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Message: <blockquote data-quote="WizarDru" data-source="post: 2786614" data-attributes="member: 151">Zelda is not an RPG by any stretch.  Link never changes, merely his equipment....and the player has no input into Link's abilities or equipment, other than choosing to purchase the maximum number of potions, bombs or what have you.  In an action-RPG like the Diablo or X-men Legend series (or the D&D X-box game), you have choices that affect your character's performance.  Yes, twitch gaming can and often IS involved....but the manner of that gaming is chosen by the player.  Do you choose to increase Wolverine's healing factor or his damage potential?  Do you give Storm the ability to fly longer during combat, or the ability to deflect damage or hurl lightning bolts?  Which characters do you use for a particular mission?  And so forth.  Some Zeldas offer more freedom than others (and side-quests)...but ultimately, you still need to follow the core adventure script.  In Wind Waker, you can explore the whole ocean for weeks...but until you rescue your sister, you will not have the equipment to proceed to certain areas of the game.  Period.To me, the distinction is not whether or not you level, but whether or not the act of leveling provides you with meaningful choices for development.  Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, for example, isn't an RPG.  I unlock new moves throughout the game...but the Hulk's powers really don't change and no specific move is integral to solve a particular mission (though some are clearly more helpful than others in specific situations).  Castlevania is not an RPG, in it's many forms, because even though you level up throughout the game, most of the effects are purely transparent, uncontrolled and not terribly meaningful to the player.  Compare that with Final Fantasy or Diablo, where you choose a particular upgrade path to the exclusion of another.  Choose to enhance one ability, materia or skill path, you do so to the potential detriment of another.  My Diablo II necromancer plays differently than my friend's, because he chose to emphasize exploding corpses while I chose to emphasize empowering my undead servants, for example.It died an ignoble death, unfortunately. Well, not really.  The issue is that the lines blurred, and pure adventure games disappeared.  For example, the brilliant Beyond Good & Evil...is it a racing game, stealth FPS, adventure game, RPG, or action game?  Answer: Yes.  It's all of those things.  Many modern games now incorporate multiple elements, blurring the lines between genres.  That said, there are adventure games being made...just under the radar.  Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney for the Nintendo DS is really just an adventure game with a gimmick...but it's a GREAT gimmick.  One of the best games I've played all year, in fact. And in a year with Resident Evil 4 and God of War...that's saying something.</blockquote>

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