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Gaming Tropes That Need to GO


Mister Jack
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Back attacks in turn-based RPGs, especially if the game is designed to be hard to begin with. I'm fine with a challenge, but tell me what is fair about a group of enemies randomly getting free turns on me and then using their most powerful attacks to wipe me out before I even get a chance to defend myself?

 

Screw you, Persona.

 

*Edit*: If enemies are visible during exploration and back attacks depend on which side surprises the other, I'm fine with that. It's when the game utilizes random encounters that this becomes infuriating. In fact, random encounters should be completely abolished too. For the most part I don't see too many RPGs that still use them, but they do exist.

Edited by Mister Jack
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After some thought and editting... yeah, old school random encounters can go. I totally prefer the Tales of _____ approach with you being able to see enemies coming at you and you seeing them fading in and out after a certain range. It was the next evolution to the random encounter. Its a totally legit setup for any RPG, Jpn or West.

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I'm actually okay with random encounters in the Pokemon games specifically, since the whole point is that you're searching the wilderness for wild animals it makes sense that they wouldn't be obvious until you got close (especially for the smaller ones).

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Cthulhu Saves the World is neat in that you can just hop in the menu and burn through the battles, say at a mana/save point, then no more random encounters for that dungeon area.

 

Though yeah stuff like FFXII/Last Remnant/etc of having to like run towards to the enemy (or away) and engage in battle has largely made random encounters a relic. Though I am open to a game doing something new with it.

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If I'm not mistaken, Pokemon encounters are only in tall grass and caves, right? Tall grass is avoidable as far as I recall so that's okay, but in caves they should at least use a generic icon. They don't have to give the species away, but just use some kind of wandering sprite to indicate that there's a Pokemon there so you can either fight it or avoid it.

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I don't see why having an indication of what the Pokemon is would be a bad thing. Randomization is still there by just generating the Pokemon sprite but just minus out the just running or grinding through every Pokemon you encounter until you find the one you want. It could potentially open up some new search mechanics like luring the Pokemon and such. Repel would also visualy repel Pokemons away.

 

Note, I haven't played since Yellow.

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I'm also way out of Pokemon - I played Red... and Diamond for a while, then SoulSilver until I lost my Pokewalker.

 

I think it'd be neat if they made one that had visible Pokemon wandering the map, and like many MMOs, had some that were aggressive, some that are passive, and some that are passive until one is attacked, at which point others will join the fight.

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  • 3 months later...

When you have a bunch of clickable objects that have indiscriminate terms like "Use", "Read" or "Examine" I hate when using, reading or examining said object ends the level. If it ends the level/mission/whatever that is what it should say. It should at least be differently coloured so that I know I'm about to hit a PNR and can go exploring a bit.

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Mass Effect 2. It's generally pretty good about letting you wander about, but a couple of side/loyalty missions have caught me out.

 

I also dislike that you can skip conversations, but can also inadvertently select a response. It'd be better if the skip dialogue button was different to the commence / continue dialogue button.

Edited by Thursday Next
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I also dislike that you can skip conversations, but can also inadvertently select a response. It'd be better if the skip dialogue button was different to the commence / continue dialogue button.

 

This. A million times this.

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I also dislike that you can skip conversations, but can also inadvertently select a response. It'd be better if the skip dialogue button was different to the commence / continue dialogue button.

 

This. A million times this.

 

Dragon Age 2 fixed this... if you played it. It was great!

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I'm all right with random encounters. But yeah, I do prefer to have visible field monsters. The option of avoidance is always great, especially if I'm there on some side-quest and not looking for a fight. It's even worse if you're in a dungeon with random encounters trying to negotiate a puzzle or maze. Those are horrible.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I know it's been said before, but I feel it must be said again: checkpoints before a cutscene. This is just completely inexcusable. No matter how good the cutscene is the first time it's irritating the second and rage-inducing the third. Checkpoint AFTER the cutscene so I can play the goddamn game instead of watching your stupid movie over and over again. Same goes for gameplay that doesn't really involve play, like walking down a long hallway or whatever.

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That's horrible, but in games like GTA4 it's fine, because I can save a game, come back to it and forget what I'm doing, watch the cutscene again and play, or just skip the cutscene and get to it. (Though it is extremely annoying having the same conversation in the car at the start of a mission 10 times in a row...)

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God, I'm so happy random battles in JRPGs are seemingly a thing of the past. I'm playing Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Reverie on DS, and damn, the sheer frequency of these random battles is infuriating. It was in the first proper dungeon with a boss that it became near unbearable. Oh okay so I can search the path up, a path down and to my right. Well I'll 'RANDOM BATTLE' go to the right, oh there's 'RANDOM BATTLE' nothing down here, may as well head back to where I was 'RANDOM BATTLE' ok now I'll check down 'RANDOM BATTLE' on the way, oh good, a chest I'll just o-'RANDOM BATTLE' open the chest, ok may as well head back up to where I was 'RANDOM BATTLE' now time to go 'RANDOM BATTLE' up.

 

I want to explore unhindered so I use holy water to ward off monsters and 'RANDOM BATTLE' THEY AREN'T BEING WARDED OFF. THE HOLY WATER IS FUCKING USELESS. Well about twenty random battles later I beat the boss and decide to get out of this dungeon. I use a chimera wing to warp out of there and OHOHOH I HIT MY HEAD OFF THE DUNGEON CEILING BECAUSE WE CAN'T WARP IN A DUNGEON. So I have to go BACK THROUGH THE FLOORS I JUST WALKED AND 'RANDOM BATTLE''RANDOM BATTLE''RANDOM BATTLE' till I get out.

other than that I'm quite liking the game. But screw random battles like that. Especially when your Holy Water doesn't do SHIT.

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