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> For comparison, remember that western RPGs by this time barely had any story. Apart from games like Betrayal at Krondor and the Ultima series, it was still mo

> For comparison, remember that western RPGs by this time barely had any story. Apart from games like Betrayal at Krondor and the Ultima series, it was still mostly “create a group of heroes, enter dungeon & kill evil wizard”. I feel like this couldn't have been true by 1995.

mywittyname 4y ago
I mean, Fallout and Planescape Torment.
- CodesInChaos 4y ago
  Fallout was published in Oct '97 and Planescape in Dec '99.
bsder 4y ago
The Narrative RPG was pretty thin on the ground in the Western RPG category until the late 1990s.
- com2kid 4y ago
  Betrayal At Krondor - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betrayal_at_Krondor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betrayal_at_Krondor Quest For Glory series - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quest_for_Glory https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quest_for_Glory Ultima Underworld - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultima_Underworld_II:_Labyrinth_of_Worlds https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultima_Underworld_II:_Labyrint... Darksun - (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Sun:_Shattered_Lands https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Sun:_Shattered_Lands) Incredibly large number of ways to resolve any situation, and one of the best, and most flexible, opening sequences to a game that I've played to date. The mainline Ultima series, notably https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultima_VII:_The_Black_Gate https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultima_VII:_The_Black_Gate was 1993 and started to get heavy on narrative. Ravenloft: Strahd's Possession - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravenloft:_Strahd%27s_Possession https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravenloft:_Strahd%27s_Possessi... 3 games in made back to back by that developer, all are worth playing. The Summoning - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Summoning_(video_game) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Summoning_(video_game) Predates Planescape Torment, but is in the same genre/feel. Dragon Wars - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_Wars https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_Wars Open world RPG, fit on a single floppy disk. Start out as a slave, work you way up to leading (or suppressing!) revolutions. Less narrative heavy maybe, but still a great game, and one of the most groundbreaking IMHO. Needs more appreciation. While I'll admit Baldur's Gate was a first for the very large amount of text included, it isn't like western RPGs were devoid of storyline prior to 1995.
- Waterluvian 4y ago
  Pathways Into Darkness (1993) had a brilliant narrative. The most disappointing thing is that so many people will never experience it.
tsgagnon 4y ago
I feel like this couldn't have been true by 1995. The market of RPGs specifically made in the west by 1995 is relatively limited. So, you cross out the biggest entries in that space and you will run out of options pretty quickly. But the argument falls a little too close to "If you exclude the western RPGs titles with a plot, there aren't many western RPGs with a plot".

mywittyname 4y ago

I mean, Fallout and Planescape Torment.

CodesInChaos 4y ago
Fallout was published in Oct '97 and Planescape in Dec '99.

bsder 4y ago

The Narrative RPG was pretty thin on the ground in the Western RPG category until the late 1990s.

com2kid 4y ago
Betrayal At Krondor - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betrayal_at_Krondor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betrayal_at_Krondor Quest For Glory series - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quest_for_Glory https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quest_for_Glory Ultima Underworld - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultima_Underworld_II:_Labyrinth_of_Worlds https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultima_Underworld_II:_Labyrint... Darksun - (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Sun:_Shattered_Lands https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Sun:_Shattered_Lands) Incredibly large number of ways to resolve any situation, and one of the best, and most flexible, opening sequences to a game that I've played to date. The mainline Ultima series, notably https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultima_VII:_The_Black_Gate https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultima_VII:_The_Black_Gate was 1993 and started to get heavy on narrative. Ravenloft: Strahd's Possession - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravenloft:_Strahd%27s_Possession https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravenloft:_Strahd%27s_Possessi... 3 games in made back to back by that developer, all are worth playing. The Summoning - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Summoning_(video_game) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Summoning_(video_game) Predates Planescape Torment, but is in the same genre/feel. Dragon Wars - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_Wars https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_Wars Open world RPG, fit on a single floppy disk. Start out as a slave, work you way up to leading (or suppressing!) revolutions. Less narrative heavy maybe, but still a great game, and one of the most groundbreaking IMHO. Needs more appreciation. While I'll admit Baldur's Gate was a first for the very large amount of text included, it isn't like western RPGs were devoid of storyline prior to 1995.
Waterluvian 4y ago
Pathways Into Darkness (1993) had a brilliant narrative. The most disappointing thing is that so many people will never experience it.

tsgagnon 4y ago

I feel like this couldn't have been true by 1995. The market of RPGs specifically made in the west by 1995 is relatively limited. So, you cross out the biggest entries in that space and you will run out of options pretty quickly. But the argument falls a little too close to "If you exclude the western RPGs titles with a plot, there aren't many western RPGs with a plot".