[ilya]

[ QUOTE ]
For people who like RPG combat but don't want all the story bits, there are fun games like "Vandal Hearts" and "Final Fantasy Tactics".

edit : for me, just the fighting gets boring too, you need the perfect mix of some story (not too much), some fighting (not too much), just don't be repetitive/tedious.

[/ QUOTE ]

i agree that the fighting gets really tedious really quickly in most console RPGs (final fantasy XII basically admits it by automating all the gameplay!), but there are a few exceptions. the trick i think is to add a little twitch-based element to the system so that the player needs to pay attention even if he's just mega-nuking all enemies. i think games like legend of dragoon (which was also cool because it was very tough to level up, so boss fights were much more tense and fun than usual) and especially shadow hearts get it close to just right. Systems like the ones in SOTET are ok too, but feel too haphazard and don't give as satisfying a sense of control.

Finally, everyone pretty much ignored Wild Arms 4, but I think that game did a very good job of mixing story exploration and combat and making them all engaging on what was probably a relatively tight budget.

P.S. blood geysers!! i love SRPGs that don't tempt you into mindless powering up between story battles.