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Topic: What genre would you call this type of game, exactly?

Posts 1 to 9 of 9

EarthboundBenjy

So, it's not quite a sidescrolling action game, it's not quite an RPG, it's not quite Metroidvania either. I don't know. I'm thinking of games like Simon's Quest, Zelda II, Shantae, Super Paper Mario and Faxanadu. Sort of. Maybe there're some more of these types of games around, I dunno.
So. What are they?

They're not really "side-scrolling action", since that makes me think of linear level-by-level, stage-after-stage games like Super Mario.

Not Really RPGs, as the fighting is all done side-scrolling with an attacking button. There may be level-up systems and inventories and towns with shops around, but I wouldn't exactly call it an RPG.

Not really "Metroidvania", as the overworld is all just sideways going, mostly. Well, except for Zelda II that has the top-down map. But somehow, Zelda II doesn't feel too different in genre from Simon's Quest. Yet, all of These games do feel substantially different to the Castlevania series of Metroidvania games. Hm hm.
But, I guess, these games do follow the trend of "find item, allows you to proceed, get next item" etc. Hm.

There needs to be some sort of genre name for these sorts of games. I guess "Metroidvania" fits them well enough, but I'm not too sure about that.

EarthboundBenjy

theblackdragon

zelda II's an action-rpg. simon's quest is action-adventure-y, kinda platformer-y. shantae, super paper mario, and faxanadu are more straight-up platformers, i think.

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EarthboundBenjy

Right. I wasn't asking "hey help me out. what genre are these five games?". I was trying to understand the genres of these sorts of games in general.

EarthboundBenjy

Oregano

I think Muramasa would be an example of this too. It's an RPGish, platfomer, beat 'em up.

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theblackdragon

i just told you what i'm pretty sure they are, though some people's opinions may differ. why do they need to all be lumped into a brand new category all their own? i don't get it. they're not all the same.

... unless i'm misunderstanding what you're asking again? which could very well be the case, lol

Edited on by theblackdragon

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Philip_J_Reed

Genres exist as a convenience for discussing games or other artistic works (for example, it's easier to say "first-person shooter" than it is to explain to somebody that you play as a character with a gun, and you can only see his hands, and you run around battling enemies with firearms as your main weapon). They aren't hard and fast and they aren't even necessary. They exist as terms only...they're just words, not rules. And as you've explained in your original post, you can't swing a dead cat without finding some game that appears to be PRETTY MUCH in one genre, but still contains aspects of another.

If you can't classify it in a genre, you can qualify it a bit by saying, "It's an RPG with platforming elements," or "it's an action puzzler" or something.

But at the end of the day, those terms are just there for convenience. If you can't fit certain games into a set of imaginary guidelines, then don't worry. They probably weren't meant to be there anyway.

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V8_Ninja

Basically what Mr. Brutus said.

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NotEnoughGolds

Call it a hybrid. Or crossover.
Or action-platforming-RPG, or...
a hybrid action-adventure/shoot 'em up video game
a platforming and run and gun video game

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Adam

Puzzle/MMO

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