rocketpig said:
Scoobes said:
rocketpig said:
Scoobes said:
rocketpig said:
Solid_Raiden said:
I've been attacked for saying basically the same thing. I don't understand why a TPS/RPG can't be amazing at both aspects. Instead most of RPG hybrids, Mass Effect 1 and 2 included, sacrifice on aspects of both when they merge them. It's not impossible to make an rpg/shooter hybrid that would stand as both a great shooter and a great RPG even if most people say otherwise. I'm having massive amounts of fun with Mass Effect 2 because of the characters, worlds and story but it is severely lacking in both being a TPS and an RPG. |
Your last sentence is confusing me. How on Earth do you consider the RPG elements in ME2 lacking? It offered the most flawless RPG experience I've ever seen... BioWare completely streamlined out the typical RPG nonsense and let the player dive into the story, controlling even some of the smallest aspects of the game through very intuitive dialogue trees. And that's not even bringing up the game imports, which have taken RPGs to an entirely new level.
And not to beat a dead horse, but some of you need to realize that this is primarily an RPG game. You can't expect BioWare to add a TPS component like Gears of War, otherwise the RPG elements will start to suffer by turning it into a non-stop action game. I think too many of you take of the attitude of "Let them have cake" without thinking over just what sacrifices might have to be made to the entire franchise just to suit your personal opinion of what the game should be.
Oh, and I do find it mildly funny that someone rocking a Raiden avatar would be bitching about the shooter elements in an RPG game... One could say the exact same thing about MGS4 if they chose to completely ignore that it's primarily a STEALTH game, not a Gears-type TPS.
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Some people enjoy that "RPG nonsense" though. I know I miss having more detailed character customisation and having a greater control over my weapons and gear all the time. Not too bothered about the lack of loot. These are both aspects of RPGs that are missing or reduced in Mass Effect 2. The story aspect has been done brilliantly but if you only have the story aspects, it stops becomming an RPG and is really an Adventure game like Heavy Rain, Little Big Adventure or Zelda.
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Some of you need to think outside the box for a moment. Just because to this point RPG games have generally been loot/XP/grind/weapon upgrade heavy does not mean those things DEFINE an RPG. After all, it's called "role-playing". No game in history has filled that definition better than Mass Effect. It puts the story in the hands of the player and allows the player to define their world like no other game in history. Now THAT is role-playing. Just because BioWare didn't use the traditional aspects of RPG games (unnecessary aspects, IMO) doesn't mean the RPG element is "lacking", it just means they went for a kind of role-playing that doesn't suit your preferences. Personally, I think it's the most engaging form of actual role-playing that I've ever seen in a game.
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This really does come down to what defines an RPG. Those factors are essential in an RPG, or are they? I would say they are but then JRPGs don't adhere to this formula 9 times out of 10. Is Heavy Rain an RPG? Or Farenheit (Indigo Prophecy to some)? By your definition they'd be more an RPG than any of the Final Fantasy games. You might think the traditional aspects are unnecessary, but they are what has defined RPGs for a very longtime now, and are actually what makes the game more fun for certain people. The "stats" are less of an issue in a game like Mass Effect 2 where shooting is very important as it's more about the player's shooting ability than improving your characters stats and overall strategy, but some people still want them.
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And that's fine if you like those components. I have no problems with that. Personally, I don't... where I disagree is how some of you are saying Mass Effect is "not an RPG" or it's "watered down" simply because BioWare chose not to use those components in favor of going a different route with ME2. It doesn't make it less of an RPG, it just makes it different. And some of you don't like that difference. More power to you but don't go around trying to diminish its role-playing elements just because it doesn't suit your preferences.
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The real problem isn't people calling it a watered down RPG. By the definition of an RPG which has been established by the majority for a very long time, it is watered down. The problem is that you have made your own definition of what an RPG means and have passed it on as fact. But I suggest a compromise. When I stated that it was a watered down RPG I was referring to those elements which define what an RPG is to the majority of people. I had no idea you would have your own idea of what an RPG is and then use that perception to assume that what I was talking about was somehow the same as your own perception. I suggest that you assume when others are talking about an RPG, they are specifically talking about these factors from which we have discussed and I shall do the same for you and all two other people on planet earth which might hold the same perception. Deal? :)
