10 More Video Games That Punished You For Trying To Be Cool
7. Running Drains Your HP - Lunar: Dragon Song
Running may not seem that cool, but you know what is cool? Saving time by moving as fast as humanly possible.
But Japan Art Media, the developers of 2005's Nintendo DS RPG Lunar: Dragon Song, apparently took issue with this and decided to teach impatient players a lesson.
Basically, those who want to run everywhere will soon enough realise that sprinting actually depletes your damn HP, with 1 HP being knocked off every couple of seconds. If your HP gets low enough, the game will then flat-out stop you from sprinting at all until you're in better shape.
It goes without saying that literally running your HP down can be hugely disadvantageous during battles, potentially resulting in a frankly unfair death simply because you... decided not to walk everywhere.
This was presumably an attempt to discourage players from just running past mobs out in the world, but the fact that the mechanic remains in the game's towns is so, so stupid.
It wouldn't be quite so bad were the game's walking speed not molasses-slow, and so it's little surprise that Lunar: Dragon Song was a critical and commercial flop upon release. Who's got time in their life for nonsensical "punishment" mechanics like this?