RPGs Should Ditch the Stats

[King of the N00bs]

Why change it? It is still fun to me. Frankly I think that we should be content with what the RPGers of the 70,s had. I mean except bad graphics and expensive computers. But really,I like the original D&D stats. They give me a feeling of accomplishment. Of course then it is only a game after all.

 

[King of the N00bs]

There should be an option to remove or take out the stats of a player in an rpg, like the way certain options are available only on a certain difficulty in a game.

Personally they dont bother me, but i can see where this article is coming from.

You know what? That sounds like a good idea. Far beyond me, changing but not changing.Clever my friend, clever.

 

[Beardon65]

Stats out of an RPG? that like taking the gun out of a FPS, or taking the command screen out of a RTS or taking the fighting out of Street Fighter! It just isn't going to happen.

Plus its a good way of personalising a character like how my characters Dexterity (Agility) is always the highest of my stats because I want my character to be agile. And for the leveling up stuff it makes the player feel like he/she has accomplished something even though they didnt exept the lack of sleep. So if you don't like stats go play Halo or something

 

[Altorin]

for most players, the stats are what makes a game an RPG.. If you add stats to a game, suddenly it's an FPS RPG etc.

 

[Snotnarok]

Numbers are specific, numbers work, I like the stats in RPGs it tells you everything you need to know.

 

[sumanoskae]

No, not now, not later, not ever. Stats are the part of an RPG that let us customize and fine tune our characters to our hearts content, should they be evolved?, yes, should they be abandoned?, no. the only thing I can see replacing stats in an RPG would be traits, which would turn crafting into alchemy, instead of customizing our characteristics to the core we instead pick established characteristics to create our character, which is fine, in fact it's a good idea, if stats are still involved. The cold hard truth is that stats are always going to be there, RPG's just show us what they are and let us decide. behind every punch in fighting games there's a character stat deciding how much damage that punch is doing

And I quote "we're all puppets, I can just see the strings" - Dr. Manhattan

 

[Hiroshi Mishima]

That's a really funny look on things. I've lost count of how many RPGs I've played have no actual basis on levels, but on the STATS GAINED from said levels, if you raised stats without levels, you wouldn't notice as much difference.. although if Final Fantasy II has taught me anything, it's that the gameplay becomes a lot less balanced and difficult to maintain individual character differences...

No, I've played a fair number of games where you have no real need to look at the stats, but that isn't because the stats are hidden, it's because the effect of going up a level is noticable in terms of raised HP and attack power and defence power. But if you REALLY wanna know how the character's chanced, you look at the stats. This is such a bad argument the guy is putting forwards. People who think that RPGs can function without stats may as well argue that an FPS needs no weapons whatsoever.

 

[valczir]

I disagree - we don't need to move any farther forward. The morons at Bethesda have ruined RPGs almost entirely, with only a couple of companies sticking to what made them good.

Seriously, the problem with RPGs isn't that they haven't changed enough, it's that the wrong parts have changed. Oblivion was a joke (speaking from the RPG perspective - it was kinda decent from the Fantasy FPS perspective), Fallout 3 destroyed the skill system with its excessive use of skill books and strict skill cap, and the morality systems of nearly every other RPG that allow you to choose between playing as Mother Teresa or Hitler only serve to make the story seem even more dumbed down.

We need more games like Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines, Deus Ex, and Vagrant Story. And somebody needs to run through and slaughter the game designers at Bethesda.

Oh, and one last thing: we need to take the focus off of graphics. Seriously.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

I'm going to say it again. Unless someone has a better idea, you know to use instead of the stats, STFU!

 

[Deadpoolsbrain]

It's not broken don't fix it.

 

[Credge]

Stats are essential. It doesn't matter how you try to cut it. There are stats in all games. FPS, Racing games, fighting games, etc. These all have stats. Even simple games like Pong and Tetris have stats.

It really sounds like he hasn't much of an idea of what a stat is.

To have an RPG that had no stats would be to have everything determined randomly. That's no fun. At all.

 

[BarskeLars]

Are'nt all games somewhat simillar to their "ancestors"? In fps games you still kill things with weapons, same as always, in racing games you still drive a vehicle of some sort. The only thing thats improving is graphics and physics (and rarely, story telling), so why should it be different for rpg's? Does this guy hate them? Is he a anti rpg person? An gamecist of sorts? Maybe he just want to put all rpg's in lairs of sorts, until they change into puzzle games or something. And thats kinda sad...

 

[A Raging Emo]

What would replace the Stats?

To me, there is nothing else than the numbers on a scale; they ahve worked for so long, so why change them?

 

[LeonLethality]

I don't see exactly how else they would do this. It works doesn't it? Why change something that has worked for so long?

exactly dont change whats already good many people have yet to understand this

 

[MetaKnight19]

to me it seems that if you take the stats out of the RPG genre, then you're left with some other genre that i havent thought a name for it yet. im not the biggest RPG fan, but i really enjoyed FF3 on the DS, that was probably enough stats i could handle before my brain imploded in confusion.

one thing about stats i dont like though are the micro-management bits. World of Warcraft for example, if you equip a 'Staff of Eagle' you gain a +2 intellect buff for 30 seconds unless hit by frostshock. obviously that is something i just made up, but you know what im getting at.

 

[annoyinglizardvoice]

An rpg wthout any form of stats would stop being an rpg. Changing the way the levels work on the other hand might help....

 

[Sion_Barzahd]

Get rid of stats? Thats blastphemy!
I mean even Jrpgs have stats, although slightly different to the western ones.
So in a sense Stats have already evolved.
You will never be rid of stats in RPGs though, it just cannot be done.

 

[Talonhand]

It's basic math! RPG + stats = happy!
RPG + no stat, FPS like aspect = bad game.

RPGs need stats. It allows you to, as the name suggests, Role play! To allow full customization. To show how strong or smart your person is. (Like Fallout where if your intelligence was 1 your character would say thing like " Wub Wub").
Stats must stay.

 

[Talonhand]

how would you implement an RPG without stats?
It makes no sense, it's like a building without rivets.
I suppose you could make it proficiency bars but that just makes it more clumsy.
If he makes a game that's awesome I'll let these "innovative" comments slide.

cough cough Oblivion cough cough