Let's say we strip out all the plot elements of a RPG, and call it Diablo 2 so that all you're doing is going from one stage, kill a bunch of stuff, level up, and repeat this until the end. How many RPGs would still be playable under such a criteria?
Well, as can be inferred from the example I picked, I'd still play Diablo 2 even though it is devoid of a story (let's not pretend what passes for story in Diablo 2 is actually a story). I'd play the Grandia series, Shining Force Neo/Exa, most likely Kingdom Hearts (I forgot what the story was by the time I got to the end so I probably wasn't playing for the plot), and maybe FFX (filling the sphere grid was pretty fun).
To me a RPG is a game before it is a book. Therefore a RPG should stand on its own even if its completely devoid of a story but not the other way around. A lot of RPG makers seem to think the story should drive the game, but that's backwards. 95% of your 20 or 50 or 500 hours of RPG playing is going to involved killing some stuff over and over. If you can't enjoy what you do 95% of the time, who cares if the story on the other 5% is really good? I suppose if your other 5% is really really good, it might be workable (FF12 comes to mind because the battle system is quite atrocious), but all things being equal I rather have bad story but a good game engine rather than the other way around.
I don't know if it's just my preference but most of the games I quoted above are real time, and Grandia/FFX are quasi real time even though they're technically turn-based. I'm not sure if turn-based systems itself is a limiting factor. One of the key things that makes a game great on just gameplay is that the gameplay changes. In Diablo 2 an Abyss Knight is not just a Skeleton Mage with more stats. An Invisible in Kingdom Hearts is not just a Heartless that hits harder. Excise Psis/Omegas in Grandia 3 are not remotely comparable to any regular enemies of comparable stat. A Behemoth King is not just another enemy with more HP and attack (granted most of this is irrelevant because you can run away from anything). Maybe it is harder to come up with interesting encounters in a turn-based game but it should not be impossible.
Well, as can be inferred from the example I picked, I'd still play Diablo 2 even though it is devoid of a story (let's not pretend what passes for story in Diablo 2 is actually a story). I'd play the Grandia series, Shining Force Neo/Exa, most likely Kingdom Hearts (I forgot what the story was by the time I got to the end so I probably wasn't playing for the plot), and maybe FFX (filling the sphere grid was pretty fun).
To me a RPG is a game before it is a book. Therefore a RPG should stand on its own even if its completely devoid of a story but not the other way around. A lot of RPG makers seem to think the story should drive the game, but that's backwards. 95% of your 20 or 50 or 500 hours of RPG playing is going to involved killing some stuff over and over. If you can't enjoy what you do 95% of the time, who cares if the story on the other 5% is really good? I suppose if your other 5% is really really good, it might be workable (FF12 comes to mind because the battle system is quite atrocious), but all things being equal I rather have bad story but a good game engine rather than the other way around.
I don't know if it's just my preference but most of the games I quoted above are real time, and Grandia/FFX are quasi real time even though they're technically turn-based. I'm not sure if turn-based systems itself is a limiting factor. One of the key things that makes a game great on just gameplay is that the gameplay changes. In Diablo 2 an Abyss Knight is not just a Skeleton Mage with more stats. An Invisible in Kingdom Hearts is not just a Heartless that hits harder. Excise Psis/Omegas in Grandia 3 are not remotely comparable to any regular enemies of comparable stat. A Behemoth King is not just another enemy with more HP and attack (granted most of this is irrelevant because you can run away from anything). Maybe it is harder to come up with interesting encounters in a turn-based game but it should not be impossible.
The punctuation alone would have sliced me to ribbons!
