31st May 2010, 2:10 PM
lazy you just opened Pandora's Box. Prepair for a lecture from ABF on how they are "distinctly different", though there is a lot of overlap, especially considering Ultima was where both got their start.
ABF, you need not concern yourself with that. The game has maps, town maps. They provide you with all the information, except the information they don't provide. You access it with X, you know, the big blue button at the top? Just infuse your finger with an "Xish" kind of feeling to unleash it. It is usually very apparent where to go next. The desert is a bit of an exception, a boring part the game will tell you is boring.
That's the sort of humor the game has. It makes light of all the various ways RPGs function. Talking to everyone in a restaurant will eventually get someone telling you it's rude to walk around a fancy restaurant and ask everyone questions. The humor is also subtle, which I love in this age where humor seems to have to SHOUT the punchlines at you at high speed (not that I don't enjoy that too, but I like variety).
There's strategy. While you certainly are permitted to over-level yourself in the way I described and literally just walk into things everywhere to kill them (you complain about constant fighting in a dungeon, but did you read my description of how battles work?), if you don't do that, you end up using special techniques. If you just mash the attack button, you probably won't even get past Master Belch. Aside from standard healing and attacks, there's a number of stat boosters from the PSI casters and special devices from the nerd with no psychic powers that'll be very helpful in doing the enemies in.
Besides let's face it, unless an RPG specifically tries to "cap" your stats throughout the game to force it on you, ALL RPGs tend to let you brute force your way through the game with minimal strategy, American and Japanese alike (Yes, even Planescape Torment, which is still a great game mind you). In fact, the few exceptions are ones that really try to limit leveling up, like Super Mario RPG where you really need to learn to play well since the level caps pretty dang low (30, low by RPG standards). Heck, that applies to all the Mario RPGs since they intentionally use very low HP numbers. It also is done very well in Chrono Cross, since not only does your "cap" start really low and only increase when you kill bosses, the very nature of the combat system forces you to "work up" to special skills (advantage being the total removal of "MP", abilities can be used forever in long dungeons so long as you build up those resources). Pokemon is ridiculously deep considering how simple the basic premise is (just check out any Pokemon tournament strategy forum out there to get a clue as to just how people manage to twist those systems into amazing victories).
There's a lot more depth to be found in some games than overlevelers realize, and yes, I'll admit that I too tend to fall into the overleveling trap, because I NEVER run from fights and tend to ALWAYS fully explore every inch of some new location, coupled together to make even the "hardest" RPGs seem too easy, except when they incorporate those "cap restrictions" I mentioned.
Really, I think it's time to take a good long look at "leveling" and say goodbye to it's "default" implementation. It worked fine for a time, but perhaps methods like Chrono Cross are simply a better way to control stat growth. Also, again Chrono Cross basically gives the lesson that if you give someone limited MP to cast spells, they tend NOT to cast ANY spells except curative ones and just bash things with sticks except for bosses, BUT if you take away that limitation and make powerful spells simply something that needs special steps to cast, but are ALWAYS castable when those steps take place, people will use them far more often.
ABF, you need not concern yourself with that. The game has maps, town maps. They provide you with all the information, except the information they don't provide. You access it with X, you know, the big blue button at the top? Just infuse your finger with an "Xish" kind of feeling to unleash it. It is usually very apparent where to go next. The desert is a bit of an exception, a boring part the game will tell you is boring.
That's the sort of humor the game has. It makes light of all the various ways RPGs function. Talking to everyone in a restaurant will eventually get someone telling you it's rude to walk around a fancy restaurant and ask everyone questions. The humor is also subtle, which I love in this age where humor seems to have to SHOUT the punchlines at you at high speed (not that I don't enjoy that too, but I like variety).
There's strategy. While you certainly are permitted to over-level yourself in the way I described and literally just walk into things everywhere to kill them (you complain about constant fighting in a dungeon, but did you read my description of how battles work?), if you don't do that, you end up using special techniques. If you just mash the attack button, you probably won't even get past Master Belch. Aside from standard healing and attacks, there's a number of stat boosters from the PSI casters and special devices from the nerd with no psychic powers that'll be very helpful in doing the enemies in.
Besides let's face it, unless an RPG specifically tries to "cap" your stats throughout the game to force it on you, ALL RPGs tend to let you brute force your way through the game with minimal strategy, American and Japanese alike (Yes, even Planescape Torment, which is still a great game mind you). In fact, the few exceptions are ones that really try to limit leveling up, like Super Mario RPG where you really need to learn to play well since the level caps pretty dang low (30, low by RPG standards). Heck, that applies to all the Mario RPGs since they intentionally use very low HP numbers. It also is done very well in Chrono Cross, since not only does your "cap" start really low and only increase when you kill bosses, the very nature of the combat system forces you to "work up" to special skills (advantage being the total removal of "MP", abilities can be used forever in long dungeons so long as you build up those resources). Pokemon is ridiculously deep considering how simple the basic premise is (just check out any Pokemon tournament strategy forum out there to get a clue as to just how people manage to twist those systems into amazing victories).
There's a lot more depth to be found in some games than overlevelers realize, and yes, I'll admit that I too tend to fall into the overleveling trap, because I NEVER run from fights and tend to ALWAYS fully explore every inch of some new location, coupled together to make even the "hardest" RPGs seem too easy, except when they incorporate those "cap restrictions" I mentioned.
Really, I think it's time to take a good long look at "leveling" and say goodbye to it's "default" implementation. It worked fine for a time, but perhaps methods like Chrono Cross are simply a better way to control stat growth. Also, again Chrono Cross basically gives the lesson that if you give someone limited MP to cast spells, they tend NOT to cast ANY spells except curative ones and just bash things with sticks except for bosses, BUT if you take away that limitation and make powerful spells simply something that needs special steps to cast, but are ALWAYS castable when those steps take place, people will use them far more often.
"On two occasions, I have been asked [by members of Parliament], 'Pray, Mr. Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right answers come out?' I am not able to rightly apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question." ~ Charles Babbage (1791-1871)