This article refers chiefly to video games. See Tabletop RPG for old-fashioned pen and paper games.
A type of game in which the player controls a character or party of characters in a statistically abstracted way. Most are based around one or more quests, items, stats, Character Customization, and experience points, as characters grow in power over time.
Roleplaying games (commonly known as "RPG") have their origin not as video games but pen-and-paper systems with dice-based combat and character generation, descended from a combination of tabletop wargaming and collaborative theater. Dungeons & Dragons was the first such system to be sold, followed by other early systems such as The Fantasy Trip, Traveller and Tunnels & Trolls. These type of roleplaying games are all now known as Tabletop RPGs.
The early video game RPGs focused mostly on simulating the combat aspects of Tabletop games, with other aspects following after. Video game RPGs can be divided in a number of ways, which are elaborated below.
Western RPGs (WRPGs) often focus on greater character customization and free-roaming exploration. The main character in this genre tend to have little predefined personality, allowing the player to decide the personality and characterization of the main character via interactive dialogue. Western RPGs tend to bear a great resemblance to Tabletop RPGs. Examples of this genre include the Baldur's Gate series, Mass Effect, and The Elder Scrolls series.
Early Western RPGs bore much similarity to Turn Based Strategy and Tactical RPGs as their roots came from tabletop gaming, but the genre has since largely distanced itself from those days. Many modern Western RPGs seem to go against their roots by emphasizing real-time combat with the player having full control of only one PC at a time. If the RPG gives you other characters they are often fully or partially controlled by an AI, potentially allowing you to select special abilities for allies to use. The decreased lack of control of party members in this style of modern Western RPGs tends to remove some of the tactical qualities of the original western RPG's and can lead to the AI controlled allies proving far less useful then the player controlled main character due to Artificial Stupidity. However as of late Western RPGs are quickly blurring together with Wide Open Sandbox games, and may cease to be a truly separate genre.
Eastern RPGs (ERPGs) often focus on cinematic narratives and memorable characters, usually (but not always) with more linear gameplay and less direct customization than Western RPGs; Eastern RPGs typically feel like visual novels, movies or anime. Until recently, most such games came from Japan, and are thus nicknamed JRPGs. A good point of distinction is that WRPGs typically have some Character Customization, whereas an ERPG will more likely have a preformed Player Character, who might have some customization applied to their abilities but always looks the same. Eastern RPGs tend to use a turn based or pseudo turn based system where the player individually inputs actions for every character in the team each turn. Good examples of this genre are the Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and Pokemon franchises.
Action RPGs (ARPGs) use the combat interface of an Action Game (usually Fighting Game or Third Person Shooter combat), incorporating the experience and item systems of a traditional RPG. Action RPGs often overlap or are related to games with RPG Elements, as Action RPGs are essentially an in-between, or RPGs with Shooter Elements. As such, distinguishing between Action RPGs and games that simply have RPG Elements is hard, but typically Action RPGs have all skills be viable options for winning the game, whereas games with RPG Elements focus more extensively on action. The best example of this genre is the original Deus Ex.
Tactical RPGs are related to Eastern RPGs but with a high focus on moving around a gridlike system, often with abilities that take advantage of this to attack multiple people at once, or to fight from a distance note In Western RPGs this type of tactical combat is typical, due to their descent from Wargaming.
However, what seperates the Tactical RPG subgenre from other RPGs is that they tend to greatly resemble Strategy Games, but with RPG Elements. On TV Tropes, this type of game is thus lumped in with Turn Based Strategy, as the two genres are very close. More recent examples of Eastern Tactical RPGs, however, have also incorporated Real Time Strategy elements. note Tactical RPGs however can usually be distinguished easily from Strategy games, as Real Time Strategy and Turn Based Strategy games tend to be much more open ended, and about conquering territory, whereas Tactical RPGs usually have an overarching plot typical to an Eastern RPG.
A further subdivision is a Strategy RPG (SRPGs) which more closely resemble Real Time Strategy or TabletopRPGs. The distinction separates games that are on a grid system with standard Eastern RPG characters (with abilities, more attack options, and so on) and games that are on a grid system but characters are more properly units (they typically have only base attacks, may not have equipment, and so on). A good comparison would be Final Fantasy Tactics to the Fire Emblem series. The former is a "Tactical RPG" and the latter is a "Strategy RPG". note On this wiki they're grouped together under Strategy RPG out of convenience. Also of note is that though listed as a subdivision, Strategy RPGs were a viable genre before TRPGs.
The Growlanser series is an example of a real-time "Tactical RPG" that does not use a grid-based system. A character's movement range is represented by a circular area in which the character can move anywhere within its confines, avoiding obstacles along the way. The movement speed is based on the amount of MOV points each character has in the game.
Roguelikes take their name from the early 1980s ASCII graphics game Rogue. They are defined by the combination of randomly generated worlds and permanent death, meaning that every time time your character dies you have to start completely over in a different set of levels. The focus also tends to be much more on very complex Nintendo Hard gameplay than story.
The best known example is Nethack, an open source game widely held in high regard. Interestingly, these can be both Eastern or Western in origin, though the Trope Namer and Trope Codifier are both Western, and the genre is laced with Western influences.
Whether any actual "Role Playing" is involved in many RPGs is often debatable. See also How to Play a Console RPG and PC Vs Console.
For the trope about assuming roles in order to practice something, see Comic Role Play.
This genre is home to many specific tropes.
Arbitrary Gun Power Video game guns don't kill instantly, they do HP damage.
Arbitrary Headcount Limit Arbitrary requirement that stops you from having too many characters in a party or unit.
Lazy Backup If you're only allowed to take three out of eighteen party members into battle, you get a Game Over if those three are killed, even if the other characters are nearby and could logically step in to finish the job.
White Mage Keeps the good guys from becoming extra crispy; may also stock a Holy Hand Grenade for emergencies.
But Thou Must A dialogue tree where your choices are irrelevant, because the game will not proceed until you pick the 'intended' option (or ignore your decision altogether).
Critical Hit An attack randomly does extra (often double) damage.
Critical Hit Class A class or character's strategy is based on getting critical hits.
Damage-Increasing Debuff A negative status ailment which in some way increases the damage its subject takes.
Damage Over Time A unit receives a negative status that inflicts a small amount of damage at regular intervals.
Defend Command A command that lets you take less damage, but you don't get to do anything else in the meantime.
Diminishing Returns For Balance As you increase your stats, each increase has less effect, forcing you to balance your stats more.
Disc One Final Dungeon A dungeon that pretends to be the last one in the game, but is nowhere near it.
Disc One Nuke An exploit where a powerful item or technique is achieved early on in the game.
Dude, Where's My Respect? You've saved the world, but durnit, you're not too good to deliver my apples to the baker!
Dungeon Maintenance Game mechanics may be a given to the players, but they're a lot of work for the locals.
Easing Into The Adventure Before you start the adventure properly, you'll be shown cavorting around your tiny home town.
An Economy Is You All stores in a city are centered around selling things you in particular will need.
Elemental Crafting The most important aspect of a piece of armor? What material it's made from!
Equipment Based Progression Occasionally an RPG will make characters more powerful by having them find better equipment, instead of leveling up with experience points (or by having them level up their equipment).
Equipment Spoiler Finding an unusable piece of equipment means that someone able to use it will join the party at some point.
Experience Points You get them by killing enemies (or possibly completing other tasks or objectives), and when you get enough your Character Level or abilities increase.
Improbable Power Discrepancy Enemies are given statistics based on how powerful you are expected to be at that point, not how strong that enemy would be based on common sense.
Inevitable Tournament If there is a fighting tournament held somewhere in the game, chances are 99% that you will compete in it.
Inexplicable Treasure Chests Where did they come from? Who put them there? Why does nobody else but you ever open them?
Informed Equipment Characters' equipment won't show up visually on their character model; they may be wearing Diamond Armor, but it looks like the same old Stripperiffic costume to me...
Inn Security Whenever the plot requires a stay at the inn, you will always wake up in the middle of the night for a plot event.
Irrelevant Sidequest Everyone seems to constantly ask you to do sidequests that have absolutely nothing to do with your main objective.
Item Crafting Creating your own items and equipment out of handy-dandy ingredients.
Just Add Water Items can generally be created by just sticking two or three things together and hitting "MIX".
Job System Eastern RPG system whereby classes have distinct equipment and abilities but can be changed at any time.
Karl Marx Hates Your Guts Where it's impossible to make money because everything always costs the same, so you can never sell at a profit.
Kleptomaniac Hero Looting is a very important aspect of RPG. Everything that's not nailed down is yours to take.
Last Disc Magic In Eastern RPGs, although magic is usually less efficient than melee attacks, a spell or set of spells later in the game will be much better than the rest.
Level Up At Intimacy 5 As you build an emotional (or sexual) relationship with an in-game NPC, your character gets physically stronger or gains skills because of it.
More Friends, More Benefits Games where the best result can be gotten by seducing or wooing every single person who seems even remotely interested in you.
Money Spider Even monsters need to carry money. (What do they spend it on?)
Monster Allies Where monsters fight alongside the party instead of against it.
Mutually Exclusive Party Members Certain characters will refuse to join you if other characters are already in the party, or will leave when someone else joins. Sometimes controlled by the plot, but other times it's just that the two simply can't be in the party together.
News Travels Fast As soon as something important happens in the plot, everyone in the world will know about it.
Pamphlet Shelf Whenever you see a bookshelf, there will never be more than one book (and often one line) that you can read.
Parabolic Power Curve A situation where, as your character gains levels, they begin getting less effective in certain tasks.
Party in My Pocket Only the main character is shown walking around; other party members will appear when needed, or even walk out of his body.
Party Of Representatives A party of characters that comprise of multiple races/species throughout the game's world.
Perpetually Static Rules in an MMORPG that prevents the game from being changed unduly by the players.
Player Party A set of characters whom you control together throughout the game.
Player Personality Quiz A quiz during character creation that determines your alignment or statistics.
Plunder Frequently referred to as 'loot', and like Experience Points, it's rewards (but of a physical manner) from defeating your enemies, from money to useful equipment. Arguably, stuff you get from other people as a reward for completing tasks from them count as well (the tasks of which may involve collecting Twenty Bear Asses.).
Plot Tunnel Linear plot sequence that forces you to put your usual sidequests on hold while important plot events develop.
Point of No Return There is no turning back once you cross this line near the end of the game — you can only finish the game or die trying.
Power Equals Rarity The more powerful an item/Mon/etc. is in a game, the harder it is to find.
Skill Scores And Perks Abstract conventions of how playable characters' skills and abilities work in the game.
Sole Entertainment Option In the entire in-game world, there is only one kind of entertainment or only one city where you can find it.
So Long, and Thanks for All the Gear A party member leaves the party for some part of the game, taking whatever you equipped them with in the process. Hope it wasn't anything you needed!
Sorry I'm Late When you're separated from your party, they will join up with you in the course of one or more random encounters.
Villain Forgot To Level Grind Where the villain is still at the same level he was at ten hours ago, but the heroes are ten levels higher and therefore beat him handily.
Wallet of Holding Where you can collect millions of gold coins and not have your pants fall down.
Warp Whistle Instantaneously teleport to any location you've been to before.
We Buy Anything Want to sell that rusty suit of armor at a grocery store? They'll take it, no questions asked!
We Cannot Go On Without You You get a Game Over when the main character is killed, regardless of how many of his companions are still alive or whether they can quickly revive him.
