| zeldaring said:
So 4 games in decades of gaming, and crisis was not a huge success, half life did good but nothing amazing. BOTW main selling point was freedom/exporation and not physics. TOTK is like the first real one but it's also riding botw massive success. Graphics are much bigger selling point. |
I feel like you made this comment without doing much research.
Games like FIFA and Madden are extremely popular, and they constantly advertise updated and improved ball physics. FIFA in particular is actually pretty great at simulating the way a ball moves, bounces, loses speed due to traction, etc. (Which is why some FIFA games, like FIFA 20, were blasted for it's poor physics)
Half Life 2s gameplay is centered around physics (hence the gravity gun). Half Life Alyx also uses enhanced physics for the realism of the world. Half Life 2 and Alyx are both considered some of the best games of their time, so saying that they merely did "good" is an understatement.
BotW was absolutely praised for its physics at the time. That's how people have so much freedom to solve puzzles the way they want. A quick Google search can show you results of people praising BotWs physics, from developers, to the media, to random people on Reddit.
Red Faction series praised itself on its physical based interactions. The first two used a geo mod system where you could create your own pathways anywhere, but Guerilla (the most popular entry) was about demolishing buildings with realistic physics applied to them.
Kerbal Space Program and Microsoft Flight Simulator are both popular (albeit less than BotW), and physics is central to its entire gameplay
Rainbow Six Siege uses destruction and physics simulation in order to enhance the gameplay dramatically. You have to account for people making their own doors, not just watching the doors that are made. You can shoot through walls, floors, doors, etc. Which can be an advantage or a disadvantage depending upon how you use it.
The Sniper Elite series prides itself on its realistic ballistics simulation. Star Wars Jedi uses physics for it's puzzles, GTAV has a huge community that does nothing but have fun with the physics in the game.
Human Fall Flat, Portal series, Goat Simulator, Gary's Mod, Crysis series, Teardown, Far Cry 2, Star Wars The Force Unleashed series, Crackdown series, the Worms series, Max Payne 3, Red Dead Redemption 2, Uncharted 4, Skate series, etc. All of these games use physics as part of it's general gameplay to varying degrees. Some more so than others, but all of them wouldn't have the same impact without them.
In fact, I recommend you go to the Havok engine website right now and look at all the games that use the Havok Engine for physics. It's A LOT of games. Surprising ones too, like Crash Team Racing and Assassins Creed. That's not even the only physics engine either.
Here I provided you with new games, old games, popular games, unpopular games, games with physics centered gameplay and games where physics just enhances the gameplay. I also provided you with MUCH more than 4, so I am expecting not to see any excuses for why certain things don't count.
Now, does anyone do it like TotK? No way...but that's why it's so impressive. This idea that TotK created the idea that "physics are fun" shouldn't be spread. People have been having fun with physics for decades now. TotK just pushed that fun even further by expanding in ways no other developer has ever done before.
