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[StanleyPalmtree]

FF14 pretty much have an in-game explaining for everything? /tell that's link shells, NPCs use them all the time. Glamour/transmog, that's special prisms that are also used for disguises by NPCs.

continueing this trend, my favourite of that games many justifications for just how absurd it is. The retainers.

retainers are npcs you 'hire' that basically act as your item/money storage, and how you sell stuff in the games marketplace. upon hiring a new retainer, not only will they just happen to have a retainer that looks exactly like you just described (through the character customization menu), but there are even 9 or so retainers that look just like that, all with varied personalities!
how convenient!

 

[OrangeGrayBlue]

I think Animal Crossing did a great job of explaining in-game currency. It's important to collect bells not just to buy things, but also because you literally start the game in debt to a raccoon.

 

[Wolf Akela]

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (GBC)

Lockhart can stun enemies by giving them autographs. He can cast all spells, but they always fail, because he's a full-fledged adult but you stole his wand.
Ron's spells can sometimes fail because his wand is canonically malfunctioning.

 

[Greddleok]

Checkpoints in Bioshock: Infinite

How? You literally have no interaction with the checkpoint system, other than appearing in a "clone tank."

It's terrible!

 

[Painguy]

Albw

 

[SalvaPot]

I really like how in Earthbound all the money you make is an allowance from your dad.

 

[Prophaniti]

I wish they had explained how Roach teleports all over the map when Geralt calls him though. Really, it would have been cool if he was enchanted by a mage and gave off a magic aura when appearing or something. Have a quick throwaway line too.

I thought the joke was every time he whistles for a horse it's a different horse. He just calls them all Roach.

 

[aravuus]

Xenogears save points

O_O

Had to google this. How did I ever forget a detail as cool as this?

It's been yeeeaaars since I've played Xenogears, maybe I should look into replaying it one of these days.

I thought the joke was every time he whistles for a horse it's a different horse. He just calls them all Roach.

Yeah, every horse is Roach to him.

 

[HyperZone<3]

Ghostbusters (PS3/360) had a Dead Space-esque HUD on the proton pack your character was using.

Zombie U has you playing as a 'new' survivor every respawn, as does the soon to be releasing The Persistence..

 

[kurahador]

How? You literally have no interaction with the checkpoint system, other than appearing in a "clone tank."

It's terrible!

That's Bioshock. Infinite does it differently.

 

[Mista Koo]

I have yet to see any game give a good if any canonical reason for adversaries to take turns in hitting each other during a physical weapon on flesh battle.

Not really what you're asking for, but Frozen Synapse has both sides take their turn at the same time. You program your actions 3 seconds at a time and see them play out once both sides are ready. After the game ends you can see it all play out in real time. What helps is that enemy locations are hidden in some(?) modes so you only realize where they were/what they were doing at the end of the game.

 

[Rexatality]

Lack of respec in Prey 2017.

Spoiler

Because uninstalling Neuromods back to the moment you first put it in. And it would make sense not to have one considering the premise of the game

 

[Ascheroth]

In Trails in the Sky no enemy drops money after defeating them. Instead they drop Sepith, which is an important in-universe mineral. Every shop can exchange Sepith for money, but it also has other uses.
You'll probably ask "This kinda makes sense for monsters, but how does this make sense for humans?"
Well, the answer is that 'magic' in Trails in the Sky is based on technology (and its called Arts). To use Arts, a character needs to have an Orbment. In this Orbment you put in various Quartz'. Based on which and where you put them, you can use different Arts. Quartz are made from Sepith.
So I always think that the Sepith you get from humans is from some Quartz you broke when defeating them.

Also, the second game in the Trails in the Sky has some new and more powerful Arts and has you start with 0 Quartz' again. This is justified by giving your characters new Orbments because technology has advanced, and those Orbments require new versions of Quartz to work.

Trails in the Sky also has your questlog being an actual notebook that is being filled in by the main character, since that is required from the job.
Said notebook also features various handbooks and information, like which Arts require which Quartz.

Trails in the Sky also has explanations for how regular civilians can travel the lands when their are monsters crawling around everywhere.
1) they hire Bracers (think adventurer/police) for protection
2) placed along the mainroads are special lanterns that repel monsters (in fact, one early quest is repairing one of those lanterns).
3) most people travel via airship lines anyway

 

[wetflame]

Horizon Zero Dawn's explanation of the sign post translations is great too.

I don't remember this - why were there translations of sign posts? I get that the Focus is showing them, but why do they need translating?

 

[Philippo]

Thought about NieR:A before opening the thread, glad Op delivered.
Also, when

Spoiler

the Bunker explodes and you can't recover your old body because it cannot be created any longer

its just so damn obvious.

 

[moustascheman]

Xenoblade Chronicles

Since Shulk can see into the future, you'll not only be able to see enemy attacks before they happen but also what items will be needed for quests later.

 

[tim_pkmn89]

The Prinny platforming game for PSP

You start with an army of 1000 Prinnies, and one of them is "lucky" enough to get a scarf to label him as the hero. When he dies, another one is forced to wear the scarf and be the hero. You get a game over when all 1000 die.

 

[Cindres]

How the camera buttons function in Mario 64.

But who's controlling the camera before you get to the castle bridge? :O

 

[brian!]

I really like how in Earthbound all the money you make is an allowance from your dad.

Hell yeah

 

[tobactrac]

I think the inverted controls testing sequence in Halo: CE was pretty clever. Not sure if it was the first, but I remember seeing that exact thing in other games pretty soon after that.

 

[redcrayon]

Not sure if this counts but I've always liked the power/weight tradeoffs in mech games like Front Mission that keeps mechs of different types roughly balanced in terms of offensive vs defensive, speed or all-round builds. No, you can't have the best armour, the best gun, the best melee weapon, the best booster and the best shoulder-mount, as you can't find a battery pack that will support the energy output required to move all that stuff!

I suspect such suits wouldn't have every single part be quite so interchangeable, but it makes for a nice way of encouraging the player to think about trade-offs.

 

[Myriadis]

Brilliant.

Also the fact that you are indeed controlling 2 characters. Should have let you plug a second controller and have player 2 controlling Lakitu and throwing some spikies around.

Interestingly enough, on the last cutscene and credits, you can move the camera around if you have a second controller plugged in.