Omarios: may well go for W2 next. Cheers.

EchoOfMidgar: *snip*

EchoOfMidgar: When it comes to the RPG genre, there are only two role-playing rules for a game wanting to be an RPG - to have roles and to have combat system based purely on statistics. If a game does not provide players with roles to choose from, or its combat system is based on player's input/action than it is not an RPG. For example, the Baldur's Gate series, the Divinity series, or the Icewind Dale series are true RPGs.

However, there is also a special category of RPGs that can be considered true but they have no classes. These are class-free RPGs, but their RPG system is so detailed, specific and robust, that you are basically creating your own class during playing and in no way you can unlock every skill in these games. Though you have a free choice which skills you unlock, it is recommended to hold to your "selected" path (just a few skills), if you do not want to be jack of all trades with zero effeciency in battles or diplomacy. Such RPGs are Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura, Fallout, Fallout 2, Lionheart: Legacy of the Crusader or Divine Divinity.

Only these two categories are real RPGs.

The rest is just either action games, shooters or adventures with sometimes heavier and sometimes lighter RPG elements. Examples:

action games with RPG elements - The Witcher
shooters with RPG elements - Deus Ex: Human Revolution
adventures witih RPG elements - the majority of Final Fantasy games

......

So now if you know "the rules", tell me which category Cyberpunk 2077 belogns to.

jon7882: If you want a porn game buy one. Thats not what this is. It is adult in many ways not just the nudity that is still there btw.

EchoOfMidgar: So now if you know "the rules", tell me which category Cyberpunk 2077 belogns to.

RoseLegion: Having played both I have to say I disagree with this assessement.
I enjoyed Witcher 1 & 3 much more than 2. 2 felt shallow, watterted down UI/game play, character development that didn't start to shine until the very end of the game when you didn't really get a chance to play with it, and a story that felt like it was a slice of what the other games offer rather than a whole narrative arc.
2 did offer the path choice and that was lovely, but it didn't really carry over anything meaningful from 1 despite how it was presented.
As to the contrast with Cyberpunk, well Cyb has 8 ending states (so far, looks like there are hooks for more that could be added, but that may not happen) of those 8 ending states only 3 are gaurenteed to be open to the player the rest can be missed entirely based on player choice. Granted some are easier to miss than others, and most aren't what I'd call extremely hidden, but there really are no grounds to say player choice doesn't matter in Cyb.
Further, while I admit story is a matter of taste and thus subjective, I'd easily put Cyberpunk 2077 & The Witcher 3 above The Witcher 2 with regards to story. Maybe I baised from reading The Witcher novesl, maybe I'm biased from reading cyberpunk stories for decades, but honestly it just seems like there's a lot more substance and a lot more depth in Cyb compared not only to TW2 but to most AAA "story driven" games of the last several years (take that last with a grain of salt, I don't claim to have played everything, a lot comes out :P ).

In short, TW2 < TW1 < Cyberpunk (current state) < TW3 (finished with all DLC).

midrand: I adored Fallout series (1 and 2) to bits as an example.

frogthroat: ATOM RPG is on discount at the moment.

It's not Fallout 1 & 2, but it is inspired by. Many same aspects. But also many differing aspects.

XYCat: cool cool, My favourite super complex and truest rpg from what you listed is Divine Divinity. The complexity of three classes with 4 stats always gets me :D. You simply can't roleplay without a spreadsheet

midrand: I've tried it but it's very weak plot / lore / quest wise vs Fallout. Not at the same level in my view...

EchoOfMidgar: Keep your sarcasm, I was not talking about complexity but the rules.