Poll: What kind of RPG Combat Systems do you prefer? And why?

[Meinos Kaen]

As the genre has developed, we've come a long way from Dragon Quest's first-person/turn-based formula. We have a lot to choose from and I was wondering, which one is the most popular among you guys? I've seen people bash one and defend another and viceversa, often without offering a suitable explanation for it. Now following a quick rundown of what the options I gave mean followed by my preferences.

JRPG (Turn Based) - Like the earliest Final Fantasy games and what the Persona series still does. Based on speed, you control the next action. Characters have no mobility that you can control. You don't fight enemies on the map you use to move around.

JRPG (Active Time Battle) - What Final Fantasy from 4 through 9 did. You have no mobility to control and it's still dependent on Speed, but your enemies aren't going to wait forever. Be quick on your wits and don't get distracted. You don't fight enemies on the map you use to move around.

WRPG (With Pause Option) - Knights of the Old Republic, Dragon Age Origins, Jade Empire... You know the drill. You have a list of abilities and skills to choose from, and you can put them in sequence. You fight enemies on the same map you use to move around, and you have limited mobility.

WRPG (Without Pause) - What most MMORPGS do. You have a list of abilities to choose from, but you can't put them in sequence usually, since they cancel each other. You fight enemies on the same map you use to move around, and you have limited mobility.

Tactical RPG - Disgaea, Final Fantasy Tactics, Tactics Ogre, most Nippon Ichi games... A mix between JRPG and WRPG, if you will. Turn based, but with more mobility than JRPG. Battles can take much longer than your average RPG, and it requires you to think many moves ahead to not get asphalted, usually. You don't fight enemies on the same map you use to move around.

Action RPG - The Witcher, Kingdom Hearts... You fight enemies on the same map you use to move around, it's more fighting oriented and immediate, with an emphasis on combos.

For me, I'll have to go with Tactical RPG, followed right behind by Active Time Battle. I don't know, I guess I'm a sucker for standing animations and an end-battle fanfare. Also, they are tied to my favourite Character Progress System of all time, the Job System of Final Fantasy Tactics and Final Fantasy 5.

What are your favourites?

 

[The Crispy Tiger]

Tactical like Fire Emblem for the win bitches!!!

 

[Dandark]

It can depend on the game but I usually really enjoy turn based combat pokemon style. Though I would say that it can depend on how well the system is done, I can really enjoy RPGs with good real time combat like Kingdoms of Amular or Dark souls or even Skyrim(Its decent enough).

I haven't played many JRPGs but im pretty sure I would enjoy the turn based combat greatly too.

 

[shrekfan246]

I'm not picky.

I'd kinda say Jade Empire is closer to ARPG than anything else, though. Its gameplay is more The Witcher than Baldur's Gate.

But I like all of them to a certain extent, it more depends on how they're implemented than the system itself. I like the Real-Time-With-Pause system in Dragon Age or Final Fantasy XII, I like World of Warcraft, I like the ATB of Final Fantasy VII-IX, I like the turn-based combat of Persona 3 and Persona 4, I like the tactical combat of Fire Emblem: Awakening or XCOM: Enemy Unknown, and Kingdom Hearts and Mass Effect are two of my favorite franchises of all time.

What grinds my nerves is when a game shoves in pointless or useless mechanics because they felt the base experience was too simple, and so they make the combat needlessly complicated and gimmicky just so they can say they're doing something different. Just as much as you don't want to shamelessly copy the most popular things around, you don't always need to reinvent the formula, game developers.

 

[scorptatious]

Depends on the game.

I like Final Fantasy IX, the Disgaea series, Persona 4, and Kingdom Hearts. Each one has a different style of gameplay, yet they're all considered JRPG's to an extent.

I guess for me, it's a toss up between ATB and regular turn based. Although I have nothing against the other styles.

 

[WendelI]

What im enjoying the most are the active ones with a pause, Worked soo well in Mass effect, and on the castlevania RPGs is great too. Action RPGs detract from the number and strategy focus of the RPG genera but that stuff is just soo very very boring.

 

[joest01]

Someone mentioned enchanted arms in a thread and that made me think how much i enjoyed that battle system. Hard to explain. Its a bit like a checkers board really

Also enjoy valkyria chronicles.

And wild arms on the psp sith the hex based srpg system was pretty great.

 

[BathorysGraveland2]

I enjoy the early RPGs such as Baldur's Gate and Fallout, but I do prefer action RPGs when it comes to combat. My all-time favourite combat system is the one in Gothic II. I find it more or less flawless and has a good balance of skill and usage of stats to make it all work well in an RPG. I also enjoy The Witcher 2's combat at heart, though the emphasis on rolling gets irritating. That could be easily fixed if the dodges were varied as they are in the first game, including pirouettes and leaps to break the monotony of just rolling.

But yeah, Gothic II's combat, man... amazing.

 

[DarkhoIlow]

I enjoy the early RPGs such as Baldur's Gate and Fallout, but I do prefer action RPGs when it comes to combat. My all-time favourite combat system is the one in Gothic II. I find it more or less flawless and has a good balance of skill and usage of stats to make it all work well in an RPG. I also enjoy The Witcher 2's combat at heart, though the emphasis on rolling gets irritating. That could be easily fixed if the dodges were varied as they are in the first game, including pirouettes and leaps to break the monotony of just rolling.

But yeah, Gothic II's combat, man... amazing.

Couldn't have said it better myself. Gothic II's combat was truly fantastic and one of a kind.

With that said, overall I really don't care which type of RPG I play since I don't usually pick one over the other. As long as it has an interesting story I will play it be it Hack&Slash, Turn Based or Action or WRPG/JRPG or otherwise.

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

If I have to drag around a party (KOTOR, Dragon Age) a system with an pause system is best.

But otherwise I perfer ARPG's like Torchlight 2 or Grim Dawn.

 

[Alrom]

I usually like any kind of RPG really but I always give priority to action RPGs.


Some good examples would be Radiata stories (PS2) and arguably dark souls and monster hunter since they can be said to be action games with rpg elements.


The thing about tactical and turn based rpgs is that you need to think about a strategy and depending of how good you are you can defeat enemies without problems.

In action rpgs its almost the same. But insteed of just thinking about a good strategy you also need some reflexes and timing to win.


I enjoy turn based RPGs, still waiting till Bravely default is released around here (Next week) but I absolutely love action rpgs.

 

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

personally I prefer the pseudo real-time (but really turn based) style from the d&d games of yore, alongside kotor, da and what not. I like the element of controlling a party, their positions and their actions, backed up by a reasonable ai. da got this right I think, giving options to set actions based on criteria I choose.

It means I can concentrate on any party member where the attention is required (eg. quick heal or res, change stance, activate aura, etc) can pause to use item from inventory of needed, etc. I find it the perfect mix of real time and turn based.

not a fan of fully turn based games, like jrpgs. only one I liked was lotr: the third age. full on real time action would be my second choice, tho pseudo real time I'd my fav.

please forgive punctuation, grammar and capitalisation, typing on a phone touchscreen.

 

[The Madman]

You didn't list mine.

My favourite are tactical turn-based wrpgs, ala Temple of Elemental Evil, Avadon, or the upcoming Torment: Tides of Numenera game. If you've never played those, think something along the lines of XCOM style combat.

Otherwise guess I'll go with wrpg with paused. As much as I love the Fire Emblem series I don't really think of them as rpg.

 

[FPLOON]

Between anything JRPG-related and Action RPG... I choose both! HA!

But seriously, it's usually not the combat that I focus on while playing a RPG, as it's usually used, for me, to keep playing for the game's overall story...

For example, one day I'm playing Persona [insert number here] and the first Hyperdimension Neptunia game... The next, I'm playing Kingdom Hearts and Tales of Xillia... (And then, later, I'm playing the GBA version of Chain of Memories for reasons that stern from "it's better and more challenging than the PS2 remake", Project X Zone, and Path of Radiance, even though I have yet to beat that particular FE game...)

Honestly, the only time I would dislike the combat is if there's no sense of "fighting my own way" kind of feel to it, overall... (like the first Hyperdimension Neptunia game or Xenosaga II[footnote]despite still wanting a Xenosaga HD collection... Seriously, that trilogy's too perfect to NOT have a HD collection out already...[/footnote], once you reach a certain realization during combat...) Once any game does that, to me, it becomes repetitive and/or routine-like...

 

[DementedSheep]

WRPGs with pause where you control a party (so DA:O and older rpgs). If you only control one person or have only limited control of others a system like that tends to be horribly boring though and I would rather have an ARPG.

I haven't played many JRPG's, they don't tend to get released on the PC and other aspects of them put me off.

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

Final Fantasy Fan here. Only because I don't like the Dumb-bot A.I routines a lot of NPCs are saddled with.

 

[Sack of Cheese]

My favourite is action RPGs like Dragon's dogma or Souls series where you are free to move around and use whatever weapons to take down large bosses.
But if it's done right, anything can be great!

 

[SmallHatLogan]

Mostly action RPGs these days. I used to be into turn based (mainly the Final Fantasy series) but I've been losing interest in them recently. I'm still into the Shin Megami Tensei franchise though, I especially like the press turn/one more system. Traditional WRPGs I haven't had much experience with. Mainly just Fallout 1 and 2 and Dragon Age: Origins. There are a few I plan on playing though. Baldur's Gate, Planescape Torment and KOTOR are at the top of my list.

 

[Guitarmasterx7]

Action RPG definitely. I'm actually quite partial to games that have the RPG elements overshadowed by the action a bit but still prevailent enough to be noticable. Elder Scrolls, Borderlands, kingdom hears, etc.

Occasionally I'll go for turn based to scratch that particular itch, or even the ps1 era final fantasy action bar thing. Not a big fan of the fire emblems and FF tactics style stuff. Realtime RPGs where you have to manage multiple characters frustrate me. Mainly because the AI generally spends their time getting themselves killed or playing with themselves as you get torn apart when left to their own devices.