Why are there so few quality RPGs?

[Hiphophippo]

I don't know that I agree with you OP. There are tons of great and interesting rpgs out there and I don't really even like the recent fallouts or post Morrowind bethesda's work all that much.

 

[AgentBJ09]

- Sonic Chronicles - Turn Based action, with contextual actions for certain attacks. Plus, Sonic the Hedgehog in an RPG from Bioware.

Please tell me you're kidding.... >_< I know we all have different taste...but......

I'm not kidding, and that's pretty much all that needs saying since it's my own opinion. The only thing that dissapointed me about the game was the cliffhanger ending, with no word of a sequel, even this many years later.

Plus, Bioware's in no way Aruze, which made all of their characters useful in their Shadow Hearts games, so I didn't mind barely using a few characters.

 

[infohippie]

Because shooters don't take anywhere near as much thought and effort to make, they can just be churned out like an assembly line. Think of them as the mindless summer blockbusters that movie studios are always crapping out to make their money. Good RPGs are like some thought-provoking little indie film that no major studio would even consider releasing because they know Joe Sixpack will never understand it and so it won't make them another fortune at the box office.

 

[Jaffinnegan]

Aside from the elder scrolls, fallout, dragon age, and a handful of others, there's really nothing out there for RPG fans. Yet for the adrenaline junkie there are SO MANY shooters and mindless action romps!

Why no mention of Mass Effect's?
Anyhow, if you are a Console gamer, thats your reason. If your a PC gamer, then you are simpally not looking hard enough; The Witcher 2: AoK is brilliant, and there are loads of lesser known PRG's on PC, just look around on Steam and Download sites, you'd be suprised.

 

[jumjalalabash]

Shooters are quicker and easier to produce. RPGs need you know, thinking & writing, those fabled things of legend.

 

[Fanfic_warper]

Quality is a matter of opinion. I can name 20 good rpgs in my opinion with ease.

 

[Stall]

It's because RPGs are hard to make. They have a significantly longer development cycle and require a lot more money to make than, say a shooter. Even further, they aren't as good as an investment as shooters in most cases since their appeal is much more niche. So naturally there are going to be fewer when compared to shooters.

Also: there are plenty of good RPGs. Just because you don't know where to look doesn't mean they don't exist

 

[Stall]

Double post... sorry. Please delete/ignore.

 

[badgersprite]

Because making an open ended game that can be played in numerous different ways with multiple possible endings for each quest, days worth of in game content, pages upon pages of dialogue, large and populated worlds, and a wide variety of skills and customisation options takes an unbelievably long time and ridiculous amounts of hard work involving large teams of people working unpleasantly long manhours and costs an awful lot of money at the end of the day.

People can't just will games into existence. They're huge investments of time and money. Basically, if you're head of a corporation funding game products, you have roughly three sensible options. Either, you invest less in a game that seems risky and gamble with the possibility of ending up with an inferior product, or you invest more in a "safe" option that you know you'll get returns on (like a sequel), or you pick something that doesn't take much time and money but consistently gets good returns, which is usually a genre that isn't RPGs.

Mind you, these are all just broad generalisations, but people really do seem to ignore how much time and effort goes into making great games when they think about this stuff. Games are a business. Businesses are going to pick profits over people all the time.

 

[IronStorm9]

Plus, there is a setting we have not explored much: The Modern day "urban" RPG. You know, Like Earthbound, and TWEWY? I'm surprised we haven't seen more of those.

Exactly this. I think that something like Shadowrun would make an excellent Urban RPG (Not the co-op shooter version, but the Roleplaying system). It even has all the regular fantasy elements mixed in. You'd think some game studio would be all over the licensing rights for it, but no, Co-op shooter...(I like Shadowrun a lot, in case it wasn't obvious).

 

[Kahunaburger]

Because making games is so expensive they can't afford to make things with true complexity and depth.

Pretty much this. It would just be so expensive to make an RPG with that kind of freedom with the production values of modern games. Any RPG's like that would have be indie, and frankly, there are very few indie developers who have seemed to taken to this particular niche.

Actually, there's CD Projekt Red with The Witcher series. Probably the best we're going to get, anyway.

That's about it really.

I mean, is it really so hard to ask for an RPG with graphics in the vein of something like Baldur's Gate, with maybe some of the technology/UI improvements of today? I get that no major RPG developer like BioWare or Bethesda would do that, but there seems to be at least a decent market for that kind of game.

And it'd cost pennies to make compared to most game budgets. And lower graphics means more people can run the game. Charge about $30 for it, so more people can buy it, and you got the recipe for a profitable game. God knows it'll sell, since competition for the particular market is pretty, well more or less non-existent.

Spiderweb Software [http://www.spiderwebsoftware.com/] specializes in that sort of thing. Never played any of their games, but I've heard very good things about them.

 

[veloper]

Nope, that's all wrong.

The cause of the drought is us. Most of RPG enthousiasts have very poor taste.

There's alot of money in the many sub-genres and a plenty big audience, but the press and gamers alike hail turds like Oblivion like the second coming.
We'll ignore how a game may be fundamentally broken, aslong as there's shiny gfx, more bloom and the mere promise of a deep RPG.
That doesn't encourage studios to make any improvements beyond cosmetics.

 

[Irridium]

Because making games is so expensive they can't afford to make things with true complexity and depth.

Pretty much this. It would just be so expensive to make an RPG with that kind of freedom with the production values of modern games. Any RPG's like that would have be indie, and frankly, there are very few indie developers who have seemed to taken to this particular niche.

Actually, there's CD Projekt Red with The Witcher series. Probably the best we're going to get, anyway.

That's about it really.

I mean, is it really so hard to ask for an RPG with graphics in the vein of something like Baldur's Gate, with maybe some of the technology/UI improvements of today? I get that no major RPG developer like BioWare or Bethesda would do that, but there seems to be at least a decent market for that kind of game.

And it'd cost pennies to make compared to most game budgets. And lower graphics means more people can run the game. Charge about $30 for it, so more people can buy it, and you got the recipe for a profitable game. God knows it'll sell, since competition for the particular market is pretty, well more or less non-existent.

Spiderweb Software [http://www.spiderwebsoftware.com/] specializes in that sort of thing. Never played any of their games, but I've heard very good things about them.

Hell, I'm tempted to just buy all that they have because of the promises they make. Looks like I'll have quite a few demos to try out.

 

[Kirb Zero]

A big part of it would have to be marketing. I've only heard about half of the RPGs mireko just listed.

Another part would have to that there's an oversaturation of mediocre RPGs that just ruin the kool-aid. Arc Rise Fantasia, Hyperdimension Neptunia, Star Ocean (imo, although I honestly don't see its redeeming values at all), The Last Rememant, and, from what I heard, Eternal Sonata.

 

[thelastmccabe]

This is a really good article someone linked to about RPGs and how full voice acting is maybe one reason there's less choice now. And also how most of it's pointless since the vast majority of people just read the subtitles and click through it (I know I do).

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/columns/experienced-points/7588-Experienced-Points-Voice-vs-Choice

This indie developer is known for making pretty good RPGS. http://www.spiderwebsoftware.com/products.html

At least I have read that some of the Geneforges and Avadon are good. I haven't gotten around to trying any of them...heh...guess I just illustrated the problem.

 

[inFAMOUSCowZ]

If you havent played Risen yet I highly recommend you do. One of the best RPGs I played in a while.

 

[Smertnik]

I don't know, I see just as many good FPS as good RPGs. There may be more FPS overall but that doesn't mean they're all actually good.

 

[ChupathingyX]

In short: Black Isle is dead. They were the company to prove video games can be a mature medium that combines the best of all media and goes beyond the model of instant gratification but also offers an experience and a overarching message.

Black isle is not necessarily dead, they still kinda live on through Obsidian. However, as long as Bethesda own the rights to Fallout I doubt we'll ever see another good Fallout game ever again, New Vegas was great but it was bogged down by the Gamebryo engine, small development time and smaller budget. If Obsidian can just create a good, solid engine and be given another chace by Bethesda to make another Fallout (or be givent he righgts...HA!) game I have faith it will be great.

Eh... Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Risen 2, Skyrim, Dead State are in the making and set to release 2011/2012

I still have massive doubts about Skyrim.

It could end up being a good RPG, but looking at Oblivion and Fallout 3, it could end up like...them.

 

[RedEyesBlackGamer]

Really? I didn't notice. Games about to be released this year:
Disgaea 4
Deus Ex 3
Persona 2: Innocent Sin
Skyrim
Devil Survivor: Overclocked
The genre seems to be doing fine to me.

 

[Woodsey]

Because making games is so expensive they can't afford to make things with true complexity and depth.

Pretty much this. It would just be so expensive to make an RPG with that kind of freedom with the production values of modern games. Any RPG's like that would have be indie, and frankly, there are very few indie developers who have seemed to taken to this particular niche.

Actually, there's CD Projekt Red with The Witcher series. Probably the best we're going to get, anyway.

Human Revolution too.

OT: Because game designers like to pretend they're actually working in films, and its much easier to script the shit out of every footstep then it is to give freedom to the player.