Line #22 Main/SoftReset


1	Although it has different meanings depending on the type of technology, this is mainly about the video game version, which is restarting the game without rebooting the system (i.e., a Hard Reset). This is mostly to save power (especially in handhelds) and time (especially in disc systems, which have long boot-ups). Modern consoles tend to have this built into the system, where pressing a specific button brings up a menu that allows you to quit your current game and return to the system menu.
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3	This can take two forms:
4	# Choosing to return to the title screen from one of the game menus. This is so common that [[Administrivia/PeopleSitOnChairs it doesn't really need examples]] (save for any game that [[PlayingWithATrope plays with it]]).
5	# Pressing a button combination that returns to either the title screen or just before.
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7	A soft reset can have the effect of leaving [[UsefulNotes/RandomNumberGenerator the randomization values]] the same as they were before the restart, whereas a game or system with hardcoded starting values will return to the first string of values on hard reset.
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9	!!Examples:
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11	[[AC:UsefulNotes/{{Arcade\|Game}}]]
12	* Arcade machines typically have some kind of "Test" button that boots the machine to a menu for configuration or testing. This also effectively resets the software without rebooting the machine entirely.
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14	[[AC:Consoles]]
15	* The Platform/GameBoy may have been the TropeMaker for the second form. Since the startup process took up extra energy, this was likely a way to save battery life. The combination is Start, Select, A, and B all at once. The Game Boy Color and the Game Boy Advance had this as well.
16	** [[http://fms.komkon.org/GameBoy/Tech/GameBoy.gif Schematics show]] that the cartridge was in charge of the reset line of the processor. This meant the software was responsible for resetting the device or at least handling the input.
17	** The GBA port of ''VideoGame/TalesOfPhantasia'' was a rare game that didn't have this option.
18	** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'' also didn't have the function. Instead, that combination was used to bring up the save game screen. A lot of people were confused, probably because they thought it would reset the game if they tried it (an NPC in Mabe village helpfully points this feature out, though.)
19	* Like the Platform/GameBoy, SNES cartridges have a reset line that can hardware reset the system, as well as the cartridge itself, in the case if it uses a co-processor. Of course, since the SNES has a physical reset switch, activating this through software was rare.
20	* Nintendo DS games instead have the combination of Start, Select, L, and R, almost certainly because Start and Select got moved to the other side of the system.
21	** This combination is very useful when SaveScumming -- going through the main DS menus takes longer, after all.
22	** On the Platform/NintendoDSi, a quick press of the power button will take you to the system menu.
23	* The 3DS in general has the classic L + R + Start or Select for soft resetting the games. This is probably because it'll take longer to go to the Home menu, quit the game, then restart it.
24	* The [[Platform/SegaDreamcast Dreamcast]] and [[Platform/SegaSaturn Saturn]] both had requirements set by Sega where pressing Start+A+B+C (Saturn) or Start+A+B+X+Y (Dreamcast) would cause the game to return to the title screen, or, if already at the title screen, the system boot menu.
25	* The [=TurboGrafx=]-16 had a soft reset activated with select + run.
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27	[[AC:Games]]
28	* [[Creator/SquareEnix Square Enix]] games typically had soft reset combination that was consistent. On the SNES, it was L + R + Start + Select. On the [=PlayStation=] family, it's L1 + R1 + Start + Select. Or in the [=PlayStation 4=]'s case, L1 + R1 + Start + Touchpad button
29	** Some notable exceptions are ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII'', which had a way to return to the title screen from the pause menu, and ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII''.
30	** The PC version of ''VideoGame/TheLastRemnant'' has this by hitting Ctrl + Alt + Shift + R.
31	* ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors'' games let you return to the main menu by pressing Start and Select at the same time.
32	* The button combination that quits out of a mode in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' and sequels is L+R+A+Start. If it's a single-player mode like Target Smash/Blast, it's just Z. When using the Wii Remote and the Nunchuk, it's either A+B+1/2+"+" (for the remote alone) or Z+B+1+"+" (for the remote and Nunchuk).
33	* People grinding raid reputations in ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' usually use a soft reset found under the raid leader's "Reset instances" button that has a fundamentally similar effect. This resets all the trash before a boss, letting you kill them multiple times (note that this doesn't work when a boss dies).
34	* Many games used Start + Select to boot back to the main menu or perform a similar reset function, such as the ''Videogame/{{Tekken}}'' series, the home versions of ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution'', the first two ''VideoGame/{{Tenchu}}'' games, and ''[[VideoGame/MonsterRancher Monster Rancher 2]]'' (where you have to hold them for 10-20 seconds to avoid accidental pressings).
35	* Some {{Creator/Konami}} games on Platform/PlayStation 1 have the Start / Select / L1 / L2 / R1 / R2 input too. These include ''VideoGame/MitsumeteKnight'', ''VisualNovel/TokimekiMemorial Private Collection'', and ''Tokimeki Memorial Taisen Puzzle Dama''.
36	* Subverted with ''VideoGame/ShadowHeartsFromTheNewWorld'' -- while it ''claims'' to have one in the manual, the combination listed doesn't actually work.
37	* The second and third games in the ''VideoGame/WayOfTheSamurai'' series have soft reset methods. The second game requires all four shoulder buttons pressed along Select and Start, while the third game reduces it to just Select and Start.
38	* The ''VideoGame/MegaManX Collection'' has the L1 + R1 + Start + Select to go back to the game launcher.
39	* ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'' implement its own custom L + R + (+) + (-) due to the Switch not having the built in soft reset of the 3DS

Context Main / SoftReset