Video Game Logic

I play Guild Wars 2 on a daily basis. The ability to inflict conditions on your enemies is a pretty big part of the combat system. This results in these amusing logic defying situations:
Poisoning ghosts
Burning things underwater
Making elementals or machine creatures bleed

The reasoning for all this is, of course, "magic"! 😎

That's true, and it's even worse in the psuedo-fighting game Star Wars: Masters of Teras Kasi. That had to be the most unbalanced fighting game ever, and the worst Star Wars-based game. I tried it simply because it was Star Wars, and I had read about how to unlock Mara Jade as a playable character.

Another one that had to do with weapons: Resident Evil. In Resident Evil 4, you will spend some time submerged in water, at least partially. Any gun, once waterlogged to that extent, will misfire. So how is it that Leon can spend time battling some huge monster in a lake, getting knocked into the water multiple times, and then be able to fire his gun like nothing has happened?

Okay, I know this thread has died, but another one has come to mind...

I was in the mood for something retro recently and found myself playing Zelda 2: The Adventure Of Link. Here are two things. First of all, the title saying it as "The Adventure Of Link." Wasn't that the first game? After all, it was described as an adventure game.

A second one is when you get magic spells. Usually you need to collect some item or perform some task in order to gain access to the house where the old man who teaches you the magic is (why he hangs out in the far corner of a basement is a question for another time). However, in all cases, the woman (it's always a woman) who lets you in always says something akin to "follow me" but when you go into the house, she is nowhere to be seen. Nor does she ever appear again after you learn the spell and leave the house, unless maybe one of the multiple clones wandering the town is her.

EDIT: Well, okay, the first spell you learn, Shield, the woman IS inside the house. But it still makes no sense.

Isn't there a woman in hidden Kasuto who also appears inside the house?

Also, you said earlier that Radical Dreamers had nothing to do with Chrono Trigger? That is incorrect. The interactive novel known as Radical Dreamers, for Super Famicom BS-X download, is and always was a Chrono Trigger story. It is a major point that one of your three party members is, in fact, Magus, and he is well aware in the story of Kid's connection to Schala (even if she doesn't realize it yet.)

The plot was later very loosely adapted into Chrono Cross, but canonically is implied to still exist on its own in some alternate timeline of events, via a throwaway line in Chrono Cross. Magus also says something about this in Chrono Trigger DS; basically, that due to the very nature of time travel, the Chrono Trigger series should not be viewed as a linear progression of sequels, but as an infinitely branching tree of different possibilities.

Yes, every single fanfic in existence for CT could possibly happen.

Super Mario RPG (SNES), when you exit the mines in Moleville, you ride a mine cart out of the mines and land through a roof. Mario and company simply take a nap and they're fine, walking away from a mess that would have left anyone severely injured, if not dead. The worst that happens from that ride? Of the two kid moles you rescue, the baby is knocked silly.

Also relating to Super Mario RPG...why is Luigi nowhere in the game? There is only one very small and easily missed reference to him, but apart from that, he never makes an appearance or is even mentioned. At least as far as I know (I have yet to complete the game). What happened to him?

Luigi has a wish on Star Hill and he leads the parade during the credits. His only other cameo in the game (and not even in the game itself) is in the manual where he gives tips, etc (the manual DOES have a pre-release screen of Mario, Luigi, and Mallow at a banquet hosted by Valentina, which was never in the final game)

Another Mario RPG fact. Mallow's Psychopath spell can reveal what enemies are thinking (this works on ALL fightable foes excluding bosses from before Mallow joins ie:Hammer Bros in Mushroom Way).
If you time the "attack" you get the target's HP,etc and then a brief message about what they are thinking. Some are hilarious, others from odd to plain crazy.

Where is the logic for topic relevancy?

Mallow is pretty much a sentient cloud...how can he read minds? Let alone stay in his pants? Seriously...when he "jumps" in some scenes, his pants and feet are still below him...

King Aquamentus wrote:Also, you said earlier that Radical Dreamers had nothing to do with Chrono Trigger? That is incorrect. The interactive novel known as Radical Dreamers, for Super Famicom BS-X download, is and always was a Chrono Trigger story. It is a major point that one of your three party members is, in fact, Magus, and he is well aware in the story of Kid's connection to Schala (even if she doesn't realize it yet.)

Guile is *not* Magus. At least not quite.

Square used to go back and forth on this subject: Guile's character began in development as Magus, true to Gil in Radical Dreamers. However, due to the context of the game's "golden ending", the magnitude of any interaction between Magus and (let's face it this thread already spoiled it) Schala would create a severe imbalance with the other 40-some-odd characters. For that reason, they went back and made him "not-Magus but still looks a little like him and has dark matter"

Now, they've gone back on that again, as of Chrono Trigger DS's ending. He *might* be Guile, but remembers nothing.

Really not a Chrono Cross player so most of what I know about it was stuff I heard from others. I was given to understand that he does turn out to be Magus. I thought that was how the truth about Kid is revealed.

Anyway, getting back on track...a very strange bit of logic in Final Fantasy 7. Cloud is revealed to be the product of genetic experimentation. He was basically a failed clone of Sephiroth and was grown in a laboratory, and all his memories (the "Cloud's past" sequence) were fabricated. However, Tifa also has memories of Cloud--he was her childhood friend. How can that be possible?

Bumping a 6-month-old thread for another VGL scenario:

Legend Of Legaia and then Legaia 2: Duel Saga. Apart from the similar battle systems (which are not completely identical), there is little to nothing to connect the two games to one another. Unless the second one is a prequel, and the young girl named "Maya" turns out to be the same matronly Maya you meet in Biron Monastery in the first game. Never mind that young Maya has brown hair and the older woman has green--again VGL.

So this is a sequel? Then again, they get away with that in every Final Fantasy game so far.

I know nobody is interested in this topic anymore, but I wanted to bring this one up. Have you ever played a game where there are environmental hazards that only affect the player. These go right through the enemies like they weren't even there but hit you and knock you down. The chief offender here is the first Final Fight game, and also the SNES Power Rangers game.

Honestly, I forgot this existed. But now that it has been necroed, I have recalled some video game logic that I question.

In RPGs you level up by defeating a enemies and obtaining a set amount of "Experience Point" and get stronger...my question is how does this actual work? IRL, you do stuff, ya get better at what you do repeatedly.
In video games, you just kill stuff (generally, sometimes other stuff gives EXP) and all of your characters attributes (generally increase) despite whether of not they were used (IE: a mage kills stuff and their physical strength increases in addition to the stats that actually effect their spells).....that doesn't seem very logical really...Casting spells without using any sort of physical attacks should make your strength either not change or even grow weaker...

Video game logic... :shrug:

Here's another one...Mortal Kombat Deception and Armageddon: many stages have "death traps" that instantly kill anyone who is knocked onto/into them, but if this happens in the first round, they come back completely alive and well in the next round.

I like this topic!! don't let it die.

King Aquamentus wrote:I like this topic!! don't let it die.

I like it too, but for me posting something in here often comes down to something I only noticed in hindsight.

Which reminds me, in RPGs (at least classic/old-school ones), why do players and enemies take turns? Wouldn't it be more realistic (and advantageous) to all-out attack before the other side sees you?

Some RPGs I have played (Secret Of Mana and Star Ocean come to mind) do have battles in more or less "real-time." I think a turn-based battle system is just easier for players to follow what their characters are doing. I know that when I have 4 or 5 people attacking the same group of enemies, I want to be able to direct which to attack and how.

Can someone answer me this? Why is it that when you find a magical item in most RPGs, you automatically know what it does and how to use it, unless there is a plot-related reason for it to be otherwise. Are all RPG characters clairvoyant?

Magical items are magical. They probably have a magical means of conveying what they do to whoever finds it. Except in D&D settings. Then ya gotta identify it and spend time with by taking it out to dinner and meeting its parents. Ok, I made the stuff after the IDing it up, but ya might as well be doing that just to know what it does.

Here's one: Final Fantasy IV (or II is the US). When you are trying to get Rydia out of the village you just burned, she summons Titan, which causes a massive earthquake. But soon afterward, Rydia joins your party and cannot summon Titan, nor does she gain the ability to do until much later in the game.

The only explanation I have ever heard for that which makes some sort of sense is that she simply called out in desperation to any Eidolon and Titan answered her call.

That sounds about right. That was my explanation after all 😃

I was playing the old Pool Of Radiance games and I noticed that when you find books in Mendor's Library, the game asks if you want to take them. First of all, you were likely given a commission to find these books, so why would you not take them? Also, even when you do, they don't appear in your inventory.

Sorry for double-posting but I wanted to bring this up.

In Chrono Trigger, there are two instances where you are inside Guardia Castle and Lucca shows up (in 600 AD after Marle vanished, and then in 1000 AD when you are escaping the prison). But it is never explained HOW she got into tha castle. Also, on your visit to 2300 AD, when Lucca find the computer (a device that does not exist in 1000 AD), she immediately knows how to use it. Where did she get tha knowledge? The first time I used a computer, I had no idea what I was doing.

Going very old-school here, but Adventure on th Atari 2600. You can pick up and carry a bridge. I've been playing that game for over 30 years and I still can't quite get my head around that.

I know this relly isn't canon and shouldn't be taken too seriously, but I have two VG: issues with LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga on the Nintendo DS. Frist of all: Stormtroopr doors. These are present in almost every episode, including the prequel levels BEFORE THERE WERE STOMTROOPERS. Why would there be a door that could ony be opened by someone that didn't exist Yet? And no, Clone Troopers can't open them.

Everyone knows that stormtroopers wear body armor. What good it does them I'm not sure because, in this game it takes one shot from a blaster to take them down. However, there are also Imperail officers who wear only grey or black uniforms, but they take about three or four shots to kill. So, that means that those cloth uniforms offer better protection against blaster fire than stormtrooper body armor? Ooooh kaaay.

Here's one that was pointed out to me (because I generally ddidn't play this game) about Spider-Man for the Atari 2600. In this game, the player takes the role of Spider-Man and must ascend a building by shooting webs and then climbing or swinging on them. You can only do this with webs...but Spider=Man is supposed to be able to crawl up walls. Why can't he do it here?

PinkFairy wrote:Sorry for double-posting but I wanted to bring this up.

In Chrono Trigger, there are two instances where you are inside Guardia Castle and Lucca shows up (in 600 AD after Marle vanished, and then in 1000 AD when you are escaping the prison). But it is never explained HOW she got into tha castle. Also, on your visit to 2300 AD, when Lucca find the computer (a device that does not exist in 1000 AD), she immediately knows how to use it. Where did she get tha knowledge? The first time I used a computer, I had no idea what I was doing.

I like to imagine there was gunfire involved in the former, but the town in the middle ages sells superior firearms to what Lucca is carrying. So good question. Maybe she just pushed her way through?

as for the computer... ...uhhhh.. huh.

Here's one that amuses me. In ALTTP, Link always swings his sword with his right hand, except for when he's facing left. He uses his left hand. I know this is because they just flipped the graphic to save on memory, but it's still weird.

TheDarkOne wrote:Here's one that amuses me. In ALTTP, Link always swings his sword with his right hand, except for when he's facing left. He uses his left hand. I know this is because they just flipped the graphic to save on memory, but it's still weird.

and in the original Metroid, beta material showed off Samus with unique left/right sprites. This got removed in the final release (even the disk version), and the game just uses her poorly sprited form to keep things ambiguous. ...

speaking of Alttp... this cave on Death Mountain

https://www.facebook.com/ducksword/videos/10217458428071137/

King Aquamentus wrote:and in the original Metroid, beta material showed off Samus with unique left/right sprites. This got removed in the final release (even the disk version), and the game just uses her poorly sprited form to keep things ambiguous. ...

speaking of Alttp... this cave on Death Mountain

https://www.facebook.com/ducksword/videos/10217458428071137/

It's known as "Paradox Cave" to randomizer runners.

In games like Harvest Moon/Stardew Valley it takes a mere 2-3 days for a baby cow to grow to adult hood and be able to produce milk, etc. While in real life it takes 2 years. :cowsleep:

I love how in shooter games you can find ammo and guns virtually everywhere, while in reality that only happens in certain parts of USA. haha