Why level 100?

[Erana]

So, being several years behind, I finally get a copy of Kingdom Hearts 2. I'm now at the endgame, and haven't even reached level 50.
And with most Pokemon games, you typically get to around level 70, tops, for a normal playthrough.
I've played RPGs where there's a low level cap, and in every instance, they drive me nuts, But what is so special about 100 levels?
I understand its a nice little bit of extra for the particularly enthused player, but to me, there's always been a nagging sense of the game being somehow unfinished. Oftentimes, post-endgame adventures only go ten or so levels higher than the main boss; so even when you go for 100% completion, in a lotta games you still don't get to the magic level.

Have you finished KH2 yet?
I was upto LVL 70 on the last stage and I died a couple of times, you could definitely grind to 100 and still have a challenge IMO.

Plus, it's freakin cool to be kickin' ass once you reach the last quarter of LVL cap, watching 10 heartless succumb to a single lightning attack

Oh and who doesn't like 100? It's an all-round adored number!

Well, I think I am...
I mean, the game's telling me that there's no turning back when I go through the big, shiny doors, and that doing so will, "End this."
Is this a misnomer?

 

[Canadamus Prime]

In the 8-bit era it had to do with the console's memory limitations. Now-a-days I think it just makes a nice round number to stop at. If you don't like the level cap, play Star Ocean: Till the End of Time. I don't even know what the level cap is on that game, but I had 2 of my characters over level 260.

Unfortunately, your characters cap out some time before then.

I think the level cap is increased after you finish the main story.

 

[danosaurus]

So, being several years behind, I finally get a copy of Kingdom Hearts 2. I'm now at the endgame, and haven't even reached level 50.
And with most Pokemon games, you typically get to around level 70, tops, for a normal playthrough.
I've played RPGs where there's a low level cap, and in every instance, they drive me nuts, But what is so special about 100 levels?
I understand its a nice little bit of extra for the particularly enthused player, but to me, there's always been a nagging sense of the game being somehow unfinished. Oftentimes, post-endgame adventures only go ten or so levels higher than the main boss; so even when you go for 100% completion, in a lotta games you still don't get to the magic level.

Have you finished KH2 yet?
I was upto LVL 70 on the last stage and I died a couple of times, you could definitely grind to 100 and still have a challenge IMO.

Plus, it's freakin cool to be kickin' ass once you reach the last quarter of LVL cap, watching 10 heartless succumb to a single lightning attack

Oh and who doesn't like 100? It's an all-round adored number!

Well, I think I am...
I mean, the game's telling me that there's no turning back when I go through the big, shiny doors, and that doing so will, "End this."
Is this a misnomer?

Yeah make sure you save a separate file if you wanna walk through those doors, no turning back from that.
Don't be fooled, I was hella tanked up by the time I faced the last fight and it was intense and epic.

I still go back to KH2 often to play the gummi levels, far out they nailed the space shooter thing perfectly

 

[Guitar Gamer]

I like games that typically have levels OVER 9000.

WHAT 9000!

beat me to it................though I guess I shouldn't be surprised

 

[VanityGirl]

I like games that typically have levels OVER 9000.

WHAT 9000!

beat me to it................though I guess I shouldn't be surprised

GOD.. I was just gonna post that pic. lol.
"It's over 9,000!!!"

 

[DanDeFool]

Only RPG in recent memory I ever got to Lv. 99 in is Chrono Trigger. That game was awesome!

 

[JediMB]

Even in the '90s PS1 memory cards had 8megs on them.

You wish they did. PS1 memory cards were no more than 128 kB.

 

[Acaroid]

I like games that typically have levels OVER 9000.

WHAT 9000!

you should play You should play Disgaea each character has a level cap of 9999 (it is a strat based RPG, so you have LOADS of characters you need to level up)

damn that game takes ages to finish...

 

[crudus]

Even in the '90s PS1 memory cards had 8megs on them.

You wish they did. PS1 memory cards were no more than 128 kB.

I was thinking of the PS2 memory cards. But yes, PS1 had 128 kB which just proves my point even more.

 

[z121231211]

Level caps are mostly level 20 (Because they want to copy DnD), level 100 because that's a standard number that you can easily convert to a percentage (just add % at the end) or 99 because that's the highest you can go in a 2 digit number.

 

[Punnyfuzz]

I forgot which one it was, but there was a disgaea type game made by the same people that had tanks and buildings in the game which you could also level up. I got so involved leveling my items that I forgot about the storyline.

that was "Makai kingdom" you were talking about my friend.
how awesome that game was? let me give you an example: the main character is voiced by:
Crispin McDougal freeman. nuff said Dood.

 

[Magnatek]

I forgot which one it was, but there was a disgaea type game made by the same people that had tanks and buildings in the game which you could also level up. I got so involved leveling my items that I forgot about the storyline.

that was "Makai kingdom" you were talking about my friend.
how awesome that game was? let me give you an example: the main character is voiced by:
Crispin McDougal freeman. nuff said Dood.

Welcome to the Escapist, and I applaud you for stealing my answer under my nose.

OP: In most games, the cap is 100 in order to give the programmers some breathing room. With each level, the programmers have to add yet another step in the "level up" portion of the program. The more levels that are in the game, the more stuff the programmers have to put in.

In other words, NIS loves you.

 

[Logic 0]

Because they expect you to grind.

 

[Xskill]

Because as Adrian Monk would say, "It's a nice Symetrical Number."

You just became my number one person on this forum.

OT: 100 levels ... 100% makes sense to me. In older games its 99 because three digits was too much I guess. I think that they couldn't prevent the chars from leveling beyond 100 so they just went for double digits. Or something like that anyways, I'm not a programmer.

Well...There was the exception of Disgaea where you could go all the way to level 9999...They didn't make in 10k because 10k wouldn't fit on the menus...

 

[shwnbob]

I just think it's fun to try and get to level 100 although it takes FOREVER.

 

[ShawnRiles]

I got the Ultima Key, it's a sexy beast, filled with another dose of awesome.

 

[Scotty94]

Lol I actually have like 9 pokemon that were Lv100 in pokemon Silver...

 

[BlackndEclipse]

I think 50-75 is decent 100 is just ridiculous . I remember Pokemon Stadium 2 saying to import you own Level 100 team. Who the hell has 6 Pokemon at level 100?

i have a whole box lol, too much time as a kid XD

 

[Magnatek]

I forgot which one it was, but there was a disgaea type game made by the same people that had tanks and buildings in the game which you could also level up. I got so involved leveling my items that I forgot about the storyline.

that was "Makai kingdom" you were talking about my friend.
how awesome that game was? let me give you an example: the main character is voiced by:
Crispin McDougal freeman. nuff said Dood.

Welcome to the Escapist, and I applaud you for stealing my answer under my nose.

OP: In most games, the cap is 100 in order to give the programmers some breathing room. With each level, the programmers have to add yet another step in the "level up" portion of the program. The more levels that are in the game, the more stuff the programmers have to put in.

In other words, NIS loves you.

Did Phantom Brave have leveled items as well? I don't recall ATM.

Wow, that was a long time ago. I'm afraid I don't know either. It was about two months after I last played Phantom Brave when I made that post, and I haven't played it since then, so I have no idea anymore. As I recall, this post was more Disgaea-centered as well, I think. I know that they go up to 9999 in that game, so that was the main point I was bringing up.

 

[C_sector]

I believe there is more bragging rights if you try to finish the game on the lowest possible level. Tell me how many of you tried that?