Is There A Problem With Videogame RPG’s?

Yeah, so I have a big problem with RPG‘s, I want to love them, I really, really do, but I think they kind of suck. Now cool down a bit and hear me out first, I know that’s a sweeping generalisation so let me state that not all of them suck, but even the ones that don’t are guilty of a crime in my court. What’s this crime that so many RPG’s have committed then? It’s the fact that they’re the only genre where the core experience and gameplay mechanics can be replicated exactly on another medium… pen and paper. Why not just pick up a literary copy of Dungeons and Dragons and play that instead? The only thing missing is the graphical presentation, and while that enhances the experience does it really truly enrich the gameplay?  Think about it for a moment, the first person shooter experience can’t be replicated by any other entertainment medium, neither can the platformer, or the action adventure, sports and simulations are just what they claim to be… simulations.

So what needs to happen then, how can the RPG become a true videogame genre and not merely an almost direct adaptation of an already existing medium? Simple, they need to better take advantage of the interactive nature of videogames. The basic formula of stat tracking, random battles, turn based combat and level grind is archaic and truly belongs in the pen and paper realm. These systems were developed with the limitations of pen and paper games in mind, and they continue to hold back the RPG. The shortcomings of the videogame RPG become all the more apparent when you consider just how non-interactive they are. Most of the game unfolds through a series of long FMV’s or dialogue, and is strung together by often random battles with combat systems that nine times out of ten require the player to click the same button over and over in order to unleash a sequence of attacks. Don’t get me wrong, some RPG’s have made significant headway in this area, games like Parasite Eve, Vagrant Story and the upcoming Final Fantasy XII spring to mind.

If you disagree with my viewpoint that’s perfectly fine, I expect a lot of people will, but ask yourself why we are still tied to all the limitations inherent in the pen and paper RPG’s, is there anything other than the visuals that the videogame counterpart provides us, anything at all that can be done in a videogame RPG and not on the pen and paper? If your answer is no, then yeah, there is a problem with RPG’s, unless you don’t mind getting essentially the same experience across multiple media, and really where’s the fun in that? If you do think videogame RPG’s provide something that their pen and paper counterparts can’t or don’t, please let me know in the comments section, I’d love to debate it!

Yeah, so I have a big problem with RPG‘s, I want to love them, I really, really do, but I think they kind of suck. Now cool down a bit and hear me out first, I know that’s a sweeping generalisation so let me state that not all of them suck, but even the ones that don’t are guilty of a crime in my court. What’s this crime that so many RPG’s have committed then? It’s the fact that they’re the only genre where the core experience and gameplay mechanics can be replicated exactly on another medium… pen and paper. Why not just pick up a literary copy of Dungeons and Dragons and play that instead? The only thing missing is the graphical presentation, and while that enhances the experience does it really truly enrich the gameplay?  Think about it for a moment, the first person shooter experience can’t be replicated by any other entertainment medium, neither can the platformer, or the action adventure, sports and simulations are just what they claim to be… simulations.

So what needs to happen then, how can the RPG become a true videogame genre and not merely an almost direct adaptation of an already existing medium? Simple, they need to better take advantage of the interactive nature of videogames. The basic formula of stat tracking, random battles, turn based combat and level grind is archaic and truly belongs in the pen and paper realm. These systems were developed with the limitations of pen and paper games in mind, and they continue to hold back the RPG. The shortcomings of the videogame RPG become all the more apparent when you consider just how non-interactive they are. Most of the game unfolds through a series of long FMV’s or dialogue, and is strung together by often random battles with combat systems that nine times out of ten require the player to click the same button over and over in order to unleash a sequence of attacks. Don’t get me wrong, some RPG’s have made significant headway in this area, games like Parasite Eve, Vagrant Story and the upcoming Final Fantasy XII spring to mind.

If you disagree with my viewpoint that’s perfectly fine, I expect a lot of people will, but ask yourself why we are still tied to all the limitations inherent in the pen and paper RPG’s, is there anything other than the visuals that the videogame counterpart provides us, anything at all that can be done in a videogame RPG and not on the pen and paper? If your answer is no, then yeah, there is a problem with RPG’s, unless you don’t mind getting essentially the same experience across multiple media, and really where’s the fun in that? If you do think videogame RPG’s provide something that their pen and paper counterparts can’t or don’t, please let me know in the comments section, I’d love to debate it!