How are RPGs fellow zoomers?

[bulmabriefs144]

Yeah yeah yeah, I am a zoomer as well! Just like you all. I do normal zoomer activities like procastinate and looking at dank memes. Today, just as usual, I was looking at some memes too, when I saw one about the role playing games and how difficult it is to collect experience points.

Now, being a certified zoomer, I have played RPGs too! I have played so many RPGs, when I saw that meme, I went, "Oh, RPGs! I know of them. I have played them."

But now, it's been a while since I played them. Not for long though, I haven't played any RPGs for just a little bit, you know, like a few hours, days, weeks...months......years...but who is counting?

So, I was wondering,
Have RPGs changed in any way in these few years I haven't played them?

I don't use Zoom. I like the idea of dropping safety precautions and visiting the real world.

There's this thing called Amazon? You ummm go an purchase a Switch Lite or something, then get cartridges? You can even use Switch's store to download games.

I'd not recommend KH3 on the Switch though. Disasterrific.

 

[DarkeReises]

I do love rocket-propelled grenades

When i first saw the thread name i was wondering what changed about RPGs as in the weapon. Took a while to realize it meant games lol

 

[Dudealien]

When i first saw the thread name i was wondering what changed about RPGs as in the weapon. Took a while to realize it meant games lol

Lol

 

[MorgueAnna]

I have played them! I just haven't played them for a few years, and was wondering if anything has changed over these years

Well, the RPGs I know were just, "hey stranger, I know we just met but there is a emergency so please take these state secrets to our commander." and then the comman would say, "Ah, I hate to say this but we need you to kill a dragon."

So, mostly lore wise. Are we still fast paced or do games now focus on lore or character development? There is also skill trees. The ones I played had just the basic classes, and barely any specific upgrades to specific classes. They didn't really give space for, creativity? I guess? Like if my class was archer, the only upgrades usually available would be longer range and faster reload.

And puzzles? Do RPGs still have puzzles? Have they nerfed them or buffed them?

Also, i kinda meant both, I have played a few ttrpgs tho I could never go much far in them since most require....you know, friends....but I have played a few online.

It's difficult to answer your question considering you have listed a limited range of features for what RPGs you have played. The timeline is also a bit too vague to pin down a better answer. Or maybe it's because I also am a developer and not just a gamer.
For example, if you only played mainline AAA titles in the years 2010-2012, what you might experience in "RPGs" as a genre would be severely limited and far different from someone who only played indie titles during the same 2 year time frame. And that's not even factoring in things like "J-RPGs" vs "Western RPGs" or subgenres. Single player VS MMO (and everything in between), Open world, Sandbox, linear/on rails nonlinear, Action, adventure, strategy, text-based, 2D, 3D, VR, AR, tabletop, analog, video, free to play, gacha, PC vs console vs smartphone, the list goes on.

To answer the question to the best of my abilities (despite the open-endedness) and personal taste/preferences:

I've personally noticed the increase and re-definition of open world and sandbox RPGs, which you can track from Skyrim's initial release and subsequent industry bandwaggoning all the way to Breath of the Wild's release and subsequent bandwaggoning. Those two titles really defined shifts in the genre, even though they were similar to other games released in succession. Dragon's Dogma and Skyrim were within 6 months of eachother and Horizon Zero Dawn and Breath of the Wild both came out in 2017, but the clear trendsetters are Skyrim and Breath of the Wild.

The Pokemon series is an RPG and they both changed and not changed drastically in the last decade. Arceus Legends is a dead-ringer for BotW and that shakeup to the formula seems to have further polarized the already heated fanbase. Many popular Pokemon knockoffs go back to basics, but the truly mediocre ones rely far too heavily on the source of their inspiration and contribute little to the evolution of the subgenre.
Remakes have been popular, perhaps more so than sequels, at least from my limited perspective. Stuff like Fire Emblem and Persona have really popped off in the Western market.

As for indie stuff, Undertale / Deltarune seems to have made an impact on the medium and are a perfect encapsulation of storytelling through game mechanics. Disco Elysium seems to have been a hit. Roguelike RPGs are also on the rise. Both retro aesthetics and visual novel mechanics are gaining traction in indie spaces (and have been increasingly in recent years). You mentioned RPGs puzzles and indie space has that in droves.

Oh, also meta commentary and weird experimental games. There's a person who makes tough as nails games with titles that riff on Light Novel title conventions. Examples:
I Have Low Stats But My Class Is "Leader", So I Recruited Everyone I Know To Fight The Dark Lord
My Older Sister Left The Computer So I Got On & Found Myself Trying To Coordinate A Raid In A Game & I Don't Play MMO's

You have a glut of options to look into, I'm sure you'll find something to enjoy, new or old.

When i first saw the thread name i was wondering what changed about RPGs as in the weapon. Took a while to realize it meant games lol

This comment just sent me back to the time I had to explain to my grandfather that I wasn't talking about rocket-propelled grenades in like...2005. No worries, it's a common misunderstanding.

 

[Wysillesthal]

Come play Granblue Fantasy, we have fetishes, weapon pngs, Nobuo Uematsu, monkeygate, waiting months for main story update, and many more... Actually does it count as RPG? It's a gacha, though you get free rolls for few days as a beginner (and generous rewards) but I guess that may turn people off as soon as they heard or read that word, and the grinding is quite heavy for a mobile game.

We have the upcoming Relink this year, and an almost dead fighting game, Versus, though they promised a rollback which may revive it.

 

[Agentt]

I don't use Zoom. I like the idea of dropping safety precautions and visiting the real world.

There's this thing called Amazon? You ummm go an purchase a Switch Lite or something, then get cartridges? You can even use Switch's store to download games.

I'd not recommend KH3 on the Switch though. Disasterrific.

too busy to game unfortunately

 

[greyblob]

don't play them. I don't have the patience to waste 30 hours on mindless quests to start playing the game. i have a friend who's big on mmorpgs and he says final fantasy is the best right now (maybe also skyrim).
I'm pretty excited for vrising. I'm waiting a bit for it to get fleshed out though

 

[Agentt]

For classic RPGs, there's also a fantastic game called "Another Eden" for steam and mobile. (Interestingly enough, it's the mobile version that's the better version of the game. Go figure.) (Full title is Another Eden: The Cat Beyond Time and Space. As funny as that sub-title is, it actually has a serious plot-relevant point in the game that will hit you like the 6th sense right near the end of the 1st major story arc.)

A company called Wright Flyer Studios actually decided to be serious mad-lads and did the crazy task of pulling together the old team from Square who worked on Chrono Trigger (AKA, a serious contender for the #1 best RPG ever made, with it's only viable competition being Final Fantasy 6 and 7.) and then they had them make an actual spiritual successor to the Chrono series. It's a pretty darn amazing game, especially for a mobile game. (And, it really does have about the same feel as playing the old classic 90s era JRPGs, it feel a whole heck of a lot like Chrono Trigger in particular.)

EDIT: Actually, I guess Another Eden might be the answer OP was looking for. Another Eden was made back in 2019, and has been expanding it's story with regular updates since then. (In the past 3 years, it has become a HUGE game that will take you months to finish, even if you binge it.) So, it marks a serious new development for the RPG genre of gaming.


You must be talking about western RPGs. JRPGs have always been strong lore wise. The last time they had shallow shoehorned-in quests like what you're talking about was back in the NES era, and even then they were a bit better than that.

\o/
I know Another Eden! Great game!

Mostly, I could never complete any such games because I am terrible at reading a map and would just get lost in open world.

 

[T.K._Paradox]

RPG's have gone downhill since around 2009, it is more about presentation of 'great graphics' and 'new interactive gameplay' despite not understanding that no amount of crafting and lootboxes can make a bad game good.

Story has been traded in for improved combat systems and the legendary weapons and gear is either nonexistent or a normal bandit shits out Excalibur when you defeat them.


Also despite a plethora of DLCs endgame content is virtually nonexistent as well.