Is Mass Effect an Rpg series?

Mass Effect is the rpg all the hipsters are jelly about... Best franchise of gen, best rpg of gen... Oh and Garrus Vakarian.

@MBirdy88:

Umm, by what you posted, it would be a hybrid, yes? "Roleplaying third person shooter" Granted it is from wiki. but still claiming that it has no roleplaying mechanics is plain wrong, but claiming that it is a full fledged RPG first and foremost is also wrong.

Theres no such thing as an real/true RPG, the genre simply just doesn't exist, RPG is more like a formula, it can be applied to anything from 3rd Person shooters to Board Games. RPG simply cannot stand on its own as a genre, hence every single RPG is actually an (insert genre)-RPG. Just like Open World.

I would like to know how the third one isn't a rpg....... The leveling system was far more meaningful in it then the first, with ability choices having far greater impact, and the loot system brought back the variety and mods of the first while getting rid of the generic drops that plagued the first game.. The game still had the dialogue choices and roleplaying elements in the story left in it..

And I do hope for the people saying no that they don't consider Elder Scrolls Oblivion as a RPG..

@psymon100: I was also going to say "It's a driving game"

It doesn't matter if the game has stats, that doesn't make it an rpg. Also

What the hell? Rpg games are derived from pen and paper rpgs, you know, those games that existed before the genre was even formulated in computer games?What do you think games like Fallout, Goldbox games, Wizardry, Might and magic etc are? What are they hybrids of?

Mass effect is not an rpg. I like the series(3 was eh and 2 was good) but its primarily a quasi-linear action game with arbitrary stats. In the nineties we called such titles "action-adventure" even games like System shock 2(which has a lot more depth) were not considered rpgs in the time of their release.

Also, Mass effect is primarily based on player SKILL rather than character skill. Learn the difference. This is why most "real rpgs" are turn-based, because they rely solely on your character's statistical abilities.

You are right in that rpgs have become some what of a catchall term, but you are wrong in saying the genre doesn't exist.

It's not a cop-out. RPS (Role-Playing Shooter) is a recognized label for a sub-genre of Action RPG's with Shooter elements.