Features in a minority of games that should be in the majority

[tippy2k2]

I can only think of a handful of games that give you a "Previously On" option (Metal Gear and Crysis 3).

I just started Crysis 3. It's been a while since Crysis 2 (and I never got to play 1). I noticed a "Previously in Crysis" button as one of the options and it did a quick cutscene recapping 1 and 2.

This is kind of brilliant. It allows people who haven't played the game the chance to just start with whatever's newest and allows people who haven't played in a long while to remember what the hell is going on.

So any features that you've seen in a handful of games that you think should be in...well...all of them rather than a few? Ideally, name the specific game with the feature implemented the way you'd like it.

 

[shrekfan246]

Primarily for RPGs, but games with inventory management should always have:
1) A way to auto-sort items. Preferably in multiple ways, such as by value, rarity, class/type, level requirement, etc.
2) Auto-selling for items lower than a user-specified setting. Especially if the game purposely has useless items designed for little more than selling.
3) Extensive feedback. By which I mean let the player compare every little piece of information on an item to its comparative spot on the character, possibly allowing the user to define stats or effects to prioritize in comparing.

Also mostly for RPGs or isometric ARPGs, though probably even more personal opinion than the above:
Floating combat text. More feedback. Always more. I can never have enough. When I'm playing something like Torchlight II or Baldur's Gate, I want to see exactly how much damage my characters are doing in excruciating detail. There are some cases where it's not as big a deal for me (say shooter-RPGs), but it's a little thing that goes a long way for me.

I would love if more isometric ARPGs took note from Diablo III's "signature skill" system, as well. Auto-attacks are boring. Skills and spells use a limited, recharging resource. I like having an ability that will replace my auto-attack with something more exciting not at the cost of the character's given resource.

 

[T_ConX]

I would have to say New Game +. After I finish a game, let me RESTART with all of my equipment/stats. Yes it will probably break the game, but SO WHAT I already played thru it once as the developer intended, now give me reason(s) to replay the damn thing!!!

I hate it when games have New Game +, but they only let you carry over some things. I'm looking at you, Shin Megami Tensei series! Oh, great! I get to keep my Demon Compendium and Persona Social Stats, but by level starts over at 1 and I lose all my cash! FUCK YOU!

 

[tippy2k2]

Since I hate watching cutscenes at the very beginning of a game... (though as long as I wasn't forced to watch it, it would be fine)

That is one of the nice things about the feature; it's on the main page of the game but if you chose to, you could skip it. For someone like myself who plays for stories, a feature like that is the perfect gift.

 

[DiscoRhombus]

Difficulty sliders (probably not a minority thing). It's not difficult to implement, buff me or the enemy it just requires a few number changes. Assasin's creed definitely needs this (too easy for me) as does Dark Souls (too hard for me)

I do agree with your comment to a degree. Dark Souls however, I feel that allowing the user to change the difficulty of the game would ruin it. Not because I think you should GTFO if you can't play Dark Souls as it is, but the difficulty is a big part of the entire Dark Souls design and experience. I think it would be a lot less fulfilling if it were significantly easier. The fear, oppression and trepidation you experience are all very important parts of creating the overall Dark Souls feel. Besides - the game isn't THAT difficult, it just rewards patience and memorising enemy patterns.

Assassin's Creed could do with being more difficult/less counter based.

 

[C14N]

Difficulty sliders (probably not a minority thing). It's not difficult to implement, buff me or the enemy it just requires a few number changes. Assasin's creed definitely needs this (too easy for me) as does Dark Souls (too hard for me)

I'd say difficulty sliders are in the majority though. Games like Assassin's Creed and Demon's Souls are the exceptions and in those cases, the lack of difficulty is a design choice (AC is story-focused and not supposed to be very difficult, DS is supposed to be very difficult).

 

[CannibalCorpses]

I think the ability to skip cut-scenes should be mandatory in all games, even on the first playthrough. Most games you don't need the story context to understand what your doing and when it comes to a second playthrough the cut-scenes become frustrating and tedious...especially when they are just after a save or checkpoint but before a hard boss battle. Deadpool gets a nod for that but many games over the years have allowed it...

It's a bit late now since you can't play the new machines without a HD TV but the option for standard definition text in RPGs that are heavy on text should always have been a must. Final fantasy 13 (1/2 not sure which) gets the nod for that...one of the only games i've played where i can actually read all the text on my screen. Games like Omerta get a massive fucking 0/10 for having text that is literally unreadable whilst having stats that affect everything.

I'll also add one more...difficulty. I want to be able to play any game i buy on the hardest setting first time through. Playing games on the easier settings first makes the hardest playthrough too easy and i don't want to be forced to play a shit game once to unlock adult difficulty and find the challenge i need to call it fun. Lots of games already do this but still some developers cling to the stupid method...

Only 1 of these is truly a minority feature...the other 2 are probably somewhere around 50/50 but all should be present in all games. I can see no reason for them not to be other than incompetance

 

[Augustine]

Difficulty sliders (probably not a minority thing). It's not difficult to implement, buff me or the enemy it just requires a few number changes. Assasin's creed definitely needs this (too easy for me) as does Dark Souls (too hard for me)

I am sorry, but I am very much against it. Part of what makes that game great is that it does not give you anything on a silver platter - you have to work for it. It demands a level of skill, and that skill comes with practice, not some inborn talent.
I've done everything that there is to be done in Dark Souls, and I can assure you that its difficulty is a "smart" difficulty - every challenge can be done with some creative thinking and/or practice and preparation.
If you make that challenge bar movable - all that genius of design is lost.

Dark Souls is a niche game and it should remain that way. Mass appeal is a bad thing because masses have terrible taste.

 

[loc978]

Full zoom in strategy games. I've been spoiled by Supreme Commander, and no longer have the patience to pan around and use a minimap in games like Starcraft. The ability to zoom out to full map view and in to a custom theater size on the fly just makes for a better UI.

 

[Scootinfroodie]

Being able to access all weapons/characters/etc right from the start in a competitive multiplayer title
Labelled FOV and sensitivity adjustment
The ability to skip cutscenes and large text dumps you've already seen (esp. in RPG's)

Also mostly for RPGs or isometric ARPGs, though probably even more personal opinion than the above:
Floating combat text. More feedback. Always more. I can never have enough. When I'm playing something like Torchlight II or Baldur's Gate, I want to see exactly how much damage my characters are doing in excruciating detail. There are some cases where it's not as big a deal for me (say shooter-RPGs), but it's a little thing that goes a long way for me.

You can see how much damage you're doing in Baldur's Gate and basically all of the Black Isle RPGs in the log. Then there's the whole press tab over the enemy thing but that only gives vague descriptive terms.
There might be an on/off option for that though
But yeah, it'll show every roll to hit, ability checks and damage... though you have to watch info from all of your party members scroll past
I suspect floating numbers/text would be worse though. The game already gets kinda cluttered in a few cutscenes with all the spell effects and dialogue floating about.

 

[shrekfan246]

Also mostly for RPGs or isometric ARPGs, though probably even more personal opinion than the above:
Floating combat text. More feedback. Always more. I can never have enough. When I'm playing something like Torchlight II or Baldur's Gate, I want to see exactly how much damage my characters are doing in excruciating detail. There are some cases where it's not as big a deal for me (say shooter-RPGs), but it's a little thing that goes a long way for me.

You can see how much damage you're doing in Baldur's Gate and basically all of the Black Isle RPGs in the log. Then there's the whole press tab over the enemy thing but that only gives vague descriptive terms.
There might be an on/off option for that though
But yeah, it'll show every roll to hit, ability checks and damage... though you have to watch info from all of your party members scroll past
I suspect floating numbers/text would be worse though. The game already gets kinda cluttered in a few cutscenes with all the spell effects and dialogue floating about.

Yes, I know that.

In the specific case of Baldur's Gate, I'd appreciate the combat being a bit slower if I'm honest. But that's a problem I have with AD&D game rules to begin with, because translated into video game format it means you're just watching a minute of six characters endlessly missing their enemy and swinging at nothing. Given the nature of the real-time-with-pause combat, though, I'd still like the ability to see when one of my characters hits an enemy without having to sift through the combat log or hold a button that brings up pop-up information. It's all about the options.

 

[ForumSafari]

Directly controllable commanders in RTS games. I'm a bit of an RTS and 4x nut and whilst Brutal Legend was ridiculously easy I really loved the mix of RTS and third person fighter. Being able to control my troops whilst soaring above them and then drop into combat when I needed something very specific doing was extremely liberating. I also liked the restrictions on what I could see, it made keeping an eye on the battlefield more taxing than just glancing at a minimap, meaning I actually had to go and take a look at stuff.

Sacrifice did it pretty well too but the commander should have been more mobile. On balance I think Brutal Legend had an almost perfect implementation.

 

[DiscoRhombus]

Difficulty sliders (probably not a minority thing). It's not difficult to implement, buff me or the enemy it just requires a few number changes. Assasin's creed definitely needs this (too easy for me) as does Dark Souls (too hard for me)

I do agree with your comment to a degree. Dark Souls however, I feel that allowing the user to change the difficulty of the game would ruin it. Not because I think you should GTFO if you can't play Dark Souls as it is, but the difficulty is a big part of the entire Dark Souls design and experience. I think it would be a lot less fulfilling if it were significantly easier. The fear, oppression and trepidation you experience are all very important parts of creating the overall Dark Souls feel. Besides - the game isn't THAT difficult, it just rewards patience and memorising enemy patterns.

Assassin's Creed could do with being more difficult/less counter based.

Why would it ruin it? There's nothing stopping you from enjoying the game as it is right now. Someone who isn't a gaming god however can get the same amount of oppression/fear and challenge out of an easier mode that you get out of a hard mode

Because it's not crippling difficulty for the sake of crippling difficulty. The game isn't even that hard. It just requires patience and repetition. If you could just blast through most of the areas in the game, one hitting the enemies (which you can in NG+/++/+++... I got up to about NG+7 I think) then all the atmosphere and ethos of the game is destroyed. You're meant to be cautious, you're meant to pick your fights, isolate enemies, develop strategies. If it weren't for those mechanics it would be an incredibly boring, underwhelming hack and slash game.

EDIT: It's also worth remembering that not every game has to be liked by you to be a good game. I'm not a big CoD/Halo/Counter Strike fan but a lot of people still seem to enjoy it. I like Starcraft 2, DOTA 2, Street Fighter etc in the way of competitive gaming. It doesn't mean that FPS competitive gaming is worthless and all those games should be changed to be top down RTS-style games. If you don't like Dark Souls or don't get on with the difficulty then that's fine but it will never change, you will never get an easy mode on Dark Souls. Mainly because there isn't a hard mode. That's just the game.

 

[BarkBarker]

Dynamic graphical quality to keep up frame rates, if the game gets a bit too much, it'll downgrade its setting on the fly to give you as steady a frame rate as possible.

 

[suitepee7]

some way to skip cutscenes before a boss fight. this can be done in several ways, all of them seem to be rare -_-
- skippable cutscenes no matter the playthrough
- ability to quicksave in boss fights, or at the start of them
- the post-cutscene being the checkpoint, rather than the bit after it