“on rails” progression - no loot, any new gear is discovered as part of the story (e.g. OG Zelda -> blue ring -> red ring); minimal loot
hard, but fair, boss fights
dungeon feel - less emphasis on puzzles, more on working room to room to find items to access the boss
minimal emphasis on stats, so grinding shouldn’t be a thing of playing normally
forced usage of gadgets/types of weapons
Examples of games that qualify:
most Zelda titles - A Link to the Past, Link’s Awakening, Ocarina of Time, Skyward Sword; not BotW or TotK
Ys games - esp. Ys 1 and Ys Origin; later titles lose focus IMO (more gear, more leveling, etc)
Okami - boss fights aren’t exactly what I’m looking for, but the rest of the game is close
Examples that don’t qualify:
Diablo and similar - far too much loot and skill trees
Dark Souls - it’s close, but the variety of equipment is a bit much; I want less choice, not more,; but DS is pretty close
Assassin’s Creed - “boss fights” are usually lame, too much focus on upgrades, stealth isn’t really my thing
Games on the fence:
Tunic - I’ve played an hour or so and it was tons of fun
Titan Souls - finished and loved it, just worried mentioning it will take people off track since it doesn’t have any progression, dungeons, etc
Furi - again, loved it, but like Titan Souls, it’s a bit of an exception
Basically, I want a game that forces me to learn and adapt using the limited tools the game provides. Here are things I absolutely want to avoid:
feeling of being OP - causes me to drop most (a)RPGs
lots of choices - if I get an upgrade, it should be strictly an upgrade (e.g. more damage)
loot - I hate managing inventories (exception: switching gadgets to solve puzzles/different enemy types) and buying/selling stuff; I want that progression managed for me
Basically, I shouldn’t have to think outside solving puzzles and fighting bosses.
Indie games are preferred.
Platforms:
PC (or emulator) - preferred, esp if I can use my Steam Deck
Crystalis has forced or near-forced grinding due to level requirements to hurt bosses, so it’s on the fence. If its progression were a little smoother it would be a shoo-in.
There is a hack to remove boss level requirements but fighting a boss below the intended level may not be fun.
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Illusion of Gaia on SNES maybe?
And by extension Terranigma and Soul Blazer.
Also Secret of Mana and Secret of Evermore as well.
Also Crystalis on NES.
Crystalis totally fits the requirements. Excellent NES RPG.
Crystalis has forced or near-forced grinding due to level requirements to hurt bosses, so it’s on the fence. If its progression were a little smoother it would be a shoo-in.
There is a hack to remove boss level requirements but fighting a boss below the intended level may not be fun.