Best Of
Gaming has gone through a lot of changes over the last few decades.
Even with the graphical improvements though, some things have stayed the same as time went on.
There have been a lot of cliches in gaming, some that are worse than others.
Thankfully, ones like always saving a princess have become less prominent, giving path to better stories.
Others have persisted, however, and are still annoying gamers to this day.
Some games are so bad at cliches that players can see the plot twists from hours away.
This usually happens at the start of the game.
This trend has been going on since the early days of gaming.
It’s even still featured in games likeGenshin Impact, where you lose to the Raiden Shogun.
You also see it when fighting bosses in older games, such as Bowser in the originalPaper Mario.
In most instances, there is literally no way to get the boss’s health all the way down.
If you might, it won’t change the outcome of the fight, which is a bit frustrating.
Many players wish there was a special cutscene when beating tough enemies early.
This setup is supposed to show how your character must grow to save the world.
After all, a scene usually follows the fight showing the main character defeated.
Gamers get that a main boss is supposed to be tough.
Games don’t need to have you fight them at the start to prove it.
This is basically a cop-outendingfor most people that invalidates all your struggles.
EvenKingdom Heartshad a whole game based in the dream world.
Another popular example isThe Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening.
This didn’t sit well with many gamers who are used to the high fantasy storylines.
Even JRPGs have gotten in on the dream trope, as seen with Eternal Sonata.
The game all takes place in Chopin’s fever dream during the last few hours of his life.
The ending of a game being wrapped up as a dream is generally just lazy.
While some games do handle it well, likeEternal Sonata, it’s something that should usually be avoided.
The Obviously Evil Character
The obviously evil character trope has always been around.
This usually irritates players as the big twist at the end is easy to see.
If a party member is going to be the final boss, at least make it a huge revelation.
While this doesn’t usually ruin a game, it does run rampant in some games.
One good example of this is the masterminds in theDanganronpaseries.
Power Reset
If you play video games, you have most likely encountered the power reset cliche.
This happens when a super powerful character is put back to level one.
Other games likeNieR: Replicantallow you to start the game trying out a host of abilities.
This, of course, is quickly taken away as you are thrown into the main game.
This game always shows just how powerful you are going to be at the end.
Useless Armor
The last and likely one of the most famous cliches in gaming revolves around armor.
It’s not just women’s armor we are talking about either.
you could literally survive being lit on fire in elegant clothes inSkyrim.
Cosmetics in games have always been weird, but there are very few games that take armor seriously.
In most games, you’ve got the option to wear wags and still survive a gunshot wound.
Likewise, there’s also the point that female characters usually have bikini armor.
Many outfits may not even be practical to move or fight in.
In fact, you may even notice that characters will wear things that should obscure their sight while fighting.
It’s little details like this that keeps games from reaching a deeper level of realism.
Jessica is a resident otaku and Genshin-obsessed writer.
Jess is an industry veteran who takes pride in working with JRPG and indie developers.
