JRPGs - Is the comeback happening?

[Danbo Jambo]

It's happening brother.

We've got FF15, Persona 5, Shin Megami Tensai 4 Apocalypse, Nier Automata, Kingdom Hearts 3, the entire Dark Souls series, and a remake of FF7 all either out or announced. From and Atlus are just blowin it out of the water, and Square is making a comeback. More then that, though, they're experimenting. They're trying new things. JRPGs grew increasingly static, while WRPGs were experimenting. Now that's changed. I honestly thought the Japanese game industry was dying, but now I'm starting to think that this may be the beginning of a renaissance.

Boom! *cheers*

Don't get me wrong, I know that they technically didn't "go away" per say. But as a home console owner who's never owned handhelds I definitely felt the pinch last gen.

I think the fact that the FF games were such a let down to me too didn't help. But I'm supremely happy about how many JRPGs already seem to be out for this gen.

Here's to that renaissance mate

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

What makes RPGs different from other genres is the ability to make decisions (story, dialogue, actions, etc.) when not in any kind of combat.

It may be a feature/appeal element - wouldn't call it exclusive though. Lots of games give you some imput on the outcome of a story that aren't RPGs. At the least, I wouldn't say RPGs are defined by them - too many games feature that option, and many RPGs don't.

I wouldn't really say anything is exclusive to a genre. How I categorize genres in video games is basically what do I do most in this game? Whatever that happens to be is the main/core genre of said game. I feel for a game to be an RPG, I need to spend most of my time role-playing in the game just like if it's a shooter, I should spend most of my time shooting. Just because a game allows the occasional choice doesn't make it an RPG like Arkham City has a great sequence where as Catwoman you can decide to save Batman or not save Batman, it's a really cool moment of the game. Most RPGs you spend most of your time in combat, that's not an RPG to me.

As much as I like Mass Effect, Shepard is kind of an example of what I feel is a happy medium between the two approaches. One one hand, you do control Shepard, even dictating his/her backstory. Yet Shepard still feels like an individual separate from the player - dialogue doesn't match up exactly, he/she has voice acting, there's a strong core plotline that Shepard goes down, etc. Even taking out player imput, Shepard would still feel like a character. Something like the Lone Wanderer or Dragonborn wouldn't.

I think Shepard's about the best you can do a character in a video game RPG with regards to how much a player can define a character. The writers have to define the character to a somewhat decent degree as there's only so much writing that can be done.

The "typical" JRPG, those classic SNES/PS1 JRPGs, aren't RPGs at all. They're really adventure games with a combat system thrown in. Take the combat out and a Final Fantasy is an adventure game. If every character is completely scripted to say and do everything with no player say outside of combat, then the game is not an RPG. There is no difference between playing as Cloud in FF7 vs playing as Batman in a Arkham game. In an RPG, influencing your character outside of combat is essential to it being an RPG.

Yeah peeps! If you take out the character progression part (the RPG part) then it's not an RPG anymore. Take that Final Fantasy fans!! /s

Upping combat stats isn't much of a progression at all. You just up your stats so it takes the same amount of sword swings to kill enemies in the next dungeon that it just took you in the last dungeon. You really feel that character progression doing the same thing over and over again!!!

Even in DnD you don't really up your stats much. You gain one ability stat increase every 4 levels, that's not even +1 to your modifier BTW. Stats are mainly function as an illusion of progression; basically what games like Destiny and The Division use as Skinner box techniques.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

Phoenixmgs is arguing that games TBRPG's like Final Fantasy are not really RPG's at all... they are just adventure games.

There's nothing wrong with game being an adventure game, it doesn't make it less of a game. A game being an RPG doesn't make it more of a game either. I'm just calling a duck a duck.

 

[WeepingAngels]

Phoenixmgs is arguing that games TBRPG's like Final Fantasy are not really RPG's at all... they are just adventure games.

There's nothing wrong with game being an adventure game, it doesn't make it less of a game. A game being an RPG doesn't make it more of a game either. I'm just calling a duck a duck.

You are giving your opinion, opinions will vary though and I think that TBRPG's like Final Fantasy are RPG's.

 

[crazygameguy4ever]

the Japanese always do their won thing... with everything including RPG's.. I dont think JRPG haven't made as large a decline in Japan as it has here in the US, it's more a matter of them making games that appeal to them not the wider world, and not into changing/ evolving what makes a JRPG the way other genres have.. which is why Final Fantasy is crap now and the Tales series is just doing so-so. ( though much better then recent final fantasy games obviously) i've been playing more JRPG's lately then ever before but then again i like strange games and JRPGs.. which is why I recently got God Eater Resurrection on PS4 and Tales of Xillia 2 on PS3 and there are other JRPG games i wanna get now