RPGs in the 2000s?

[Animeadam]

When did the start?

 

[jancobblepot]

(...) and eventually, in July 2002, the Codex was born.

 

[octavius]

(...) and eventually, in July 2002, the Codex was born.

When was the X-Box and Playstation released? I have a feeling the started about the same time...

 

[Quetzacoatl]

In what year was the last really good rpg you played released?
Answer this question and you shall answer your own question.

 

[BLOBERT]

BRO WHAT YEAR DID YOU START FEELING REALLY ANGSTY LIKE A TEENAGE BOY CONSTANTLY MENSTRUATING!!!!??!!

THAT IS THE YEAR OF THE DECLINE

SERIOUSLY AROUND THE TIME OF BALDURS GATE OR PROBABLY AFTER BG2 I DONT KNOW I NEVER PLAYED THEM TO SEE IF THEY ARE SHIT BUT THE END OF 2D RPGS AND START OF 3D FULL VOICE ACTING EXCLUSIVELY WAS BAD

AND BROS BEFORE SOME HERE START JERKING OFF FURIOUSLY 3D AND FULL VOICE WAS BAD BECAUSE THE TECHNOLOGY OR BUDGET OR WHATEVER WOULD NOT ALLOW GAMES THE SCOPE OF IE OR TOP DOWN GAMES

 

[BLOBERT]

BRO LOLOLOLOL MAYBE I AM WRONG ABOUT THE ABOVE BUT IT IS MY GUESS

 

[Vaarna_Aarne]

I wouldn't say there's total decline, since we do have Troika and Obsidian, but there is definate in the "poster boys" of the genre.

I'm gonna say that the there started either with KotOR1 or Mass Effect. Bioware has been far worse for the genre than Todd Howard ever was even in the worst predictions.

 

[Satan]

Gamers are at fault. They buy shit, so companies make more of it. If you bought KotOR or Mass Effect it's your fault.

 

[Regdar]

IMO the decline started somewhere around '98-'01, and Bioware was its herald. It's all very gradual and no one can say for sure what exactly started it all. The thing that's certain, however, is that at some point, some suits slapped their foreheads saying "holy shit this could be profitable" and that's how EA (as it is today) was born.

It all boils down to trying to appeal to the largest amount of people. This results in bigger sales and prompts even wider appealing and so on. I can't even imagine what an EA game will look like in 20 years.

 

[DwarvenFood]

You'll be playing it a little bit like this:

 

[Regdar]

Yeah and in the 1960s people thought we'd be colonizing other planets by the year 2000. Flash forward to today, the only technological advancements in the last 10 years are smaller Ipods

 

[PorkaMorka]

The decline had already started in 1993 when Dark Sun: Shattered Lands reduced the party size to four and dumbed down tactical combat and exploration, replacing it with shiny graphics and more focus on dialog/story.

The decline was gradual at first though, so some games that were effected by the decline were still decent games early on.

 

[Roguey]

Decline's been with us all along but RPGs turned into complete shit in 1994 and have stayed that way with a few minor bumps of not-that-bad-could-be-a-lot-better along the way.

 

[hanssolo]

The decline had already started in 1993 when Dark Sun: Shattered Lands reduced the party size to four and dumbed down tactical combat and exploration, replacing it with shiny graphics and more focus on dialog/story.

The decline was gradual at first though, so some games that were effected by the decline were still decent games early on.

This. '93 to '97 was the Slow Death, and then came Bioware, convincing everyone that they were the heralds of a new CRPG golden age by redefining CRPGs as storytime derp adventure.

 

[Excidium]

The decline started when people decided to play simplistic RPG emulations on their computers, instead of reuniting with other people to play the real thing.

 

[DraQ]

When did the start?

All I know is that the first Lands of Lore was already painfully simplified popamole.

 

[asper]

The decline started when Lord British released Ultima.

After all, sandbox gameplay all started with that series.

On a serious note, there hasn't been a good mainstream RPG since Bloodlines, so the folding of Troika is a pretty good endpoint marker.

Moreover, am I the only one who thinks cRPG is a very overrated genre? How many really good games have been released in it? Just a handful.. Other genres have fared better

 

[DraQ]

The decline started when Lord British released Ultima.

After all, sandbox gameplay all started with that series.

On a serious note, there hasn't been a good mainstream RPG since Bloodlines, so the folding of Troika is a pretty good endpoint marker.

Moreover, am I the only one who thinks cRPG is a very overrated genre? How many really good games have been released in it? Just a handful.. Other genres have fared better

I analysed the problem and came to a conclusion that cRPG isn't an actual genre, but a gameplay layer that can be attached to many different genres.

If done right it will greatly enhance the game in question, if done wrong it might range from not having negative impact to fucking shit up.

PnP RPGs are generally range of games resulting from attaching this layer to some mixture (of varied proportions) of tabletop tactical wargame and collective storytelling.

cRPGs are range of games resulting from attaching this layer to many different genres.

 

[Xor]

Originally you had companies making 'real' cRPGs; some of them were awesome, some were OK, and some of them sucked. Then publishers started pressuring RPG studios to make action games, and real-time RPGs started to become more popular. Eventually they stopped resembling the original genre and turned into what we call an "RPG" today, which is basically an action game with dialog.

All this started probably in the mid to late 90s, but it didn't get bad until the early 2000s. Blame the industry, who will continue to almost exclusively support big-budget first person action games even in the face of shrinking interest in those titles and overwhelming evidence that there are markets out there for other genres.

 

[Derper]

BRO WHAT YEAR DID YOU START FEELING REALLY ANGSTY LIKE A TEENAGE BOY CONSTANTLY MENSTRUATING!!!!??!!

THAT IS THE YEAR OF THE DECLINE

SERIOUSLY AROUND THE TIME OF BALDURS GATE OR PROBABLY AFTER BG2 I DONT KNOW I NEVER PLAYED THEM TO SEE IF THEY ARE SHIT BUT THE END OF 2D RPGS AND START OF 3D FULL VOICE ACTING EXCLUSIVELY WAS BAD

AND BROS BEFORE SOME HERE START JERKING OFF FURIOUSLY 3D AND FULL VOICE WAS BAD BECAUSE THE TECHNOLOGY OR BUDGET OR WHATEVER WOULD NOT ALLOW GAMES THE SCOPE OF IE OR TOP DOWN GAMES

+1

 

[Serious_Business]

The decline started when Lord British released Ultima.

After all, sandbox gameplay all started with that series.

On a serious note, there hasn't been a good mainstream RPG since Bloodlines, so the folding of Troika is a pretty good endpoint marker.

Moreover, am I the only one who thinks cRPG is a very overrated genre? How many really good games have been released in it? Just a handful.. Other genres have fared better

I analysed the problem and came to a conclusion that cRPG isn't an actual genre, but a gameplay layer that can be attached to many different genres.

If done right it will greatly enhance the game in question, if done wrong it might range from not having negative impact to fucking shit up.

PnP RPGs are generally range of games resulting from attaching this layer to some mixture (of varied proportions) of tabletop tactical wargame and collective storytelling.

cRPGs are range of games resulting from attaching this layer to many different genres.

I agree with that, well said.

You've just deconstructed everything that was posted here for the last 9 years.

Good job

 

[Orgasm]

I LOVE OBLIVION AND I WANT TO BE A DRAGON!111!!! FICK JA!

The decline started in the early nineties when gaming went all mass market but didnt crash and burn like in the early eighties in the kwa due to teh fucking sheeple larpers.

Vile, bile inducing morons like the the fleshbags above.

 

[DraQ]

The decline started when Lord British released Ultima.

After all, sandbox gameplay all started with that series.

On a serious note, there hasn't been a good mainstream RPG since Bloodlines, so the folding of Troika is a pretty good endpoint marker.

Moreover, am I the only one who thinks cRPG is a very overrated genre? How many really good games have been released in it? Just a handful.. Other genres have fared better

I analysed the problem and came to a conclusion that cRPG isn't an actual genre, but a gameplay layer that can be attached to many different genres.

If done right it will greatly enhance the game in question, if done wrong it might range from not having negative impact to fucking shit up.

PnP RPGs are generally range of games resulting from attaching this layer to some mixture (of varied proportions) of tabletop tactical wargame and collective storytelling.

cRPGs are range of games resulting from attaching this layer to many different genres.

I agree with that, well said.

You've just deconstructed everything that was posted here for the last 9 years.

Good job

Additionally.

I think we should.

Make those one line gaps.

Obligatory in all posts.

Because they are just fucking cool.

But that's beside the point.



Seriously though, RPG label is rather arbitrary as a genre label. cRPGs simply fail as single genre - it's like grouping tactical games like JA, FPSes and military sims in "Wargames" genre. Retarded.
RPG mechanics, is the distinguishing feature of all, so-called RPGs. It's purpose is allowing for quantitatively different characters for the purpose of making those differences possible to handle for automated mechanics. When implemented well this layer will make different characters require completely different approach to challenges ahead, when implemented badly the differences will be flavour only.
If the game has C&C a good implementation of RPG layer should modify availability of various choices and their outcomes.
The layer itself, however, layer is completely separate from main gameplay layer which may be FPS, TPS, tile-based crawler, overhead TB or RT tactical game or slasher and so on.
There are FPSes that aren't RPGs and those that are (TES, Deus Ex), there overhead games with and without RPG layer, I don't know of TB non-RPG tile based crawlers, but Platoon on c64 was partially an RT tile based crawler without having hints of RPG mechanics. And so on.

There is no such thing as 'pure' RPG, just different combinations of RPG layer with base gameplay. We should concentrate on strength of those individual elements and on how strongly they affect each other rather than pointless discussions regarding the nature of an RPG and what can change it.

 

[sgc_meltdown]

You've just deconstructed everything that was posted here for the last 9 years

I'm disappointed that you didn't do it first

aren't most of your posts a reply to actual underlying concept of a thread once deconstructed

There is no such thing as 'pure' RPG, just different combinations of RPG layer with base gameplay.

hahaha bro the closest practical implementation of a real 'rpg', the dungeon crawler is so agreeable because there are already significant existing mechanical overlaps in small scale wargaming combat and rpgs
and in turn we end up saying fucking storyfag noobs the real rpgs is party based TB hack and slash because it's closer to rpgs that's how you know those are the real deal

rpg videogame communities is like a constant episode of ghost hunters rpg version where everyone turns off the fucking lights and after a while their perception tells them THERE AN RPG JUST FUCKING TOUCHED ME JESUS CHRIST and they turn a corner and HOLY SHITSTICKS I SAW AN RPG because certain elements happened to combine together to form a close approximate to roleplaying game phenomena and just like those ghost hunter people can't completely agree on which ghost vision or funny recorded voice was spookier nobody can constantly agree on which rpgs are the most rpg-like and for the barely initiated they just need to feel a little cold waft of rpg breeze and they've never had anything like that in their life before and they'll shit themselves with the new sensational joy of roleplaying and for the veterans they need a harder experience, they need a lot more elements and weight and emphasis to it something they don't consider as mundane chills like thinking they saw something with hooves walking past a crack of a door and oh jesus christ this is pure rpg alright lets get the fuck out

I've said before that rpgs are just a brand at this point because if a set of features can be sufficiently described or perceived as close enough as being 'rpg' BANG IT IS NOW AN RPG, A DISTINCT GENRE OF ITS OWN TO BE SURE
and now your game is appealing to rpg lovers, which means they are lovers of rpg games of course

bros tell me this doesn't sound familiar as pertains to personal interpretation of what defines rpgs

Brand is the personality that identifies a product, service or company (name, term, sign, symbol, or design, or combination of them) and how it relates to key constituencies: customers, staff, partners, investors etc.

Some people distinguish the psychological aspect, brand associations like thoughts, feelings, perceptions, images, experiences, beliefs, attitudes, and so on that become linked to the brand, of a brand from the experiential aspect.

The experiential aspect consists of the sum of all points of contact with the brand and is known as the brand experience. The psychological aspect, sometimes referred to as the brand image, is a symbolic construct created within the minds of people, consisting of all the information and expectations associated with a product, service or the company(ies) providing them.

People engaged in branding seek to develop or align the expectations behind the brand experience, creating the impression that a brand associated with a product or service has certain qualities or characteristics that make it special or unique. A brand is therefore one of the most valuable elements in an advertising theme, as it demonstrates what the brand owner is able to offer in the marketplace.

 

[DraQ]

You've just deconstructed everything that was posted here for the last 9 years

I'm disappointed that you didn't do it first

aren't most of your posts a reply to actual underlying concept of a thread once deconstructed

There is no such thing as 'pure' RPG, just different combinations of RPG layer with base gameplay.

hahaha bro the closest practical implementation of a real 'rpg', the dungeon crawler is so agreeable because there are already significant existing mechanical overlaps in small scale wargaming combat and rpgs
and in turn we end up saying fucking storyfag noobs the real rpgs is party based TB hack and slash because it's closer to rpgs that's how you know those are the real deal

rpg videogame communities is like a constant episode of ghost hunters rpg version where everyone turns off the fucking lights and after a while their perception tells them THERE AN RPG JUST FUCKING TOUCHED ME JESUS CHRIST and they turn a corner and HOLY SHITSTICKS I SAW AN RPG because certain elements happened to combine together to form a close approximate to roleplaying game phenomena and just like those ghost hunter people can't completely agree on which ghost vision or funny recorded voice was spookier nobody can constantly agree on which rpgs are the most rpg-like and for the barely initiated they just need to feel a little cold waft of rpg breeze and they've never had anything like that in their life before and they'll shit themselves with the new sensational joy of roleplaying and for the veterans they need a harder experience, they need a lot more elements and weight and emphasis to it something they don't consider as mundane chills like thinking they saw something with hooves walking past a crack of a door and oh jesus christ this is pure rpg alright lets get the fuck out

I've said before that rpgs are just a brand at this point because if a set of features can be sufficiently described or perceived as close enough as being 'rpg' BANG IT IS NOW AN RPG, A DISTINCT GENRE OF ITS OWN TO BE SURE
and now your game is appealing to rpg lovers, which means they are lovers of rpg games of course

bros tell me this doesn't sound familiar as pertains to personal interpretation of what defines rpgs

Brand is the personality that identifies a product, service or company (name, term, sign, symbol, or design, or combination of them) and how it relates to key constituencies: customers, staff, partners, investors etc.

Some people distinguish the psychological aspect, brand associations like thoughts, feelings, perceptions, images, experiences, beliefs, attitudes, and so on that become linked to the brand, of a brand from the experiential aspect.

The experiential aspect consists of the sum of all points of contact with the brand and is known as the brand experience. The psychological aspect, sometimes referred to as the brand image, is a symbolic construct created within the minds of people, consisting of all the information and expectations associated with a product, service or the company(ies) providing them.

People engaged in branding seek to develop or align the expectations behind the brand experience, creating the impression that a brand associated with a product or service has certain qualities or characteristics that make it special or unique. A brand is therefore one of the most valuable elements in an advertising theme, as it demonstrates what the brand owner is able to offer in the marketplace.

I find your lack of punctuation... disturbing.