I'm not sure which came first but I know both programs have had a major
influence on how the QBasic Community looks upon QB RPGs (remember when
the
Last Fantasy trilogy was considered to be an "awesome" game?). After the
LDC
demo was released you may remember a surge of demos that were very similar
in
style to it. But sadly, 99% of the demos that are released never turn into
full games.
QB Programmers who think they understand what an RPG is begin to make one,
release a short demo showing off graphics and a tile scrolling engine then
as they
delve deeper into the game begin to realize the complexities of making
an RPG (i.e.
the complexities of a battle engine, creating a plot, weaving dozens of
characters into
that plot, etc.). It's no easy process! Very very rarely does a good RPG
ever get
finished. In fact, the only good completed RPG I've ever seen is Dark Ages
I: The
Lost Continent. There are literally dozens of good RPGs in the works, but
I doubt
even 1/8 of those will ever get finished. But next comes the question as
to why every
QBasic RPG and every QB RPG demo seems to be based on console-style RPGs
instead of CRPGs (Computer Role Playing Games). Now, why is that? Is it
just
because all the QB Programmers have strictly played console RPGs or they
just
don't want to spend the time developing the harder elements of a CRPG?
Probably.
Most QB RPG's also don't focus upon plot or character development, they
focus
heavily upon graphics and a scrolling engine. Below is a brief analyzation
of the
different CRPG and Console RPG elements found in a QB RPG (In this case,
I'll
use a full QB RPG, Dark Ages I: The Lost Continent):
CRPG Elements:
*The player is the main character, instead of a console RPG style play
where
the player simply controls the actions a pre-designed character in the
game.
*One player, no parties (not really a CRPG element, but can be found in
a lot
of CRPGs).
*Naming character (also a console-RPG style element)
Console-RPG Elements:
*The player is not allowed to design the main character's skills (i.e.
rolling for
skills or attributes, or choosing from preset classes, etc.)
*Preset plot (can be found in a lot a CRPG's to)
*The player must accomplish most of the missions in a set order
*The player must accomplish all mini-quests to finish the game
These are just a few VERY simple examples of what elements Dark Ages
contains in it from the two different styles of RPGs. It's obviously more
console
based than classic CRPG based. I really have to wrap up this article now,
so, I'll
leave you with this; What does the future hold for QBasic Role-Playing
Games?
Are they simply going to get better graphics, and faster tile engines,
or are they
going to develop richer plots and have more than just simple two dimensional
characters, heroes, and badguys? Hopefully, they will move towards the
latter, but
that is rather unlikely judging by the current direction QB RPGs are moving.