RPG's. It's a genre loved by many people. It's a genre that started long before computers were concieved.
Firstly many people would tell you an RPG has to have leveling, battle system and lots of skill progression. All rolled into a vast story spanning 40+ hours of gameplay.
Tabletop RPG's before the home computer was even a thought, were and still are the 'actual' definition of a Role Playing game. The design for these was to create your character, go on a journey guided by the dungeon master of which decisions and reactions were made by you. Stats for armour or weapons or skills were created to represent power and death on paper. ( Obviously because dice decided the outcome ). But the stats were there for necessity. Not because that was what role playing was.
With the inclusion of computers and computer games, RPG's were something that came about for us in electronic form. No longer did we need a dungeon master, because the computer acted as one. We had a visual representation of our character. ( Or in many cases with so called RPG's these days the developers character ). But for some reason stats made the crossover. Why? The stats where there because it was pen and paper. So a tally could be kept. Computers can do this, without showing endless amounts of stats on needless annoying menus. All you need to know is x armour is better than y armour. You dont need to know all the info in rediculous 91 attack, etc etc.
There was a time in RPG's to where items you found had a weight limit. Also there wasn't endless amounts of completely unneccesesary items there. But the most important point really is when RPG's made the crossover to computers, they entirely lost the Role Playing element of RPG's. If any of you have had the chance to play original tabletop RPG's you will understand alot more. But we will try and explain anyways.
Role Playing isnt just taking the role of a character. Firstly it's designing your character. His background, his or her looks. Mentality, lineage etc. This gives a basis of how people may percieve you if your works preceed you. Then theres the regualar decisions you'll make. In battle, conversation and in overall respomnsibilty. The choice for someone to be sacrificed, or the choice to bully someone for information. This is Role Playing. Role Playing has nothing to do with stats or endless menus. This is something Bioware should be praised for. They have really looked at this and nailed what an RPG is for what I feel is the first time in computer RPG history. The stats are still there, but the computer does it all for you. You dont have to have that anymore. This is not pen and paper. Hopefully more and more developers take note and realise that all along we have basically been playing Adventure games with stats instead of ACTUAL RPGS's.
Bioware deserve recognition for taking the computer RPG back to it's roots. And giving us an actual ROLE PLAYING GAME.
Selnor.
