what ever happened to healthbars in fps

its been a while since i saw a new fps witha health bar. I know halflife 2 has it but i cant think of much more.

crysis and STALKER:SoC

halo 2 killed it... and for the better looking for health packs is annoying.

Team Fortress 2, and Bioshock have health bars.

crysis and STALKER:SoC

big_orc

Halo 3 ODST doesn't have regenerating health so...Stevo_the_gamer

halo 2 killed it... and for the better looking for health packs is annoying.

Norule04

May i recommend you play some good games?

I dont think L4D without a health bar and med packs would be better.

[QUOTE="Norule04"]

halo 2 killed it... and for the better looking for health packs is annoying.

XaosII

May i recommend you play some good games?

I dont think L4D without a health bar and med packs would be better.

Are you implying halo 2 is a bad game?

and what makes you think I never played any 'good' games or in your case perhaps 'teh superior PC shooters'

FEAR, Crysis, STALKER:SoC/CS...

Developers are catering to the ADD-riddled youth these days, so they decided to get rid of them. It takes away from any sort of gameplay strategy or exploration.

EDIT: although Crysis isn't exactly the best example. It does have a health bar, but it functions similarly to every other FPS.

Battlefield Heroes and The Conduit.

But then again, BFH isn't exactly a FPS... a TPS is more accurate... but it's a shooter...

[QUOTE="XaosII"]

[QUOTE="Norule04"]

halo 2 killed it... and for the better looking for health packs is annoying.

Norule04

May i recommend you play some good games?

I dont think L4D without a health bar and med packs would be better.

Are you implying halo 2 is a bad game?

and what makes you think I never played any 'good' games or in your case perhaps 'teh superior PC shooters'

Are you implying a 7.0 scoring game is worth playing in the face of so many AAA and AA shooters?

To everyone who said Resistance: Fall of Man(not Resistance 2), I agree with you.

I despise health bars in first person shooters. I am playing BioShock right now and it is very annoying.

Halo 3 ODST doesn't have regenerating health so...Stevo_the_gamer

They went out of style.

[QUOTE="Norule04"]

[QUOTE="XaosII"]

May i recommend you play some good games?

I dont think L4D without a health bar and med packs would be better.

XaosII

Are you implying halo 2 is a bad game?

and what makes you think I never played any 'good' games or in your case perhaps 'teh superior PC shooters'

Are you implying a 7.0 scoring game is worth playing in the face of so many AAA and AA shooters?

Most developers seem to think that regenerating health is the way to go. Personally, I think it makes things too simple, but whatever.

I don't mind it where it works, for example in Halo, and at least Bungie actually created a valid reason for Master Chief's shift from Healthkit/Shields to regenerating health. But now we have games like Call of Duty 2+, and Rainbow Six Vegas that also use regenerating health, which as I said previously, makes things far too simple. Call of Duty 1 was the greatest game in the series, and this was one of the (many) reasons...

Developers are catering to the ADD-riddled youth these days, so they decided to get rid of them. It takes away from any sort of gameplay strategy or exploration.Saturos3091

I hate when people say this. Just because a game has regenerating health doesn't mean it's casual friendly and takes no strategy. It's a different type of shooter and requires a different sty1e of play.

[QUOTE="Norule04"]

[QUOTE="XaosII"]

May i recommend you play some good games?

I dont think L4D without a health bar and med packs would be better.

XaosII

Are you implying halo 2 is a bad game?

and what makes you think I never played any 'good' games or in your case perhaps 'teh superior PC shooters'

Are you implying a 7.0 scoring game is worth playing in the face of so many AAA and AA shooters?

Ah, how PC elitist hold onto this so dearly. People like to complain how all they talk about is Crysis > every console game interms of graphics but really, all they ever say is "LULZ BEST XBOX SHOOTER HALO 2 GOT A 7 ON THE PC!" ignoring the fact that it released 3 years later in the same year as games like BioShock, Call of Duty 4, Half Life 2: Episode 2, the almighty Crysis and oh, what else? Halo 3, the sequel.

Keep holding so dearly onto it. With such a "vast library of exclusives" you would think PC elitist would talk about that, instead it's always about how three year old port got a 7.0.

Far Cry 2 had a mixture of regenerating and healing urself, i prefer regenerating health though becuase your game could be saved when you are very low on health and you will have to load back to the last save

[QUOTE="Saturos3091"]

Developers are catering to the ADD-riddled youth these days, so they decided to get rid of them. It takes away from any sort of gameplay strategy or exploration.ThePistolGod

I hate when people say this. Just because a game has regenerating health doesn't mean it's casual friendly and takes no strategy. It's a different type of shooter and requires a different sty1e of play.

battlefield: bad company

[QUOTE="Saturos3091"]

Developers are catering to the ADD-riddled youth these days, so they decided to get rid of them. It takes away from any sort of gameplay strategy or exploration.ThePistolGod

I hate when people say this. Just because a game has regenerating health doesn't mean it's casual friendly and takes no strategy. It's a different type of shooter and requires a different sty1e of play.

This. Regen health is popular now to make the games noob friendly, but it just takes away the old strategies, and replaces them with new ones, although these new ones can also be more noob friendly.

For me as long as the game doesn't have a mechanic that negates other mechanic (like the you never die gameplay of Bioshock that obliterates the difficulty setting and the health bar) I'm okay.

To everyone who said Resistance: Fall of Man(not Resistance 2), I agree with you.

mitu123

The health bars got layed off.

because its harder to design a game with a health bar. because you have to balance out damage checkpoints and health recover items very wellAndrovinus

I almost forgot this.

Good point.

Regenerating health is a double win for developers. More noob friendly and less work = WIN X 2 for them.

[QUOTE="ThePistolGod"]

[QUOTE="Saturos3091"]

Developers are catering to the ADD-riddled youth these days, so they decided to get rid of them. It takes away from any sort of gameplay strategy or exploration.glez13

I hate when people say this. Just because a game has regenerating health doesn't mean it's casual friendly and takes no strategy. It's a different type of shooter and requires a different sty1e of play.

This. Regen health is popular now to make the games noob friendly, but it just takes away the old strategies, and replaces them with new ones, although these new ones can also be more noob friendly.

For me as long as the game doesn't have a mechanic that negates other mechanic (like the you never die gameplay of Bioshock that obliterates the difficulty setting and the health bar) I'm okay.

a regenerative health bar is not the main reason for a game to be "Noob Friendly". There are other factors to such as level design, checkpoints, enemy frequency, a.i. etc.

Regenerative health bars can also be used in games to create an overal faster pace of gameplay, as some games get you hunt for health.

example Fallout 3. your character doesn't have regenerative health bar, but you have a large inventory for storing health and more of a slwer pace item finding nature,

Does having many health packs on hand to instantly restore health to be considered "Noob friendly"??

It's obivous healthbars have not dissappeared, there are still games that come out using that mechanic it's just there are more games mow that use a different appraoch as well when it comes to vitality.

Regenerative, % numbers, no health indicators but show effects of injuries.

examples COD and Gears of War are a good example- there is no visible health bar, but forces you to be take cover more as you can only take so many hits and with little placde to store health packs.

Halo requires regenerative as you often fight lots of enemies and vehiclesl, tanks head on often in expansive levels.

Bioshock and Fallout 3 are more slower paced with the emphasis only searching, investigating, items and less on quick brute firepower.

Counter strike often makes healthbars without kevlar moot as it only takes a head shot and you're finished and 1-2 hits kills are often.

Then there are combinations of health bar, armour/kevlar and regenerative sheilds.

also single player should never IMO have regenerative healthmurat8

LOL. Your tempting fate there and all off a sudden a whole sew of single player games will use regenerative health.

Far Cry 2 has a health bar :)

[QUOTE="ThePistolGod"]

[QUOTE="Saturos3091"]

Developers are catering to the ADD-riddled youth these days, so they decided to get rid of them. It takes away from any sort of gameplay strategy or exploration.Saturos3091

I hate when people say this. Just because a game has regenerating health doesn't mean it's casual friendly and takes no strategy. It's a different type of shooter and requires a different sty1e of play.

How does it take out strategy? I'm not sure about COD but a bait-n-switch is really popular in Halo. It's why people cry on here about it. "Waah you can just run and hide behind a wall when you have no shields" then the irony is how they say there is no strategy. A bait-n-switch is a really useful and effective strategy. Sure, maybe if all you care about it getting kills then yeah, Halo fails. However there are a lot of great strategies in Halo and despite what every Halo Hater or non-Halo player says, it takes skill and intelligence to play.

A game isn't casualized by regenerative health, its the other things about the game which someone already pointed out.

The only game I play a lot that has a health bar is Team Fortress 2. It works really well in that game. I like both so I don't really care if one is used more than the other.

Thank Halo for popularizing regenerating health, even when not contextually sound. It completely removes all challenge. The only type of regenerating health that "works" without removing the challenge is like that in The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay; where the player has health "squares" or "sections" that can regenerate up to a certain point, but have to be healed by limited resources back to full health.

Thank Halo for popularizing regenerating health, even when not contextually sound. It completely removes all challenge. The only type of regenerating health that "works" without removing the challenge is like that in The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay; where the player has health "squares" or "sections" that can regenerate up to a certain point, but have to be healed by limited resources back to full health.

foxhound_fox

yeah its a little like that in RFOM1 its pretty good and it keeps it a little more balanced.

FarCry 2 has a health bar. I think they are being removed because looking for health packs becomes boring and redundant, it also quickens the pace of the game.

Thank Halo for popularizing regenerating health, even when not contextually sound. It completely removes all challenge. The only type of regenerating health that "works" without removing the challenge is like that in The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay; where the player has health "squares" or "sections" that can regenerate up to a certain point, but have to be healed by limited resources back to full health.

foxhound_fox

Ok. But one headshot = kill is so much of a challenge?

If you're playing Halo like you play Counter Strike then yeah, it's stupid. That's why it's Halo and not Counter Strike. Each game is supposed to be played differently but what would anyone know. "All FPS are just point and shoot and they're all the same."

Having a health bar has it's pros and cons just like regenerating health does. Stop acting like health bars are completely flawless and are the only way a shooter should be played. Counter Strike wouldn't be a good game for regenerating health just like Halo wouldn't be good if it didn't have regenerating SHIELDS. You don't recover health in Halo, but hey, it's Halo. Who cares about it? Just bash it for no reason..

Ok. But one headshot = kill is so much of a challenge?

If you're playing Halo like you play Counter Strike then yeah, it's stupid. That's why it's Halo and not Counter Strike. Each game is supposed to be played differently but what would anyone know. "All FPS are just point and shoot and they're all the same."

Having a health bar has it's pros and cons just like regenerating health does. Stop acting like health bars are completely flawless and are the only way a shooter should be played. Counter Strike wouldn't be a good game for regenerating health just like Halo wouldn't be good if it didn't have regenerating SHIELDS. You don't recover health in Halo, but hey, it's Halo. Who cares about it? Just bash it for no reason..

ThePistolGod

[QUOTE="XaosII"]

[QUOTE="Norule04"]

Are you implying halo 2 is a bad game?

and what makes you think I never played any 'good' games or in your case perhaps 'teh superior PC shooters'

Communistsheep

Are you implying a 7.0 scoring game is worth playing in the face of so many AAA and AA shooters?

Console FPS are always inferior to the majority of PC fps. Even the multiplats. His point still stands, although I wouldn't base an argument on a GS score alon since I personally would have given MGS4 a 6.0 at best.

Thank Halo for popularizing regenerating health, even when not contextually sound. It completely removes all challenge. The only type of regenerating health that "works" without removing the challenge is like that in The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay; where the player has health "squares" or "sections" that can regenerate up to a certain point, but have to be healed by limited resources back to full health.

foxhound_fox

Just like Resistence. I find this system much better than just regenerating health.