Features introduced in certain games that you wished became staples in games to follow

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Quadtrix

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Dec 17, 2008
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For me, I've always felt that custom soundtracks, as seen in games like Excite Truck, should have been something that game designers used more often. Probably not in all games, though. It'd be awkward to have such a feature in a game like Mario.
 

plastic_window

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Jun 29, 2008
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You can use your own music on nearly every 360 game - and on your PC if you turn the in-game volume down a bit an run media player in the background.

I like GameSpeak. I guess that was put into games in different ways, but they all had distinct outcomes. With GameSpeak you could make guys fall off cliffs, into meat grinders and set dogs on them. Modern games allow you to speak, sure, but they don't give you an awful lot of free will in the situation. Usually just "yes" or "no"
 

black lincon

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plastic_window said:
You can use your own music on nearly every 360 game - and on your PC if you turn the in-game volume down a bit an run media player in the background.

I like GameSpeak. I guess that was put into games in different ways, but they all had distinct outcomes. With GameSpeak you could make guys fall off cliffs, into meat grinders and set dogs on them. Modern games allow you to speak, sure, but they don't give you an awful lot of free will in the situation. Usually just "yes" or "no"
you've clearly never played EndWar. you could control the entire game with one button and your voice.
 

plastic_window

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black lincon said:
you've clearly never played EndWar. you could control the entire game with one button and your voice.
Ah I forgot about that, but the thread is about "staples" of games, not just one. Admittedly I don't know a huge amount of it, but I've not heard of any games that tout the ability to GameSpeak in a long time.
 

Ibaapzo

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Dec 25, 2008
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The psychological thrill Silent Hill perfected and is being maimed by American developers. Dead Space almost had it, Resident Evil will never have it, and I miss it. :( Games that scare you without trying. Silent Hill, Eternal Darkness, Siren, Fatal Frame...
 

Draygen

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I've said it in another thread, but I maintain "Locational Damage". I don't mean head shots take off more health and arm and leg shots take off less. I mean, shoot someone in the leg, and they stagger, possibly coming at you slower. Shoot the arm and they drop what they are holding. And so on and so forth. Fallout 3 has it to a degree, and Left 4 Dead has the stagger effect down quite well. Just something more than "Head and Everywhere Else" that has become so humdrum about shooters.
 

WolfThomas

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Dec 21, 2007
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Dogs!

Not really, just found it funny how both fable 2 and fallout 3 had a dog.
 

L4Y Duke

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The ability to get smashed.

I don't drink in real life, but boy do I like to give my e-liver a pounding!
 

SimuLord

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Aug 20, 2008
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I want real choices in my role-playing games. Not some arbitrary and universal karma system like in Fable 2 and Fallout 3. I mean, be a hero in one city, where all the citizens love you and you'll never want for a safe haven, even if in the rest of the world you're hated and feared. You could be sort of an Al Capone. If individual dispositions were modeled only partially on reputation and more on "what have you done for me and the people I care about?", it could make for some interesting character scenarios and add to immersion.

As an example, let's say there's a church in a city in an Oblivion-like RPG. The game's in-game scheduler allows for a church service to be held once a week. If your character shows up to the church, donates generously, and helps to feed the hungry and find homes for stray puppies and helps old grandmas across the street, he could be seen as the greatest thing since sliced bread. If your character is acquiring the loot for his exploits by going into a city on the other end of the map and holding up old ladies at swordpoint, breaking into the mayor's house, and otherwise being an evil criminal mastermind, that should affect his hometown a lot less because "look at him! He fills the collection plate and helps old ladies across the street and pets puppies!"
 

Yuriatayde

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Sep 10, 2008
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Health Bars.

Yes, they are rare enough thesedays to qualify here. I see games involving firefights and stuff and, oh neat, you're getting shot, you're staggering, your vision is blurring... what are you doing? Don't just sit there- What happened to your limp?! Your senses returning... oh, great, yeah, that's just what was missing to make the immersion complete; superpowers.

That's exactly what it feels like too, a superpower. Mirrors Edge has some of the best effects I've ever seen that make you feel like you're an actual person doing this stuff, until you get shot. If you're lucky, you'll stagger, gasp, take a few more hits, and go down dramaticly. If you escape to recover, well, I suppose realism was lost the moment you could zig-zag at people to dodge their bullets. Guns people, point and click, good grief that company hires the worst guards I've ever seen!

Games are reaching for realism... but then taking a step back and saying "nono, realistic graphics are all we need" and that's just ... really disappointing.

[edit] Mirrors Edge + Left4Dead = potential for awesome
 

Samurai Goomba

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New Game Plus and a Cutscene Viewer/Sound Test should be staples in EVERY game. EVER. Nothing is more frustrating than seeing some totally awesome cutscene, only to realize that the ONLY way you'll ever see it again is to play the entire game back up to that point. Same thing for songs.

Also, I tend to get attached to my characters, so I dislike completely fresh runs in most cases. I make exceptions for games like Fire Emblem 7 (lack of a NG+ is key to the core game design) but most other games should have it. Fortunately, a lot of game devs seem to realize this. It's not a staple, but at least it's fairly common.

I think the "bullets always interact with something" system from Black needs to be seen more often in games. Just because you were out of range doesn't mean the bullet disappears. Also, reloading should fuzz your vision (like in black) and focus more on your gun for the duration. Basically, I want more FPS games where your eyes behave like eyes.

Finally, more games need to have Fist of the North Star and Road Warrior-type locals. That kind of world holds a lot of appeal for me, and right now I can only think of God Hand as being that way.

I also think we need more games about environmental exploration, a la Shadow of the Colossus (more games with large, mostly enemy-free worlds). Sometimes it's the journey that makes the destination. I could see a game series like Devil May Cry or Ninja Gaiden going this route with some impressive results.
 

Zallest

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Draygen said:
I've said it in another thread, but I maintain "Locational Damage". I don't mean head shots take off more health and arm and leg shots take off less. I mean, shoot someone in the leg, and they stagger, possibly coming at you slower. Shoot the arm and they drop what they are holding. And so on and so forth. Fallout 3 has it to a degree, and Left 4 Dead has the stagger effect down quite well. Just something more than "Head and Everywhere Else" that has become so humdrum about shooters.
100% agree, in most FPS games i try to see if they include this by purposely aiming for the limbs and hilarity if often the result when they do.

I also think they need to Locational Damage effects a bit, in fallout if i shot a weapon out of a baddies hand he or crippled the right arm he would just pick it back up again like i never shot him.. i think they should not be able to pick it up, hold their right arm in agony and try to flee from me. That and groin shot, i want to be able to target the groin of enemies and have critical results for landing a shot to the crotch, something like hearing the have a quick gasp for air and a squeek of pain then fall over.
 

seitori

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Feb 12, 2008
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It would have been nice if certain games kept the relatively new RPG convention of allowing you to see what you currently have equipped when shopping for new gear. On-the-spot stat comparisons, seeing what characters have the proper requisites for wearing said gear, etc.

The World Ends With You is a pretty bad offender in this regard.
 

Heas

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Oct 31, 2008
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Zallest said:
Draygen said:
I've said it in another thread, but I maintain "Locational Damage". I don't mean head shots take off more health and arm and leg shots take off less. I mean, shoot someone in the leg, and they stagger, possibly coming at you slower. Shoot the arm and they drop what they are holding. And so on and so forth. Fallout 3 has it to a degree, and Left 4 Dead has the stagger effect down quite well. Just something more than "Head and Everywhere Else" that has become so humdrum about shooters.
100% agree, in most FPS games i try to see if they include this by purposely aiming for the limbs and hilarity if often the result when they do.

I also think they need to Locational Damage effects a bit, in fallout if i shot a weapon out of a baddies hand he or crippled the right arm he would just pick it back up again like i never shot him.. i think they should not be able to pick it up, hold their right arm in agony and try to flee from me. That and groin shot, i want to be able to target the groin of enemies and have critical results for landing a shot to the crotch, something like hearing the have a quick gasp for air and a squeek of pain then fall over.

Well.. Soldier of Fortune did something like that, Extremely violant something like that.
And I like it.
 

gamshobny

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Apr 13, 2008
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The thing halo 1 did, with BOTH a shield and normal health.

Story and interesting characters are usually left forgotten these days.

Taking cover, like in Gears of War or rainbow six; vegas. Yes, its'quite popular, but not popular enough.

Penetratable cover, like CoD 4.
 

Mr Scott

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Apr 15, 2008
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A feature of more than two games for the Golden Sun series I wish I could staple to Camelot Software Planning team's faces!