Hi Tom.
That is perfectly true and in fact the way you've built the wrestling game
sounds extremely logical, however this wasn't exactly what I was thinking of
when I raised the topic of multiple characters, sinse your wrestling
game, ---- even though it is obviously themed around wrestling, sounds like
it uses character stats and combat far more like an rpg, indeed what you've
said about strength and speed could be equally well represented in Entombed,
D&D, 7th sea or any other reasonably good turn based combat system. In such
systems as you said, it's the differences in the characters' stats and what
combat actions the player decides upon in order to most prominantly bennifit
from those differences that will win the day, whether it's a wrestling
match, a fight with swords and magic, or (as in the weekly mutants game I
play), a fight in a modern day setting betwene super heroes and villains.
When i speak about different characters in games, I was rather more thinking
about action based 2D or fps games, that usually have just the one
character. there, the environment and dangers faced by the character will be
the same, but it is the players own reactions, ability to learn the game and
also learn how that character handles from an instinctive basis that will
make as much difference as the inherent difference betwene the character and
enemies.
For instance, in Mega man x4, you can play as either x or zero.
X fights with the usual mega man style buster, which can fire either several
small bullits or be charged to fire a larger and more powerful shot. he also
gets different projectile weapons by defeating each boss, and can gain
armour created for him by Dr. Light that gives him several advantages such
as taking half damage, enhancing his buster or letting him dash in mid air.
Zero however fights with his Z saber (similar to a light saber). This is
only a close range weapon and has no charge attack (he doesn't get that
until the Mega man zero series), but can cover a wider area vertically as
well as do combos.
Zero can also perform a double jump, letting him be more mobile in the air
than X, and instead of projectile weapons, he gets techniques with his sword
such as a spinning slash attack in the air or a rising slash.
Thus, while X remains at a distance, avoiding projectiles and chucking in
powerful shots, Zero needs to mix things up, gett in close and use his
techniques to play in a far more fluid style, chaining the rising slash into
an areal slash for instance.
It's also interesting that some sections or enemies that one character has
trouble with, are absolutely destroyed by the other. For instance most
bosses are far harder with Zero because you need to get in close and because
he doesn't always have an obvious weapon weakness to do super damage like X,
however the final form of Sigma I found incredibly easy with Zero thanks to
his ability to block shots with his sabre and double jump.
This is the sort of thing I mean, two characters in an action setting that
go through largely the same environment, but possess overall different
properties or weapons that mean the gameplay completely changes.
Beware the grue!
Dark.
---
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