Why are RPG games so popular?

[A_Higher_Plane]

Title says all. Why do so many people like RPG games? Here are my reasons as to why I love RPG games:

• I like that you improve with stat/parameter increases with numbers showing how much they have improved, in the old school RPGs. I am actually a "self-help/self-improvement geek" or something and I can do a lot of work for my own improvements. This is actually for many things, including those of video games. I like to see the improvements in math (as numbers).
• I love great video game stories. Video games offer interactivity and I feel like I am in the game.
• I love being able to use magic and the supernatural. I can't do this at home and so I fantasize.

What do you guys say about the above?

 

[Iron_Brew]

Escapist media, focused on story, with a ton of mechanical variety and which have a relatively low barrier to entry in terms of ability. If anything, it's a wonder that they're not more popular than they already are! Hell, feels like every genre of game these days is incorporating RPG elements to increase longevity or to give those cheap little level-up dopamine hits.

 

[The Stranger]

Because I like to experience stories, interact with characters, and make decisions that have an impact on them. I prefer linear RPGs to open world ones. I'm also not a fan of mechanical complexity, and prefer things to be simple but meaningful.

If I am playing an open world game (RPG or not), I want it to be highly detailed, have lots of immersive mechanics (such as the ability to sit down, watch a film, eat a meal, etc) because I want to be able to feel as if that world is real. I honestly don't give a toss about wide open spaces with nothing to do in them other than fight.

In both cases, I want to be able to do things other than shoot someone in the face, or shoot someone in the face while remaining hidden. xD

 

[Tiamat-86]

i like RPGs can view as a subset of strategy games, but with more story. i like both random encounters and visual encounter systems. i like gradual progression to become stronger.

i love really difficult RPGs where if your not equipped with current tier BiS gear then you better be super over leveled just saving that money for the next equipment tier.
(ill never play DQ11 without the 'stronger enemies, weak enemies=less exp'.)

dont like when can just go town1 > town2 > town3 and steamroll the game without any need to: acquire new equipment, do sidequests/grind extra levels.
(sure as hell never paying for pixel remaster FFs. original NA releases were already lowered difficulty, they LOWER IT MORE... !AND CRAPPIER GRAPHIC!? its a F*ing insult, what it is.)

i dont like autobattles, and not like action rpgs when only control 1 character while party members are AI. it takes away from my control of the strategy elements.
1 character games like demon souls for some unknown reason just cant get into the souls style,
i like action rpg more like borderlands or monster hunter world(rise is baby hunter)
(FF12 i just cant even find a good balance with the gambit system. either so OP setup that can autobattle 99% of the game. or got AI rejects that, aside from healing like pros, are fricken useless.)

adventure rpgs, im more of a morrowind > skyrim kinda guy. lets me specialize and actually become a god. i dont wanna be dova/hercules, i wanna be zeus/odin.

 

[Mr. Detective]

I actually didn't like RPG games at first. Only ones that I liked playing was the Mega Man ones. And then I got bored with shooting games and decided to try some anime RPG games for a change of pace. Got hooked into the Tales series with Xillia. I started using the RM engine before that, though.

Well, RPG games usually have interesting stories to tell. The characters' personality and background are more detailed, the overall plot is deeper, more than most games from the other genres. Of course, there are also games like Neptunia which relies mainly on comedy instead of story or gameplay. But generally, I think RPG games are expected to have strong story-telling. An action game can get away with having barebone story, like Metal Slug or Contra, but that is not often not the case for most RPG games.

 

[lianderson]

These were all good responses!

Good job humans.

 

[ZombieKidzRule]

When I grew up, you entertained yourself by playing outside with your friends, reading books, and occasionally watching some TV (3 channels didn't offer a lot of choices). When I discovered D&D, it was like a book that you could control where the story went and what the characters did. It was awesome.

CRPGs were the next evolution. A book that you could control and SEE how it was playing out. And, you could play by yourself, without needing to schedule time with friends.

So I think many people like the aspect of control in RPGs and they tend to be more complex than the typical "arcade" type game. I enjoy me some simple arcade like games just to pass the time, but give me a deep, complex RPG game any day of the week!

 

[zXManyRegretsXz]

RPG was probably the very first genre of game I played. The way you controlled a character, got to explore the world, and grew with the character as you progressed really felt like I was in the journey myself when I was playing.

The core gameplay of most RPGs are very simple: walk around in a map, deplete enemy HP to 0, get XP or its equivalent, level up to get stronger, go to another map to fight more enemies, rinse, repeat. The unique spins devs put in it to make it interesting is one of the great aspects of RPGs, and games in general. The way you can tactically choose how to act in battles and the like was interesting to little me's brain, even if I could barely properly utilize the mechanics. It felt like actually learning about the world and its inhabitants, in a way.

Of course, RPGs also gave you the wonder of storytelling. The plot of the game was something that always intrigued me, since I love a good story. RPG games often had stories that were interesting, even if they were pretty barebones sometimes. The simple fact that the games had you play a role in a story is something that I very much enjoy about the games, even if I couldn't imprint myself into the characters (most of the time, I don't, anyway. it's the character's story, not mine). If an RPG has no interesting story (imo), then I wouldn't enjoy it as much as other RPGs. It's one of the reasons why I enjoy Gen 4 and Gen 5 the most out of the Pokémon games (other than them being the gens I played the most ).

Though, the main thing that hooks me into RPGs, especially nowadays, are the characters. If you have an eagle eye, you'll notice I said that it's the character's story, not mine. It's because out of any good story and game, what I look for the most, are good characters. Characters with personality, that are funny, that have motivations and reasons to be going on these journeys, etc. Many RPGs I've played have brilliant characterization, with the characters feeling unique and charming. No joke, I can deal with middling gameplay and substandard plots if the characters are well-built enough. Many games try to have good characters, but RPGs are the genre with the best characterization out of any other genre, in my opinion.

 

[ProSuperSchool]

Traveling, character progression, exquisite storyline, charming animation and graphics preferably 2D Isometric, immersive music, feel the emotion of the characters, and level design