Poll: Head bobbing

[dolgion]

I'm currently playing Skyrim, STALKER and Far Cry 3. In all of these games, there is head bobbing. I always thought that it's a retarded thing to have in a game because it moves your crosshair, but I somehow like it in these games. It isn't because it makes the character feel more realistic or something, but the world moving around you gives it a more grounded feel. It feels more like a real physical place when you can see how things in the distance move up and down as your head is bobbing (hard to write a good sentence here. It's hard to describe, but especially in STALKER and Skyrim, this effect significantly adds to the immersion IMO.

What do you prefer?

 

[Rawne1980]

Mild head bob I can deal with, like when sprinting, but when it's silly levels of head bob it knocks me sick.

The kind where you move forward faster than a 3 legged Turtle and the screen bounces around like a nodding dog in a hurricane. No, I don't like those.

 

[ThriKreen]

I wish more games would allow you to adjust the level of camera bob.

TF2, Borderlands, Quake - I can play them for hours.

DNF, Fear 3, I get nauseous after an hour of play and have to stop to quell my motion sickness, due to their extreme camera bob.

 

[SlaveNumber23]

I honestly don't care at all, head bobbing is something I pay almost no attention to. I've played both STALKER and Skyrim and don't have any complaints with head bobbing in either game so I think its pretty safe to say I have no problems with head bobbing. I can see why people might find it infuriating though.

 

[Abomination]

I find head bobbing to be a stupid and pointless attempt at "immersion mechanics".

When you run in real life your head might bob in reaction to your leg movements but your vision adjusts due to your inner ear recognising constant shift in elevation your head experiences. In its attempt to make movement seem more realistic it does the opposite, it makes your character feel like a bumbling, uncoordinated fool.

Shaky camera and head bobbing should be retired only to QTEs and cinematics, not actual game play where it serves as a hindrance and a cause for actual nausea in some.

 

[BartyMae]

I don't really care either way, but I tend to prefer a little amount of head-bobbing when walking, (less than S.T.A.L.K.E.R. default, but not too much less), and a little more if sprinting or whatever.

 

[octafish]

The only time I remember it being a problem was in NOLF, it used to make me ill unless I turned it down. I think it was something to do with the ultra slick movement that game had. Otherwise I tend to only notice it when it is absent.

 

[Arakasi]

The only thing I really can't stand head bobbing in is Minecraft, ugh.
Skyrim's was unnoticable, the best kind.

 

[DanielBrown]

STALKERs head bobbing made me having to turn the game off after just 10 minutes. It made me feel really sick. Saw an addon for removing it, but I haven't tried it yet.
When it's just a little when sprinting it doesn't bother me that much. I'd prefer not having it at all though.

 

[Reven]

STALKERs head bobbing made me having to turn the game off after just 10 minutes. It made me feel really sick. Saw an addon for removing it, but I haven't tried it yet.
When it's just a little when sprinting it doesn't bother me that much. I'd prefer not having it at all though.

It's funny I play stalker all the time and yet it never really bothered me XD, it seems to me that headbobbing for alot of people breaks their immersion, and as a result (an understandable one at that) is that they hate it, personally i tend to find it reinforces mine, so i would vote for stalker levels, however, i do feel that having headbob as an optional would be much better than either permanently having it, or taking it away forever.

 

[wintercoat]

I put head bobbing up there with bloom lighting and motion blur for things I check for and shut off the first chance I get. It serves no real purpose except to fail at trying to immerse the player. In real life, your brain compensates for any bobbing of vision so you don't notice it. Having it in the game only serves to confuse the brain into thinking you are actually moving and that it needs to compensate for the bobbing. Of course, since you aren't actually moving, this is a fruitless maneuver and causes motion sickness as your brain gets even more confused. For some people, this isn't a problem, they suffer no ill effects because of it. For others, however, it can cause a whole host of symptoms, ranging from nausea, dizziness, light-headedness, vomiting, fatigue, eye strain, shoulder and neck pain, ringing in the ears, and headaches. Considering it literally adds nothing useful to the game, but can cause a whole host of problems for the consumer, it's firmly at the top of my "useless shit that needs to be gotten rid of" list, tied with motion blur, which can cause the same issues.

 

[Olas]

When you first turn on head bobbing it's weird and distracting, then you get used to it. Then after you've gotten used to it if you turn it off it seems weird like your character is gliding rather than really walking.

Both work when you're used to them, it doesn't really matter which you choose, head bobbing is technically more realistic though.

 

[DanielBrown]

STALKERs head bobbing made me having to turn the game off after just 10 minutes. It made me feel really sick. Saw an addon for removing it, but I haven't tried it yet.
When it's just a little when sprinting it doesn't bother me that much. I'd prefer not having it at all though.

It's funny I play stalker all the time and yet it never really bothered me XD

Could be a screen issue for me. I have widescreen(20 or 22" I think) that's probably a bit too close to my eyes. Doesn't bother me in other games, though I generally don't play PC these days except for MMOs and Minecraft... Not much head bobbing going on there.

 

[Bvenged]

I like it is small amounts, as in ever-so-slightly.For instance, in Dishonored I had to turn it down from the default.

Then I like lots of the stuff when my character is running, and I like to dip down quite a bit when jumping or falling off of survivable heights.

Dishonored made me think that every time Corvo moved, he was headbanging like a boss.

 

[The_Echo]

I don't really... notice it most of the time.

Like, you guys are mentioning games that used it, and I have no recollection of head bobbing in those games at all.

So I suppose it's safe to say I don't mind it.

 

[Fasckira]

If I play an FPS with no head bob it feels like Ive turned off clipping or something. For me, a gentle bob just makes the game feel that little bit more grounded.

 

[SonicWaffle]

I don't really... notice it most of the time.

Like, you guys are mentioning games that used it, and I have no recollection of head bobbing in those games at all.

So I suppose it's safe to say I don't mind it.

Yeah, I've spent hundreds of hours with Skyrim, and now I'm sitting here thinking "...when was there head bobbing?"

Usually if I was running it was because I had a damn good reason, such as being chased by angry giants, so I wouldn't have been paying attention to a sense of slight motion on the screen.

 

[Ickorus]

I'm happy with a very small amount because if you pay attention in reality you can notice it but ARMA 2 style (default) head-bob is absolutely ridiculous and so far removed from reality that I'm surprised anyone can call it a realistic game with a straight face.

 

[Batou667]

It's one of those things that you shouldn't really notice if it's done right. A constantly bouncing crosshair is annoying, but then again a completely smooth crosshair makes you feel like you're controlling a camera with a strapped-on gun that's been mounted on a wheeled tripod (Half Life 2 syndrome).

 

[Soxafloppin]

It never annoyed me until Arkham Citys Nightwing...its the only first person part of the game aiming with his wrist darts, but the bounce is ridiculous.