Velocity Eleven said:
The thing that's really been grinding my gears recently is all the hatred for random battles
Now here's the thing, I'm not saying that random battles is the only way RPG battles should be done, nor am I saying it is inherently the best way. Overall it is my favourite way though I am willing to accept that games without them can have battles implemented in an interesting way that works.
I have been noticing that random battles in games arnt as prevelent as they used to be, and I hear so so many complaints about them that are completely unjustified.
So first of all I will address my own reasons for liking random battles. Then I will address the common complaints I hear and finally to be fair I will explain a something that I dislike about random battles (I'm trying to be subjective as I can).
What I Like About Random Battles
1. I like random battles because it is an effective method to make absoloutly sure that the skill required in order to defeat enemies is completely focused on the actual events during the fights. If I know that I can't "avoid" fights then it feels more of a challenge to me to be able to actually kill the enemies.
This is completely dependant on the game in question.
2. I find they enhance the exploration element as you do not have to worry about physically avoiding specific enemies on the field
Whereas other people may find that they decrease the exploration element. Say you've run out of potions, and your characters are all on very low health: the next battle may very well kill you. And, since the battles are random, you have no control over when one pops up.
3. It allows for more of a strategic approach, this is because finding enemies on the field and running toward or away from them involves twitch-based skill. I'm not saying twitch-based skill is bad, but I tend to find that it's not as interesting when it comes to running to/from enemies in RPGs. The game can still have twich-based mechanics inside the battles themselves (I like how Shadow Hearts did that)
No it doesn't. There is no strategic approach to entering a random battle. The strategic element of most RPGs comes when you're actually
in the battle, whether you ended up there randomly, or by "choice".
Addressing Complaints About Random Battles
1. I can't choose who I fight
Well in most games you cant choose who to fight, in most cases you always know who the badguys are and you fight them.
Strawman. If a game doesn't have random battles, and I don't want to fight McChewy over there, I don't have to. I can actively go out of my way to avoid that encounter. If the game has random battles, I have no choice.
2. They're too random
The law of large numbers, considering the amount of time spent playing these games the amount of randomisation will average towards the mean. But even so, the battles aren't so random that its like playing "heads or tails" (as some people make it out to be)
This is an issue that will vary from game to game. Some games get the balance right, others overdo it. You can't apply the complaint to all games, nor casn you apply your "not heads or tails" rebuttal to all games. In some instances, you are right, in other instances "they" are right.
3. It takes no skill
True, but why is this a problem? Adding more events that require skill doesnt make a game better, as I said before it means that the skill is focused entirely during the battles. If for example Sonic The Hegdehog "added skill" to it (such as finding power-ups in order to level-up your jumps) then the other features would have to be lessened in importance in order to balance out the difficulty. Also games with random battles have skill in different areas
Your "Sonic the Hedgehog" strawman aside, you're correct, mostly.
3. I get into one every 3 steps
That's really over-exagerating, even saying 10 steps is over exagerating
Depends on the game.
4. I was just one step before entering a town and I got into a damn battle
And what is it about that "one step away" feature that adds any sort of dissatisfaction to the entering of a battle? would the battle have been any different from a battle that heppened two or three steps away? If it takes (on average) 10 battles to get from point A to point B then what difference does it make "when" on that journey you entered the battle? (Provided that enemies are the same throughout the path, but a couple steps outside a town is barely going to make a difference)
The issue here is mainly that just before you enter a town is the point at which your party will be weakest, in terms of HP and MP levels, and inventory (potions, ethers etc.). Getting into the town would allow you to heal your party and stock up on items again, but the fact that you've just got into another battle means that you could very well be killed in some cases.
5. (In response to above) If I had just gone one more step then I wouldn't have had to enter this battle, I was so close to avoiding that battle
True, but how is that relevant? If getting into a battle just before entering a town is a negative, then is it not feasible to say that reaching a town in just enough steps that the next step was going to trigger a battle is just as positive as that is negative? You could also use that logic to say that "one step before town" is a positive as it guarentees a 0% chance of any battles for the rest of that journey
Maybe he didn't have the resources to survive that battle.
6. We now have the technology so that we don't need random battles anymore
So? Just because technology can handle more doesnt mean that it directly translates into a fun experience. People still play Chess and they enjoy it, regardless of how much data the current consoles can handle
Correct.
7. They slow the game down
This doesn't make any sense, a game feature can't slow a game down as it is a part of the gameplay.
So, according to you, if I make a game where every time you take a step, you have to hit a button 14 times before you can take another step, that doesn't slow the game down, because it's a part of the gameplay? Hyperbole, I know, but it demonstrates my point.
If you removed the random battles, you wouldnt be "speeding up" the game, you'd be changng it.
It's true that you would be changing the game to a certain extent, but not so much that it becomes an entirely different game.
8. The animations takes soooooo long
Seriously? Most of these complaints I hear talk as if an attack takes half a minute to complete, these complaints are really over-exagerated. Even so I think people are just being far too impatient for their own good. (This isn't directly linked to random battles but it kinda is)
Add to your rebuttal that most RPGs have an option to skip out the animations on attacks.
9. It's not realistic
And why does that matter? I am well aware that people dont enter "random battles" in real life, games are supposed to be about overcoming challenges, whether they be presented in a way that reflects the real world or not
Indeed. I thought we sort of left realism behind when we started throwing huge balls of fire and fighting dragons, but hey.
10. It's not immersive
I disagree, I find random battles to be very immersive. This is because of reasons stated in my "What I like about random battles" section
This really is entirely subjective on both sides.
11. It's just about selecting "Attack" until the enemy dies over and over
That is usually an over-exageration, but even if it wasn't the point is still invalid. Even if that was the case, it doesn't link with the actual random battles themselves, there are many action games have this exact "problem". It may be true that a game with random-battles does this but its not the "random battle" feature that causes it
Correct. If a game will just have select "Attack" over and over during it's battles, then it doesn't really matter whether or not the battle was random or not.
13. I just want to get to the end of this frickin' dungeon but enemies keep popping out
Hey, it's a game, you're not always going to get what you want. You will have to overcome challenges on the way. All games do that. Things will always get in your way when you play games.
Once again, you've forgotten about depleted resources. What if the player is trying to leave the dungeon because he needs to heal, or buy more potions? Or because enemies in the dungeon are too powerful for him to defeat? In that instance, random battles are the most annoying gameplay feature to ever be concieved by man.
R lol im just kidding i read it and have to agree with you on all except for "i was one step away from entering a town" That does make a difference, especially if you have low HP
