Basic Trope: A cutscene or cinema that requires the player to enter commands or risk Yet Another Stupid Death.
- Straight: As Hawkeye and Nene enter a large dungeon chamber, a cinematic shows the player just how vast and impressive the room is, while Nene comments on the decor and starts explaining its cultural significance. Suddenly, a poison dart flies out, and the player has to hit the X button and dodge before it hits Hawkeye.
- Exaggerated:
- Several darts fly out, forcing the player to mash a sequence of several buttons to avoid getting hit. Overlaps with Unexpected Simon Says Minigame.
- The entire game is a cutscene of Visual Novels
- Hawkeye can react several different ways depending on what button is pressed (including pressing no button at all) as a reaction to the dart, resulting in different reactions: one might result in Hawkeye dodging successfully, another has him dodge by jumping and grabbing a ledge which reveals a secret passage by his weight pulling on a previously-unseen lever, a third might have him roll out of the way into a pit full of spikes, and so on.
- Downplayed:
- It's just a regular dart, and whether or not Hawkeye can dodge it merely determines what Nene says next.
- Not dodging the the dart won't kill you, but it will poison Hawkeye if it does hit.
- Justified: Hawkeye is a One-Hit-Point Wonder in a 2D Platformer, X is your jump button, and the cutscene ends with the dart launching.
- Inverted: Press X to Die
- Subverted:
- A cinema looks like it's leading up to a cheap shot attack, but nothing happens.
- Or alternatively, Hawkeye dodges the dart regardless of whether or not you press X.
- Double Subverted: ...Until, near the very end of the scene, the player suddenly has to hit a button to make Hawkeye dodge an assassin.
- Parodied: A hidden trap launches a razor sharp "Press X To Not Die" sign at Hawkeye.
- Zig Zagged: A poison dart flies at Hawkeye and he dodges it. Another dart flies at him, but it always misses UNLESS you hit X and accidentally move into its path.
- Averted: Nene talks, the cutscene ends, and control returns to you without further issue.
- Enforced: The programmers want to capture a sense of tension while exploring the dungeon, so they use this to keep players on their toes.
- Lampshaded: See He Knows About Timed Hits.
- Invoked: Hawkeye appears to be caught in a death trap with no chance of escape until he draws an X button on the screen and screams, "PRESS IT, ALREADY!"
- Exploited: Well into the game as the player gets used to quick-time events, the programmers sneak in a "press X" event within a string of them where pressing X results in the injury or death of Nene - the game may still be beatable, but without Nene's help it becomes more difficult from here on out.
- Defied: A Press X to Not Die button pops up as an axe starts to swing down on Hawkeye's head. Hawkeye effortlessly sidesteps the trap and shoots the button, stating "I'm not putting up with this bullshit."
- Discussed: Nene to Hawkeye - "Be careful! Sometimes in these ancient ruins just where you put your finger can make the difference between life and death!"
- Conversed: "BITCH, THIS AIN'T A CUTSCENE! PRESS A! PRESS A!"
- Deconstructed: The game features these constantly, at every conceivable opportunity, so that neither the player nor the character gets a moment's rest, and they become so routine they're no longer special.
- Reconstructed: They're a crucial part of gameplay that's well implemented, and keeps you engaged even during the cinemas, rather than drifting off while the bad guy is talking again.
- Played For Laughs: While Hawkeye is dodging and darting around, Nene keeps talking, eventually snapping "Are you even listening to me?!" ...Having somehow completely missed the dangerous acrobatics he just went through.
- Played For Drama: If you don't press X fast enough, Nene dives in to save you and dies in your place. Hawkeye is crushed and is never able to forgive himself, resulting in a game over.
- Poe's Law: Hawkeye has to press X at the right moment to do ridiculously mundane tasks, like opening a door, talking to people, sitting down, or eating. Begins to resemble a Context-Sensitive Button by this point.
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