Oh hell, is that supposed to be a Zelda game?

 

I really wanted to post about this yesterday, but a hard week of work elsewhere left me completely wiped. Let's try it now, shall we? 

Word broke a few days ago that Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto had filed a patent for a new type of gaming interface that is absolutely revolutionary. Called "Kind Code", the patent describes a new feature that may show up in future Nintendo games. Kind Code lets you surrender control of your character at any time, so the game can show you a demonstration of how to complete whatever section you're stuck on. In theory, you could use Kind Code to demonstrate how to complete an entire game, although you explicitly cannot save your progress after using Kind Code to complete a section of the game.

What do you think of "Kind Code"? Is it a feature you'd use in your games? I can't say I find it appealing, but I've been gaming since I was four and have a typical hardcore gamer's opinion about the value of in-game achievement. Even games like The World Ends With You that use limited AI to assist a player don't sit well with me. Of course, I've also been gaming long enough to know what it feels like when you're stuck in a game with no idea what to do, because what's expected turns out to be utterly counter-intuitive.

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Xander_RKos

I think something like this might actually benefit the gamers who are sitting on the fence in terms hardcore and casual. Why? Because this gives Nintendo the perfect excuse to make a hard game and not lose anyone's appeal who would rather just finish the game with no resistance whatsoever (there are people like that).

I think this is a good idea.

Einherjar

I'm torn on the idea, to be honest. I'm a pretty big fan of "hard" games and encouraging gamers to work things out, so the idea of a literal win-button leaves me a bit uncomfortable. Yet, as you mentioned, I can't deny that there are areas in games where, for whatever reason, players just can't get past. Nintendo is marketing to gamers who are not exactly going to want to spend all their times figuring out a puzzle or sequence they just can't get, even with in-game hint features like the ever-annoying Navi. For young gamers or older casual players who just want to get past the annoying parts to get to the fun parts. I rather prefer it to cheat codes as developer-created method of getting through tough spots. It teaches the gamer, instead of simply letting them sidestep the challenge. Sort of training wheels for your Wiimote.

ArnoldRimmer83

Gradius Galaxies for the Gameboy Advance actually had a feature that was like this. It had a hint mode, and as you progressed through the game, upon getting a game over it would add movies on how to clear every section of the game. It was actually pretty helpful in showing what to do in the beginning of each segment if you didn't have any power ups, as Gradius games can be brutal if you die and lost your power.

The only problem with this is that it might encourage gamers to not even try to get better at the game, and just view the whole thing as if it were a movie. On the other hand one can already view movies of a game being played by an expert on say Youtube or whatever, so I suppose this wouldn't really be all that different.

KouAidou

If I'm understanding this right, you can't use this to watch the entire game as a movie, because you can't save your "progress" after watching the demonstration. Even if you know how a certain task gets done, you still have to have the skill to do it yourself. I don't see how this is any different from just consulting a FAQ or a strategy guide to get you out of trouble.

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