At first this may seem like another of those *yawn* what´s RPG threads and that´s precisely what it is.

C´mon here we go.
Fine-tuning of the poll isn´t likely to happen, it seems.

However, there´s still an opportunity to trust this thread with what you think is the most unambiguously crucial/defining aspect of an cRPG, especially if you think it totally isn´t in the poll.

Let´s say you like "cRPGs". Why/how did it happen!?

Other than these … meta responses!!

Kinda difficult to narrow it down to a single poll choice, I think.

Nah, was simplicity itself. I chose ALL of the above!!

I chose all of the above to many rpg-lite games coming out. Taking even one out is sacrilege to the holy rpg bible.

Originally Posted by Corwin
Nah, was simplicity itself. I chose ALL of the above!!

Well, there actually *is* a selection option there, called "all of the above" …

Some of the above

As someone who comes from PnP gaming and spent his 90'ies with the storytelling systems and Call of Cthulhu, "character development (via dialogue/action/story choices)" is central for me. I can go so far to say that games to me today is more about virtual storytelling than games.

character development (via stat assignments upon level ups) plus, to some extent, non-"real time" combat (but the latter is just my personal preference)

everything else is fluff

I think to be a real RPG a game needs to first of all let you create your own character, and then explore the world as that character. I don't really care about story, and would rather have it be in the background where it belongs and let me create my own. If the story's too central, then I'm not really playing my character, but one of the designers', and frankly very few video game designers are good enough writers for me to care about their story.

Stat/skill development should be logical and meaningful. No skill that's completely useless except as a stepping stone to get to a higher one, starting with a strength of 1 and ending at 435, or anything silly like that. Even better, I don't want anything in the world to blatently metagame. I want it to feel like a real world, so no purple monkey with its intended challenge level clearly marked, no non-magical skill that someone has a magical effect that only exists so non-wizards can have a list of "spells" too.

Originally Posted by JemyM
As someone who comes from PnP gaming and spent his 90'ies with the storytelling systems and Call of Cthulhu, "character development (via dialogue/action/story choices)" is central for me. I can go so far to say that games to me today is more about virtual storytelling than games.

There do exist so-called "Power-gamers" even in P&P playing, though …

The setting and the writing are primary with the mechanics being secondary. What I like in mechanics is character customization. I'm okay with a pre-generated character as long as I have some say in their development. The only time I don't like a pre-generated character is when they're given a temperament. I like being able to choose how my character reacts to situations and not be fully shoehorned into a role. (Good Example of a Pre-gen to me: Hawke, Bad Example of a Pre-gen to me: Geralt)

I've discovered I'm not fond of empty exploration, I hate fetch quests and I hate 'kill x pigs' quests. I like a smaller scale story also (I'm not as fond of 'save the world' epics anymore). I like when a world is reactive, but I don't like when the world can see you when nobody can- I don't like "karma" systems. (Bad: ME, Oblivion, FO3/NV, Sorta Better: Divinity 2, TW2)

But these are all tastes. What defines a CRPG for me is that it doesn't focus on FPS, RTS or some other gameplay mechanic to the detriment of any of the above. Real time or turn based, I don't care, as long as it's not just an RTS/FPS with a stat or two.

The closest option for me the "character generation on start up" option though I am not sure it quite what I'm thinking of with it. I concur with darkling in that character customization is core. Without that I mentally lump the game into Action or Adventure territory. I strongly prefer to define the attributes of the character, the looks/gender/background/personality of the character and ideally the profession as well but usually that is soldier of some sort.

Most of the other items in the poll are relevant and add greatly to the game but turn based, loot and exploration are core to other genres as well. Geralt is a great character in a novel but not as fun to role play so its on the border of action to me. I treat JA2 is a Tactical RPG as I can create my own merc and control their development and drag that sucker though hell and back and that is what is makes it fun for me.

"Some of the above".
I couldn't care less about setting and writing, but the mechanics are primary for me to consider if a game is a cRPG or not, starting from the character creation part, and through the game allowing me to directly specify how my character(s) grow up.

This question is hard for me to say because I really feel like CRPGs have split off into at least a couple of subgenres that are quite different, almost to the point of comparing apples and oranges. I won't say it's impossible to do a story and open exploration really well, but it seems to me that it's very rare that you get both done equally is well and generally you'll either get one or the other.

A sandbox game is quite a different animal than a story driven choice and consequence game. I am fine with either as long as I know what I'm getting into and the game does its area of focus relatively well.

I miss turn based combat but I've accepted the reality that it's dead for any mid to major level release. You have to go to the indies and/or mobile games to find it.

To me, all AAA RPGs for a number of years now are technically Action RPG hybrids so I suppose I do define by the combat, although (for me) true RPGs don't really exist anymore among AAA titles.

bummer - I've been thinking for the past weeks about creating a similar topic/poll only I couldn't clearly decide on the criteria.

For the one criteria it would have been the clear choice of everyone but I didn't want to write it in a way that didn't let people think so I was thinking of making it more of an editorial.

I'm of the mind that the genre can't be unequivocably defined.

So, I tend to go the route of trusting the developer. If they put "RPG" on the box, it's an RPG. That's good enough for me.

The most important aspects to me is to have a world with a great setting, great story and character to care about, without these things even the greatest RPG becomes fairly boring in the end.

It occurs to me that I might have misunderstood the question. I'm asked what *I* personally prefer in my cRPGs. Well, most of that isn't really genre specific.

First and foremost, I like an interesting and challenging game design. By that, I mean a long series of choices that are - at once - unpredictable, entertaining, and meaningful. Unpredictable, in that I don't want to sit down during my first session and foresee exactly what my character will do and what his capacity will be during the game. By entertaining, I mean powers, situations, dialogues, etc. that reward the time spent with the game. Powers need to be "cool toys" - situations need to be "interesting/mysterious/compelling" - and that goes for dialogues as well. Plausible moving characters with emotionally engaging goals/motivations/backgrounds.

That's the core design part.

Then I REALLY enjoy freedom and exploration. I love to be able to go where I want, when I want. I really enjoy being able to handle any situation the way I want to - and the way I would have wanted to given the same situation as that character. Exploration needs to be worthwhile and varied. I want to find secrets and be rewarded for doing so. Stuff like that.

Then comes the story and the setting. I, obviously, enjoy a great story - which generally means a plausible and cohesive experience. I don't enjoy games with "Gods and Demons and planets being destroyed left and right" - unless they're REALLY well written. I tend to prefer down-to-earth stories that I can relate to, or that deals with relevant philosophical issues. They're very hard to do, because it requires a genuine passion and insight that I find very few writers have. The Witcher 2 is a good example.

The actual gameplay "flow" is also hugely important. The combat system, whether turn-based or real-time - whether cerebral or action-based - needs to be entertaining in itself. That's almost impossible to put down on paper, which is probably why SO FEW games do this aspect particularly well. It's a huge collection of things done right. Everything from tactile feel of impact, with animations and sound - to compelling and tactical/strategic options before and during the battle.

Those things are probably the most important aspects of any cRPG - to me.

Originally Posted by Alrik Fassbauer
There do exist so-called "Power-gamers" even in P&P playing, though …

The storytelling-systems and Call of Cthulhu strongly disencourage this form of behavior and the rulesystem in CoC doesn't support that form of game.

I see.

Yet I encounter them fairly often within the official TDE forums … They're nopt at all regular, but still noticeable there …

There seems to be a kind of negative bias (to put it mildly) against "story telling" gameplay there. An infamous pen & paper role-playing blogger who calles himself "The Prussian Player" (I think this is his name) holds the theory that

- pen & paper players want to have (live) success through their play
- (this) success can ONLY be delivered through playing combat

basically. He espcially holds this negative bias against story telling.

People have even coined special role-playing terms, among which the "Erzählonkel" playing style is the "story telling" playing style - only that the term "Erzählonkel" (rough translation : "Story-telling Uncle") has a negative meaning.

There are more of these German, obscure p&p terms, which I sometimes even have difficulties to understand them myself.

One of them is the so-called "Bauern-Gaming", which is the exact opposite to the same-sounding "Power-gaming". The word "Bauer" means "Farmer" and sounds exactzly like the word "Power", only with a "b" instead of a "p" and the term "Bauergaming" means to explicitely play weak characters, and not at all focussing on becoming a powerful character like in most RPGs, especially not like in "power-gaming" games.

(And besides, now you know how the word"bauer" "Alrik Fassbauer" is pronounced … - only that in this meaning "Bauer" means "Builder" like in the meaning someone who builds something. A "Bauer" could then be a "Builder", but nearly no-one uses it in this sense. The verb "to build" is usually translated as "bauen", though.)