It's only when revisiting older games that we can really tell how much designers have learned and evolved over time. I'm not talking about things here, such as graphics or any kind of design choices like that, but the little things. For example, and inspiration for this post, how in older 3D games there would be times when you completed a task/ opened a lock, or what have you, and the game would trigger a cut-scene showing you a door unlocking or something, and then cut back to where you were. Fine, right? Except, wait, the camera cut didn't give you any indication of where that door you unlocked was, and the brief scene you were shown was framed in such a way, or the environment around it was so nondescript, that you have no sense of direction on where you're supposed to go. It wasn't long before developers started flying the camera either to or from the indicated area to let the player know where they were headed, but for a while there finding the way to unlock a door was only half of the scavenger hunt. HUD options are another little lesson we're seeing more of, but not nearly enough of yet.
Then there are some things that only most developers have learned, or at least are able to implement. These could be things like allowing cutscenes to be skipped (assuming it isn't hiding a loading zone of course), or allowing the player to do something (anything) during dedicated loading screens. Bayonetta is among the best at this, allowing you to practice combos, but even the way Assassin's Creed games let you just run around a blank environment is better than nothing. The best solution would be if games could put proper mini-games in the loading screens, but that's actually patented by Namco, so unless they give that up we're out of luck.
Think of all the little advances we've made that we don't even realize until some outlier of a game comes along and doesn't have it. From simple options like subtitles or adjusting aim sensitivity, to bigger things like customization controls, or even just alternate control schemes. With the exception of subtitles, which has a ton of variations and work that could be done just on that subject, I haven't even really mentioned the wave of accessibility features and options. Personally, after subtitles, colorblind mode was the first I saw getting a substantial push, but I'm glad to see more and more little options and features added to games for people who might not be able to enjoy games without that tweak. On a macro level Microsoft's new adaptive controller is fantastic and something that all console makers should be able to provide. Gaming has grown to the point where not serving people who have disabilities of any kind, on a software or hardware level, is not acceptable anymore. Honestly, it hasn't been acceptable for a really long time if we think about it. I kind of ran off my original topic there, but that's just where this thought train took me, and I hope you found something of value on this detour.
There's plenty here I'd like to see opinions on. What little lessons would you miss most if games stopped having them? What are things only some games offer that you'd like to see become a standard? What are your thoughts on making games more accessible? What needs are not being met yet, and how do you think they could? Say whatever you like, really. Talking about things like this is one way our industry can move forward.
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