I know what you're thinking... how will Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery help revitalize strategic aiming in RPGs? Well that's not the VATS I'm talking about. 
VATS, for those of you that do not know, is Fallout 3's system of injecting RPG gameplay elements into a 1st Person Shooter. Here is a link for more information, if anyone is interested.
The ability to select and attack specific limbs has long been an element in gaming. Hell, even our own RPG has that game element built into it. The problem is that's it's fallen out of use due to it's somewhat annoying nature. It used to be that game developers would design specific bosses or enemies that would require you to hit specific areas of their body in order to deal extra damage.
That is not really the case in Fallout 3. Instead, each portion of the body can be hit and each accomplishes a specific goal. For instance, a body shot can hit successfully from farther away than any other. A head shot typically does more damage. A shot to the arms will cause the enemy to drop their weapon. A shot to the legs will immobilize enemies, allowing you to kill them in leisure. Each has their own specific function and is useful in any fight, regardless of the enemy. It's something that even shooters like GTA4 try to utilize, albeit usually not successfully.
Now finally to the question... since RPGs are becoming more and more real time, like FFXII, do you think a VATS or FFXI system would be a smart idea for future games? (Btw, in FFXI your character will attack an enemy without any input but a menu is always standing by for special attacks, spells, and item usage) And if so, do you think those systems should include independant limb targeting?
VATS, for those of you that do not know, is Fallout 3's system of injecting RPG gameplay elements into a 1st Person Shooter. Here is a link for more information, if anyone is interested.The ability to select and attack specific limbs has long been an element in gaming. Hell, even our own RPG has that game element built into it. The problem is that's it's fallen out of use due to it's somewhat annoying nature. It used to be that game developers would design specific bosses or enemies that would require you to hit specific areas of their body in order to deal extra damage.
That is not really the case in Fallout 3. Instead, each portion of the body can be hit and each accomplishes a specific goal. For instance, a body shot can hit successfully from farther away than any other. A head shot typically does more damage. A shot to the arms will cause the enemy to drop their weapon. A shot to the legs will immobilize enemies, allowing you to kill them in leisure. Each has their own specific function and is useful in any fight, regardless of the enemy. It's something that even shooters like GTA4 try to utilize, albeit usually not successfully.
Now finally to the question... since RPGs are becoming more and more real time, like FFXII, do you think a VATS or FFXI system would be a smart idea for future games? (Btw, in FFXI your character will attack an enemy without any input but a menu is always standing by for special attacks, spells, and item usage) And if so, do you think those systems should include independant limb targeting?