Samus Aran said:
Zelda doesn't even have one rpg element in it. Pokémon: has different types ("classes") Fire Emblem: has different classes Paper Mario: has different partners with different abilities xenoblade: has different characters with their own abilities Bravely Default: has different "jobs" (which basically functions as classes) Runescape: Magic beats melee, melee beats range, range beats magic South Park: Stick of Truth: mage, warrior, thief, jew. Those are the only rpgs I play and they all have classes (except Mario & Luigi franchise). |
Frankly, you have an extremely limited experience with rpg's if those are the only you ever played. You don't need multiple characters with different abilities, rock paper sissor combat, jobs, character customization, tactical or turn based combat for a game to be considered an rpg. There are many rpg elements in almost every genre.
Zelda has rupee grinding, questing, similar combat to other action rpg's, explorable towns, npcs to talk to, shops, sizable game world to explore, dungeons, story is told at slower pace to a singular perspective, longer game play and earning gear/upgrades. That's just some that I can think of. Not one rpg element, huh? Many genres have rpg elements in them now.
It may not have a leveling system and stats in the traditional sense but that's not a must have. You do upgrade link's max hp/hearts. Elder Scrolls threw away traditional stats like strength, agility, wisdom, intelligence in favor of a more simplified system of just HP, fatigue and magika.
Games like Dragon's dogma, souls series, mass effect series stretch what is known as rpg's.
Zelda has more in common with those rpg's than it does with games like shadow of the colossus, god of war, devil may cry, bayonetta, tomb raider, uncharted series and TLOU.
