RPGs with game-breaking exploits

[Aemar]

So lately I've been watching quite a few of this guy's soloing and speedruns videos for BG1 and the later MM games (6,7,8). Not to mention this particular video (below), where the guy reaches level 23 in roughly about 40 minutes without too much effort (basically mid-game party level), while also grabbing a hold of the best equipment in the game and a ton of money with it.



Any other RPGs where you can pull off similar feats of ridiculousness?

 

[Butter]

Bishop Identify glitch.

 

[Vic]

 

[octavius]

Alchemy in Morrowind.

 

[Ryzer]

Alchemy in Morrowind.

*Alchemy in all Elder Scrolls games.

 

[ropetight]

Basically any game thet levelled your skills by using them.

 

[MerchantKing]

If it doesn't have a game breaking exploit, can we even still call it an rpg?

 

[MpuMngwana]

All Elder Scrolls games have tons of exploits, but IMO Arena spellmaking takes the cake because of how simple it is to become unkillable (mostly due to the presence of +x per level effects). Get a custom shield spell to give yourself more health than the final boss (since the temporary HP doesn't wear off with time you can cast it in town, rest and then go dungeon crawling). Get a custom absorb magic spell, as all the scariest enemies use magic. Finally, if you want to speed up combat get a custom touch damage spell that can kill anything in game in a couple of hits - as you'll be absorbing a ton of magicka anyway the casting cost is not an issue. You can set this up roughly halfway through the game and turn the rest into a walking simulator.

 

[Konjad]

Equip everyone with ranged weapons in BG/IWD and never worry about anything (Sarevok won't even walk up to you)

 

[Mr. Magniloquent]

I revisted NWN OC a few months ago. My wizard broke the economy using the Continuous Flame spell from the expansions. It's per the Light cantrip, but permanent by a applying a property to the item. This increases its sell value spectacularly, particularly if the PC has high barter skill. Buy a 1gp club, enchant it, sell for several hundred gp. In short time you can buy every high value item in Act 1. Mostly notably all 3 belts which grant 20 DR to slashing, bludgeoning, and piercing damage respectively. Normally the player would have to scrimp and save to afford just one of those belts by the end of the act. Now you can get all of them by the time you leave the prologue if you can cast that spell.

 

[jaekl]

This thread makes me sad that game designers are too proud and haughty now to allow the player to think outside the box and mess with anything. You can't even misbehave in the fantasy world. If you do find something cheeky, they'll release a patch to ruin your fun.

 

[Anonymous Ranger]

It’s not as cool as some of the stuff posted in here but I think it still counts. There’s a part in vampire the masquerade bloodlines where you need to fight/run away from a werewolf with is meant to be one of the hardest fights in the game. However there’s a nearby building you can go into that the warewolf is too big to fit into so he just stands at the entrance making him a easy kill.

 

[KIss My Ass]

Probably already been said but anything with quicksave is easily exploitable. Weird West was the first game that came to mind when I seen the thread title. It is extremely easy to abuse the stealth mechanics and basically have infinite resources by stealing. Only took me a couple hours to break the game.

 

[Mr. Magniloquent]

An exploit has been fixed in WotR. I got the idea of using the Sickle of Wicked Rites against my characters to improve their ability scores. My experiments failed because it had been patched out. I was not the first to see the potential, evidently. Prior to patching, one could use it to give their characters untyped ability score bonuses up to 120 (+55), making them a demigod.

 

[MerchantKing]

The best exploit is the advance point buy bug in ToEE btw

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

In the PS1 version of Shin Megami Tensei you can use an exploit to equip Nerve Bullets to your legs, which makes you invincible.

 

[jaekl]

It’s not as cool as some of the stuff posted in here but I think it still counts. There’s a part in vampire the masquerade bloodlines where you need to fight/run away from a werewolf with is meant to be one of the hardest fights in the game. However there’s a nearby building you can go into that the warewolf is too big to fit into so he just stands at the entrance making him a easy kill.

That's how I defeat every dickhead enemy in Souls / Elden Ring

 

[Technomancer]

Basically any game thet levelled your skills by using them.

Colony Ship. No exploits allowed.

 

[Spukrian]

I revisted NWN OC a few months ago. My wizard broke the economy using the Continuous Flame spell from the expansions. It's per the Light cantrip, but permanent by a applying a property to the item. This increases its sell value spectacularly, particularly if the PC has high barter skill. Buy a 1gp club, enchant it, sell for several hundred gp. In short time you can buy every high value item in Act 1. Mostly notably all 3 belts which grant 20 DR to slashing, bludgeoning, and piercing damage respectively. Normally the player would have to scrimp and save to afford just one of those belts by the end of the act. Now you can get all of them by the time you leave the prologue if you can cast that spell.

Most of the random loot in the NWN OC is based on your level. Create a character, start HotU, level up to level 15, export the character and start the OC with it. You'll be drowning in loot (also there will be more enemies spawning and they'll be more powerful).

 

[vitellus]

The best exploit is the advance point buy bug in ToEE btw

did they fix this in temple+?

 

[Serus]

Basically any game thet levelled your skills by using them.

Not really. In many games you can grind some skills - sure but it isn't very different than grinding levels. If you can do it easily then, and only then, it is a significant exploit*. If you need hours to grind 1 level/few point of skills it is not an exploit any longer but players being autistic.
You can say as well: "Basically any game that has re-spawning enemies" - and you will be as correct and as wrong. Or simply any game that has unlimited exp/training possibilities even if they are not from killing monsters.

*Unless it is part of gameplay as it is meant to be by the authors - but let's not talk about such games here

 

[Serus]

It’s not as cool as some of the stuff posted in here but I think it still counts. There’s a part in vampire the masquerade bloodlines where you need to fight/run away from a werewolf with is meant to be one of the hardest fights in the game. However there’s a nearby building you can go into that the warewolf is too big to fit into so he just stands at the entrance making him a easy kill.

Sounds like it is the player being smart. Or at least should be. In another CRPG make it not a simple door but some tight passage, hard to spot either by a skill check or by player, that your character can access only with high DEX/AGI or acrobatics skill. A big monster gets stuck there, profit. A good crpg situation where you can use both non combat skills and player's smarts to defeat a strong(er) oponent.

 

[Orud]

OG Baldur's Gate 2 (fixed in EE afaik):

1. Find a gem and a potion.
2. Go in the inventory screen, drink said potion.
3. Before unpausing the game, swap the gem and the potion's place in your inventory.
4. Game tries to consume your gem, causing a numeric roll-over effect and putting the stack-count of your gem to 99.
5. Sell gems to get filthy rich.

 

[LarryTyphoid]

Ultima 6 has a rudimentary trading system where some goods are bought and sold at variable prices at different shops.

The balance of this system wasn't thought out too well. You can simply buy cloth at the clothmaker in Britain, walk across the street to the tailor, and sell the cloth for a profit of 5 gold per unit.

 

[Alex]

Alchemy in Morrowind.

*Alchemy in all Elder Scrolls games.

I thought it was rather underwhelming in Daggerfall, but I never used it much there.