Ludonarrative Dissonance

The conflict that occurs when a game's mechanics contradict the story it is trying to tell, breaking immersion and player trust in both systems.

In games, this means

In Uncharted, Nathan Drake is portrayed as a reluctant everyman in cutscenes, then massacres 800 people per game in gameplay. Players feel the contradiction. When the story says one thing and the mechanics demand another, neither feels true. The UX solution is either mechanical restraint, narrative reframing, or accepting the dissonance as intentional tone.