3 Unused And Amazing Gameplay Mechanics
Do you ever find it weird that so many of the games we play nowadays have, for all intents and purposes, the same few gameplay mechanics? Many games within recent years just seem to copy and paste the same old layout of attacking with your main or secondary weapon, a few active abilities, and maybe a dash of vehicular combat. I remember the days when games took risks by incorporating weird gameplay. Such as Pokemon Snap’s complete reliance on photography or Katamari Damacy’s unique approach to puzzles. Of course, many of these seemingly forgotten gameplay mechanics have been revived and or sustained by the indie scene and games like Toripon. But for every one saved three others are buried. So today I want to delve deep into the games industry’s landfill and uncover several forgotten gameplay mechanics that were pretty damn amazing.
Excavation
When I was eleven I loved dinosaurs and archeology, largely because of shows like Dinosaur King and characters like Tyranno Hassleberry from Yu-Gi-Oh! GX. This obsession of mine was further fueled by the release of games like Spectrobes and Fossil Fighters on the Nintendo DS. Both of these series had a unique gameplay mechanic of unearthing fossilized monsters that would then be restored to their former glory and fight alongside you. This gimmick was an oddity, yet I became infatuated with it and it seemed that many others were as well, or at least when it was included in Pokemon that is. Yet after the release of Fossil Fighters Frontier in 2014, this peculiar mechanic has seemed to lie largely dormant. Luckily, for fans like myself, it’s possible that we might see this feature reemerge in the form of the Underground in the upcoming Pokemon Sword and Shield, but that’s just speculation.
Photography
The inclusion of photography in this list could be debated because of photo modes in games. Yet these are more of additions to the game instead of an actual mechanic in them. On the other hand, games like Beyond Good and Evil and Dead Rising feature photography as a means of progression. My happiest memories with these games are when I’d come across an exotic creature or an especially gory scheme and snap a quick pic. It was oddly satisfying watching my points rack up because of a selfie I took right before being eaten by a zombie. Some solace can be taken from 2018’s Spiderman and Life is Strange because of their collectibles featuring photography. But it’s just not the same.
Nemesis System
The Nemesis System being noticeably absent makes complete sense due to the fact that it’s only featured in the Middle-Earth series of games, which came to a close with 2017’s Middle-Earth: Shadow of War. Yet this amazing gameplay mechanic being relegated to just one series is a travesty. This system gave enemies real names, personalities, and made them seem like real characters instead of just faceless punching bags. Developer Monolith Production’s silence is the only thing that’s ever made me cheer on copy cats. This system will most assuredly be featured in Monolith’s next game, but it can’t come fast enough.
These gameplay mechanics may sit unused but they’ll never be forgotten. I can assure you that if any game comes out and has photography with progression they’ve got a guaranteed sale right here with me.
