Top 10 Most Interesting Game Mechanics

What are your favorite wacky game mechanics?

Here's my list. #1 is most interesting.

10. Aquaria - Singing
9. Chalk - Drawing
8. Mabinogi - Getting Obese
7. Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time - Teleport Songs
6. Cave Story - Flying with Machine Gun
5. Starcraft & Starcraft 2 - Nukes
4. Iji - Cracking
3. Temporal - Time Travel
2. Teleportower Plus - Teleportation
1. Portal & Portal 2 - Portal Gun

 

Before I answer, I have a question.
Does this include things that are caused by entering boss fights in video games?
(i.e. fighting a boss in a 3D-ish waterway in a 2D-ish game, or a "shmup-"style boss in a platformer game)

 

This is going to be simple.

1: Inside a Star-Filled Sky (everything)
Somewhere waaay back there: every other game ever

I'm not even kidding

But yeah I'll try to do a better list later.

 

Before I answer, I have a question.
Does this include things that are caused by entering boss fights in video games?
(i.e. fighting a boss in a 3D-ish waterway in a 2D-ish game, or a "shmup-"style boss in a platformer game)

Yes.

 

Ah.

In a random order...
(1) La-Mulana (remake) > The Bahamut, Ellmac, Viy and Palenque Guardians
(2) Iji > Nanogun fusions (i.e. Shotgun + Machine Gun or Shotgun + Rocket Launcher)
(3) Cave Story > the Spur's ability to charge
(4) Spelunky > Traps
(5) -
(6) -
(7) -
(8) -
(9) -
(10) -

 

No order, just ten awesome mechanics.

1) Spec Ops: The Line ---> False Dichotomy
[e.g. There are multiple times in the game where you're told you absolutely must do x or y, but there are dozens of other things the developers accounted for that you can do (so you can actually do a, b, c or d as well, the game just doesn't tell you so)]
2) Portal/Portal 2 ---> The Portal Gun
3) Golden Sun Series ---> The Djinn System
4) Golden Sun Series ---> The Psynergy System + how it factors into complex puzzle-making
5) Ookami Series ---> Paintbrush/spell system
6) Braid ---> Time-altering mechanics
7) Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask ---> The mask system, along with it's implications
8) Mirror's Edge ---> Use of freerunning
9) Psychonauts ---> Levitation ability
10) Bioshock ---> Plasmids

 

Interesting thread. I haven't partaken in the other ones because I'm awful at listing and ranking things. Guess I'll just list random ones I've enjoted and hope it comes out to 10.

In no particular order:

1. Final Fantasy 8: the junction system. I know that msot people who play final fantasy hate this one because it's complicated, but if you actually know what you're doing you can kick major rear.
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5) Ookami Series ---> Paintbrush/spell system
[/quote]
Yes.
2. Ace Attorney: Perceiving. I prefer this to the psychelocks. It's pretty creative, and entertaining if someone has a funny nervous tick. (Sweaty armpits)
3. Ar tonelico: Diving. Turns the game into a visual novel, but still interesting I guess?
4. Tales of the Abyss: Fields of Fonons
5. Pokemon D/P: Digging. Don't judge me ._., I like treasure hunting. Also one of the few things I enjoyed with the D/P series.
6. Yume Nikki/.flow/whatever: Effects

Yeah I dunno I'll add more later maybe.

 

1. Starsiege Tribes 1 : Renegades mod's mechanics related to movement and battle (jetpack flight, rocket jumping, shields, weapons, etc etc; can't narrow it down to one without the other...)

So far nothing has beaten the feeling of the Starsiege Tribes : Renegades mod Cyborg armor in CTF after you understand how the weapons, beacons, jetpack, tricks, etc work. Nothing has come closer to feeling like controlling a giant robot and it being amazingly cool lol [Hint: It isn't sUPPOSED to be a giant robot, but... everytime I play that game I feel the rush of adrenaline and freedom of piloting that armor.]

Gameplay : Take an armor that isn't supposed to move fast. Add jetpack, rocketjumping, insane distance non-linear projectiles, shields, rockets, all happening extremely fast... Best first person shooter I've ever played~
I only hope one day there will be a more advanced FPS, that will allow for freeform flight, so you aren't magically upright or dealing with retarded but funny ragdoll simulation stuff. I want the freedom of human flight without the consequences of messing up lol


EASIEST way to describe what I'm talking about : think of the Iron Man 1 movie, the big bad guy's armor at the end, trying to move around like Iron man

2. Crescent Pale Mist : The battle system in that 2d game is wildly complex. The battles in that game on harder difficulties are just oppressive and exciting [and frustrating!]. Good indie game... (it's like a shump that's a platformer? Again, can't narrow it down to a specific type of move... but related to the freedom of movement while fighting.)

EASIEST way to describe it, a 2D Dragon Ball Z fighter that's a shump?!

3. Grand Theft Auto (any game in the series) : Stealing vehicles lol
Not much to say except that it's just amusing to go insane in GTA, crank up classical music, while driving a semi while only looking through the rear view mirror view...... . . . .heh. ..h..e..h..

4. Chalk - the drawing
5. Braid - Time travel
6.

I dunno, will think about it some more... Perhaps I'm being way too general with my top 3 so called "mechanics"... but...

 

No top ten, I'm just going to list 'em as I think of them:

Final Fantasy 13's battle system. Never has an RPG's battle system hooked me so thoroughly.

Other M's 4-directional movement and locking. With the game built around this it creates a better hybrid of 2D and 3D than Namco's Klonoa. It's simple but highly effective. Why more games don't try this is beyond me.

Half-Minute Hero. 'Nough said.

 

I don't really have a top ten, but here's interesting one, being able to craft a fish out of a wooden bat and some metal in Team Fortress 2.

 

1) falling blocks <tetris>
2) jumping <mighty bomb jack>
3) points <new super mario bros. wii>
4) passwords <legacy of the wizard>
5) top ten lists <cracked.com>
5) solid objects <mappy land>
8( trees <Sid Mier's Pirates!>
9) swords (real life)

 

Addicsjon takes up all 10 positions.

 

first person perspective - Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

 

first person perspective - Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

Truly revolutionary. Changed the way games are played forever.

 

I can't think of ten right now, but smash attacks in Super Smash Bros, as well as the percentage "life bar" that increases your chances of getting killed the higher it is.

Seriously, how did nobody think of this before me? It's one of the most unique mechanics out there (even though I guess we take it for granted since it's been out for so long).

 

I'll just list em as I please, cause I can't possibly pick a favorite.

FF6: split party and stop the soldiers.

The game makes you pick from all your party members, split them into groups, and strategically place them in the path of NPCs trying to get to the other side of a room, it's very intense and fun. Breaks up normal random fights.

Metroid Prime 3: Grapple Beam.

This thing has so many different functions, it makes me think they could build a whole game based on a grapple weapon in 1st person.

Medievil: Good magic.

You have 2 small armies fighting each other, one on your side, and the other against you. This is endgame, and presents a new challenge. You have to keep your soldiers alive long enough for them to kill the others. To do so, you use the good magic orb thing to give them your own health when they get harmed, it's fricken awesome, in fact, that whole game was.

New Super Mario Brothers Wii: Picking people up.

There's nothing more fun than screwing with people in that game. It gives you unlimited lives for that very reason. So I love throwing people into thwomps and whatnot.

Shadow of the Colossus: Climbing

I mean really, climbing that game is simple yet satisfying, and bosses that shake just motivate you to keep going to make them stop. It's dynamic and easy to use, and an excellent puzzle solving tool.

Skyward Sword: Sword use.

Say what you want about the game, using the sword is fun and challenging. It constantly challenges you and is satisfying to perform.

Limbo: Gravity thingies.

You know, the thingies? That make the gravity stuff happen? Those were cool.

MGS3: Dynamic player control.

This is a bit more on the games design than mechanics, but all objects interact with different results. If you think you can do it, you can. It's really in depth.

Journey: Multiplayer interactions.

I can't say much about this with ranting, so just trust me. It's good.

Uncharted: Climbing.

It's in different spirit of the Shadow of Colossus so I have to bring it up. The climbing in this game is fast, dynamic, and cinematic. You perform many actions while doing so, and it provides for alot of the cinematic moments this game strives to create.

 

The biggest one of all,

Minecraft: Gravity