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Mechanics That Changed Gameplay Forever

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the gotta-love-bosses dept.

grammar fascist writes "A feature at 1up.com explores the various gameplay devices that revolutionized videogaming, and you might not believe how simple they are: life bars, power-ups, bosses, and combos make the list. From the article: 'As good as these ideas may sound on paper, they don't always work in execution. Sometimes they don't even make sense. But every once in a while, a game designer comes up with a fantastic concept that engages the player -- and influences the work of other designers.'"

5 of 143 comments (clear)

  1. They missed a biggie by systemic+chaos · · Score: 4, Informative

    Where does "computer-generated breasts on cover" fall into this list? Hey, I mean, it moves packages...

  2. Errors by MilenCent · · Score: 4, Informative

    I love searching these articles for errors. There are fewer than I expected -- attributing the origin of a health total to a game by *SNK* seemed obviously false at first, but the game offered, Ozma Wars, came out shortly after Space Invaders. (That's real early.) And I respect the writers for remembering Gaplus.

    Doesn't mean the article's entirely accurate though:

    Power-ups: I'm reasonably sure Pac-Man wasn't the first.

    Chain Reactions: Missile Command's "matchbook" explosions far predate those of Bomberman.

    Time Manipulation: Ladybug has a freeze-the-enemies item, as does Q*Bert.

    Spread Shot: Oh please, Contra was NOT the first game to do this.

    Canine Sidekick: What? Stupid.

    Co-op play: Eliminator predated Gauntlet.

  3. They missed a biggie! by shoolz · · Score: 3, Informative

    Air control during a jump! Thanks SMB 1! That was a HUGE platform-game improvement that was carried forward all future platform games (that didn't suck).

  4. Re:And RTS? by doti · · Score: 4, Informative

    Have you ever heard of Total Annihilation?

    It is to C&C, Starcraft and other RTSs what chess is to checkers.

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    factor 966971: 966971
  5. Dog Sidekick? by Enderandrew · · Score: 3, Informative

    Having a dog sidekick makes the list but for some reason interactive content doesn't?

    You want to talk about mechanics that revolutionized gameplay. Here are some HUGE omissions from the list.

    Pause Button
    Save Feature
    Online play
    Mod tools
    Creating dynamic content in game (like Sim Life or Spore)
    Musical Gameplay
    Force Feedback
    Analog Controls
    Alternate Endings
    Unlockable Content

    But having a dog sidekick beat out all those things.

    --
    http://blindscribblings.com - Tasty pop-culture in conceptual fashion.