As always, RPGWatch with the Turn-Based RPG reviews which Codex ignores: "Stranger of Sword City"

[an Administrator]

There is nothing wrong in grinding.

 

[IncendiaryDevice]

I'm just waiting for one where the reviews don't mention such stuff as grinding, respawns, too much random encounters

Trails in the Sky.

Now read the whole post...

 

[IncendiaryDevice]

There is nothing wrong in grinding.

Unless you don't like grinding...

 

[Jacob]

Kain Highwind & Cloud Strife = 21
Locke Cole = 25

what kids?

 

[IncendiaryDevice]

final fantasies though, nope, no grinding required

Aren't they filled with cut-scenes and mind-numbing stories tho?

 

[IncendiaryDevice]

Kain Highwind & Cloud Strife = 21
Locke Cole = 25

what kids?

Yeah... right...

 

[Jasede]

I have no context Jasede, I have yet to play any jRPGs, though I've always been interested to try one at some point, I'm just waiting for one where the reviews don't mention such stuff as grinding, respawns, too much random encounters, etc etc. Also it would be nice if the aesthetic was more 'adult' (for want of a better word) in nature as most jRPGs seem to make even things like Kings Bounty: The Legend look mature. Having 5-15 year olds beating up dragons kinda breaks the 4th wall a bit too much for me.

What do you recommend I start with?

The problem here is that you are talking about Japan, a culture where people, once they pass ~16 or so, do nothing but work and study. They study day until night, then work day until night for the same company until they die. One they pass a certain age they are effectively dead. Therefore, the culture is obsessed with teenagers and high school. It's the one time in their life these people have a reasonable amount of freedom. All their media is about glorifying this time. Well, not all, but the vast majority of it. That makes it very hard to recommend jRPGs that aren't about teenagers considering pretty much all of them are, at least the turn-based ones with tactical combat. The other problem is that the genre is so large that again it really depends on what you are looking for: what kind of combat? How old-school? Etc.

If I had to make general assumptions I would recommend "Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne" for people who can't stand teenagers as almost everyone in the game is a monster or an adult or Chrono Trigger, the most accessible jRPG that's also very good, if you decide to overlook the anime aesthetic and just try to be in it for the gameplay. In it all encounters are plainly visible (mostly) and can therefore be avoided with ease.

Nocturne in particular has very few cutscenes and a sparse story that stays in the background, other than the little intro (which is very short by the genre's standards)

 

[Jacob]

Disgaea is not a jRPG, though. It's been marketed as a strategy RPG in the vein of Final Fantasy Tactics or Tactics Ogre. I was going to specifically mention it but decided against it because I thought nobody would confuse the genres.

well... funny thing is the games that marketed with the word "strategy" needs more grinding than the standard RPGs...

anyway, I remember a friend mentioning the need for grinding for Golden Sun, I haven't played it myself so no opinion on that

 

[Jasede]

Never played Golden Sun myself, looked lame. And quite true about SRPGs and grinding, but they're marketed to people who love grinding, after all.
As for age and cutscenes, Romancing Saga is pretty sparse with its cutscenes from what I remember and every character is an adult. At least in the one I played, SNES. Was it 3? You start out in an inn, though it depends since you can play as any character.

 

[IncendiaryDevice]

Basically, in term of aesthetic, are there any jRPGs which are more:

Than:

 

[Jacob]

And quite true about SRPGs and grinding, but they're marketed to people who love grinding, after all.

Except Fire Emblem

 

[Jasede]

Sure, though you are missing the point if art is what sways you either way...

Most of the characters are angels or demons of various mythologies, mainly Western and Asian, but also other more obscure ones.

Dark Souls, a real-time action RPG with a decidedly Western aesthetic. It is, in fact, revered as an inspiration for art at Obsidian! Or at the very least I've seen quite a few videos of designers from there praising its art style.

The Dark Spire, a dungeon RPG with Gothic art. A Wizardry-like dRPG.

Last but not least, the seminal jRPG beloved by everyone... and no grinding! プレーンスケープ・トーメント, a game about cutscenes (though most in your head), dialogue and the characters. Here is some box art from it:

 

[IncendiaryDevice]

If I had to make general assumptions I would recommend "Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne" for people who can't stand teenagers as almost everyone in the game is a monster or an adult...

...Who look like they've all just walked out the hairdressers on their way home from school:

or Chrono Trigger, the most accessible jRPG that's also very good, if you decide to overlook the anime aesthetic...

... I'm not sure I could:

Nocturne in particular has very few cutscenes and a sparse story that stays in the background, other than the little intro (which is very short by the genre's standards)

Having problems finding anything on nocturne, its too generic a word, keep getting links to league of legends, some adventure horror game and the first game you mentioned.

 

[Jacob]

strange journey has special forces as main characters

... okay, since the game is some kind of wiz-clone, they're actually the characters for the shop and healing menu, but story-wise they're the player character's crewmates

 

[Jasede]

This is not Nocturne.

 

[IncendiaryDevice]

Sure, though you are missing the point if art is what sways you either way...

Most of the characters are angels or demons of various mythologies, mainly Western and Asian, but also other more obscure ones.

Dark Souls, a real-time action RPG with a decidedly Western aesthetic. It is, in fact, revered as an inspiration for art at Obsidian! Or at the very least I've seen quite a few videos of designers from there praising its art style.

The Dark Spire, a dungeon RPG with Gothic art. A Wizardry-like dRPG.

Last but not least, the seminal jRPG beloved by everyone... and no grinding! プレーンスケープ・トーメント, a game about cutscenes (though most in your head), dialogue and the characters. Here is some box art from it:

Yeah, I enjoyed Planescape: Torment, aside from the disinteresting combat. I'm not a gigantic fanboy of it, but it was well worth a visit and very memorable, not sure I would have even tried it had it not been D&D inspired though. While some elements could be argued to be jRPG in nature, the aesthetic certainly isn't and a glabrezu in Torment looks like a glabrezu in any other d&d game. If you wanted to insist it was a western jRPG then it would be a good example of a jRPG with a western aesthetic I suppose. Yes, I tried Dark Souls, I really like the aesthetic there, even more so for Bloodborne, but I suck at twichers so its pointless me trying. The others two are blobbers by the look of it and if I wanted to play blobbers then there's likely a huge amount of blobbers I'll be playing before getting to those, such as Lords of Xulima which is in my Gog library waiting for a computer upgrade.

 

[Jasede]

...every jRPG is a blobber by Codex definition.

Are you... trolling me?

 

[IncendiaryDevice]

This is not Nocturne.

See the last sentence in my post.

 

[IncendiaryDevice]

...every jRPG is a blobber by Codex definition.

Are you... trolling me?

Chrono Trigger isn't a blobber? Final Fantasy isn't blobber?

 

[Jasede]

Is or isn't? I don't know what you are trying to say.
If you're looking for a game in the style of Fallout this really is the wrong genre for you. Japanese RPGs are based on Wizardry. They're always about combat and a party. There may or may not be some cutscenes to help keep people interested but many do away with them altogether and are pure crawling, like Elminage or the original Etrian Odyssey games.

 

[an Administrator]

...every jRPG is a blobber by Codex definition.

Are you... trolling me?

Chrono Trigger isn't a blobber? Final Fantasy isn't blobber?

It is.
You play as a blob

 

[IncendiaryDevice]

It is.
You play as a blob

Well, ok, not a first person blob though.

 

[IncendiaryDevice]

Is or isn't? I don't know what you are trying to say.
If you're looking for a game in the style of Fallout this really is the wrong genre for you. Japanese RPGs are based on Wizardry. They're always about combat and a party. There may or may not be some cutscenes to help keep people interested but many do away with them altogether and are pure crawling, like Elminage or the original Etrian Odyssey games.

Since when does Fallout allow you to kill dragons?

In the style of any 'normal' fantasy setting, bizzare monsters, grizzled heroes, heroic quests, over or underworld labyrinths, etc etc etc. You know, what most jRPGs do, but without all the saturday morning cartoon crap.

 

[InD_ImaginE]

I have a new idea for thread. Before defining whats rpg, let us define what a jrpg is.

 

[Hobo Elf]

An RPG made by Japanese developers. Wow, that was easy.