CRPG Analyzer: A checklist for computer role-playing games

I'd really like to see reviews in a system with an "individually weighable" score.
The reviewer would give scores only to parts of the game (combat, story, exploration, visuals, sound, music, …). Then the user can give weights to the parts and the individual score is computed. The reviewer might also set his own weights as default so there still would be an "official" score given by the reviewer.
 
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You can apply this easily by yourself - just apply weights to each checklist point that add to 1.0. (you can zero out some checklist points, by that method).

Decide for each point of the checklist, if it is fulfilled, if <yes> add the weight to your score. (You could even say: this is fulfilled to 50% and add just add half the weight to your score).

If the final value is 0.75 - you have a 75% score according to your preferences.

But again:
This checklist was originally made to evalute the "CRPGness" of a game. Not if it is a good a or a bad game.
 
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As the reviewer evaluation would be needed, the player could only give weigth and temper reviewer opinions with player preferences. It's still better than just consider the reviewer evaluation.

A database of criteria rates could clue to a player what reviewers match him better for a specific genre. Even better the database would allow identify players types, so a new player that registered 10 games, could be matched to another player having registered 100 games and then profit from the better analysis to determine best suited reviewers.

No more hassle to select games to buy, the database could send to each user their next list of games to buy, cool.

The dust in the machine is how rate anything is difficult and imprecise, already hard for a reviewer, but even harder for a player that mainly want play games. A number looks so objective and precise, nothing can be more faithful, but in fact words do the job better.

For other aspects like people changing along time, I suppose this could be managed with big data.
 
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The problem is, that "fun" is defined differently for every kind of player ... An Action-RPG player might want less story than a Story-Player.
 
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This tool work much better if you have an excel list of
What game
Fit which feature on the checklist
total to how many point
 
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I'm toying with it, it's an interesting tool, also because of the questions that lead to its current state.

I'm sorry if that was discussed before, I haven't read all posts :blush:

1) Form

I was checking it in the case of Encased. I couldn't save though because the name was not recognized. Later I came back to the first page with the name and only then the window with candidate names appeared, when I selected 'Encased' it erased the whole form (but it seemed possible to save it at the end this time, if I filled it in completely).

I noticed that some pages wouldn't pass even though all choices were made. Simply clicking again on the choices solved the problem, some of them seem to appear as chosen but are not. Not sure where it's coming from (I'm using Chrome, Win10).

2) Content

Regarding the Design, I checked 3 terms in https://ultimatepopculture.fandom.com/wiki and https://www.merriam-webster.com/, FWIW
  • Arcanepunk (fantasy world where both magic and science exist)
  • Steampunk (science fiction dealing with 19th-century societies dominated by historical or imagined steam-powered technology)
  • Cyberpunk (science fiction dealing with future urban societies dominated by computer technology)

I have some trouble selecting a Design, opted for Sci-fi even though it's alternate past history, but what should have looked modern back then (70's). I also find it difficult to separate the Design from the Setting since both go hand in hand.

I put Isometric view, even though very few games are really isometric nowadays, it's an "angled top-down 3D view" by lack of a better term. Isometric is close enough I suppose ;)

Some items got me confused:
- In Elements / Story / Immersion: "Your main character is defined." (NSM10) What do you mean, is it predefined like The Witcher 3 vs selected background? Or defined vs there is no story for the PC?
- In Fun Features / Exploration: "Is Auto-Mapping available?" (FE1) What do you mean? For example, a map which is revealed along its exploration, is that auto-mapping?
- In Fun Features / Story: "Are there pre-selected options?" (FS4) Pre-selected options where?

Is it worth it, if I do it correctly and save the result? Is it possible to edit it later?
 
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You can save after each step and continue to edit later.

Currently the BB-Export button doesn't seem to work to export your analysis to forum-code. @Arhu; ?

I think Your main character is defined should mean pre-defined.

Auto-mapping = the game maps the gameworld automatically when you explore it.

Are there pre-selected options? = you can't choose by yourself the game decides where the story is going.
 
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Here's what I got. It's strange, Elem. Status is checked but red, and I have no idea what Feat. Status is. No BB Code.

EDIT: scratch that, when I reload, they're all checked and green. Maybe it doesn't update the status until the tool page is opened from the URL instead of the button's hash links.
image.png


And this result:
image.png


So I'm still not sure whether that's shared to anyone else, or linked to the database? How are you planning to use this tool, out of curiosity? :) Copy/paste in reviews?
 
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It was planned to copy/paste the BB-Code into the forum - maybe send @Arhu; a PM. He's our Web designer.
 
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There's lots of javascript errors. Will have to have a look. I'm guessing the libraries are out of date. Elem. Status and Feat. Status should get checkmarks once you answered all items in steps 4 and 5.
 
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There's lots of javascript errors. Will have to have a look. I'm guessing the libraries are out of date. Elem. Status and Feat. Status should get checkmarks once you answered all items in steps 4 and 5.
I've always hated Javascript ;) But it's efficient and lightweight so I suppose it's there to stay. Still more convenient than PHP I suppose.

Anyway, just filling in the pages was interesting in itself, it raises some questions and items to put in a review. If the tool is updated at some point, I'm interested to know and, of course, willing to do a test if that helps :)

EDIT: Steps 4 and 5 were completed, but the status was not updated when I came back on "I. Game". I did a few back and forth trying to understand what was missing, but it was still like the screenshot. When I loaded the page on a new Chrome tab, they were all green. Not a real problem.
 
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I could understand most of it via Google translate - but a translation of a native speaker would be nice as well.
 
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Out of curiosity, I checked and the Google translation is not bad at all, I'm surprised.

The 20 items (titles) are fine, actually, and their content mostly OK, if not always very idiomatic or elegant. For 14 I'd just say "romance" but the translation is faithful.

One sentence in 11 (essentials - I prefer "life needs") was funny, "you can easily sleep all night and still be up" which is of course "you can easily spend a sleepless night and still stay on your feet" :D In its defense, the French sentence uses the wrong verb.

I'm skeptical about interactive mini-games (17), should that be part of a checklist for an RPG? Why not add a strategic management layer, that we see in several RPGs? I think those are extensions to vary the game, but they're mostly disruptive.

The 20 points:
1. A Customizable hero
2 and 3. Characteristics and skills
4. Experience points and evolution of your hero
5. A system of alignments
6. A game system driven by your character's characteristics and skills
7. Character Gear
8. An inventory
9. A complete background
10. A character who evolves physically and intellectually due to his/her condition
11. Life needs
12. An immersive story with multiple branches
13. Side quests
14. Romance
15. A wear and craft system
16. Trade and a bed
17. Interactive mini-games
18. A living world
19. An interactive universe
20. A coherent world

PS: I retrieved the KoTC2 article they mentioned at the beginning, which was translated to French. The original is here (Update #2: My RPG design philosophy and dungeon-design process!).
 
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I had a good look at the CRPG analyzer code. Unfortunately it's not an easy fix. The error is related to an unsafe eval function that is used in one of the libraries that I used to create BBCode from all the data (jsrender). A fix was requested a few years ago by someone but was eventually rejected.

So the two options are: 1. allow unsafe eval functions globally (I'd rather not) or 2. rewrite that part of the code, for which I don't have the time yet with everything else going on.

Anyway, just filling in the pages was interesting in itself, it raises some questions and items to put in a review. If the tool is updated at some point, I'm interested to know and, of course, willing to do a test if that helps :)
You can see what the bbcode looked like on page 23.
 
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So the two options are: 1. allow unsafe eval functions globally (I'd rather not)

Would it be possible to allow it, run the analyser, then turn it off again, aka only temporarily use of that function (with no other program or window running in the background) ?
 
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FYI, lots of descriptions were missing, particularly for Design and Theme. I added them back in from the V1.02 text file.

What is the overall look and style of the game or its structural conventions?
  • Bright: The game features a happy, uplifting atmosphere or a sense of wonder and awe.
  • Clean: The game has a very clean, stylized or idealized look and feel.
  • Dark: The game features a dark, gloomy atmosphere or a sense of horror and dread.
  • Gritty: The game has a harsh, coarse, rough and unrefined quality to it, portraying life as it truly is (or worse), without false distortions, stylizations, or idealizations.
  • Arcanepunk: Refers to a fantasy world in which both magic and science exist in parallel and are of mostly equal value.
  • Cyberpunk: Sci-fi in a near-future setting. Focus on high tech and low life. Features advanced science, such as information technology and cybernetics, coupled with a degree of breakdown or radical change in the social order.
  • High Fantasy: Works with supernatural and magic elements for the plot. The most popular imaginary worlds use a medieval setting and often copy from J.R.R. Tolkien's book Lord of the Rings. Usually epic in nature.
  • Low Fantasy: Closer to realistic fiction than to myth. Magic or the fantastic exist, but are secondary to the primary historical context of the game. Less epic in nature than High Fantasy and more about personal stories. Includes Sword & Sorcery or Heroic Fantasy.
  • Realistic: No fantasy themes, probably based on Earth.
  • Sci-Fi: In this futuristic setting imaginary technology is used for space and time travel and the discovery of the universe. The contact with extraterrestrial life so called aliens leads to adventures, conflicts and challenges of all kind.
  • Steampunk: Sci-fi theme that typically features steam-powered machinery, especially in a setting inspired by industrialized Western civilization during the 19th century.
  • W-RPG: Relatively realistic colors and graphics, character backgrounds are often left to the player's imagination. Western style CRPG.
  • J-RPG: Manga Style graphics, often turn based combat, usually focus on defined characters and an emotional story, Eastern style CRPG.
What is the central topic treated by the game?
  • Cloak & Dagger: Involves intrigue, secrecy, espionage, or mystery.
  • Coming-of-Age: Focus on the psychological and moral growth or transition of a protagonist from youth to adulthood. Personal growth and change is an important characteristic, which relies on dialogue and emotional responses, rather than action.
  • Eroticism: Quality that causes sexual feelings, as well as a philosophical contemplation concerning the aesthetics of sexual desire, sensuality and romantic love.
  • Exploration & Discovery: Focus on expeditions and the exploration of the unknown. To boldly go where no one has gone before.
  • Fables & Fairy Tales: Fables feature animals with human qualities; Fairy tales typically features European folkloric fantasy characters, such as dwarves, elves, fairies, giants, gnomes, goblins, mermaids, trolls, or witches, and usually magic or enchantments.
  • Good vs. Evil: Concerns the conflict between good and evil forces.
  • Hero's Journey: "A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons (..)."
  • Horror: Intended to, or has the capacity to frighten, scare, or startle its players by inducing feelings of horror and terror.
  • Humor & Comedy: Intended to be humorous or to amuse by inducing laughter.
  • Military: Most of the characters are in the military, the focus is on the life of soldiers.
  • Paranormal: Involves phenomena from popular culture or folklore whose existence is described to lie beyond normal experience or scientific explanation.
  • Philosophy: Deals with general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with reality, existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language.
  • Politics: Deals with influencing other people on a global, civic or individual level, Governance, or power struggles between communities.
  • Religion & Spirituality: Includes subjective experience and psychological growth, or personal transformation in accordance with religious ideals.
  • Romance: Focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters and the journey that their genuinely strong, true and pure romantic love takes them through dating, courtship or marriage.
  • Superhero: Features heroes possessing extraordinary talents, supernatural phenomena, or superhuman powers and are usually dedicated to protecting the public.
  • Survival: Focuses on survival of the character and is often trying to scare the players (in case of Survival Horror.)
  • Swashbuckling: Pirates or swordsmen displaying courage, swordfighting skill, resourcefulness, chivalry and a distinctive sense of honor and justice.
  • Vampires: Concerned principally with the subject of vampires.
  • Weird: Speculative fiction that encompasses the ghost story and other tales of the macabre, often blending the supernatural, mythical, and even scientific.
  • Wuxia: Concerns the adventures of usually chivalric martial artists.
  • Zombies: Concerned principally with the subject of zombies.

Any idea for a short blurb for the "Science" theme?

Would it be possible to allow it, run the analyser, then turn it off again, aka only temporarily use of that function (with no other program or window running in the background) ?
It's a global server setting and applies for everyone, so… not really. I'll try to fix it at some point. Soon-ish. Not before next week.

So I'm still not sure whether that's shared to anyone else, or linked to the database? How are you planning to use this tool, out of curiosity? :) Copy/paste in reviews?
As HiddenX said, the BBCode function was the primary means of sharing the result on this forum.

Long term it would be cool if aspects of it could be integrated into our games database, with more automated options to display the results. For example, a game "CRPG score" page that takes the average of all user analyses and displays the result including comments for each element. Or some of it could be used in the game info boxes in newsbits.

It was always a lot of work for minor gain, because at first glance it can be very overwhelming. But if more people become interested in rating games that accurately, maybe it can grow naturally into something bigger. The most important points are "Must-have" and "Should have" - those should be easy enough to fill out quickly anyway. Also, the tool should work, first. ;)
 
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