Being tedious/boring. Being poorly optimized. And (here's looking at you DA:O) having the supposedly simple task of adding on DLC become a nightmare of self cannibalistic frustration.
What is the worst thing a game can do?
- Thread starter retyopy
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Im afraid not.Treblaine said:
If this were true, the tallest would always dominate in every feat of strength or endurance, and they simply dont. Mike Tyson wouldnt be famous if that were the case. Derek Poundstone wouldnt stand the slightest chance in a strongman competition.
(In fact, i cant remember the last time a really tall boxer won anything >.> but then i dont follow boxing... i remember them kicking up a huge fuss, on a morning chat show, about some 7'something" guy who was over a foot taller than his opponent, whatever his name was. (how could he possibly win? :O etc. etc.) ...and the tall guy lost, quickly.)
Bodies rarely have the same proportions. Some people just have short/long legs for example, and that wouldnt have even the slightest effect on upper body strength.
Hell, theres even such things as inhibitor nerves that limit your strength in order to prevent you damaging yourself. im sure theyre less effective on some than others.
You can throw numbers at it all you like, but the fact is, a slight difference in height doesnt have much of an effect at all. Ive researched this a lot, as it used to be a huge neurosis of mine about 3 years ago. (and its only a little better now)
PS: I am unaware of any game that portrays a short, female character as incredibly strong, that doesnt try to explain it with supernatural/mystical/etc. powers.
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Escort missions. If a game makes me defend any useless, dumb arse AI character, I will instantly murder it.
"You can throw numbers at it all you like"garjian said:
That's maths. It's irrefutable that with a three dimensional object increasing the size in one dimension will increase the volume by the power of 3. DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE power-laws, nothing will kick your ass harder that to underestimate that. Power laws are things like Moore's Law, that has lead to the truly extraordinary pace of advancement in computer processing power.
You are talking about fighting someone who IS of heavy set AND taller. Not a tall lanky person, but "tank like".
Being bigger isn't always better. There is a reason that flying creatures never get that big as power:weight ratio goes down with mass. So unless an animal evolves jet turbines you'll never find something as heavy as an elephant fly. That's the only way human built flying machines ever get off the ground with the weight they have: very powerful and light engines.
Bigger guys hit harder and can take more hits... but they move slower, jumps shorter, and take longer to change direction.
You mention Mike Tyson, I raise you Muhammed Ali... 6 Foot 3. Now HE was the all time champion.
The thing is it is RARE for someone to have both height AND strength AND the skill to be a boxer. Height doesn't mean everything, but when combined with thick build and trained/augmented muscles/bones then that adds up to a VERY powerful person. Boxing isn't just about strength, it is also about speed, but the scenario you don't seem to like is that someone who is taller AND heavier built being merely stronger and tougher. That's not unreasonable.
You are faster than them, you can dodge their attacks.
Don't overvalue raw arm strength, it's not the be-all and end all. I've been taught this lesson many a time playing Heavy in TF2 (300hp health, carry a MASSIVE chain gun) against a little scout (125hp, puny shotgun) because the fucker is just so fast, even though I can aim at the same speed as him I am a big slow target while he is small and fast. I might be able to get a kill if forced to go head to head over open ground but David is smart when he fight Goliath.
"I am unaware of any game that portrays a short, female character as incredibly strong, that doesnt try to explain it with supernatural/mystical/etc. powers."
yeah, because there isn't any other non-fantastical explanation for how a 130lbs person can swing a 80lbs steel sword around as if it was made of styrofoam. What's the problem? You said you were fed up of short people never being depicted as unusually strong, now you're annoyed that it is not done without magic?
And it's not just fighting games, what about the Big Sisters in Bioshock 2? Most powerful entities of the game, you can only beat them by being extremely defensive and setting many traps (definitely have to use some health kits).
Look, I used to Box, I'm 6'2" and I know how powerful my punches are, but consistently I got my ass kicked by shorter guys not because they were stronger, but they were faster. Not just pure speed but quicker, able to change their momentum. I couldn't land enough hits to make a difference and they pummelled me, if it was wrestling I could charge at him and pop his head off but that's a different game.
Speaking as a big guy who is strong, it's no virtue.
No, exactly the opposite.Treblaine said:
Its certainly right that the typical frail anime girl wouldnt be able to use such weapons, explaining it with magic is fine. That immediately takes that character away from reality, and probably the entire story as a whole.
When something is depicted as reality, you dont get that. You get a situation where the only characters that are allowed to show any signs of strength are what... 6'7"?
Because clearly nobody under that height would be able to do that without magic, or being a cyborg, which cant exist in their story.
You tried to nullify my argument by saying that there are plenty of example in which what i said isnt true, but these examples always have some form of superpower that breaks those apparent laws in an attempt to explain it.
My issue is that, in a lot of cases, it doesnt need to be explained at all... but people seem to feel that it needs to be, which results in a lack of strong, average-height-or-less in stories in which those explanations cant be used.
anyway, given this:
...theres no way we'll agree on this issue as a whole, because my experiences are pretty much the opposite. (which is why i dont trust maths alone... theoretical evidence should never overwrite what youve experienced time and time again.)Treblaine said:
and yeah, this still doesnt explain how strongman competitions arent always won by the tallest participants, does it?
But at least theres something to agree on.
Treblaine said:
