Definition of the RPG Genre?

[DeletedUser9]

This came up in another thread recently, in the Skyward Sword section, and I've actually been thinking about it for a while. In the video game industry, there's a lot of different genres of games just as there are in any medium. These genres define different types of experiences possible in the medium, and these separations are generally created so that people with different tastes can play what they like.

That said, by definition each genre is made up of certain traits. While genres are constantly reinvented or combined (creating subgenres, usually), they still have a certain set of traits that define them. Platformers are about timing jumps, shooters are about shooting things, sports games mimic real sports, real time strategy games involve controlling troops in strategic maneuvers in real-time.

But what about RPGs?

I'm sure we all know what the term stands for, "Role-Playing Game", so like many other genres, one would thing that defines it. But no, it doesn't. Almost every single video game ever made is a "Role-Playing Game". In Zelda, you play the role of Link, in Halo, you play the role of Master Chief. In almost every video game you either play the role of a specific character or you serve a specific role in the story (usually as the hero). So what is the actual definition of an RPG?



I've come to a conclusion on it, but because I don't want the thread to simply become "yes" or "no" to my conclusion, I won't go into it too much right off. That said, my conclusion is that the definition of the RPG genre is character growth. Basis in state building, usually with leveling up but also other things. I think that's the true basis of the RPG genre.

But what do you guys think?

 

[Ganondork]

What I've always thought an RPG was, was a game where you make some of the choices. In games such as Zelda, the only decision you really make is which locked door to use your small key on.

Games such as Bioshock make you choose; whether it's killing that helpless antagonist, or rescuing that Little Sister, it's your choice. I think they call it role-playing game because it's not that you play the role of a character, it's that you have a role in the game.

 

[Jedizora]

I've usally used for games which have turned based action, such as dragon quest, Final fanasty, or pokemon. I use Action/Adventure games for games like Zelda.

 

[SinkingBadges]

It is usually used for games with turn-based gameplay, but the genre seems to have become broader with time. Isn't Mass Effect considered an RPG too?

I used to think the term was reserved for games that involved the player naming the character, but that would completely drop Zelda in the category, which I'm not sure I would agree with. If you go by the basic idea that it is a game where you play the role of the character, you could call any game an RPG.

I have something to say about that, now that I think about it. In a game like, say, Pac-Man: You could say that you are playing a role because you are controlling Pac-Man, but how can you be playing the role of Pac-Man when Pac-Man is still Pac-Man and the player is still the player?

Another thing is, in Zelda, as you get to name Link and fill his personality void with your own, isn't Zelda an RPG by that definition? Its not like Halo, where Master Chief already has a defined (if somewhat vague) character of being a tough and quiet guy. The same thing happens with Mario, he's always Mario and has a defined character of being cheery and helpful. Link doesn't have that.

But as the characters of Final Fantasy are always defined in both name and personality, is Final Fantasy still an RPG by that definition?

I guess the definition has to be a bit more flexible to actually make sense.

 

[Niko Bellic 817]

When I think of role-playing, I almost automatically think of a game that's turn based in which your characters use spells, regular attacks, or sometimes just one of four different moves. I wish these were classified as "turn-based action", as Jedizora mentioned, because RPG is too broad a term. Any video game where you play a main character can be classified as an RPG. I'm even thinking games like Final Fantasy 4: the After Years aren't traditional RPG's because you take control of multiple characters throughout the game. Video games that are classified as RPG's should be ones where you assume the role of one or multiple characters, plain and simple.

 

[Axelanderson]

It is when you have more control over the plot.

 

[Mak]

I think it originally meant a game where you could make a lot of decisions regarding the storyline. Not sure why RPG's are associated with numbers, crits, random battles, turns, and so on. You could class most games as RPG's.

 

[Ariel]

Well, I'm fairly new to gaming (last year I didn't really know what a platformer was).

This is how I think of the RPG genre.

It's all you discussed earlier, in that you play a role, but what separates that from basically EVERY game except tetris, is that your character grows and your achievements are channelled through your character.

Gaining power, skill, health, ability, that sort of stuff.

Zelda's kind of RPG in that Link grows in ability through items and sometimes skill (Twilight Princess). What separates that from something like Final Fantasy, is that the growth is much more pronounced, fleshed out, often based on upgrades and numbers. The character you play is often drastically different at the end of the game in terms of ability. Link and MasterChief just hold swords and guns respectively, there's no increased speed and morality computers involved.

Why Zelda gets sometimes confused with it is because often the growth in RPG's is spurred on by adventure. Zelda also has some light RPG elements, with items. But Link is the same character, physically.

I think a more practical definition is that progress in an RPG is measured by how much your character has grown.

Link doesn't grow, MasterChief doesn't grow, and you measure your progress through levels or dungeons completed, as well as story.

 

[dulcespam]

You get ExP. points and level up

 

[Onilink89]

I agree with Ariel to a certain degree.

I think the meaning behind the term "Role Playing Game" is quite different. If i read it, i suppose you play a role of character.

If i think about a RPG, the first things what come in mind is Leveling up, Exp, Skills, Stats ect... Yes quite stereotypical. All of these element has one thing in common, let the character grow. But there are games that just use the some elements. Perfect example is zelda, i would not call it a RPG, but there are slight RPG elements.

My conclusion is that a RPG is not just a genre anymore, but also can be concidered as an element or a part.

 

[Wolf Sage]

Well, RPG is basically a genre in which characters in a party assume "roles." Each character in RPGs is assigned a role, class, and each levels up - or grows - by gaining experience points. There are a variety of sub-genres that have spawned from this term, and the confusion of the OP appears to derive from the definition of what a role means [in this context]. The term RPG simply refers to the roles given in gameplay much rather than the story itself, though this is a very important aspect, nonetheless. However, I'll be covering gameplay aspects of a role. Action and turn-based RPGs shall be my focus as this seems to be wherein the confusion lies, given the similarities with the Adventure genre.

Roles

As stated above, each character in the party assumes a "role." How roles are assigned is usually optional to the player, and can depend on such variables as a given enemy's overall stats, what status effects it employs, its HP/MP amount, and a variety of other factors. There are games in the RPG genre in which roles are not optional, but allow for some [or a high] degree of malleability. I'll be sticking to the optional roles. The most well known "roles" in an action and turn-based RPGs are, but not restricted to:

• Tank: This role typically redirects attention away from the rest of the party onto itself in order to protect them. As such, a tank typically suffers large amounts of damage, but boasts high defense stats and HP. This role is typically strong, slow, and heavy.
• Damage dealer: A role that, as the name implies, deals damage. They typically boast higher speed stats than tanks. It can dish out damage to the enemy while its focus is on the party's tank. A damage dealer's stats are typically balanced throughout, but emphasis might be placed on Strength and/or Magic depending on which class is involved.
• Supporter: This role is responsible for supporting and/or enhancing the party in a variety of ways. Supporters heal and raise stats of the party, such as Speed, Evasiveness, Power (Strength), Defense, Magic, and Magic Defense. This role typically sports a lower damage output, lower defense, etc., but boasts HIGH magical stats. Despite it's weaknesses, it is a huge asset to the party.

The above roles must be employed both tactically and strategically in battle for a positive outcome. This means assigning the correct role to a given party member is very important, as the tide of battle depends on each role's stats and how well they operate together in battle. As such, poorly assigning roles can be highly detrimental to the battle and result in the party's demise. There are far more roles than listed above, but I stuck to the most common.

Classes

In RPGs each character in a party is assigned a class, or job (job class). Classes include such jobs as Knight, Swordsman, and White Mage. In most RPGs, each character's job is assigned automatically, and in others this is optional to the player. Each class boasts a unique set of skills, stats and abilities. Knights typically assume the role of tank. Their weapons include lances, axes, broadswords, etc. As a tank, this job might have low speed stats, but boast high defense, HP, and deals a decent amount of damage. Swordsmen usually assume the role of damage dealer, as such, they are responsible for racking up damage while the enemy's attention is directed to the tank. This job typically wields such weapons as small swords [and shields] and spears. Their stats are typically balanced throughout with emphasis placed on Strength for higher damage output. Magic for this job class can range from decent to minimal; Black Mages are damage dealers that typically boast high Magic. White mages typically assume the role of supporter. As such, they are responsible for enhancing the party's stats with status boosting magics - which boost defense, power, speed, and so forth, though temporarily. They can also heal and relieve the party from status ailments caused by a given enemy's status effects (poison, blindness, sleep, paralysis, etc.). Though, the White Mage is generally weaker as far as physical strength goes, it is a valuable asset to the party, and the success of battle can depend greatly on this job and its associated role. It is wise to evaluate each job's traits and assign the appropriate role to accentuate said traits. Keep in mind that there are more classes than I have covered above.

Experience

Another feature of RPGs is the experience point (EXP) system. Each character that participates in battle receives EXP at the battle's end. How points are given can be determined by a variety of factors including the amount of points the enemy is worth, but also how well the party performs in battle. The former involves the difficulty of the enemy, as it is usually the basis of the amount of points the party will receive. The latter is not as common, but it involves the party's performance and how efficiently strategy and tactics are used in battle. Each character "grows" as a result of gaining experience. This simply means that a character's various stats increase and more options become available, such as the ability to assign roles to a job where this was previously not possible or detrimental to the battle. For example, the White Mage job class can assume the role of tank and a knight can assume the role of support character. New abilities, equipment, weapons, etc. also become available with EXP. The possibilities become incredibly flexible.

Action RPGs may contain elements of the adventure genre and vice-versa. But as you can see, there is a clear distinction between the adventure and action/turn based RPG genres. Zelda is not an RPG - of any kind - but has featured RPG-like elements. There simply has never been enough of said elements to warrant an RPG label. Well, one could argue the amount of RPG elements Zelda II: The Adventure of Link contained. However, if anything, it'd likely be given the label of Adventure-RPG. To reiterate, what I have touched on above is merely a fraction.

 

[Ventus]

I define the RPG genre as a genre in which you play a role in a game, gaining skills and experience. To put some examples behind the genre, I'd say these kinds of games are of the RPG genre:

Final Fantasy XIII-2
RuneScape
World of Warcraft
Diablo 2
Guild Wars
Dragon Age

and these games are *not* of the RPG genre:

Halo Reach [shooter]
Zelda Skyward Sword [action adventure]
Super Mario Brothers [platformer]
Kirby and the Amazing Mirror [platformer]

Really, it depends on the size of the game world (so something like Skyrim would typically be branded a sandbox/open world game), the game medium (is it combat based? is it puzzle based? is it a simulator like LovePlus 3DS?) and many other factors. There are so many archetypes and subdivisions of the RPG genre, I can't even remember them all.

 

[Onilink89]

Whoah Wolf Sage... Watsup with the detailed explaination?

What you just pointed out are the stereotypical elements of a RPG. But here is the deal, must a RPG require all of these element to actually call it a RPG Genre?

For instance: The Monster Hunter Series. There is no Exp. system, there are only two classes (blademaster and gunner). There are no roles of a being a Tank, Supporter or Healer (well everybody can support and heal eachother to a certain degree). Rather the "growing element" is in the materials you carve and make/upgrade weapons and armors. So you do not entirely rely on your level or stats, but rather how you play. You do have armor skills though, but it still lacks alot of the typical RPG elements.

My point is, the MH series does not has the typical RPG elements, yet i concider it as a RPG genre entirely (so not as a sub-genre).

 

[Wolf Sage]

Whoah Wolf Sage... Watsup with the detailed explaination?

What you just pointed out are the stereotypical elements of a RPG. But here is the deal, must a RPG require all of these element to actually call it a RPG Genre?

For instance: The Monster Hunter Series. There is no Exp. system, there are only two classes (blademaster and gunner). There are no roles of a being a Tank, Supporter or Healer (well everybody can support and heal eachother to a certain degree). Rather the "growing element" is in the materials you carve and make/upgrade weapons and armors. So you do not entirely rely on your level or stats, but rather how you play. You do have armor skills though, but it still lacks alot of the typical RPG elements.

My point is, the MH series does not has the typical RPG elements, yet i concider it as a RPG genre entirely (so not as a sub-genre).

Well, my explanation covered the basis of what an (action/turn-based) RPG is. I guess I was not clear when I mentioned the MANY VARIABLES to the genre and such.

To be quite honest, Monster Hunter seems to borrow elements from other genres (to some degree), but maintains the core of the typical RPG...

EDIT: Also, it is incredibly rare to find an RPG that doesn't employ such roles - tank, supporter, damage dealer, etc. These roles are, for the most part fan-made terms that have risen to meme status. The functions of said roles in an RPG typically don't have names, but are much rather terms known to hardcore RPG fans (although they have sorta spilled over to casual fans and such). Furthermore, equipping a character in an RPG with heavy armor, high defense etc. means said character is a tank whether this is said in-game or not...the same can be said for other roles...

 

[snakeb0t]

RPG is leveling up of some kind through experience. That is the definition. It is not abstract. Games can have RPG elements, but it does not make them RPGs. LoZ is not an RPG, because Link's improvements are at certain points in the story, and have nothing to do with experience gained in battle, puzzles, etc.