NationStates Jolt Archive

What game features do you wish they used more often?

One I have to mention is the developer commentary in Half-Life 2: Episode One. The commentary gave great insight into the whole design process, and helped me appreciate why certain features are there. I wish that Half-Life 2 had had the commentary - hell, I wish most games did.

I don't actually need any "features" that doesn't actually help with the gameplay,... or worse promotes multi-player capabilities (If I wanted a multiplayer game I would've bought a multiplayer game).

Most of the time those "features" printed in bold on the game box tends to either cover the games serious flaws or promote stuff that is actually useless to the player.

Just a general sandbox setup is immensely appealing to me, even though it is so far from appropriate for so many things that it's not even funny, I still love the sandbox style.

Squad based RTS's like Dawn of War, and Company of Heroes. Also the use of cover in depth like in Company of Heroes. Seeing your dudes hiding behind gravestones in a churchyard while the germans get stuck without cover as they walk into your ambush is a great feeling.

Two words: Asshole Physics.

Two words: Asshole Physics.

:confused:

Branching plotlines (I mean really branching) and multiple endings (Not just "good" and "bad"). Adds to replay value.

Customization too. And multiple dialogue options.

What game features do you wish they used more often?
Customizable gear. I love Parasite Eve because you can customize your gun to the point where you're comparing your handgun to an M16-A1 and tossing the rifle to keep your gun. :p

Branching plotlines (I mean really branching) and multiple endings (Not just "good" and "bad"). Adds to replay value.

Customization too. And multiple dialogue options.
agreed.

also the ability to go anywhere and everywhere without following a leniar plotline. Might and Magic 3: Gates to Another World had that feature and it rocked.

I am a sucker for character customization.

I am a sucker for character customization.

Yep, that's definitely a good one.

I also like it when there are little jokes in the game. Not heaps, just enough to give you a little chuckle now & then.

Yep, that's definitely a good one.

I also like it when there are little jokes in the game. Not heaps, just enough to give you a little chuckle now & then.

Portal was a great example of this.

I would also like to see more development of characters, so if something happens to them you don't just see it as a bunch of pixels.Half life 2: Episode two did that quite nicely.

But as you can see I love Valve way too much.

Click Stand;13448654']Portal was a great example of this.

I would also like to see more development of characters, so if something happens to them you don't just see it as a bunch of pixels.Half life 2: Episode two did that quite nicely.

But as you can see I love Valve way too much.

Who DOESN'T love Valve way too much?

Squad based RTS's like Dawn of War, and Company of Heroes. Also the use of cover in depth like in Company of Heroes. Seeing your dudes hiding behind gravestones in a churchyard while the germans get stuck without cover as they walk into your ambush is a great feeling.

I got frustrated with the cover system in that game, since it just read something as cover. So it ended up that a squad lined up against a wall getting fired on counted as being in excellent cover.

true explorative environments. i want to be able to go anywhere in the game at any time without hitting invisible barriers or giant impassable walls/cliffs/etc. Fable was a real letdown in this department, and i can only hope Fable 2 will be better.

that's one of the reasons i love the GTA games so much, just because i love to explore and stuff. a lot of older RPGs in particular (i remember many on the N64) were good at this, too.
if i had more time i'd probably play WoW, bearing this in mind

Just a general sandbox setup is immensely appealing to me, even though it is so far from appropriate for so many things that it's not even funny, I still love the sandbox style.

yeah, i miss it on many games. but the latest game i played which had a sandbox mode was Sim City Societies, with which the mode was wasted. the game was just too crap to even be fun in any mode, yet alone sandbox....

splitscreen multiplayer. This is the best way to play multiplayer. No noob throwing the n-word at you. No lost connections being counted as you quitting with your tial between your legs. Just you and 1-3 buddies in the same room. You can see what they see and they can see what you see.

Nowadays, developers would rather have prettier games than have splitscreen. Good players online is a rarity. Most of the time, it's some noob that screams at you and teammates that killed killed you more than they killed the opponents. I mean, if you can't handle a grenade, don't handle a grenade. Friendly fire is NOT a good strategy. It will NOT confuse the enemy. It will NOT grant you immortality. It will NOT make bikini-clad women pop out of nowhere and party. It's just stupid.

I need mah splitscreen.

I like character custimization, like in Sna Andreas where you can totally change your look, or just armor changes like in Halo 3. I also like the make your own map of Starcraft and age of Empires III. Still I wish you can custimize your guns. Sort of like SOCOM but I mean bigger, better, and badder.

I got frustrated with the cover system in that game, since it just read something as cover. So it ended up that a squad lined up against a wall getting fired on counted as being in excellent cover.

I'm not saying it doesn't need work.

But it was still damn cool when it worked.

What game features do you wish they used more often?Idle workers, in game clocks, timers (so you know when your pizza is done).

I simply want games to be worked on so the gameplay is maximized in terms of the quality, that's all. For example, action RPGs like the Kingdom Hearts series are too easy as they are; they need to be reworked to take into account how the game works, by making difficulty in a way so that the gameplay is deeper.

On that same token, I don't want the gamemakers to concentrate so much on one facet of a game that they forget the other parts. Gameplay is the most important, yes, but I like a good story with the game, and appropriate graphics, sound, and music can really sell it. That's not to say I want supremely shiny graphics to the point where I need a supercomputer to run the game. I just want to make sure they're worked just right, that's all. The right mixture can be truly magical.

I also would like for game companies to take more time and listen to the players of their games. Stardock does this; their Galactic Civilizations games are vastly improved because of it.

One I have to mention is the developer commentary in Half-Life 2: Episode One. The commentary gave great insight into the whole design process, and helped me appreciate why certain features are there. I wish that Half-Life 2 had had the commentary - hell, I wish most games did.
The PC version of The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay is the first game with commentaries that I know of, and there's hours and hours of it. The game is positively littered with clickable commentary icons that would trigger commentary from a few seconds to 10-15 minutes in length. It's also hugely informative on game design, so if you like this kind of stuff, you should definitely check it out.

For the feature I wish was used more, it would be a focus on interaction with the game world. From the time way back when I played Flashback, and just couldn't get over how cool it was that the character didn't slide across the platforms but actually took proper steps, and seemed connected to the world in a realistic way, that's always what I've wanted more of. Unfortunately, in most games you're just a body or a floating head sliding around, and the only interaction you do is shooting and pressing buttons by pointing a crosshair at things.

The PC version of The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay is the first game with commentaries that I know of, and there's hours and hours of it. The game is positively littered with clickable commentary icons that would trigger commentary from a few seconds to 10-15 minutes in length. It's also hugely informative on game design, so if you like this kind of stuff, you should definitely check it out.

It is also a pretty good game IIRC