The original article Zelda is NOT an RPG has been published for a year now. Even though I thought I throughly explained the difference between an RPG and an action/adventure game right there in the article, feedback keeps coming in claiming that "Any game where you play a role is a RPG". I can honestly say, its been a confusing issue. Its like pointing at the moon and people claiming that it's the sun. I took me awhile to realize why this was happening. It's because the younger generation has never seen the moon.
By the moon, of course, I mean a real pen-and-paper play with your friends RPG. If you just thought "Hallelujah! Tell it like it is!" Then you are a part of the older generation who was there. If you're angry that I'm writing another article that takes the RPG-divinity away from Zelda, then you're a part of the younger generation who don't have a clue. This article is here to clue you in. If, after reading this article, you still maintain that Zelda is an RPG, simple ignorance can no longer be the blame. Chances are, you're just an evil noob.
A Long Time Ago
To expain how an RPG differs from Zelda I'm going to take you back to the old days when friends gathered around a table, rolled up characters, and then actually roleplayed. Along the way, I'm going to make comparisions between a real RPG and Zelda.
The Town
To simplify things, let's say there is only a DM (the guy who runs the game) and one player. The DM informs the player where he is :
DM : You're in a town name Gonadaz. It's a small town, a village actually, of some fifty people. The roads are not well kept and the Inn looks dirty.
Then he asks the player what he wants to do :
DM : What do you do?
Wondering about the inn, the player asks exactly what kind of state its in.
Player : How shabby is the Inn?
DM : It probably should be condemned.
Now, let's compare with Zelda.
Zelda typically starts you off with some overblown prose about a hero and a legend. If you want to ask questions about the legend, well, you're just out of luck. The best you can do skip the intro, which in an RPG would be the equivalent of :
DM : And the people of Hyrule need a hero…
Player : SHUT UP ALREADY!!! GET ON WITH IT!!!
Once in the starting town if you want to ask questions about the Inn, you're out of luck too.
The NPC
In a real RPG you can converse with NPCs via the DM and really play your character.
DM : The barkeep is as shabby as the Inn.
Player : Ok, I'll talk to him. "Barkeeper, how are things in this town."
DM (as barkeeper) : "Ah, what's it matter to an outsider."
Perplexed, the player tries to think of some way to get information that may lead to further adventure.
Player (to DM barkeeper) : "See this sword and shield? It doesn't matter where I'm from my steel can help anyone."
DM (as barkeeper) : "The las' thing we need is a stupid fighter getting into trouble, especially with the Zlarlon on the edge of town… DOH!"
Let's compare with Zelda.
You go into the Inn see a barkeeper, walk up to him and press a button. As if poked, the barkeeper says "Ah, what's my troubles matter to an outsider." Notice, you don't even get to choose what you say. Well, the best you can do is poke him with your button again and as a reward you get "Ah, what's my troubles matter to an outsider." Perturbed, you try again, "Ah, what's my…"
Really, is this roleplaying?
The Solution
Lets say the player is trying to open The Golden Chest of Ages. He can try numerous things. In fact, his character can try anthing he can think of. He can try a key, he can try magic passwords, he can even do the chicken dance. The point is that he can try all those things and an unlimited number of other things. If one thing doesn't work, perhaps another will. On the player's own volition he could make it a side-quest to take it to a town where he knows a wizard who might be able to unlock it.
Let's compare with Zelda :
You see the The Golden Chest of Ages. You walk up to it and press a button. You recieve a short message "It's locked." It appears you need the Golden Key of Ages, and only the Golden Key of Ages. What? You didn't get it in the last dungeon? Too bad. Want to try something else? Too bad. Remember, "It's locked." To succeed, you need to follow the script.
Conclusion
So, I ask, where's the roleplaying in Zelda? It isn't there. Without choices, you're really just on a treadmill. There's no way to develop the "personality" of your character nor roleplay that personality. In fact, even video game RPGs don't involve any roleplaying. I'll discuss that in the next article : Zelda is NOT an RPG III.
| Categories: Articles : RPG : Video Game Genres |
Comments
… what to say about Final Fantasy, or pretty much any other console RPG… I don't think this is a very solid argument, really.
ahh - but it is my friend.
all any console game ever really is in the end is a computer program, and that program is only as smart as its programmer(s). Some PC games I have seen though, are very good, like Neverwinter Nights, Baldur's Gate, and Icewind Dale. You encounter an NPC, and he says something. Then afterwards you are given several choices of things to say back to him, usually varying in attitude (nice, rude, angry, impatient, etc.) and the NPC usually has accompanying replies based on your choice.
In the end - those games are the closest things I've seen to an actual role-playing session.
I think you are wrong, Zelda is essentially an Action game with RPG elements. Words evolve into other meanings after awhile and RPG might have had its original meaning but as of now it certainly outlines a much bigger genre.
Guys, this is coming from a Game Freak & Game Programmer. So please understand that whether Zelda is an RPG means the world, and yet means nothing at all to me.
First of all, there is no way to 'miss' in zelda, there is no real developement going on. There are no status attacks, and you can't control any other characters in the game. And to add insult to injury, there is no 'Ultimate attack' to learn.
Now all of that is debatable as to whether it is a requirement in an RPG to begin with. I say that because, like all things, Games are developing beyond what we knew back when the term RPG was created (this is back in 1991 if I remember correctly). Now, i will take each point on its own and discuss them as I know them to be.
There is no 'miss'. This is also true for Fable (Xbox/Xbox360), yet Fable *IS* an RPG, albeit an Action RPG. However, in terms of the CLASSIC RPG, then there is ALWAYS a calculation as to wether you miss or hit.
Character developement. Well, sorry, there is no arguement to really put here. There is no 'developement' in the character known as Link. There is only acquisition of new weapons and tools, and that is TOTALLY against RPG rules. In that respect Zelda is no different to getting a new hat in Mario 64, getting a new weapon in Halo, or getting the final smash in Smash brothers. This doesn't make Zelda a bad series, but it doesn't make it an RPG either.
Status attacks. Every RPG I have ever played, even the home-brew, had status attacks. These were used to give more of a realistic tone to the game. Though they were not very damaging, they were annoying as hell to deal with if you were not prepared. Zelda, as series (yes I have played most, if not all titles of the series), does not have this element.
Controlling other characters. There are quite a few RPG's that do not follow this golden rule, but they have a balance to it. To start with, RPG's where you only conrtol 1 character, are always RPG's that let's you design the character yourself. In every Zelda game (the seagull in Windwaker does not count), you only control Link (or whatever his name would be in that version) and you cannot change how he looks (changing his shirt in Ocarina of time, does not constitute changing the character).
The ultimate attack. There is no 'Ultima', no Level 30 required skill, no acquire more items before unlocking… or anything else in that range. There are 'attacks' that you can unlock in various game titles under the Zelda title, but none of them become powerful enough to call Ultimate.
In conclusion, especially after the introduction of Ocerina of Time, the Zelda series has become less and less like the RPG people claim it to be, and more and more like a FPS/Action/Adventure game. (FPS, as in using the bow and shooting it in First Person View, don't argue with me!) Does any of this make Zelda titles any less fun or adictive? Not a chance! I am every bit as addicted to Twighlight Princess as I am to Ocerina of Time, or even to a Link to the Past. But this doesn't make the title an RPG. Sorry guys