Support NeoGAF

[dreamlongdead]

I definitely prefer health packs over regeneration. All of my favorite shooting games use the health pickups.

The same could said for non-shooting games, too, but regeneration won't hurt my enjoyment as much. ICO's health system didn't ruin the game at all.

 

[The Argus]

It really depends on the game. I feel regenerative health can cheapen a game but can also make it more difficult because devs can throw way more enemies at you. I don't think UC4 on hard/crushing would be possible for 99% of gamers without health regeneration.

That said, I'm a fan of what GTA V did. The bottom half of your health would regenerate, so while you could squeak by a particularly hard part you always felt at risk after you hit that 50%.

Halo was my first game with regeneration. Also brought me into the 2 weapon management gameplay. Was it the first?

 

[Niwa]

I absolutely dislike Health Regen, managing your health, getting this kick of adrenalin when you are on the verge of dying… i love that

Or make it like MGS3, that was amazing

 

[pa22word]

I honestly hate regen so damned much that I won't buy games that use it anymore.

I'm tired of the slow ass weak knee'd gameplay that feels the need to make me sit behind a corner every time I get hit. Let me play the damned game, please.

 

[KonradLaw]

Health packs, especially those that you gather and then have to use up manually (like painkillers in Max Payne for example)

 

[anonymous_abc]

Non regenerating health.

That said Resistance was pretty good about it.

 

[Occam]

I think automatically regenerating health is terrible.

 

[Lucumo]

Health packs, always. Damn regeneration most of the time, it's just lazy map design.

 

[KnightimeX_Legacy]

I wish there was a health regenerate-Health pack hybrid in games.

Taking a light pop shot here and there will hurt you but will heal over time. (health regen)
Taking heavy damage will require a health pick up.

It would have the best of both worlds.

It won't feel cheap like Battlefield, COD games and it wouldn't feel dangerously overwhelming like in doom or serious sam.
It would give you room to explore without having to make enemies super beast like or a thunderstorm of bullets.

We can have Super beast that shoot a thunder storm of bullets!

b ^_^ d

 

[Jangowuzhere]

Health Regen

Really though, I don't think any system is better than the other. Honestly, it all comes down to game design. I think's it's a bit narrow minded to say that one system sucks and think it's bad in every game that uses it.

The reason I prefer heath regen has so do with how poorly the health pack system is designed in so many games. If you're extremely low on health, and you have almost zero chance of getting past the next encounter, you're usually going to rely on the quicksave and quickload feature. I consider that a failure in game design. The designers should implement better checkpoints and do a better job at distributing health for the player.

 

[IceMarker]

Both.

 

[Bluth54]

Doom doesn't have a health pack system.

Yes it does, you can find health and armor all over the maps in Doom, but you also get health for killing enemies.

 

[lazerfox]

I just bought DOOM on steam and I really forgot how cool it feels beating an area with really low health at the end.

The best thing about health packs is, I don't have to hide 30 seconds behind cover to regen. Instead I can try to kill more stuff to get my health back which makes it really fast paced.

I wish shooters will learn from DOOM in the future. I did not play any CoD since MW2 because it was just boring to me.

 

[III-V]

Health regen is a mechanic implemented to make games easier. It can be done well, like spending gold to sleep at the in for a night, but it mimics a health pack in this case. Health packs are the real deal.

 

[nkarafo]

I prefer the Goldeneye/PD method.

No health packs or regeneration. But you can find a body armor or two in some levels and sometimes they can be hidden (like in Control level) making them a reward for exploring every corner of the maps.

 

[Fbh]

As said by others: depends on the game.

Still, generally speaking I like health regeneration better. I like games that encourage me to go straight into battle and take more risks. I feel like in games with health packs you will often find yourself in situations where you are low on health but there are enemies ahead so you have to bunker yourself behind cover and take out enemies slowly. More challenging? Sure. More fun? Not always


Of course, you can also have games with health packs that still encourage a more "heads on" approach to combat. Like the new Doom , though they do so by having health be dropped more frequently (with executions )

 

[Trup1aya]

It really just depends.

A lot of the challenge around health pack systems seems arbitrary and leads to some annoying gameplay moments.

I remember playing Halo: CE and conciously deciding not to pick up health packs because I wasn't damaged enough to warrant it, then back tracking through cleared areas to get it when I actually needed it. It wasn't challenging, it was just tedious.

I really think H2's regen system (coupled with the shield mechanic) has streamlined things for the better.

 

[Rathorial]

Depends on the design of the game, but I see benefits to both, and franky in the last 5 or so years I tend to prefer games that do a unique mix of both:

• Wolfenstein: The New Order regens automatically to a portion of your health so you're not put in an unwinnable part of the map, then health packs revive the rest, and even overcharge above 100.
  
• Shadow Warrior (2013) gave you a health regen spell, but you had to hold the spell down while not attacking to regen up to 2/3rds of your health pool, and then health pickups in the level can completely revive.
  
• Bloodborne also has an interesting system of letting you reclaim a portion of health if you hit an enemy within a few second window, and then having vials you have to spend some time to activate.
  
• Doom (2016), Warhammer 40k: Space Marine & Metal Gear: Revengence I like for a more conceptual combination, where you essentially get regen from enemies, but you have to acquire them like pickups through slightly different executions. Doom even tied in chainsaw kills to offer an ammo regen when needed. Both these examples and Bloodborne promote a more aggressive playstyle with their health systems...avoiding the run to cover and wait of typical health regen.

All of these examples combining both, give you some regen to sustain yourself vs. solely relying on finite pickups in a level. Yet you need to either work to acquire that regen or still use pickups you conserve to get full health back.