General problems of RPGs

[Cuyir]

Ok:

1. I sort of get where you're coming from in the premade character thing but still, not every rpg must have a premade rpg for the world to be believable. The rpgs that are focused on telling a very specific tale usually have premade characters because it's important. On the other hand, there are games, like the TES series, that work better with a character created by the player. Plus, like Bridge said, rpgs come from tabletop role playing games that revolved around creating the character in your mind. So being able to make your own character is not a flaw nor a problem if used well.

2. Not touching the copy-pasted part of your argument where you spit shine PB's shoes, so to speak but leveling up your character via menus is just a part of rpgs that work. Plus there are games, like the TES series again, that have trainers so you can more easily unlock skill levels. That or you can just swing your sword a lot of times and, like in real life (sort of), you'll get better at swinging swords. Even if has a traditional skill upgrading system (stat based) it's still doing its work and shouldn't impede any role playing. In skyrim you could make potions on a little alchemy stand, improve weapons on a grinder and such, by the way. Washing your face in an rpg sounds like wasted dev time when they should be making sure the rpg systems work and are polished.

3. So let me see if I understand you. You don't like rpgs that have fantasy elements? You know...the things tabletop rpgs started? Magic is bad? Big weapons and armors are bad? It's an rpg. They've always had fantasy elements. And what's wrong with killing monsters, animals, bandits and etc? Again, that's what rpgs have been about for decades. You sound like you want a middle age simulator, all the chores and not the fun. Every single rpg i've played, from open world games to action rpgs to more traditional rpgs and jrpgs, have had normal looking monsters/animals that JUST happen to be enemies. How many rats have rpgers have killed throughout their lives? I must be at a million and some change. I understand the part about the lifebars but they're usually easily hidden away in the options.


4. I've already discussed the part about the music but I have no qualms repeating myself. From listening a bit to the link you provided it very much sounds like it's trying to be ''hollywood fantasy high budget'' stuff. Literally was able to predict where the songs were going to go to, so to speak. That's a problem with most fantasy rpgs, the music tends to be pretty generic because of the themes. Jeremy Soule tends to be one of the composers that have stuck out since forever. I worship this man. I find it impressive that he managed to make music for an MMO (GW2) beautiful and well written enough that it breaks me away from the trance MMOs are known for. I've had moments in GW2 where I'd be doing x or y and all of the sudden a gorgeous piece of music hits and i'm floored and just stay there, frozen, looking at the gorgeous environments while the music plays an- Oh, right, this isn't about my tastes, moving on (lol).

5. About equipment. Nyeh. Depends on the game. Not EVERY rpg (or game for that matter) is nor should be interested in atmosphere. I want to get better weapons in an ARPG, I want cool looking armor, weapons with a shit ton of effects on them as soon as possible. Again, I get where you're coming from but that is not a ''problem'', just a design choice. In TES games, yes again with TES, they've had a good balance on equipment drops. You start with really simplistic tools and armors and slowly, but surely, begin finding better stuff. Plus if you're a thief you can just steal better stuff. That's what I did in one of my first playthroughs in Morrowind, saw a pretty blade and took it and used it haha. That to me, shows how TES has been doing rpgs right (even if they dropped the ball, in my opinion, with Skyrim).

6. The thing with mmos is that they aren't traditional singleplayer rpgs. MMOs are entirely focused on group based gameplay. MMOs are ALL about the gameplay and rewards. Why do you think people dedicate so much time to them? They don't play them expecting a single player rpg. And I take some issues with your ''not feeling part of the world'' part. Ask any fan of any mmo and they'll say they have some memories attached to parts of the game's world and its music. They'll have little injokes about characters and enemies. We, mmo players, feel part of the world but not in the same way as in a single player rpg.

And ok, being bluntly honest I couldn't read through the rest of your manifesto. Your arguments can be summed up like so: "I worship PB and thus everything they do is golden and anything else is a developing problem"

Seriously. Just because they do something in x way doesn't mean it's a problem if it's not done like that. There's a whole range of rpgs, tastes and design philosophies. I get it, you love them but just because you don't like other design choices in rpgs doesn't mean they're problems. That's pretty conceited.

I mean, you spent a whole paragraph praising font colors? What?