JRPG's that just got everything right

[SebbyGVS]

I'm a huge fan of JRPG's, they're great at conjuring up emotions that no other type of game can. I've only really become interested in them in the current generation of consoles, although I do play some of the most popular from ps2 days. With every JRPG that I play though, there always seems to be something that's letting the whole package down. Sometimes this is purely a personal opinion, but other times it's a genuine problem that makes you wonder what the devs were thinking.

Here's a few examples. (Spoiler free)

Lost Odyssey had great characters, and a great plot, yet the game is very linear up until just before the final area, and the combat is fairly standard.

Eternal Sonata had a nice battle system, and a good plot, but the characters made me want to punch them in the face, it was all so goddamn cheesy.(My opinion) It was also quite linear.

Last Remnant had a great open world, full of lengthy side quests to take part in. It also had great music, but the battle system was partly broken and didn't let you have full control over squad position. Rush was irritating, reminds me of Naruto. (I hate Naruto) I never finished this game so maybe he became more likable towards the end?

Final Fantasy XIII, questionable plot, Vanille, completely linear in first half. Atleast it looked pretty? Battle system was quite nice too.

Resonance of Fate, deep battle system although I would have liked to see it evolve over the course of the game. Great customization, and I liked the characters. While I respect how the story was presented, it still didn't appeal much to me.

Tales of Vesperia, probably my favourite JRPG, while some characters annoyed me.(Estelle, Karol) Yuri more than made up for it. I loved the battle system and it was open world (which I think is a must)

Final Fantasy X, great plot, enjoyed the battle system. Tidus and Yuna annoyed me though, and it was quite linear. It was also very easy up until when the boss's became really cheap. (Turning me undead.)

Persona 4, Liked the battle system, great characters. The music was quite different but I still enjoyed it. Although I didn't enjoy the dungeon layouts much, got repetitive for me quite quickly.

As you might have noticed all of these are for Xbox 360, I'm looking to pick up a PS3 soon, as I want to play games such as the first Valkyrie Chronicles and upcoming games like FF Versus XIII and Tales of Graces F and (hopefully) Tales of Xillia.

I guess what I'm asking is what JRPG's have you played that you feel just got everything right? Based on what my preferences are above, what JRPG's could you recommend me? Bear in mind that this isn't every JRPG i've played, but just the ones i felt were good examples. I'm also aware that I haven't ventured into the earlier generations, where companies such as Square Enix still made good games. However I struggle to play games with poor graphics, yeah I know i'm probably missing out on some of the best...i'm flawed, alright?

 

[Pinhead Larry]

You got everything right there, but you missed Dragon Quest 8. I liked 9, but for me 8 was the pinnacle of the series. The massive world, the dialogue, the grinding was fun mostly, the plot was great, it was just fantastic. I wish they'd have done 10 on the PS3 and really shown us what it's capabale of, but I suppose that's up to FF, as ever.

Props for Eternal Sonata though, that was a gorgeous game with a really nice plot.

 

[mattyg118]

Chrono Trigger will always be my favorite JRPG. Download it as soon as you get a PS3 or buy it for the DS.

 

[chaosyoshimage]

Chrono Trigger and The World Ends With You, perhaps the last two Dragon Quest games as well.

 

[SebbyGVS]

You got everything right there, but you missed Dragon Quest 8. I liked 9, but for me 8 was the pinnacle of the series. The massive world, the dialogue, the grinding was fun mostly, the plot was great, it was just fantastic. I wish they'd have done 10 on the PS3 and really shown us what it's capabale of, but I suppose that's up to FF, as ever.

Props for Eternal Sonata though, that was a gorgeous game with a really nice plot.

I completely forgot about dragon quest 8! It was my favourite game when I was about 12, back then I could grind for 10 hours if I wanted. (Which I'm pretty sure I did just before the 4th boss, he was a skeleton or a chest or something...?)

 

[SebbyGVS]

Chrono Trigger and The World Ends With You, perhaps the last two Dragon Quest games as well.

I haven't played much of Chrono Trigger, but I can tell it's one of those games that just nails everything, also recently Radiant Historia was released, which uses time travel as a game mechanic. It has one of the best soundtracks i've ever heard, and I'd say that does just about everything right as well.

 

[Ragnarok185]

inb4 JRPG haters

Final Fantasy X will be the best JRPG of all time for me

to me Final Fantasy XIII-2 is getting everything right.non-linear and characters with real emotion. great stories are a given in JRPGs.

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

The Legend of Dragoon

Breath of Fire 3

Disgaea

FFVIII (this is my fav game of all time)

Brave Story: New Traveler

SMT3: Nocturne

Persona series (top being FES)

 

[Luxatrum]

People have mentioned Chrono Trigger, and I'd like to add Chrono Cross. Just got the old port off the psn today and have only put it down long enough to eat and take an internet break.

You know actually damn near anything that is square soft but not square enix is a good jrpg.

 

[NerfedFalcon]

The World Ends With You embraces all the tropes, adds in a bonus chapter for making fun of them and is honestly a lot better for it. Sure it's hella linear, but so are a lot of games that people love. Like Uncharted. Or Prince of Persia: Sands of Time. Xenoblade Chronicles is also pretty awesome (think Skyrim with vibrant colour and more party-focused combat), though its user base is pretty limited since it's Wii-exclusive and hasn't come out in America yet...

 

[Moonlight Butterfly]

I agree with you about Tales of Vesperia. The makers of Final Fantasy would do well to see what it did right as it pretty much matches the earlier quality of the FF games while being up to date gameplay and graphics wise.

It also conquers a few tropes during it's storyline, which I admire very much.

 

[Ultress]

Persona 3/4,they just hit every note perfectly,from Characters to tone to themes everything came together to make an amazing bundle of awesome

Dragon Quest 8, a game so old school I'm surprised it didn't come on a NES cartridge and one of the few times I've really enjoyed grind. The story was simplistic but enjoyable,the customization good,and the voice acting was awesome.

Tales of Symphonia: A game so troperrific that it twists around to be something wholly original again, with excellent game play,lovable charterers and tons of side quests. All of which are luckily series mainstays.

Tales of Vesperia take everything that made Symphonia and Abyss great and turn it up to 11,the story kind of shits itself in the third act but I'm having so much fun I never cared.

 

[Danceofmasks]

Seiken Densetsu 3.

Compared to that game, of everything that's been mentioned so far, only Chrono Trigger is on the same level.

 

[KnightOfHearts]

Jrpgs are my favorite type of game and I understand where your coming from when you say some of them have their problems

For me, three JRPGS really nailed the formula

Valkyrie profile 2
The characters were great (especially Alicia whos personality evolved as the story progressed), excellent and fun combat system, tons of things to micro manage (in a fun way) and the story (especially if you've played the first one) is nothing short of mind blowing.

The legend of dragoon
Now I understand this one is not for everyone and as long as you don't mind the terrible localisation this game boasts some great characters, fun battles and a kick ass story.

Final fantasy 8
I don't need to rant about how awesome this game is... if you haven't played it; track down a copy, get a week off work, stock up on junk food and enjoy .

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Apart from the obvious classics, I'mma gonna throw a newer game in there.

Xenoblade Chronicles.

Now, I'm not the biggest JRPG fan, FF13 was an abomination, but Xenoblade Chronicles has restored my faith in the genre.

Americans are in for a treat when this game arrives on their shores.

 

[Il_Exile_lI]

You got everything right there, but you missed Dragon Quest 8. I liked 9, but for me 8 was the pinnacle of the series. The massive world, the dialogue, the grinding was fun mostly, the plot was great, it was just fantastic. I wish they'd have done 10 on the PS3 and really shown us what it's capabale of, but I suppose that's up to FF, as ever.

Props for Eternal Sonata though, that was a gorgeous game with a really nice plot.

I actually just recently bought Eternal Sonata, and I am feeling a bit mixed on it. The game looks fantastic, and the plot seems fairly interesting (I am about 10 hours in). However, I kind of just wished it had a regular turn based system with more strategy, because the lack of a magic meter and the button mashy nature of the combat makes it feel very simple. I also can't stand the dialogue, I find myself actually groaning quite often during cutscenes. My question is, how long is the game, and will my interest in the plot sustain me throughout the whole game despite my distate for the dialogue. (I may have overstated my dislike of the combat, it can still be entertaining, but some of the longer dungeons have started to wear on me a bit toward the end.)

 

[JemothSkarii]

Most of the games here I would have suggested (Disgaea, Final Fantasy, Seiken Densetsu, Resonance of Fate, Eternal Sonata and Persona) but there is one missing: Terranigma. Interesting plot, great battle system, only really a few characters bbut I love the game.

 

[vivster]

yep xenoblade chronicles
it was the best rpg i played this year
and i played skyrim and FFXIII-2

good battle and level system, very different characters that all play entirely different, half decent story and tons of tons of tons of tons of content
the most open world jrpg i've ever seen

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Am I the only one shocked that the OP describes himself as a JRPG fan while at the same time lambasting all of the games for being linear except Tales of Vesperia in which he claims an open world is a must for him.

Being a JRPG fan and disliking linearity is like being a fan of rock music but hating loud noises. One of the staples of JRPG is linear game play in order to fully flesh out the characters and story.

I think the main issue, at least for me anyway, is that linearity only works if the characterisation acutally works.

Take FF13 for instance, the most linear JRPG experience I've ever had, the characters were terrible, the plot was contrived and the entire game just felt like auto-pilot with the occasional* corridor I have to run down.

[sub]*Occasional meaning most of the game[/sub]

Linearity isn't needed for a decent JRPG, it's a design direction, not a staple of the genre.

Take Xenoblade Chronicles. I spent the first 5 hours of that game just doing sidequests, the characters are far more likable than any of the shit Sqeenix has churned out in the last decade and the plot isn't some angsty driven melodrama.