Hi everyone,

In games where most of the combat is hand-to-hand or close-range (swords, etc), how do you prefer to block attacks? In Assassin's Creed, you can be hit from behind, even if you are holding the block button. In Prince of Persia, all you have to do is hold the button and the Prince will block every attack, no matter which direction it comes from (this is based entirely on the demo, I've never played the full game).

So, which do you prefer? Would you prefer to block all attacks, or be left open to some?

Blocking every attack seems like it could be easily abused (although that could be balanced a little by preventing the player from attacking while blocking or immediately after the block), and being left open to some attacks would increase the difficulty and make the game more interesting/exciting.

I liked the system in Ninja Gaiden - blocking made you essentially invulnerable, which was balanced by enemies being extremely aggressive and taking advantage of any opening you left. The odd enemy would employ a sticky bomb or something similar which was unblockable and this was enough to prevent abuse.

I too like the Ninja Gaiden approach, cept what Wavy seems to be talkign abuot is more like Ninja Gaiden 2's approach.

In Ninja Gaiden/Black, you block all of those pesky sticky shurikens, but you can be grabbed out of your block, and thsoe are the big damage doers.

Generally in 3D combat, it can be difficult to adjust your facing to match the direction an attack is coming from, especially when you're surrounded by multiple enemies. I'm not saying it's impossible, but it's not easy, especially if you only have a few frames between finishing whatever it is you're currently doing and starting the block.

My generally preferred mechanism for 3D combat is to encourage the player to get out of the way of attacks, rather than dodge them. Devil May Cry pioneered this approach (as far as I'm aware) -- just don't give the player a block button. Instead, give them agile dodging capabilities, preferably with plenty of invincibility frames on the dodge. This keeps combat fluid since the player either has to keep every enemy stunned to keep them from attacking, or has to be ready to move out at a moment's notice if one of the enemies starts an attack.

Having played Devil May Cry extensively, I've found that when I play other 3D combat games that have block buttons, I practically never use them, since I'd rather roll (if the game supports it) or just jump (if not) out of the way.

or you could do something simplified like the original legend of zelda and the amazing game Flotilla; make blocking automatic from a given side, so that the player can concentrate more on where he's facing than which button he's pressing, and focus on one mechanic.