Night's Theory of RPG Relativity

by Mistress Nightshadow

I just come up with a new, revolutionary theory... nah, not really. It's just something I thought about after reading a few editorials, particularly "What Makes a Good RPG" You Ask? What Have You Been Smoking? [Mitchell Glyde, 11/6/00] We see a lot of people comparing RPGs to one another, saying that one game sucks and other doesn't... and now I'll attempt to answer why...

Well, in essence, it's all relative. Really. We say that FF8 sucks because it didn't have the storyline FF6 did, we say that Wild Arms 2 sucks because it's basically a copy of the original Wild Arms. Sound familiar?

We compare Final Fantasy VIII to Final Fantasy VI, we compare Chrono Trigger to Chrono Cross, we compare across the board, from Vagrant Story, Lufia, Lunar, Earthbound, Zelda, Dragon Quest, Shining force, you name it, we compare it.

I spoke with someone who liked FF8 a lot, but for some reason or another, didn't want to touch any of the previous FF, particularly anything behind FF4. Why, you ask? Because he felt that the graphics were REALLY outdated. I hear that type of person isn't unusual.

Now, there's the FFVII and FFVIII avoider, who says that they'd never touch a later FF [Usually from FF6 forward]. Why? Because they feel that the game sold out, for whatever reason. Go ask around, they're not that unusual.

How did they make such opinions? The theory of RPG Relativity in practice.

For the first example, since the first Final Fantasy he played was the latest one, he thought that the other Final Fantasy had nothing to offer him, because he saw how good FFVIII was, and he thought that the other Final Fantasy had nothing interesting, that Final Fantasy I-VII evolved it into the game it is.

The second example? Due to the fact that He/she felt that since it was so commercialized, there was a lacking of what was in the other Final Fantasy, and therefore, avoided it considering that they felt that less time was spent on what made a good Final Fantasy. [Whatever that may be.]

Both reasons, I feel, are quite valid... after all, I can't just walk up to you, grab you by the neck, and make you play the game/s you avoid. But I do feel that this theory isn't what we should be basing our opinion on. That other games should make a difference to what you think about a particular game. I ask you, why?

I grant you, if you never liked Final Fantasy 8, Vagrant Story, Legend of Mana or any other 'new age' game because you played it and you didn't like it, you didn't like the storyline, the gameplay, the characters or the music, fair enough. You found that you didn't enjoy playing the game in question. Same applies if you liked FF8, but don't like FF6 or Lufia 1 because you didn't like the story, the gameplay, the characters, the music or whatever, and you played it enough to think it's not very good. What I don't find particularly convincing is when you say that FF8 sucks because it's not like FF6, or Shining Force 1 sucks because it's not like FF Tactics... particularly when your opinion on the second game is made on hearsay, and that you don't know firsthand what the game is like.

Just because one game plays similar to the other, doesn't mean it sucks. Chances are you might like the game, particularly if you liked the game you are comparing it to. If you go play it, and you don't like it, well, what am I supposed to do about it? Sure, I'd like to hear you say why you don't think it's good, like you thought that the storyline was a bit tacky, or the gameplay was boring, or the music just doesn't cut it, but I'll immediately switch off the moment you say "... It's too much like..." or "The storyline was tacky, unlike..." or "The lyrics doesn't give that feel like..." The same applies to games which, by name implications, should be similar to others, but aren't. It might be fun because you might like the different approach.

At the end of the day, we all play to have some sort of entertainment, right? The only people who probably won't fall under the fun category would be the beta testers, developers and reviewers. We enjoy playing RPGs, don't we? We don't all necessarily like the same RPGs, but so? Why do we all complain that one RPG sucks compared to another one? Why do we need the FF8 rules and FF8 sucks camps in RPGamer?

Walk into a games shop or rental store, be it online or real, and have a look at what's available. Then look around, and pick a game you've never played before that interests you, without considering what is around it. Don't worry if it's Final Fantasy VIII, Dragon Quest 3, Lunar, Lufia II, Xenogears, Shining Force 3, or Phantasy Star. [Ok, worry a little bit if you pick a game for a system you don't have, but you know what I mean!] Then go home, and go play it for a few hours at least. You like the game, that's another one for you. If you don't, well, go back, refund or return it, and choose again. Just put out of your head your past experiences with other games, and let the game itself decree if the game is fun for you. Don't let previous experiences, or other's people's comments that it's like or not like another game make you run away from a game which you might like.

As for my FF8 loving friend, he won't give me back my FF4 cartridge, or my Final Fantasy Tactics CD after I lent it to him. Such is life.

If you'd like to say that you're going to try what I suggested, to shout abuse because you think that I'm suggesting suppression of opinion, or you'd like to help me pry my friend off my Tactics CD, drop a line at Nightshadow_007@angelfire.com. Just one thing. If you're planning to help me, could you bring a crowbar?