Top 10 RPG Cliches

Some things will always stay the same.

RPG’s have come a long way from the days of the NES and the original Final Fantasy. Since then there has been hundreds of RPG’s made with many different stories, characters and play styles. Even with all these games coming out, some things seem to stay the same no matter what. We present the top 10 cliches in the world of RPG’s. (in no particular order)

Kids are constantly saving the world.

It seems that in every RPG no one over the age of 30 can get enough energy to go out and stop the latest evil creature that is trying to destroy the world. What always ends up happening is a group of 15-18 year olds (with the exception of one older character, and one very young) gathers together to stop the end of the world.

 

No one has anything good to say.

“Welcome to town! Be careful of the bandits!” Seems like great information to get on your first visit to the town. Over the next few hours you save the town, return their king, spend countless amounts of money in their shops, and make the inn a second home. You go back to that person in town, expecting some gratitude from them for all your good deeds and you get “Welcome to town! Be careful of the bandits!” Thanks buddy… thanks a lot.

Ghost Ships.

Remember that tale of a ship of the damned that roams the sea looking for souls to add to it’s crew? Well that ship seems to have a fixed home in almost every RPG in one shape or form. The heroes will need to take a ship to the next destination, everything looking wonderful and not a cloud in the sky… when all of a sudden a ghost ship appears! The smart thing would be to turn around and get the heck out of there, but for some reason investigating the ship is the next best option.

Trains, Planes and Chocobos!

There seems to be a fixed hierarchy to how one gets around the world in an RPG. The first is always the walking, walking in towns, maps, and dungeons to get wherever you want. Then all of a sudden walking all over each continent is no longer good enough and a vehicle is procured! It will either be some type of rover, or a friendly creature that doesn’t care if you hitch a ride on it. Along the way you will also pick yourself up something aquatic to travel on, considering that giant bird that has been running around everywhere can’t swim at all. The final stop is always at the same place, an airship. This will be used for for the rest of the game as your primary mode of travel… but don’t you dare try and land in a forest!

 

Kinda Japanese but not really.

It is no secret that Japan loves it’s RPG’s, and that most of them are made by Japanese game makers. So there is no wonder why there is so much of their culture put into the games as well. There is always a town, culture, or character that is clearly something grabbed out of a Japanese history book, but changed every so slightly that it is not Japanese at the same time. There is also the chance you will see some Kanji on the walls, on posters, and on street signs. If you are a curious gamer you may try and look up what they mean and find out that it looks like Kanji but it is just made up characters to resemble the language.

 There is always a Tower.

Why do villains like towers so much? It seems that there is no escaping the inevitable tower dungeon in an RPG. We all know the boss is at the top and we have to get there, but it’s a pain in the rear to get there. There will also be that point in the dungeon that you think you got to the top, only to discover another 5 levels to go… game designers are evil people sometimes.

 Don’t bring a sword to a robot laser fight.

With all the technology that is available in some worlds, it is still amazing a sword would still be a viable option to use. For some reason RPG characters (usually the main hero) will have a sword as their main weapon. This sword will be magical, powerful, given to them by their father, or 7 feet long. A lot of the time, the sword you start off with will be made of the most powerful substance a hero can gather to create a sword out of… WOOD! Everyone else will be smart enough for some reason to pack guns, lasers, or robot mech suits, but the guy in charge… he’s the one with the pointy stick.

The one you love the most will die.

The RPG is a cruel beast. It will gather a group of heroes to battle the enemy, and you will spend 40-60 hours with those characters and learn to love them in every way. You will also favour 3-4 of the group that you use the most because they have the best synergy or you like the look of the group. Then there will be that important moment where you have to escape from the main bad guy, and the only way to do so is to…leave someone behind. That character will not be one of your choice… but the one that you use in every fight! COME ON GUYS! Stop killing the characters I love!

Small “adorable” sidekicks.

What’s cuter than a small talking animal that will constantly talk through the entire journey and tell you what you are doing wrong or right at every turn and will PURPOSELY get you into trouble by pushing that button, alerting the enemy and causing overall pain and suffering!?!??! Nothing, amirite?

Creatures of immense power that have nothing better to do.

Are you the lord of fire, ice, wind or the cosmos? Do you have infinite power over your realm with the choice to do whatever you want whenever you want? Then why not sign up today to get called on by a bunch of punk teenagers who can’t handle things themselves! Just wait for them to dance, use a flute or somehow tricking you to bind to their soul and all this fun could be yours!