What actually makes a RPG an RPG?

[a nirvana fan]

what makes a RPG in my opinion is yes of course the stats, eqiupment, unique characters but the way you get into the mind of your character as YOU yourself needs to get to level 99 not the in game character but yourself.

[ljkkjlcm9]

I don't really think ljkkjlcm9's thing about how much you can customize your character is right. Take FF 4, you don't get to decide how your characters develope. They develope according to a preset level, and its definatly an RPG. The only customizing you can do is the equipment, which even in zelda, which you say isn't an RPG, you can do in. And as a side note, I consider Zelda an RPG, though I do live in a delusional world of Obscure Views.

NOT TRUE, you play your game, and get your character to level 50, I bet you my character stats would be different from yours. I'm saying that in each game, your character is unique. YES, every game has you learn certain spells at certain points and stuff, but no character in any other game will be identical to yours. Throw in items like golden apple, and soma drop, you choose who get those giving greater difference between characters

Actually, I'm pretty sure Nintendo has never claimed Zelda to be an RPG. They categorize it as adventure, like rational people do.

Yes well often times when you got to online sites like
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage....30&id=cat02373
They put Zelda under the category of RPG, as you can see it's at the bottom of the list there. And because of this, many people argue it's an RPG

and even on nintendo.com
Going into Gamecube and selectin to search for RPGs
http://www.nintendo.com/gamecategory...O+GAMECUBE&ef=
Zelda: Wind Waker is on that list

THE JACKEL

[Skyblade]

I disagree, Gauntlet is typically an RPG nowadays, like Gauntlet Dark Legacy (haven't played any after that), but there is no character development at all, and the story is minimal. But you choose a character class, name them, choose a color, and can even buy stat boosting items to design them how you want. It is therefore your character and completely your own. Yes at a certain point every character maxes out in games like this, but it was and is still your very own character.

Typically yes, you're correct in that it has a lot of character growth and a long story, but not always as I pointed out. THE KEY, is developing the character how you want, making them very unique to your game. How often have we had threads on here in FF games that are like, what's you characters stats, and they're never identical. That makes the RPG. It's your character, you made them how they are.

I get mad when people say Zelda is an RPG. You don't make Link how he is, he gets basically all his items for the actual story. In RPGs, those have a category called key items, and a whole other category of items that you don't even need to get, sometimes exceeding 1000s of possibilities. You don't even need to get any of them. There are maybe 5...6 items in Zelda that are bonus, little side quests, but it's still an adventure game. Nintendo pushes it as an RPG because they didn't really have one. They should have released Fire Emblem in the US a long time ago, because that is a great strategy RPG.

Just playing a role does not make it an RPG. Mario is not, Megaman is not, Sonic is not, etc..... It's making your own unique character, that defines RPG, and if you disagree, look back at Dungeons and Dragons, the "original" RPG, board game or whatever you want to call it, didn't really have a board. You drew what your character looked like, you rolled dice to set their stats, no-one else had the same character as you, it was your own, and that's what RPGs go off of, technology couldn't always meet this, but as you can see, more and more RPGs have you designing your characters look and class more and more. Eventually they'll have RPGs where you completely design the main character yourself, choose how they look, their weapon (from a list) and their character class, then distribute stats accordingly. NOT an online game, just like your typical FF game, except you designed the main character, need voice actors? have one set for males, one for females. There would still be a preset story, but your character would definitely define RPG to the fullest. Maybe even make decisions during the game that changes what happens, but only into the different stories that were written for the game, you can't program limitless endings. Either way RPGs now adays, are still pretty good at getting unique characters.

Anyone who disagrees with this definition, I would like to hear your argument, because this is by far, the truest sense of a what an RPG REALLY is.

THE JACKAL

You claim that Gauntlet's an RPG, but get upset if someone says the same thing about Zelda? Gauntlet's an action game. Just being able to increase levels doesn't make a game an RPG.

[Trumpet Thief]

chaos: I always thought that turn-based combat allowed a game to be an RPG.

Rubedo: But besides that, if it's got a party of characters that you can give jobs, different kinds of equipment etc., that's what else makes a game an RPG, in my opinion.

Albedo: *laughs maniacally*

[ljkkjlcm9]

You claim that Gauntlet's an RPG, but get upset if someone says the same thing about Zelda? Gauntlet's an action game. Just being able to increase levels doesn't make a game an RPG.

No, but you grow the character how you want them to be and that is an RPG aspect. Course, I didn't think about the equipment aspect of the RPG, so ok, gauntlet is not an RPG

on another note.... I'm quite sure I never said anything about levels

THE JACKEL

[Obsidian]

I think that if Gauntlet was set, for instance, in New York during the 1980's and had you play as a team of guys with mullets, the argument as to whether or not it is an RPG would be the last thing on anyone's mind... Despite the play mechanics being exactly the same. Gauntlet is an action game that just-so-happens to have a cast strait out of the D&D motif.

And yes, Zelda is an adventure. However, you can have an adventure game with RPG elements, such as Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. Alucard can level up and get a whole succession of stat-changing weapons. Link can not do either of those things, unless you could the fact that his sword gets two or three modifications before the end. Zelda is strictly adventure.

[Sir_Auron]

I've been wondering this for a while what aspects in a game makes it a RPG? is it the ability to purchase items and equip them? no, then the RE games would be counted as RpGs. Can anyone tell me please, I've been pklaying them for too long not to know what is it exactly.

Good Question, The Only Simple Answer I Could Really Give You Is The Fact That RPG Stands For 'Role Playing Game', Basically Anything To Do With Role Playing, But Within A Game.

[Nick Schovitz]

Wow thanks everybody, I was just expecting 1 or 2 replies, thanks, now i know what it really is.

[Twilight]

It depends on the person really!! I mean...the makers can make a totally new first-person shooter view yet your wearing armor and a sword and you level up but you drive a motor cycle yet you can fly..superman-style...eh..
what im trying to say is that the world games today is competing with awesome graphic systems. I wouldn't be surprised if they changed it a little.
An RPG is based on the player and the makers of the game, and how both their minds link

[NeoCracker]

Let me refrase myself a little, in the american SNES release there was no items to increase your stats, which was changed in later releases. At least I wasn't aware of any. Also you can alter the life and magic of Kratos in god of war, also you chose how to power up your spells. yet i dought that god of war is an RPG

[ljkkjlcm9]

Let me refrase myself a little, in the american SNES release there was no items to increase your stats, which was changed in later releases. At least I wasn't aware of any. Also you can alter the life and magic of Kratos in god of war, also you chose how to power up your spells. yet i dought that god of war is an RPG

sounds like it could be considered an action RPG, along the same lines as X-Men legends, you choose what abilities to level up in that game and life and magic stats, and that is an action RPG...

And even without the stat raising items, your character was unique from any other FFIV game, just compare your character stats to anyone else's. Like I said, there are restrictions on the actual programming of the game.....

THE JACKEL

[NeoCracker]

You also do it with the hearts in zeldo though, and you can go out of your way to advance your weapons and in some of them learn more spells and power up your magic meater, get abilities ot decrease the amount of MP used, thus also giving you custimization in that game, which you say is an RPG Element. Im just saying think about your view a little, it seems well thought out for the most part, but just a few things that seem a little skewed to me.

[ljkkjlcm9]

You also do it with the hearts in zeldo though, and you can go out of your way to advance your weapons and in some of them learn more spells and power up your magic meater, get abilities ot decrease the amount of MP used, thus also giving you custimization in that game, which you say is an RPG Element. Im just saying think about your view a little, it seems well thought out for the most part, but just a few things that seem a little skewed to me.

It's the uniqueness of your character that is key. Yeah you can do all that stuff in Zelda, but in any game anywhere, it is easy to duplicate that. Play through any FF game 10 times, doing the exact same thing, and your character will be different stat wise in each game. I think that's what makes it an RPG, that your game has unique character stats.... which can't be done in Zelda.

THE JACKEL

[Skyblade]

It's the uniqueness of your character that is key. Yeah you can do all that stuff in Zelda, but in any game anywhere, it is easy to duplicate that. Play through any FF game 10 times, doing the exact same thing, and your character will be different stat wise in each game. I think that's what makes it an RPG, that your game has unique character stats.... which can't be done in Zelda.

THE JACKAL

So you're saying that an RPG is an RPG because it has random, instead of set, stat growth? I think that's a little ridiculous criteria to define a game's genre on, isn't it?

[Mercen-X]

So far, many of things mentioned are found in a lot of recent games. These particular games, however, admit to including "RPG elements." You cannot define an RPG by any single statement in this thread.

Take all the singular views and opinions on what makes an RPG what it is and mash them together. If one of the factors mentioned is missing, most likely, the game is no longer an RPG.

One of the basic things to know about an RPG is that the character's story is your story. You are deeply involved in it no matter what other gaming elements are included. It's true that there are some RPGs whose stories don't keep you involved, but such are games that are RPGs only because the producer called them that.