Health systems

[Souplex]

As of late games have tried to stray somewhat from the standards of regenerating health and fixed health with their own slightly different systems. They usually have some sort of combination like if you can't remove the bullet before a section of your health bar depletes it stays gone, or fixed health with limbs having special health meters.

What new health systems can you come up with?
Heres what I came up with: You have two health bars; one that regenerates and one that doesn't. Damage is done to both simultaneously. The regenerating health bar is much smaller but it is regenerating. If either health bar hits zero you die. This way you can die either from hundreds of tiny hits over a while or just a real quick beatdown.
Edit: Had to bold and underline parts to help people realize it is not the Halo CE system.

 

[TelHybrid]

The regenerating health bar idea has been done. It's called a shield.

 

[Leon's Hell]

Would you be able to heal the large health bar with health kits or would it only be refilled at selected points?

 

[Omikron009]

I like the current systems. Regenerating health is great for a shooter because it keeps the action fast and frantic, but a health bar that can only be replenished with medkits or stimpaks or medi-gel or whatever is a must for a survival horror game or RPG.

That reminds me of another reason I hate oblivion! Health potions are extremely rare, at least on my playthrough, but you can fully regenerate health, magic, and stamina by just waiting as long as there are no enemies around.

 

[Banana Phone Man]

I can't come up with anything that hasn't been done. I like HL2's health system the best. You have Health and Shield. Shield will take most of the damage (however your health still decreases) When the shield is gone your health starts taking more damage.

 

[Composer]

The regenerating health bar idea has been done. It's called a shield.

u dont die when ur shield run out

 

[Aardvark]

Here's my health-bar. It's a body. Every time you're hit somewhere, there is a marker in red, showing the damage and severity. Also, the game works out what kind of injury you'll receive and ensures you react accordingly. If you get grazed by a bullet, it's only a light mark, you need to get out of the way and hold the wound for a while, cursing and swearing. If it's heavy, you've had a muscle blown out or a limb completely blown off. You'll have to staunch the wound and pump yourself full of painkillers, while staring through a hazy field of pain, hoping to God that the enemy doesn't advance on you until the painkillers take effect. Finally, there's headshots and chest shots. If you've got armour, you get concussed, winded or given bruised ribs, which causes you to hit the ground and roll around in pain for a while. If you've got no armour, cheap armour, chinese armour, broken armour, armour you picked up off some dude you killed, armour you've stapled together from little shards or magical fairy armour, powered by the hopes and dreams of all the little children, you get dead. Along with the little children. And the fairies. God I hate those frickin' things.

 

[Souplex]

Would you be able to heal the large health bar with health kits or would it only be refilled at selected points?

Not sure. This is a broad outline of a system, specifics are up ta' ya'. I guess it would depend on how large the health bar is. If it reaches fallout 3 level 30 high endurance character levels then only at med stations. If it only reaches Gordon Freeman levels then medpacks.

 

[SantoUno]

I like the current systems. Regenerating health is great for a shooter because it keeps the action fast and frantic, but a health bar that can only be replenished with medkits or stimpaks or medi-gel or whatever is a must for a survival horror game or RPG.

That reminds me of another reason I hate oblivion! Health potions are extremely rare, at least on my playthrough, but you can fully regenerate health, magic, and stamina by just waiting as long as there are no enemies around.

I found a decent amount of health potions.

Besides there is always alchemy if you really need potions of any kind.

 

[recharge330]

I would stick to plain regeneration but the Halo 1/ODST style where you have smaller regenerable health that will run out then move onto the main health. It keeps you from having to be overly protective but still punishes for being reckless.

 

[Katana314]

I love how everyone's bringing out their anatomy charts showing what would physically happen when hit by a bullet. It's a game. Realistic bullet damage would make a typical life last 30 seconds.

I do like the original poster's idea though.

 

[Souplex]

The regenerating health bar idea has been done. It's called a shield.

Reread it taking a closer look at the sections that have been underlined.

 

[Fingerprint]

I think that a health system that was as close to real life as it can be would be good. IE, a body shot wont kill you if you are wearing armour. A head shot will always kill. A leg shot will have a 50/50 chance of killing, or decreasing movement speed(two leg shot kills regardless of the first ones roll). And an arm shot will make a 50/50 roll to kill/ decrease accuracy. That takes into account bones in the limbs, and the protection that a player is wearing.

I like the idea but if it were to work, at least in my opinion, it would have to take a long(er) time to die from limb shots as you would have to bleed out, i.e a degeneration of hit points. Though with two shots to the limbs then you could have an instant (or rapid) kill scenario as it could be like a shock or trauma damage along with blood loss, or at least something like that.

Also I do quite like the sound of the OP's idea, maybe it could work with a combination of your and the OP's suggestions... Yeah, I'd be happy with that.

 

[Rednog]

I think most developers choose a pretty decent system for whatever game they've created. I mean some people's suggestions are over the top, and would definitely take away from the pacing of the gameplay. Sure it might fit in some games but not all of them.
In my honest opinion I think that regenerating health was a good thing, going back and playing some older games where you have limited health, sometimes you barely reach a checkpoint, the game auto saves and you're still on one leg for the next part and odds are you're going to get blown to smithereens. I remember playing the first Halo and I got to a point with a single red bar left and I basically had to restart the mission because there was no way I could continue.

But then in some games the health bars fail. I personally hate the health bars in L4D, drive me nuts when I'm in expert since they pretty much mean absolutely nothing, might as well just have 3 little figures on the top of your screen representing 3 hits before you kiss the floor.

 

[Dr.Sean]

Here's my Fatally Flawed health system:
You get 5 different types of health: Physical, Mental, Emotional, Armor, and Limbs. Medics heal physical and limbs damage; Psychics heal Mental damage; and Armor and Emotional damage is healed by sitting in a corner and crying. Each different health affects you in different ways: Mental health controls how well you can see along with how well you can use Psychic powers if you have them; Emotional health controls how well you deal with pain, the lower Emotional health goes, the more damage you take; Armor takes damage for your chest and limbs it covers, then when it runs out of points the limbs that the armor covers take normal damage, along with physical health damage; Limbs are the things that stick out of your body, such as arms and legs, and if the limbs take too much damage, then you start to run slower, the kick of the gun becomes worse making your shots innacurate, and reloading takes more time. Bullets have a very small effect on Mental health, except head shots, and do normal damage on all others. Psychic powers have very small effects on physical, limb and armor, but have high effects on Mental and Emotional health. There are also poisons, which can affect any health differently depending on what kind of poison it is.

The Fatally Flawed health system will be primarily used in the Fatally Flawed engine, which will be used in RPG-esque games made by a vidya game developing company if I ever own one.

 

[tk1989]

I miss the Halo:CE system... why did they ever get rid of it?!

 

[WolfThomas]

Sounds good.

I liked the Condemned 2 health bar most, three separate squares of health, damage chips away at the first square, if only a little damage is done it will regenerate back to 100%, if enough damage is done you'll have only one or two squares left (33% and 66% health respectively). Health is regained via painkillers. The incentive is to minimise your damage in combat so you have 100% health but at times it can be scary/desperate when your down to 33%.

 

[Souplex]

Here's my Fatally Flawed health system:
You get 5 different types of health: Physical, Mental, Emotional, Armor, and Limbs. Medics heal physical and limbs damage; Psychics heal Mental damage; and Armor and Emotional damage is healed by sitting in a corner and crying. Each different health affects you in different ways: Mental health controls how well you can see along with how well you can use Psychic powers if you have them; Emotional health controls how well you deal with pain, the lower Emotional health goes, the more damage you take; Armor takes damage for your chest and limbs it covers, then when it runs out of points the limbs that the armor covers take normal damage, along with physical health damage; Limbs are the things that stick out of your body, such as arms and legs, and if the limbs take too much damage, then you start to run slower, the kick of the gun becomes worse making your shots innacurate, and reloading takes more time. Bullets have a very small effect on Mental health, except head shots, and do normal damage on all others. Psychic powers have very small effects on physical, limb and armor, but have high effects on Mental and Emotional health. There are also poisons, which can affect any health differently depending on what kind of poison it is.

The Fatally Flawed health system will be primarily used in the Fatally Flawed engine, which will be used in RPG-esque games made by a vidya game developing company if I ever own one.

Duuuuude, awesome. I would totally but that.

 

[Mr.PlanetEater]

I've come up with my idea of a health system, bits of it may have been used before however. :/
Anyways, essentially if your shot the damage dealt will be determined by the Weapon you were shot with, where you were shot, and where the shooter was. Based on this the game would create the damage done I.E. If you were shot with a pistol and the shooter was directly in front of you and hit your arm your health may shrink to half or more, if your shot with more powerful weapons I.E. a Sniper your health would almost certainly diminish to zero.
However for sake of example the shooter was at a 45 degree angle to your body and used say a rifle, and the shot grazed your arm and didn't penetrate the chest, then your health would hardly go down.

This is the system I'd use in the shooters I'd make if I ever did make Video Games.

 

[martin's a madman]

Here's my health-bar. It's a body. Every time you're hit somewhere, there is a marker in red, showing the damage and severity. Also, the game works out what kind of injury you'll receive and ensures you react accordingly. If you get grazed by a bullet, it's only a light mark, you need to get out of the way and hold the wound for a while, cursing and swearing. If it's heavy, you've had a muscle blown out or a limb completely blown off. You'll have to staunch the wound and pump yourself full of painkillers, while staring through a hazy field of pain, hoping to God that the enemy doesn't advance on you until the painkillers take effect. Finally, there's headshots and chest shots. If you've got armour, you get concussed, winded or given bruised ribs, which causes you to hit the ground and roll around in pain for a while. If you've got no armour, cheap armour, chinese armour, broken armour, armour you picked up off some dude you killed, armour you've stapled together from little shards or magical fairy armour, powered by the hopes and dreams of all the little children, you get dead. Along with the little children. And the fairies. God I hate those frickin' things.

Sounds like Fallout 3 to me.