None of those are gameplay mechanics, that's UI.
I was talking about all the war stuff, summits, investments ets.
Thank you for confirming my original statement I suppose. The gameplay, that is the "war stuffs, summits, investments ets." is literally just using switches and variables, which are the very basics of VX Ace. Like I said, that they are used skillfully doesn't change the fact that it's utilizing the very core of the engine's features. Thus my phrase "primitive gameplay".
i'm not interest in bickering, but limited number of use skills, the synergy skills or even the TP system aren't exactly "minor QoL stuff".
They are when you consider what other creators can push out of the simplistic features of the RPG Maker engines. It's just a matter of a broader perspective. You can tweak and twist A LOT of the engine to make it nigh unrecognizable. For example, did you know that LISA: The Painful RPG was also made in VX Ace?
Also, none of these scripts were made by Sierra, which kind of makes this argument beyond the point anyways. Not that I wish to imply Sierra should in the first place have extensive coding knowledge and make EPIC COMBAT AND STRATEGY REAL-TIME BASED MECHANICS.
The game is strong enough as it is despite its flaws, but I clearly struck a nerve with some people pointing them out. I thought it's painfully obvious that the stock RPGM assets and the grindy, turn-based, boring RPGM combat are the first major turn-offs for a lot of people interested in playing the game.
RPGM's infamy is due to its simplicity. It's really easy to make "a" game in it, and it requires virtually zero coding knowledge. It's intuitive and has a lot of immediately available stock assets, so you don't need to worry about graphical and audio materials as well. It's even in the game's marketing strategy: "Easy to learn, hard to master." It's also pathetically easy to pirate. This results in a lot of low-quality extremely samey titles, with the same graphics, the same Town_Theme1.ogg music, the same bullshit boring Attack-Skill-Item-Escape turn-based atrocious JRPG combat with the same boring skills and animations.
HOWEVER, you CAN make a very ambitious and original title by utilizing the engine. It naturally takes effort, and, of course, a lot of talent in various departments, like art and coding for scripting. None of these are the strength of TLS, and I don't think that's debatable. Which doesn't make it a bad game.
That being said, I will take an RPGM game over a Ren'Py "game" any day. I'd rather have primitive gameplay than having no gameplay. Visual novels are not games.
