Game Development Community

cinematic-combat rpg

by Bruce R Anderson · in Game Design and Creative Issues · 01/10/2002 (4:03 am) · 3 replies

how many of you have played everquest or any rpg out there (yes, even baldur's gate), where combat consists of really cheesy looking hand-to-hand attacks mixed with flashy special sprinkles (tm)? heck, in everquest they dont even hit people or show any kind of real indication that you are doing damage (muds were more interesting to 'watch' imo heh).

sure something like this is attempted in other games (i'll let everyone else fill us in with their favorite example) - but woefully done. perhaps what im asking is too much for our current talent pool in the industry at this time.

just imagining a stat-based (loosely perhaps, more like magic-the-gathering perhaps) combat system in which parameterized camera action, sound and animation effects are used to create a visually intoxicating battle.

#1
02/01/2002 (11:48 am)
You'd have to have an awful lot of animators to do something like that. A few games like Max Payne and even Hybrid Heaven change camera angles during attacks in battle.
#2
02/01/2002 (11:57 am)
I would have to say, final fantasy uses the system you describe, we will have to wait and see how final fantasy looks alike =)

Interesting post though.
#3
02/01/2002 (1:34 pm)
Lots of console RPGs have "visually intoxicating battles"...but IMHO it hampers playablility by taking control away from the player while the game plays spielberg for a few minutes.
Better implemented "stat-based" combat can be found in action-RPGs like Deus Ex or the PS2 version of Baulders Gate, where the player never loses control of the action, but the stats still effect the combat.