Hello, Are You There?

[A True Canadian]

Have you ever noticed that when you take a break from a game for a while (i.e. leave because of a phone call, go eat dinner, etc.) without pressing the pause button, when you come back the characters on screen are taking a break too?

I used to find this hilarious when I was a kid. Not all games have this feature, but it's always funny when you find the ones that do. It's almost like an easter egg the developers threw in there for kicks. :E

The most memorable one for me is from the Commander Keen series. If you're in a level, and don't move Keen for a while, he'll start tapping his foot impatiently waiting for you to do something. Eventually, he'll decide to sit down and read the oversized book he was apparently carrying in his back pocket. And when you finally press a button Keen will stand up, but his book away, and get back to work.

Another game that did this was the "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" game I recieved in a box of cereal. This game actually had Regis doing the voiceover and acting as host. After a while, Regis would start asking if you're still there if you don't press any keys for a few minutes. Eventually, Regis gives up, insults you, and then the game would shut itself down.


So what other games can you guys think of where the characters show some personality when you leave them alone for a bit?

 

[Qonfused]

Another game that did this was the "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" game I recieved in a box of cereal. This game actually had Regis doing the voiceover and acting as host. After a while, Regis would start asking if you're still there if you don't press any keys for a few minutes. Eventually, Regis gives up, insults you, and then the game would shut itself down.

I remember that!

:cheers:

 

[AmishSlayer]

Lots of old sidescrollers and platformers have this kind of stuff.

One that comes to mind is Sonic. I remember that Sonic and Tails would sit down and play checkers for a while and do other stuff too

Mario takes a nap in Sunshine when you leave it sitting for a while too.

 

[Ennui]

loads of game have idle animations like this

 

[A True Canadian]

loads of game have idle animations like this

That's the phrase I was looking for: Idle Animations.


Here's another:

In Earthworm Jim video games, the suit would pull Jim out and use him as a skipping rope. I also remember Jim would play around with his gun and accidently shoot himself with it.

 

[Ennui]

donkey kong 64 had a bunch if i remember correctly

 

[Uriel]

Duke Nukem
Blood
Commander Keen (if you idled on a moon shape on the ground on a certain level, he would moon you.

 

[JNightshade]

I remember that! In Vectorman 2 for Sega Genesis, Vectorman would pull two of the orbs from his body and juggle them. Win.

 

[B-MAn]

Conkers Bad Fur day had quite a few aswell from drinking beer to looking at squirrel porn

 

[Asuka]

Crash Bandicoot for ps1

All did had some fun stuff.

 

[DEATHMASTER]

Another game that did this was the "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" game I recieved in a box of cereal. This game actually had Regis doing the voiceover and acting as host. After a while, Regis would start asking if you're still there if you don't press any keys for a few minutes. Eventually, Regis gives up, insults you, and then the game would shut itself down.

I still have that game (although I dont play it anymore)

 

[Raxxman]

Alfred Chicken would pull out a gameboy and play it.

Link will fall asleep in OOT

Jimmy Whites Whirlwind, either flys would come onto the screen or the balls would get eyes and teeth and smile at you.

 

[Pauly]

Sonic would tap his foot as well =p

Super Mario 64, Mario would go sleep on the ground and have a dream about pasta.

 

[Loke]

Shadow of the Colossus, well not necessarily the main character but Agro, the black horse has some very impressive idle animations. He'll run around an area, eat some grass and if you're near a lake or a small pool of water, he'll walk over and drink.

Red Faction had some cool too. Every weapon had one type of animation that played after 3-5 minutes. With the rail gun, the player opened up the weapon and looked into the barrel etc.

 

[Noobulon]

Conker's Bad Fur Day had the best ones ever. Conker starts heckling the player ("Anyone there?".... "Has he died?"). Then he'll do all sorts of crazy stuff to alleviate his boredom. It was great when he whipped out a giant Old-Skool "Brick" Gameboy and proceeded to play Killer Instinct on it

zoom in the camera and you could see the sprites and everything!


It was also good when he drank a beer, crushed the can, and kicked it into the far distance. If you had the camera at the perfect angle when he did it, the beer would hit the camera and bounce off the 'inside' of your telly
Excellent

 

[Krynn72]

Conker's Bad Fur Day had the best ones ever. Conker starts heckling the player ("Anyone there?".... "Has he died?"). Then he'll do all sorts of crazy stuff to alleviate his boredom. It was great when he whipped out a giant Old-Skool "Brick" Gameboy and proceeded to play Killer Instinct on it

zoom in the camera and you could see the sprites and everything!


It was also good when he drank a beer, crushed the can, and kicked it into the far distance. If you had the camera at the perfect angle when he did it, the beer would hit the camera and bounce off the 'inside' of your telly
Excellent

Hahah, Oh boy those were great. Conker's and Mario's are the only idle animations i remember.

Mario would also whip out a yo-yo and start playing with that.

 

[JFry]

Perhaps the oldest idle animation around.. If anybody remembers the game world runner for NES the guy would sit down and smoke a cigarette.

 

[Slacker]

I was playing World of Warcraft once and I left to take a dump without logging off, and when I came back my character was dead down with a Troll laughing over his corpse! Man that was a funny remember to not go AFK without loggin!

 

[JNightshade]

Also, it's worth mentioning that BF2 has these. My favorites are the M249 and M95- for the M249, you stroke the top of it like an animal, while for the M95, you play around with a ring hanging off the side of the gun, and eventually get your finger caught in it. Funny stuff

 

[_Z_Ryuken]

Conkers Bad Fur day had quite a few aswell from drinking beer to looking at squirrel porn

My favorite of his was when he pulled out a gameboy and played Killer Instinct.

Oogity bah! Endokyuken!

 

[B-MAn]

My favorite of his was when he pulled out a gameboy and played Killer Instinct.

Oogity bah! Endokyuken!

I cant remember anymore apart from the ones already mentioned. I think he has a yoyo and a glass of milk aswell

 

[A True Canadian]

I really should find a way to play Conker's Bad Fur Day again (regretted not buying it for the N64, and I hear the XBOX version is inferior because of the sound buffer delaying the audio).


In one of the Sonic games (I think it was Sonic the Headgehog 3), Knuckles will start shadow boxing if there's no activity.

In GTA: San Andreas, Carl will start singing...badly.

 

[Hypnosos]

In Jazz Jackrabbit 2 Jazz starts tapping his foot as he was saying "common...?". Hehe... long time since I played that one.

 

[Kouler]

Duke Nukem 3D, if you idle for too long, he will crack his knuckles and say "What are you waiting for, Christmas?"

 

[Adabiviak]

The first one I remember was American McGees 'Alice'. She'd do funny stuff with her weapons.

 

[Unfocused]

"What are you waiting for? Christmas?"

 

[Noobulon]

Earthworm Jim - he twirled his gun in a gung-ho fashion, only to have it go off in his face. He did some other cool stuff too.


Another one I just remembered from Conker's BFD - he'd pull out a gold pocket watch and examine it closely. Followed by:

"Nope, still can't tell the time!"

 

[Dog--]

I remember that! In Vectorman 2 for Sega Genesis, Vectorman would pull two of the orbs from his body and juggle them. Win.

Ohhh.. I remember Vectorman, best game of my childhood, never knew they made #2, though..

On topic
In San Andreas, carl starts looking around, and checks out all the booty.. It zooms in on woman ass..

 

[Jintor]

That's right. If you leave it in San Andreas, the camera starts acting like there's a bored cameraman behind it... swinging around randomly, zooming in on booty...