Game Pleasure List: RPG Maker Edition

This topic was inspired by CrazyCrab's topic Game Annoyance List: RPG Maker Edition.

While writing my list of things I consider annoyances in RPG Maker games, I felt that we also need to say what we like, as a balance.

Here is my list, in no special order nor exhaustive:

• Coherent mapping. No oversized room, no random cluttering. A realistic looking room that makes you believe in the world you're in.
• Similarly, coherent characters. If someone just experienced a tragic event, I'm not expecting him/her to laugh or show a smiling faceset at the next dialogue.
• Again, related: Emosets. Sometimes it's not needed, but I have played a game where a cheerfully smiling girl announced that her village was burning and I just couldn't help laughing. Sorry, dev.
• Balanced encounters. That's a real difficult one but it shows that you cared about your game. And it is really appreciated.
• Saving everywhere. Very personal for this one, but I like to be able to save when I want and not when the dev wants. I'm the one who's playing.

So, what do you like in a RPG Maker game?

It's very personal though.

• An engrossing storyline with well developed and likeable characters. This is a must for me, I don't care if everything else is bad, if this this is good enough I'll automatically play the game. I don't like obnoxious characters, they need to be likeable in some way or else I won't be interested at all, I need to relate myself to them to be able to enjoy the whole experience. Even villains can be totally likeable, Kefka is a very good example of what I'm saying, he's hated due to his cruelty but also loved because he's a fun and interesting villain.
• Addictive and balanced gameplay without boredom. I get bored easily but if the gameplay is solid, balanced, fun and not repetetive, I will finish the game and enjoy it completely.
• Minigames, Secrets, Optional Quests and Superbosses. Sometimes you need small breaks from the main storyline and these are a must, I love these kind of stuff in a game, they add depthness and variety.

That's pretty much all I like and ask in a game.

Saving everywhere is the feature I like the most! I could postpone my game progress since I usually play the game just to kill the time.

Welp, my turn gonna be

- Satisfying battle effect. I'm fans of sideview battle especially to anyone who can make awesome action animations. It also applied in action battle system as well.

- Strategic Battle. You can not do spam attack or spam skill to effectively kill the enemies. Each enemy has their of weakness and sometimes, you need to go full defend or such.

- Quest Journal / To do list / Story Journal. To keep the track what I should do next.

- Visible Encounter. I can avoid battle or engage battle easily. And it seems more fair I think

- Grinder's features. Like stat distribution, skill points, skill tree or such. I love to build my character

- Character Customization. Or at least, party customization. You can define your own actor / party (starting) composition.

Similar to Dalph

• Mini games, secrets, puzzles, exploration, side quests, main plot deviations Pretty much, things that break up the game play so I'm not constantly progressing by battling or doing the same thing over and over again without a single wrench tossed in. These are also great opportunities to get to know your characters and setting outside the context of the main plot.

Similarly, I highly enjoy

• Some sort of skit or conversation system I really, really enjoyed how games such as recent Tales games, (I think most) Fire Emblem games, and even FF: IX has those scenes you could (voluntarily) select and just watch your characters have a conversation. Sometimes they were about the present events in the story but sometimes they were completely useless banter that just let you learn about the cast and the setting. Mostly not important stuff but small things that just made everyone seem so realized. When speaking about Tales games in specific, by Xillia, some of those conversations were roll on the floor funny. 

Basically. More time with the characters! Good characters make good stories.

The main thing for me is non-repetitive gameplay. Everything else is game-dependant.

- Journals/questlogs in any form are welcome in RPGs.

- Difficulty modes are good for a variety of players (only there for the story or challenge).

- Coherent mapping, appropriate facesets, etc.

Beautiful maps: This isn't a dealbreaker for me. I will play a game even if the mappings nothing special, but having something pretty to look at while playing is a bonus.

Memorable story/characters: If the storys interesting and the characters memorable I really get into the game.

Branching story: I like feeling like my decisions have an impact on the world.

1) Well written stories with well defined characters that you actually learn to care about.

2) Innovative and unusual gameplay mechanisms.

3) Mini games, side quests, meaningful side stories long since abandoned by well established game making companies.

4) Appropriate use of a wide variety of graphics, effects and audio resources according to the requirement of the story and game.

5) Ability to converse with the gamemakers and report bugs (and actually getting them fixed).

I would say:

1) Engaging story.  This is by far the MOST important part of an RPG.  If the game creates a fantastic world and tells a story well, I'll enjoy participating in the game.

2) Well balanced gameplay.  Battles should be fair but not cakewalks (unless the party is returning to an earlier area), boss battles should be challenging but fair, puzzles should be logical and solvable

3) For some games, when they don't take themselves TOO seriously.  Dragon Quest IX (for the DS) did a great job with this, lightly poking fun at various RPG tropes while still using them effectively.  Chrono Trigger also DEFINITELY toyed with this, surprisingly given the storyline.

4) An epic feel to the game.  This is much harder to convey, but lavish maps with a great backstory definitely help here.

5) Good game pacing.  This is even harder to achieve, the right balance between grinding --- SOME of which is good, since it conveys the story intent that the party really is growing stronger through practice --- and plowing ahead.

6) Optional sidequests can be a lot of fun and flesh out the game world.

- Engaging story, setting, and characters. These are the most important for me too. If I don't care for those, I won't play the game.

- Well-balanced battles that require some thinking and the use of tactics to be beaten. The battles should rely more on strategy and preparation than pure grinding. They should also vary between each other. If I've figured out how to beat a certain troop, I don't want to keep coming across this troop repeatedly for the remainder of the dungeon. Some more troop variations are nice so that I am forced to come up with some new battle tactics.

- I love me some good boss fights that keep me on my toes, but without being unfair or dragging on for too long.

- A nice visual style that fits to the game's setting and creates immersive atmosphere. I am not a graphics snob, but I like to see some personality in the in-game maps and locations.

- Nice soundtrack. This is one of the most overlooked features in modern triple A games. It's so much nicer to browse around the city or a dungeon or fight battles when you've got a great track to accompany it.

- Some kind of backstory and meaning to each location. If I am traversing some cave or forest, tell me more about them. What makes them so special? Why am I traversing them? Perhaps something happened there in the past? As a player, I want to know it all.

- Reasonable pace. I like it when dungeons take no more than 20-30 minutes to get through, and that I am not forced to partake in trivial tasks in the cities (such as finding useless item X for some npc) in order to progress with the main plot, and that regular battles do not take more than 3-4 turns to be beaten (unless it's one of the rare, harder encounters).

- Puzzles that are intuitive to solve with clear logic, which do not force you to spend an hour being stuck on the same spot, and also puzzles which do not force you to pick up a piece of paper to write stuff. I am playing a game. I don't want to be forced to write stuff down.

-Character Customization: It makes the characters feel more unique to the player because they have their own distinct build. Plus, it offers a lot of replay value.

-Hub Worlds: It always fun to have an area that grows and changes as you progress through the game. That way, when you get some plot advancing skill you can go back and uncover a secret.

Being able to synergize equipment/stats/abilities! Grab that +25% evasion passive trait, that armor that gives innate +25% evasion, use that skill in battle that gives +50% evasion.

DODGE ALL ATTACKS FOREVER.

^I really like that. Imagine doing this with the critical rate. Have the character start with 5%, the weapon give 20% critical rate, armour give another 20%, accessory another 20%, and a skill that raises it by another 35%. Critical hits on every hit!!! :D

For me, the absolute most pleasing thing in a game, especially an RPG maker game, is coherence.

That feeling when you're playing a game and you know it's a solid experience, that everything has a purpose in the game (no NPCs walking around saying "Hi, I'm fine" because there wasn't nything for them to say), that the game world was actually built so it feels like a place, not like a random trope thing, things like that. I think it's the most important thing in my opinion. When the creator has something in mind, instead of just "making a game as it goes and asalfdagaewglf")