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David Elizondo
Ms. Romano
before video games even existed. Many key mechanics that have become standard in modern
RPGs date back as early as 1960s, but were popularized by the well-known tabletop game
Dungeons and Dragons, which officially released in 1974. Features such as leveling up,
managing equipment, and even classes all debuted in tabletop games before the era of video
games, but they’ve stood the test of time, particularly in the RPG genre.
The first big hit RPG outside of Japan was none other than Final Fantasy, which would
grow to become a hugely popular franchise, boasting 15 unique entries and multiple remasters.
Final Fantasy launched on the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1987, and was one of the
West’s first experiences with the RPG genre, introducing mainstays such as party members,
experience points, classes, a variety of stats including a split between physical strength and
magical strength, as well as items. These mechanics are still seen today in a variety of franchises,
RPGs share many aspects and mechanics, but the combats systems within them differ
greatly. The majority of RPGs utilize a turn-based system, where the player attacks and then the
opponent does, but many games either put a spin on the system, or change it entirely. For
example, in the Paper Mario series, quick time events, or QTEs are used to great extent. When
using attacks, the player is prompted to press a button the second the player animation hits the
enemy, forcing the use of good timing. This implementation keeps the player engaged in another
wise simple combat system. Final Fantasy VII also uses a sort of timing system, using standard
turn-based battles, but forcing the player to choose a command within a certain amount of time,
visualized by a gauge labeled “wait,” or else their turn is skipped. This system also keeps players
on their toes, as they’re forced to think fast, while in other games, taking the time to make
strategic choices is more advisable. Other games utilize the turn based system in unconventional
methods, like the Hyperdimension Neptunia series, which has a combat system based on moving
the characters on a field. In those games, for each characters’ turns, they’ll have be in range of an
enemy to attack them, adding a strategic element of keeping not only stats in mind, but also
positioning, making sure you’re either close enough to attack the enemy, or far away enough to
Although using the standardized conventions in RPGs is important, they must also be
done right. A common problem with the usage of RPG mechanics is a lack of scalability, or a
constant need to replace outdated gear and items (Stern(1)). An example of items becoming
outdated is present in the Final Fantasy series, where at the start of the game, the player is
presented with potions that can be used to heal somewhere around 50 to 100 health points.
However, due to huge increases in stats, the player’s characters will have little to no use for the
potions later in the game, as their health points reach around 3000 by the end of the game. The
potions become useless later in the game because the character’s stats are inflated far more than
they need to be, so all sorts of early-game items will see a forced decline in use as the game
progresses.
Conversely, the Fire Emblem series uses smaller numbers to the benefit of having early
game items useful for the entirety of the game. Characters in Fire Emblem will only gain 0 or 1
points of health per level up, in contrast to those in Final Fantasy who will easily gain dozens of
health points each level up. The less steep increase of stats in Fire Emblem results in their items
and skills being more scalable, with items that heal as meager as 10 hp being useful both at the
Another mechanic of RPGs that must be done right is the ability to customize ones’
characters. Not only does this cause the player to have to make a choice, adding to the strategic
element of the game, but it makes the game more replayable, as a new playthrough could include
different choices, resulting in a different experience (Bycer). An example of this is seen in the
simplest form in the Pokemon series. The player has the option to capture hundreds of characters
to use in battle in every game, but can only have 6 in their party at any given time. This results in
the player choosing their 6 favorite of all the ones available, often making their experience
different from many other people who are playing the same game. However, it’s not only about
using one’s favorites, because in most RPGs, there will always be some characters stronger than
others. The balance between using favorites and using strong characters that a player must decide
is key to adding a strategic element to games that make the player think about their choices.
Customization is a trait seen in almost every well-known RPG, and it almost always does
nothing but add to a game. However, there are many mechanics that, despite their frequent
appearance, are controversial among players. One of these is the existence of any sort of
present in RPGs in many areas surrounding combat, such as the chance to miss a move, the
chance to dodge a move, the chance to deal a status condition such as poison or sleep, critical
hits, or even a slight variation modifier being applied to damage. The uncertainty that’s added by
randomization creates both positive and negative surprising outcomes in combat for the player.
While missing a 90% move might make the player annoyed and frustrated, getting an essential,
lucky 5% critical hit makes up for the frustration with excitement. Overall, the randomness in
RPGs increase the potential outcomes in combat exponentially, which in the long run makes for
While randomness is almost always present in RPGs, the implementation differs from
title to title. The Pokemon series uses randomness primarily with missing or hitting attacks, but
the consistency will vary from move to move. While Fire Blast deals a strong 140 damage, the
85% hit rate might deter players from taking the risk. Flamethrower is a more consistent move at
100% accuracy, it has a significantly weaker damage of 90. Without the element of randomness,
players would have no reason to opt for the weaker move. However, the different hit rates add an
element of choice to the players. The option of a 100% accurate move adds responsibility to the
player, as when they miss a strong, less consistent move, they might regret not going for the
weaker move.
The element of choice can be added to games without using randomness. For example,
the Final Fantasy series uses a system of Magic Points, where some skills will take up more MP
to use than others. In games from the Final Fantasy series, players will have to decide whether its
worth to drain their allocation of MP to deal more damage in one turn, or spend more turns to
defeat the enemy using weaker attacks that use up less MP, at the risk of getting their own units
Randomness in RPGs are often used for more purposes than just hitting or missing
attacks. The Fire Emblem series uses a random number generator for a variety of purposes, such
as the standard hit/miss, but also for whether a certain character will level up in a stat or not,
whereas other RPGs, such as the Pokemon series mentioned earlier, will have identical stats for
all pokemon of the same type, as long as there are no other variables. Misael Villegas uploaded
an informative guide on the functionality of the random number generator used for chance
variables in Fire Emblem, which highlight some key pieces of information. A noticeable trait
when it comes to whether a character will hit or miss an attack is that it is not based on a single
random number, but the average of two numbers. This skews hit rates in favor of the player, as in
standard Fire Emblem games, player characters will almost always have hit rates within the 80s
to 90s, while it isn’t uncommon for enemies to have a hit rate of 50%. For example, to visualize
the effect of the skew, if the game displays a hit rate of 1%, there is actually a mere .03% chance
to hit. Similarly, a displayed hit rate of 20% actually will only hit 8.2% of the time, while a
displayed hit rate of 80% will hit 92.2% of the time. Although it can be interpreted as lying to the
player, the system fundamentally is put in place to reduce player frustrations to a minimum.
Players might be annoyed with the game if they constantly miss 90% hits, or if they’re constantly
hit by attacks with a hit rate of 20%, so the two random number system that’s been implemented
in all Fire Emblem games since 2002 works as an interesting solution to player frustration.
While solid mechanics are essential in RPGs, an engaging and immersive story is a key
element that sets the genre apart from others. “Immersion” is the idea that a player feels like they
truly are in the world that the game takes place in. A study done by Werner Wirth and other
researches revealed that the biggest cause of immersion in video games are characteristics that
enrichen the “mental model” of the game’s world, and a sense of consistency in the world;
essentially the lack of plot holes or oversights (Madigan). The world of a video game can be
enriched in a variety of ways, but one of the most important is to have a strong narrative or plot.
A story that makes the player question what’s right or wrong will keep them intrigued in the
game, and sucked into its world as a result. Making exploration interesting also does a great job
of immersing a player; the classic idea of “show, don’t tell” works perfectly in these types of
games, where the player can explore the world and make discoveries as they do. In 3d games,
having complete environments will add to this experience; simple things like seeing a bird in the
distance complimented by hearing a quiet screech will allow a player to feel as if they belong in
the world.
Open world RPGs are often cited as one of the most immersive genres of video games, as
they typically provide not only a strong narrative, but an interesting world to explore that’s both
visually stunning and filled with secrets. Games such as Marvel’s Spider-Man and Legend of
Zelda: Breath of the Wild might be more aptly titled action-adventure games than RPGs, but they
both do a great job at creating a world that’s exciting to dive into; allowing the player to truly
feel like they’re Spider-Man or Link, respectively. That’s the whole idea of RPG; as evident by
the title “role-playing games,” the genre revolves around making the player feel like they’re
Since the most immersive games seem to be open world, it’d be a reasonable assumption
to believe that linear RPGs would suffer greatly to make the world believable to the player. The
Pokemon series specifically suffers from its linearity, as it’s forced to implement roadblocks to
keep the player from advancing to the next area until they complete the current objective.
Although there are certainly some reasonable excuses to make as to why the player can’t traverse
to the next area yet, many might seem unbelievable or silly to the player taking them out of the
experience. In fact, the issue is called out and parodies itself in one of the Pokemon games.
Although roadblocks are often a necessity in linear RPGs, the Pokemon series struggles with
them due to its extremely light story compared to other games of the genre, so while
story-related roadblocks are often the easiest to implement believably, that option is often
Video games such as Xenoblade Chronicles utilize a minimal amount of roadblocks due
to the structure of the game’s progress. All the major areas in Xenoblade Chronicles are entirely
separate, so it’s impossible to move on before you’re supposed to. While there are a few
roadblocks, the ones that do exist are handled in a variety of ways, for example, one of the
roadblocks is an extremely high leveled enemy that requires the player to figure out an alternate
route. The roadblock is particularly well done because it turns an aspect that should diminish
immersion and turns it on its head. Instead of coming up with an excuse as to why the player
Immersion and fun mechanics are basics of what can make an RPG a fantastic game, but
there’s many other smaller pieces that can add to the charm of a game that makes it memorable;
arguably the most important attribute a game could have. Having fun while playing it is great of
course, but creating fond memories to look back on can be one of the most enjoyable aspects of
playing video games. Having pleasant music is one way to accomplish this; good music at the
right locations can give players goosebumps. Sounding good is, of course, the best attribute to
have in a video game’s soundtrack, but fitting their locations is also key to make the experience
enjoyable. For example, in Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, the final boss theme contrasts
to the rest of the soundtrack in the game, as it’s much less lighthearted, while the final boss
theme sounds much more epic in comparison. The contrast makes the player know that they’ve
reached the climax, and makes adds to the hype of the final battle. Persona 5 is another RPG that
makes great usage of music. For example, one of the game’s dungeons takes place within an
ancient egyptian pyramid. The song that plays during this dungeon takes inspiration from old
In addition, the presentation of a game can add tremendously to its quality. A game’s
GUI, graphical user interface, is a clear important part of this. It’s not just about being easily
accessible; looking appealing to the eye can also make a game more enjoyable. Persona 5 is
frequently praised for it’s stylish GUI that stands out from many other games of the same genre.
Even other games in the same series, such as Persona 4, have a much more generic style of user
interface.
In conclusion, there are many aspects to an RPG that can make them more enjoying to
play, as well as many ways to accomplish the same goals. Some qualities that can make RPGs
and immersion, but there are many things that RPGs can do to stand out, and make themselves
Stern(1), Craig. “Designing RPG Mechanics for Scalability.” Sinister Design, 6 Feb. 2017,
sinisterdesign.net/designing-rpg-mechanics-for-scalability/.
Bycer, Josh. “A Game Design Dive Into the RPG Genre.” Game Wisdom, 18 Jan. 2018,
game-wisdom.com/series/game-design-dive-rpg.
https://sinisterdesign.net/unpredictability-and-control-in-turn-based-combat-an-examination/.
Villegas, Misael. “Fire Emblem - Random Number Generator FAQ.” IGN, 6 Sept. 2004,
www.ign.com/faqs/2004/fire-emblem-random-number-generator-faq-520430.
Madigan, Jamie. “The Psychology of Video Game Immersion.” Psychology Today, Sussex
www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/mind-games/201207/the-psychology-video-game-immersio
n.