What Makes a Good Role Playing Game?

There’s a lot that goes into making a good Role playing Game. Whether it be an immersive story or well developed characters. I thought I’d talk about what I think makes a good RPG.

Story

One of the most important things for me when playing an RPG is a good story. If the story isn’t good it’s hard to want to continue playing, even if the combat is good. The story is the main driving force of the game. Without a compelling story it’s hard to connect with the main characters and get engrossed in the world that’s been created. I wouldn’t say it necessarily has to be solid throughout the entire game, but there definitely needs to be more highs then lows. The story should also make sense, I don’t think it should leave you scratching your head leaving you confused.

Character Customization

Not all RPGs have character customization, but it’s always a welcome feature when it does. When I think of character customization, I think of games like Mass Effect, Monster Hunter, Baldur’s Gate, and many more. When a game has a character customized, it’s like another layer of immersion. Personally, it helps me delve deeper into the game as it feels like I’m part of that world now.

Music

This goes not just for RPGs, but for games in general. There’s got to be good memorable music. Whether it’s a great boss theme or a pleasant battle theme, music can really help shape your gaming experience. Music further engages the player and makes the experience more memorable. Games like Persona, The Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy VII Remake & Rebirth. All of these games having very memorable music.

Characters

A good RPG has to have memorable characters. Whether they’re villains or main characters. If a games characters aren’t good it’s definitely hard to get into a game, especially if they aren’t well developed and are lacking in personality. Good characters enrich the game and make it that much more memorable. When I think of great characters I think of the Persona series and the Trails Series. I also think of games like Baldur’s Gate 3, Final fantasy VII, Tales of Berseria

Video game, and Fire Emblem Three Houses. I think FFVII has some of the best characters that are only made better with Remake and Rebirth. Good characters make you care about them and want to learn more about them as the story goes on.

Combat

For me a good RPG needs to have combat that feels good. Since combat is such a big component in the games. For me this can either be turn based like Persona and Fire Emblem or action based like Monster Hunter and Hades. For me the combat can’t be boring or over complicated. It doesn’t need to be simple, but it needs to be understandable.

Conclusion

There are so many more aspects that make up a good RPG. In your opinion what makes a good RPG? What are some good Role Playing Games that you would recommend playing? As always thank you all for reading. You can follow me on BlueSky to keep up with posts.