24th January 2006, 1:26 PM
Oh yes, as far as depth of interaction with the story goes, Torment beats them both.
I read your post. Basically you have issues with a lack of good strategy in a lot of Japanese RPGs, right? I can see that, but to be honest I've had similar complaints with US RPGs which the ability to move around didn't really eliminate.
The real problem is too many of both sides tend to copy from one of two formulas. Very few actually try to come up with an interesting battle system. Xenogears did to an extent with it's battle combos, and Chrono Cross really did something I was very impressed by.
I suppose when you get down to it, a "genre" is just hard to really truly innovate in while staying within some cultural boundry of what you think will keep it in that genre.
I read your post. Basically you have issues with a lack of good strategy in a lot of Japanese RPGs, right? I can see that, but to be honest I've had similar complaints with US RPGs which the ability to move around didn't really eliminate.
The real problem is too many of both sides tend to copy from one of two formulas. Very few actually try to come up with an interesting battle system. Xenogears did to an extent with it's battle combos, and Chrono Cross really did something I was very impressed by.
I suppose when you get down to it, a "genre" is just hard to really truly innovate in while staying within some cultural boundry of what you think will keep it in that genre.
"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)