complete a specific set of moves like drifts and 180’s in order to get a feel for the vehicle. The problem is: the area in which this takes place is a cramped parking garage, with little room to properly maneuver around. This garage ended up being the whole game for some players, with the promise of the outside world remaining a mystery. So sad.

To be fair, Nintendo does warn us of the chance of becoming lost based on to the location’s name, but all the same, it’s a noob trap in its purest form and function if there ever was one. Through its many incarnations, the Lost Woods never fail to utterly confuse players with trickery and a lack of clear direction. With these areas amounting to nothing more than a bunch of trees and bushes, we’re unable to differentiate where we we’re going from where we just were, resulting in hours of desperate wandering. At least we have catchy tunes to listen to while we’re lost.

#2: 3 Little Pigs - “Dark Souls II” (2014)

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Hello, Dark Souls, my old friend! By the time ‘Dark Souls II’ rolled onto the scene, you’d think that players would have grown wise to the deception and perils that these games have to offer, right? Well, ask that of the several players who walked up to a trio of little pigs, treating them like cute animals and not being cautious of a possible trap. If the player hadn’t already grown to not trust anything they see in this game, then the sight of these tiny, seemingly harmless piglets will help them understand how ruthless this world truly is.

#1: The First Ladder - “Super Pitfall” (1986)

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We’ve seen Goombas, Vanguard demons and three lethal little pigs, all suckering many gamers into sudden game over’s over the years, but you know what completely trumps them all? Do you know what the most treacherous, deceiving, unholy mother of all noob traps in gaming is? A ladder. That’s right. Within the first seconds of ‘Super Pitfall’, the player comes into contact with a ladder and considering it’s the first thing they see, the immediate and logical reaction is to interact with it. What happens? The ladder is a fake and the player dies. That’s as cruel a trick as we can imagine to pull on a newbie.