Any good JRPGs?

[barghwata]

I am new to JRPGs in general, i am more of a western RPGs type of a guy but i am willing to start trying them out these days and i am not sure where to start.
i only played cross code and trails in the sky and got decent enjoyment out of both games so if you have recommendations similiar to these two games i would like to hear them, but they don't have to be similiar, i'll take any jrpg as long as it's good.

P.S: i don't like overly grindy games, and also don't recommend chrono trigger and FF it's too obvious.

 

[Sigourn]

Obligatory "JRPGs is too general" comment.

 

[mogwaimon]

You could probably look at the 'Top Codex RPGs' topic on the very same page right below this topic at this time of writing, that seems like a thread that might have what you're looking for.

 

[Zed Duke of Banville]

P.S: i don't like overly grindy games, and also don't recommend chrono trigger and FF it's too obvious.

For games in the JRPG subgenre, if I can't recommend Final Fantasies IV, VI, and IX, then I'm not sure what to recommend.

Spoiler

Other than Planescape: Torment

For Japanese-developed RPGs that are not in the JRPG subgenre, try Demon's/Dark Souls, Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen, or Stranger in Sword City.

 

[Ysaye]

I am new to JRPGs in general, i am more of a western RPGs type of a guy but i am willing to start trying them out these days and i am not sure where to start.
i only played cross code and trails in the sky and got decent enjoyment out of both games so if you have recommendations similiar to these two games i would like to hear them, but they don't have to be similiar, i'll take any jrpg as long as it's good.

P.S: i don't like overly grindy games, and also don't recommend chrono trigger and FF it's too obvious.

Staying to JRPGs in the strictest interpretation (story driven, turn based combat, not strategy jrpgs...)

Suikoden 2
Phantasy Star 4
Trails of Cold Steel
Xenogears
Valkyrie Profile
Breath of Fire 3
Legend of Dragoon
Septerra Core

(Yes some of these would need a Playstation to play I know...)

 

[Shackleton]

If you want something modern and one of the best 'classic style' JRPG's I've ever played- look no further than Dragon Quest XI. Awesome game.

 

[CyberWhale]

felipepepe make a jrpg only codex vote-based list.

 

[Grauken]

Dark Souls trilogy and Planescape Torment are the premier jRPGs on the Codex, followed by the Witcher trilogy and other Bioware games

 

[barghwata]

I am new to JRPGs in general, i am more of a western RPGs type of a guy but i am willing to start trying them out these days and i am not sure where to start.
i only played cross code and trails in the sky and got decent enjoyment out of both games so if you have recommendations similiar to these two games i would like to hear them, but they don't have to be similiar, i'll take any jrpg as long as it's good.

P.S: i don't like overly grindy games, and also don't recommend chrono trigger and FF it's too obvious.

Staying to JRPGs in the strictest interpretation (story driven, turn based combat, not strategy jrpgs...)

Suikoden 2
Phantasy Star 4
Trails of Cold Steel
Xenogears
Valkyrie Profile
Breath of Fire 3
Legend of Dragoon
Septerra Core

(Yes some of these would need a Playstation to play I know...)

Thanks, do you have any good Action JRPGs aside from dark souls and dragon's dogma?

 

[Ysaye]

I am new to JRPGs in general, i am more of a western RPGs type of a guy but i am willing to start trying them out these days and i am not sure where to start.
i only played cross code and trails in the sky and got decent enjoyment out of both games so if you have recommendations similiar to these two games i would like to hear them, but they don't have to be similiar, i'll take any jrpg as long as it's good.

P.S: i don't like overly grindy games, and also don't recommend chrono trigger and FF it's too obvious.

Staying to JRPGs in the strictest interpretation (story driven, turn based combat, not strategy jrpgs...)

Suikoden 2
Phantasy Star 4
Trails of Cold Steel
Xenogears
Valkyrie Profile
Breath of Fire 3
Legend of Dragoon
Septerra Core

(Yes some of these would need a Playstation to play I know...)

Thanks, do you have any good Action JRPGs aside from dark souls and dragon's dogma?

The Ys series. I like Ys Origin and Ys 6 (Ark of Napishtim) best but lots of people love the recent Ys 8. Ys Oath of Felghana is good if you want a really challenging game. I also like Tokyo Xanadu by the same developers.

 

[Makabb]

If you want something modern and one of the best 'classic style' JRPG's I've ever played- look no further than Dragon Quest XI. Awesome game.

the switch version with orchestral soundtrack and 2d

 

[Grauken]

If you want something modern and one of the best 'classic style' JRPG's I've ever played- look no further than Dragon Quest XI. Awesome game.

the switch version with orchestral soundtrack and 2d

I only ever played DQ1&2 (NES versions). Which of all of them is the best (since all of them are self-contained anyway)?

Ideally if you can do a ranking with reasons why

 

[Harry Easter]

The Ys-series was already mentioned, but you can't do anything wrong with Ys: Origins. It has three characters with different playstyles, even better bossfights than Oath in Felghana and the story is quite solid and good. Ys: VI is okay. A bit clunkier and easier than Felghana, but it was the first with that sort of gameplay. Still the weakest entry of the games I've played and not a good starting point in my book. Ys 1 and 2 have also aged good in my opinion and you get them bundled together, when you buy them.

But you can't do anything wrong with Dragon Quest VIII. Simple gameplay, simple story, 100% fun. It starts quite lighthearted but gets intensly darker over the course of the game and it also encourages you to take your time and play. So you can also just play one to two hours and feel relaxed after that. There are also enough help functions, to get you back on the right path, if you had to pause for more than an month. If you like the Dragon Quest - style, than you like JRPG, I think.

 

[Falksi]

Ysaye's list is one I'd definitely say check out.

Also, have a look at these bad boys too, I thrive on them:

Shadow Hearts: Covenant
Tales of Berseria
Shining Force 1 & 2
Lost Odyssey
The Last Remnant
Landstalker

Beyond Oasis/Story of Thor is one on the Megadrive which many rave about, but I could never get into.

Phantasy Star 4, as mentioned earlier, is still spectacularly great today.

 

[barghwata]

Ysaye's list is one I'd definitely say check out.

Also, have a look at these bad boys too, I thrive on them:

Shadow Hearts: Covenant
Tales of Berseria
Shining Force 1 & 2
Lost Odyssey
The Last Remnant
Landstalker

Beyond Oasis/Story of Thor is one on the Megadrive which many rave about, but I could never get into.

Phantasy Star 4, as mentioned earlier, is still spectacularly great today.

Thanks, i am quite curious about tales of berseria, is its combat any good? and if not, is it worth it to play only for the story?
And does it have too much grind?

 

[Falksi]

Ysaye's list is one I'd definitely say check out.

Also, have a look at these bad boys too, I thrive on them:

Shadow Hearts: Covenant
Tales of Berseria
Shining Force 1 & 2
Lost Odyssey
The Last Remnant
Landstalker

Beyond Oasis/Story of Thor is one on the Megadrive which many rave about, but I could never get into.

Phantasy Star 4, as mentioned earlier, is still spectacularly great today.

Thanks, i am quite curious about tales of berseria, is its combat any good? and if not, is it worth it to play only for the story?
And does it have too much grind?

Combat's a bit of a nonsense, but it's servicable fun. It's essentially a flashy button-bashing affair, but it's not annoying or anything.

Story's fairly good in that you play the villains, which is a nice change. Your main motivation is revenge and destruction, and they convey that really well. Also the party banter is flat out brilliant at times, some really well written stuff. Very well paced too.

I've not done any grinding and I'm playing through it fine.

Overall I'd rate it as an 8/10. Has it's weaknesses, but still enjoyable.

 

[Vic]

Currently playing Bravely Default on the 3DS. I like it so far.

 

[MpuMngwana]

From what hasn't been mentioned before in this thread:

-Earthbound is pretty unique setting-wise (being based of a Japanese guy's whimsical vision of suburban America), has plenty of charm and humor, and memorable artstyle and music. There's not much mechanical complexity however.
-Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne somehow manages to be great in spite of being as edgy as humanly possible. It's all about making pacts with demons, fusing them into more powerful demons and having them do your bidding. The focus is on party building, combat and dungeon crawling, with story taking a back seat. Both art direction and music are phenomenal.
-Persona 4, the lighter, more successful spin-off to the Shin Megami Tensei franchise. Gameplay is not as good, and the randomly generated dungeons are very bland, but it does have some interesting things going on. Namely, you're constantly on a timer, and you have to manage the main plot (a fairly interesting supernatural murder mistery) with your normal life - going to school, studying, socializing (there is a nice collection of NPCs whose problems you can solve in amateur psychotherapy sessions, as you would in say a Bioware game).
-Pokemon. Seriously. While the games are rather easy, raising and managing a menagerie of monster never ceases to be fun. Between a fully customisable 6-mon party and turn-based combat, what's there for a prestigious Codexer not to like? I recommend any games prior to Black and White (the later games aren't bad if you're a fan of the franchise, but aren't as good IMO), though in the case of first two generations I suggest playing the remakes.
-Live a Live has an interesting setup - multiple scenarios, each in a different genre (from western to wuxia to Alien-esque sci-fi horror), which have to be completed in order to unlock the final scenario.

 

[Shinji]

Rogue Galaxy
Valkyria Chronicles 1
Golden Sun
Digimon World (PSX)
Vagrant Story
Lufia I & II

 

[Puukko]

I'll always recommended Shin Megami Tensei in these cases. It avoids anime tropes for the most part and there's lots of games from different subgenres. The PS2 ones (Digital Devil Saga 1+2/Nocturne) are a solid start, as well as any of the 3DS games.

 

[barghwata]

It avoids anime tropes for the most part

That's a definite plus in my book.

 

[Puukko]

It avoids anime tropes for the most part

That's a definite plus in my book.

Only real exceptions that come to mind are IV Apocalypse (which didn't bother me as much as I thought it would) and I suppose the Devil Survivor games (SRPGs) which I haven't played. This is excluding Persona, of course.

 

[Jack Of Owls]

The Digital Devil games for PS2 taught me that jRPGs frequently had deeper, more sophisticated mechanics than most western RPGs. Too bad I sucked at them, but, hey. I'm used to easy shit like AD&D and Pathfinder.

 

[Nutmeg]

Depends what you want.

Inspired by some SRPGs I enjoyed I went through a phase thinking that JRPGs could actually be satisfying routing and class selection, party, or equipment load out puzzles, and they can be, but they too constantly interrupt flow with slow scrolling dialogue, cutscenes etc.

Valkyrie profile 2 remains an exception. You can skip most flow breaking shit there.

If you can tolerate a little interruption then play Final fantasy 3 (Japanese numbering) and 5, Sweet home, Chrono trigger and Nocturne. Those are OK.

That's about it. That's about all there is in terms of OK gameplay the genre has to offer out of thousands of games.

But I don't really know about anything past the PS2 era.

Also if you enjoy story, atmosphere, graphics, music and other larpy shit then maybe there's some more good ones but I just don't care about these things.

JARPGs and SRPGs have a higher hit to miss ratio IMO, so if you want to talk about those I have more recommendations.

 

[DJOGamer PT]

Ogre Battle: March of the Black Queen

Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together

Final Fantasy Tactics

Chrono Trigger

Disgaea 1

Disgaea 5

Pokemon: Soul Silver/Heart Gold

The Dark Spire

Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance

Monster Hunter World

Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen

Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne

Breath of Fire 3

Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter

Demon's Souls

Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition

Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the First Sin

King's Field 4

Wizardry: Tale of the Forsaken Land

Secret of Mana

Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals