Gaining EXP

[Milennin]

If the player has to grind to face stronger enemies there's something wrong with your EXP rates, not the EXP system itself. The classic EXP system works as long as you balance out your encounter's EXP rates well and assume the average player will only fight what appaears on his path, not counting optional content or backtracking. In fact, people who have played my game, continuously appear at higher levels than I expect them to be at specific points, and that's with using the classic RPG EXP system.

The classic EXP system works, because it is simple (it's the RPG Maker default), and because it caters to people who like to grind (but seriously, who even grinds in a free RPG Maker game?) while at the same time allowing your regular players to experience content at the normal, intended pace. As long as you balance out your EXP rates well, that is...

 

[amerk]

The classic EXP system works just like the classic encounter system works (random over touch) and the classic turn-based works; that doesn't mean people shouldn't look for alternatives to give their game a unique touch, and one of the things that seems to have gone stale over the years is the same old same old with EXP gains. It doesn't mean I won't design or play a game with the old EXP system, if the game calls for it, but I wouldn't mind trying to find ways to liven it up, either.

 

[kerbonklin]

The trend with current games has become "gain F EXP for doing F, and gain G EXP for doing G".  It's a pretty good system when done right and it makes good realistic sense. Using magic a lot will make your magic better. Spamming attack more will make your attacks stronger. However there is a balance issue that is usually solved by forcing the player to do both through various means so that they aren't too proficient in one and become overpowered, or they completely lack the other form and cannot progress because of it.

A most recent game, Dying Light (it's a mix of dead island / mirrors edge / farcry) gives you three things to level up, Survival, Power and Agility. Each have their own separate EXP gain and Skill Trees for learning new abilities. You get Power EXP for fighting zombies, Agility EXP for running around and parkouring around the map, and Survival EXP for doing missions/quests. This is where the balance comes in. Basically you don't have to fight zombies/people 24/7 and can run past them but it's easy to level up and the player might want to pretty often to make life easier and gain kill-loot. HOWEVER getting Agility EXP is practically a constant auto-get since the game forces you to parkour to get around the map (open world) and to escape the super fast-strong zombies at night time. The speed at which both level is actually pretty even during a natural playthrough. (well for those people with review-code copies of the game so far) The EXP system works extremely well.