Community RPG Codex Top Ten Vintage RPGs Poll Results

[Fowyr]

For anyone interested in the "true results", just check the votes of

This poll results are fine, despite overwhelming and not anticipated (at least by me) victory of BaK. You should just check games that are on 5-15 place instead for some great, but less obvious choices. Pity that we had only five games rule, but it made results much clearer. For example, I wanted to vote for Legacy, Aethra and The Summoning as well, but my result vote for Wiz7 (2 points) would be decresed.

 

[Fowyr]

This is the one and only true definition from the the dungeoncrawlers.org About page:

That's rich for a term that precedes Wizardry for years.

Check this as well:

Why do we feel the need to explain the term dungeon crawler? Well, back in the heyday of games like The Bard's Tale, Wizardry and Dungeon Master there were no real-time free movement games. This was of course due to technical limitations.

Dungeon Master was released in 1987.
Free movement was at least in Total Eclipse released in 1988.
Technical limitations my ass. Maybe it was for Wiz1, but it was gameplay decision for better placement of traps and easiness of hand dungeon mapping that was part of the game in DM.

 

[Atlantico]

the term used by everyone else in the world is dungeon crawler
https://www.dungeoncrawlers.org/

Yeah, that could fly in the world without Ultima Underworld OR Nethack.

Nor any blobbers set primarily in non-dungeon environments, for that matter.

Rogue-likes don't have to be set in a dungeon for the term to make sense.

Meanwhile "blobber" is a term made by idiots for idiots and is fundamentally useless, ignorant and stupid.

But that's not the worst of it, the worst is that it's like a dad-joke "funny". Cringeworthy.

 

[Grunker]

Overall I'm fine with this result even if it's pretty far from my own list, but Ultima Underworld as the second-best oldschool RPG just boggles my mind and fuck Dungeon Master

 

[Rincewind]

Free movement was at least in Total Eclipse released in 1988.
Technical limitations my ass. Maybe it was for Wiz1, but it was gameplay decision for better placement of traps and easiness of hand dungeon mapping that was part of the game in DM.

Oh yeah, definitely a design decision. You can't map non-grid based dungeon crawlers easily!

I think the first free-movement game on personal computers was Midi Maze on the Atari ST in 1987. Driller, another Freescape game, predates Total Eclipse by a year; it was also released in 1987 for the C64 and the Spectrum. There was also The Colony on the Mac in 1988.

 

[Rincewind]

Actually, just realised that I'm much happier with the top 10 if I reverse the rankings!

 

[Tihskael]

The Codex should do a poll for every single decade so that grandpas on this website can be content that finally their tastes can get some sort of validation.

 

[Fowyr]

Overall I'm fine with this result even if it's pretty far from my own list, but Ultima Underworld as the second-best oldschool RPG just boggles my mind

It has great dungeon and exploration feel.

Meanwhile "blobber" is a term made by idiots for idiots and is fundamentally useless, ignorant and stupid.

It's pretty funny and basically means "first-person party RPG". Nothing more, nothing less. Not all old RPGs were blobbers, after all.

 

[Grunker]

It has great dungeon and exploration feel.

It does. How that's enough to make it beat "complete" games that have great everything - like Xeen, Wiz7, Pool etc. - is unexplainable. Unless you use that forbidden word on the Codex: nostalgia

 

[ADULF HITLOR FAN KLUB]

Nice results, but I am a bit surprised that Wasteland didn't rank higher.

 

[Rincewind]

Unless you use that forbidden word on the Codex: nostalgia

Nothing exists in a vacuum. Your experience is always tinted by *something*, be it nostalgia or some other content of your mind. Without going into too much detail, "nostalgia" is as a valid a "reason" as any other preference (be it either conscious or subconscious).

 

[Atlantico]

It's pretty funny and basically means "first-person party RPG". Nothing more, nothing less. Not all old RPGs were blobbers, after all.

No, it doesn't "mean" anything, it's just the meaning you and a very fringe group on the Codex has put in this term.

Nor is it "funny", it's a dad-joke level garbage.

This is like walking into a jerk-circle and having people going "well what's your problem? everyone here does it like this, it's totally normal".

Bizarrely out of touch.

 

[lukaszek]

I propose that for the next major poll, you ask people to name top RPGs except the top-20 Codex RPGs. Like this, but with points and the usual well-organised approach: https://rpgcodex.net/forums/threads/your-top-10-rpgs-except-top-20-codex-titles.141596/

dunno... i voted there by pasting rpgs numbered 20-30 and no one noticed

 

[rusty_shackleford]

Just going to refer to them as jrpg from now on.

 

[mondblut]

Rogue-likes don't have to be set in a dungeon for the term to make sense.

"Dungeon crawling" is any combat-centric RPG activity set in dungeons, and has been since the days of Gygax and Arneson.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

Rogue-likes don't have to be set in a dungeon for the term to make sense.

"Dungeon crawling" is any combat-centric RPG activity set in dungeons, and has been since the days of Gygax and Arneson.

Which is why they're now just called jrpg.

 

[mondblut]

Nice results, but I am a bit surprised that Wasteland didn't rank higher.

Fallout fanboys saw the poll description and recoiled without voting.

 

[Darth Roxor]

It has great dungeon and exploration feel.

It does. How that's enough to make it beat "complete" games that have great everything - like Xeen, Wiz7, Pool etc. - is unexplainable. Unless you use that forbidden word on the Codex: nostalgia

I'm not a particular fan of UW, but those games you mention that 'have great everything' are completely outclassed by UW in terms of simulationism and global dungeon coherence/ecology.

 

[MicoSelva]

Looks like I was the only one who voted for Yendorian Tales.
I can finally feel special.

Spoiler

Or maybe "special"...?

 

[Sergiu64]

Yay for BaK! I suppose this is a good time to advertise my Let's Play of it.

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[Roguey]

It has great dungeon and exploration feel.

It does. How that's enough to make it beat "complete" games that have great everything - like Xeen, Wiz7, Pool etc. - is unexplainable. Unless you use that forbidden word on the Codex: nostalgia

All those games lack dialogue trees.

 

[Arthandas]

Nice try Codex, you obviously pasted some logos on random classic metal covers and pretend those were actual games.

 

[Atlantico]

"Dungeon crawling" is any combat-centric RPG activity set in dungeons, and has been since the days of Gygax and Arneson.

Blobbers is a term which doesn't exist, but is pushed by autistic neckbeards on the Codex for some reason. They must think they're super witty and smart.

Dungeon crawlers may not be the perfect term for it, but it isn't a meaningless garbage term like "blobbers".

Trying to force this term is not going to work. It's too stupid and too cringeworthy.

Besides, if "dungeon crawlers" is "is any combat-centric RPG activity set in dungeons", then why aren't they "hack and slashers"? That's just as descriptive.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

if dungeon crawling doesn't fit because it includes games like ultima underworld then blobbers doesn't fit because it includes essentially the entire jrpg genre

 

[Roguey]

"Dungeon crawling" is any combat-centric RPG activity set in dungeons, and has been since the days of Gygax and Arneson.

Blobbers is a term which doesn't exist, but is pushed by autistic neckbeards on the Codex for some reason. They must think they're super witty and smart.

Dungeon crawlers may not be the perfect term for it, but it isn't a meaningless garbage term like "blobbers".

Trying to force this term is not going to work. It's too stupid and too cringeworthy.

Besides, if "dungeon crawlers" is "is any combat-centric RPG activity set in dungeons", then why aren't they "hack and slashers"? That's just as descriptive.

https://www.giantbomb.com/blobber/3015-8752/
https://www.reddit.com/r/rpg_gamers/comments/faoqsz/recommended_blobber_rpg_games/
https://store.steampowered.com/curator/34771547-Blobber-Central/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:First-person_party-based_dungeon_crawler_video_games

Stay mad. Blobber doesn't describe the activites, but it does describe the combat and movement style (your group moves and acts as a single blob).