Obviously, I speak for a very small percentage of gamers (just the ones I know, lol) but most of my friends love RPGs. In fact, a majority of them (including me) would say its their favorite genre.More Fun To Compute said:
Resident Evil Creator: JRPGs Never Popular In the West
- Thread starter John Funk
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Agreed. There's a lot of good jrpgs that are actually decently popular, but they don't get any attention because everyone just talks about Final Fantasy and a few others. The Persona and Tales games are some of the best jrpgs out there. I especially love the stories, character development, and storytelling of the Tales series.Tales of Golden Sun said:
On the other hand, "rpg" tends to be a misnomer. While I believe linear storytelling with set characters that we can't customize is a useful type of game, it's not an rpg. The rpg genera is about making a personalized character, and playing their personality. If you can't make the character who you want it to be, it's not an rpg. Jrpgs tend to go around this by letting you change abilities and gear, but that's not really the same.
If you take a look at the relative popularity of jRPGs in the West and compare them to their popularity in Japan, the number and rabidness of the fans really make them look a little unpopular in the West.
In Japan, law prevents Dragon Quest games from being released on any day except Sunday, because the number of people that would skip work and school to play them would literally paralyze society. I WISH I was kidding.
Here, the biggest thing we dealt with were people slaying one another while waiting in line for a PS3. Consoles only get released but one time (hopefully), but I'm pretty sure the number on the end of the latest Dragon Quest game was at least 8. That, and no matter how popular the console or game is, the magnitude of people setting aside their obligations just to obtain/play said product doesn't match up here in the West.
In Japan, law prevents Dragon Quest games from being released on any day except Sunday, because the number of people that would skip work and school to play them would literally paralyze society. I WISH I was kidding.
Here, the biggest thing we dealt with were people slaying one another while waiting in line for a PS3. Consoles only get released but one time (hopefully), but I'm pretty sure the number on the end of the latest Dragon Quest game was at least 8. That, and no matter how popular the console or game is, the magnitude of people setting aside their obligations just to obtain/play said product doesn't match up here in the West.
Agreed. I think they are more "action-adventures" instead of RPGs. RPGs are about choice, and while you obviously cannot have the same amount of choice as you can if you are playing some classic paper-dice-pencil Advanced Dungeons and Dragons, the choices are still there.edthehyena said:
People in the same peer group tend to like the same things. Go outside that group and you can be sure that people will have different opinions.Riff Moonraker said:
Meh. Each to their own. Now the RPG games that are held in the highest regard are Fallout and Mass Effect. It's obvious why the genre fell from grace. Mainly cause they were trying their hardest to emulate them.
A guy who's never made a JRPG and lives in Japan is trying to comment on JRPG sales in western countries... that's just great.
It'd be like if Gabe Newel commented on the sales of dating sim games in Japan.
It'd be like if Gabe Newel commented on the sales of dating sim games in Japan.
Very true. Like I said, thats just going off the people I know. However, the big WRPGs do sell pretty good, such as Fallout, Oblivion, and my favorite Mass Effect, among others. So there is a good sized audience out there for the games.More Fun To Compute said:
I think he's right on this one. The difference in RPG styles is one of the biggest visible signs of just how different Western and Eastern cultures are. People raised in one culture seem to gravitate toward particular game styles. I imagine a sociologist could write multiple papers on the subject of why this is. I don't see it changing anytime soon, either.
Well Final Fantasy the the west either plays or hears of, and that is a good reason why people. People lump all the jRPGs as exactlly the same as final fantasy (although some are). I don't really like Final Fantasy, but I like things like Golden Sun, Tales of, and Fire Emblem if you'll count it. With out the same kind of buzz around it as western titles, less people will think to look in to it and pick it up, or dismiss it as another final fantasy clone.
I will be honest... I cannot stand JRPGs. I have tried my share, but I simply dont like them. However, I wouldnt want them to stop making them, or anything silly like that. I dont think a majority of WRPG fans would say they want JRPGs to go away, I think they would recognize that everyones tastes are different.Korten12 said:
Oh great. Here we go again. Another JRPG vs WRPG arguement to add to the pile. When will it end...
It's true, a lot of the lesser known RPGs aren't well know, though. I mean go up to a gamer, and ask them who ATLUS, or Tri-Ace are, and chances are, they wouldn't be able to tell you. I'd say Namco Bandai too, but they make other genres, not just RPGs. The reason why JRPGs aren't quite as popular here? Cultural differences, plain and simple. Take a look at a Japanese chart, and you'll see 90% Japanese games, including jrpgs. Likewise, look at a Western chart, and you'll see 90% western games. That's just how it is.
Naturally there will always be outliers however, which I consider myself to be.
Edit: Oh, and btw, JRPG's have evolved just as much as any genre has.
Pretty much this. People need to stop going into JRPGs, expecting WRPG features, also.Rodyle2 said:
It's true, a lot of the lesser known RPGs aren't well know, though. I mean go up to a gamer, and ask them who ATLUS, or Tri-Ace are, and chances are, they wouldn't be able to tell you. I'd say Namco Bandai too, but they make other genres, not just RPGs. The reason why JRPGs aren't quite as popular here? Cultural differences, plain and simple. Take a look at a Japanese chart, and you'll see 90% Japanese games, including jrpgs. Likewise, look at a Western chart, and you'll see 90% western games. That's just how it is.
Naturally there will always be outliers however, which I consider myself to be.
Edit: Oh, and btw, JRPG's have evolved just as much as any genre has.
Maybe so, but this is only a small sampling of the overall gamer population. Personally, if the gaming industry is flourishing, then I will be getting the games I want, as will most everyone else, regardless of genre. Thats all that should matter to any of us.s69-5 said:
The WRPGs, by a small handful of companies who are left, are doing well. Often they are doing well because they have taken out RPG features to broaden the appeal of the games.Riff Moonraker said:
The whole competition with JRPGs is another thing since, as Shinji Mikami points out, the only series that really sold well is Final Fantasy. If Greg Zeschuk is crowing about how this new brand of WRPG, that apparently only his company in the whole world knows how to make, is kicking JRPG ass then they fact that none of his new games sell as well as Final Fantasy or Diablo 2 for that matter is pretty interesting.
