A fix for slow targeting already exists -- play shooters on a PC with keyboard and mouse controls.

@Ryan: Ignore the comment from the above admitted PC junkie. I play on consoles, and I completely agree with you! =)

At least one console FPS allows keyboard and mouse control, too (UT3 for PS3).

Seriously, though, that's the only real fix, unless you want lock-on targeting a la Metroid Prime, more robust aim bots in console versions, or developers solve the movement issues inherent in pointer-controlled FPS games (e.g., The Conduit). Analog sticks will never be precise enough to do what you're asking.

It's time to ditch savepoints. Let me save whenever I want to. I don't want to keep my game running just because I can't save and it's time for me to be somewhere else. 

Get rid of regenerating health. It's unrealistic and cheapens the game experience especially when the difficulty is easy or normal.

@Rob: The slight snap-to effect when aiming down the sights in a game like Modern Warfare works pretty well for me, actually. But there's no excuse for RE5's aiming mechanic (the one Ryan's talking about here, I think).

Turret sequences in almost anything. They are invariably the worst part of any game they're in.

I love me some Bioware, but no matter how compelling a story is, dialogue trees are always awkward.

Can I air a personal bugbear here? People use the term "tank controls" too freely and incorrectly. Tank controls are where you control your character by pushing left and right to turn, then forward and back to move forward or back relative to the direction they're facing. They are actually used relatively little these days, except in certain series like Resident Evil.

Heavy Rain's controls may have been idiosyncratic, but they weren't tank controls because you push the direction you want to go relative to the camera, not the character.

Sorry! Nothing personal. It's a personal bugbear, as I say. :)

In fairness to RE5, the tank controls are optional. Playing on the "D" setting is like any other third-person action game.

Big second on the run/sprint thing, especially when I have to hold down the left stick (like a button) in order to run which makes moving the stick harder, meaning I bump into things more often.

Rubber Band AI in racing games.

Endbosses with Glowing Red Things.

Escort Missions.

Stealth Sequences.

maaaan, quit trippin' arsdell, you know stealth sequences are hot fire. 

@Arsdell What sort of escort missions are you talking about? I think they are appropriate in games such as the X-wing series or naval games where you escort other warships. But escort missions where you're proteching someone on foot? Those need to die.

Hey Rob, if you mention Unreal Tournament 3 on PS3 again, I'm going to beat you to death with your own shoes.

@Rob and others: I know they can't make it smooth like a keyboard and mouse, but my complaint is more about really slooooowww targeting that can only be sped up a tiny bit through sensitivity tweaking. Sometimes the sensitivity tweaking makes it bearable, but not always.

@Brett You're right, I couldn't stand RE5's aiming mechanics.  

@Pete Not completely "tank" perhaps, but certainly "tank-ish" with the move forward/turn element.  Any way you slice it, they were frigging awkward.  :)

Sprinting needs to stay. Sometimes in games like grand theft auto you want to move slowly through a heavily guarded house or complex. And when everything hits the fan, you need to sprint out of there to avoid getting iced.

@Rob and others. Most FPSes I've played on my PC let me tweak sensitivity. Maybe the answer is PCs are really better for shooters. 

@Nathan Isn't that why we have analog sticks, though?  Push a little to walk, all the way to run?

Would Resident Evil 4 and 5 be considered an exception to tank controls in this case? I honestly never understood the complaints people had about RE5's controls when it came out. Anyone who thought you should be able to shoot while running in that game must not have thought about how much ammo would be wasting doing so. I can't imagine those two benefitting from a looser control scheme seen in other games either. Tank controls are essential to the RE style of gameplay.

Jason, that's exactly what I'm saying in my first comment!

I think the slower targeting in RE5 that Ryan's talking about is there to allow players to more easily aim for specific body parts. If the sensitivity is too high, you'll consistently swing past your target, which would be just as frustrating. Analog sticks just aren't that precise.

And Brett, that slight snap-to-effect is just an aim bot (or auto-aim), which I think is a pretty lazy solution to the poor control option. I'd rather just aim myself.

Michael, [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKZu0lIDrzA]please don't[/url]!

Menu diving - if it takes more than four pages to get to some little tidbit of info or I have to press pause to change an item then maybe you need to rethink the overall menu desgin.

I have no issue with pressing or holding a button to sprint.  Trying to pinpoint the position of the joystick from its center position to the "up" position to dictate your speed is annoying at best.  I'm with Nathan on this one.

Jason is absolutely right about save stations, and Matt is absolutely right about unnecessary and cumbersome menu interfaces.  I would also like to throw timed missions/quests into the trash can.  It's rarely a fun or immersible experience to be hauling ass to complete a mission.  A sense of urgency is rarely present in most games, so what's the point of the random timed mission?

I could also probably write an entire article on AI, but that's for another day. 

You don't have unlimited sprint in the latest GTA games...so technically you tap the button for bursts of speed. I don't think sprinting should go away in games, but I do agree that having to hammer on the button to sprint is annoying. It should be accomplished through analog controls or just by holding down a button.

I personally liked the controls in RE5. I believe the slow aiming and nature of the controls are intentional to create more tension when trying to navigate around environments with "not zombies" stalking you. If you could use poinpoint accuracy and aim super fast like, say, in a PC shooter, there would be literally ZERO tension in the game. Besides, as somebody who has real life experience handling and shooting firearms, you don't just instantly snap to a moving target and start firing. Aiming is a precise and disciplined thing. In this regard, the controls in Resident Evil 5 are quite realistic.  

You can also do an instant 360 in the game which helps. :)