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RPG 101: A Beginner’s guide
About the RPG Genre
The RPG (or Role Playing Game) can be a somewhat nebulous genre due to the fact that its popular mechanics can be easily used in other types of games. Despite this, a good general understanding of it as a standalone genre is a game in which the player assumes control of one or more characters and uses their abilities to overcome enemies and complete quests. Players start off with relatively weak abilities, but as the game progresses they can power up their characters by obtaining new equipment and gaining levels and stat boosts by defeating enemies.
While the basic term “Role Playing” in a literal sense could apply to any game in which the player assumes control of a particular character and acts out their story (or “role”), the understanding of RPGs as a genre will generally fall into the previously stated stipulations. This guide will go in depth not just discussing the basic concepts that make an RPG an RPG, but what elements they’ve popularized and the different ways in which RPGs as a genre can be approached in their development.

History of the RPG

Tabletop RPGs and the Prehistory of the Genre
The foundations for the RPG genre can be traced all the way back to tabletop pencil and paper role playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons. Dungeons & Dragons had influences of its own, but the game itself directly influenced what RPGs in the sense of video games would become. While RPG video games most often play very differently from Dungeons & Dragons in practice, there are multiple important influences that it has had on the genre. RPG video games have borrowed critical themes from D&D such as individual player characters, their specific abilities, advancing those abilities through questing, and a fantasy theme or setting. One particular difference from classic D&D has been the toning down of the player actually play-acting a particular role. Players would assume control of characters and act through their story, but there was much less control over that character’s personal interatctions and non-combat exploits. This is where RPGs as video games greatly differ from their predecessors, as the actual role playing was slimmed down despite being very important in the source material. While these ideas and themes eventually evolved farther and farther away from their basic D&D roots, the influence that it had on the genre is nothing to disregard.

Computer RPGs and the Early Beginnings of the Genre
The idea of the RPG entered the video game world in the form of basic text-based games on Mainframe computers in the West, which would bring the most basic RPG conventions into existence. The earliest known CRPG to have surfaced is Pedit5 on the PLATO system in 1974, though it is a distinct possibility that others existed before it and have simply been lost to time. Pedit5 immediately established many basic features of the genre, such as an explorable dungeon, enemy monsters, collectible treasures, and a magic system. All of these would become common themes and disciplines in RPGs for years to come. Following this, another CRPG called “dnd” came out later in the same year. This game would introduce more basic RPG conventions such as assigning characters ability points to give them specific strengths, enemies’ strength scaling as the game progressed, an actual story for the player to act out, and most importantly experience based leveling.
While these games established important conventions to be seen in RPGs, the game Rogue would popularize the genre in 1980. Rogue was a UNIX based RPG that featured many of the elements of its predecessors, and also featured an interface that gave a basic view of the dungeons. Environments were randomly generated, creating one of the earliest known examples of unique replayability in a game. The most prominent gameplay elements that Rogue would use were experience based leveling, a dungeon crawling setting, increasingly powerful enemies, varying equipment, and usable items. The depth and cohesiveness of Rogue’s mechanics as well as its easy distribution made it highly popular among early computer gamers, and it has spawned numerous clones to the point that they have their own genre: “Roguelikes”. Rogue acted as the genesis of RPGs as we understand them, and made way for some of the biggest giants in the world of Western RPGs and for RPGs in general.

Ultima, Wizardy, and the RPG Revolution
The year 1979 would see the beginning of the Ultima games, one of the most important genre defining series to exist for RPGs. Starting with a game called “Akalabeth: World of Doom” (later known as Ultima 0) on the Apple II, this series managed to get its foot in the door. However, starting with the first entry in the series, “Ultima I: The First Age of Darkness”, it began to really shake up RPG conventions. Featuring real computer graphics and a massive world to explore, Ultima raised the bar for what CRPGs were capable of. This game would build up the basic elements of RPGs and expand upon their ideas. It featured much more in depth character customization than had been seen before, introducing different races and classes that the players could use. The size of the world was far greater than the claustrophobic dungeons in games past, and the wealth of different quests and player freedom was previously unseen. The following Ultima II would prove critically successful, but Ultima III would revoltionize the genre a step further.
Ultima III: Exodus is what could be considered the first modern RPG. The early games are expanded on and polished in this installment, the graphics were greatly enhanced and an actual soundtrack was added to the series. More races and character classes were added to the mixture, and the game took a huge step up in complexity by adding numerous mechanics. Exploration of the game world was strongly encouraged, as NPCs held information necessary to progress in the game. Enemy encounters became decided randomly, an idea that would flourish in the RPG genre throughout the rest of its life. This is also the first RPG to get ported to a home console, and its influence there would create an entirely different branch of RPGs.
The Wizardry series would also play an important role in the development of RPGs. Wizardry would debut in 1981, once again utilizing established RPG principles. However, Wizardry stood apart from other games due to its streamlined mechanics. The game’s layout was much more intuitive and user friendly, and the dungeon crawling objective was much more direct (like in Rogue). This game also popularized using a party of characters rather than an individual. This series would become influential in Japan as well, providing the basis for some of the biggest RPGs that would come out of it. This influence as well as some from Ultima would lead Japanese developers to try their own hand making similar types of games, eventually leading to new types of RPGs and in later times a new philosophical approach to RPGs.

Meanwhile in Japan: The Creation of the JRPG
Early Japanese RPG type games were adventure based and prominently developed by Koei. These games had relatively light impact, and didn’t do a lot to distinguish themselves in the new market. However, Japanese companies would go on to produce innovations in the genre even through early attempts. In 1983 Bokosuka Wars on the Sharp X1 would feature tactical use of movement and individual troops, effectively creating the Strategy RPG subgenre. Nobunaga’s Ambition was another Strategy RPG released later the same year, and featured a larger scale that required greater strategy as well as resource management.
1984 would see the release of Dragon Slayer, a game that notably combined action elements with the basic RPG formula by having the player interact and battle monsters in real time. This game was also the genesis of the Action RPG, a genre that would become immensely popular years afterwards. This game was very popular in Japan. Tower of Druaga would debut later that year, also featuring Action RPG elements. 1986 would see the birth of two JRPG giants: Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy. While these series did little to reinvent the RPG from the ways it had been developing in the west, they were extremely streamlined and intuitive, and helped popularize the console RPG. These were also the first JRPGs to gain notoriety outside of Japan.
The following year, Phantasy Star was released. This game arguably started JRPGs as we understand them today. The game took RPG elements, but included a very prominent story and highly detailed characters. The way in which the world and characters were presented with intricate background information was abnormal for the time. This combined with the complete departure from the traditional D&D fantasy setting for a science fiction one made this game the first entirely Japanese RPG. A strong plot and strong characters have become synonymous with the JRPG to this day.

The Early 1990’s and the Golden Age of RPGs
The 16-bit generation was just beginning, and console RPGs would soon become one of the most popular genres in gaming. JRPGs and WRPGs took clearly different paths at this point. WRPGs remained primarily on computers, and kept the elements that they had been developing such as an open world to explore and personal freedom with the player’s actions and characters. JRPGs at this time began to become much more action oriented, and dropped the more open world of their predecessors in favor of a more prominent and involved narrative.
The giants of both WRPGs and JRPGs that had begun in the 80’s would go on to flourish in this generation. Ultima, Wizardy, and Might and Magic would all continue to see popular releases on personal computers and receive critical acclaim at this time. The developer Square (going off of the success of Final Fantasy) would establish itself as the dominant force in the world of JRPGs, producing a huge plethora of series and games. Enix would continue producing Dragon Warrior games as well as starting new series such as Star Ocean and Ogre Battles. Sega would try its hand with new installments of Phantasy Star and the Shining series of Strategy RPGs. Capcom would step into the market with Breath of Fire, and Atlus would expand its Megaten series. These are only a few examples of RPGs taking off in the 16-bit generation, the real point is that RPGs had hit it big and their presence in gaming had become significant.

The Late 1990’s: The Late Golden Age in the 32-bit Generation
In the mid-nineties the Playstation would come out and create a huge revolution in the world of gaming. Video games were stepping away from being a niche market and becoming a more mainstream activity. The gaming market grew greatly, and the already popular RPG genre grew right alongside it. The Playstation was an enormous hit, and the majority of RPGs for the time would be found on this system. Just two years after the Playstation was released to American audiences in 1995, Square would go on to produce Final Fantasy VII, one of the most influential RPGs of all time. While in retrospect opinions about the gameplay and setting are mixed, Final Fantasy VII would move RPGs into the world of big budget productions and massive popularity in the newly expanded market. In addition to its large budget this game used advanced CGI technology for the time, had a much larger world than JRPGs were accustomed to, and a very mature and intricate story. While some of these conventions had been invented years prior to the creation of Final Fantasy VII, it had such a massive cultural impact that it’s impossible to talk about the development of RPGs in mainstream culture without it. Final Fantasy VII didn’t reinvent the RPG genre, but it lead it to the peak of its popularity.
After this, Nintendo would unveil the monumental Pokemon series for the Gameboy handheld system in 1998. Not only did Pokemon become one of the most ubiquitous and popular RPGs, it gave a large boost to the sales and popularity of handheld gaming as a medium. Pokemon also holds a large mainstream presence to this day.
Western RPGs were no slouch during this time either, numerous series that would even outlast the Golden Age were showing up on PCs at this time. The PC RPG market hadn’t seen a lot of action in the mid 90’s, but that began to change when new developers began arriving on the scene. Bethesda would debut its massively popular Elder Scrolls series with Elder Scrolls: Daggerfall in 1996. Daggerfall greatly emphasized “sandbox” or non-linear gameplay, something that would become an important staple in modern WRPGs. Future industry giant Blizzard would follow up the next year by producing their Action RPG Diablo. That same year Bioware would release Fallout, and the following year they would release Baldur’s gate. Games like Baldur’s Gate would show a brief return to closely simulating elements of Dungeons & Dragons, showing Western RPGs brushing up on their open-ended roots. Western RPGs began to expand their worlds onto scales which had not been possible before, creating unparalleled open-ended environments and most importantly popularizing non-linear gameplay.

The 2000’s and Beyond: RPGs in Modern Times
While the RPG genre enjoyed massive popularity in the 90’s, their role in the industry has changed within the last decade. JRPGs have become less mainstream, with even industry giant Square Enix finding itself floundering in a changed market. With Square Enix’s latest Final Fantasy titles such as XIII and XIV receiving fairly negative reception by the gaming industry, we have to wonder what the fate of big budget JRPGs might look like in the future. JRPGs still have a decent showing on the handheld market, games like the Persona series and the Kingdom Hearts series as well as the ever popular Pokemon have all proved popular on handhelds. This isn’t to say that JRPGs are nonexistent on modern consoles, it’s just that relative to their immense popularity and impact in the 90’s they now play a considerably more subtle role in the market.
WRPGs have become more popular on consoles, and series that began in the 90’s such as Fallout, Diablo, and The Elder Scrolls continue to be best sellers to this day. MMORPGs would also surface in the 2000’s and gain significant popularity, the most obvious being World of Warcraft in 2004. The open ended and non-linear “Sandbox” style of gameplay has continued to prove a successful format for games, which can be seen even outside of the genre that popularized it. Nowadays most of the massively popular RPGs follow WRPG conventions; games such as Mass Effect, Dragon Age, The Witcher, Demon’s Souls/Dark Souls, and ARPGs like Infamous or Deus Ex: Human Revolution.

Genre Conventions
Leveling Up – One of the most ubiquitous elements in RPGs, defeating enemies or achieving particular goals will reward the player with experience points. These points accumulate and either automatically boost the player’s statistics or allow them to power up specific abilities. Leveling is used to make the player strong enough to face greater enemies and gain access to more complex abilities later in the game.
Character Advancement – Players will most often begin an RPG with relatively weak abilities and equipment. In addition to gaining levels, as the player proceeds through the game they are rewarded with various equipment, items, and new abilities to augment their combat prowess. Gaining power through questing is one of the primary sources of enjoyment in RPGs.
Character Specific Abilities – Very often the characters that the player will control are given unique strengths and weaknesses to work with. A classic example would be a wizard character having strong magic power and magic defense, but having weak physical attacks and physical defense. In addition to this, many RPGs will grant certain characters specific attacks or abilities that only they can use. This all comes to make strategy an important element of RPGs, as players decide which actions best play to their strengths and give them the greatest chance for victory.
Strategy – While most character abilities are geared towards either helping teammates or hurting monsters, there are multiple mechanics that will change the way players face different challenges. For example, casting a fire spell on a fire monster would generally do less damage than casting an ice or water spell on it. The player has to employ certain tactics and try to find certain strategies against a monster’s own unique abilities and weaknesses. In particular, SRPGs include tactical movement of troops as an important element in countering enemies.
Dungeon Crawling – When there’s a quest that needs to be completed or a bad guy taken out, chances are the player will have to go down into a dungeon to get it done. Dungeons are fraught with monsters and enemies, and test the strength and abilities that the player has gained before entering them. Dungeons will not only hold an objective that needs to be completed, but often have treasures and items scattered throughout them to encourage exploration. The term “Dungeon” can also be understood as an area that meets these criteria, without having to literally be a fantasy style dungeon.
Alignment – Based on a player’s actions in a game, they can be given a particular moral alignment. A basic system of alignment will have both “good” and “evil” alignments. Alignment can affect how players interact with NPCs, what areas and quests they are allowed to access, and what abilities they can have. Alignment is a great way to add replayability to a game as well as a classical sense of role playing.
Turn-Based Combat – A staple of JRPGs, turn-based combat dictates that characters and enemies can only attack at specific intervals of time. This way, players plan out their moves before sending them into action. Some games feature a turn-based system that operates in real time, meaning that when characters take action they have to wait for a specific period of time before they can act again while the battle continues around them. Turns play a critical role in the way RPGs are played, particularly classic JRPGs and Strategy RPGs.
Deep, Intricate Plots and Characters – JRPGs in particular are known for creating very distinct and vivid worlds for the player to explore through the eyes of the main characters. The player will often complete objectives and tasks that are important to the plot in order to advance the story, which can give the games a more linear feel than their WRPG counterparts. The characters will often times grow and develop with the story itself, contributing to the cinematic quality that RPGs began to develop in the 90’s.
Open-ended Worlds with Nonlinear Gameplay – While JRPGs are known for their plots and characters, WRPGs are known for giving the player a lot of freedom in how they approach the very game itself. Players are often placed in a large world with no immediate or pressing goals, giving them the choice to go out and quest at their own pace. Despite the non-linear gameplay, many games will also feature some particular endgame goal that the player can achieve when they’re satisfied with the numerous sidequests.
Critical Elements
Stats – Statistics determine things like the strength of a character’s physical attacks, the amount of hitpoints they have to take damage, or the likelihood that they’ll evade enemy attacks. The higher a character’s stats, the more effective they are in combat. As mentioned, leveling up is a way to increase stats and increase the character’s proficiency in battle. Understanding which stat does what is important in RPGs, especially if the game lets the player manually upgrade their characters’ stats.
Magic Systems – Magic and magical abilities are huge in RPGs. Magic can have a massive variety of applications. In games it can do anything from healing a teammate, attacking an enemy, summoning a creature to the battle, or even something technical like teleporting the player out of a dungeon. Magic greatly adds to the depth of RPGs, and very often there are elemental systems set up that reward the player for using the right type of spell in the right situation (referring back to the fire spell vs. fire monster analogy).
Unique Characters or Character Classes – Very rarely will an RPG immediately grant the player a character that excels in every stat and ability. Working around the natural strengths and weaknesses of a particular character or certain character classes is what adds depth to RPGs. By giving certain characters different abilities, the way in which they are effectively used will change. For example, in some games physical attackers do the most damage, but mages are capable of attacking entire groups of enemies. You’ll have to make appropriate use of these abilities to maximize the effectiveness of your characters.
Overworlds – Overworlds serve as a hub that joins all of the village, dungeons, and other game opportunities together on one map. Progressing through the overworld will allow the player to gain access to new villages and dungeons, and is critical for exploring gameplay opportunities outside of the plot such as sidequests.
Sidequests – Sidequests are additional objectives that don’t have to be completed in order for the main game to be finished. They’ll usually offer some sort of item or ability as a reward for finishing them, or they could even hold especially powerful monsters to challenge the player. Sidequests can also be used to explore characters’ backstories or reveal more about the world that they’re a part of.
Increasingly Powerful Enemies – While the Player is powering up by going through quests, the monsters have to become stronger in order for the game to retain its challenge. The player will go on to encounter new and more powerful types of monsters, as well as ones with attributes and abilities that the player might not be accustomed to. By expanding the enemies that the game throws at the player, it can become more complex and require more advanced tactics to handle.
NPCs – Non-Player Characters are often times the main way the player can learn about the world they’re in and what they should do next. NPCs can generally be found in villages or other specific areas. While there are also lots of NPCs that are inconsequential to the player, it’s still advisable to try and talk to most of them in case they have something useful to say or give.
Tips and Tricks
When in Doubt, Grind – Fighting monsters for the purpose of gaining money and experience levels (also known as grinding) is the simplest way to get ready to take on stronger foes. If you’re struggling with a particularly difficult dungeon or boss, build levels to increase your characters’ prowess in battle to even the odds. Many games will have certain sweet spots that have relatively easy to kill monsters that give good amounts of experience points, and these can be highly valuable to the underpowered player.
Sidequesting is a Good Alternative – Completing sidequests in games is often a good alternative to merely grinding. They will usually reward the player with new items and abilities to help them take on stronger enemies. In addition to this, many sidequests will require the player to venture into dungeons or other places filled with enemies, allowing the possibility to gain experience levels in addition to other potential goodies. Sidequests are also good for extending the game if the player wishes to experience more of it.
Talk to Everyone and Everything – Those NPCs are there for a reason, most of the time you’ll find that they provide crucial information about sidequests and even the main quest. Sometimes they’ll even give you items or abilities simply for talking to them. While not all of them have something useful to say, you should still persevere and make sure that you aren’t missing anything. In addition to this, many games will have various items placed around the world in objects like barrels, crates, bookcases, etc. Interacting with these objects can yield items or other goodies for the player, making them worth investigating.
Know Your Enemy’s Weakness – Enemies will often have a particularly effective method of defeating them. If you’re struggling with an enemy, it can be helpful to try a different approach to the battle. Perhaps there’s a different spell that will do more damage or weaken its attacks, or maybe it has multiple places you can attack and some of them are easier to defeat than others. Try different strategies against enemies, because it will likely take more than brute force to get all the way through a dungeon.
Master the Magic System – Magic can have lots of tricks that you can use to maximize its use. Using certain elements against each other can increase the effectiveness of attack spells, for example fire is usually weak against ice and water is usually weak against lightning, etc. Some games will have additional uses for magic against monsters. Spells can be used to reflect monsters’ magic attacks back at them in some games, or defend the user from a certain element that an enemy monster might be using. Magic can be used to buff the players’ strength, defense, or speed in tough fights. Get creative with magic, learn what’s effective against your enemies and take advantage of it.
Save Often – There’s nothing worse than taking 40 minutes to get through a dungeon just to get killed and lose your progress after finally making it out. It’s common in RPGs for save spots to be put before big events or battles for this reason. If a game will let you save at any point, you should take advantage of that. This is a good way to reduce the frustration factor when going through long sessions of play.
A Stitch in Time Saves Nine – It’s much better to grind for a few levels and try a dungeon again later rather than repeatedly attempt to blaze through it underpowered. It can really hurt your enjoyment of the game to repeatedly make it to the bottom of a dungeon only to lose towards the end and have to begin the affair all over again. Take the time to give yourself a fighting chance if you need to, it can save you a lot of headaches in the long run.

Classifications and Subgenres
Japanese RPG – In their most literal sense, JRPGs are RPGs that come from Japan. Most often JRPG will be used to refer to a particular style or philosophy of RPG, one that has a greater focus on plot and character development. Due to the overarching nature of the narrative in JRPGs, the majority of the quests are structured to be used to advance the story, giving them a more linear feel. This isn’t to say that JRPGs are by nature 100% linear, they are simply more linear. It’s important not to stereotype all JRPGs like this however, because while it is a trend it’s not an unbreakable law. JRPGs have always had a greater presence on home consoles.
Western RPG – Once again, WRPGs are most literally RPGs that come from Western developers. WRPG is a term frequently used to describe another style of RPG, one that has a greater emphasis on exploration through a larger world. Western RPGs will often feature less linear or nonlinear gameplay in the way their quests are structured, but can still have endgame goals. It is also not important to totally stereotype WRPGs as entirely nonlinear sandbox games, as this is not an unbreakable law. Western RPGs have seen most of their popularity on computers, but have lately been finding popularity in the console market as well.
Tactical or Strategy RPG – SRPGs are generally distinguished for including the movement of units as an additional strategic element with RPG conventions. These games will often drop the opposing characters onto a battlefield and let them approach each other and duke it out. The concept of space is important in this genre, as it limits what certain characters can do. For example, characters with high defense and strong physical attacks might only get to move a short distance each turn and have a limited attack range. Conversely, a character with light armor and a bow would be capable of moving multiple spaces and attacking from a distance. Movement and spacing are the critical elements that SRPGs introduce to the RPG formula. Some examples of SRPGs are Fire Emblem, Disgaea, Final Fantasy Tactics , Ogre Battle/Tactics Ogre, and Shining Force.
Action RPG – ARPGs are games that have RPG elements, but a more involved real time battle system. ARPGs will often test the player’s physical skill by presenting them with obstacles or enemies to deal with in real time. Because the combat happens in real time players must dodge enemy attacks, and conversely it is often possible for the player to miss their own attacks if they’re careless. Some examples of ARPGs are the Tales series, Beyond Oasis, Phantasy Star Online, Kingdom Hearts, Odin Sphere/Muramasa, and Seiken Densetsu (Mana series in the West).
Massively Multiplayer Online RPG – MMORPGs are online games in which players interact with each other and go on quests together. Players will usually create a character and select a specific class or otherwise specific abilities for that character. Players will then join up and use their individual strengths to take on quests in order to gain rewards. MMORPGs will generally have enemies that are far too strong for an individual player to take on in order to encourage group play. Thus, the importance of teamwork is paramount in MMOs. Some examples of MMOs are World of Warcraft, Guild Wars, EVE Online, Final Fantasy XI/XIV, Phantasy Star Online, and Monster Hunter Frontier.
RPG Elements in Other Genres – RPG elements can and have been applied to a wide range of genres, so it’s not always appropriate to call them RPGs. To reiterate, experience based leveling is a concept that started in RPGs and has made its way into numerous other genres. Even Call of Duty: Modern Warfare utilizes a rank system that grants players access to new weapons and equipment when they gain enough experience points. Mass Effect combines RPG elements with third person shooting, and lots of beat‘em-up/hack and slash games like Devil May Cry or Ninja Gaiden allow the player to collect items or points from enemies that can be used to power up weapons and techniques. The spirit of Advancing character abilities is the most prominent thing that the RPG genre has contributed to the industry, and its influence can be found all over the place.

Some Good RPGs for Newcomers
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars – This game is fun, its battle system is engaging, and its difficulty curve is fairly mild. These elements help make Super Mario RPG very accessible to people that don’t have a lot of experience with the genre. Add to that the popularity and casual nature of Mario that can ease someone into RPGs without immediately tossing them into a foreign fantasy world, and you have a great first RPG.
Paper Mario/Paper Mario and the Thousand Year Door – Paper Mario is a good choice for a lot of the reasons that Super Mario RPG is. The combat is engaging but not extremely complicated, and the level up system is light and well implemented without being intimidating. The difficulty is also quite manageable, especially for Thousand Year Door. These games are very easy to navigate and not grind heavy. Once again, the casual feel of Mario can be good for people trying a whole new thing.
Pokemon – Due to its cultural popularity, most people are probably familiar with Pokemon in some sense already. Pokemon makes a good choice because its basic battle system is very addicting and easy to grasp. The rock-paper-scissors mechanic encourages players to learn and understand the game’s mechanics intuitively and on their own, because it has enough of a basis in logic that experimenting with it isn’t daunting or frustrating. Pokemon is a fairly deep game in theory, but doesn’t need to be completely solved to be played through and enjoyed.
Kingdom Hearts – Kingdom Hearts is a good ARPG with a focus on traditional RPG elements. The combat is intuitive and fun, and most importantly the game’s pace might be more palatable for those who are turned off by traditional turn-based combat. The level up system is simple and easy to understand, while giving the player relevant choices about what sort of abilities they use and how they play the game. One warning is that the Square Enix Fantasy meets Disney setting might not be appealing to all gamers, and can add or detract from the experience accordingly.
Chrono Trigger – For someone a little more familiar with gaming, Chrono Trigger is a great way to experience the classic JRPG feel with a good twist. Chrono Trigger’s battle system has good moderate depth with its double/triple tech system, and starts off easy very to use. The story and characters are both excellent, which really helps this title live up to what’s expected from a quality JRPG experience. The world is fairly open to exploration which will give the player a sense of freedom but doesn’t get so big as to be intimidating. Chrono Trigger is not grind heavy, which helps the pacing of the game for those not accustomed to it. One word of warning is that this game gets difficult and fights do start to become complex, so people who are really new to the genre could be put off by this. This is still a really good choice for someone who’s personally had a couple enjoyable experiences with JRPGs and is looking to try more.
Final Fantasy IV – Known as Final Fantasy II for the SNES version, this game is as classic JRPG as it gets. A compelling story with good characters and a fun combat system with a fair amount of complexity make this an excellent choice for someone looking for a taste of the classic JRPG genre. The story is very direct, so the player won’t often find themselves sitting around trying to figure out what to do. Final Fantasy IV is at a good moderate level of difficulty and complexity, which is good for people who are somewhat familiar with the genre but not extremely confident.
Star War: Knights of the Old Republic - Star Wars KOTOR is an open ended WRPG that takes place in the Star Wars universe. The player has significant freedom in how they allow the game’s plot to play out through their moral actions. Alignment is a big element in this game, changing not just the plot but the various powers, teammates, and even appearances that the player’s character will gain. The combat system is also quite good. While backtracking is a slight issue, this game is great fun and not excessively open like more traditional WRPGs can be.
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - For people interested in WRPGs in a real traditional sense with a modern feel, Oblivion is an excellently constructed and polished example. The main quest is always there and not hard to follow, but can be put on hold indefinitely if the player simply wants to explore the world and engage in the plethora of activities. Really, exploration is the name of the game in traditional WRPGs, and Oblivion conveys that idea perfectly. The multitude of possibilities that his game presents is staggering, and great for people looking for a huge world experience.

A Few Honorable Mentions:
Final Fantasy: Mystic Quest – This game has very light and uncomplicated RPG elements that anyone should be able to grasp. Unfortunately, this game is so simple and easy that it turns a lot of players off for those reasons. Kind of like the preschool of RPGs.
Secret of Mana – Very intuitive ARPG with easily manageable RPG elements.
Final Fantasy VI – Considered one of the greatest JRPGs. Good for people that have enjoyed the genre enough to take the next step.
Planescape: Torment – Very story driven and not excessively nonlinear. A good way to get a taste of WRPGs on a smaller scale. One major warning is that it is dialogue heavy.
Fallout 1 & 2 – Good classic WRPGs with nonlinear gameplay, fallout 2 has improved gameplay but is somewhat buggy.
Fallout 3 – Another good modern open world experience with lots of nonlinear gameplay, cool science fiction setting.

[brunoafh]

Nowadays most of the massively popular RPGs follow WRPG conventions; games such as Mass Effect, Dragon Age, The Witcher, Demon’s Souls/Dark Souls, and ARPGs like Infamous or Deus Ex: Human Revolution.

The Souls games aren't traditional WRPGs, but are actually great examples of traditional Japanese game design in an era that such ideas have been abandoned. Hate to nitpick, but this throws off the accuracy of the article, especially the section that claims this.

[Gamerforlife]

Nowadays most of the massively popular RPGs follow WRPG conventions; games such as Mass Effect, Dragon Age, The Witcher, Demon’s Souls/Dark Souls, and ARPGs like Infamous or Deus Ex: Human Revolution.

The Souls games aren't traditional WRPGs, but are actually great examples of traditional Japanese game design in an era that such ideas have been abandoned. Hate to nitpick, but this throws off the accuracy of the article, especially the section that claims this.

Classes, stats, equipment, currency, magic, they're rpgs. The fact that nothing is turn based, you don't have a party of characters, and there aren't a ton of cutscenes and dialog puts them squarely in WRPG land. Plus, the online functions feel akin to a MMORPG, which is also very Western. You break those games down to their core elements, which is what you have to do to determine a game's genre, and it's essentially a WRPG, but from a Japanese developer's perspective

[brunoafh]

The fact that nothing is turn based, you don't have a party of characters, and there aren't a ton of cutscenes and dialog puts them squarely in WRPG land.

Not turned based =/= WRPG. Traditoinal JRPGs feature little to no character/plot development.

the online functions feel akin to a MMORPG, which is also very Western.

Online gameplay features next to no communication and never allows you to play with more than 3 other people. If anything, it's a step away from MMO gameplay. The game can be played in it's entirety offline, but features co-op and PvP, so I can see where you're coming from however. Ultimately though, it's nothing like an MMO and the comparison is inaccurate.

it's essentially a WRPG, but from a Japanese developer's perspective

It's essentially a dungeon crawler. Granted, there are a lot of Western dungeon crawlers, but the game emits Japanese game design left and right. The fact that it takes place in an open world similar to the Bethesda games deludes people into thinking it's going to be WRPG-esque, but a few hours of playing will quickly tell you otherwise. The design is far more akin to Japanese designed Wizardry games, numerous 8-bit JRPGs, and older early 90s From Software titles themselves than it is to any open world WRPGs.

I realize this is all my opinion and I'm complaining about a very small and irrelevant part of a large article, but I just figured I'd chime in. My point is that the Souls games are definitely not WRPGs, they are straight up old school Japanese dungeon crawlers, just like nearly every one of the developer's RPGs.

[Valkyrie-Favor]

Has to mention Valkyrie Profile

[/fanboy]

In all seriousness, this guide doesn't address the rich history of art, literature, and music in RPGs at all. Aesthetic is the main reason we play RPGs next to gameplay. Without aesthetic and story and characters - without a role to play, most RPGs are just number-crunching games. If you decide to include it in the article, I'd suggest Valkyrie Profile because it's such a goldmine. Beautiful oil paintings, real intelligent music, story based on classical mythology and an awesome translation. Odin Sphere and Murusama were already mentioned and they're also valuable because of their aesthetic. The gameplay is more or less generic so that's what makes them special. Don't think the article mentioned the word "music" once.

As far as the history and gameplay stuff goes, this is pretty good as a brief rundown. A more in-depth guide would probably have screenshots of Daggerfall and Final Fantasy and stuff, but I realize this isn't going to be a novel Looks thorough enough too. As a 101 it's good. Don't want to scare off the newbies

[pakopako]

Pardon me why I go all "Sheldon Cooper" in this topic, but somehow I feel the urge to go:
"...back to the roots of RPGs, to the 70s of disco and bell-bottoms, to the garage that is home to an evening on a fold-out table with pencils, stat-sheets, dice, and a bag of miniatures. Pencil-n-Paper D&D, the first large-scale, widely publicized organized form of story-telling with paperwork began in the early 70s after untold centuries of war-gaming with figurines and countless swears of luck at the end of a die roll." (The listed Bokosuka Wars would be a digitized example of the continued popularity of war-games with tokens.)

Continuing with the timeline edits, both FF1 and PS1 were published in the same month; both a year-and-a-half or so after Dragon Quest. Dragon Quest being the pioneering "lone generic hero", Final Fantasy put emphasis on class meshing, and Phantasy Star took upon itself to be narrative-driven in a non-medieval fantasy setting.

Console RPGs had the luxury of nicer audio and visual presentation compared to their slower, still disk-loading computer counterparts. Perhaps it is this reason why JRPGs became more action-oriented and story-driven, to flaunt their strengths of using pixels rather than prose to advance the plot. This is by no means saying that all PC RPGs involve generic heroes (Betrayal at Krondor, based in the Riftwar-novels, tried to be more than that) and not all console RPGs were straight-forward (Final Fantasy I was pretty open and Famicom Metal Max was essentially an 8-bit Fallout). Now that PCs and Consoles are powerful enough to generate kick-ass graphics AND intricate worlds, WRPGs and MMORPGs are gaining momentum across both mediums.

Another big feather in the Pocket Monster reovlution -- this was a popular multi-player RPG. Created by a bug-collector who traded with like-minded individuals, Pokémon not only held fast to the traditional ideas of grinding (and showing visible effects with evolutions and limited move-lists), but it also suggested RPG-gaming to be more social than the customary single-player fare console gamers were used to.

Finally, Bioware never released Fallout, it was Black Isle. Though both were owned by Interplay, and therefore by EoA. (What did the sphere stand for again?)

Conventions
To paraphrase of the Krondor manual, and as evidenced by Progress Quest: "RPGs are all about kick down door, fight orc, get treasure, grow stronger, climb higher, kick down bigger doors, fight tougher orc, get more treasure."
Leveling-up and Character-advancement go hand-in-hand. I would almost put them in the same paragraph as fighting earns Gold Points (which buy you better armor), Experience Points (which get you more hit dice), and the potential character mutation.

Considering that RPGs are about "working with what you have" like any good war-game, the player is limited and must make efficient use of their actions. Be it fighting a Fire Giant or haggling Turnip prices, RPGs make your stuff. (Strategy games take it a step further with micro-management.)

An alternative to "Dungeon Crawling" would be "Exploration of the Unknown". Much like Adventure games, sometimes you just have to experiment by boldly going where no one has gone before armed with just your wits and perhaps a torch. (This also shows a strong link to the Adventure genre.)

"Turn-based combat" isn't a JRPG staple, it is the order to which the chaos of combat adheres to. The combat can either be "individual initiative", where the actions of everyone are sequenced (such as the speed-meters in Grandia or Evolution) or "party ambush wholesale" (more a large-scale strategy-game trait like Chess where each side moves equally).

"Deep and Intricate" are good terms to describe RPGs, whether it is by narrative (such as a show with multi-faceted characters as those in basic SNES RPG Arcana) or by environment (akin to a carnival with multiple acts as Kingdom of Loathing's "virtual job market" can attest to).

"Master the Magic" seems redundant when you're already talking about "Know Your Enemy's Weakness". Since you are merely being more efficient, learning more about the game and the game world, these sound very similar. The end tip, "stitch in time", can easily be replaced with "when in doubt grind... some more." Although honestly, I do like the "oddball-RPG" titles like SaGa 2/Final Fantasy Legend 2... they don't have XP tallies and thus are difficult to gauge your grinding since the only counter rises is your purse. More emphasis is put on characters randomly mutating (even Humans who rely on their ever-depleting inventory) and the player having to adapt to a new situation.

Classifications and Subgenres (apologies, but it's late, my mind is mush, and I enjoy being glib)
Japanese RPG: Traiditonally passive; you experience someone telling their story.
Western RPG: Traditionally active; you poke around with the someone else's story.
Tactical/Strategy RPG: Chess with chatter and/or cut-scenes. (Can be Real-time or Turn-based or both -- see Ogre Battle)

[isiolia]

Console RPGs had the luxury of nicer audio and visual presentation compared to their slower, still disk-loading computer counterparts. Perhaps it is this reason why JRPGs became more action-oriented and story-driven, to flaunt their strengths of using pixels rather than prose to advance the plot.

If other sources are to be believed, it's likely more because the Japanese audience had already shown a preference for pre-determined stories coming from pen and paper RPGs. They had novels and manga appear based on other people's campaigns (Record of Lodoss War being a prominent one).

Japanese RPG: Traiditonally passive; you experience someone telling their story.
Western RPG: Traditionally active; you poke around with the someone else's story.
Tactical/Strategy RPG: Chess with chatter and/or cut-scenes. (Can be Real-time or Turn-based or both -- see Ogre Battle)

I think largely true, but a little too blunt

What I'd add to the main article there, or to expand yours, is that a lot of that can come down to the main character(s). It's not a universal thing, but often the narrative freedom in a WRPG isn't that it's less linear than a JRPG, but that the player creates their own character (or version of a character), probably with the ability to make alignment choices here and there.

There's an implied conclusion with some of the WRPG/JRPG description in the draft article that WRPGs have inferior stories or characters, which isn't necessarily true. Some WRPGs put a lot of time into character development/exploration (Planescape: Torment for example), and plenty of JRPGs are filled with vacuous characters spouting insipid dialogue (FFXIII perhaps?).

"Turn-based combat" isn't a JRPG staple, it is the order to which the chaos of combat adheres to.

Perhaps it's more accurate to say that it's still more common to see in JRPGs?

I think the concept is rooted in earlier computerized RPGs essentially taking their mechanics from pen and paper RPGs. Stat sheets, dice rolls, and orderly turns make sense for that. A video game has more options, but sticking to turn based reduces the need for precise timing/execution.

[racketboy]

Bump -- anyone want to do some editing/additional for this piece?
If you complete the task well, I'll send along any item out of the Racketboy Store for free

[Menegrothx]

I think that any guide like this needs to mention Ultima IV (yes, I've been talking about it a lot lately on this forum as I have been replaying it ) for the simple fact that it's pretty much the first RPG game where the objective isn't just to mindlessly grind levels in order to defeat a big bad final boss and the virtue-system still is fairly unique.

I also think that you should add in Deus Ex in the "good RPGs for new comers"-list as it's a very influental ARPG that helped to blend the line between different game genres, not to mention that it has a great story. Maybe System Shock 2 for those who want to try a more advanced game, another ARPG that later on influenced currently popular games like Bioshock that combine FPS and action games with RPG elements.

[opethfan]

I'm digging it. Nice to see a few remnants of my original history I contributed, but expanded way beyond my meager ability. Nicely done.

Edit: to be honest, I am slightly more partial to my writing style though, but I'm just biased