Speculation on a new FPS health system.

[Blue_vision]

I for one am sick of all these realistic shooters. What is there to be sick of? The regenerating health system that plagues them. Over the years, gaming's really only taken one big leap in the area of health systems, and it's generally moved towards this regenerating health that we see in basically every new FPS that's released.
There is nothing realistic about regenerating health. I do not understand how ducking behind a big rock and waiting 5 seconds for the 15 bullet wounds you just received to magically heal themselves. Heck, it's worse than health bars in terms of realisim, yet people love it for basically any FPS. So here, we discuss how to improve or totally revamp the current way of tallying up damage in an FPS, for those that dislike the feeling of your legs regrowing a couple seconds after being hit by a mortar.


I personally would want a totally new system that would keep track of almost every part of the body and then adapt towards that. It'd not only look at individual damage (i.e. get shot in the leg and start hobbling around,) but also total blood loss and pain your character receives. You might get shot in the arm 15 times and still live, but a shot to the femoral artery will kill you. But if you get to it quickly enough and bandage it up or put on a tourniquet, you might be able to buy yourself half the battle. But if you sustain enough damage and don't succumb to your wounds, your character might be freaking out just a bit over this, shaking, looking around everywhere and generally being a ***** to control.
I can only begin to imagine how much memory and processing power that'd require, but computers are making amazing leaps, right? But I know that regenerating health is in FPSs for a reason. I assume that that's to allow players to Rambo into a room, get shot 5 times but survive and kill all the baddies, and get to the next round of enemies good as new. If the system was to keep track of previous damage like this, it'd probably mess with that mindset a lot. But, it could improve teamwork by making people work together to take out enemies and care for eachother's health like that very first Bad Company 2 trailer, instead of going solo a la MW2.

So, what's your dream way of health being counted in a FPS? I'd like to hear ideas! I know I'm not the only one sick of regenerating health.

 

[Darktau]

That would only work for single player, but would be amazing, Multiplayer has too much latency to do that decently (aside from LAN)

 

[thatstheguy]

I for one am sick of all these realistic shooters. What is there to be sick of? The regenerating health system that plagues them. Over the years, gaming's really only taken one big leap in the area of health systems, and it's generally moved towards this regenerating health that we see in basically every new FPS that's released.
There is nothing realistic about regenerating health. I do not understand how ducking behind a big rock and waiting 5 seconds for the 15 bullet wounds you just received to magically heal themselves. Heck, it's worse than health bars in terms of realisim, yet people love it for basically any FPS. So here, we discuss how to improve or totally revamp the current way of tallying up damage in an FPS, for those that dislike the feeling of your legs regrowing a couple seconds after being hit by a mortar.


I personally would want a totally new system that would keep track of almost every part of the body and then adapt towards that. It'd not only look at individual damage (i.e. get shot in the leg and start hobbling around,) but also total blood loss and pain your character receives. You might get shot in the arm 15 times and still live, but a shot to the femoral artery will kill you. But if you get to it quickly enough and bandage it up or put on a tourniquet, you might be able to buy yourself half the battle. But if you sustain enough damage and don't succumb to your wounds, your character might be freaking out just a bit over this, shaking, looking around everywhere and generally being a ***** to control.
I can only begin to imagine how much memory and processing power that'd require, but computers are making amazing leaps, right? But I know that regenerating health is in FPSs for a reason. I assume that that's to allow players to Rambo into a room, get shot 5 times but survive and kill all the baddies, and get to the next round of enemies good as new. If the system was to keep track of previous damage like this, it'd probably mess with that mindset a lot. But, it could improve teamwork by making people work together to take out enemies and care for eachother's health like that very first Bad Company 2 trailer, instead of going solo a la MW2.

So, what's your dream way of health being counted in a FPS? I'd like to hear ideas! I know I'm not the only one sick of regenerating health.

SWAT 4 already had a mechanic like that. Even Counter-Strike, to some extent, had something like that.

 

[Irridium]

I still say segmented health is the way to go.

To see it in action play Resistance Fall of Man and/or Far Cry 2.

Basically you get a health bar split into segments, and it regenerates only up whatever segment still has health in it, but isn't full.

That way we have the best of both worlds.

There are still health packs, but you don't have to put them anywhere and everywhere, and your heath does regenerate to an extent, so you won't be completely fucked during any enemy encounters.

 

[rileyrulesu]

well, obviously, EVERYONE'S thought of that. It's not practical though. I'm sure we have the technology to do that, but with a 16 player multiplayer, it would melt an Alienware.

 

[Timbydude]

I personally would want a totally new system that would keep track of almost every part of the body and then adapt towards that. It'd not only look at individual damage (i.e. get shot in the leg and start hobbling around,) but also total blood loss and pain your character receives. You might get shot in the arm 15 times and still live, but a shot to the femoral artery will kill you. But if you get to it quickly enough and bandage it up or put on a tourniquet, you might be able to buy yourself half the battle. But if you sustain enough damage and don't succumb to your wounds, your character might be freaking out just a bit over this, shaking, looking around everywhere and generally being a ***** to control.
I can only begin to imagine how much memory and processing power that'd require, but computers are making amazing leaps, right? But I know that regenerating health is in FPSs for a reason. I assume that that's to allow players to Rambo into a room, get shot 5 times but survive and kill all the baddies, and get to the next round of enemies good as new. If the system was to keep track of previous damage like this, it'd probably mess with that mindset a lot. But, it could improve teamwork by making people work together to take out enemies and care for eachother's health like that very first Bad Company 2 trailer, instead of going solo a la MW2.

Have you ever played Deus Ex?

Granted, it doesn't have psychological trauma and stuff, but it has exactly the "limb-based injury" system you're describing.

 

[Blue_vision]

SWAT 4 already had a mechanic like that. Even Counter-Strike, to some extent, had something like that.

Basically SWAT 4 kind of health, just on steroids for those frightening black monolithic computers to run.

Which CS are you thinking of there? :|

That would only work for single player, but would be amazing, Multiplayer has too much latency to do that decently (aside from LAN)

I actually think it'd be way better for multiplayer than single player. If the enemy's shooting at you, randomized shots are still kind of touchy in basically every game I've played, and it's way easier to call BS on a lucky shot if the computer's deciding it rather than if an enemy shot you there. But networking issues would be a big problem. I wonder what the internet will be like in 15 years though, maybe it could handle it.

 

[park92]

I for one am sick of all these realistic shooters. What is there to be sick of? The regenerating health system that plagues them. Over the years, gaming's really only taken one big leap in the area of health systems, and it's generally moved towards this regenerating health that we see in basically every new FPS that's released.
There is nothing realistic about regenerating health. I do not understand how ducking behind a big rock and waiting 5 seconds for the 15 bullet wounds you just received to magically heal themselves. Heck, it's worse than health bars in terms of realisim, yet people love it for basically any FPS. So here, we discuss how to improve or totally revamp the current way of tallying up damage in an FPS, for those that dislike the feeling of your legs regrowing a couple seconds after being hit by a mortar.


I personally would want a totally new system that would keep track of almost every part of the body and then adapt towards that. It'd not only look at individual damage (i.e. get shot in the leg and start hobbling around,) but also total blood loss and pain your character receives. You might get shot in the arm 15 times and still live, but a shot to the femoral artery will kill you. But if you get to it quickly enough and bandage it up or put on a tourniquet, you might be able to buy yourself half the battle. But if you sustain enough damage and don't succumb to your wounds, your character might be freaking out just a bit over this, shaking, looking around everywhere and generally being a ***** to control.
I can only begin to imagine how much memory and processing power that'd require, but computers are making amazing leaps, right? But I know that regenerating health is in FPSs for a reason. I assume that that's to allow players to Rambo into a room, get shot 5 times but survive and kill all the baddies, and get to the next round of enemies good as new. If the system was to keep track of previous damage like this, it'd probably mess with that mindset a lot. But, it could improve teamwork by making people work together to take out enemies and care for eachother's health like that very first Bad Company 2 trailer, instead of going solo a la MW2.

So, what's your dream way of health being counted in a FPS? I'd like to hear ideas! I know I'm not the only one sick of regenerating health.

who plays FPS for realism?????

 

[ProfessorLayton]

Wherever you get shot it permanently cripples you. If I want realism, I want absolute realism. Or go the Counter-Strike method and have heavy damage bullets with no way to get health back at all.

Or just go walking over health packs after soaking in 50 bullets to the brain.

 

[Darktau]

Wait, what was call of cthulu's system? I remember that having something odd.

 

[Snarky Username]

The problem with realistic shooters of any kind is that realistically, one shot to almost anywhere on your body would put your out of commission. If anything, Halo, the game that started the regeneration mechanic, is one of the most realistic shooters there is. They have an excuse in the whole "super armor" thing.

 

[Blue_vision]

The problem with realistic shooters of any kind is that realistically, one shot to almost anywhere on your body would put your out of commission. If anything, Halo, the game that started the regeneration mechanic, is one of the most realistic shooters there is. They have an excuse in the whole "super armor" thing.

Not so. There are plenty of instances (notably off the top of my head that FBI shootout in Miami or something) where unarmoured people have taken tonnes of bullets but lived for long enough to keep fighting for a while. To a motivated soldier, a bullet to the calf wouldn't really put him out of comission.

 

[Blueruler182]

If I was going into a game for realism I'd be playing a game where I got shot once in the arm and sat in the corner waiting for someone to evac me because I was in too damn much pain to hold up a gun, let alone fire one. I don't care, honestly, between the duct taping yourself into shape or turning into Wolverine, but the second it fucks with the controls is the second I stop playing FPSes altogether.

 

[Baby Tea]

I prefer the regenerating health system.
The health bar makes the game more management, and less 'game'. Far Cry 2's system was fine, but really: Give me regenerating health. It has way less to do with 'realism' (I can't think of a single 'realistic' game that uses regenerating health), and more to do with 'spend more time shooting, and less time scrounging for health packs'. A game like Bioshock makes a health bar OK, because the atmosphere makes the health pack search work. But a game like Call of Duty? I want to run around shooting guys. I don't want to run around looking for a health pack.

I actually really liked the first 'Halo' health system: Recharging shield, static health.
That worked well.

 

[Rakun Man]

What? I thought all of these games I was just playing as Wolverine?
OT: The most realistic, you get shot, you die, or bleed out, and if you miracously survive, you get transported to a military hospital, and then sent home with a purple heart.

But that isn't very fun is it? Unless you really like M*A*S*H.

On On topic: I like your idea, for realism, but

.

who plays FPS for realism?????

put it best.

 

[Not G. Ivingname]

I for one am sick of all these realistic shooters. What is there to be sick of? The regenerating health system that plagues them. Over the years, gaming's really only taken one big leap in the area of health systems, and it's generally moved towards this regenerating health that we see in basically every new FPS that's released.
There is nothing realistic about regenerating health. I do not understand how ducking behind a big rock and waiting 5 seconds for the 15 bullet wounds you just received to magically heal themselves. Heck, it's worse than health bars in terms of realisim, yet people love it for basically any FPS. So here, we discuss how to improve or totally revamp the current way of tallying up damage in an FPS, for those that dislike the feeling of your legs regrowing a couple seconds after being hit by a mortar.


I personally would want a totally new system that would keep track of almost every part of the body and then adapt towards that. It'd not only look at individual damage (i.e. get shot in the leg and start hobbling around,) but also total blood loss and pain your character receives. You might get shot in the arm 15 times and still live, but a shot to the femoral artery will kill you. But if you get to it quickly enough and bandage it up or put on a tourniquet, you might be able to buy yourself half the battle. But if you sustain enough damage and don't succumb to your wounds, your character might be freaking out just a bit over this, shaking, looking around everywhere and generally being a ***** to control.
I can only begin to imagine how much memory and processing power that'd require, but computers are making amazing leaps, right? But I know that regenerating health is in FPSs for a reason. I assume that that's to allow players to Rambo into a room, get shot 5 times but survive and kill all the baddies, and get to the next round of enemies good as new. If the system was to keep track of previous damage like this, it'd probably mess with that mindset a lot. But, it could improve teamwork by making people work together to take out enemies and care for eachother's health like that very first Bad Company 2 trailer, instead of going solo a la MW2.

So, what's your dream way of health being counted in a FPS? I'd like to hear ideas! I know I'm not the only one sick of regenerating health.

While systems like this have been done to extent, it at times is a bit TO realistic. The major problem is with this means that an enemy that resorts to random bullet spraying meaning it a roll of the dice if you die instantly from a head shot or a minor announce if you get shot in the foot. It may be realistic, but it just become frustrating. Also keeping track of blood loss would be a headache and would actually take you out of the experience. Also, losing control of the character would also kill immersion and cause even more frustration when you miss a shot because your character looks left suddenly.

 

[Om Nom Nom]

The health system I prefer is something like the one used for Fallout 3. Limb crippling, with an overarcing health bar. It's the closest thing to realism without sacrificing gameplay.

Though I do wish it had a little Halo in it; by that I mean that a small amount of health that can regenerate.

On that thought, I wonder if there's a mod that adds bloodloss... *browses fallout3nexus*

 

[eggy32]

I still say segmented health is the way to go.

To see it in action play Resistance Fall of Man and/or Far Cry 2.

Basically you get a health bar split into segments, and it regenerates only up whatever segment still has health in it, but isn't full.

That way we have the best of both worlds.

There are still health packs, but you don't have to put them anywhere and everywhere, and your heath does regenerate to an extent, so you won't be completely fucked during any enemy encounters.

The Chronicles Of Riddick games had this.