Recently, I've had this idea of combat being more reactive, where you alternate between offensive and defensive abilities. Make it more like a real fight, where you actively defend against attacks and find / create openings to get in a satisfyingly impactful strike.

April 05, 2026 - 12:15 UTC

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Instead of blindly copying existing combat mechanics, stop and ask yourself, what would fighting *actually* be like in this world? How would you imagine group combat or taking down a large monster in a cutscene? Take that mental image and do what you can to create that feeling in gameplay.
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Oh, and actually add gameplay mechanics and interactions other than just a series of enemies to grind away at. Early FFXIV dungeons tentatively tried this, before they abandoned it in favour of pure streamlined "enemy corridor, boss, repeat". 🫠
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