RPG Games Analysis

What features and abilities can the player choose for their character when they define their character?

What player-chosen abilities can affect gameplay and what player-chosen abilities won’t affect gameplay?

How does the game character level up? What game actions result in the main character increasing their level?

What skills and abilities are affected by character leveling? Does this game have a skill tree? If so, what

abilities/skills are in the skill tree.

What techniques does the game use to create a believable and complex world?

How does the player progress in the game? If the game uses Quests then how are the Quests organized? How

does the player get and complete a quest?

How are resources managed in the game? What kinds of resources does the game allow the player to use? What

kind of crafting does the game include?

How does the game present the main game narrative? How are quest narratives presented and how are they

related to the main game narrative? C. Upload your document to Canvas or enter the text

Game: West of Loathing

Platform: PC

Summary of Game: This is a role playing game set in the old west. You play a character trying to make their way in the

old west by completing a series of quests.

Features and Abilities Player Can choose

When starting the game the player can choose from a set of characters and from a set of abilities. These include three

general kinds of abilities including Melee weapons, magic, and sneak. Based on the choice the player ill have different

kind of abilities.

The player chooses a character to be male/female.

Once chosen the player can choose between several different character types. Each type has some perks and abilities

that the other types don’t. For example, the Cow Puncher has strong melee abilities while the Beanslinger has the ability

to cast spells.

Playing chosen abilities affecting gameplay

The kind of character chosen at the initial gameplay will affect how the player interacts primarily with battles. Cow

Puncher types have more strength but less magic abilities, while the beanslinger has additional magic abilities. While

combat is turn-based the player abilities can result in more damage done to the opponents. Other than combat, the

player chosen abilities don’t have a lot of impact because other abilities and increases to existing abilities can be

acquired by reading purchased books.

Leveling up

Each character has a set list of characteristics into which the player can put points gained through XP.

The characters level are the stats. The players starts out with some points in each of these abilities but can be raised

through XP. The skills can be acquired in the game by reading books or finding stuff.

Skill trees and leveling

Another feature of role playing games are skill trees. These are skills that stack and can be acquired during gameplay. In

this game the skills include combat and miscellaneous skills. Both of these skills will be acquired and enhanced during

gameplay. The skill tree is linear and not branching but increasing the skills will allow the player to accomplish some

additional tasks.

Creating an open world

The world of West of Loathing is fairly small compared to other open-world RPGs, but there are still a lot of things to do.

Initially, the world has just a few displayed locations and you learn of others either by taking quests or just “wandering

around” and riding into new areas. As you complete quests you unlock new areas. The ability to randomly find new

places and to complete quests in random order makes this an open world.

Player Progression

The player progresses by exploring and finding new resources and by completing quests. These quests typically require

exploring places or gathering specific resources. This quest based progression structure is common to RPGs and works

well with this game.

Quests are given to you in dialog with game character.

In this case you need to get enough dynamite to clear tracks for a railroad. In order to get enough dynamite you have to

get enough money, which requires completing other quests. Each quest can be done in any order and some of the

quests are about your current level and are difficult to do. A quest could also involve multiple tasks and sometimes

require that additional quests be completed.

By gating other parts of the game based on completing quests, the player progression is controlled by the game.

Combat

Game combat is turn-based and relies on strategy. When starting combat, the player has a set of tools they can use for

combat. These include various skills and a surrender flag. The HP of each character is shown on the screen and they

damage amount of each skill or item. The opponent also has a list of HP along with some skills and features. By selecting

the appropriate weapon or enhancement the players attacks by pressing the spacebar. If there are multiple opponents

the player can focus on a single or even multiple opponents.

Resource Management

Resource management is done through the inventory page which shows what resources you have along with how your

character is equipped. Items that can be equipped will confer additional benefit to your character.

Your character can purchase and sell items at a store. The currency in this game are meat nuggets.

Game Narrative

The game narrative is presented through interactions with characters, reading information in the world, and engaging in

quests. The only initial narrative is that the player has left home to get on with their life. Not a lot of targeted story

driven narrative in this game.