What is YOUR definition of an RPG?

Why don't you start?
But ok.

Identifiably descended from table top role playing games, so having some combination of the following:
  • Stats and numbers and geeky shit
  • Randomness, from dice rolls and such
  • Loot
  • Being open to your choices, from having a game master
  • More tied to the skills of the character rather than the player, i.e. how high the character jumps is not determined by how long I press the jump button for, but how many points the character has in the jump skill
The last one is probably the most important one, the way I see it.

Not all RPGs have all of these, and many non-RPGs have some of them too. But if a game has all of them, I think it should definitely qualify.

And maybe there's more stuff I didn't think of off the top of my head. Feel free to add on to it.
 
If the RPG does not let you murder every NPC in the game it is not RPG enough.
 
An RPG seeks to limit how much player skill affects the capabilities of the character they're playing as and the outcomes of their actions. Character skill over player is the core of what an rpg is. it shouldnt matter that i can aim a cursor at an enemies head if my character is blind and has a low firearm skill.
 
Yes, but has anyone ever noticed that every single person has a different idea about what the genre is? Almost like it doesn't matter.
 
TorontoReign said:
Yes, but has anyone ever noticed that every single person has a different idea about what the genre is? Almost like it doesn't matter.
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yeah i just made a post about that. its on a scale for sure which is why we have subgenres like ARPG or CRPG or blah blah but its gotten to the point that literally anything can be called an rpg if it has stats or dialogue options. hell ive even seen borderlands called an rpg before
 
TorontoReign said:
Yes, but has anyone ever noticed that every single person has a different idea about what the genre is? Almost like it doesn't matter.
Click to expand...
Me and Graves just said pretty much the same thing as the core of it though
 
It's a meme over on Codex.

I think genres matter a lot less in games than they do movies due to gameplay and how expansive that word is. RPG is a buzzword that means stats and dialog and maybe multiple endings along with some crafting and other stuff so ya know every other game out now.
 
R.Graves said:
An RPG seeks to limit how much player skill affects the capabilities of the character they're playing as and the outcomes of their actions. Character skill over player is the core of what an rpg is. it shouldnt matter that i can aim a cursor at an enemies head if my character is blind and has a low firearm skill.
Click to expand...
Which is funny considering damn near every TTRPG character is written as the best ever at what they do despite being lvl 1.
 
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