Video games are surely one of the most intensely complicated systems on the planet, combining visuals, audio and other elements in order to bring you a coherent experience. In this listicle, find out for yourself 15 of the top secret tricks developers use to make those systems run smoothly!
Hey #gamedev, tell me about some brilliant mechanics in games that are hidden from the player to get across a certain feeling. Example:
— Jennifer Scheurle (@Gaohmee) 1 September 2017
1. Desperate times…
Assassin’s Creed and Doom value the last bit of health as more hit points than the rest of it to encourage a feeling of *JUST* surviving.
— Jennifer Scheurle (@Gaohmee) 1 September 2017
2. Leave the pack? You ded.
Oh and Left 4 Dead keeps you on edge by deliberately targeting the player either farthest from the group or who has received less aggro.
— Tommy Thompson (@GET_TUDA_CHOPPA) 1 September 2017
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3. NPCs know when you’re giving ’em the silent treatment :/
Is it ok to mention something we’re proud of in our own game? 😛 In Firewatch, a player not responding to dialogue prompt is a noted choice
— Jane Ng (@thatJaneNg) 1 September 2017
4. Last place? Pull a General Aladeen!
This is not helpful at all, but racing games used to have this rubber-banding thing going on to make sure races were “competitive.”
— Alan Au (@Alan_Au) 1 September 2017
5. You’re no Jim Phelps
The thugs in Arkham Asylum will avoid doing 180′ turns at all costs to allow you to feel stealthy and sneak up behind them.
— Tommy Thompson (@GET_TUDA_CHOPPA) 1 September 2017
6. Everything has a pattern
I was shocked to learn PacMan-ghosts have different AIs.
– Follows you (Red)
– Ttries to go to the space 4 tiles in front of you (Pink)
…Advertisement— Matthias Zarzecki (@IcarusTyler) 1 September 2017
7. It ain’t about the car, it’s the driver
Not a mechanic persee, but in Hi Octane we simply displayed different stats for vehicles without ever actually changing them under the hood
— Alex Trowers (@BulkPaint) 1 September 2017
8. No looky = No stabby
We slowed down all AI that you were facing away from
— John Abercrombie (@johnabercrombie) 1 September 2017
9. N2o? More like N2-big-fat-lie.
In games with nitro/boost mode, the actual speed increase is often small, hidden by the FOV pull + psychological sensation of being “faster”
— Good Stevening ? (@_SteveThornton) 1 September 2017
10. “MY WORDS ARE BACKED BY NUCLEAR FIRE” -Gandhi
Oh right, and Civ: Beyond Earth supposedly rigged the enemy AI to have opposing ideologies to incite conflict. Peace was never an option.
— Alan Au (@Alan_Au) 1 September 2017
11. Swedish ingenuity
Can it also be IRL? IKEA uses DOOM-like leveldesign for their shops to make customers feel ‘smart’ when they know the shortcuts
— Off 2C the wizard! (@boersc) 1 September 2017
12. Dance Dance Homicide
Dark Souls 3 bosses follow a specific time signature along with the music for their attacks, the hardest boss in the game breaks this flow.
— Sean Likes Bees (@OxyOxspring) 1 September 2017
13. Don’t look down, kids
14. Don’t be too salty if you get hit so much
..increases until you do land a hit, in which case crit chance is reset to base values. It protects the players from too much bad RNG.
— Jackie Cao (@Jcao91) 1 September 2017
15. Xenomorphs use Game Genie!
The Xenomorph in Alien: Isolation has two brains one that always knows where you are and gives hints to the second that controls the body 😀
— Tommy Thompson (@GET_TUDA_CHOPPA) 1 September 2017
