Namely, one which I don't like which is in-game lockpicking. I'm going to call this "Skyrim Lock Picking" as well... It's were I found it first.
You know the sort of lock picking I'm talking about right? You zoom in to a lock sort and rotate a "lock pick" around before trying to turn the "tension wrench" in the lock to unlock it. And well... It's freaking everywhere.
Skyrim, every 3D Fallout game, hell even some Indie games has the exact same system of lock picking. I'm sure you, Dear Reader, could think up of some other examples of this sort of lock picking.
Yes, and that's not a bad thing. I mean, come on. Almost all PC games use WASD for movement because of how helpful having consistant mechanics are. Part of the early days of computer games were horrible because of the lack of consistant controls. To the point where almost all of the games had different controls for the same or similar movement mechanics.
But... And I say this as nice as I can. The "Skyrim Lock Picking" system is not even close to my favourite. I dislike it greatly and think that we can do wildly better.
I wouldn't say I'm a locksmith, but I do n=know the basics of picking a lock. Usually, you use a pick and a tension wrench. You use the tension wrench to force the lock into a state of tension, than you use a pick to slowly push down the locks pins before. CLICK, locks open.
Or, you could also use racking. A similar system but instead of going manually to pick every pin you could use a rack to try to just shove it into the lock and press it down and up and wiggle it about to try to force most of the pins, if not all, down.
Also, you get other types of picks, including my personal favourite, a half diamond pick so that you can both rake and single pick the lock. But you also get a Hook, a city rake and so on... Honestly, if you wanna write a lock-picking character you could spend hours learning about all the sorts of locks and picks and fancy tools you get as well.
Personally, the lock pick set I have is a somewhat cheap little fold out thing, and the biggest issue I have with it is that feedback from the tension wrench and pick is very spongey and honestly really bad. But it still can be used mostly well. I picked my front door and sercurity gate once, both were pretty easy. Which... now that I think about it, is mildly scary.
Also, most locks in real life have very interesting pins. Like pins which have barrels which feel like they got set but really they haven't. Or multiple small pins stacked on top of eachother, so when you push one of the pins in you thing you managed to set that pin but really there's three or two more that has to be set. Or pins set at higer/lower tension in the same lock so that you end up either using too much force or too little force.
Usually, when a lock binds, you can reset it but tilting the tension wrench in the opposite direction in which the lock opens and bingo. Lock ready to open. Plus, well... I haven't broken a pick yet. Bent one out of shape, but never broke a pick before. How much force are video game characters using to keep breaking these picks?
Video games could really use better lock picking. Imagine instead of a quick lock picking sequence that is not effected by the rest of the game world, where the only risk is somehow snapping a metal pick in half but not getting it stuck in the lock. When you could get a not paused moment where the only limit is time as you use sound and maybe some vibrations (if you've got haptic feedback) to try to find and set all the pins in the lock.
Than instead of harder locks just having smaller goldy zones, you'd just add more pins and set them to more exotic pins sorts. Like barrel pins or rattle pins so that the player has to think on the fly. Plus every lock can be a puzzle.
And since, breaking lock picks would be way harder to break, time becomes the potional loss. Imagine, trying to quickly crack a lock while guards are wandering around and could notice. So, you have to pick the lock quick and carefully to not have to reset the bind.
I mean, come on, guys. Wouldn't that be kinda cool? Wouldn't you feel way more badass managing to pick the lock stupidly fast and avoid the guards before sliping in unseen? Or managing to figure out the complex pin sequence on the lock? Hell, maybe leveling up would let you "zip" a lower level lock instead of having to manually pick it. Or maybe if you're strapped for time you could try to raking the lock instead, and that would rely on luck instead of lockpicking and so on.
That's fair. I am the sort of person who enjoys games that make the player get more skilled instead of the game just leveling up an in-game character. Such as Soulsbournes, or SWAT 4 and so on. But just because I do like games like that doesn't mean that everyone does.
So here's an alternative. Raking. Raking is a luck bases alternative to having to manual lockpick every part of the lock. That way you can still pick locks and have a skill tied to it without having to manually struggle through every pin.
Another alternative would be to have the Lockpicking mechinsim as a togglible option in settings. That way if you want more simple lock picking it's a simple setting away and we can have the locking picking either just be an animation dependent on the skill of the character or effected by luck or dextarity and so on.
Don't fix it? But games are a creative medium, like art and story telling. The rules should be loose and at best only there as guidelines. Why do you have to follow what everyone else does in the same genre? Games like Ready or Not still are FPS games, but people like it because it's a tacticle shooter and has more limited ammo and health.
Breaking the rules are risky, yes, but if you do it right, you make a genre or at least make a new revolution. At one point, Neo Classicalism was new. At one point Expression was new. Art is supposed to evolve, so just because it not broken, doesn't mean we can't try something else.
Honestly, any game with a focus or option for stealth and basic theivery. It probably would work great with Metal Gear sort of stealth games or maybe a game where you play as an assassin. But honestly, just go for it. If you want to add it to a game genre that has lockpicking why not? It's worth a shot.
Right, so, sadly this might feel nicer on controller. As you can have the left stick be the tension wrench and the right stick be the pick. Maybe let the right trigger guide the pick into the lock and the right stick to gently push down the pin. Plus, heptic feedback.
As for mouse and keyboard, you're going to have to set everything to audio only. Maybe the mouse could still be the tention wrench but the keys on the keyboard but be a bit more tricky. As long as theres foreward, backwards movement to position the pick and some manner to control pressure on the pins, it should work. Maybe make it more simple dfor pc however and remove or limite presure senstivity.
That is true. Hence, maybe let it be possible for there to be other methods to bypass locks. Like, yes, you can pick the front door's lock or you could climb into a window or you can talk to a person to be let it. Maybe that'd work? So a person has to opt into a lockpicking run instead of being stuck having to learn lock picking.
Plus, again, raking is a faster alternative with the challenge of being luck based instead of manually controlled. So, if you want a chest or door open now, you could try raking it and trusting the RNG gods. Or you could got for simple lockpicking in the settings and instead have an animation of your character picking the lock.
I mean, you also get the consistant thing of multiple ways to get something. Like, yes the chest is locked, but one of these guards must have the key. Maybe we can fight them? Or maybe I can pick pocket the key off of them? Or, I'm a strong guy, I can just smash the chest open and grab the contents.
Remember, I am working with the idea of this being an RPG. In stealth based games the idea could be to just be to playtest the game enough the locks only take a few seconds to pop or are spaced out enough to not be a consistant start stop system. Or you can be a real douche and place the lock in a stressful area to make it more stressful.
Now, players who engage with the system more consistantly will be more rewarded. Namely this entire system is based on the idea that a gamer should get more skilled at playing the game rather than their character just getting stat boosts every level.
Of course, most games like this should either be an immersove sim and thus have more options than just lockpicking, or should be very focused on the fantasy of being a theif or assassin or other flavour of sneaky boy. But, even in RPGs I would like to feel like I am a gunslinger if I am a gunslinger ans so... I want to be a theif if I'm a theif.
OF course, like all mechanics, this has to be in a genre that it fits and with player who'd be okay with it. I mean a tactical shooter randomly having you stop the game to cook dinner won't work but a survival game would work with that. Or even a tacticle with survival elements would work better with that change.
Of course, the problem isn't solved with just the solution I had up there. Honestly, anything other than "Skyrim Lockpicking" would make me happy. Hell, a rythum mini-game would make me happy. Just use Dredges fishing mini-game or like, make the player have to mash a few keys or make it a QTE. ANYTHING BUT THE SAME FUCKING MINI-GAME!
You guys can design better than Bethesda. I believe in you. Just trust your ideas and try to be creative with it. At one point someone decided for the first time every to make computer games. At one point in time From Software made their first Souls game. You could make the first of something new. And if not, you tried.