10 Hidden Video Game Mechanics With MAJOR Consequences
7. A Smelly Affair - Half-Life
Most of the innovations Half-Life has introduced into the gaming industry can be seen with the naked eye, but the game also features a few hidden mechanics that are just as impressive.
One of them is the simple but game-changing smell system.
Though most Half-Life players have never realized it, the game does include a separate mechanic related to the sense of smell. If you've ever wondered why so many guards in the game complain about the odor, that's why.
The game's script includes three different types of smells: meat, carcass, and garbage. Only the first two are used in the game, but even then, understanding them can completely change your game.
You see, each corpse in the game generates smells, and the more of them you pile up in the area, the stronger the smell.
Each AI in the game is scripted to react to the odor, and the aliens in the game are specifically programmed to be attracted to the smell of corpses, meaning that the more dead bodies you leave behind, the more monsters you're going to encounter.
So if you don't want to be swarmed by ravenous beasts all the time, you'd best not go on killing sprees and keep each room tidy.
This advice also applies to real life, by the way…