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[JackFrost2012]

What features do you think should be mandatory in all games? I'm talking general interface/aesthetic/usability features, NOT things like "has cool vehicles."

Here's some things I can't stand when developers leave out:

1) When the game is paused, the game timer SHOULD NOT ADVANCE. I hate going to dinner and coming back to find an extra hour tacked on to the clock. This is a super pet peeve of mine. I'll usually reset the game even if it means losing a few minutes of progress since my last save.

2) If a game has multiple language options, the language should be switchable both before and during gameplay. Locking you into the language option chosen before you even play is NO GOOD. Of course, language settings should be saved with your save data. (The Twin Snakes didn't do this - every time I booted the Japanese version up, I had to switch it back to English! Stupid Canadians)

3) Unlimited save games (space willing) to the HDD or memory cards (any slot). Only supporting slot 1 (GC/PS2) or not supporting the memory card (Xbox) is just lazy. Artificially restricting the player to a small number of saves is also silly. This is not a battery backup RAM.

4) Independent volume control for music and voice/SFX. If voice/SFX are separated as well, more the better.

Any other suggestions?

 

[TheGreenGiant]

all modern console titles should have a map if they want to have exploration/huge cities. said map should be easily accessed and used.

60fps haha. I hope I get here first

 

[xsarien]

Back in the day, we didn't have any of this "save point" bull. And yeah, I'm looking at you, Square. I want to save when I want to, not when you think it will be convenient for me to do so.

If they think that could lead to cheating by way of constantly refreshing the party stats, then the solution is to still let me save whenever I want, and keep the little glowy orbs/spots/whatever available to heal everyone.

 

[impirius]

All good points.

I'd like to see a subtitle option on all games; voices seem to be the first thing that gets drowned out by background noise.

These shouldn't be mandatory, but I always appreciate HUD alpha sliders and remappable controls.

The seizure warning before Pikmin 2 should NOT be necessary... stupid lawsuits.

 

[DaCocoBrova]

Performance options so that the 60fps debate would be moot.

 

[Crazymoogle]

3) Unlimited save games (space willing) to the HDD or memory cards (any slot). Only supporting slot 1 (GC/PS2) or not supporting the memory card (Xbox) is just lazy. Artificially restricting the player to a small number of saves is also silly. This is not a battery backup RAM.

I agree with supporting both slot 1 and slot 2; not including slot 2 support is a lazy element that Sony and Nintendo seem to let happen far too often.

Restricting the number of saves, however, is reasonable in some circumstances. Making a UI to support infinite saves isn't trivial and can be difficult to test. Settling for some respectable number (say, 32) works for me.

 

[JackFrost2012]

I'd like to see a subtitle option on all games; voices seem to be the first thing that gets drowned out by background noise.

YES! I hate games without subtitles ... a lot of games have misbalanced sound and it's nearly impossible to hear. Prince of Persia Xbox, I'm looking at you!

Plus deaf people can't play games without subtitles, which sucks. I would go further and suggest that any audio clue/puzzle/gameplay element in a game should be matched by a visual cue, as well.

 

[TheGreenGiant]

definitely the ability to bypass boss-fight animations/cut scenes.

One reason why I still haven't finished FFCC is cause the end boss scene just goes on and on and on and on. I think Kingdom Hearts was like that too.

Way too many games are guilty of this.

*

also the ability to say to a game. FUCK THIS SHIT. I don't want to unlock everything by playing to get xxx awards. All secrets/bonus should be time locked; for release \ - say 300 hours in and a gamer can't get most of the bonuses; the game should say

"thank you for your commitment to XXX title; would you like to unlock the game" as an option

I paid for it. I don't want to have to slave over and over again to get features in a title I've already paid for.

*

legible FONTS

 

[JackFrost2012]

Restricting the number of saves, however, is reasonable in some circumstances. Making a UI to support infinite saves isn't trivial and can be difficult to test. Settling for some respectable number (say, 32) works for me.

Make it 128 and we have a deal. Just kidding. Well, I'm more opposed to games which have 3-5 slots. Guh?

 

[FitzOfRage]

I wish all games would let you map your own controls. I can't understand why more developers don't include this feature.

 

[Mashing]

What features do you think should be mandatory in all games? I'm talking general interface/aesthetic/usability features, NOT things like "has cool vehicles."

Here's some things I can't stand when developers leave out:

1) When the game is paused, the game timer SHOULD NOT ADVANCE. I hate going to dinner and coming back to find an extra hour tacked on to the clock. This is a super pet peeve of mine. I'll usually reset the game even if it means losing a few minutes of progress since my last save.

2) If a game has multiple language options, the language should be switchable both before and during gameplay. Locking you into the language option chosen before you even play is NO GOOD. Of course, language settings should be saved with your save data. (The Twin Snakes didn't do this - every time I booted the Japanese version up, I had to switch it back to English! Stupid Canadians)

3) Unlimited save games (space willing) to the HDD or memory cards (any slot). Only supporting slot 1 (GC/PS2) or not supporting the memory card (Xbox) is just lazy. Artificially restricting the player to a small number of saves is also silly. This is not a battery backup RAM.

4) Independent volume control for music and voice/SFX. If voice/SFX are separated as well, more the better.

Any other suggestions?

I definately have to agree with #1 and 3... ESPECIALLY in rpg's.

I'd also like to throw out that all games that have an on screen keyboard need to be like the spiral keyboard in BG&E. It's easier and faster than other on screen keyboards.

 

[Dragona Akehi]

I wish all games would let you map your own controls. I can't understand why more developers don't include this feature.

Ding ding ding. It's like 30 bloody lines of code (if I remember right) and it can make all the difference in the world. Biggest offender? Nintendo. The only game they've ever offered a custom control setup is in Super Metroid, bless their hearts. (And no, choosing between two different setups like in Super Mario All-Stars doesn't count.)

Numerous games I'd prefer to set my own control scheme (like Zelda GBA, fuck you and your R for becoming A. I hardly ever use items. I'd prefer items to be R and talking/picking up be A. Stupid fuckers.) Second biggest offender: Megaman Fucking Anniversary Fucking Collection. Stupid fucking Atomic Planet and Stupid Fucking Capcom.

 

[jenov4]

Being able to quit from the pause menu. I hate it when some games don't have that option.

 

[Ranger X]

I wish we could ALWAYS attribute the keys. I'm tired of just having presets most of the time.

 

[Bregor]

Being able to quit from the pause menu. I hate it when some games don't have that option.

And you should always be able to load a saved game without having to quit.

 

[dark10x]

Being able to quit from the pause menu. I hate it when some games don't have that option.

Heh, the worst has to be JSRF...

If you are playing the game and someone else comes along and wants to start up THEIR game of JSRF, the only way they can do so is to eject the disc and restart the damn thing.

I KNOW this isn't going to become a reality on the current systems, but I would LOVE to see a standard reset to main menu and reset to system menu option added to ALL games ala the Dreamcast. I just can't understand WHY developers generally refuse to provide this!

On SOME games, they will at least provide a soft reset for the main menu...but the DC remains the only console I've seen that allows you to exit the game and return to the BIOS menu system. If I start up a new PS2 title and am promptly informed that I lack sufficient space on my memory card, I would love to be able to return to the system menu via a simple buttom combination...

 

[Dragona Akehi]

Oh and all games MUST have a soft reset option.

 

[dog$]

In any shooter/action/arcade game there needs to be a RESET NOW button or button combo.

It drives me absolutely bonkers to try and 1-credit a game and have to
1) pause game
2) select Quit Game
3) confirm that yes I want to quit the fucking game, that's why I selected Quit Game you fucking piece of shit
4) wait for title screen to load
5) restart game

Every goddamned time I fuck up.

I don't care if that's 5 seconds of extra effort, that's 5 more seconds of my life wasted by waiting to get back to where I was in the first place.

 

[Mashing]

Oh and all games MUST have a soft reset option.

Oh yes, definatley need this...

And i want to be able to skip the fucking developer/publisher and title screens.... I don't want to see all that shit when I soft reset.

 

[ArcadeStickMonk]

Performance options so that the 60fps debate would be moot.

Kinda like Toshinden 3? Your choices were to have the game run at a good framerate, or have stage textures.

 

[ArcadeStickMonk]

I paid for it. I don't want to have to slave over and over again to get features in a title I've already paid for.

I agree. The worst offender is probably Steel Battalion. $200 bucks and you can't do shit from the get go.

 

[dark10x]

Kinda like Toshinden 3? Your choices were to have the game run at a good framerate, or have stage textures.

Ohhh, I would hate to see that become common in console games...

The second I am given graphics options, I can't help but screw with them throughout the game. That is one thing that drives me crazy about PC games. Usually, I'll start by aiming low and going for a good framerate...but then I start to turn more and more details back on until the game is now running much worse. From that point, I never really manage to choose between more detail or a better framerate and end up bouncing back and forth throughout the game. It happens EVERY time. With Doom 3, I could hold a much smoother framerate at 640x480...but it was just so pixelated.

I don't want to walk into a huge, cinematic boss encounter only to start changing detail options at the first chance I get in order to improve an aspect of the scene.

With that Toshinden 3 option, I swear that I would have wanted to change between a good framerate and more detail after every round. Toss those options into a Silent Hill or MGS game or something else "experience" based, and the whole thing would go to hell.

Thankfully, I've been able to mess with the Source engine settings via the CS-Source beta, so maybe, JUST MAYBE, I'll be able to duplicate most of those settings right out of the gate with HL2 and just run with it.

 

[xsarien]

Oh and all games MUST have a soft reset option.

There's usually a soft reset built into the system, or into so many games that it seems like it.

PS2 Soft Reset:
Hold down L1, R1, L2, R2, select, and start

GameCube Soft Reset
Hold down B, X, and start

 

[XS+]

I'm dumb

 

[Brofist]

A game save should never take up half or more of a memory card....that's just bs.

 

[Dragona Akehi]

There's usually a soft reset built into the system, or into so many games that it seems like it. On the PS2: Hold down L1, R1, L2, R2, select, and start; on the GameCube hold down B, X, and start.

Some games have them disabled. That pisses me off.

 

[wandering goat]

All PC games should have a widescreen mode. I bought Morrowind: GotY Edition a while ago and, while it's a great game thus far, it sucks having to play it in window mode all the time.

 

[WarPig]

No-prompt autosave. In a game like Burnout 3 or Def Jam where I have to save frequently, I want to be able to tell the game to just always save, instead of have to say "yes, save," wait for it to save, and hit another button to continue when it's done saving.

DFS.

 

[jenov4]

No-prompt autosave. In a game like Burnout 3 or Def Jam where I have to save frequently, I want to be able to tell the game to just always save, instead of have to say "yes, save," wait for it to save, and hit another button to continue when it's done saving.

DFS.

I swear you can change the Autosave = ON in your profile for Burnout 3.

 

[Hooker]

Things that should be outlawed are 3D title/menu screens.


It pisses me off I have to wait 10 seconds for the fucking menu to load. C&C:Generals, Dawn of War are the ones that annoy me the most.

 

[WarPig]

I swear you can change the Autosave = ON in your profile for Burnout 3.

I should have been more clear. I used those as examples of the sorts of games that should have the feature -- I wasn't complaining that they didn't have it ^_^

DFS.

 

[Crazymoogle]

No-prompt autosave. In a game like Burnout 3 or Def Jam where I have to save frequently, I want to be able to tell the game to just always save, instead of have to say "yes, save," wait for it to save, and hit another button to continue when it's done saving.

DFS.

More to the point, I just don't understand why so many console/handheld games have a confirmation dialogue for saving. Between Pokemon and Ape Escape, I've seen so many "are you really, really sure?" style boxes that I'm nearly convinced that game saves have some sort of hidden negative, like increasing the percentage of tar in the atmosphere. -_-;

Speaking of bunk title screen features, if you really want to do something bad, look at Rogue Leader or Battlefront - if there is one thing showing movie footage so soon does, it's make you think the developers are hiding something (ie: too ashamed to show something actually FROM the game). I think the best title screen/options menu I can recall lately was from Red Faction 2 PC (or was it 1? Whichever had the scrolling Mars topography).

H: Geometry for title screens is fine, it just helps when they don't try to load the entire game at once. Ape Escape 2 is a good example of doing the right thing.

 

[joaomgcd]

The one thing I hate the most about some games is that, if you die, or you want to restart the level, it has to load it all over again. I agree, that sometimes the levels are streamed, and are not all in memory at any given time, but sometimes, like in Riddick, or Fable, you die right to the last savepoint, and the level loads all over again! Why?? It's already loaded!

 

[Grizzlyjin]

This doesn't really apply to many games, but it does matter in one of my favorites. I hate how you can't really pause in Gitaroo-Man. If you pause the game, you have to restart the song all over again. That just pissed me off yesterday when I got a phone call while playing...

And I hate when menus have to load...that just pisses me off.

 

[Crazymoogle]

This doesn't really apply to many games, but it does matter in one of my favorites. I hate how you can't really pause in Gitaroo-Man. If you pause the game, you have to restart the song all over again. That just pissed me off yesterday when I got a phone call while playing...

Well, it made some sense for Gitarooman - the levels weren't long, they'd rather nobody cheats through pause abuse or rapidfire, and pausing does kinda kill the rhythm (possibly destroying game sync in the process)

In general, though, I agree, pause is good.

 

[Jumpman Jr.]

I agree about having subtitles and the option to stop cutscenes.

All games should have the option to turn the BGM off. I'd rather listen to the radio, thanks.

I also dislike when the announcer's voice is tied in with the background music, so if you turn off the music, you can't hear the announcer (Daytona DC, I'm looking at you!).