This post will be a brief genre analysis. I'm testing my writing ability for future game design essays / analyses. I will attempting to explain the core systems and appeal of a turn-based RPG and why.

What is a Turn-Based RPG?

Above, I have attached an image of a taxonomy I made for my own understanding, of how I visualize and define a turn-based RPG. I first had to define an RPG (role-playing game), and, as stated above, I believe an RPG emphasizes player agency, fantasy, and progression, wherein a player is immersed in a world and character to complete either narrative (story) or gameplay (game areas, bosses, etc.) arcs.

Core Systems

• Turn-Based combat

Turn-Based combat, unlike real-time combat, is slower and requires longer term strategy. While many RPGs use real-time combat (Skyrim, Dark Souls, Fallout 4), I believe turn-based combat contributes a unique framework for immersing a player. The mechanic of allowing the player and their enemies to take turns imbues both sides with a sense of, fairness, and equality. We get more time with both our player character, our party members, and our enemies, and so the player is given more time to engage with the narrative underneath the immediate gameplay.

• Narrative
• Open-world
• Equipment progression
• Boss fights
• Combos
• Enemy Types
• Ability Types

Unique Language

• Grinding - The accumulation of some resource to progress at a rapid pace via repetitive, often mindless, actions. Typically a negative connotation is assigned to the act, often "boredom".
• Effective Against / Weak to - Many turn-based RPGs utilize "type" systems for abilities and enemies, incentivizing the player to be smart about how the they build their characters to deal with different types of enemies. Pokemon is the forerunner of this in my mind.
• Party - A player typically has a group of allies alongside their character, forming a "party" where each character has individual skills and stats to keep in mind for battles.

Audience

Architects, Bards, and Bounty Hunters are the four profiles that would best match the style of turn-based RPGs. Turn-based RPGs prioritize strategic combat that requires critical planning, and the player is rewarded to find the move with the most beneficial outcome. Architects would enjoy the customization aspect of creating a good build that progresses them through enemy combat the most effectively, while Bards and Bounty Hunters would enjoy the more narrative aspects of the games and how emotionally driven the combat is.

Subgenres & Game Inheritence

• I would say most turn-based RPGs incorporate multiple elements and systems from multiple subgenres, but in general, the combat systems tend toward complex, as most of the challenge falls on the player to strategize their attacks instead of immediately reacting. Games are more transparently numbers-based than that of real-time visual RPGs where the spectacle and spatial element takes priority in the player's mind.

From previous genres, I believe the turn-based genre has inherited many of its traits from the earliest of its kind, such as Chrono Trigger, Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, etc. But before that, there were old RPGs made for the first personal computers, and so ultimately, I think the most critical trait that the turn-based genre takes from RPGs is the fantasy element; the turn-based combat is in service of an immersive experience that puts the player in a fantastical world in which things don't play out the way they would in reality. 

Trope I've Noticed

• Party Attack - I've noticed that in multiple games I've played, there is a meter that builds up overtime when you perform combos with your allies, and if it is filled, it triggers a super attack where all your party members attack together. This happens in both OMORI and In Stars in Time, so while it might not be a trope, it is a mechanic used that incentivizes prioritizing combo attacks to defeat your enemies, while also enhancing the players engagement with the party's character dynamics.