What's better JRPG's or WRPG's !? *Let the Ultimate Battle Commence*

I perfer JRPG's over WRPG's I think WRPG's are too bland and boring.jasonharris48

This is going to sound incredibly biased. 

Western RPGs are much more well rounded than JRPGS.  Western RPGs can give different experiences from the same game.  Many have multiple characters to choose from the get go. Wide open world.  Choose your own path.  Most JRPGs, on the other hand, always seem to follow the same basic storyline, have turn-based random battles (ughhhhh!), have a metrosexual character, and always play the same, not truly open world to explore.  There is always a ridiculous amount of leveling up that you have to do b4 certain boss fights so you don't get owned. 

There are exceptions.  Secret of Mana on SNES was amazing. 

AvIdGaMeR444

That doesn't sound biased it sounds heavely misinformed.

• First off metrosexual isn't a look it's a life style that some men live, few, if any, male JRPG characters are metrosexual. Manga style art direct? Yes, but metrosexual? Not by the contents of the titles.
• The story line is such a huge generalization, all I'm going to say of the hundreds of JRPGs out there I find it hard to believe anyone who has spent some time with the sub genre would make such a claim. To say that Megaten, Mother, FF, DQ, Pokemon, Kingdom Hearts, Seiken Densetsu, Disgaea, Grandia, Shining, Suikoden, Xenogears/saga, Star Ocean, Tales, Shadow Hearts, Dark Cloud, Tactics Ogre, Lunar, Breath of Fire, Atelier etc series all have the "same basic storyline" is foolish at best.
• Many don't have turnbased battles, and random battles seem to be trend that won't last.
• Again I find it hard to believe they all "play the same", another poor over generalization like the storylines mentioned earlier. Unless you're one to believe that all shooters play the same, all racers play the same, all platformers play the same, all fighters play the same... right?
• You don't need to power level to beat bosses, playing smart can do that for you. Brings to mind a saying (paraphrased), "you're working hard, but are you working smart?"

These same piss poor generalizations can be tossed at any genre, and yet they would fail just the same to those who know of the genre (regardless of whether they like it or not).

I like them both but I like wrpg a little bit better. But I voted for both.

JPRG I liked = FF7,FF8,  Crono Trigger, Crono Cross,

WRPG i liked = Kotor, Never winter nights, Balders gates, Diablo series, and Fall out 1 & 2

I prefer JRPGs but I play WRPGs as well.

I vastly prefer turnbased combat because of it's strategical value. A common misconception I hear is that turnbased RPGS aren't strategic, they couldn't be furthur from the truth.

Many games like Shin Megami Tensei DDS and Nocturne require you to have some semblence of planning and a proper set up. Simply selecting the "Attack" command and your strongest abilities isn't going to win you the game, if anything, it'll get you killed faster. and for those who chew on the genre for the supposed perception of required grinding or risk being defeated by later bosses, it's not completely true. A proper strategy will allow you to go straight through the game with little to no grinding.

That's the beauty I find in turn based combat. There's so many ways to defeat your enemy if you're willing to take them time to LOOK and PLAN.

On the flip side. I'm not the biggest fan of Action based RPGS, Western and Japanese, simply because I can find the combat to be tedious and slightly boring. While there can be strategy, I find it a little too simplistic. I suppose it's because some prefer games where if you press a button, they want their character to do some sort of action right then and there.

I like WRPGS better. Japanese RPGS are mostly clones and suck with a lot of boring fights. JRPGs are born out of WRpgs anyway, they need to learn a lot from them.

That being said, WRPGS can learn something from JRPGs, namely, the concentration on cut scenes.

I see Final Fantasy XII as a step in the right direction for JRPGS.

To all of you who posted in this thread, i have a question. It can be a little off topic if seen on the first glance, but i don't think it is off topic.

"Do you think Animal Crossing to be an RPG? and Why?" 

To all of you who posted in this thread, i have a question. It can be a little off topic if seen on the first glance, but i don't think it is off topic.

"Do you think Animal Crossing to be an RPG? and Why?"

takisse

In the sense that you play a role? Yes. But if you want to go by those rules, essentially every game ever made in a "sense" is a RPG, as you play a specific role in a game.

If anything AC is more of a simulation. 

[QUOTE="takisse"]

To all of you who posted in this thread, i have a question. It can be a little off topic if seen on the first glance, but i don't think it is off topic.

"Do you think Animal Crossing to be an RPG? and Why?"

brokenspirit116

In the sense that you play a role? Yes. But if you want to go by those rules, essentially every game ever made in a "sense" is a RPG, as you play a specific role in a game.

If anything AC is more of a simulation.

Notin the sense that you play a role (for the same reason that you have given). I can then pass that  AC is a simulation game. But if you simulate everyday life (and not a train, or something else) isn't  it an RPG with an Un-epic storyline? Can you get what i want to say?

[QUOTE="brokenspirit116"][QUOTE="takisse"]

To all of you who posted in this thread, i have a question. It can be a little off topic if seen on the first glance, but i don't think it is off topic.

"Do you think Animal Crossing to be an RPG? and Why?"

takisse

In the sense that you play a role? Yes. But if you want to go by those rules, essentially every game ever made in a "sense" is a RPG, as you play a specific role in a game.

If anything AC is more of a simulation.

Notin the sense that you play a role (for the same reason that you have given). I can then pass that AC is a simulation game. But if you simulate everyday life (and not a train, or something else) isn't it an RPG with an Un-epic storyline? Can you get what i want to say?

I already percieved what you were trying to say but I told you it's simply more complicated that that.

When you play Grand Theft Auto, you "simulate" and roleplay the life of a criminal. That makes it an RPG in a sense, but it  in no way takes on the incarnation of the genre's percieved role. 

I like them all

JRPG (not all): Pro: good stories / Con: nearly linear gameplay

WRPG (not all): Pro: free roaming, nonlinear gameplay / Con: generic stories

JRPGs can be fun, but I'm not too fond of the mindless grind, fighting endless random battles as you follow the completely linear, generic storylines.

I greatly prefer WRPGs, because they give you a choice - you don't have to kill everything in your path, you can do whatever the hell you want to.

Oh, and to those who say that JRPGs have better stories...well, you've probably never played Planescape: Torment, and you've probably never seen this , either.

JRPGs can be fun, but I'm not too fond of the mindless grind, fighting endless random battles as you follow the completely linear, generic storylines.

I greatly prefer WRPGs, because they give you a choice - you don't have to kill everything in your path, you can do whatever the hell you want to.

Oh, and to those who say that JRPGs have better stories...well, you've probably never played Planescape: Torment, and you've probably never seen this , either.

Planeforger

Planescape: Torment is one of the greatest exception referring WRPG and a excellent example of good storytelling.

The list is cool, but you might want to read Joseph Campbells "The Hero's Journey" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hero%27s_Journey . Nearly every heroic story (gamestories too) follows this specific pattern that is based on Mythology.

This is not fair on so many levels. Of course WRPG's. Take Black Isle out of the picture and you might actually have a fair comparison. When one of the sides has the greatest developers ever on their side there's not really much to do for the other side. And, uh, that's just my opinion. Feel free to disagree. Don't try to tell me BI isn't the best dev ever, though :P.

[QUOTE="Planeforger"]

JRPGs can be fun, but I'm not too fond of the mindless grind, fighting endless random battles as you follow the completely linear, generic storylines.

I greatly prefer WRPGs, because they give you a choice - you don't have to kill everything in your path, you can do whatever the hell you want to.

Oh, and to those who say that JRPGs have better stories...well, you've probably never played Planescape: Torment, and you've probably never seen this , either.

Kreean

Planescape: Torment is one of the greatest exception referring WRPG and a excellent example of good storytelling.

The list is cool, but you might want to read Joseph Campbells "The Hero's Journey" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hero%27s_Journey . Nearly every heroic story (gamestories too) follows this specific pattern that is based on Mythology.

TBH I think WRPG's in general have better stories than JRPG's. The plot itself in for example fallout wasn't that special, but the story universe is just amazing. There's so much detail and backstory it's really hard to understand how anyone ever had the time to write everything. 

Dang,

WRPGs making a strong come back.

The thing I love about JRPGs is puzzle solving in dungeons and strategy in battles (plus great stories)... WRPGs don't have much of that, the battles are mostly hack and slash, and the dungeons are long maze like and boring that requires you to shut your brain off.. most sidequests are boring ass fetch missions..

Jrpgs are usually clones. Here's a formula for most Jrpgs designs:

1) Hero has to save the world, because he is the chosen one or a decendant of some great king or the like. He has to save the world from the evil empire.

2) Hero has to look so gay so chicks will dig him and fans can claim he has so much "personality". Add a love story for the hero with a stupid bimbo. Also Hero has to be a teen, go figure.

3) There has to be a side character that is usually cooler than the hero, but doesn't get as much time as the main hero.

4) Add meaningless number of random fights or forced fights that are so repetitive in order to extend the hours it takes to complete the game, with stupid enemies like blobs or jellies. After all the meaningless fighting the player is awarded with a reward, usually a cutscence so they can be happy.

5) Something sad has to happen, like hero village destroyed, so we can create a soap opera around the event.

6) Even though the hero is a teen, slacker, with a typical personality of a brat, he can still unleash cataclysmic horrors on his enemies but after the fight everybody just goes back to being normal teens.

7) Final Villain once beaten has to evolve into something more bad ass and you fight again.

I could go on and on about this, Jrpgs as they are now fail. I liked FFXII though because it brought some change.

Last original Wrpg played was Gothic II (didn't try 1). Check the PC game library for some really great Rpgs that are original like Divine Divinity 2.

Diablo and Diablo 2 are my favourites, Elder scrolls was cool but i feel overwhelmed at the size of them as time sinks.

I play far more Jrpgs now, they offer different qualities but i think Hallgate London will win me back to

 Westerns.

Last original Wrpg played was Gothic II

hamidious

I just read the gamespot review and it sounds about as generic as a WRPG can get

also the first paragraph from the Divine Divinity review (there's no Divine Divinity 2 listed on this site)

"Combining many of the best aspects both of action-driven RPGs like the Diablo series and epic, open-ended RPGs like the ****c Ultima series"

I don't even think I shoud read on...

Western.

In my opinion, Fallout > every other RPG.

Jrpgs are usually clones. Here's a formula for most Jrpgs designs:

1) Hero has to save the world, because he is the chosen one or a decendant of some great king or the like. He has to save the world from the evil empire.

2) Hero has to look so gay so chicks will dig him and fans can claim he has so much "personality". Add a love story for the hero with a stupid bimbo. Also Hero has to be a teen, go figure.

3) There has to be a side character that is usually cooler than the hero, but doesn't get as much time as the main hero.

4) Add meaningless number of random fights or forced fights that are so repetitive in order to extend the hours it takes to complete the game, with stupid enemies like blobs or jellies. After all the meaningless fighting the player is awarded with a reward, usually a cutscence so they can be happy.

5) Something sad has to happen, like hero village destroyed, so we can create a soap opera around the event.

6) Even though the hero is a teen, slacker, with a typical personality of a brat, he can still unleash cataclysmic horrors on his enemies but after the fight everybody just goes back to being normal teens.

7) Final Villain once beaten has to evolve into something more bad ass and you fight again.

I could go on and on about this, Jrpgs as they are now fail. I liked FFXII though because it brought some change.

hamidious

Ummmmm when was the last time you played a JRPG on the SNES? 

I like them both, but for different reasons.

JRPGS are pretty linear and play out more like an interactive storybook.  Not much of it involves playing a role, but the stories are really well fleshed-out.

WRPGS let me really play out a role and mold characters the way I want to (i.e. Oblivion, KoTOR, etc).  But because of the crazy character customizations, sometimes it's hard for the game to really expand on the characters as in-depth as I would like.

WRPG's have given me some of my favorite games, JRPG's have done little to wow me and only left me with linear gameplay and cookie cutter stories. 

Diablo 1 and 2, KOTOR 1 and 2, Morrowind, Oblivion, Dungeon Siege, Fallout 1 and 2, Baldur's Gate 1 and 2, Deus Ex, and World of Warcraft are all good examples. 

I've yet to encounter a JRPG that left a bigger impression on me than these. 

In oblivion you didn't really get to mold your character into anything... you just picked his profession lvled him up the way you wanted, picked his skills.. blah blah.. then in the end, he just turned out how any other character would of, an uber fighting machine... Then you just went about with doing the quests and the main storyline... you can call that freedom if you want.. but it's all just the same thing each time you playthrough it but in a different order.. CHRIS_K_UK

I have four characters in that game, an Assassin, Mage, Thief, Warrior. Mix it up instead of making a Nord with the Warrior Class

[QUOTE="CHRIS_K_UK"]In oblivion you didn't really get to mold your character into anything... you just picked his profession lvled him up the way you wanted, picked his skills.. blah blah.. then in the end, he just turned out how any other character would of, an uber fighting machine... Then you just went about with doing the quests and the main storyline... you can call that freedom if you want.. but it's all just the same thing each time you playthrough it but in a different order.. -Sora

I have four characters in that game, an Assassin, Mage, Thief, Warrior. Mix it up instead of making a Nord with the Warrior Class

I've got 1 character he is all of those you list :P and all he needs to get through the entire game is his hammer and some picklocks.. thats all I need to get through the entire quest line.  Everything else is just pointless. 

In oblivion you didn't really get to mold your character into anything... you just picked his profession lvled him up the way you wanted, picked his skills.. blah blah.. then in the end, he just turned out how any other character would of, an uber fighting machine... Then you just went about with doing the quests and the main storyline... you can call that freedom if you want.. but it's all just the same thing each time you playthrough it but in a different order.. CHRIS_K_UK

No, I've beaten the game specifically as an assassin, figher, and a mage. 

Neither is an all class warrior simply because it's impossible to have that many fast leveling attributes.  Try again.