The Basics
The basic principle of all Role-Playing Games (RPGs) is to control a character along his peregrinations in a fictitious universe filled with fantastic elements.
The main feature of this genre is the character’s evolution. The latter reaches increasing levels and improves his statistics (they can be influenced by his stuff too), good statistics are crucial for him to be able to stand a chance against the monsters and bosses he will come across during his journey. A great deal of quests is given by Non-Players Characters (NPCs) in this type of games.
A general retrospective of the genre
Role-playing video games find their origins in tabletops (also know as pen-and-papers) such as Dungeons & Dragons created in the 1970’s.
The first role-playing video game baptised Dungeon was released around 1975, it reused some ingredients from Dungeons & Dragons like the character sheet and the statistics. Although the graphical user interface was simplistic it permitted all the same to the players to orientate themselves in the dungeon thanks to a map they had to reveal little by little. This electronic version of Dungeons & Dragons made the Game Master become useless. And above all, the revolutionary graphical interface symbolized an omen of greater immersion for players.
Two schools of thought will emerge afterwards: Western RPGs and Japanese RPGs. Both have special features and weaknesses.
Western RPGs
Like in their ancestor Dungeons & Dragons the player begins with the creation a character and then freely distributes points between the different statistics. These RPGs are characterized by their sandbox gameplay, the absence of codification, and by a mature and sometimes very dark atmosphere.
In addition, the western RPGs insist on freedom of action (in particular during the dialogues) and often combine different types of gameplay. The Borderlands series is a good example of a mix between a First Person Shooter (FPS) and a RPG.
The emblematic sagas: The Elder Scrolls (Morrowind / Oblivion / Skyrim); Fallout; Deus Ex; Mass Effect; Fable.
Japanese RPGs
Considered as the most interventionists and insisting more on codification, Japanese RPGs split exploration and fighting sequences. Many gameplay elements are shared between these games (a world map, turn-based fightings etc…).
The scenario often stages stereotypical characters such as: the amnesiac hero, a best friend who is a swordsman, the healing princess… This appears in the characters’ “manga” aspect which can be almost caricatured.
Otherwise, Japanese RPGs allude to topic such as honour, virtue, ecology or friendship in an innocent way while other western RPGs display nudity, rudeness and gore without any remorse.
The emblematic sagas: Final Fantasy; Dragon Quest; Tales of (Phantasia / Symphonia / Vesperia / Graces); Star Ocean; Shin Megami Tensei (Lucifer’s call).
The sub-genres / definitions
There are many RPGs sub-genres and it is sometimes very difficult to classify a game in a particular category as many are unique, still, here is a list of the most common ones:
The basic principle of all Role-Playing Games (RPGs) is to control a character along his peregrinations in a fictitious universe filled with fantastic elements.
The main feature of this genre is the character’s evolution. The latter reaches increasing levels and improves his statistics (they can be influenced by his stuff too), good statistics are crucial for him to be able to stand a chance against the monsters and bosses he will come across during his journey. A great deal of quests is given by Non-Players Characters (NPCs) in this type of games.
A general retrospective of the genre
Role-playing video games find their origins in tabletops (also know as pen-and-papers) such as Dungeons & Dragons created in the 1970’s.
The first role-playing video game baptised Dungeon was released around 1975, it reused some ingredients from Dungeons & Dragons like the character sheet and the statistics. Although the graphical user interface was simplistic it permitted all the same to the players to orientate themselves in the dungeon thanks to a map they had to reveal little by little. This electronic version of Dungeons & Dragons made the Game Master become useless. And above all, the revolutionary graphical interface symbolized an omen of greater immersion for players.
Two schools of thought will emerge afterwards: Western RPGs and Japanese RPGs. Both have special features and weaknesses.
Western RPGs
Like in their ancestor Dungeons & Dragons the player begins with the creation a character and then freely distributes points between the different statistics. These RPGs are characterized by their sandbox gameplay, the absence of codification, and by a mature and sometimes very dark atmosphere.
In addition, the western RPGs insist on freedom of action (in particular during the dialogues) and often combine different types of gameplay. The Borderlands series is a good example of a mix between a First Person Shooter (FPS) and a RPG.
The emblematic sagas: The Elder Scrolls (Morrowind / Oblivion / Skyrim); Fallout; Deus Ex; Mass Effect; Fable.
Japanese RPGs
Considered as the most interventionists and insisting more on codification, Japanese RPGs split exploration and fighting sequences. Many gameplay elements are shared between these games (a world map, turn-based fightings etc…).
The scenario often stages stereotypical characters such as: the amnesiac hero, a best friend who is a swordsman, the healing princess… This appears in the characters’ “manga” aspect which can be almost caricatured.
Otherwise, Japanese RPGs allude to topic such as honour, virtue, ecology or friendship in an innocent way while other western RPGs display nudity, rudeness and gore without any remorse.
The emblematic sagas: Final Fantasy; Dragon Quest; Tales of (Phantasia / Symphonia / Vesperia / Graces); Star Ocean; Shin Megami Tensei (Lucifer’s call).
The sub-genres / definitions
There are many RPGs sub-genres and it is sometimes very difficult to classify a game in a particular category as many are unique, still, here is a list of the most common ones:
- A-RPG (Action RPG): Games with real time fights happening in the exploration zones. Examples: Kingdom Hearts, Secret of Mana.
- Adventure RPG: Close to the A-RPG these games usually have a simpler game system. The main character only knows evolution of his stuff (Master Sword!), life bar, and abilities (lifting heavy stones, swimming…). The best-known adventure RPGs are the Legend of Zelda’s episodes.
- T-RPG (Tactical RPG): Games in which the player controls a team of characters who always fight on a checkerboard. These games require a great sense of concentration and anticipation to be able to defeat the enemies. Examples: Fire Emblem; Disgaea; Valkyria Profile: Covenent of the Plume.
- Dungeon RPG: In these games the player is most of the time exploring dungeons and wander in the unique city of the game to improve is stuff and characters the rest of the time. Examples: Etrian Odyssey; Persona.
- MMORPG (Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games): Games that can only be played online such as World of Warcraft, Aion, Final Fantasy XI, Phantasy Star Online, Secret World. The player can fight against monsters that are controlled by the game (PvE) or against other human players (PvP).