So I have a confession to make…… I am a sheltered jrpg fan.
You may be asking, what does he mean by this? I’ll try to explain. My very first jrpg experience was on the SNES and was called final Fantasy 3. This game had me hooked right from the get-go with an amazing story, slave collars, mechs, espers, turn-based combat, and even different roles in combat. It was a beautiful game for the time, and holds up fairly well today in my humble opinion. Final Fantasy 3 has long been my favorite game of all time, at least until Skies of Arcadia. Just in case any of you maybe confused, when I say Final Fantasy 3 you have to understand that this was back in the early 90s and not all Final Fantasies had been released in the United States. The Final Fantasy 3 that I am referring to is actually Final Fantasy 6.
Next up, I played a little game called Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. Now, I know Zelda is not a traditional jrpg but, just go with me on this. Oh boy did I love this game. I love the sense of growing power you got with each new heart and each new weapon that you received. I Loved the exploration and the unlocking of new areas that I couldn’t reach before. The puzzles were engaging, forcing you to stop and think teaching you that you can’t solve everything with brute force. As with most Legend of Zelda games, I find the music to be soothing and memorable.
From there I tried called Breath of Fire. This was the first time I was actually treated to truly different types of companions. If I remember correctly, you had a frog companion, nina with the wings, a bull companion, a snake lady, and more. It’s been a long time but I have very fun memories despite not actually being able to remember much of the actual game. I felt the same way about Breath of Fire 2, as it continued in much the same vein as the first story.
Suikoden. Man what can I say about Suikoden. This game absolutely thrilled me with being able to recruit over a hundred characters to your team. You’re able to build and grow your own castle you were able to participate in huge army battles standard 4 on 4 battles or even one on one battles. I don’t remember much of the story at this point but I do remember quite fondly.
After Suikoden, I dove into a game called Grandia 2. Now this is a game I’ve been hoping they would rerelease for a very long time on a current console. This game was absolutely beautiful to look at and had a great story and memorible characters.
Okay this is going to get really long and drawn-out if I don’t wrap this up a little bit. Basically from there I played Legend of Dragoon, ChronoTrigger, ChronoCross, Final Fantasy VII – X, Dragon Quest VIII: Curse Of The Dragon King, Wild Arms, and probably a handful of others.
My point is is that that is pretty much games that I stuck with. I couldn’t stand any Final Fantasy game after X and even even X was pushing it. I never got into the Tales games, the Ys games, the Xenogears, Arc the Lad, etc. I’ve just recently begun trying to expand my field of games because I’ve always said I’m a hardcore JRPG fan…..but I realized I’ve only actually scratched the surface…even after all these years.
The recent games I’ve tried and enjoyed? Persona 4 Golden on my Vita. Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch on my PS3. Tales of Zestiria and Tales of Berseria on the PS4, as well as Kingdom Hearts 1.5 +2.5, Monster Hunter World. Then of course the Xenoblade Chronicles 2 on Switch. I haven’t beaten any of these games as of yet, but I’ve enjoyed what I have played so far…this Makes me wonder, if I like these sequels, would I have liked the originals?
My worries now, is that it might be too late to go back and try these older games, if only because I know where the proverbial envelope has been pushed. Now sure, I can go back and replay the old games that I’ve played before and that’s mainly due to nostalgia. I know what to expect, I’m just taking a trip down memory lane. But an older game I’ve never touched. Can I honestly say I can look at them with an unbiased eye? Granted, thanks to the Nintendo Switch, I’ve gotten used to the resurrection of the 16 bit sprites.. I’m looking at you Stardew Valley. If I do go back and don’t enjoy the original, do I get a sour taste in my mouth for a newer release?
Thoughts? Comments?
Great post. Gotta love JRPGs :) I was first inducted into the world through Pokemon (Gameboy) and Suikoden II (one of my all-time faves). But I've grown fond of western games too - any game with good story and gameplay.
Time constraints aside, I'd enjoy playing those "classics". One not-so-old J-game that I recently enjoyed is Valkyria Chronicles. And 9 yrs after its release, it's still damn fun. But I do wish we'd get more new games of the JRPG mold in this generation, such as those in the likes of Ni No Kuni.
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I agree, this is why I am such a huge fan of the Switch. It could be the JRPG juggernaut. I am looking forward to the upcoming Ni No Kuni 2 that is coming out on PS4.
Valkyria Chronicles - What are your thoughts on that one? I've seen some footage and it seems .... odd. To me it seemed a little like Final Fantasy 12 where your character had a line from the top of your head to the target....I couldn't stand FFXII.
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I need to have at least one new-gen console, PS4 or Switch, mostly been playing on PC now. I've strayed far from my JRPG roots 😅
I haven't played FFXII but when I checked the gameplay vid, the overhead line seems unnecessarily complex? Like it's unintuitive for a turn-based RPG. Valkyria has those too but it's used to show enemy's line of sight which is essential for the shoot and cover turn-based mechanics. hmm, VC is a different breed of RPG because of its focus on Strategy, kind of like FF Tactics.
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It looks like a beautiful game. I've always been hesitant to pull the trigger. If you think it's really worth it, I'll give it a go.
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It's never too late to go back and play JRPG's! A lot of them are timeless and age like fine wine, but I can understand where you're coming from. Great read!
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Thank you for the kind words SquidKid. That's exactly how I look at some of the old titles I have. I may not play them for years.....but when I do, It's such a sweet taste on my gaming palate .
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