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Slimebeast on 29 December 2008
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mrstickball said:
Slimebeast said:
FrostyTop said:
Well yes to a degree. WRPGs are more sandbox in the technical sense than JRPGs in that they are character driven, there's more opportunity for supper dooper eye candy moments in JRPGs but you've still got your basic areas you can go back to.

Where there is a lot of eye candy frame rates tend to suffer because the engine isn't specifically designed for those eye candy moments in real time.

 JRPGs have nothing to do with sandbox (not that you claimed them to be, but since that term was brought up). JRPGs are the most linear games you can find. So it's not a technical issue at all if they look inferior (and they do), just a tradition of simplistic (or flat out bad) developing.

Ah, but we're talking technical. and not gameplay :)

There is a very staunch difference in *some* JRPGs and *some* WRPGs, since linearity changes design choice.

When there is more linearity, it means there are FAR more set pieces, and varied terrains/scenarios that are given. Since you aren't back-tracking on the same area often (unlike Sandbox RPGs), they are forced to make more areas that are different.

A few great games to explore for design choices:

  • Mass Effect
  • Oblivion
  • Fallout 3
  • King's Bounty: The Legend
  • The Last Remnant
  • Blue Dragon
  • Two Worlds
  • Eternal Sonata
  • Tales of Vesperia

..Of the recent ones, it's very interesting to view how the game play areas are defined. Some games restrict movement in favor of far more grandoise setpieces (such as Eternal Sonata and Tales of Vesperia), while other games have no boundaries, but are far more generic (Oblivion and Fallout 3). It's a very certain tradeoff: You have to sacrifice somewhere. Either the game will have some sort of pre-rendered, you-can't-go-there background, but have tons of them that are gorgeous, or aren't as gorgeous, but you can go anywhere, and do anything.

I think playing Mass Effect and The Last Remnant bring out the contrast in design choices the most, IMO. Both are UE3 games, but follow the varied East/West philosophies of dungeon and area design. ME has more sandbox-y areas, but aren't as varied as The Last Remnant, which restricts your ability to move in favor of gorgeous level design (which is certainly varied compared to ME...Which is also varied, but not nearly as much).

 

Yeah, those are good points. But I prefer the sandbox trade-off in variety. I adore sandbox.
And I'd actually say that sandbox in essence is gorgeous level design - while linear is inferior level design. But most people disagree.