Bethesda (Makers of such hits as Oblivion and Fallout 3) Says That WRPG's Are More Realistic Than JR

[GrimHeaper]

No shit?

Sure, WRPG's usually have the typical Dragons, Wizards, Demonic Cults and shit. JRPG's? Female looking teenagers who save the world with Swords the size of a car, with gravity defying hairstyles. You tell me which one is more likely?

If anyone thinks that statement is false (sure, it's pretty out there, but it's still true) than you are quite possibly retarded.

Where is everyone getting the hair example from? I've got a bunch of JRPG's with characters that have completely normal hair styles.

Would you like the names?

It's just a staple of JRPG's, like the whole girly looking teenagers and colossal swords that they swing around as if it was a lightsaber.

Well they are about the same realism wise.
Just by your example the JRPG one sounds more likely though.
I mean some people do have hair that defies gravity Naturally.
And those swords aren't really that much Larger than Claymores.

Take Cloud (is it Cloud?) from Final Fantasy. Pretty slim figure, has truly gravity defying hair, has a sword that is MUCH bigger than a Claymore.

My hair does that and someone here could use that sword so it really isn't that unreal.
While they wouldn't be slim or anything in the future our technology may make that easy...
Also humans can technically toss cars like ragdolls if they have the right mindset and condition.
So someone in a universe filled with magic and technology more advanced than ours luggin a huge sword around sure fine.

 

[bjj hero]

Cloud was infused with the magical strength element of the day; Mako. He got Mako poisoning before FFVII but after Zack died he was back to normal (except mentally) and was suddenly ultra powerful.

While loooking like a skinny child with silly hair...

Even if cloud is "magic" it should still have weight and inertia. They should have rushed him in an alley. He would not have room to swing and would easily be brought down.

My biggest barrier to JRPGs is the way children cannot be beaten in combat. I imagine children are easily dispatched by trained soldier, wild animal etc in combat.

 

[Phoenix_XIII]

Cloud was infused with the magical strength element of the day; Mako. He got Mako poisoning before FFVII but after Zack died he was back to normal (except mentally) and was suddenly ultra powerful.

While loooking like a skinny child with silly hair...

Even if cloud is "magic" it should still have weight and inertia. They should have rushed him in an alley. He would not have room to swing and would easily be brought down.

My biggest barrier to JRPGs is the way children cannot be beaten in combat. I imagine children are easily dispatched by trained soldier, wild animal etc in combat.

Cloud was a trained SOLIDER Infantry member. He was apart of Shinra's private military.

 

[GrimHeaper]

Cloud was infused with the magical strength element of the day; Mako. He got Mako poisoning before FFVII but after Zack died he was back to normal (except mentally) and was suddenly ultra powerful.

While loooking like a skinny child with silly hair...

Even if cloud is "magic" it should still have weight and inertia. They should have rushed him in an alley. He would not have room to swing and would easily be brought down.

My biggest barrier to JRPGs is the way children cannot be beaten in combat. I imagine children are easily dispatched by trained soldier, wild animal etc in combat.

You would be surprised give a trained child a weapon and he's just as deadly if not more than you.

 

[Knight Captain Kerr]

Todd Howard is right Western Rpgs are more realistic (and better) than JRPGs. It may be fantasy but they don't make it a super crazy world with no explainations. Lots of things that WRPGs do they put lots of lore behind it to explain how it works to people who care.

 

[ChupathingyX]

I already knew Bethesda were stupid, I don't need an article like this to verify the point, but it is a good thing to know anyway.

No, RPGs should not be realistic, however, if it is sci-fi then it should have science in it and I would love Bethesda to explain to me why after 200 years there is still so much radiation floating around the Capital Wasteland.

Oh and aren't Bethesda the people who made the Experimental MIRV and Rock-It launcher?

A single nuclear bomb can render a place full of radiation for decades. A nuclear holocaust? Dozens, maybe even hundreds of nuclear bombs? Even after 200 years, radiation would still be a big problem.

Then why is there so much less radiation in California and Nevada who were hit just as hard?

Why is there less radiation in the water and soil in Fallout 1 and 2 than Fallout 3?

Also a website even interviewed a scientist who said that after so many years most radiation would be gone, Fallout is after all a sci-fi and not a fantasy.

 

[Phoenix_XIII]

Todd Howard is right Western Rpgs are more realistic (and better) than JRPGs. It may be fantasy but they don't make it a super crazy world with no explainations. Lots of things that WRPGs do they put lots of lore behind it to explain how it works to people who care.

They put loads of story and lore into JRPG's. There's always some kind of backstory and explanations. You just have to pay attention and read up on some in game docs to catch up on it.

 

[Luke Sabljak]

No shit?

Sure, WRPG's usually have the typical Dragons, Wizards, Demonic Cults and shit. JRPG's? Female looking teenagers who save the world with Swords the size of a car, with gravity defying hairstyles. You tell me which one is more likely?

If anyone thinks that statement is false (sure, it's pretty out there, but it's still true) then you are quite possibly retarded.

I don't particularly think that it's a case of someone being retarded (seeing claims like this just makes me cry or want to hit people), it could simply be a case of not being openminded enough; given that most jrpgs take place in a future setting or alternate universe setting.

It's quite reasonable to say that technology has advanced in the areas of metallurgy, allowing production of blades that are incredibly light, large and durable (This is the case even in western fiction - take for example the large sword from Terry Brooks "First King of Shannara") and that is a viable option to use as a weapon, as the laws of circular motion (a=v/r) give us the conclusion that a greater radius gives greater speed (v=ar), giving more momentum to your swing (P=mv). As for gravity defying hair, again i look to advances in tech, such as binding agents and adhesive polymers.

As for your rather biased, pseudo-homophobic view that effeminate teenagers would never be able to save anything, I have nothing to say about, but I challenge you to rationalise your magical wizards and dragons in the dark ages.

I'm afraid Arthur C. Clarke isn't going to cut it for this one.

 

[00slash00]

i would argue that if you're making a fantasy or sci-fi game, realism probably shouldnt be a high priority

 

[demotion1]

I do not understand the OP's problem. "Realistic" and "Real" have 2 very different meanings.

 

[GrimHeaper]

Todd Howard is right Western Rpgs are more realistic (and better) than JRPGs. It may be fantasy but they don't make it a super crazy world with no explainations. Lots of things that WRPGs do they put lots of lore behind it to explain how it works to people who care.

They put loads of story and lore into JRPG's. There's always some kind of backstory and explanations. You just have to pay attention and read up on some in game docs to catch up on it.

Star ocean 3 o god star ocean 3

 

[Vhite]

Yes and sun shines, rain falls, grass grows and Bethesda is captain obvious.

 

[TheCommie12]

it's more a perspective opinion. If you were raised in the west, then WRPGs will seem more "realistic" when compared to JRPGs. And if you were raised in Asia, and know the mythology of the region, then JRGPs will seem more realistic.


But, in terms of character appearance and landscaping, western RPGs do tend to be closer to the real world.

ps: sorry for bad spelling and/or grammar

 

[ImprovizoR]

The characters and the setting are more believable in WRPG's. Weapons are more believable as well as armor. JRPG's are full of shit. Weird hair, almost always white and spiky, weapons are swords with guns bigger than the actual characters wielding them. JRPG's are full of retarded ideas. WRPG's have their share of that too sometimes, but in JRPG's it seems to be universal. There's not a single JRPG without something retarded in it.

 

[Hamish Durie]

while persona 4 was the closest thing a JRPG has gone to realisim it was still pretty off it's tits. now WRPGs have some sense of reality about them, like you said mass effect or fallout could happen but even things like oblivion had some sense.
eg: towns had people that acted like people, shops felt like shops and people talked about normal day to day stuff

 

[Hristo Tzonkov]

They're sorta right.People kinda neglect the feeling of a game's experience(like the setting,feel of the game and how it impacts on YOU) and WRPGs handle that pretty much right.Especially Bethesda's.They also like to explore real human emotions like greed and anger.Japanese culture is surreal in the eyes of westerners,so imagine their fantasy settings.They aren't as down on earth like WRPGs.

My main point is:You have a character who belongs to a setting and you explore a real person's take on a surreal world.He makes human choices whereas as far as I've seen in JRPGs that isn't exactly the case.Everything is messed up(to me) they don't make the choices I expected them to do.Which is why both types of RPGs have different fans.It would be better to leave it there rather than to try to convince people JRPGs are as realistic or more than a WRPG.

 

[F4LL3N]

Since when do we determine realism by the style of someone's hair?

 

[Cheesus333]

One of the primary creators of Western RPGs says he likes WRPGs more than Japanese ones?

My mind is truly blown.

As for personal opinion, I'm inclined to agree on the realism front. But if we even have to compare realism in Fantasy and Science-Fiction games, something's gone wrong somewhere.

 

[GrimHeaper]

Weird hair, almost always white and spiky, weapons are swords with guns bigger than the actual characters wielding them.

Already addressed swords and hair and as for guns explain this.