No, I am not a "no joy" person. Also, I am not looking for RPGs without growth systems (though such a game might be interesting, if done well); I am just looking for games where character growth is done through unconventional methods. SaGa 1 is a good example of this, as is SaGa 2 if you restrict your party to robots and monsters. (I really love SaGa 2's robot growth; get some good equipment and you can have a good robot, and if you don't like the setup, just buy (or find) a new equipment setup and change it.) The eqipment of a SaGa 2 robot or the form of a SaGa 1-2 monster are not just cosmetic; they're the entier capabilities of the character, and they change (generally in the positive direction, but you need to be careful with monster meat) as you progress through the game and find better equipment/stronger enemies to get meat from.

Does action adventure with rpg elements count? Then Ghost of a Tale. I mean, it's hard to find something like that in modern time, so would you compromise?

You are familiar with blobbers so I guess you know this one but Dungeon Master is the first one that popped into my head. Your party masters stuff based on use.
SMT Digital Devil Saga has different skill trees you unluck through something outside of expeirence, I think its called SP. YOu get SP for killing monsters, and you multiply the effect if you kill a monster with one of thier "Devour" skills. The Skill tree is all these different lines, each node on different lines gives you four or five abilities to choose from, which you then equip to your limited skill inventory.

Do RPG elemeints include turn-based menu-based combat? If not, then I'm afraid it really doesn't count here.

As the first post says, I am looking for something more exotic than that. Dungeon Master is good and all, but I am looking for something more exotic at the moment.
Doesn't the game still have conventional levels and experience points? I'm looking for RPGs where the very way you increase stats is something very unusual.

I can't recall any of the top of my head (and ive played many), but im also tired so maybe something will come up later.
Design wise most alternatives are the same. It doesn't need to be called level or xp to have the same functions, with the same logic and deep down the same mechanical impact in the game progress or feel. When a character grows\develops increasing some ability or gaining some new thing you can call that part of the level up or loot, so on and so forth. JRPGs love to experiment with some crazy complex systems, often ill designed and made just for the sake of being different, that if you strip down all the facade is the same old of most rpgs.

Ive read you're making a game or thinking of doing that. If you're looking for inspiration, frankly, you can look everywhere- and actually looking at things completely different yeld the best results. I went to a design school and thats like one of the most praised ways to inovate- and it applies to the design of anything, including games.

Heres some ideas:
-look up the source- i mean tabletop rpgs. While its full of tropes and sameish rpgs theres too freaking many experimental games, many wich fits your description. Theres one where characters only develop by failure, so it reaches a similar level of progression (the better you are the slower it takes to get better) via a completely different take (is quite ellegant- the newbie fails a lot so he quickly improves, the master rarely misses so it takes a lot to improve). Theres another one where you only develop via the relationship and goals you have with your tribe, tied in with the gameplay loop (adventure, events, cycles of time the tribe goes by)... theres too many there to inspire, a trove of.

-mobile games. Yep. I hate most of the mobile landscape, but its like the wild west with a trove of different things and way too many progression systems of the craziest (and even stupid) types. Even the monetization gotcha systems are sometimes designed in ways that, from a system design standpoint, are more inovative or exotic then most level up systems. Inspiration doesn't need to come from similars.

You can also distill the base elements of mechanics and try to derive new combinations from that.
Growth is increase, be it stat or new thing. Said increase comes at a point in time for some reason. Theres no escape to that. So start switching up- instead of acumulating xp maybe its relationship points, gained via dialogue and quests done between allies? If a game is all about ever increasing number of characters then the very squad size could increase each ones skills. Brainstorming can help.

Just be careful that being exotic and different for its own sake rarely is good.
If someone needs to find crystals that then reveal 3 random upgrade options according to your class and profession type- wow so different- it doesn't mean the progress is balanced, the random packs won't suck, etc, etc.

The best inovations in this regard comes from some particular perspective, theme or similar you want to convey, a vision. Its better to find one first- then that informs you of the design, or new directions.
For example i just came up with an example: say you want to explore how developing equals maturing, and the themes around that- including how painful it is to grow up.
So we have a theme, even a takeway- pain.
Because of the theme i can think of something different that would be cool and tie with the vision- characters all have dreams, goals and aspirations.
As the game goes by opportunities to progress points and gain stuff from any of those come up- but to gain then you choose another one... to sacrifice; Making life choices means refusing other choices, investing in one goal or dream means letting go of others. And there you go- different, exotic, but with purpose and adding value to the core vision, not just being different for difference's sake.

Does Mordor: The Depths of Dejnol count? Your levels aren't directly experience, but rather are regulated by your guild.

So not only can you become pinned (unable to further level or gain exp), but you can also gain benefits and stats from leveling in guilds.

I don't know....I uprated it when I first posted because the topic is good, though.
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1. They would only crowd out other things if other devs were all somehow forced not to use such new systems. If other devs can choose then they can choose to go off the beaten track as it were.....sadly though the beaten track works well for most(and can have variations to make it unique and interesting even after time has passed since it's first usages) and they usually go with what works or people like when making such games.

There are those who choose to do otherwise, though....like the card game RPGs I mentipned that use cards to make attacks/"improve stats"(temp or permanent)/etc.

2. You can seperate them by action RPGs usually having some stat based progression/exp system, for one(afaik mario doesn't go that deep). I was merely trying to illustrate a few points(Action RPGs being RPGs to some and also many games being RPGs if the term was taken more literally).

I can respect you not wanting such included, though.


Seeing as how many classic JRPGs use that system I think you are being very "picky" with that bit/criteria not being indicative of an RPG.

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Sadly not many games are that way....at the moment that is. As it would seem you have done a good amount of research into the subject( I would assume) and have come to us that should cause you to realize maybe there aren't that many games of the criteria you list to be found?

what you describe fits more into adventure with RPG elements. closest game I can think of is Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain (it's in abandonware state now). you play story driven game as a vampire with only 2 stats - health and mana. by exploring you find special elements that once collected add to your pool of health or mana. in addition you find limited set of armor and weapon (really few). Most interesting part comes with magic abilities - you find these abilities too. So it is possible to miss some well hidden area and miss useful ability. As a vampire you use weapon to kill or you can stun enemy and suck their blood to refill your pool. enemies come with red (health), blue (mana), green (poison) or black (damage) blood so you have to be careful whom you feed from. Your health gradually declines if you don't feed. Magic abilities are very fun, you can wear disguise to walk in town, possess someone's mind and command them to perform actions for you (go and open unaccessible door or fight for you), and much more.
You should definitely check that game if you want to adopt less mainstream mechanics of character development.