Lockpicking

Lockpicking is the act of bypassing the lock on a door or container, without using a key (or control panel, etc.) or damaging/destroying the lock or door. It often takes the form of a minigame.

Lockpicking doesn't necessarily involve literal locks or lockpicks - for example, many games set in modern or futuristic settings present it as "hacking".

Common elements

 * The outcome (success or failure) of the lockpicking attempt may depend purely on chance (often affected by a relevant stat), may depend purely on the player's skill at a minigame, or may involve some combination. For example, the lockpicking system in Skyrim challenges the player's dexterity, but the tolerances are more forgiving if the PC has higher lockpicking skill.
 * The game may require the player to have a lockpick in their inventory before they can attempt lockpicking. Failure may cause the lockpick to break (i.e., be destroyed). When this is the case, lockpicks will be a consumable item that can be purchased from stores and/or found as loot.
 * It may or may not be possible to circumvent the door by other means (for example, by smashing it). This can often give rise to tactical tradeoffs: for example, smashing a door may be easier than picking the lock, but it may also attract the attention of enemies or trigger an alarm.
 * Lockpicking may or may not pause normal gameplay.
 * Skyrim and Fallout 4 are examples where lockpicking does pause the game. This is common when lockpicking involves a minigame.
 * The Thief games, on the other hand, do not pause gameplay for lockpicking. This is an intentional element of Thief's stealth gameplay, as it forces the player to work quickly and skillfully to pick locks while guards' backs are turned.