Gaming Cardinal Sins

[Llil]

Game: Metal Gear Rising Revengeance
Cardinal Sin: Though shalt not make your block button the same as your attack button

Holy balls is this annoying. In order to attack bad guys, you press the X button to light slash. In order to block something, you wait until it shows an attack is incoming, then you press towards your enemy and click X. If Kojima gives his blessing, you block. If not, you slash at the enemy before getting *****-slapped by whatever attack you wanted to block.

I thought the parrying system was really good. Instead of being able to hide behind a block button, you have to actively parry the attacks. Even your dodge move is actually an attack, so there's not really any purely defensive moves in the game. It gave the combat a very active and aggressive feel. I liked that a lot, and in fact, if I were describing the game to someone, the parrying system would be something I would specifically highlight as a great feature.

I didn't have any problems with the system once I had figured out how it works. Both the direction and the timing are pretty forgiving unless you are trying to get a counterattack. (Although, I do realise that telling you I had no problems doesn't help you in any way.)

 

[-Ezio-]

"Thou shalt always have an option to invert the y axis"

 

[XDSkyFreak]

Lots of games commit this sin, but I'll go with a recent game - I got Sniper Elite: V2 for free on that giveaway a little while ago.

Thou shalt not have shitty stealth sections when thy gameplay does not support it.

I was going to add just this sin regarding sniper elite 3. My gosh the stealth in this game is stupidly implemented.

 

[Auron225]

Thou shalt not reassign the analogue sticks from their respective default purposes (left for movement, right for POV/camera).

It's easy enough to learn what each button does but moving around and seeing what you're doing has no reason to ever change. It's confusing for the sheer sake of it.

 

[Mikeyfell]

Game: Metal Gear Rising Revengeance
Cardinal Sin: Though shalt not make your block button the same as your attack button

yep... that's the one.
how about Assassin's Creed series
Don't make the stealth assassinate button the same as the swing your fist like a mof button

Don't make the "walk just a little bit faster through the crowd so as not to draw attention to your self" button the same as the "stick your hand up someone's asshole in the vein attempt to steal 4 cents from them when you already have way more money than you could spend in a million years" button

Don't make the Fall off the edge like a doofus button the same as the jump to another ledge button

Don't make the catch the fucking ledge button the same as the drop off the fucking ledge button

Don't make it so the counter command doesn't do anything unless you've already been hit once for no reason.

As much as I love the Assassin's Creed series it has really shitty controls.

OR Mass Effect 3
Don't put 6 different commands on the same button!
Or Thou shalt not make Mass Effect 3. there I saved you like 2 hours of me ranting about ME3


Borderlands 2 (Or any game with audio logs that you pick up mid combat)
Thou shalt MUTE THE COMBAT SOUNDS so we can listen to the audio logs.

Thou shalt have better legendary drop rates in the Pre-sequel

 

[WeepingAngels]

Don't use button combinations for save file deletion. Don't make everyone play a game of Twister with our fingers because a small minority of idiots accidentally delete their save file.

 

[Prime_Hunter_H01]

It is an easy system to use. It is also a very reliable system that works 92% of the time. However, it's still a system that shouldn't be in there. The 8% of the time when it does not work can cost you. I've never been flat-out killed by a failed block but you lose points for it (damn you S rating!!!!) and it's put me in some sticky situations where I went from "a little bit of health" to "getting sneezed on is going to kill you cyborg".

I am still loving this game though (Super Happy Cyborg Ninja GO! Team is going to be one of my go-to games when people complain that there's no original ideas in gaming); I can hate the sin without hating the sinner.

Unless its different on Revengeance difficulty a block still negates all damage unless you have tried to parry unblockable attacks.

And compensating for something being awful by making it really easy to do and still blocking even if you fail doesn't mean it isn't a sin. It means they recognized there was a problem but instead of actually fixing it they just polished that turd to a mirror shine. Which actually makes it even worse in my eyes.

Recognizing problem would have been adding a block button that is just as effective as parrying. Most games that have a similar system make dodging active and blocking passive so a block is perfect when done correctly but give leeway if late. MGR wants you to be more active so the leeway is early so it punishes being passive, not compensating for a broken system.

I thought the parrying system was really good. Instead of being able to hide behind a block button, you have to actively parry the attacks. Even your dodge move is actually an attack, so there's not really any purely defensive moves in the game. It gave the combat a very active and aggressive feel. I liked that a lot, and in fact, if I were describing the game to someone, the parrying system would be something I would specifically highlight as a great feature.

I didn't have any problems with the system once I had figured out how it works. Both the direction and the timing are pretty forgiving unless you are trying to get a counterattack. (Although, I do realise that telling you I had no problems doesn't help you in any way.)

Exactly This.

I suggest for that 8% of the time you check to see if the attack is unblockeabe (glows orange) because I know I went through the game many times before I learned that.

For another Sin of Mine: Easy AI should be easy
I recently Picked up Tekken 4 because I wanted a new fighting game but I completely suck at them and Tekken is button mash friendly. Now I have a bit of skill so I can pull off some combos and moves but I can not go above easy in fighting games. Now Easy should be easy, and easy is not having the AI chain combo your ass to a KO.

 

[L. Declis]

I'm giving this one to Dark Souls which has recently gotten my attention.

Dark Souls
Cardinal Sin: Thou shalt not pause without stopping thy gameplay

I know it's trying to stop you from stopping mid combat to pull a bow out of your arse, but believe it or not, Dark Souls, I have a life and I occasionally need to go and do things quickly or talk to someone and while I want to do that, I have to accept that I am going to die. A pause button isn't cheating, it's letting me check on my dinner.

 

[L. Declis]

EDIT: Double post, please delete, mods

 

[al4674]

1. Thou shalt not have unskippable cutscenes.
2. Thous shalt not have ridiculously long killing/death animations that can't be skipped.
3. Thou shalt not force the player to mindlessly grind in order to progress in the main story.
4. Thou shalt not have more cutscenes than actual gameplay.
5. Thou shalt not exercise trial-and-error gameplay, where error results in instant death (unless the game is centered on this mechanic).
6. Not allowing the player to make custom saves that do not update. Games that exclusively use autosave (like the arkham games) disallow the player to quickly replay segments they liked. Sometimes I just want to fight bosses - in revengeance I can't do that. I always have to replay the game if I want to fight bosses.

 

[sageoftruth]

Thou shalt not use pressure on the thumb-sticks for disruptive functions!

While I've played a game recently where this was a nuisance, the game that comes to mind is Transformers: Fall of Cybertron. On PS3, L3 causes you to transform. If you're a spaz like me, and press a bit harder on the thumb-sticks while maneuvering in intense situations, then you will, like me, transform into a toaster or whatever rather than continue to aim and shoot.

Oh yes. I've run into this in two fighting games from Arc Systems. In Blazblue, pressing the stick causes you to attempt a grab, which is mildly annoying when it interrupts the flow of what you're doing, but in Persona 4 Arena, it makes you use your burst attack. For those unfamiliar, you only have one of those, so wasting it by accidentally pressing the stick too hard is very annoying.

 

[Username Redacted]

If thy save system is entirely restricted to auto-saves/checkpoints then thy (thou-est?) save system had best fucking work reliably; i.e. actually save the game state properly.

For example if there's a checkpoint right before a boss fight and I get 1/2 through the boss fight but then die and am forced to go back to the auto-save I should still have the items that I used in my previous and futile attempt. 'Amy' fucks variations of this up constantly (thanks weapon degradation!) and I believe, though I haven't played, 'Dead Rising' manages similar shenanigans. I also feel that I kind of need to mention Mega Man games for, if you used them during the fight, usually forcing you to leave the area to refill E-Tanks which is just (usually) needless busy work.

 

[sageoftruth]

Here are my contributions to quick-time sins:
Thou shalt not have instant death quicktime events in games where you have a life bar.
(It feels off-putting when you can manage your health well, but then die because you forgot to push X).

Thou shalt not substitute quicktime events for a boss fight.
(Especially sinful, if it's the final boss).

Thou shalt make quick time event icons easy to notice on the screen.
(Nothing is cheaper than dying from a quicktime event indicator that blends in with the background... Witcher.)

 

[A Weakgeek]

Thou shalt not make me clean toilets.

Mafia II, go fuck yourself.

And don't anybody tell me that "Oh the story was good". I played the thing. The plot was ripped from GTA III and GTA IV at the same time and the characters were all ripped from the big book of mafia movie cliches and the gameplay was either generic better than usual cover shooting or slowly driving across town or boring chores or shitty stealth sections.

Assassin's creed IV, you're awesome. But I'd like more steal ships as a pirate missions and less slowly following dudes around while avoiding 97 guards who happen to be in the same area.

The Mafia series was always about being very faithful to the movies it takes inspiration from. The tedious and mundane scenes were meant to make the "Mafia arc(TM)" more apparent. (The same rags to riches story every mafia movie basically is.) They were there for the niche who really love the "genre", to add to the theme.

Doesnt excuse defend the gunplay/driving though, it is a mixed bag.

 

[sageoftruth]

Thou shalt not restrict one's carrying capacity if it does not affect the game's difficulty.
(Justifiable if it prevents the hoarding of useful items, but not if it only creates more work for the player).

Thou shalt not force action into puzzle games, and thou shalt not force puzzles into action games (unless the game is a hybrid of the two).

Thou shalt not release a game without playtesting it.
(An obvious sin).

Thou shalt not force a player to repeatedly traverse the same level or repeatedly fight the same boss numerous times.
(We can tell when you're trying to artificially pad a game. You can stop trying).

Thou shalt not be dishonest with thy consumer.

 

[Evonisia]

Thou shalt not backtrack without giving some kind of change to the level.

Take a look at Halo: Combat Evolved. With few exceptions (343 Guilty Spark can go fuck itself in the last section), every time you backtrack you either go to a different objective or the environment has been tweaked, or you've been given access to something.

Assault of the Control comes back, but now you get to fly in Banshees and blow shit up while Covenant and Flood forces kill each over.
You reboard the Truth and Reconciliation, but enter from a different area and you even go back to the hangar bay thing only to have it blown up in your face, and lots of the walls and enemies have changed.
You reboard the Pillar of Autumn, but half the level is completely new and even the bits you redo have been destroyed or filled with different types of enemies.

That is how you backtrack, not just "oh you've done this, walk back oh shit enemies are there" that Uncharted 2 and Gears of War frequent.

 

[MysticSlayer]

Thou shalt not have out of place stealth sections:

Stealth works in Far Cry and Crysis because the systems are there to consistently make it an option. It works (sometimes) in Zelda because it is treated as just a puzzle among the various other puzzles the game is built around. However, so many games just tack it on for no real reason. For instance, Mafia II had a button dedicated to stealth mode, yet it was useless for 97% of the game and had no other systems designed to support it.

The absolute worst case, though, has got to be Witcher 2. Stealth is never an option. Oh, some optional paths may be stealth paths, but it is never worked into the system for the player as an option to overcome challenges presented in the world. If the player gets to a stealth section, then they just go into "stealth mode" by the game's choice. Just like Mafia II, there are no systems designed to aid this other than the most basic of mechanics, which do not on their own make a good stealth system. What's worse is that unlike the rest of the game which is designed to be semi-open, stealth sections are often incredibly rigid and do nothing but highlight the developer's complete incompetence at level design and direction. What's worse is that for all the time they make you learn stealth and bear with it, it maybe accounts for 1-2% of the game. Would it have killed them to remove the stealth system? It certainly wasn't a high priority and served only as an occasional yet serious annoyance at best.

 

[GalanDun]

Thou shalt not make the PC version of a game require more resources to put out worse graphics than the console one.

 

[DrNick]

Thou shalt not create a PC game in which the movement functions are mapped on the right side of the keyboard, and the action functions are mapped to the left side, unless there is a simple and reliable way to change them.

Seriously, we've been trained since 1985 that you move with the left hand, act with the right. Muscle memory is not so easily overcome.

 

[LaoJim]

1. Thou shalt not have on-line passes.
1a. If thou doth have on-line passes, thou shalt give an option to say "I never want to buy this on-line pass".
1b. If yon noble player doth chose said option, thou shalt shut the fuck up about the on-line pass.

2. If yon noble player does not have a map pack, only once shalt thou offer said bountiful map-pack to the player.
2a. Nor shalt thou constantly tell yon noble player about matches being played on said unwanted map-pack, especially, and I want to make this absolutely clear, especially if yon noble player has selected "quick match"; said offering being neither quick in it downloading, nor a match the player wishes.

3. If thou has released an Ultra version of a game, and a selling point of the game is that one can play character from yon earlier Super, nay Super Arcade Edition of said game, also shall one allow one's player to play on-line with players from said earlier games; especially when (lo!) every one else on Ultra is but as a God in skill and constantly kick said noble players arse (and there was a wailing and a nash of teeth).

4. Thou shalt not put achievements, nay trophies neither, requiring on-line play.
4a. If doth put achievements, requiring on-line play, thou shalt not require yon noble player to win one match on all on-line match types; mark thee well that anon not a soul shall be found on most of these on-line match types, there having been an exodus to the land of Team Deathmatch.

5. Regarding the games that are known as "racing games".
5a. Thou game shalt not include the Nurburgring yet again; verily does this displease me mightily in its length, nature and ubiquitousness
5b. Thou shalt offer the player the choice of manual gears.
5c. Thou shalt show player the relative speed, handling and acceleration when choosing cars in an easy to compare table.
5d. If thou has a Hot Lap mode, thou shalt include yon noble players ghost and split times for each section. For verily if even Sonic Racing can such a thing do, who amongst you can call thineself a serious racing game, and yet not follow the least amongst you in such a simple matter.
5e. I mean it about the fucking Nurburgring.

6. Regarding the games that are known as "roleplaying games".
6a. On the first day God created a default Man and created an adventure for him. And he filled this adventure with NPCs. And he saw that this was good.
6b. On the second day God took the adventure and changed it so that a Woman could play also. And this was also good.
6c. But God did not update said adventure so that NPCs did know that the adventurer was now fair of sex, and such female NPCs as were found in the world did flirt outrageously with said female adventurer in a manner than was most inappropriate. Let it be known that fain were these the inhabitants of isle of Saphos, but instead ignorant were they of the true nature of the hero, and mightily did it show. And neither did the male NPCs flirt with the male adventurer in such a manner, this being unclean in the sight of the Lord. And this was not good, nay it was half-arsed.
6d. And on the third day, God made an adventure and gave him a grey beard, in the likeness of Gandalf the Gray. Also could he give him a white beard, in the likeness of Gandalf the White. Flexible was his character creation engine.
6e. But again, God did not inform the NPCs of his world, so they all said how young and handsome he looked and all the female NPCs in the world did flirt mightily with him, and he formed a relationship with one of the NPCs and came to know her and no-one remarked on how he was old enough to be her Grandfather.
6f. And it came to pass that in the adventure, the Blood Mages were unholy and evil and the performance of their magicks was agreed to be an abomination against the Lord.
6g. And said grey beard adventurer entered the fade and a devil tempted him with the power of Blood Magic.
6h. And said grey beard thought "That looks really cool, I'll have me some of that"
6f. And yeah he came to use the Blood Magic in every battle from that day forward.
6g. And yet no-one in the party passed comment on his Blood Magic, but were vexed mightily when other NPCs used it.
...
I could go on like this all night. But don't worry I won't.