Tiny, insignificant details in games that really bother you

[Drathnoxis]

Because they are a perfect example of something that would be extremely complex needing to be both powerful and delicate and it seems like almost all giant robot outside of battle tech (for the most part) have them. They would need to have a range of motion similar to a human and be able to grip a gun without destroying it, be able to both move quickly and powerfully for grapples, and take a huge amount of force from punching something. And all of that would have to work, all the time, grips too hard and the guns handle breaks, grips too light and the monster gets away, structural integrity of the fist breaks down and the first just gets smashed when it tries to punch.

I think you are over-estimating the complexity because you don't understand it. People are building robot hands with lego sets.

Yes the hand as a whole is fairly complex, but a single finger is simply a couple of cylinders and proportional or servo valves. The main part of the complexity is going to be in the software and electronic circuitry that controls the valve and coordinates everything, but you aren't doing much maintenance to that.

The fingers are nothing compared to how complex it would be for the robot to maintain it's balance and be able to walk around over uneven terrain.

 

[Worgen]

I think you are over-estimating the complexity because you don't understand it. People are building robot hands with lego sets.

Yes the hand as a whole is fairly complex, but a single finger is simply a couple of cylinders and proportional or servo valves. The main part of the complexity is going to be in the software and electronic circuitry that controls the valve and coordinates everything, but you aren't doing much maintenance to that.

The fingers are nothing compared to how complex it would be for the robot to maintain it's balance and be able to walk around over uneven terrain.

Its impressive but it also can only move slow and do somewhat delicate actions. For a giant robot fist to work like it does in anime and games it needs to also be able to punch and grab and move fast. If you want to try and prove my point wrong then you need to look into prosthetics. That will tell you were the tech is today. Doing any single thing is hard but not that hard, doing all together as far as I know is impossible.

 

[Drathnoxis]

Its impressive but it also can only move slow and do somewhat delicate actions. For a giant robot fist to work like it does in anime and games it needs to also be able to punch and grab and move fast. If you want to try and prove my point wrong then you need to look into prosthetics. That will tell you were the tech is today. Doing any single thing is hard but not that hard, doing all together as far as I know is impossible.

That's what the proportional valve does. It controls speed based on electrical impulse strength. Small signal slow movement, big signal fast movement. You can do all sorts of stuff with proportional valves. The problem is software and coordinating the entire hand to perform a large number of actions.

But, whatever. Personally, I don't really feel like getting into this any deeper.

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

Its impressive but it also can only move slow and do somewhat delicate actions. For a giant robot fist to work like it does in anime and games it needs to also be able to punch and grab and move fast. If you want to try and prove my point wrong then you need to look into prosthetics. That will tell you were the tech is today. Doing any single thing is hard but not that hard, doing all together as far as I know is impossible.

Insert hold robot’s beer comment -

 

[happyninja42]

Insert hold robot’s beer comment -

To be fair, that is a human sized robot, not a giant mech that is several stories tall. Pretty sure that upscaling makes all the various factors (speed, balance, agility, etc) exponentially more difficult to replicate at speed.

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

To be fair, that is a human sized robot, not a giant mech that is several stories tall. Pretty sure that upscaling makes all the various factors (speed, balance, agility, etc) exponentially more difficult to replicate at speed.

Yup. I didn’t really catch the root of this discussion but as would be the case with anything of massive size, giant mechs are simply an impractical use of resources outside of pop culture entertainment. I was mostly thinking along the lines of this stuff already showing huge potential for at least human sized use (until they become self-aware and start using us, that is).

 

[BrawlMan]

This details does not bother me, but I did find it odd. In SOR4, Axel (technically three. For some reason, the guy that shouts Grand Upper in the cut-scene after beating stage 2 is different) and Blaze have two different voice actors. One for when you're selecting either of them, and the other which is in gameplay. For some reason you get the Japanese voice actors for gameplay, and English when selecting either of those two. Axels called out attacks are all in English, but you can tell the person is Japanese due to accent and pronunciation. Blaze's attacks have Japanese names, so it kinda makes sense, the name of the attacks she shouts for her Forward + Attack and Forward + Special are not that hard to prenounce for English speakers. I know the game was made on a limited, but decent budget. It could not have been that hard for them to do gets some one to say these attacks in English where it's there first language. I'm way beyond used to this, so not a big deal.

 

[Meximagician]

Second time replaying Castlevania: Symphony of the Night to ~200% and only now realized there's a way to sort the 'hand' equipment*. You press square before entering the hand equipment. Apparently I was spoiled by Squaresoft just having a 'sort' option or pressing buttons inside the inventory you want sorted, which they were doing since at least Final Fantasy II.

Still, better than the inventory in Mass Effect 1. Did they fix that in Mass Effect Legendary? I still have nightmares about ditching one weapon/mod at a time, then having to slowly scroll back to where I was to find the next one to recycle/sell...

* which isn't just a copious amount of weapons and some shields, but a supermarket's worth of consumables as well

 

[thebobmaster]

Sadly, the inventory is not something that they fixed in ME1.

 

[XsjadoBlayde]

Ok it probably isn't technically in the game, but the title slogan before you boot up Miles Morales Spiderman on the console screen is "Be greater. Be yourself!"

Excusé moi, but you're selling the game to us specifically as playing Miles Morales and I'm buying the game off you specifically to play as Miles Morales! It's in the damn title! Who the fuck is getting paid to come up with these platitudes? I'll do better for half the price, promise...don't worry, ain't got any Morales (tehe) about undercutting tone-deaf hacks whose slogans can't be distinguished from random fortune cookie logic, mate.

Neeno Kooni 2, the president's gun one-shots enemies in cutscenes, very cool, but would be nice if the piece of crap did even 1/100th of the same damage in actual battle though. Unless this is a sneaky dig at American media's tendency towards exaggerating their own country's importance and brilliance, all it does is feelsbadman. (Also far too reminiscent of comparing porn to one's own sexual performance *ahem* moving on)

Can someone at EA please for the love of all that is unholy patch a brightness setting in Mass Effect 2 legendary edition or something so I can see what I'm doing when there's any other competing light source within the same town here? No other strategy seems to work.

 

[Specter Von Baren]

I was reminded of this because I'm playing a game that didn't do this. Having a really touching or emotional scene in a video-game with slow or sad music and then the scene ending and suddenly peppy upbeat music starts playing on the world map or something. This goes for any emotional whiplash musical changes though.

Was reminded of this issue because I'm playing World's End Club and they actually didn't do this by having the music continue playing to the world map which is a very welcome thing.

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

When you can do things in the story cinematics that you can’t do during normal gameplay, like jumping really high to get over a barrier or destroy a door vs having to solve an inorganically designed puzzle to unlock it. Probably my biggest complaint about many action/adventure games like God of War that run cross grain to their design a bit. I understand why it’s done but would like to see things woven more cohesively and organically with the sequel.

 

[Xprimentyl]

When you can do things in the story cinematics that you can’t do during normal gameplay, like jumping really high to get over a barrier or destroy a door vs having to solve an inorganically designed puzzle to unlock it. Probably my biggest complaint about many action/adventure games like God of War that run cross grain to their design a bit. I understand why it’s done but would like to see things woven more cohesively and organically with the sequel.

Reminds me of the open cinematic of Halo 5; 4 Spartans doing some really cool shit, then you take control and are relegated to just running and shooting with 3 incompetent AI comrades. Reminds of a lot of games actually. Prototype remains the only game I can think of that actually lets you do the cool shit with abandon; elbow drop a tank from the top of a skyscraper? Yeah, I did that.

 

[laggyteabag]

Upgrades that don't have any visual changes.

If I give a guy a new sword, I want to see that new sword. If I upgrade my units in an RTS, I want to see that unit's model change.

 

[Dalisclock]

Reminds me of the open cinematic of Halo 5; 4 Spartans doing some really cool shit, then you take control and are relegated to just running and shooting with 3 incompetent AI comrades. Reminds of a lot of games actually. Prototype remains the only game I can think of that actually lets you do the cool shit with abandon; elbow drop a tank from the top of a skyscraper? Yeah, I did that.

The one that stands out to me is the opening cinemtic of The Witcher. Geralt does a lot of cool shit in that. Guess what he can't do at all in the actual game?

Granted, it's handwaved that being dead depowered geralt somewhat but even later on when he's powered back up he still can't do any of that shit.

 

[BrawlMan]

. I understand why it’s done but would like to see things woven more cohesively and organically with the sequel.

Play Asura's Wrath. It's one of the few action games that does not suffer from gameplay and story segregation. Everything's woven in neat and tight. All I have to say is that I hope you have either an Xbox One, or 360, or a Series X. If not one of those, hopefully you kept your PS3. Assuming you have one.

 

[Xprimentyl]

The one that stands out to me is the opening cinemtic of The Witcher. Geralt does a lot of cool shit in that. Guess what he can't do at all in the actual game?

Granted, it's handwaved that being dead depowered geralt somewhat but even later on when he's powered back up he still can't do any of that shit.

Prototype starts the game (actual gameplay) with a fully upgraded Alex Mercer, then you begin the story to get him back to that point. I've always felt that was brilliant because it telegraphs to the player "THIS is what's coming" and it's fucking great.

Play Asura's Wrath. It's one of the few action games that does not suffer from gameplay and story segregation. Everything's woven in neat and tight. All I have to say is that I hope you have either an Xbox One, or 360, or a Series X. If not one of those, hopefully you kept your PS3. Assuming you have one.

Play Prototype. It's seriously the only game I can think of that let's you routinely do cinematic-type action, like, all the time.

 

[BrawlMan]

Prototype starts the game (actual gameplay) with a fully upgraded Alex Mercer, then you begin the story to get him back to that point. I've always felt that was brilliant because it telegraphs to the player "THIS is what's coming" and it's fucking great.


Play Prototype. It's seriously the only game I can think of that let's you routinely do cinematic-type action, like, all the time.

I already did that with the first Prototype. I did not like the sequel.

 

[Xprimentyl]

I already did that with the first Prototype. I did not like the sequel.

Yeah, the sequel left a lot to be desired, but I still give it props for its DLC that was basically a God Mode I wish every game came with. I love Dark Souls, but y'know, just once, I'd like to be able to experience it with max stats and every weapon max upgraded just to feel that sense of ultimate power.

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

Play Asura's Wrath. It's one of the few action games that does not suffer from gameplay and story segregation. Everything's woven in neat and tight. All I have to say is that I hope you have either an Xbox One, or 360, or a Series X. If not one of those, hopefully you kept your PS3. Assuming you have one.

Still have PS3 Slim.