Nostalgia: What's Happened to our RPGs?

by Joshua Rodriguez

Final Fantasy 8 was advertised on MTV. Millions have bought it and millions have loved it. I'm still without a copy. When I look at the game, I see gorgeous FMV, I see a unqiue battle system, but do I see a plot? I'm not to sure. My friends think they do, but what do they really know? When they say I'll like the game, will I?

What's happened to our RPGs? It's very simple. Mass merchandizing. It hasn't happened to all of them, but it most likely will. When I look back with fond memories on Phantasy Star IV, the game that drew me into RPGs, I realize that such a game may very well never happen again. I haven't cried at any point during an RPG since Alys died. And I probably never will.

I've come to a conclusion, we need a modern Phantasy Star. Phantasy Star is an old game, but it is sadly unique. It is one of the few games which features a smart, initutive heroine who is not a sex symbol. Alis Landale didn't wear a miniskirt. She didn't show off her legs (she wore tights) and since she was in 2D, she very noticably lacked breasts. She was the polar opposite of Laura Croft. Phantasy Star was the first RPG released in America (Dragon Quest came first only in Japan, sorry dudes). Its audiance was small, but among them it won acclaim. Released on the action and sports game heavy Master System, it would set new standards, which many games did not live up to. It had four different viewpoints which were utalized to tell the story. There was the traditional overhead view, used to navigate the overworld and towns. When you entered a building or a conversation, things changed to a first person view, which was also used for battles and the menu screen. There was the 3D view for the dungeons and, finally, in the few cutscenes of the game, you got to see what was then considered breathtaking artwork. Very few games have used the technology available to tell a story as well as Phantasy Star did.

Phantasy Star started out very different than other games, the strong male lead (Nero Landale) died, leaving his legacy to his younger SISTER. For most of the first half of the game, you played without a male character in your party. No other game has ever done this. Phantasy Star showcased a woman, showing that they were not weak things that existed only to be used by men. The rest of the series lived up to this mark. Phantasy Star II played roughly the same as its predecessor and had an origional story which still managed to connect the two games. Phantasy Star III went out on a limb a bit, but it was one of the first games to feature multiple endings, and showed that Algol's legacy lived with those who escaped Palma's destruction. Finally, Phantasy Star IV took my breath away. It didn't have flashy FMV, instead, the story would be revealed in comic book like cutscenes. This resulted in the largest Genesis cart ever, as there are literally hundreds of images. For me, they reflected the story better than flashy FMV could. They showed me Alys's tortured face as she lay dying of the Black Energy Wave very subtly, since the audiance was smart enough to not have to be ******* on the head with a 2x4 to realize that something important was going on.

These were some of the games that made us love RPGs, that made us RPGamers, but now their kind is sadly dying away.

I fear that the words of the immortal Dragon Warrior may apply to Square, and perhaps even the entire genre: "Thou art dead"

Feel free to flame me on this.