this post was submitted on 12 Jul 2023
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XP leveling systems and fast travel are bad mechanics that make games worse for their inclusion.
I think they mean when those system are impelmented into non RPGs, such as the new God of War games, Spider-Man, etc.
No I don't. This is a thread for gaming hot takes.
Xp doesn't even work in most RPGs.
The worst leveling system is pokemon. They have this beautifully crafted strategy game with advantages and counters that gets completely steamrolled by more levels = better in every way.
If enemies are a much higher level than you, they are impossible to fight, and enemies that are much lower are trivial and boring. The game only has a satisfying difficulty when enemie's power increases at the same rate as the player. This introduces so many design problems needlessly.
How can you balance a linear RPG so that players who blitz through the story, and completionists both have a satisfying experience?
How do you make an open world RPG that lets the player explore wherever they want, but also ensures they only ever run into enemies that are an appropriate level?
These XP systems where you become inately more powerful creates so many design problems. Games would be much better, RPGs included, if the designers didn't include XP leveling systems unless they really are adding something essential to this specific game.
Fast tarvel are optional in most games so if immersion is your thing just don't use it. I am not gonna hold w key for 10 mins to go to a different area, that simply is a waste of time to me. I wish fast travel are available even for shorter distances.
The problem your're describing is that the developers made uninteresting travel mechanics, and/or built their world in a way that requires the player to travel too much and too far.
Fast travel lets developers get away with bad design decisions, which they wouldn't make if they knew there wasn't going to be fast travel.
I wouldn't say it's bad. Like taking a big open world game like rdr2, you need fast travel one way or another. Either by train or horse fast travel I can pretty go around the whole map without too much hassle. I don't think that's breaking immersion and I would also sometime travel the entire distance by horse when I feel like it. You are absolutely free to say you don't like fast travel as optional mechanic but taking that away would genuinely make an open world game unplayable for me.
Agree with fast travel, but XP? That's a staple of RPGs
Agree on fast travel if immersion is your thing.