He's a pretty cool guy eh, and doesn't afraid of anything.
http://www.myspace.com/goodhealthmusic
Free albums:
http://goodhealthmusic.tumblr.com/
Albums for purchase:
http://goodhealth.bigcartel.com/
New music:
http://www.thesixtyone.com/goodhealth
The Game
Good Health Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Why can't you see,
We are all the same.
Regardless of where we were born,
We all play the same game.
No, no, no, no no.
Oh you are not alone.
I swear there's a desire deep down to care.
We're slippin' down a slippery slope (----) avalanche
(---) and I wake up from this hypothetic trance.
We gotta be the change we wanna see,
'Cuz every night the (----) is gonna be
And if you really think that you are free,
You've got another thing comin' baby.
I know that I've done wrong.
But I swear I truly just want all of us to get along.
We all have our own sins;
Don't make forget to explain this again.
No, no, no, no no.
Oh you are not alone.
People everywhere,
I swear there's a desire deep down to care.
We're all guilty,
Why can't you see,
We are all the same.
Regardless of where we were born,
We all play the same game.
The lyrics of Good Health's song "The Game" are a poignant commentary on the universality of human experience and the need for empathy and compassion in a world that seems to be slipping into chaos. The opening lines, "We're all guilty, why can't you see, we are all the same," suggest that despite our superficial differences - be they cultural, religious, or ideological - we all share a common humanity and struggle with similar existential questions.
The song's refrain, "No, no, no, no no. Oh, you are not alone. People everywhere, I swear there's a desire deep down to care," speaks to the innate human need for connection and support, highlighting the fact that while we often feel isolated and disconnected, we are all in this together, and there is a shared desire for compassion and kindness that transcends borders and divides.
The song's chorus, "Regardless of where we were born, we all play the same game," suggests that no matter our circumstances, we all face similar challenges in life, and we can find common ground by recognizing that we are all part of the same larger story. The call to action in the song's final lines - "We gotta be the change we wanna see" - challenges listeners to take responsibility for creating the kind of world they want to live in, rather than waiting for someone else to do it for them.
Overall, "The Game" is a powerful and moving reminder that we are all in this together, and that by fostering empathy and compassion, we can build a better world for ourselves and for future generations.
Line by Line Meaning
We're all guilty,
Every person has made mistakes in their life and has something they feel guilty about.
Why can't you see,
The singer is addressing someone and asking them why they can't see the similarities between all people.
We are all the same.
No matter where a person is born or what they look like, they are fundamentally the same as every other person.
Regardless of where we were born,
Where a person is born does not determine their worth or value as a human being.
We all play the same game.
Life is difficult for everyone and we all are struggling to navigate it in our own way.
No, no, no, no no.
The singer is recognizing that what they are saying may not be immediately accepted or understood by the listener.
Oh you are not alone.
Even if a person feels isolated or disconnected from other people, they are not truly alone in their experiences.
People everywhere,
This line acknowledges that people are all around us and we are all connected in some way.
I swear there's a desire deep down to care.
Despite the negative aspects of human existence, the singer believes that everyone has a natural inclination to care for others.
We're slippin' down a slippery slope (----) avalanche
The situation we are in is becoming increasingly dangerous and could cause an avalanche-like event.
(---) and I wake up from this hypothetic trance.
The singer is realizing that they have been living in a sort of dream world where they were not aware of the dangers facing humanity.
We gotta be the change we wanna see,
In order to make things better and improve the world, individuals must take responsibility and make changes in their own lives.
'Cuz every night the (----) is gonna be
The future is uncertain and the singer recognizes that there may be negative consequences to our actions.
And if you really think that you are free,
The singer is suggesting that people may not actually be as free as they think they are.
You've got another thing comin' baby.
The truth may be difficult to accept and people may resist it, but it is still important to strive for a better world.
I know that I've done wrong.
The singer acknowledges that they are not perfect and have made mistakes in their life.
But I swear I truly just want all of us to get along.
Despite their imperfections, the singer's ultimate goal is for everyone to be able to live together in harmony.
We all have our own sins;
Everyone has done something wrong or hurtful to others in their life.
Don't make forget to explain this again.
The singer is reminding the listener not to forget the message of the song and to spread it to others.
Contributed by Kaitlyn C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Midwinter Snow
I remember an old arcade game (I think it was called Avenging Spirit).
It was a rather unique side scroller beat them up. The twist was that you were a ghost. As a ghost you couldn't be attacked and enemies didnt even react to you however your life bar would passively go down rather quickly.
You have to possess enemies, then you become that enemy. Different ones had different stats. Hp, attack damage/range, speed, etc.
When the possessed body dies you go back to ghost mode.
Felt super unique for the time period.
Shawn Wesley
"Health" in games can come in many forms -- especially when you start looking at non-standard games, and branch out beyond videogames. There are card games where you essentially have "health" but it's represented by the cards in your hand and once they're gone you're "dead" or eliminated.
But health is always an abstraction (though I'm sure there's some extremely crunchy tabletop RPG out there that's the exception) because the character doesn't need to go to the hospital, there isn't a need to clean and sanitize wounds, take medication in case of an infection, and wait a week or months or more to heal. Generally, because that wouldn't be fun (but there's always a possible exception) and it'd be very difficult to implement either in a video game or an analog tabletop game.
But since health is probably always an abstraction... what does it really represent? How necessary is it? Some people reason away hit point/health bars as "luck" that turns what should be debilitating damage into near misses. Eventually your luck runs out, you get a fatal hit, and the character dies.
I think that while from a programmer's perspective the distinction isn't all that important (there's a pool of points that get subtracted from, eventually it reaches zero, and that initializes a game-over function or increments a death counter and restarts a section of gameplay), it's really worth it for the designer(s) to contemplate what the "health" system actually represents in the game's setting/fiction or what it could represent and from there decide how to deal with it (functionally, narratively and thematically) running out and how to deal with it replenishing. Is it luck, or mental/physical stress, or actual physical damage, or a guardian spirit or magic protection, armor, or what?
A lot of popular games -- COD especially -- are very creatively lazy in this regard. Just have some blood splatter on the screen that fades over time and call it good. The health packs in DOOM 2016 were a nice change back to the old way of doing things, and a bit better about having an in-universe and game-play related explanation for regaining health. As opposed to just "I got better" after being shot a crap ton.
Elg man
This is a long post on an old video, sorry about that! But i just discovered your content and i'm loving it, and you have inspired me to share some thoughts on the game play mechanics of the health system in one of my fav games. I hope you find it interesting!
DayZ's health system is pretty inspired IMO, perhaps with the caveat that it is rough round the edges and only works in its genre. I see it as a phenomenal system both in how it pursues the game's core objective (survival combat simulation), and also how it manipulates player and multiplayer behaviour. From halo it takes the idea of having multiple health metrics (in this case Bone, Health, Blood and Shock). All of these Regenerate (well, shock depreciates, more on that later), However at varying rates and depending on things like how well fed the player is, and whether their wounds have been treated. Additionally the Bone, and Shock values are hidden from the player, while health is revealed via status messages and blood by fading of screen colour when low.
The REAL genius however is how these metrics interact. Shock is different from all the other stats in that it starts at zero. If bone, health or blood drop to 0 you die, if shock rises above your current blood, you fall unconscious. The player has a natural rate of shock recovery (that is, reduction), and every attack carries a certain amount of shock "damage" based on the weapon, hit location, and armour.
Note that this unconsciousness emerges from the interaction of blood and shock only. Blood can be changed independently by attacks causing blood "damage", but also by attacks causing bleeding (that is, constant blood damage over time. And of course, the lower your blood value is the less powerful an attack is required to knock you out, as the value your shock has to beat to make you unconscious is lower. Additionally if you are bleeding faster than you can recover shock then you will NEVER wake up unless somebody else bandages you. without this aid you will remain unconscious until blood reaches zero, and you die.
The next layer brings long term survival "strategy" into play alongside short term combat "tactics" in a way that rewards both. Your health stat is an abstract measure of how well your basic needs are met. Players who are fed, watered, not sick and not too warm or cold will regenerate health optimally and tend to have a high health stat. Over the medium term (that is 20mins+), health is automatically "spent" by the body to regenerate lost blood. Put simply players whose' basic needs are catered for tend to recover faster from combat, and tend to enter combat with higher blood stat. This makes them less likely to fall unconscious from weaker attacks, able to regain consciousness faster, and able to make more mistakes before they bleed out.
The final stat bone is mysterious somewhat. It may regenerate naturally, if so it does this very slowly indeed (ie many hours), though it can be regenerated using certain health items. This may well be the main cause of death for experienced characters and just makes the game generally more dangerous as you survive longer, arguably simulating that even a well handled survival situation slowly wears you down.
What i love about this, and what made me want to share it here, is how this combine so many elements of what you have discussed in ways that are complicated to describe but just work intuitively when you're playing. Its a true hybrid system that has a health bar, multiple health stats like halo, health as a "currency" and also the gut wrenching low health stress of dark souls.
Your survival skills allow you to survive combat better, and your combat skills reduce the burden on your survival. And when you get knocked out you're never sure if you'll wake up because your buddy saved you or because the guy you tried to rob has tied you up and administered first aid. In the later case maybe you can talk your way out...
Its definitely not for everyone, but it is exquisitely fit for purpose.
Jack Davies
Hi mark,
I’m a huge fan of the series, and I’m pretty sure I’ve seen around 80% of game makers toolkit, with boss keys being the only videos I’ve left to watch. They’re fantastic, and you are so bloody articulate and well presented about such a dear topic to me that I would like to thank you greatly. Thank you.
I was watching your stream earlier today and you replied to someone about how GMTK has the criticism of being full of things ‘we already know’, and I’d like to say that even though I knew a lot already about what you talk about in this particular video, I’d like to point out how the effort that you put into it and your attention to detail goes a very long way.
I’ve been playing a lot of Brawlhalla lately, a smash.bros-style brawler of up to four players with extremely approachable, simple controls — it’s a fantastic party game and very welcoming to new players, however it also has a crazy esports scene and fantastic high level gameplay.
Anyway, within its huge roster of characters is a character modelled off of Tarantino’s Kill Bill, named Hattori. Now this is a reference of course to Hattori Hanzo, the infamous Smith who gives The Bride her blade.
You mentioned a quote from ‘Koji’, about how the developer of a boss had to be able to defeat it without taking a hit. Koji is also a character within Brawlhalla, and it makes me wonder if he were possibly named after the infamous man himself!
Anyway, I found it fascinating that I could be reminded of a completely different game through a real life quote from a developer on a very different game in a video not even 3 minutes in, about health in video games. It’s your commitment to providing varied, detailed videos about abstract topics like these and more that makes me enjoy your videos so much.
Thanks, again, and keep it up. Sincerely, an avid game enthusiast
Aeternal Slime
I think it'd be interesting to see a game that mimics real life by making health during an enemy encounter constant-- no matter how much damage you take, within reason, adrenaline keeps you going-- but then once the encounter is over, you have a health bar tomer, where you have so long to seek medical attention/ heal yourself before your wounds do you in.
Jeremy Canning
I like this, its a good idea. I imagine some hits would be enough to overcome adrenaline, like a knockout punch (or something more violent). Also it seems like adrenaline would wear thin if a fight drags on for too long or the intensity of the encounter falters.
Matthew Wysong
Isabelle Clover Or even have a standard health bar over the health, and when you hit zero, adrenaline kicks in, and you have a minute to make or break your situation. (Like Borderlands Fight for Your Life, but however long you stay in that mode effects the amount of health you get back after you leave it and no debuffs to speed.)
ReservoirFrogs
Isabelle Clover That would stop being cool or fun like immediately
HappyBeezerStudios - by Lord_Mogul
Don't forget that it might take weeks to heal. So once the fight is over and the player seeks medical attention the character is out of the fight for a long time. (Would work in a game with more than one character and which story spans over a fairly long period, something like Xcom or C&C comes to mind. Depending on the severety of the injury a unit might be out of the pool for a certain amount of rounds or even multiple missions)
a8lg6p
GURPS has a pretty interesting system for a tabletop RPG, and fairly realistic, and is super-straightforward to program. You have HP, but if you go below 0, you don't die... But you have to pass a health check to not die... (Roll your attribute score or lower on 3d6, with penalties depending on how injured you are.) I think it's every time you get to a new negative multiple of your HP, so at -10, -20, etc. Until negative 5 times your HP, at which point you're presumably mutilated enough to be automatically dead. I think you also have to make a check every turn to remain conscious. The only wonky part is if you have a really high Health score (and perks like Hard to Kill, and Hard to Subdue), you pretty much never fail your checks, so then it just works like normal hit points, except you die at -50 instead of 0. (Or -10...is that still how D&D works?) (Or more like -90, since the attribute you roll against is the same one that determines your base HP, and you'd have a score of like 17 or 18 to have a good chance of never failing any of those checks...which is considered basically godlike...an attribute at 15 in GURPS is basically like 18 in D&D...and in a super-gritty realistic game, stuff like Hard to Kill might be banned or at least limited...so for a normal human character, it shouldn't be an issue.)
Esoterra
In Hollow Knight the Knight regenerates soul by melee attacking enemies and soul can be spent to use powerful abilities or regenerate health. This rewards masterful melee combat and makes trying to outrange enemies difficult or impossible in the long run
Dinoman972
It also makes using Spells a risky but rewarding thing, since they're pretty powerful and very satisfying to land (no joke, apparently it's possible to defeat Troupe Master Grimm with 6-8 Abyss Shrieks if you have the right charms), but if you miss them you'll waste Soul that you could have used for healing later on. The fact that you can only hold up to 99 Soul (without Soul Vessels) and that each Spell/Focus costs 33 Soul helps too.
EnderallyGolem
There's also the fact it is difficult to regenerate health as it immobilized you a bit, making it easy for you to get hit, especially in bosses
Ben Dunkley
On top of all that, the Hollow Knight soul mechanism allows you to change gameplay style as you progress. Initially you're exploring and killing everything so you can get your precious geo coins, but after a while you just want to get to places you've already been.
You end up jumping over enemies, giving them a quick slash on the way. This lets you top up your soul and your health when retracing your steps, without having to engage and defeat every enemy on the way. The whole Metroidvania experience becomes a lot less arduous.