Is "The Sims" a roleplaying game

Opinions?

I would call it a role watching game.

I can't remember much about the Sims (I only played the first one… for a very short time because it bored me so), but IMO if you don't have complete control over your character it's not an RPG.

Now if I am remembering incorrectly, and you do have complete control over your Sim, then more could be discussed about the possibilities of the game being an RPG.

my 2.5 cents
narpet

Hmmmm . . . . .

I have all "The Sims" games. The game CAN be played online and when doing so you could certainly roleplay and most do.

The question of the SP being an RPG is not too difficult for me to answer depending on what the real term for RPG is.

IMHO:

The Sims IS a RPG in the sense that you have the power to do anything you wish with your character. You can be evil, good, naughty, shy, etc.. You can play your character as anything you wish it to be and the results of it's interaction affect the game. (And depending on which version you are playing "The Sims" or "The Sims2" you have even more options at controlling their happiness.)

With The Sims YOU have the option to play the game how you wish or to let the AI run off and do it's thing. I believe you have the choice to play it as a RPG or not.

Now as far as I am concerned I don't play it as a RPG. I play it more as the puppetmaster. My Sims ask me for something and I choose to give it to them or not.

However, if someone were to ask me to suggest an RPG I would never suggest The Sims as one. I think technically it can be put in that category for several reasons however it just doesn't feel like what a RPG is for ME.

----------> What exactly are the qualifications for a game to be called: RPG?

Loves ~T

I think we need to change T's name to Pandora!!

I've never played it. However I've read many reviews and so I would say that it is the fullfilment of RPG genre, the only real RPG out there ;].

It's a simulation, not a RPG. RPGs, for one, involve lots of numbers going up occasionally.

Heh. Good one, Corwin.

Originally Posted by VPeric
It's a simulation, not a RPG. RPGs, for one, involve lots of numbers going up occasionally.

I disagree. There have been several RPGs without levelling or experience points, games where a character could gain riches and reputation, but no stat boosts. In the original Traveller (T1), for example, you started playing after retirement, there were no skill or stats increases after starting the game. There were other games with similar mechanics, too.

Alright, I suppose you're right (never heard of that game, though) -- I guess that's one of the reasons RPGs are so hard to define. I still don't consider Sims a RPG, though.

Traveller (or T1, by Marc Miller) was the first pen&paper Science Fiction roleplaying game; it came out in 1977. It was followed by MegaTraveller (T2) and Traveller: The New Era (T:NE or T3). After publisher GDW died, Miller restarted with a new company and issued a new Traveller game (T4). There's a GURPS Traveller and a D20 Traveller, too.
I own most of T1, all of T2 and T3, and the basic rules for T4 (was there more to that unfortunate game?).
T2 introduced a very limited XP- and skill upgrading system, but it didn't work too well. T3 finally had a completely new ruleset which made the game compatible with other GDW RPGs (Dark Conspiracy and Twilight/Merc: 2000). There XP and skill boosts played a greater role; they still were measly if compared to XP cornucopiae like AD&D and thus did not exactly have an 'instant reward' effect. IIRC you received one or perhaps two XP per gaming session; you needed many XP to raise a skill, and I don't remember if it was possible to raise attributes at all (it's been more than 10 years since I last GMed one of the GDW games).

There were several (at least two ) MegaTraveller computer games, but to be fair, I never played them.
There were other p&p RPGs without levelling, like Karma and Amber (if I recall correctly).

I consider the Sims an RPG because it has everything I ask of an RPG. Once again, we're at definition level .

In The Sims you have skills that go up through training. You can also pursue a career that each have 10 "levels". So even if I do not consider statistics as requirement for a RPG, The Sims have them.

But by that calculus, every Tycoon game is a RPG, as are the GTA games and a number of shooters, and so on … there *has* to be a limit somewhere …

Oh, I dunno C, I think my name is pefectly suited.


As far as RPG or not I really am interested in what makes a game an RPG.

A roleplaying game according to wiki:

A role-playing game (RPG, often roleplaying game) is a type of game in which the participants assume the roles of fictional characters and collaboratively create or follow stories. Participants determine the actions of their characters based on their characterization, and the actions succeed or fail according to a formal system of rules and guidelines. Within the rules, players can improvise freely; their choices shape the direction and outcome of the games.

A role-playing game rarely has winners or losers. That makes role-playing games fundamentally different from board games, card games, sports and most other types of games. Role-playing games are typically more collaborative and social than competitive.[1] A typical role-playing game unifies its participants into a single team, known as a "party", that plays as a group. Like serials or novel sequences, these episodic games are often played in weekly sessions over a period of months or even years, although some gamers prefer playing one session games.

Role-playing games are a form of interactive and collaborative storytelling. Like novels or films, role-playing games appeal because they engage the imagination. Interactivity is the crucial difference between role-playing games and traditional fiction. Whereas a viewer of a television show is a passive observer, a player at a roleplaying game makes choices that propel the action. Such role-playing games extend an older tradition of storytelling games where a small party of friends collaborates on a unique adventure.

While simple forms of roleplaying exist in traditional children's games such as "cops and robbers", "cowboys and Indians" and "playing house", role-playing games add a level of sophistication and persistence to this basic idea. Instead, participants in a roleplaying game will generate specific characters and an ongoing plot. A consistent system of rules and realistic campaign setting in games aids suspension of disbelief. The level of realism in games ranges from just enough internal consistency to set up a believable story or credible challenge to full-blown simulations of real-world processes.

Computer games incorporating settings and game mechanics found in roleplaying games are referred to as computer role-playing games, or CRPGs. Due to the popularity of CRPGs, the terms "role-playing game" and "RPG" have both to some degree been co-opted by the computer gaming industry; as a result, traditional non-digital pastimes of this sort are increasingly being referred to as "pen and paper" or "tabletop" role-playing games, though neither pen and paper nor a table are strictly necessary..

A computer roleplaying game from same guide:

A computer role-playing game (CRPG [1]) is a video game genre that has its origin rooted in personal computers (PC) and to varying degrees utilizes game mechanics of traditional Role-playing games.

Gameplay elements strongly associated with CRPGs, such as statistical character development, have been widely adapted to other video game genres. For example, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, an action game, uses statistics (abbreviated as "stats") to keep track of stamina, weapon proficiency, driving, appearance, lung capacity, and muscularity. Warcraft III, a real-time strategy game, features heroes that can complete quests, obtain new equipment, and learn new abilities as they advance in level. However, neither game is considered a computer role-playing game.


I dunno about you guys, but I'm really confused now.

I guess the debate is one that can go forever. You have your Dungeons and Dragons RP peeps on one side and yourComputer/Console RPG's on the other side. I suppose your hardcore D&D peeps would scoff at any computer game with the RPG in the title.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What makes a RPG? ---------> People do with their decisions, actions and consequences.

ANYONE can play ANY game as a RP game but unless your actions affect the true outcome of the game it isn't an actual RPG. (I can go into any PVP match as a male figure and it feels to ME that I'm roleplaying but I'm just roleplaying a man, baby yeah.)

Anyway. I thought the question thought provoking since I had an opinion. Not as thought provoking as "Where's Waldo?" but a good ponder nonetheless.

Unlike Tycoon, Sims have their own individual skills and career. You create a person, you dress them up, you design their look, you give them a name and then you start to pump their skills.

But where's the limit?

I have once said that Fallout 2 is the only true RPG ever made for a computer since it's the only game I knew in which you had ultimate control over your character and their actions.

It's not an RPG unless the entire ecosystem is trying to murder you.

It's not an RPG unless the entire ecosystem is trying to murder you.

Do your neighbors that are from Outer Space count? LOL