posting here because maybe it already exists and i've just missed it... also maybe i'm misusing the term feature. AAAAnyway,

i've bought a few games from gog because they were listed as rpgs, but according to my definition, there was nothing rpg-ish about them. (the most recent was mutazione, which i liked anyway.)

is there a page somewhere with the criteria for the different game categories, that explains why these games were called rpgs? would that be helpful to anyone else?

thanks for your time!

The categories don't make much sense to be fair. The best you can do currently is just look for a few reviews or saved gogmixes posted about off-site

Also its down to the person. Games that you for example might think are RPGs, I might have a different opinion. Take Fallout 4 for example I don't see it as an RPG but alot of people do.

which is why i ask for the criteria of the people who are categorizing the games. if they're going to use a category, especially one that has lots of variables--which i agree, rpgs definitely do--it would be helpful to know what they're basing it on.

Transparency in glassware shop, Something else here.

There is no international game genre convention that everyone has to follow. For every attempt of establishing a certain set of criteria for a specific genre you will find 17 websites specifically dedicated to prove it wrong.

not asking for an international anything. i'm asking for clarity from GOG. i don't think there needs to be a single set of standards, i'm great with GOG having their own, but it would be good to know what it is. ok, i think i've said that enough now... right?

The problem is if we start putting games in smaller/more detailed lists it will mean more lists to sort through, and some will likely find other reasons to complain. I usually just open a category and sort by ratings/price and look through them to find ones I want or get suggestions/game info from friends if I need help making decisions or finding out about new games.

I agree some bit of info on why the game is marked a certain category(on the game's page) might be nice to have, and perhaps an explanation of what criteria gog uses to slot games into the various categories as well.

yep, your last points are definitely what i'm talking about. not asking for anything to change about how games are categorized (so no need for smaller or more detailed lists). just asking for what criteria is already being used. like themken said, it's just transparency.

it doesn't seem like adding a paragraph or a page somewhere with this (kind of) info would be hard. if it would be, then that's fine. and now i know to go and research games listed as rpgs here.
but probably there are and will be unhappy customers in the future, avoidable by what seems like an easy fix... but maybe i'm wrong.

Sounds good, then, and I support such as well. Good luck, and if you need suggestions i'm sure there are people here who would be glad to help out. :) No you're not wrong.....the ones working on the site just seemingly care more about their newest client being developed.

(Also for the future: You can reply and it'll notify me if/when you send me[or someone else] a reply if you hit the reply button next to the post/add a reply and hit send/etc instead of using generic quote tags like you did. Just a suggestion)

thanks! i'll try to remember that for the next time i get a bug up my butt ;)

Tis not a bug up your butt, but a user feature. ;)

These are always somewhat arbitrary. You have to do a little research for any game to get a proper feeling for it anyway.

Remember when the most one needed to do to research a game was look at the back of the box? I miss those days. :|

Yeah. so many games are a bit of this and a bit of that, they'd end up using most of the genre tags in many games. If a strategy game has real-time world map but turn-based combat, or vice versa, then it would be a realtime turnbased strategy etc.

This always reminds me how to categorize e.g. System Shock and its sequel, System Shock 2. Are they both action-adventures? Or are they adventures at all as there is no point'n'click or parser interface at all, and not much of puzzles (some though)? Or is the second one an action-RPG because it has some RPG'ish features slapped on it, like improving sort of skills while you play etc., while in the original you "merely" can add hardware or software components to yourself which improve your abilities? Or are they both action-RGPs, or is that genre reserved only to Diablo-clones?

Similar is also Deus Ex vs Deus Ex: Invisible War. The latter stripped away the skills from the first game, but still otherwise it feels somewhat similar to the first game, you do get better in the game when you get upgrades (mods) to yourself etc., and you still have that "roleplaying" part where you can decide which faction you support and even the ending depends on some of your choices.

Yet, many people seem to consider the first game a RPG (at least action-RPG), but not the latter.

Also, what many of us old-skoolers think of (C)RPGs have features from some other genres as well, e.g. the combat is quite often (turn-based) tactical. We are just accustomed to the idea that "pure" CRPGs have tactical turn-based combat, and not e.g. action-based (like Gothic, Deus Ex etc.). I am not familiar with the game, but just out of curiosity, what is your definition of a RPG (or rpg'ish features), and how would you categorize that game Mutazione? What are the genre tags you personally would use for it?

Not trying to argue here whether you are right or wrong with your definitions, just interested to hear different viewpoints. To be fair, it is not like they give such detailed explanations of genre tags (especially per game) in other stores either. Like "We marked this game Bullzidore also as a RPG because it has skills you can improve throughout the game. That is a bit like RPG, is it? No? Yes? Maybe?".