History AbsurdlyHighLevelCap / RolePlayingGames

** In ''VideoGame/DragonQuestIV'', the level cap is 99, but players are likely to beat the game before they hit level 40. The game implicitly recognizes this in the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem original release]] by having every character learn all of their spells and abilities by then. Come [[UsefulNotes/NintendoDS the remake]], however, the hero now has a new spell at level 50, and a SecretCharacter can learn spells all the way up to level 60! Even with the BonusDungeon and new FinalBoss, however, players are quite capable of beating everything with levels in the low-to-mid 40's.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXVI'': Averted with this game as the only character who can be leveled up in this game is the sole playable character Clive Rosfield. In this game, Clive can take on the final boss comfortably at the levels around 40 to 42 and the cap is at 50. This is mainly due to how the game is more action oriented, requiring players to dodge and parry attacks while attacking freely themselves. However, the game has a hidden hard difficulty called "Final Fantasy Mode", which is achieved after beating the game once and is a new game plus. This mode changes enemy placements and gives them more aggressive AI but it also doubles Clive's level cap to the traditional 100. The DLC expansion "Echoes Of The Fallen increases the level cap by 5 but that depends on whether the game is played at new game plus or not with the cap set at 55 for normal playthroughs and 105 for those at new game plus.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXVI'': Averted with this game as the only character who can be leveled up in this game is the sole playable character Clive Rosfield. In this game, Clive can take on the final boss comfortably at the levels around 40 to 42 and the cap is at 50. This is mainly due to how the game is more action oriented, requiring players to dodge and parry attacks while attacking freely themselves. However, the game has a hidden hard difficulty called “Final Fantasy Mode”, which is achieved after beating the game once and is a new game plus. This mode changes enemy placements and gives them more aggressive AI but it also doubles Clive’s level cap to the traditional 100.

* ''VideoGame/SecretOfMana'' does this two different ways, the first cap being with character levels. The level cap for the three playable characters is 99, in a game you can comfortably finish at level 50, and HP will max out at about level 55 or so. Past level 60, the characters become powerful enough that the enemies in the final dungeon are pathetic, even without magic spamming. The other AbsurdlyHighLevelCap is in weapon levels. Getting the final Weapon Orbs is either done through a [[GoodBadBugs glitch]] or [[RandomDrops randomly dropping in treasure chests in the final dungeon]], and they may end up [[PermanentlyMissableContent lost forever]]. Even then, grinding for those last few weapon levels is fairly pointless. The charged attacks past level five are AwesomeButImpractical, since in the time it takes you to charge any higher, you'll have not only hit the damage cap, but could spam the lower-level attacks much faster for greater overall damage.

** By default the level cap of you and your demons in ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIVApocalypse'' is 99, and it's possible to beat the FinalBoss ([[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard who is level 100]]) with a level 99 party. There is a piece of free DLC that raises the level cap to 999, but [[DiminishingReturnsForBalance past level 99, stat growths decrease dramatically, you can't gain any more App Points, and demons cannot gain any bonus stat points from Apps]]. On the enemy side of things, the Fiends of [[BonsuDungeon Twisted Tokyo]] on repeat runs exceed level 99 and will continue to skyrocket in level until the final Fiend, En no Ozuno, is level 999. You ''will'' need the extended level cap to defeat these CameBackStrong versions, much less at level 999.

** By default the level cap of you and your demons in ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIVApocalypse'' is 99, and it's possible to beat the FinalBoss ([[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard who is level 100]]) with a level 99 party. However, a piece of free DLC allows you to extend the level cap all the way to 999. However, [[DiminishingReturnsForBalance past level 99, stat growths decrease dramatically, you can't gain any more App Points, and demons cannot gain any bonus stat points from Apps]]. On the enemy side of things, the Fiends of Twisted Tokyo on repeat runs exceed level 99 and will continue to skyrocket in level until the final Fiend, En no Ozuno, is level 999. You ''will'' need the extended level cap to defeat these CameBackStrong versions, much less at level 999.

* In the second ''VideoGame/{{Lisa}}'' game, the level cap is 99. Every party member learns their final skill at around level 24-25 and you'll probably be in that range by the time the game is over.

* Most ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' games have an AbsurdlyLowLevelCap, but ''2'' and ''4'' are the exception:

** ''VideoGame/MassEffect1'' has a level cap of 60, which is impossible to achieve in one playthrough (because levels 51-60 are unlocked by beating the game) and difficult to achieve in two (because of the ridiculously high amounts of experience needed to gain the last 10 levels[[note]] it takes more XP to level from 59 to 60 than it does to level from 1 to 45[[/note]]).
** ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' has a level cap is 30, which is easily reached in one playthrough. Plus, if you [[OldSaveBonus import a level 60 character from the first game]], you [[BagOfSpilling restart at level five]], making it easier to hit the cap, especially if you have the {{DLC}}.

* ''VideoGame/MassEffectAndromeda'' has no level cap for Ryder, and one can buy every upgrade around level 120, and a single playthrough usually gets a player on 50-60. On the other hand, the Nexus maxes out on level 20 (You can't get every upgrade for it, something the game doesn't tell you beforehand.), until the 1.06 patch which raised the level cap for the Nexus. as do multiplayer characters and strike teams.

* ''VideoGame/ChronoArk'': Each Investigator has a maximum level of 6. In standard gameplay, it's rare for any character to exceed level 3 at the end of a run.

* In the ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' games, the level cap for any given Mon is 100. However, you'll generally find yourself beating the [[BossRush Elite Four]] and [[FinalBoss Champion]] with your Pokémon team in the 50s, with any postgame story content bringing them up to the 70s at most unless you're level grinding. Even the strongest {{Superboss}} in the franchise ([[TrueFinalBoss Red]]) has his best teams maxed out in the 80s.

** The first game's cap is set at 25, but it's possible to get to the endgame significantly before then; reaching the cap requires loitering around completed areas several times just grinding out kills. Somewhat infamously, the balancing is so poor that even at the cap, everything from the FinalBoss to random {{mooks}} will still kill you in a handful of hits.

** ''Buu's Fury'' has the level cap at 200, well beyond the challenge of anything the game will throw at you.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXVI'': Averted with this game as the only character who can be leveled up in this game is the sole playable character Clive Rosfield. In this game, Clive can take on the final boss comfortably at the levels around 40 to 42 and the cap is at 50. This is mainly due to how the game is more action oriented, requiring players to doge and parry attacks while attacking freely themselves. However, the game has a hidden hard difficulty called “Final Fantasy Mode”, which is achieved after beating the game once and is a new game plus. This mode changes enemy placements and gives them more aggressive AI but it also doubles Clive’s level cap to the traditional 100.