The Grand List of Console Role Playing Game Cliches
For those that are less-than-impressed with Final Fantasy. And even, I suppose, for those who love it too.

# Some Call Me... Tim?
Good guys will only have first names, and bad guys will only have last names. Any bad guy who only has a first name will become a good guy at some point in the game. Good guys' last names may be mentioned in the manual but they will never be referred to in the story.
# Nominal Rule
Any character who actually has a name is important in some way and must be sought out. However, if you are referred to as a part of a posessive noun ("Crono's Mom") then you are superfluous.
# The Compulsories
There's always a fire dungeon, an ice dungeon, a sewer maze, a misty forest, a derelict ghost ship, a mine, a glowing crystal maze, an ancient temple full of traps, a magic floating castle, and a technological dungeon.

I think it would be cool if you made a game that deliberately broke as many of these things as possible. NPCs would cower when you walk in with a hugeantic sword, the prophecy about the chosen one and how he/she will save the world will be utterly false, if there need to be 8 crystals to save the world, you can get by with 5 if you really try... that sort of thing. It'd be awesome, I say.

(via Evil Avatar)   ¶ 7:06 p.m.