HUD (video Gaming) - Reduction of Elements

Reduction of Elements

Sometimes, for the sake of realism, information normally displayed in the HUD is instead disguised as part of the scenery or part of the vehicle in which the player is traveling. For example, when the player is driving a car that can sustain a certain number of hits, a smoke trail might appear when the car can take only two more hits, fire might appear from the car to indicate that the next hit will be fatal. Wounds and bloodstains may sometimes appear on injured characters who may also limp, stagger, slouch over or breathe heavily to indicate they are injured, a notable example being Resident Evil 2.

In rare cases, no HUD is used at all, leaving the player to interpret the auditory and visual cues in the gameworld. The elimination of elements has hardly become a trend in game development nowadays, but can be witnessed in several titles as of late. Some classic examples of games without HUDs are Silent Hill 2, Jurassic Park: Trespasser, Ico, The Getaway, Fable III, Another World, Mirror's Edge, King Kong (however it can be turned on and off, at the player's will.), Dead Space, Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth, and Resident Evil.

An upcoming game promising no HUD is Aliens: Colonial Marines.