A role playing game from JapanSo Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, Unicorn Overlord, DMC V could also be classified under the broad umbrella?
So Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, Unicorn Overlord, DMC V could also be classified under the broad umbrella?Yeah, sure
So Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, Unicorn Overlord, DMC V could also be classified under the broad umbrella?Only Unicorn Overlord, I see Japanese tactical RPGs as a sub genre of JRPG.
So what I was talking about was back in the 90's, when somebody told you the game was an RPG, you had a number of checkboxes that it was probably gonna hit most of. Story-focused. Party-based. Turn-based. Town/dungeon structure. Swords and magic. Etc. None of those things, of course, were strict requirements. The genre as a whole got its identity from its tabletop ancestry. And that much remains true today. So it's not like anything has changed in that regard.Yeah this echoes a lot of how I see it, now that so many aesthetic design or gameplay mechanic designs have been integrated into so many different genres, you could fit most anything these days into the category. Because like you said, what made a JRPG for me most often was a party structure, a main named character you played as throughout the whole game, & leveling/gear designs with towns or cities you go to in a linear fashion most often.
But what HAS changed is the scope of that tabletop influence. The last RACER I played had experience and skill trees. I've played scifi shooters *coughMassEffectcough* that for some reason people refuse to let me call shooters simply because you can talk to people and level up. Shredder's Revenge? Experience, leveling--RPG. Arkham City? Experience, skill trees.
Most people wouldn't really argue that my two examples from the other topic, Resident Evil 4 Remake and some Sonic game, would count as RPGs even if they do have some of the mechanics (or most of the examples in the previous paragraph for that matter), because ultimately the determination of genre is at more of a aesthetic level than a mechanic level. That's using the game design definition of the term "aesthetic" that summarizes the overall feel and appeal rather than just how it looks. For example, you do level up in Shredder's Revenge, but that alone doesn't make it an RPG, because at an aesthetic level, it's still a game where you beat up hordes of enemies just because they're in the way and not so much about... uh...
What are RPGs about again? Oh, that's right, this is one genre that's determined by its influences instead of its aesthetic. Which is probably why it's gotten so out of hand in terms of scope.
All I know is, when Final Fantasy 4 and Mass Effect 2 are the same genre according to pretty much everyone, well, what isn't?
Only Unicorn Overlord, I see Japanese tactical RPGs as a sub genre of JRPG.Sure I agree
being japanese and an rpg?This. It's kinda right there in the name.
JRPG ( plural JRPGs )This is how I've commonly viewed it. But games like Elden Ring, Breath of the Wild, & many others are being considered JRPGs now too.
1. ( video games ) Initialism of undefinedundefined , a traditional genre of role-playing video game generally understood as involving a pre-determined story and player characters, a party of multiple controllable characters, and an emphasis on narrative and storytelling.
I have always counted From Software's RPGs as JRPGs. But that's just me.Vehement disagree from me then, but that's up to difference of opinion.
An RPG made in Japan doesnt really work, as for instance, FFIX was made in the US.Good post, this is like 99% my view on it as well.
Interactive adventure stories, usually with a party of playable characters, usually not much depth in terms of roleplaying choices compared to WRPGs and especially CRPGs, with progression mechanics and either originating from Japan or inspired by games that were, with a heavy emphasis on story and character dialogue.
For instance, Chained Echoes and Sea of Stars were not made by Japanese developers, but theyre still JRPGs because they fit the rest and were inspired by them.
I also dont consider the FromSoft games JRPGs as they dont really fit this. They have progression mechanics and a high focus on building your character, but the storytelling is all environmental and the difficult combat is the highlight. So I consider these WRPGs made by Japanese developers.
This is how I've commonly viewed it. But games like Elden Ring, Breath of the Wild, & many others are being considered JRPGs now too.
......Ehh. I wouldn't say that.You'd be surprised, when someone asks what games to recommend like you say, or what the greatest game of last year or otherwise was, a lot of those games get mentioned as if they were even if people say otherwise.
If someone said "Recommend me a JRPG." and someone replied "Breath of the Wild" I think most people would look at them weird and think "That's not a JRPG...."
You'd be surprised, when someone asks what games to recommend like you say, or what the greatest game of last year or otherwise was, a lot of those games get mentioned as if they were even if people say otherwise.
But they specifically requested "JRPG". Not "greatest game". Breath of the Wild is no more JRPG than it is Character Action Game.That's part of the issue like someone in here said. RPG elements are basically a given in lots of titles now, & since Japanese developers are by & large putting out better titles than Western developers these days(at least if you want to talk better than EA, Ubisoft is Western but not from NA, Activision or Blizzard or Microsoft,) a lot of the market that isn't indie games comes down to SE, Namco Bandai, Capcom & so on. Or you have perspectives like Naoki Yoshida who considered the term JRPG for many years offensive, & I understand his point of view on that. They're just developing games like anyone else, but when American titles or something make it to Japan or China or elsewhere, they aren't called ARPGs for American Role Playing Games.
And if you'd like to be pedantic and argue that some people would call it that - well then sure. Some people would call anything anything and I guess genre labels have no value anymore.
It's referring to a style of RPG that was created / popularized in Japan. Think of it like bread. If a bake French Bread in America, it doesn't suddenly become American Bread. It may be Made-In-America bread but it's still French Bread. No one even thinks twice about this.I don't see the disagreement come up as often with food, but when people put a regional distinction on something like ramen, or bread, or whatever & they're putting their spin on it; you do see the "a southern spin on an eastern treat" & stuff like that. But I don't think people ever consider it not a regional food relative to the country of origin yeah
This isn't even specific to bread or even food. Toyota has a factory in Kentucky. It's still a Japanese car, it's just made in America.
Video games are the only thing where there's a weird disagreement over it and I don't really get it.
On the contrary, cuisines are the only one thats really like that. Your car comparison is a false equivalence since thats a car officially under a factual Japanese property. Nobody would call a car completely inspired by and built similar to a Japanese car but made by an American company a Japanese car.
For the record, using the region just as an identifier also ruins the point of it being a genre. It should really just be the gameplay/structure (like turn based/action or linear/open) that describes the genre.
Nobody would call a car completely inspired by and built similar to a Japanese car but made by an American company a Japanese car.
JRPG ( plural JRPGs )Yeah the pre-determined narrative part is the defining characteristic of a JRPG versus something like Baldur's Gate where the story is wildly different depending on your choices.
1. ( video games ) Initialism of undefinedundefined , a traditional genre of role-playing video game generally understood as involving a pre-determined story and player characters, a party of multiple controllable characters, and an emphasis on narrative and storytelling.
In a WRPG, the freedom and choices distract you from the thin plot. In a JRPG, the amazing plot distracts you from the lack of freedom and choices. Music sucks in both.This is just wrong.
This isn't even specific to bread or even food. Toyota has a factory in Kentucky. It's still a Japanese car, it's just made in America.KFC made in Tokyo with KFC-standard recipes, supplies, and equipment does not auto-magically become TFC. :)
I once had someone try to convince me Metal Gear Solid was an rpg game. This was before MGS 5 was ever a thing.To be fair, that was quite possibly a Kojima facepalm moment. In MGS2, Campbell keeps telling Raiden to do stuff, saying "that's your role." Finally Raiden asks him why he keeps saying that, and Campbell responds "Why not? This IS a type of role-playing game."
This.
I've never considered Dark Souls to be a JRPG. It's an WRPG that just happens to be made by a Japanese dev.
That's because most people in the West are unaware of the Japanese influences, including From's own King's Field and Shadow Tower games. They mistakingly think it was influenced by some Western game even though it doesn't play like any. I honestly hate the way JRPG is used these days. If it doesn't mean RPG made in Japan then come up with a new label.From always felt Western tbh.
That's because most people in the West are unaware of the Japanese influences, including From's own King's Field and Shadow Tower games. They mistakingly think it was influenced by some Western game even though it doesn't play like any. I honestly hate the way JRPG is used these days. If it doesn't mean RPG made in Japan then come up with a new label.FFIX wasnt made in Japan. Is it not a JRPG? Thats why your definition is the stupidest possible one.