Quote:Originally I was swayed by Almara's hyperbolic statement "until virtual reality is developed, there is no such thing as an RPG that can be played on a computer". But now I see this in a slightly different light.
That was my take on what Pete had said, not what I actually believe. I'd still like for him to name an RPG that fits the criterion that he gave.
In the case of almost of the games mentioned by someone as being an RPG, very many of the elements are the same. Yes, in some you can decide what direction your character takes. Does this make GTA3 an RPG? That's about the most open-ended game I've ever seen, and yet I'd be willing to say that there are very few people who would be willing to call it an RPG.
As for the Morrowind series, I've heard Oblivion mentioned as the game that can be played in a huge number of different ways, with multiple outcomes. Honestly, though, the Starcraft campaign has missions where depending on what objectives you choose to complete, the storyline changes. Heroes of Might and Magic (II ?) had this too, and that was about as much as a TBS game as you can get.
I guess the distinction to me between an RPG and a non-RPG is that you take the role of a single character and follow that character's progression, whether it be through level ups, enhancements of skills, or simple storyline developments.
Because of this, I'll stand by calling Diablo an RPG, simply because if we are going to exclude things because they don't have this or that, we won't be left with anything that can be called an RPG at all.