The True RPGamer

It is my personal opinion that there are fewer and fewer true RPGamers every day. I feel this because I constantly see people bickering and backbiting over ludicrously trivial issues, unknowingly defeating the whole purpose of RPGs. The simple fact of the matter is this: When you separate yourselves into factions and cynically tear apart every game you play, how much fun do you really have?

All I see is people dividing into 'schools', picking out 'rehash', and criticizing games often before they are even released. To me, the true definition of a diehard RPGamer is someone who plays all types of RPGs, and plays them for the enjoyment. Why waste the time and money to buy and play an RPG if all you want to do when you finish it is bitch? Does it really matter that Squall and Cloud are loners, or that Kuja and Sephiroth supposedly look alike? Is it really not possible to play a game and enjoy it for what it is, and constantly be cross-referencing it with other games? This makes me wonder if people who spend all their time analyzing similarities to other games were actually paying full attention to the game in front of them....

I am of no 'school', and graphics are all relative to me. I love FF3 as much as FF9, but for different reasons. The graphics in FF3 were good for its time, as the graphics for FF9 are cutting edge for today. Each is beautiful in it's own way, but cannot be compared. Furthermore, each of us attaches our own emotions to certain parts of each game that we play. For some of us, the Opera scene music can draw nostalgic sighs, while others still sing along to the ending theme to Xenogears. I feel that people who say older graphics suck are ignorant, but I can't fathom why anyone would not want to have FMV either. While all this may seem like a tangent, what I am trying to express is that not all things can be lumped together and compared in the same way.

Another point to keep in mind is the people who create the games. These games that we so indifferently pick apart are their masterpieces. These people worked hard to convey their stories, art, and music to us. They each have their own styles, and those styles will be present in every project that they work on. This is the source of the so-called 'rehash'. I would stake my life on the fact that if Square or Working Designs tried something in an RPG that was truly and completely different, the people who criticized the lack of originality would be the first to reject the unfamiliar material as 'weird' or 'not a true RPG'.

All in all, the sun may be setting on the world of RPGs. Fans are tearing the genre apart at the seams, and mainstream attention is slowly making RPGs over-hyped. I recently read the titan known as Squaresoft is restructuring, and not profiting as highly as expected. Perhaps we are witnessing the end of the RPG era as we know it. So to all the cynical gamers out there, do whatever you want with your games. While you rant and fume about what you found wrong this time, a few of us will be enjoying our gaming experiences. Long live the true RPGamers.

Notes:
At first glance, a very nice editorial - well written, well presented, with only a minor grammatical error ('the people who make the games' takes 'are' instead of 'is'.). The author's arguments are well explained, and his point of view nicely described, while the editorial flows well and reads nicely.

As such, I'd expect this editorial to get an A... but the problem is it's far too unoriginal. This editorial has been seen so many times before in different forms but with exactly the same points of view, with exactly the same arguments and criticisms. The schools debate has been going on for so long now, that unfortunately it drags it down into the next category.