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Western and Japanese role-playing games

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Cultural differences

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After the success of console role-playing games in Japan, the role-playing genre eventually began being classified into two distinct sub-genres, Western role-playing games and Japanese role-playing games or JRPGs, due to stylistic, gameplay and cultural reasons; with the latter having become popularized and heavily influenced by early Japanese games such as Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy.[1][2][Note 1]

Though sharing fundamental premises, Western games often tend to feature darker graphics, older characters, and focus more on roaming freedom and realism; whereas Eastern games often tend to feature brighter, anime-like graphics, younger characters, and focus more on scripted linear storylines.[4][5][6][7][8][9] Japanese RPGs today are also more likely to feature random, turn-based battles, while Western RPGs today are more likely to feature real-time combat.[10][6][9] In the past, it was often the reverse: real-time action role-playing games were far more common among Japanese console RPGs than Western computer RPGs up until the late 1990s, due to gamepads usually being better suited to real-time action than the keyboard and mouse.[11] There are a number of exceptions, however, such as Final Fantasy XII and Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner, which feature real-time combat.

JRPGs' tightly orchestrated, linear narratives emphasize intricate plots and development of a single character within the story,[9] but usually lack the option to create or choose one's own playable characters or make decisions that affect the plot. This brings an impression that JRPG is very similar to adventure games.[12] In contrast, Western RPGs tend to focus more on open-ended, non-linear gameplay, with less emphasis given to narrative, dialogue, and plot development; and are also more likely to allow one to create and customize characters from scratch.[13] One reason given for this is that many early Japanese RPGs can be seen as forms of interactive manga (Japanese comics) or anime wrapped around Western rule systems.[14]

Finally, the largely secular nature of Japanese culture results in heavy usage of themes, symbols, and characters taken from a variety of religions, including Christianity and Japanese Shinto. This tends to be problematic when JRPGs are exported to Westerns countries where the topics of religion and blasphemy remain sensitive, such as the United States. Nintendo made efforts to remove these references prior to introducing their games into the North American market.[4] It is not unusual for a JRPG to exhibit elements that would be controversial in the West, such as Xenogears or Final Fantasy Tactics featuring antagonists that bear similarities to the Abrahamic God and the Roman Catholic Church respectively.[15]

Controversy

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Within the RPG community, some have criticized JRPGs for not being "true" RPGs due to heavy usage of scripted cut scenes and dialogue, and due to many of them having a lack of branching outcomes.[16][Turner][13] Likewise, some have criticized recent Western RPGs for "becoming less RPG-like and more [like] true action games" due to the "removal of numbers and rules" that make "the genre an RPG."[14] Japanese RPGs are also occasionally criticized for having relatively simple battle systems in which players are able to win by repetitively mashing buttons,[16][Turner] though it has been pointed out that Japanese RPG combat systems such as in Final Fantasy X and Xenosaga have become increasingly complex over the years, with more of an emphasis on strategy and timing, and with each new game often introducing their own rules and systems.[16][Nutt][17][Note 2] In contrast, Western RPGs' greater control over the development and customization of playable characters has according to some come at the expense of plot and gameplay, resulting in generic dialogue, lack of character development within the narrative, and poor battle systems.[16][Nutt] Lastly, it has been argued that Western RPGs tend to focus more on the underlying rules governing the battle system rather than on the experience itself, and that Western RPGs as a whole are generally not as finely tuned and polished as their Japanese counterparts.[16][Nutt] In recent years, however, Western RPGs have tended to move away from the "numbers and rules" associated with RPGs and more towards tightly-structured narratives[citation needed] and combat systems that resemble action games.[14]

As a result, Japanese-style role-playing games are held in disdain by some Western gamers, leading to the term "JRPG" being held in the pejorative.[19][10] Likewise, it is not uncommon for Western RPGs to be called "crap games" by Japanese players,[7] where the vast majority of console role-playing games originate,[20] and where Western RPGs remain largely unknown.[21] Further, there is a belief among some—particularly in the West—that Japanese RPGs are declining in both quality and popularity, including remarks by BioWare co-founder Greg Zeschuk and writing director Daniel Erickson that JRPGs are stagnating—and that Final Fantasy XIII is not even really an RPG;[22][23][24] criticisms regarding seemingly nebulous justifications by some Japanese designers for newly changed (or, alternately, newly un-changed) features of recent titles;[25] as well as calls among some gaming journalists to "fix" JRPGs' problems.[26][27][28][29] Several Western critics have expressed that the quality of Japanese RPGs is gradually declining, and that some recent titles such as Front Mission Evolved are beginning to make failed attempts at imitating Western titles.[30][31] Finally, one recent advertisement by Obsidian Entertainment in Japan openly mocked Japanese RPGs' traditional characteristics in favor of their own, Western Xbox 360 RPG, Fallout: New Vegas.[32]

This has produced responses such as ones by Japanese video game developers, Shinji Mikami and Yuji Horii, to the effect that JRPGs were never popular in the West to begin with, and that Western reviewers are biased against turn-based systems;[33][34][35][36] as well as an outcry among members of the sizable Japanese Internet discussion forum, 2channel.[28][37] In response, reviewer Tom Battey of Edge Magazine noted that the cited problems are not limited to Japanese RPGs, but also apply to many Western RPGs as well as games outside of the RPG genre, and that series like Pokémon are still doing well.[28] Finally, in an interview held at the American Electronic Entertainment Expo, Japanese video game developer Tetsuya Nomura stated that role-playing games should not be classified by country-of-origin, but rather described simply for what they are: RPGs.[38] And, despite any criticisms, there still remain many fans of the genre.[10]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference gspot_consolehist_j was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Vestal 1998a, p. "Other Game Boy RPGs"
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference gspy_dwhof was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference barton_evw was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference kotaku_rpgs was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ a b English, Sherrin. "Japanese and Western RPGs - The Differences". NZGamer. Retrieved 2010-09-10.
  7. ^ a b Winterhalter, Ryan (2010-09-06). "Square Enix Devs Discuss Secret AAA Title and What They've Learned From the West". 1UP.com. Retrieved 2010-09-10.
  8. ^ Joynt, Patrick (2006-03-29). "The Oblivion of Western RPGs: Is the PC RPG Dead? from". 1UP.com. Retrieved 2010-09-12.
  9. ^ a b c Doucet, Lars (April 12, 2011). "RPGs and Suckage". Gamasutra.
  10. ^ a b c Kalata, Kurt (March 19, 2008). "A Japanese RPG Primer: The Essential 20". Gamasutra. Retrieved 14 May 2011.
  11. ^ Loguidice, Bill; Barton, Matt (2009), Vintage Games: An Insider Look at the History of Grand Theft Auto, Super Mario, and the Most Influential Games of All Time, Focal Press, p. 43, ISBN 0240811461
  12. ^ Frederiksen, Eric (2010-08-17). "An RPG is not an RPG When it's a JRPG". Kombo.com. Retrieved 2010-09-02.
  13. ^ a b Loguidice & Barton 2009, p. 79
  14. ^ a b c English, Fox (March 25, 2011). "The RPG Conundrum". Gamasutra. Retrieved 13 May 2011.
  15. ^ Kalata, Kurt. "Cultural Differences". 1up.com. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
  16. ^ a b c d e Turner, Benjamin; Nutt, Christian (2003-07-29), Spy/Counterspy Case File 07: RPGs - East vs. West, GameSpy, retrieved 2006-08-14
  17. ^ Robert Boyd (01/13/2011). "The Zeboyd Games Approach to JRPG Design". Gamasutra. Retrieved 2011-05-13. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  18. ^ Doucet, Lars (March 9, 2011). "Rebooting the RPG". Gamasutra. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
  19. ^ Awkerman, Chad. "Did Bioware and Bethesda Kill the JRPG?". DualShockers. Retrieved 2010-09-11.
  20. ^ Vestal 1998, p. "The First Console RPG" "A devoted gamer could make a decent case for either of these Atari titles founding the RPG genre; nevertheless, there's no denying that Dragon Quest was the primary catalyst for the Japanese console RPG industry. And Japan is where the vast majority of console RPGs come from, to this day. Influenced by the popular PC RPGs of the day (most notably Ultima), both Excalibur and Dragon Quest "stripped down" the statistics while keeping features that can be found even in today's most technologically advanced titles. An RPG just wouldn't be complete, in many gamers' eyes, without a medieval setting, hit points, random enemy encounters, and endless supplies of gold. (...) The rise of the Japanese RPG as a dominant gaming genre and Nintendo's NES as the dominant console platform were closely intertwined."
  21. ^ "Final Fantasy XIV director is not worried about Bethesda". Destructoid. Retrieved 2010-09-15.
  22. ^ Cite error: The named reference gradar_jrpgsdead was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  23. ^ "BioWare co-founder: JRPGs suffer from 'lack of evolution'". Destructoid. Retrieved 2010-09-15.
  24. ^ Author: Artefact (2010-05-14). "Bioware: "Final Fantasy XIII Definitely Not An RPG"". Sankaku Complex. Retrieved 2010-09-15. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  25. ^ "Final Fantasy XIII not a JRPG, despite being a JRPG". Destructoid. 2006-03-16. Retrieved 2010-09-15.
  26. ^ Brudvig, Erik (2010-01-11). "Top 10 Ways to Fix JRPGs - Xbox360 Feature at IGN". IGN. Retrieved 2010-09-11.
  27. ^ Brudvig, Erik (2008-11-25). "The Gameplay Mechanic: Fixing Square's RPG Machine - Xbox360 Feature at IGN". Xbox360.ign.com. Retrieved 2010-09-15.
  28. ^ a b c "What's really wrong with JRPGs? | Edge Magazine". Next-gen.biz. 2010-01-24. Retrieved 2010-09-15.
  29. ^ Grenz, Brad. "Can the Japanese RPG Be Fixed?". Bitmob.com. Retrieved 2010-09-15.
  30. ^ "Front MIssion Evolved review". GameZone. October 08, 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2011. Japanese publishers have been singing the "I Wan'na Be Like You (The Monkey Song)" song from The Jungle Book for the past few years and it's no longer flattering. Instead of borrowing elements and making them their own, the publishers have opted to assimilate and attempt to hide within the Western crowd. Herein lies the problem with Front Mission Evolved: It wants to be so much more than it has been in the past and ends up stalling at the starting line. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  31. ^ Fleming, Jeff (December 30, 2009). "Opinion: 2009 - The Last Days of the Japanese RPG?". GameSetWatch. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
  32. ^ Goldman, Tom (2010-08-04). "The Escapist : News : Japanese Fallout: New Vegas Ads Hate On JRPGs". The Escapist. Retrieved 2010-09-11.
  33. ^ "News: Japanese RPGs 'were never popular' - Mikami". ComputerAndVideoGames.com. 2010-06-10. Retrieved 2010-09-15.
  34. ^ "Mikami: Japanese RPGs were never really popular'". Destructoid. 2006-03-16. Retrieved 2010-09-15.
  35. ^ John Funk (2010-07-13). "The Escapist : News : Dragon Quest Creator: Western Reviewers Dislike Turn-Based Games". The Escapist. Retrieved 2010-09-15.
  36. ^ "Interview: Yuji Horii and a Lifetime of Dragon Questing - Nintendo DS Feature at IGN". Uk.ds.ign.com. 2010-07-10. Retrieved 2010-09-15.
  37. ^ "AltJapan: Freedom vs Teabagging: Japanese Gamers Sound Off". Altjapan.typepad.com. 2010-01-17. Retrieved 2010-09-15.
  38. ^ Glasser, AJ (September 24, 2010). "Editorial: Where culture fits into games". 1UP.com. Retrieved 13 May 2011.


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