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Gamasutra names Top 5 most important RPGs

Posted Oct 8, 2006 at 12:59AM EST by QJ Staff

Listed in: PS3, Wii, Xbox 360, MMORPG, Nintendo DS Tags: Akira Toriyama, Chrono Trigger, Gamasutra, Lavos, NES, Slime

Over at Gamasutra, the winners of the Quantum Leap Awards for role-playing games have finally been announced. They have gone on to ask game industry professionals to cast their votes as to which RPG, on any platform ever created, "has brought the genre forward in the biggest way". In that same sense, voters were posed with the question: "Which role playing game over the entire history of the genre do you think has made the biggest 'quantum leap', and why?"

Well, the votes have been cast, and the top five have been named. But since five is such a small number, one can't help but give out honorable mentions to other game titles which have helped the genre and the industry. Honorable mentions include:

Dragon Quest - back in the good ol' days of the NES, Dragon Quest was one of the games which can be truly said to have set the basics of the genre. It allowed you to level up your character, go on quests, beat up monsters, gain gold and buy yourself better weapons, armors and other magical what-nots. On top of that, one has to remember that Dragon Quest is also one of the longest-running RPGs, and its characters continue to live on in various incarnations. With characters designed by Akira Toriyama, and creatures as lovable as the Blue Slime (now with its own game!), how can anyone afford to leave this title out?
Final Fantasy 4 (known as Final Fantasy 2 in the U.S.) - even though this game had simple 8-bit graphics, what made this so special was the fact that this game made players care for their characters, as they were moved by a storyline which was full of both internal and external conflict, a first for its time.
EverQuest - this game has been cited as the first MMORPG which successfully melded various elements from different RPG types into a cohesive gaming experience. Seen as "the video game which defined MMORPGs as we see them today", it was both a challenging game, as well as a sort of social experiment as this was one of the first games which required social interaction during play.
Baldur's Gate II - what makes this game so special is the almost-infinite number of variations that the game can move towards which is all based on the player's decisions. The ending of the game was also determined by one's actions, and selecting your party members opened the possibilities for various subplots and quests to occur. (And have I mentioned that there's this really cool drow elf in there who goes by the name of Drizzt...?)
The Ultima Series - last but not least among the honorable mentions would be the Ultima series, which was the first to go beyond the usual hack-and-slash, which was all that other titles of its time could offer. It is considered as the "first to introduce the revolutionary notion of ethical simulation that would become a staple of later games". It has also been one of the first MMORPGs to have gained steady footing in the U.S., with its online incarnation, Ultima Online.

And on we go to the Top 5 Most Important RPGs...

#5: Chrono Trigger - A personal favorite of mine, what makes Chrono Trigger so special is it's seamless and well-though-out storyline; a difficult feat, considering that the whole story revolves on our heroes' exploits as they travel through various time periods in their quest to defeat the evil of their time (or times), Lavos. This game has been loved by fans everywhere because of the various endings of the game which can only be triggered by certain actions or non-actions.
#4: Deus Ex - while more of an FPS rather than an RPG, what this title has achieved is that it has "introduced elements of RPG into action games, and expanded upon what was previously thought possible of storytelling in a FPS." So, thanks to Deus Ex, we now have Gordon Freeman, Kate Archer and various other first-person heroes and heroines with their own stories.
#3: Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion - the prime element of this game which has earned many gracious nods in the gaming community is the freedom that a player has while in this game. One can choose to play as a goody-goody knight who would help every old lady across the street, be a typical evil archmage, be the sly and conniving bard, and so on and so forth. "It achieved the very definition of what an RPG is". In fact stealing a horse, and falling off of it because you tried to feed it something nasty is not impossible at all. On top of all that, its graphics and the quality of its art may have upped the bar for the rest of the entire industry.
#2 Planescape: Torment - crowned as one of the first adult role-playing games that have been made, not because it had adult content, but rather because the storyline involved "issues of morality, guilt, and atonement in a serious and 'adult' way." Planescape has long been applauded for its excellent story as well as the fact that various solutions can be applied to predicaments and obstacles, which proved that hacking and slashing, and violence in general was not always the answer.
#1 Fallout - And this writer weeps for joy. Amen. 'Nuff said.

Via GamaSutra

100% of voters think this story ROCKS!

Vote Now!

(1)

(0)

Okay, fair enough, it's a sunjective poll. But what did Deus Ex bring to RPG/FPS that System Shock didn't. Same with Oblivion-->Daggerfall, Chrono trigger-->Dragon Quest, Planescape-->Dungeons & Dragons, Fallout--> Wastelands

5 Most important RPGs in my opinion:

#5: System Shock

#4: Final Fantasy

#3: Elder Scrolls

#2: Dungeon Master

#1: Ultima

# Thank God — KirbySS 2006-10-08 03:24

Thank God they didn't list FF7.

# What — Guest 2006-10-08 05:14

Why not Final Fantasy VII. It's still my favorite of all time so far.

# No Suikoden? — Guest 2006-10-08 06:20

Suikoden II remaines one of my most favorite games ever. Haveing to be in certain places at certain times in order to recruit characters is genious. Plus all the things you could do with those characters, Cooking compititions, teteportation, hottubbing, the list goes on and on.

# umm — Guest 2006-10-08 07:53

they SHOULD have named FF7..... before FF7 RPGs were a niche market, and FF7 made RPGS Mainstream and profitable.... it SHOULD be mentioned.

# Disgusting List — Guest 2006-10-08 08:21

@ 5 Actually that's true. FF7 isn't my favourite Final Fantasy, but it definately brang RPGs to the mainstream and because of it there are alot of awesome RPG series. Putting FF4 as an honorable mention is them just trying to be old school.

# ^^ — Guest 2006-10-08 11:41

its not a list of your favorite rpgs... so all of the above posters opinions dosnt matter

its the most important rpgs a totaly diffrent thing

and a supricingly good read and well thought out article imo

# wat a joke — clouducla 2006-10-08 13:22

no ff VII? nobody would have even read this article if FF VII hadnt brought rpgs out of the unoriginal lame and just plain boring funk they were in before the greatest RGP ever made...FFVII for life...the remake for the ps3 is comin..

# .... — Guest 2006-10-08 18:15

I don't Oblivion should be ranked where it is.

In all honesty, I don't think it created any sort of "massive" change in the industry. In fact, though many people may like it, it's easily forgotten now that the hype train has passed.

# Are you kidding? — Guest 2006-10-08 20:27

Regardless of whether someone likes FFVII or not, the fact remains it is a huge title. So huge that it brought a crowd to RPG's that never would have played the m before, and really opened up the RPG gaming world for everyone.

Sure, if FFVII did not do it, eventually one RPG would have. But just think, if it were not for FFVII some titles may have never made it to the US and other territories. Hell, some may have never been made at all (due to high risk, if the community had not grown).

# . — Guest 2006-10-08 23:10

THANK YOU for not listing Final Trainwreck VII.

# FFVII — Guest 2006-10-09 05:58

I've been playing RPGs since the NES days and I personally enjoyed Final Fantasy VII. I think people like to hate it because of it's was the first RPG in America to be a smash hit; and hating popular things makes them feel special and different. . .

That being said, I don't think adding CG cut scenes did anythig thing that was real for the genre. Final Fantasy VII just took all the best elements from RPGs and put it together. I think they were looking for genre REdefining moments.

# ff7777 — Guest 2006-10-09 13:57

STFU number 7. FF7 has made a huge impact on the RPG scene, what are you talking about? It sounds like you're the jerk who's opinion is that you dont like it.

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