There's several ways... to make an RPG's fighting - or action oriented aspect's fun. I truly don't think any of them are inherently better. Mostly, and truly - it will come down to personal opinion. So I will list several - i've seen, or had hands on experience with (I'll "try" to keep them recent, as i'm not sure, older games will be familiar...).
1. First Person RPG: (
[color:"red"]Morrowind[/b][/color],
[b][color:"red"]Vampire: the Masquerade - Bloodlines[/b][/color],
[b][color:"red"]Arx Fatalis[/color][/b], Daggerfall, ect...)
[b]2. Tactical RPG: (Final Fantasy: Tactics (not Advanced), Shining Force, Ogre Battle)
3. 3rd Person RPG: (Never Winter Nights, Temple of Elemental Evil, Baldur's Gate *series*)
4. Hack&Slash RPG: (Diablo, Darkstone, Diablo 2, ect...)
5. Turn Based RPG: (Fallout, Fallout 2, Final Fantasy *most of the series was turned based I believe*)
6. Hybrid RPG: (Vagrant Story, Legend/Secret of Mana (SD) *series*, Kingdon Hearts)
Many of these have RPG slapped on them... but how many of them are? RPG, seems to not have the same meaning - from game to game. With diablo, your hand is held through the story - no ROLE is played. Your character has a fixed fate. Games like this, get labeled as RPGs all the time - but shouldn't. Divine Divinity is easily mistaken for such a game - but there's a true difference, options, decisions, actions - they have an effect on the character and the world around you. Truly a mistake to assume - simply due to a combat system - that it's "one thing" ... for truly a combat system, does not make a game - just like graphics don't make a game. Divine Divinity is a true example of this.
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There's other such msitakes - but I believe - any combat system - in a game - can be used - and not have an impact on the actual "roleplaying" aspect of the game.
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Personally i'm a fan of First person RPGs, like
Vampire: the Masquerade - Bloodlines is going to be. But that's a personal thing. It's just as easy to mistake a first person RPG, for a First Person Shooter - when in fact the roleplaying aspects make it something compeltely different. And indeed a game can be in the first person - without having anything to do with "shooting things".
Behind that, I find Final Fantasy: Tactics (and other of that ilk) - to be a favorite, not only for its story (though not so much roleplaying) and combat system. A very interesting system.
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Then there are things that are jsut... wierd - Vagrant Story, is a perfect example of this - but it's a wonderful game to play through - story wise... but more suttly cobmat wise. So many peopel get frustrated with it - unable to see how it's complexities make it so much more enthralling than your common combat system.
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But then... that may all just be me.
