migo said:
Final Fantasy 8 was different, people couldn't handle that, they didn't like it, they complained about the realistic character models because they weren't used to it, they complained about the plot because it wasn't generic and predictable, that's why they didn't like it, because none of the complaints leveled against FF8 are actually valid.
Actually... no. Hi, I hated FF8. In fact, I'd argue FF8 helped pull me back from what was until then a serious love of JRPGs and especially a love of Square's products. I hated it because I hated the characters. I hated Squall with a passion, I disliked what motivations the characters put forth, I hated their dynamics with one another, I hated the concert and I hated their various idiotic plans. The gameplay was annoying to me at best, because it often felt pointless, like my actions weren't doing or changing anything, at least not for the better. I despised the idiotic plot angles, like the freaking orphanage. I hated the run-around in the final boss area. I despised the Guide Dang It subquests. The only thing that made the game worth playing to me, at all, was the card game.
And it wasn't for lack of trying. I eagerly wanted the game to be fun. If it was like FF7 or any other previous Final Fantasy and fun, great. If it was new and innovative and fun, great. But for me, it never hit the 'and fun', regardless of whether what it was doing was new or old.
Now, let me make this perfectly clear for you; my complaints are valid, because they are MY complaints. Now, clearly, you liked FF8. And to that I say... awesome. Seriously, kudos to ya, glad the game works for you, and I imagine to this day you can still go back to it anew and enjoy it fresh all over again. When a gamer can find a game that does that for them, then it's a rare and fortunate find, and as a fellow gamer who knows how deeply enjoyable it can be to go back to an old favorite and relish it anew, I'm happy for you. But you can't blanketly declare 'Complaints against this game are invalid'. If folks hated elements of it, hated the plot, hated the characters, hated the graphics, whatever... then THEY hated that. You can no sooner declare their viewpoints invalid then they have any right to declare yours invalid. You loved it, they hated it. Their sentiment cannot take away any joy you got from the game, because for you, it worked. Period.
OT, I think that RPG fans hold their games to a higher standard than FPS fans do. Partly because of how much time is invested in a given RPG. Consider, you play a game solo for... what, fifty hours? Sixty? Hell, if it's an open-world game, you might even double those numbers. Ergo, once they finish such a game, they're pretty played out on those mechanics. FPS games are more bite-sized, rarely taking more than twenty hours at the longest to beat from start to credits, with most being closer to 2/3rds that ammount.
Plus, there's only so much you can do with an FPS. You go through the map, you shoot at things that are not you, you find ammo and guns, and if the programmers hate you there's a jumping puzzle. FPS fans know that going in. It's like how Koei's fanbase knows that the next Dynasty Warriors game is going to be pretty damn similar to the previous one. They still buy it, because that's what they want, it's what works for them.
With RPGs, though, there is an inherent belief that there needs to be difference and innovation... which often can be a bit idiotic. Hell, if turn based works for you, why do you want real time? If the leveling system worked for you before, why do you want to alter it? It's even more inane when you consider that, of the two game genres, RPGs are more associated with grand sweeping storylines... which exist typically outside of the mechanisms of gameplay. And not to harp, that's why for my money, I'd sooner go back and replay Final Fantasy Tactics for the... erm... thirteenth time now then play FF8 again. The story, the characters, the world, it all worked on a level you rarely find in most games. Sure, the graphics are dated, the turn based system is a little wonky, and some classes are outright gamebreakers when handled properly (my personal favorite being maximizing the speed of my party and leveling them all to max as Lancers... nothing says screw you to the final boss like jumping death performed in one turn before said boss can even start dishing out the pain). But if it works, it works. RPG gamers should cut back on demanding everything be new and innovative with every bloody title, and should instead look for the most fufilling experience with the components they like the most.