Uploaded December 2015 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

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The mechanics of life bars. How they work, what they convey and which kind of life bar do you want in your game?

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The threat of death keeps video games exciting and exhilarating, and can really affect how you play. Knowing the condition of your character is important for deciding strategy and urgency, but there is much debate over the best way to display this information. Some games rely on simple numbers and statistics to indicate health, while others choose to represent those numbers with visual cues. Both have their advantages and disadvantages, but what do you prefer? Voice your opinions in the comments!

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ASSET LINKS:

2:19 Super Mario Kart
nintendo.wikia.com/wiki/Super_Mario_Kart

2:19 Sonic The Hedgehog 2
sonic.wikia.com/wiki/Sonic_the_Hedgehog_2

2:19 Mortal Combat
http://199.101.98.242/media/images/34634-Mortal_Kombat_(Europe)-3.jpg

2:19 Dune 2 - The Battle for Arrakis
gamewarior.com/games/9684/dune-ii-the-battle-for-arrakis.html

2:19 Wolfenstein 3D
gamespot.com/articles/the-old-school-beginnings-of-wolfenstein-the-new-order/1100-6418085

3:02 Doom Commercial for 64-Bit Jaguar
youtube.com/watch?v=Rgklh0kDHiI

5:03 Game Design Deep Dive: Amnesia's 'Sanity Meter'
gamasutra.com/view/feature/223931/game_design_deep_dive_amnesias_.php

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MUSIC:

""Oh Damn!"" by CJVSO
https://soundcloud.com/downpitched/cj...

""Digital Sonar"" by Brink

""Mindphuck"" by Known To Be Lethal
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-cyr...

""After Hours""

""Lakes"" by Chooga
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8hns...

""Beautiful Days"" by Extan
https://soundcloud.com/extandnb/beaut...

""Spectrum Subdiffusion Mix"" by Foniqz
https://soundcloud.com/subdiffusion/f...

""Good Way Song"" by Electronic Rescue

""Alice y Bob"" by Javier Rubio and Parsec
https://archive.org/details/escala19_...

""Sleet"" by Kubbi
soundcloud.com/kubbi/kubbi-sleet

""Toaster"" by Kubbi
soundcloud.com/kubbi/toaster

""Patriotic Songs of America"" by New York Military Band and the American Quartet
http://freemusicarchive.org/music/New...

""Lets Go Back To The Rock"" by Outsider
https://www.jamendo.com/en/artist/440...

""Run"" by Outsider
https://www.jamendo.com/en/artist/440...

""Fame"" by Statue of Diveo
https://www.jamendo.com/en/artist/352...

""Freedom Weekends"" by Statue of Diveo
https://www.jamendo.com/en/artist/352...

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Hosted by Jamin Warren (@jaminwar)

See more on games and culture on his site: killscreendaily.com

Made by Kornhaber Brown (http://www.kornhaberbrown.com)