Is Every Game an RPG Now?
Nov 12, 2023 21:53:23 GMT -5
Post by anayo on Nov 12, 2023 21:53:23 GMT -5
I'm maybe 12 hours into Cyberpunk 2077. This game got hyped to high heaven as an RPG. I feel really conflicted about that, because while CP2077 strikes me as a good GTA clone, I'm not sure it qualifies as an RPG.
Maybe I'm just not seeing things clearly. Maybe somebody who better understands CP2077 or the RPG genre can help me better understand. But as far as best I can see without any outside help, CP2077 awards you experience points when you accomplish things. Then you can spend those points on a skill tree, unlocking new abilities.
Aside from some other systems, like crafting, bionics you can surgically install into your body, and equippable gear, I haven't seen how CP2077's RPG elements go any farther than this. It's making me question whether CP2077 actually qualifies as an RPG. Because almost every AAA game does these things now. Off the top of my head, these games do the same "RPG stuff" that CP2077 does:
Tomb Raider 2013
Doom Eternal
Ratchet and Clank: a Rift Apart
Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order
These games have some of the trappings of an RPG, but I had never regarded them as RPGs. Therefore I'm not inclined to regard CP2077 as an RPG, either.
This leads me to philosophically ask myself why something like Final Fantasy VII qualifies as an RPG, but those above games do not. I think the reason is that I expect a level of systemic depth in an RPG which is absent in those other games.
When I talk about systemic depth, a good illustration would be in FFVII when I encountered a hydra I could not defeat until I equipped a ring which turned all water-type spells into healing spells. All of the hydra's moves were water-type, so equipping the ring turned all his damage into extra health for the ringbearer.
More specific examples elude me right now, but I have heard of digital RPGs that recreate game mechanics like those found in the analog card game Magic the Gathering. Magic is full of situations where one card has a gameplay effect which isn't obviously useful, but when you combine it with another card, it becomes deadly.
This touches on what I mean by "systemic depth". It involves coming to grips with a set of rules and making strategic choices to manipulate those rules and overcome adversaries. I just don't see this happening in CP2077.
If it's there and I'm missing it, then CP2077 actually is an RPG. If CP2077 doesn't need this systemic depth to count as an RPG, then I think that would mean Tomb Raider 2013, Doom Eternal, Ratchet and Clank, and Jedi Fallen Order are all RPGs.
Maybe I'm just not seeing things clearly. Maybe somebody who better understands CP2077 or the RPG genre can help me better understand. But as far as best I can see without any outside help, CP2077 awards you experience points when you accomplish things. Then you can spend those points on a skill tree, unlocking new abilities.
Aside from some other systems, like crafting, bionics you can surgically install into your body, and equippable gear, I haven't seen how CP2077's RPG elements go any farther than this. It's making me question whether CP2077 actually qualifies as an RPG. Because almost every AAA game does these things now. Off the top of my head, these games do the same "RPG stuff" that CP2077 does:
Tomb Raider 2013
Doom Eternal
Ratchet and Clank: a Rift Apart
Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order
These games have some of the trappings of an RPG, but I had never regarded them as RPGs. Therefore I'm not inclined to regard CP2077 as an RPG, either.
This leads me to philosophically ask myself why something like Final Fantasy VII qualifies as an RPG, but those above games do not. I think the reason is that I expect a level of systemic depth in an RPG which is absent in those other games.
When I talk about systemic depth, a good illustration would be in FFVII when I encountered a hydra I could not defeat until I equipped a ring which turned all water-type spells into healing spells. All of the hydra's moves were water-type, so equipping the ring turned all his damage into extra health for the ringbearer.
More specific examples elude me right now, but I have heard of digital RPGs that recreate game mechanics like those found in the analog card game Magic the Gathering. Magic is full of situations where one card has a gameplay effect which isn't obviously useful, but when you combine it with another card, it becomes deadly.
This touches on what I mean by "systemic depth". It involves coming to grips with a set of rules and making strategic choices to manipulate those rules and overcome adversaries. I just don't see this happening in CP2077.
If it's there and I'm missing it, then CP2077 actually is an RPG. If CP2077 doesn't need this systemic depth to count as an RPG, then I think that would mean Tomb Raider 2013, Doom Eternal, Ratchet and Clank, and Jedi Fallen Order are all RPGs.
