Why do almost all console RPG's make you waste time leveling up?!! (1 Viewer)

[AndyVX]

I'm getting rather annoyed with console RPG's. While I love the games themselves, there is one aspect of just about every console RPG that I've played that bothers the hell out of me.

I hate not being able to just progress through the game, going from place to place. You can get away with it for a while, but there will come a time when you have to sit there for hours and hours leveling up your characters. This is not fun, and totally ruins the flow of a game.

Anyways, just a gripe I have with RPG's that I thought I would share with everyone.

(Just so you know, I'm at this point in FFX right now...and that's why I'm posting this now)

 

[Morgan Jolley]

If you were able to just suddenly be powerful, it would be unrealistic I guess. If you are good enough, you can beat the game without fully levelling up, but if you want to conquer the game, you must invest the time.

Also, Chrono Cross (and Chrono Trigger) don't level up the same way. You do level up, but you aren't paying attention to the experience points and such. It feels more like a reward for beating bosses and such than levelling up.

 

[Dome Vongvises]

If you can't invest the time in levelling up your characters, you're playing the wrong genre of games.

 

[Joseph Young]

Although I have the same quibbles as AndyVX as far as the tedium of RPGs, I must agree with Dome... if the game did not involve such powering up, it really wouldn't be an RPG. There is something very satisfying to a lot of people about watching a game character evolve from 'can-barely-kill slime monsters' to 'everything falls with one slash.' Many RPGs put you in the shoes of some wayward farmboy, much like starwars, and push you out into the world on a quest, that by journeys end, have you mastering the tools at your disposal. There's definitely an appeal there.
Might I suggest Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance for the PS2. I am not one for RPGs or dungeon crawlers, but BG: DA keeps you constantly moving ahead, hacking and slashing in realtime. Yes, you level up, but you're always on the go, and having so much fun running around, taking in the beautiful graphics and watching the enemies' death animations that there is no tedium involved. The best 2 player game I've come across since MarioKart (NES).
Oh, and no.. i didn't work on the game... I just really like it!
Joseph

 

[AndyVX]

RPG's are my favourite type of game. But I play them for the stories mainly. That's why once I see that my party is a little weak to be fighting in whatever area I'm in and I have to sit there for several hours constantly fighting, I get annoyed.

I just wish there were an automatic power level progression as you went through the game or something.

Lunar and Grandia 1(haven't played 2 yet) were like this. I never once had to stop and level up my characters.

Well anyways, RPG's are the only game genre I play on a regular basis, and since this fighting thing hasn't yet kept me away from them I don't think it ever will.

(I still wish it would change though)

 

[Dome Vongvises]

I'm assuming you've played these games before, but Final Fantasy VIII and Final Fantasy Tactics are two prime examples of console RPG's where you dont' waste time levelling up at all. The enemies are the same level as you are in each battle. You can conceivably die in every battle. I personally think that's more frustrating than having to spend time to level your characters to a God-like status.

 

[Shayne Lebrun]

Because most console RPGs are made by Japanese companies, and that's the sort of thing Japanese consumers like; effort equals reward, and more effort equals more reward. See Pokemon for another example.

 

[Wolf Jenkins]

I don't know if it's limited to console RPGs. For instance, I felt there were a couple of times in Diablo II that I did some 'scumming' so that I could level, get some better gear, find some more potions so that I wouldn't get my b*tt kicked by some boss.

I guess most RPGs make you waste a little time in this way. I don't really mind though.

 

[Leroy]

I got into console RPGs w/Phantasy Star and Y's (which I thoroughly enjoyed) and the like but just sort of stopped for this very reason: leveling up to progress.

For me it's not so much having to level up, but the way you have to do it. In general, that means fighting random battles over and over and over. If leveling up could be accomplished by other tasks(not just fighting) it might not seem so tedious.

 

[AndyVX]

Well, Final Fantasy 8 may be an exception for leveling up your characters in the traditional sense, but you still need to spend time drawing from them just to get the magic you need. You are right about Tactics though. I totally forgot about that game...thinking about it makes me want to play it again. To bad I sold it :frowning:
It seems I'm pretty much alone on this one. Oh well. I've just always played RPG's for their stories, and not to make uber-powerful characters.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

When playing RPGs, you have to accept them as being games, not just stories, so I guess you have to accept and go along with the whole leveling up thing.

I, for one, don't care, since you can just go do enough leveling up to beat the game (which is usually minimal) or max out the game clock and master it.