-
Hey Guest. Check out your NeoGAF Wrapped 2025 results here!
Unique mechanics that really elevate a game to the next level
- Thread starter SunBroDave
- Start date
Tomb raider 2013 did it better.
Son Of Sparda
Member
Devil Arm in DMC4.
Laughing Banana
Weeping Pickle
Z targeting in Ocarina of Time.
It doesn't only elevate it into something else, but it also gave countless other 3D games the blue print in which to implement lock-on targeting in their battle system.
It doesn't only elevate it into something else, but it also gave countless other 3D games the blue print in which to implement lock-on targeting in their battle system.
Son Of Sparda
Member
Jet pack in Mass Effect Andromeda.
Otakumegane
Member
Visions in Xenoblade.
It's used in combat, collections, and plot reasons. It does a good job of enemy telegraphing which most action based JRPGs tend to struggle with.
It's used in combat, collections, and plot reasons. It does a good job of enemy telegraphing which most action based JRPGs tend to struggle with.
Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together's Chariot System, lets you rewind moves during battle and I also really enjoyed the random battle cries or spell incantations.
Otogi destructible environments.
Crackdown Agility Orbs. Gotta catch em all.
Halo Shields. The way it flares then pops and you know they are vulnerable to that delicious head shot. You can hit the shield any where, sneaky shots on an exposed foot or perfectly aimed head shots do not matter until you can bust the shield.
Super Smash Bros Death by ringouts. It allows for mistakes and comebacks. The edge play is fun too.
Super Smash Bros' Marth's sword is a lot stronger at the tip this makes it so rewarding to get the spacing just right and satisfying to launch enemies at relatively low percentages.
Dust An Elysian Tale Dust storm is awesome.
Otogi destructible environments.
Crackdown Agility Orbs. Gotta catch em all.
Halo Shields. The way it flares then pops and you know they are vulnerable to that delicious head shot. You can hit the shield any where, sneaky shots on an exposed foot or perfectly aimed head shots do not matter until you can bust the shield.
Super Smash Bros Death by ringouts. It allows for mistakes and comebacks. The edge play is fun too.
Super Smash Bros' Marth's sword is a lot stronger at the tip this makes it so rewarding to get the spacing just right and satisfying to launch enemies at relatively low percentages.
Dust An Elysian Tale Dust storm is awesome.
LordKasual
Banned
Super Smash Bros Melee. -- Nearly every mechanic in the game ended up being emergent towards high-level modern play.
It's a real shame when you look at Smash now and see just how many of its mechanics have been removed in order to dumb the game down. Melee took the 64 formula and greatly expanded it. Brawl and Smash 4 have basically just been moving backwards from that forumla ever since out of fear of the game providing too much competitive edge to hardcore players.
Smash 4 is actually a bigger jump backwards in mechanics from Brawl, than Brawl was from Melee. It's sad.
I cannot believe this did not just become a series staple, let alone a feature staple for any RPG with AI controlled companions. The game allowed you to turn everything off and essentially play XII like the older FF games...but that ruined the point of all the innovations of the game's combat system. Final Fantasy XV in particular could have really, really used this. The AI doesn't even really feel like it completely comes together until you start investing in the teamwork tree, but some simple gambits (HP < 40% = USE POTION) would have alleviated the majority of people's complaints about them taking damage.
FFXII's Gambits were alot like Perfect Dark's bot control in multiplayer. Something that should have easily become standard, but for whatever dumb reason was overlooked.
It's a real shame when you look at Smash now and see just how many of its mechanics have been removed in order to dumb the game down. Melee took the 64 formula and greatly expanded it. Brawl and Smash 4 have basically just been moving backwards from that forumla ever since out of fear of the game providing too much competitive edge to hardcore players.
Smash 4 is actually a bigger jump backwards in mechanics from Brawl, than Brawl was from Melee. It's sad.
I cannot believe this did not just become a series staple, let alone a feature staple for any RPG with AI controlled companions. The game allowed you to turn everything off and essentially play XII like the older FF games...but that ruined the point of all the innovations of the game's combat system. Final Fantasy XV in particular could have really, really used this. The AI doesn't even really feel like it completely comes together until you start investing in the teamwork tree, but some simple gambits (HP < 40% = USE POTION) would have alleviated the majority of people's complaints about them taking damage.
FFXII's Gambits were alot like Perfect Dark's bot control in multiplayer. Something that should have easily become standard, but for whatever dumb reason was overlooked.
Burn it with fire. I hate this and how it has replaced well designed visual or audio cues.
Noise corruption in Megaman Starforce 3. Basically, you eventually get a passive skill that adds a % counter during battles. The more you overkill, counter and multikill enemies (or does large burst damage in the case of bosses), the more the counter rises. Get enough and Megaman changes colors and gets some weak passive abilities. Keep raising to 50% and you Noise Change into a powered up form with more passives and a finisher move that gets added to your "attack queue" every time you counter, a special charge shot and an elemental affinity. Get it to 200% and you can Noise Out into your version Final form. Basically you get corrupted data enough to access a fucking network server that is a literal meteor made of electronic noise and garbage data that is coming to crash on Earth (yeah, the mechanic ties with the plot). That means you get even more powerful and your attacks get substituted for the meteor ones.
Now here is the kicker: the more % you get above 200 the higher the level of access you get, which means more powerful moves, including the finishers of lesser Noise Changes as normal attacks, your own finisher as a normal attack and boss attacks.
But that's not at all: since noise affects electronics, the more you get, the worst your field of battle becomes, glitching graphics and obscuring panels, lets you ignore enemies i-frames so you can do better combos and even corrupts your battle rewards... so a random battle can suddenly give you rewards from bosses or even from the predecessor games, not mention exclusive versions of attacks with higher than normal ranks, creating a kind of loot system.
Dynamic power ups are cool. Mechanics related to the game's plot too.
Now here is the kicker: the more % you get above 200 the higher the level of access you get, which means more powerful moves, including the finishers of lesser Noise Changes as normal attacks, your own finisher as a normal attack and boss attacks.
But that's not at all: since noise affects electronics, the more you get, the worst your field of battle becomes, glitching graphics and obscuring panels, lets you ignore enemies i-frames so you can do better combos and even corrupts your battle rewards... so a random battle can suddenly give you rewards from bosses or even from the predecessor games, not mention exclusive versions of attacks with higher than normal ranks, creating a kind of loot system.
Dynamic power ups are cool. Mechanics related to the game's plot too.
PREACH
Ritzboof
Member
all stretch panic is is a mediocre boss rush, but its whole gimmick is that you can reach your possessed scarf hand out to pinch and stretch stuff to shit; that is enemies, as well as the environment
the hand doesnt just exclusively pinch and stretch, though; you can manipulate it to do a variety of physics-y things, like twirl stuff around and throw things. you can also grab onto enemies and throw yourself towards them for a wacky headbutt, or you can grab the ground and throw yourself over attacks or gaps
the way the hand controls takes a little bit to get used to, but its actually really intuitive. its based on where your character is facing (theres a lock-on to orient yourself), and you use the right analog stick to move the hand about parallel to the character. you hold a button to make it reach out, and you can still move the hand around when youre reaching out (and you can move the character when its fully extended), so its very easy to determine depth and grab anything with precision. you dont have free control over the camera; the camera just moves around with your character, but its very responsive and works perfectly
theres a bit more to it, but the mechanic works well in so many ways that its hard to summarize well. its just so cool and works so effectively, and something as simple as grabbing onto something and stretching it to shit by wiggling the right analog stick is really gratifying
the games formula itself is meh and a couple of the fights utilize the gameplay very poorly, but the uniqueness of its gimmick and how well executed it is makes stretch panic one of my favorite ps2 games
the hand doesnt just exclusively pinch and stretch, though; you can manipulate it to do a variety of physics-y things, like twirl stuff around and throw things. you can also grab onto enemies and throw yourself towards them for a wacky headbutt, or you can grab the ground and throw yourself over attacks or gaps
the way the hand controls takes a little bit to get used to, but its actually really intuitive. its based on where your character is facing (theres a lock-on to orient yourself), and you use the right analog stick to move the hand about parallel to the character. you hold a button to make it reach out, and you can still move the hand around when youre reaching out (and you can move the character when its fully extended), so its very easy to determine depth and grab anything with precision. you dont have free control over the camera; the camera just moves around with your character, but its very responsive and works perfectly
theres a bit more to it, but the mechanic works well in so many ways that its hard to summarize well. its just so cool and works so effectively, and something as simple as grabbing onto something and stretching it to shit by wiggling the right analog stick is really gratifying
the games formula itself is meh and a couple of the fights utilize the gameplay very poorly, but the uniqueness of its gimmick and how well executed it is makes stretch panic one of my favorite ps2 games
User Name Here
Member
Hitting the ball with your paddle in Pong.
Can't believe this was the only reference on the first page. The execution of this mechanic was ridiculously good and took the campaign from solid to amazing.
Spring-Loaded
Member
Grow Home's climbing:
Grow Home features good 1:1 climbing mechanics. Your robot's hands can stick to any surface, but you have to actually reach and place each hand in real time with analog control. You have to hold down a button/trigger to hold onto a surface, reach with the free robot-hand, then grab with the other before letting go with the first hand.
There's fall damage, so climbing high up feels appropriately intense — if you slip and fall, then you know whether you can catch yourself is entirely up to you and where your robot avatar is/was positioned. It feels like what you're doing matters because it does matter.
All of this coupled with the procedural physics of the player character makes the game special. If the climbing didn't function this way and instead worked like BotW's (which is fine-to-great in that game because of stamina management), it would be a lesser experience.
Grow Up's (max energy) flora creation:
Grow Home features good 1:1 climbing mechanics. Your robot's hands can stick to any surface, but you have to actually reach and place each hand in real time with analog control. You have to hold down a button/trigger to hold onto a surface, reach with the free robot-hand, then grab with the other before letting go with the first hand.
There's fall damage, so climbing high up feels appropriately intense — if you slip and fall, then you know whether you can catch yourself is entirely up to you and where your robot avatar is/was positioned. It feels like what you're doing matters because it does matter.
All of this coupled with the procedural physics of the player character makes the game special. If the climbing didn't function this way and instead worked like BotW's (which is fine-to-great in that game because of stamina management), it would be a lesser experience.
Grow Up's (max energy) flora creation:
The moment I saw stills from Grow Home, I was very interested in seeing what it offered, and gradually became excited for it until I played it. Fell in love with the climbing, movement and sense of progression throughout that quaint, peaceful game. The climbing in particular was fantastic, and provided a tactile approach to platforming, letting me feel every reach and step of the way to the top.
Grow Up introduced seed planting, allowing you to grow any "floraform" you've already scanned (cacti, bouncy tree, bubble plant, etc.), something I kind of forgot about partway through the game. It's tied to your power meter though, using up one whole "battery" bar of energy to throw a seed (you get up to four bars, for a while anyway), forcing you to balance your jetpack boosting and seed planting. At most, you can drop four seeds at once.
... until you get the infinite energy upgrade
That is a tower of giant mushrooms stacked atop one another which reaches into space
NO LIMITS
It is now a completely different game. I can plant any kind of flora wherever I want, even the surface of the moon which is covered in glowing asparagus stalks in my game. Just as the first game established a degree of character control in regard to climbing traversal that was unprecedented for me, I have earned from this game the means to shape this space as I see fit.
GoldenCrow
Member
Yeah it is my favourite combat system due to this. If I could just set O as a tap to quick change melee weapon it would be close to perfect.
Head of Vengarl
Banned
I came in here to talk about TWEWY. High five to you sir/ma'am.
The stuff you mentioned is great, but I was going to talk about the puck system. There's this green ball of light called the puck that boosts the power of your attacks. If you time your attacks well (and avoid getting hit), it gives a progressively stronger power boost as it passes between your two characters. I don't think I explained that very clearly, so here's a video demonstrating it (and also the encounter chains that Syril was talking about):
The World Ends With You - Battle Demonstration
Super cool mechanic. TWEWY is the best handheld/mobile action-RPG I've ever played.
I agree it's been over utilized just like Arkham's combat. But it isn't the devs fault for coming up with great ideas that get copied to hell and back.
But in the context of the Arkham games it was awesome that Batman had that tech in his cowl. It drove home being the bat.
I thought it was interesting technology for the Bat for sure and it was pretty awesome to have that kind of technology but on the other hand I grew with the feeling of Batman being a genius on his own. This, in a way felt like a baby could follow the clues if he wore the cowl. It felt like one step too many along the path of hand holding for gameplay and I didn't like it.
Cave Johnson
Member
Mario's macro-key input expansion. This is the most definitive aspect that is usually reserved for fighting games. To see it implement smoothly in a platformer where binary inputs are the norm will always be a game changer. It allows for more movesets without adding extra buttons. I just wished to see more games apply it in more unique ways.
This is why I adore Shenmue's fighting system more than Batman:AA's system. I like to be in control with my characters input and Shenmue 3's dynamic fight system might elevate it to something else entirely.
This is why I adore Shenmue's fighting system more than Batman:AA's system. I like to be in control with my characters input and Shenmue 3's dynamic fight system might elevate it to something else entirely.
Detective vision is just a copy of Metroid Prime's scanner.
Also, dare I say, VATS in the modern Fallout games really made the games more entertaining than they really were. A mechanic that called back to the original Fallout games with its turn-based gameplay and aimed shots and placed it in FPS gameplay that was stupidly fun to use.
Without it, the combat would just be wonky ass shooting.
Without it, the combat would just be wonky ass shooting.
BombStrike
Member
The grappling hook in Just Cause elevated the game from what would have been a mediocre GTA like to be an incredibly satisfying and fun mayhem simulator
Yep. TWEWY has a lot of unique elements that come together to make it a special game imo.
But as you say the chaining battle and level altering is just ingenious. Perfect mix of risk and reward and make battles far more engaging. I think the only rpg ive seen mimic it is bravely default but fuck more should just straight up copy it.
Hazardous Metal
Member
Walllrunning isn't a unique mechanic but Titanfall does it so fucking well that it separates itself from everything else in the genre.
Yup, these two. Two of many reasons why Bayonetta is the best action game made
From the top of my head:
. battle system of Resonance of Fate.(PS3)
. battle system of Valkyria Chronicles.(PS3)
. exploration of The Legend of Zelda(NES)
. ingenious Gameplay of Tetris Sphere(N64)
. magnesis and stasis rune of Breath of the Wild(NSW)
. combining different genres as an Action RPG with Nier Automata(PS4/PC)
. augmentations of the original Deus Ex(PC)
. charge shot of Mega Man 4(NES)
. the ability to absorb boss enemies special attacks of Mega Man 1(NES)
. the ability to charge boss enemies special attacks of Mega Man X(SNES)
. scaring the player by "changing the TV settings" of Eternal Darkness(GCN)
There's a lot of stuff I've missed but I don't think I will be able to count everything ever...
. battle system of Resonance of Fate.(PS3)
. battle system of Valkyria Chronicles.(PS3)
. exploration of The Legend of Zelda(NES)
. ingenious Gameplay of Tetris Sphere(N64)
. magnesis and stasis rune of Breath of the Wild(NSW)
. combining different genres as an Action RPG with Nier Automata(PS4/PC)
. augmentations of the original Deus Ex(PC)
. charge shot of Mega Man 4(NES)
. the ability to absorb boss enemies special attacks of Mega Man 1(NES)
. the ability to charge boss enemies special attacks of Mega Man X(SNES)
. scaring the player by "changing the TV settings" of Eternal Darkness(GCN)
There's a lot of stuff I've missed but I don't think I will be able to count everything ever...
Triforce141
Member
Ukemi in Viewtiful Joe and Wonderful 101
It's really helpful to have some sort of failsafe when doing high rank runs and you got hit for some reason
It's really helpful to have some sort of failsafe when doing high rank runs and you got hit for some reason
The Timepiece in Dishonored 2 was really amazing, not only did it introduce a new great gameplay mechanic similar to that of singularity, but the ability to be able to see into the present and future simultaneous was aesthetically amazing. It really tied in so well with the narrative styling of the game too.
Titanfall 2 also did a very similar thing very well too
Titanfall 2 also did a very similar thing very well too
Agent_J
Banned
Because of the recent thread, I welcome: F.L.U.D.D. from Super Mario Sunshine.
I know, it's very hated. But I don't understand why. It adds complexity to an already great moveset but also accessibility. Besides the basic water gun, there's a hover nozzle which helps a player with their jumps. If a player doesn't jump far enough, he can just hover to correct any mistakes (for a few seconds), or use it to reach places you normally wouldn't be able to.
It's also a joy using the rocket nozzle to skyrocket up, then hover around just to fuck around and see the scenery. It's really a great way to just dick around in a Mario game, and isn't that fun in and of itself?
Another great nozzle is the turbo boost one which allows Mario to basically jet around a level. Again, it's just fun to dick around with.
For those reasons I believe it took a great mechanic and elevated it to another level. I think if players gave it a chance, they can see some merit in F.L.U.D.D.
I know, it's very hated. But I don't understand why. It adds complexity to an already great moveset but also accessibility. Besides the basic water gun, there's a hover nozzle which helps a player with their jumps. If a player doesn't jump far enough, he can just hover to correct any mistakes (for a few seconds), or use it to reach places you normally wouldn't be able to.
It's also a joy using the rocket nozzle to skyrocket up, then hover around just to fuck around and see the scenery. It's really a great way to just dick around in a Mario game, and isn't that fun in and of itself?
Another great nozzle is the turbo boost one which allows Mario to basically jet around a level. Again, it's just fun to dick around with.
For those reasons I believe it took a great mechanic and elevated it to another level. I think if players gave it a chance, they can see some merit in F.L.U.D.D.
Couldn't agree more, F.L.U.D.D is on of the main reasons Sunshine is my favourite Mario title. In my opinion Mario has never been so fun to move around since! Even without any objectives Delfino Plaza serves as a playground entirely because Mario is such a joy to control within it.
Ravi_elite
Banned
Crab Milk Mickey
Member
Whilst being an already unique game, God Hand's level of move customization and performance-based scaling difficulty set it apart from the crowd even further.
Still one of the best turn-based combat systems out there.
sems4arsenal
Member
Driver SF
This game needs a sequel, loved the drive any car in the open world mechanic.
This game needs a sequel, loved the drive any car in the open world mechanic.
matrix-cat
Member
Bayonetta's Dodge Offset is the greatest thing ever. For the uninitiated, imagine a standard combo-string-based action game where you press, for example, YYYBBB for a six-hit combo. If at any point during that combo you take a hit, or need to dodge, or can't continue the combo for whatever reason, that combo string is now gone. The next time you press Y will be the start of a new combo string. That's just the way it worked in action games for years, until Kamiya da gawd came along.
In Bayonetta, you can suspend a combo, dodge, then continue that same combo string afterwards. Instead of YYYB and then getting hit, you hit YYY, hold the B button as you dodge, then let go of B and finish off that same YYYBBB combo. It took me two full playthroughs to get my thumbs used to this style of play, being ready to hold any individual step of a combo at a moment's notice to keep it going after a dodge, but once it clicked for me it felt absolutely brilliant.
And there's more to it than just that. You can multiple times on the same step of a combo, you can enter Panther mode and run around for as long as you like, then let loose the same attack you'd been holding the moment you un-Panther. If you like, you can dodge before the actual attack comes out. If you have a three hit combo with a Wicked Weave at the end, you can essentially swallow the first two hits of the combo and only let the Wicked Weave come out. There's probably even crazier pro shit that's way beyond my level, because Bayonetta is just that kind of game.
In Bayonetta, you can suspend a combo, dodge, then continue that same combo string afterwards. Instead of YYYB and then getting hit, you hit YYY, hold the B button as you dodge, then let go of B and finish off that same YYYBBB combo. It took me two full playthroughs to get my thumbs used to this style of play, being ready to hold any individual step of a combo at a moment's notice to keep it going after a dodge, but once it clicked for me it felt absolutely brilliant.
And there's more to it than just that. You can multiple times on the same step of a combo, you can enter Panther mode and run around for as long as you like, then let loose the same attack you'd been holding the moment you un-Panther. If you like, you can dodge before the actual attack comes out. If you have a three hit combo with a Wicked Weave at the end, you can essentially swallow the first two hits of the combo and only let the Wicked Weave come out. There's probably even crazier pro shit that's way beyond my level, because Bayonetta is just that kind of game.
AlephAlpha
Member
Strafe Jumping in Quake.
Once you learn it, it is like playing different game.
Once you learn it, it is like playing different game.