Mechaniques/Design trends that you would like to see less often on future RPGs?

Members see less ads - sign up now for free and join the community!

  • This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. Learn more.

Lulcielid

Warrior of Light
Oct 9, 2014
3,826
2,826
28
Argentina
#1
What mechaniques or design trends would you like seeing less often (or dissappear completely) from future RPGs? Be it because you find them overrated, outdated, badly designed or you feel sick of them.
 
#2
Generally speaking, I hold the opinion that improving is always better than reinventing. Only when a brick wall is hit, can reinvention be done and is actually purposeful. Before that - and, if it is applied only once - it is merely a novelty, doomed to fade with the passage of time.

For example, random encounters. A lot of people dislike them, and I can see where they come from. But, as games like Bravely Default have proven, they don't turn out to be so bad once you are allowed to set them to your wants and needs. Which is why, as of right now, I do like random encounters, provided they can be manipulated.

Another example would be the "level up alternative". Now, this is mostly pertaining to the way this was done in FF VIII, X, XIII and XIII-2 - if we're talking these games, my stance is a firm "good riddance to this rubbish". But, again, if done right, this can enhance the experience. If I may indulge in some mild hype of a game I backed via crowdfunding, the upcoming Indivisible has mostly replaced the traditional level-up with items the player can find while exploring, an addition birthed from the metroidvania DNA the creators decided to infuse the game with. This - or, to provide another example, the level system used in the Souls franchise - is something I can appreciate, largely because I get the feeling that the designers thought about every aspect of their game.

If there's things I straight-up want to see gone: No direct control over other party members (at least let me have them use items, ffs); failure/game over when party leader falls (just... just... AAAARGH); level caps (again, something that can be handled well but is usually just an annoyance); pretty much the insertion of mechanics/systems from other genres just because they happen to be popular (REALLY not looking forward to FF XVI if it has survival and crafting stuff*).

*I so hope this is just a jest.
 

Storm

Warrior of Light
Oct 26, 2013
3,351
6,012
32
Switzerland
#3
fetch quests, it's time for them to go; it's a disservice to the world created for the game when they spend time creating meaningless and trivial quests that doesn't teach you anything about the lore, characters, locations and so on.

most of the time they don't even make sense given your position as savior of the world or figure of authority and power.
 
Last edited: