marumarumaru

The "thematic consistency" feels more like a byproduct of the lack of imagination, or maybe rather the fear of innovation, most of the time.

Most of the big-budget fantasy games coming out in the west these days feel utterly generic - because they have to operate within the bounds of what the public finds acceptable. There's a ton of possibilities for creating far-out, fantastic worlds other than the usual "down to earth" pseudo-historical fantasy fare that picks themes from a set pool of acceptable supernatural stereotypes for flavor. Fantasy novels have no problems doing it, but it's too risky to be commercially viable in games targeting an audience that's been conditioned to consume only what they're used to.

I do agree with the main point that there's a lot of space for humor, self-awareness, and generally lighter endeavors in role-playing games, but it's not the only, nor in my opinion the biggest, problem.

"very subdued experience"
Now, THAT sounds interesting. I'm getting my hopes up here, dammit, I really should know better than to do that.

@TopGunZ
Recently I'm starting to feel more and more alienated from western gamers. For a lot of people, namely those who explicitly identify themselves as gamers, storytelling apparently just gets in the way of having fun. I've been surprised to repeatedly hear the opinion that there's no place to focus on the narrative in the gaming medium, and that gameplay is the only thing that matters.

It really makes me sad.

It doesn't help that a lot of plots of mainstream western games are manufactured with maximizing the popular appeal in mind, not telling the greatest story. It seems the bigger the game, the more bland and directionless it becomes, and even the games that are marketed towards people who care about the story or characters ultimately succumb to the pitfall of trying to please everyone.

The only real hope I have are indie games now, as it's pretty much the one last place where someone with a strong vision can work independently of producers and focus groups.

Bastion made me feel joy and wonder the same way the games I played as a teenager in the nineties and early noughties did. Through the years, I've all but forgotten that feeling, but Bastion managed to bring it back.
For that alone, it's my game of the year.