The JRPG Thread

I figure there are enough fans here of JRPGs to get a thread going. I'll start.

My name is Jordan, and I love JRPGs. I currently only own a PS1, SNES Classic, Gamecube, and Nintendo DS Lite (and a PC), so you won't be hearing about any current-gen games from me. Instead, I tend to stick to the classics. Here are 10 of my all-time favorite JRPGs:

1. Ogre Battle 64: Person of Lordly Caliber (N64)
2. Radiant Historia (DS)
3. Final Fantasy IX (PS1)
4. Final Fantasy IV (GBA port)
5. Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together (PSP port)
6. Chrono Trigger (SNES)
7. Grandia (PS1)
8. Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones (GBA)
9. Disgaea DS (DS port)
10. Quest 64 (N64)

Some of them are ports, some of them are objectively bad (Quest 64 lol) but I love all of them. Interestingly enough, I've completed every one of them except Chrono Trigger, which I know is JRPG blasphemy, as it regularly ranks near the top in any given RPG list, Japanese or not. I have a horrible habit of not finishing games, as I currently have files open on Earthbound and Secret of Mana on my SNES Classic (both for the first time). Honestly, the list of games I've started and left unfinished is staggering. It's just hard to find time these days.

What am I currently playing? Breath of Fire IV! I am excited because I've wanted to play this game since like 7th grade (which was 16 years ago). I first got a chance after purchasing it 6 years ago but the game froze at the same spot every time. I bought it off of Amazon and the vendor didn't have another copy and I haven't had the time/opportunity until now to play it. I decided to just play it with an emulator on my computer. I pretty much would always prefer to play on a console, but I'm sick of waiting. I'm 30. It's time to play the game I've wanted to play since I was 12.

Who is next??

 

@Dominick might have some interesting stories ^^

 

I'm excited for Dragon quest XI.....

 

Quest 64 holds such a special place in my heart for being the game to blow the lid off what i thought was possible in a game in terms of exploration. it is to me what FFVII was to others as a kid in a Nintendo-only household. i think it gets an unfair reputation, it was one of the first of it's kind! i will always remember my first encounter with Hell Hounds.

@theagentcoma has Ogre Battle 64 aged gracefully? i've never checked it out.

 

Currently playing through the .Hack//GU remasters. Loved these games when I was younger and am so glad they got the remaster treatment

 

Vagrant Story is the greatest RPG of all time and I'ma tell you why.

- It has some of the best enemy design I've ever seen in gaming.
- The combat system is YEARS ahead of it's time. Imagine Fallout's targeting system, with giant fucking dragons.
- It's difficult as fuck, but incredibly rewarding. Every battle takes careful planning.
- It was truly gorgeous for a PSX game. Came out around the end of the life cycle, but utilized everything.
- The gothic style is incredible. Costume designs are beautiful.
- Post-game content is a ton of fun and adds another 20 hours to the game.

 

y'all are gonna ruin the rest of my life with these recs

 

Chrono Trigger is my favorite game of all time. Final Fantasy VI is probably a close second.

I've been a JRPG junkie since 2001 when I was 11 years old and Golden Sun blew my mind. What was everyone else's introduction to JRPGs?

 

Oooo, I am HERE FOR THIS. JRPGs have been my lifeblood since my childhood, though I'm really bad at completing things.

Chrono Trigger is maybe my favorite game of all time? I replayed about two years ago and made it a point to get the best ending (because I somehow got the worst the first time I ever beat it, haha.) Chrono Cross is criminally underrated in my opinion, too, but I still have yet to finally finish it.

Currently playing, well...a bunch of games. About 20 hours into Persona 5, halfway through SMTIV, 15 hours into Trails in the Sky FC, replaying FFVII slowly (just grabbed Vincent), and on Chapter 5 (I think?) of Xenoblade Chronicles 2. Like I said, I can't keep my head in one place.

Tangentially related, but anyone play Granblue Fantasy? It's a Japanese mobile game that doesn't have a proper global release, but has full English support and I've clocked dozens of hours so far. Pretty grindy, but the character designs are really great and it has a sort of old-FF feel to it. Probably the best "gacha" game out there, in my opinion.

And cuz I missed the post right above this before submitting, my intro to JRPGs was Super Mario RPG. I had never played a proper RPG beforehand because my family associated the genre with Dungeons and Dragons (which was like, the biggest no-no of all in a religious household), but I rented SMRPG on a whim and loved it and my mom surprised me by buying it off the rental shop when I had to turn it back in. I love that game so, so much.

 

FFX is probably my favorite game, and Kingdom Hearts II is up there as well.

 

there is not enough praise on this earth to give the first two Golden Sun games, absolute masterpieces

 

In elementary school my friends and I would play Golden Sun at recess. And I don't mean bring our GBA's and play those near each other, we physically pretended we were the characters questing and battling. I was obsessed. Golden Sun: The Lost Age was maybe the first video game I can remember avidly anticipating/being hyped for.

 

i don't know enough about under-the-hood stuff to say this with certainty, but it felt like a game that used every last bit of power the system had to offer. the "3d sprite" style was so phenomenal to me and it feels like Octopath is the first game since to take the next step in that department, despite doing it much differently. i couldn't believe some of the effects in Golden Sun and that they were on my little GBA. it remains one of the most difficult GBA games to emulate without odd graphical glitches, and they kinda show all the tricks they put into the presentation and making it work.

 

Yeah this is definitely the thread for me. Currently I am HOOKED on Dragon Quest 8, on my phone which I wish wasn't the case but it is great none the less. Very fun gameplay and leveling up system.

When it comes down to it, I'd say Earthbound is my favorite RPG growing up, there is just nothing else like it. Also for those who are looking to play some great old JRPG stuff I would look into Lufia 1 and 2 for SNES. Usually a forgotten series that is even connected to each other storyline wise. Great stuff.

 

I'm glad I'm not the only one who has like 6 different files on different games going on at the same time.

 

The 3DS port of DQVIII is so good. Doesn't really add anything new but it makes almost zero concessions from the original PS2 version. Crazy that we have that kind of power in our pockets now.

 

Oooh this is my jam. Super Mario RPG was my introduction to the genre and I think I would still consider it my favorite game of all time. I used to replay it every few years, but now my backlog is so big I haven't really been replaying anything.

I also grew up in a Nintendo household so when I started getting a steady paycheck I had the bright idea of buying a PS2 and going back to a bunch of JRPGs I never got to play (including all of the main FF games). So far I've made it through IV, VI, VII, and VIII. Also still have Chrono Trigger, Earthbound, Vagrant Story, and a bunch of other JRPGs in the ever-expanding backlog. At the rate I'm playing I will probably finish all these games when I'm between 150 and 200 years old.

I remember anticipating Quest 64 because I really wanted a JRPG to play on N64, but I ended up talking myself out of it because the reviews were pretty negative if I remember correctly.

 

The game looks beautiful on my phone, I have a Pixel 2. The ONE thing that I can not stand is that there isn't a compass, it is hard to navigate sometimes if I am looking for something in specific.

 

I love Chrono Cross because I could play with a different team every time. Like, holy shit, look at this roster.

 

Vagrant Story is probably my biggest JRPG blindspot. I need to play that, especially considering how much I love Ivalice as a setting.

 

You could probably guess, but I only really liked playing as all the cutesy characters.

 

Vagrant Story is set in Ivalice???

 

I went back a few years ago (maybe 2013) and played through it again. Held up pretty well. I never drew the comparison to Ivalice, but it 100% shares a lot of art style. Balthier and Fran in particular could have been in that game.

Such a shame the sequel got scrapped.

 

no

 

I also have never played Vagrant Story but I definitely need to change that