Game of the Year 2012 - Best RPG Qualifiers
 

I went through our database to see what games have been released in 2012. As we are not the best in keeping our release dates up to date, maybe you can help us with noting games that should be added to the below list or should not be in that list.
This is what we have:

Avernum: Escape From the Pit
Borderlands 2
Confrontation
Dark Souls: Prepare to Die
Diablo III
Dishonored
Dragon's Dogma
Drox Operative
Game of Thrones
Inquisitor
Jagged Alliance: Back in Action
Jagged Alliance: Crossfire
King Arthur II: The Role-playing Wargame
King's Bounty: Warriors of the North
Kingdom of Amalur
Krater
Legend of Grimrock
Mass Effect 3
Of Orcs and Men
Risen 2: Dark Waters
Spellforce 2: Faith in Destiny
Tales of Maj'Eyal (ToME)
Telepath RPG: Servants of God
Torchlight II

Borderlands 2.

Some people may say it is no RPG, but if Mass Effect 3 or Torchlight 2 are in …:cool:.

Of Orcs and Men
Diablo 3
Dark Souls: Prepare to Die
Borderlands 2
Spellforce 2: Faith in Destiny
R.A.W. Realms of Ancient War
Jagged Alliance: Crossfire
XCOM: Enemy Unknown

ToME went from beta to full at end of year.
FTL might go on list since lot of people and sites consider it RPG.

Some of these are more action games with RPG elements, but if games like Torchlight 2 and Dishonored qualify for the list, then IMO the following should certainly be included as well:

Far Cry 3
Hitman: Absolution
The Darkness II
Dear Esther
Blades of Time
I Am Alive
The Walking Dead
Dragon's Dogma
Sleeping Dogs
Borderlands 2

Perhaps we should remove some games from the list to make it more RPG focused instead of adding all of them.

I don't think there is an rpg genre any more. Just all the other genres with various amounts of rpg elements.

Perhaps a separate category for games that are 100% RPGs (if there is such a thing), vs action games with RPG elements like Torchlight, Diablo, Dishonored, Borderlands, etc.?

At any rate, it seems the genre labels are all a bit blurred these days.

No separate category for indies (Drox operative, Grimrock e.g.?)

That game is definetly not RPG.
It can be a GOTY candidate, but as FPS or overall game. Just not in the best RPG category.

P.S. I'm gonna vote for it. ;)

If we're voting for "the best RPG of 2012", I'd remove half the list. There's a lot of strategy games there. Adding a wee bit of character development due to special units like heroes etc hardly turns a game into an actual RPG in my opinion.

Maybe we should just have a "crossover" category where we can vote on all the borderline games? I think overall we should only get to vote on games that RPGwatch covered in their news - that is a simple and generally useful criterion imho.

It's always RPG elements, though, isn't it? You've got your quests that, together, make up a story line, you've got your character progression, and you've got your roleplaying elements (either a role handed to you or a role you make yourself). Drop those things onto any game and it becomes an RPG, IMHO.

Drop a few onto a shooter and you've got a shooter/RPG "hybred" like Deus Ex. Drop even more on and maybe change the gun to a bow or a magic spell, and you've got a first person RPG. Make it third person and you've got an action RPG like Diablo or, if you bring the camera in closer, something like the Dragon Knight Saga. Drop a few onto a turn based strategy game and you've got something like King's Bounty. Drop in even more RPG elements and you've got something more like Baldur's Gate.

I don't think there's any such thing as a pure RPG. There probably could be if you had an RPG with no combat at all, but I don't see any games like that out there. You just have various types of games with different levels of RPG "spice" added. The question is, how much spice do you need to qualify?

The thing about the RPG genre is that it's not pure by definition. It will always be a hybrid genre - just like it was when PnP arrived, where the tactical combat aka Wargame genre was not sufficient to cover it.

So, it really makes no sense to try and define the pure RPG. I suppose you could make a case for "traditional" RPGs - but a lot of modern games that are generally accepted as RPGs would have to be removed from the genre, like Mass Effect - which is more of an action game than an RPG.

Essentially, the rational approach is not to fret about definitions - but to focus on whether a game is good or not.

yes but then basically the "Game of the Year" would be the same as "Best RPG of the Year" as almost every game has some sort of RPGness nowadays.

Maybe that's just me, but that wouldn't bother me at all. Then again, I'm not loyal to genres - but to quality.

It's just you. As I, for example, am not loyal to genre but to no-respawning.

I remember when people said RPG it meant by definition, Final Fantasy. Before people (developers) started using the term "RPG elements" to market their games to RPG purists, they were using the term "Final Fantasy elements". now Final Fantasy and other Japanese / Asian made games - except for the recent breakout Dragon's Dogma are re-classified as JRPG, which has become synonymous with second, outmoded systems of RPG gaming.

I think a "true" RPG will have more ambient interaction with the objects and NPCs in the game. While it can have a heavy dose of action, a "true" RPG should include moments of peace, if desired, by the player. A "true" RPG will not force you to "keep going and keep fighting". It has side activities that may or not benefit the development of the character - but in any case adds to the immersion of the game. Another big part of a "true" RPG is interacting with NPCs without everyone of them necessarily leading you to a quest. Maybe they give you a clue? Maybe they just think your cute? Perhaps they just want to say hi? I feel an RPG should frame a living world, as opposed to other types of games where your whole world is, for example, killing your way to a goal. You should be able to stop and look at the world through your character's eyes (which also should be customize-able to the point that it is unique and comfortable with you and your desired play style). that's just IMHO - but every one isn't looking for the same thing in a game, so yours may differ.