Just a glowy sword thing and a useless caption: Limit Break

"Shows us how it's done" captions need to die.

In a fire.

While being violated by said fire.

And the fire is wearing a spiked condom.

edited 21st Mar '11 6:34:07 AM by Scardoll

I actually vote the Peggle one for being unique while showing the effects XD

Actually, shouldn't a limit break be a powerful special attack? That's what it is about, anyway.

It doesn't have to be an attack. Need For Speed has a speed boost, for example, and Guitar Hero has a point boost. The point of the trope is that you fill up some kind of a meter to unleash your Limit Break.

I guess I shouldn't put this forward, but I'm way too snarky not to.◊

This would require a multi part image. Someone not having a limit break, the trigger, and then the limit break.

Lol, I'm putting that on Image Links.

I think we can definitely fit multiple elements into one frame and also get away with not showing every single facet of the trope.

EDIT: Posting glitch. Ignore.

edited 21st Mar '11 1:49:40 PM by DragonQuestZ

Before and after are mutually exclusive from being shown in a single frame. Limit Break is a before and after trope. That's why this needs a multi part picture.

I disagree; I think we can show it more minimalistically. For an extreme example, if, hypothetically, final smashes in Super Smash Bros Brawl were limit breaks (which they aren't but bear with me), we obviously wouldn't need to pair this◊ with an image of Samus not shooting a giant laser beam that fills half the screen.

Yes, like I said, it's not actually a Limit Break.

edited 21st Mar '11 2:09:54 PM by troacctid

That could, frankly just be an cool combo, a flashy but weak move, or a simply overpowered attack. It doesn't show the requirements aspect of the trope.

It's actually just an overpowered attack AFAIK.

I know that you said that it's not. Te thhing is that even if it was, it wouldn't make a good image, for aforementioned reasons.

Bumping because this thing needs to be resolved.

Looked through the Super Smash Bros Brawl website, found some good Final Smashes, which are Limit Breaks.

Mario Final Smash◊

Link◊

Yoshi◊

Samus Before◊

Samus After◊

Basically, I feel like any of these could work, as a Limit Break is a special super huge attack which you can't normally use, and the whole glowing eyes and big attack sort of indicates that.

I didn't think that Final Smashes were Limit Break attacks.

Arnt they Item power up moves?

Of those, I like the "Samus after" pic the best, provided they actually fit the trope.

edited 5th Apr '11 6:05:35 PM by Willbyr

A powerful attack or technique available after some requirement during battles is fulfilled.

This is the only real definition on the page, which seems to be rather poorly described - there's instances of "sometimes occurs when" but no other concrete definition. I'd say that smashing a rare, floating, glowing ball and getting an extra powerful attack is something which is considered a Limit Break.

Good enough for me. I guess I was thinking in terms of the Trope Namer where you need significant physical damage.

First of all, let's clear up the definition. We need to agree on this before we can agree on a good image. Trust me.

A Limit Break is:

• A technique or attack. Disposable weapons, such as bombs in Contra, get an honorable mention.
• The best at what it does (such as damage or inflicting the Standard Status Effects... All of Them), or at least obviously intended to be. If it's surpassed, it's by another Limit Break or extraordinary circumstances, like you're at a point where you've reached the damage Cap and the LB only hits once, so the one-two punch does twice as much damage. Or the LB isn't affected by equipment boosts, so having all the ultimate equipment makes ordinary attacks do as much damage.
• Is not always available. Something has to happen for the LB to be possible. Often it's a meter filling. Super Smash Bros has you collect an item, Mega Man Starforce has you counter an enemy's attack while in Super Mode.

Right. Now that we've got that out of the way, I vote not picturable.

edited 15th Apr '11 6:42:06 AM by GigaHand

Visibly "mega" attack + visibly full "limit meter" = Limit Break. That's what I'd look for in an image.

The visibly meter is the one that should feature the most prominently, as visibly mega attack is easy to come by. Following the Squall example, a fairly better, but still not gfood enough screenshot would be the actual triggering of the move, when the big numbers dance from the environment indicator to the player indicator (in case for a break; it shows better) and the purple Limit Bar looks recolored or something I think.

A better example would be one of Street Fighter Alpha's supers, as the power gauge is not actually depleted until after the attack animation starts, but I might be mistaken on that, I last played the game four years ago.