Random encounters in JRPGs

Originally Posted by wolfing
I used to enjoy mapping, but that was 21 year old me. 46 year old me prefers automapping.

I can enjoy some light mapmaking, as long as it can easily be scribbled down on a graph paper, and the game is not too hard to navigate without a proper map. But Eye of the Beholder 2 is really at the upper limit of what I'm fine with. And I need to be in a very specific mood to play games that requires me to draw my own maps.

Originally Posted by Elel
I actually tried to play Eye of the Beholder once. Never finished it. I'm just bad at memorizing and keeping "a map" of the environment in my head. That might seem "casual", I know that lots of people think that compasses and maps in modern games make them casual, but I'd just get lost without a map unless the layot of the land would be very simple. It's my flaw in real life and it gets reflected in gaming. Like in Myers-Briggs test, people who tend to be like me score way too high on intuition and very low on sensing. Oh well, at least I've got a very strong intuition.

So yeah… no mazes, please! Especially not with teleporters!

What's your Briggs-Meyers, Elel? I feel you on the intuition thing. I'm full-on INFP.

Oh, and have any of you dungeon fans played any of the Etrian Odyssey games? You actually draw your map in-game. It can be kinda fun to draw it out as you go, hand-placing a lot of the things you encounter.

Originally Posted by Aubrielle
What's your Briggs-Meyers, Elel? I feel you on the intuition thing. I'm full-on INFP.

Oh, and have any of you dungeon fans played any of the Etrian Odyssey games? You actually draw your map in-game. It can be kinda fun to draw it out as you go, hand-placing a lot of the things you encounter.

I've heard of it. It's a DS exclusive though, is it not?

Etrian Odyssey is great! Love the mapping in that game. Only played some hours of the first game in the series, but I did enjoy it quite a bit. Also love the pseudo-crafting system, where you deliver raw materials to the shopkeeper and they create new gear and items. Awesome.

There's actually a software programmed called Grid Cartographer, that I used to map the first level or so of Wizardry 6. Pretty easy to use once you know your way around and definitely not too tricky to map things, even though Wiz 6 has a tricky layout in general. I'll have to get back to that game sometime…

Originally Posted by Aubrielle
What's your Briggs-Meyers, Elel? I feel you on the intuition thing. I'm full-on INFP.

Please to meet INFP. I'm INTP.

Originally Posted by Fnord
I've heard of it. It's a DS exclusive though, is it not?

I…think so, yeah. Which is unfortunate.

Originally Posted by Elel
Please to meet INFP. I'm INTP.

Nice!! I can totally see it. No wonder we understand each other so well!

Hmmm, an INTP should be good at mapping?

Originally Posted by GothicGothicness
Hmmm, an INTP should be good at mapping?

Rather bad than good. Intuition means low sensing, which makes people worse at memorizing the elements of physical environment I have very little sensing, which is why I don't drive a car. I'm sure if I attempted to drive myself around my own city, I'd get lost. No, wrong way, no, that's wrong, too, where I am now?! Etc.

I do like a little challenge when it comes to random encounters, like in Final Fantasy 8 where the monsters are around the same level as you. Repetitive monsters on the other hand just bore me to death. _(:3/ _)_

Originally Posted by JDR13
I think you're trying to compare apples and oranges. Encounters in TES are nothing like the (invisible) random encounters in JRPGs that we're discussing.

In my opinion it's totally comparable, the main curse of random encounters is the constant respawn thing, generated combats meaning low design quality, repetitivity, some more.

If it's not comparable it's just because of turn based vs action real time, real time action endure much better (much less badly) repetitions because of the thrill of action.

Originally Posted by Sanglon
In my opinion it's totally comparable, the main curse of random encounters is the constant respawn thing, generated combats meaning low design quality, repetitivity, some more.

If it's not comparable it's just because of turn based vs action real time, real time action endure much better (much less badly) repetitions because of the thrill of action.

It's not really similar, because it's telegraphed and usually easily avoidable. There's a difference between respawning mobs and random combat, both in how they're designed, and how they impact the game. It's entirely possible to have random encounters in an a real time game, look at Tales of Phantasia, which does not telegraph its encounters, yet have real time combat.

Basically, what defines random encounters is the fact that they're not telegraphed, they just appear out of the blue, and they appear in a random or semi-random way.

Hey Sanglon…I'm glad to see all the activity! But just a favor…maybe you could start condensing some of your posts so you don't have like ten in a row? I don't mind double (or sometimes even triple) posts, but it's pretty easy to condense them, if you'd be so kind.

Obsession for order and cleaned stuff is a mental disease, just saying.

Originally Posted by Fnord
It's not really similar, because it's telegraphed and usually easily avoidable. There's a difference between respawning mobs and random combat, both in how they're designed, and how they impact the game. It's entirely possible to have random encounters in an a real time game, look at Tales of Phantasia, which does not telegraph its encounters, yet have real time combat.

Basically, what defines random encounters is the fact that they're not telegraphed, they just appear out of the blue, and they appear in a random or semi-random way.

Ok I didn't knew there was a classical technical term for those specific combats.

For me it changes nothing if I can see them a bit before, you are right if you can sneak through those without too much hassle then it's different, often it's not that simple and I consider it's the exact same pain. Replay again and again the same tedious program generated combats. Underrail suffer of this problem for example.