by G. Stolyarov II

Created on: December 29, 2006   Last Updated: April 12, 2007

The characteristics which distinguish a good role-playing game (RPG) resemble in many ways those which one will find in a good book. The overarching story of the RPG needs to draw in the player via an intricate plot, an interesting conflict, a steady progression of events, well-developed characters, a complex and detailed background universe, and an emphasis on themes and issues universal to the human condition. Though fantasy it may be, an engaging RPG, like an engaging work of fantasy literature, still speaks to issues human beings face in the real world. The characters of RPGs, be they humans, elves, orcs, or space aliens, exhibit elements of human personality and behavior which render real human players able to identify with them, either in the positive sense of emulation or the negative sense of avoidance of the behaviors they exhibit.

Yet the RPG adds to the fantasy genre an entirely new level of experience which books and even films lack, a facet generated by its interactive nature. No longer does the "audience" of an RPG consist of mere spectators. Rather, the players are themselves participants in the RPG's world: not only participants, but often the key determinants of that world's fate.

While all good RPGs have the aforementioned elements of a good book, different RPGs vary on how they treat this interactive aspect. Some RPGs, especially older ones, are deterministic on the macro level; the character might have some choices in the kinds of dialogue he engages in, or in the kinds of fighting tactics he uses. However, the overarching storyline is already preset, and success in the RPG is equivalent to progressing along that storyline. Examples of this sort of deterministic RPG include the Diablo series and the Longest Journey series.

With the progress of computer gaming technology, however, it became possible to create RPGs with multiple and vastly divergent plot possibilities. Transition games in this development include the Gothic series and the Neverwinter Nights series. In these games, while the overall world of the game still moves in one general direction toward a single climax, the player is free to choose one of numerous paths toward that climax. The order of events, the alignment of the player with various forces in the game's world, and the player's movement throughout that world are often left entirely free to his choosing. These intermediate-stage games still preserved the focus and linearity characteristic of a good book while giving the

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