Realism
Video game theme
9
games
2platforms
Any concepts relating to bits of realism, especially when they are uncommon in video games. These are not necessarily any kind of simulation but rather binary facts about the gameplay or the setting.
Notable people involved: Vander Caballero, Samuel Goddard, Calvin Bennett, Gwennaël ARBONA and Frédéric BERTOLUS
See also: feedback/impact, simulation elements
Contrast:
* Game-like elements
* Unrealism / Logic errors
Contrast:
* Game-like elements
* Unrealism / Logic errors
Games by year
Minority Media, Noble Empire, Fishing Planet and Focus Studios published most of these games.
Most common companies
Child groups
| Addiction | The protagonist - and possibly other characters - may get addicted to one or more substances. | 2008 / 2021 | 18 games | |
| Aging | Characters, especially the protagonist, age over time and possibly die from it (eventually). | 1985 / 2020 | 47 games | |
| Allergies | Simulates allergies to a degree. | 1996 / 2015 | 2 games | |
| Ambient temperature | Player interacts with environmental heat and/or cold. | 1987 / 2020 | 43 games | |
| Ammo reload: Realistic | Upon reloading a weapon, the previous clip/mag is discarded or stored back as partial clip/mag instead of filling the current clip/mag with the number of missing bullets. | 1986 / 2014 | 19 games | |
| Bleeding | Protagonist and other characters may get severe wounds that bleed profusely, eventually leading to the character's death if not taken care of. | 1994 / 2018 | 50 games | |
| Consistent damage | Any damage dealt or received is constant with no arbitrary fluctuation. | 1985 / 2016 | 19 games | |
| Dark space | Outer space is realistically depicted as dark/black place instead of the usual colorful juice spill. | 1977 / 2019 | 193 games | |
| Defense breaking | Defenses can be broken, disrupted, or otherwise temporarily or permanently negated. A shield flung aside, struck so hard the person staggers and can't parry for a sec, etc. | 2000 / 2022 | 45 games | |
| Destructible items | Items that the player can pick up and use, place in their inventory and so forth can be destroyed while lying about. | 1991 / 2015 | 40 games | |
| Environmental contact | Tools, weapons, etc. can touch the environment instead of acting as if they were simply 2D printouts on your HUD or passing through everything as if they were air. | 2008 / 2017 | 19 games | |
| Fall impact | Falling down a significant height causes the character to recoil from the impact, roll across the floor, or otherwise react to the impact force. | 1990 / 2024 | 167 games | |
| Fatigue | Characters suffer from extended periods exertion or staying awake, ranging from simple fatigue to more drastic ailments. Usually fixed by a good night's rest. | 1982 / 2023 | 62 games | |
| Friendly Fire | Player can attack their own side purposefully or by accident or be attacked themself in similar manner. | 1979 / 2018 | 228 games | |
| Full body awareness | First person games where when you look down you see your body (legs, pelvis, torso, etc.) instead of nothing (just hands/arms are not enough). Not including cases limited to scripted sequences, cinematics, or others where player control is limited. | 1984 / 2019 | 116 games | |
| Imperfect healing | Any immediate healing the player can use can not accomplish perfect results. | 1992 / 2018 | 9 games | |
| Imperfect recovery | Player can't ever recover fully from received wounds, transformations, and such. | 2006 / 2013 | 6 games | |
| Injuries | Getting wounded has much broader effects beyond simple loss of health points. | 1988 / 2020 | 103 games | |
| Item durability | Items wear down with use, rust and otherwise degrade with time or from being subjected to the elements. | 1981 / 2023 | 160 games | |
| Malfunctioning | Tools, vehicles, and whatever else have a possibility to malfunction under certain conditions, though usually only when they become too worn down. | 1978 / 2018 | 55 games | |
| Miscommunication | It is normal for communication to be perfect in fiction unless it is for plot, thus this signifies such troubles occur either on their own or as part of the plot. | 1992 / 2024 | 14 games | |
| No crosshair | There's no targeting crosshair on the HUD. | 1979 / 2016 | 33 games | |
| NPC friendly fire | NPCs - especially those opposing the protagonist - can harm their allies, accidentally or intentionally. | 1996 / 2021 | 57 games | |
| Overheating | Devices overheat and the player must deal with them either by waiting for them to cool down or forcibly cooling them somehow. | 1984 / 2019 | 69 games | |
| Pain | Getting hit, falling significant heights, being electrocuted, etc. cause the subjected character (especially in case of the protagonist) to reel in pain or otherwise temporarily becoming incapacitated. | 1994 / 2021 | 53 games | |
| Realistic damage | 1985 / 2015 | 51 games | ||
| Recoil | Simulates recoil to some degree, throwing aim off target rather than usual bullet dispersion increasing for a moment or simply nothing at all. | 1997 / 2017 | 59 games | |
| Resting | Player character can or must rest occasionally, usually to combat fatigue or for other restorative purposes. | 1983 / 2023 | 172 games | |
| Rotting | Organic substances, especially those used for food, eventually rot and spoil. | 1985 / 2024 | 58 games | |
| Scarring | Getting injured creates permanent scarring or similar markers of the injury. | 1994 / 2016 | 6 games | |
| Silent void | No sound is transmitted across the vacuum of space. | 2008 / 2013 | 7 games | |
| Stamina | Simulates character's ability to continuously perform strenuous physical activity such as running, carrying heavy objects and so on, draining the character's stamina and eventually preventing farther work-out before resting. | 1993 / 2024 | 233 games | |
| Static health | Player character's maximum health never increases permanently (short-lived boosts are allowed). | 0 game | ||
| Stray fire | Missed shots can actually hit something. | 1994 / 2015 | 22 games | |
| Unprotected inventory | Items in your inventory can be damaged or destroyed. | 1994 / 2015 | 7 games | |
| Unrestricted violence | Player is free to hurt and kill [i]anyone[/i], from random pedestrians to puppies. | 1981 / 2020 | 105 games |