So many unpopular (that's the key word right there) opinions, and mine is the one on what I call an RPG is causing such a stir.
It's not just style or just gameplay mechanics. It's a combination of the two. Which aren't meaningless because more than one person has had no problem describing it in this thread.
And yeah, WRPG fits King's Field to a "T", despite it having Japanese origins. It's like an updated version of Wizardry or an old D&D game. Like I said earlier in this discussion, it's more a mechanics and style thing than it is a country of origin thing.
They are well-defined and classified sub-genres (that multiple people in this thread have now shown can easily be separated).
More than one person has explained why they're silly to have in the first place. Mechanics and style can only do so much to make a point when, instead, it's more effective to put them in one genre. They aren't as well-defined as people would like to think. In other word, people see a J in front of RPG and they think Japanese origins, publishers, developers, etc. People see a W in front of "RPG" and they think Western origins, publishers, developers, etc. It's misleading.
To say they are the same would be like saying there's no difference between slasher movies and zombies movies, it's all horror. No, there's a difference. They may both be horror, but they both have discernible differences that can classify them into sub-genres; same as JRPG or WRPG.
Wouldn't it be more effective to say that Movie 1 is a horror flick with zombies that do such n' such, and Movie 2 is a movie with a maniac that does such n' such?
Those aren't even the only two sub-genres of RPGs. We also have action-RPGs, strategy-RPGs, dungeon-crawlers, and Rogue-like RPGs.
That's describing their blueprint and not the same thing as using a J or a W before the acronym. I use strategy-RPG or tactical-RPG to describe something like Valkyria Chronicles, X-Com, Ogre Battle, etc. All are very different games, but they're strategy based. I use action-RPG to describe something like Alundra 2, Alpha Protocol, or Demon's Souls. All are very different games, but they're action based. I use rouge-like to describe anything from the original Rouge to a modern day rouge-like or rouge-lite such as Shiren or Sorcery Saga. All are very different games, but they utilize the random level generation and brutal difficulty.
I have zero need to attach either J or W.
It's not like it's some negative label or something, either. It's just an easier way to narrow-down and identify what types of games you are playing when you're talking about them.
I mean, if you think that way then you're an anomaly. The seemingly constant arguments of J vs. W, the stigma that comes attached with both letters, the way certain franchises have tried to mimic others, and the divide caused among RPG fans using the above popular categorizations is damaging.
