Summary
For all the graphical fidelity and realism that modern developers strive for in other areas, damage and healing from damage are rarely depicted accurately in video games. If they were, any regular action encounter beyond a game’s tutorial would be taken up by three weeks in A&E followed by a 12-24 month stint in physical therapy. Instead, most games have the wound-ridden protagonist wait behind a conveniently placed crate for less time than it takes to tie shoelaces for all their vitality to be fully restored.
In other cases, med kits, food items, or health potions can be found stashed in nooks, crannies, and, occasionally,in the spines of the baddiesfor the player to pick up. However, when healing becomes a whole storyline in and of itself, and since the recovery of such a life-altering event can prevent compelling obstacles for human beings of any capacity to overcome, it is a wonder that more game studios do not look into this often-overlooked aspect of the deadly game of life. Thankfully, a handful of studios have looked into the art of realistic healing and found ways to close the gap between realism and fun.
Of all the places to find realism, it seems far-fetched to expect the wacky,apocalyptic parody of 1950s sci-fi shenanigansto get it right. While the process is basic, theFalloutseries is an early (and famous) example of a video game trying to depict injury differently than a percentile number with a binary (dead or not dead) outcome, thanks to limbs having their own hit points and there being varying consequences for each of them being damaged.
InFallout New Vegas, the “hardcore” mode treats crippled limbs with severity. Only the right tools (a doctor’s bag) or personnel (an actual doctor) can mend a shot leg or a dizzying concussion. Without access to either, the player must suffer the long-term effects of the conditions. Sadly, a fade to black puts just about any condition right. Stim packs break the realism somewhat, but they do take some time to take effect upon use.
Healing inMetal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eatermight be performed through a series of cleverly designed menus that helpfully pause the action around Snake, but mechanically, visually, and narratively, the healing done in this space captures the essence ofabsurd realism found nowhereelse but in a Kojima title. Snake carries with him an arsenal of supplies, tools, and drugs that he can use to fix himself up on the battlefield with remedies that depend on the location and type of injury. Each treatment in the “survival viewer” makes a rational amount of sense (surprising, considering there’s a character that shoots “bullet bees” out of his mouth).
For example, players must apply disinfectant, thread stitches, and bandages to cuts, or Snake will be prevented from returning to full health. In addition, once an injury is healed, they have to wait enough time for Snake’s health (bar) to mend. Players are treated to the occasional mini-cutscene in which Snake performs those grizzly surgeries on himself, such as curing a burn wound or resetting a broken arm.
It’s fair to say that besides the waiting time needed to portray injuries realistically, games have struggled to demonstrate realistic injuries because of the sheer number of ways the body can bebroken, bashed, or breached. InDwarf Fortress, features were emphasized well above graphics, which meant that its creator, Bay 12, could go deep into the simulation of the medical experience.
Provided that a given fortress has a doctor at hand (and one with the right knowledge to treat a specific impairment), players can expect their dwarves to go through the process of healing from just about every bodily trauma imaginable. Cuts, broken bones, infections, and more are expected to heal realistically. Dwarves with severed arms or legs have to learn to adjust to their new situations and will functionally act accordingly (using crutches or being unable to dual-wield, for example).
This entry is a science fiction title, which may be enough to disqualify it from a “realistic healing” discussion, but the sheer depth of the healing mechanics inSpace Station 13does convey the complexity of the medical profession. There is no single “medicine” skill but a plethora of separate disciplines to deal withworse ailments than evenStar Trekwriterscould come up with, including genetic mutations, cosmic burns, deadly toxins, dismembered or dislocated limbs, alien parasites, and much, much more.
Being a medic in this forgotten multiplayer classicis truly a separate class on an almost asymmetrical level. Healers in this infamously complex game must be well-versed, confident, and casual in administering drugs with such intimidating names as “Yobihodazine,” “Proconvertin,” and “Super Hairgrownium” lest they accidentally maim or even kill their patients (or at best, give them anincredible handlebar ‘stache), which would make anyone appreciate why it takes so long to become a doctor in the real world.
From back injuries to lodged bullets,Project Zomboidseems to have it all, which would make sense considering all the body horror possible in a game about trying to avoid getting bitten, scratched, or mauled by zombies in a global apocalypse. Zombies come with their own brand ofslow-lurching terror, so it makes sense that there should be a healing system that takes its time, as well as a suite of bodily harm mechanics that play out over long periods unless treated.
As well as cuts, players have to worry about finding salves that are clean enough to prevent infection. Glass from jumping through a shattered window can get lodged in the body of the player character, and it’s up to them to get it out with tweezers or continue to suffer. The severity mechanic makes it so that specific injuries take longer to heal than others and can depend on the metabolism of the player’s character. Treating wounds is done through a menu, but the process of mending is treated with unparalleled realism.
