![]() ![]() exciting action sequences), story-driven (i.e. Halo, Call of Duty, God of War, Uncharted, Final Fantasy, and Paper Mario are all of examples of single-player experiences that don't allow for much unguided exploration, and are undoubtedly some of the greatest games ever made.īut for linear game designs to pay off, there needs to be a "hook". I'd argue that linearity isn't necessarily a bad thing: many great games use linearity to craft focused, memorable experiences for the player. Whether its deserved or not, JRPGs are stereotyped as linear experiences, and some unfairly equate that to "JRPGs are bad". As a result, we tend to complain when RPGs restrict our freedom. Many of us are used to huge, open-ended RPGs that actively encourage exploring and getting diverted off the main path (Elder Scrolls, Fallout, etc). "Linear" RPGs, or ones that restrict exploration and player freedom, get a bad rap in Western circles. Don't be fooled by the game's opening, either: roughly half of the game's dialog isn't voice-acted. When playing Tales of Symphonia, expect lots and lots of awkward, boring dialog as you get shuttled from town to town. While there are many issues with this game, I would summarize it as one main critique: a linear experience with no hook. It's tedious, frustrating, and outright disrespectful to the player's time.
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