A single shoot for everything like the cloaca sounds terrible though

For sure, enemy variety is important.

Reminds me of a game we learned from some south Asian students at my school called odd even.

It's a 2 player game. First the players choose odd or even. They bump fists with one hsnd, and show a number at the same time. 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5. Their numbers are added up and the result is checked if it's odd or even. Whoever called it right wins. But wait that's not the actual game it's just the deciding round. Like the coin toss before the soccer game

Whoever won the deciding round picks "bowling" or 'breaking". Whichever one they pick the other player is the other.

Both players bump fists and show a number(1-6 with only thumb being raised meaning 6) at the same time. The bowling player's goal is to show the same number as the breaking player. If the numbers are different the value of the breaking player's hand is added to their score(starts at 0) and players bump fist again and again until the bowling player calls it right. When they do the breaking player's score is saved and players swap positions. They play one more game the same way with the new breaking player's goal being to exceed the score of the original breaking player. If they do they win. If they're stopped before that they lose.

Sure. It's better with 4 or more players.

At first every player is assigned a number. Then one person starts.

They say "I went to the market with (another player's number)". That player has to quickly respond "Why with (their number)?". The first player says "Then with what?", they say "With (any other player's number)".

For example: 1 says "I went to the market with 2". 2 has to say "Why with 2?". 1 has to say "Then with what?", 2 says "With 4". 4 has to respond "Why with 4?" and so on so it's a call and response game.

Repeat until someone gets confused, makes any mistakes or takes too long to respond. When they do, the person that flustered them gets to assign them a new name. This replaces their number, they have to answer to it and everyone has to use it now. Generally these are insults as this is a rowdy game between friends but of course they can choose whatever they want.

If someone makes more mistakes after being assigned a nickname you add adjectives to it. Eventually you'll get things like:

"I went to the market with fat smelly pig"

"Why with fat smelly pig?"

"Then with what?"

"With arrogant ass"

And so on.

After 3 adjectives you're eliminated and everyone continues until 1 person is left.

It's confusing because you gotta keep track of everyone's names and your own and answer quickly.

That's pretty cool for big groups.

We had a verbal game that was similarly confusing called "I went to the market"

We had 2 games we used to play that I haven't been able to find online. One I think is common but I just can't find it, the other is nonsensical and probably super local.

I agree FF style turn based combat is boring. I mean games that have an auto button that plays it for you are admitting it.

That's why I like games that have more creative combat that blends different genres. Undertale has some turn based, some realtime bullet hell. Battle network has a real time grid based with card game elements.

There's so much you can do but so often devs fall back on choose from menu watch cutscene.

Haha I have thought about that too actually. Mainly because my career path and favorite hobby were both decided by small random moments. It's definitely made me more open to new experiences.

I also hate grinding but sometimes I get addicted to it. Like my lizard brain likes watching the numbers go up. I recently loaded an old save in final fantasy and saw my level at 99, health at 999/999 and gold at 999999 and was like "I don't remember grinding any of this". It happens in a trance.

I agree these games made big improvements but I still see them as bandages to the inevitable problems that came with random encounters. There's no undoing the interruption of flow you know.

I think it's a tradeoff though like I said. Because I don't know how you can have a combat system as cool and creative as say Undertale (blending turn based and realtime bullet hell) or battle network (blending turn based, real time and card game) without it being completely separate from the overworld.

Good point. I guess it is 2 things I'm talking about.

I think battle transitions are a tradeoff. They free combat but at the cost of interrupting flow. If you don't do anything with the freedom they give you and you just make the same tired pokemon style choose from a menu combat it's not worth it.

I haven't played any CRPGs and I'm not familiar with them. Any recommendation of an intro to the genre?

But many of your points are still familiar. Trivial encounters feeling like an annoying waste of time, items or abilities that control the encounter rates, etc.

I think making regions safe is a great idea but I would want it tied to a challenging side quest. Like maybe you can intentionally fight a harder version of an area's enemies to make it safe?