Generally an RPG, or Role Playing Game, is a game in which a player chooses a character that is used as a vessel through which the fictional world is explored. This world is usually steeped in fantasy, whether to vanquish evil or to blend into the underbelly of society.
By looking at three extremes of the RPG realm, the basic components that comprise an RPG become evident. Firstly, D.O. Online, an MMORPG, massive multi-payer online RPG, is fully 3-D and all about martial arts fantasy, and allows one to choose to become good or evil. It is your typical "point-and-click" MMO, which can become repetitive, and has little character customization.
Secondly, the Kingdom of Loathing offers simplistic drawings and nonsensical storylines in order to create an entertaining atmosphere that seems to eliminate some of the stress related to the need to beat the game. It's 2-D seemingly hand-drawn images and complete RPG experiences are used to mock the sophisticated computer graphics of most RPG video games. Without animation, or audio, it relies on humor and offers lots of customization potential.
Thirdly, SaGa Frontier 2, is a typical 2-D offline "traditional" RPG that many gamers were accustomed to in the early days of video games. Like in KOL, battles are conducted through turns between the enemy and the protagonist, rather than real-time combat, like D.O. Online. The story is entirely linear, and although the character can choose different points of view, the outcome is the same since the story is set in stone.
After analyzing these three very different RPG's we found several similarities that can be said to define the RPG in general.
A limited number of characters are available to choose from, each type or class having a particular skill. The character is usually given a quest or mission which is either a temporary goal or the overriding goal in order to complete the game. The fictitious world the characters inhabit is usually deciphered through maps and is made more tangible, coherent and truthful by some sort of economy, whether for items or merely lives.
There are stat points attached to the character, and these stat points increase with play as a representation of a level achieved. In combat or other encounters, the player is given options which may effect these stat points or how the character evolves. Whether the action is animated 3-D or still images, or there is only one correct strategy and outcome or several, the player is given many opportunities to make decisions. Whether pertaining to weapons, clothing, or some form of barter, the options provide a sense of uniqueness of game for each player.
Due to these characteristics of the RPG, the player of RPG's is made to feel as if he/she influences some control over the end result of the game, no matter how rigid or linear the RPG. The mere choice of characters provides the player with a sense of attachment, and the stat points give a sense of life to these characters. This attachment encourages the player to play the game more and build his character in order to witness what seems to be a unique evolution, whether it is or not.
Unlike a platform game in which the character is forced to move in one direction or plane, RPG's provide the player with the ability to explore the fictitious world in the order desired. This not only again adds to the sense of uniqueness and control but also encourages exploration. Therefore the player needs to play more in order to fully explore, and this allows for the discovery of secret or hidden components, code bugs, or bonus material. All these things add to the overall individualism of the player's game.
Therefore it is the inherent characteristics of the RPG which provide the basis for its efficacy and addiction potential. The degree of sophistication of their graphics and details are supplementary but can heighten its potential and surreal qualities, but only temporarily. Once the technology becomes commonplace or outdated, then the game loses its novelty and loses the majority of its fun factor. Therefore it is these inherent characteristics which RPG's should develop in addition to the style.