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The 10 most common game design mistakes

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The 10 most common game design mistakes

Yes, we would like some cheese with our whine – all this bitching has made us hungry

Words: Tyler Wilde, GamesRadar US

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82 Comments

Order Comments: Newest First | Oldest First

Wolf007 - 6 months 4 days ago

Resident Evil really did not need quick time events. It nearly ruined the game!

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Ckncakeee2 - 6 months 4 days ago

along with the unskippable tedium, don't forget credits. They are the longest, boringest, most dragged-on event in a game.

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ChrisCom66 - 6 months 4 days ago

right you are Tyler Wilde, Capcom is too loveable.

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CordedNX3 - 6 months 4 days ago

SLOW PANS, I hate long ass cut scenes, oh and the cinematics in RE5 are RETARDED

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Forsakenday - 6 months 4 days ago

I think that GTA 4 did a great job with the saves. If you fail a mission or something once you get to your objective, you will often reset near the objective which is really nice. And I hate interactive "cinematics". I often put down my controller to watch then all of a sudden it wants me to push a button which catches me totally off guard.

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xanderlesabre - 6 months 3 days ago

I really hate unskippable cutscenes as much as the next guy but you should find an unskippable scene to use as an example. I've played Eternal Sonata and any cutscene just press start and there is a prompt to skip.

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protospasm - 6 months 3 days ago

Great list! I definitely agree with that little jibe at "grinding=gameplay."
In my head, I redefine "gameplay" estimations in games.
"Over 60 hours of gameplay!" actually means:
1.5 hours of tutorial (acceptable)
3 hours of battles-relevant to core-plot (could be more)
10 hours of mandatory fetch-quests (urg...)
30 hours griding to meet area level requirements to enter plot-relevant battle areas (no...)
2.5 hours of cutscenes involving some sort of prissy ingenue (over it)
11 hours walking before learning a convenient "warp" technique (brains!)
2 hours of character customization (reaction is variable)

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jeit - 6 months 2 days ago

haha i remember the unskippable cutscenes. id just leave the game on for like an hour and then go like leave the house or something, that only doesnt work when they force a crapload of action onto your face in the very beginning.... then it just kinda sucks (especially when you go back to the main menu and gotta start over again....)

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TIEREN - 6 months 1 day ago

injecting story waste a lot of time

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Perfect_Insanity - 6 months 1 day ago

Clueless AI in Oblivion is hilarious, you can start hacking some of the NPC's to bits and they will try to do the same to you, but when you talk to them - in the middle of this fight to the death- they act like you're their best friend. ROFL

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killemall - 6 months 1 day ago

i actually have to say You Win! Now Getout infuriates me, i hate feeling like i missed something cool or the best weapon in the game just because i'm efficient. Fuckers... And letting me play through with some of the hawt loot is not the same.

recaptcha: snell tinguished

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killemall - 6 months 1 day ago

lso and i'm sure its been said before, but the evil YOU ARE DEAD screen (ahem Ninja Gaiden 2) does not to be so intircate... i know i'm fucking dead, just ask me to save or retry, thank you.

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AuthorityFigure - 6 months 22 hours ago

This is a nice concise list as to why hardcore games suck. Thank you for agreeing with me, GR.

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MRoswell - 6 months 19 hours ago

Clueless AI - wow. Ive been playing Killzone 2 amd Im beginning to think some of my 'teammates' are secretly in league with the Helghast the way they are always conviently standing behind me seemingly every time I try to fall back in the middle of a firefight.

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blademage20 - 6 months 13 hours ago

Here is a perfect example for the Unskippable Tedium. When you die in Too Human, there's a 30 second cutscene that you HAVE to watch. And when you die every other minute on the last two levels, half the gameplay is watching the same damn thing over and over and over.

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ss11955 - 6 months 13 hours ago

Damm it --make SAVES available WHEN desired!!!!!!!!I thought i was only one who had to leave console on all night(with OVERHEATING DANGER) .Number 1 peave in my book.Jim

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StonedMagician99 - 6 months 9 hours ago

The save thing is, IMO, easily the worst on here. Every game should have a save-anywhere ability, but nowadays, almost no games do. Play all the way through the Xbox 360/ PS3 Turok and you'll know what I mean.

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kodesy - 6 months 5 hours ago

@GR
I'm not saying that games don't withhold info, but about the RE5 thing..you CAN tell you're getting somewhere..While yes, it is repetitive what you're doing, the device on her starts sparking and making short-circuit kinda noises. With shortening intervals of time between them as you do the battle. Signifying that it's getting more damaged..

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