Quick time event

In video games, a quick time event (QTE) is a method of context-sensitive gameplay in which the player performs actions on the control device shortly after the appearance of an on-screen instruction/prompt.

QTEs generally involve the player following onscreen prompts to press buttons or manipulate joysticks within a limited amount of time.

Although the origin of QTE are often attributed to interactive movie laserdisc video games that showed video clips stored on a laserdisc like Dragon's Lair (Cinematronics, June 1983), Cliff Hanger (Stern, December 1983) and Road Blaster (Data East, 1985),[2] these left little room for more advanced gameplay elements.

Their gameplay consisted of watching an animated video and pressing the correct button every few seconds to avoid seeing a (circumstance-specific) loss scene and losing a life.

[6] Shenmue's director Yu Suzuki is credited with coining the phrase "Quick Time Event",[6] which were included in the game as to provide "a fusion of gameplay and movie" and create cinematic experience to the player.

For instance, in the Wii version of the sports games 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa, QTEs are used to save penalty shots and free kicks aimed towards the goal, or win possession of the ball after it is punted or corner-kicked.

[12] At the same time, they also are considered to be a weak addition to gameplay, and often force the player to repeat such sections until they complete the QTE perfectly to move on.

Resident Evil 4 uses QTEs (described by cinematics lead Yoshiaki Hirabayashi as an "action button system") to "facilitate a seamless transition between gameplay and the in-game movies" and prevent players from losing interest during cutscenes.

[6][14] As the action takes place during the major revelation of the game, the QTE serves to prevent the player from skipping over the cutscene.

[6] Often these are progressive QTE systems where the player is only partially penalized for missing the necessary commands; these often take place in boss battles.

Furthermore, during conversation trees with non-player characters, failure to select the next choice of topic in a limited time may affect later events in the game.

More recently, the games Fahrenheit (Indigo Prophecy in North America), Heavy Rain, and Detroit: Become Human from Quantic Dream are primarily presented as sequences of QTEs, integrating the mechanic as part of the core gameplay, and present controller actions that correlate directly with the character actions on the screen;[13][22] this was emphasized further in Heavy Rain by a game patch to support the use of the PlayStation Move motion controls where the player could actually physically perform the moves that corresponded with character actions.

[23][25] With the onset of newer technology to improve graphics, controls, in-game physics, and artificial intelligence, gameplay elements previously simulated through QTEs can potentially be re-implemented as core game mechanics.