Mini Games and Their Role in RPGs

by Joseph Witham

When one begins playing an RPG, they are usually expecting to be immersed in a highly detailed world wherein they will fight evil monsters, explore caverns, enjoy an epic story and meet new friends. One does not usually begin playing an RPG in anticipation of playing an epic card game with hundreds of cards to collect and an endless slew of rules that are impossible to remember. Likewise, RPGamers usually don't expect to be required to participate in an overly complex sporting event which is usually impossible to win on their first try. While I believe a good mini game can increase the replayability of an RPG, I also believe that they detract from the overall experience of an RPG and hinder players' progress when they are required to complete one.

Most mini games are designed as a fun way to distract a player after they've been experiencing non-stop dungeon crawling and monster slashing. The effect of these diversions are often a pleasant departure from the norm of an RPG, and can be enjoyed by some people, but not all. The basic problem here: no mini game is equal; every RPGamer has his or her taste outside the role-playing genre, which can either aid them or impede them on their journey through the game. For example, in Brave Fencer Musashi, you are required to compete in a dance/rhythm mini game, and for someone like me, who has never touched this type of game, this mini game literally caused me to go temporarily insane. I spent well over two hours trying to match my steps with the mega-annoying Topo! Crossing two genres is one thing, but when a company makes up its own out-of-this-world mini game, everyone suffers. Biltzball, for example, has been one of Final Fantasy X's top advertising schemes from the beginning. The game is completely alien toward any genre outside of RPGs and has absolutely nothing to do with Final Fantasy X's gameplay. While you can applaud Square for creating a totally innovational mini game, and insist that it is too important to the storyline to leave out, you can't deny that fact that the game detracts from the normal gameplay experience.

There are several steps that companies could take to make mini games appealing, and at the same time stressless. An RPG can have any number of mini games, the more the better, but only a select few of those mini games will attract one gamer from another. To avoid alienating a player who hates target shooting, but at the same time offer the master skeet shooter a fun diversion, a company should not require anyone to complete the mini game. A player's success in an RPG should be dependent entirely on their skills within a conventional role-playing setting, like battle strategies and dungeon exploration, not on their ability to complete a non-gameplay-related fetch quest. Also, companies often have the bad habit of locking all of a game's ultimate techniques, spells, and weapons behind a labyrinth of mini games. Again, not everyone can play every game equally, so requiring RPGamers to play games they aren't used to will often completely lock out that player's ability to obtain a particular item. Final Fantasy VIII and IX's card games illustrate this point perfectly: In Final Fantasy VIII, your ability to successfuly play Triple Triad determined whether you would get some of the game's best items; while in Final Fantasy IX, players who enjoy card games could play the game and have fun, while players who hate this mini game can skip it without feeling stressed that they missed a really great item.

What this all boils down to is that mini games are welcome in RPGs, but are not welcome to alienate players. All gamers were not created equal: some people suck at Madden, while others rock at PaRappa the Rapper, so while implementing a football or rhythm mini game could be great, no one should be required to play it and no one should feel stressed into playing it for fear of losing a special skill or item. I believe these basic rules for mini games would improve everyone's RPG experience.