What's a CRPG?
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3. Sci-Fi/post-apocalyptic settings. These other settings are quite common in CRPGs, perhaps because of the similar "geeky" appeal of the genres. Science fiction purists typically scoff at "sci-fi," which they claim amounts to little more than fantasy or Western stories made up to look futuristic. In any case, even though these aren't "fantasy" settings in the same sense as the above, they are "fantastic" and out of the bounds of our normal experience. Tellingly, though, CRPG developers have often adapted the same game engine used in their fantasy games to cover sci-fi (i.e., SSI's Buck Rogers games), and some fantasy-based CRPGs (Ultima, Might and Magic) also contained sci-fi elements, to say nothing of games like Chrono Trigger.
4. Emphasis on strategic combat. Most CRPGs live or die by the sophistication of their combat system. Games like SSI's Wizard's Crown or Gold Box games triumph here, offering a fine degree of control over each character and "round." Other CRPGs are light on this, though--Hero's Quest, for instance, trades most of the strategy for an arcade-like setup, and many CRPGs force players to engage in hours and hours of tedious, repetitive combat that requires little to no strategy (just a bunch of clicking). Really, with #4 we start to get into some pretty fierce debate among CRPG fans, many of whom privilege #1 or a good story over combat. Other players privilege combat over all else. It's revealing to see which games a CRPG fan lists as the best. A Quest for Glory fan has different priorities than someone in love with Rogue, Wizardry, or Pool of Radiance.
