JRPGs

[BobSmith101]

I always prefer to play in Japanese where possible. I can get by on the language side (miss-spent youth watching anime) but I can't read it beyond basic level.

There has not been a lot of progress and that is both a good and a bad thing. While production values are generally not much better than the PS2 (outside of the big names), the core game play has altered very little either.

 

I've really enjoyed the Runefactory series and the Atelier series. Both bring something unique.

[BobSmith101]

I personally am gonna go out on a limb and say that I prefer to have a character that's somewhat laid out for me previously. Part of it is graphics style... your character usually doesn't look nearly as good or feel as well animated if you've got the standard 400 sliders available, and the character also doesn't EVER really say much to avoid "OMG it's the player!".

 

That said, I think one thing that needs to be done by the industry is correct the concept that this:

 

<removed pic>

 

Is going to be the automatic protagonist, with terrible dubbing, and some insipid dialogue about friendship tacked on.

 

Loathed Hawke far more than I ever disliked Tidus. Initally I was not a fan, but he grew on me as the game progressed. Same with Varn in FFXII.

[Amentep]

I would say the number one thing that differentiates a JRPG to w WRPG is the story and the main character. In JRPGs you are less likely to be able to create your own character of your choosing. Rather, you can do some small things in the game that change the ending, but for the most part the game has a story to tell.

 

One of the things that I've been wondering if JRPGs will eventually develop more into (outside of a the few titles they've had that have allowed you to make protagonists) is to allow you to pick from a set of protagonists. the PSP Persona 3 allows you to pick between gender for the protagonist; Summon Knight game on the DS or the Swordcraft stories on the GBA allowed you to pick between two different protagonists (who played through the same story).

 

I'm playing through Tales of Graces f and I couldn't help but think that a game like this could be created where all of the characters could be the protagonist (but can't help but imagine it'd add a few layers of complexity to do).

 

I think both have their good and bad parts, but everyone has their opinions about what a TRUE RPG is, and it's that opinion that allows both sub-genres to thrive.

 

Funnily enough, one of the early WRPGs I played was SSI's Phantasie (travel on a top down overhead map; combat takes place on a separate screen with monsters arrayed against the heroes in rows) when I first started playing JRPGs I didn't notice much difference in style (except in Phantasie you rolled your own characters). Its interesting to see how both WRPGs and JRPGs take their cues from those older games as a foundation but have certainly grown in different ways.

Edited April 18, 2012 by Amentep

[Humanoid]

Wouldn't even need to change the character graphics for the gender switch!

[Calax]

I personally am gonna go out on a limb and say that I prefer to have a character that's somewhat laid out for me previously. Part of it is graphics style... your character usually doesn't look nearly as good or feel as well animated if you've got the standard 400 sliders available, and the character also doesn't EVER really say much to avoid "OMG it's the player!".

 

That said, I think one thing that needs to be done by the industry is correct the concept that this:

 

<removed pic>

 

Is going to be the automatic protagonist, with terrible dubbing, and some insipid dialogue about friendship tacked on.

 

Loathed Hawke far more than I ever disliked Tidus. Initally I was not a fan, but he grew on me as the game progressed. Same with Varn in FFXII.

Thing is, everyone assumes that it's going to be a "spikey haired emo with a sword to compensate for something"

[greylord]

 

Funnily enough, one of the early WRPGs I played was SSI's Phantasie (travel on a top down overhead map; combat takes place on a separate screen with monsters arrayed against the heroes in rows) when I first started playing JRPGs I didn't notice much difference in style (except in Phantasie you rolled your own characters). Its interesting to see how both WRPGs and JRPGs take their cues from those older games as a foundation but have certainly grown in different ways.

 

Yes, it is. The original JRPGs I think were heavily inspired by D&D and Wizardry. In fact Wizardry still seems to have a solid foundation in the Japanese market. In those games you don't roll your stats, but you basically make your own protagonists. They are also considered very old school by Western reviewers who grade them excessively harshely (which is terrible, Etrian Odyssey was one of the best new RPG's out with it's generation, and the same goes for Wizardry: Labyrinth of Lost Souls). Not the best graphics, but graphics don't always make the game.

[entrerix]

i hate to think how square would re-envision the cast of FFVI if they were to make it today...

 

locke would have spiky hair. so would edgar for some reason. setzer would look like a chick. terra would whisper mumble everything she said. kefka they would make deadly serious all the time instead of half comic relief/half villain

Edited April 18, 2012 by entrerix

[Tigranes]

To be honest, some of that is true already. Terra *is* a whiny mumbler for the first half, Setzer does look like a woman, etc. It's for the best that there was no voice acting, so you could at least imagine the lines differently from how they'd probably produce them.

 

But yeah, there's nothing to be improved by remaking them, it would be nice if they took FF5 and made it a proper turn-based tactical combat FF, though, and add in pseudo-strategy mechanics like strongholds. No real fears about ruining the story or characters, since FF5 didn't have any to begin with.

[Amentep]

You know, I played FFV but can't remember much about it other than I think it used a Job System.

 

Mind you, I've never understood the love for FFIV either...

[Labadal]

You know, I played FFV but can't remember much about it other than I think it used a Job System.

 

Mind you, I've never understood the love for FFIV either...

 

I wasn't a big fan of IV either. I forced myself to complete it.

[Mamoulian War]

So anything interesting for PS3, Wii, PSP released lately in the western world???

[Labadal]

Ragnarok Tactics (PSP) is supposed to be okay, but I don't know. Haven't tried it. Gungnir and Growlanser were good. Final Fantasy III (NDS port) was released on PSP. Can't think of anything recent off the top of my head.

[greylord]

Ragnarok Tactics (PSP) is supposed to be okay, but I don't know. Haven't tried it. Gungnir and Growlanser were good. Final Fantasy III (NDS port) was released on PSP. Can't think of anything recent off the top of my head.

 

Mugen Souls was released on PS3.

 

How is gungnir?

 

I can't seem to find the FFIII on the PSP...that's an absolute buy if I could find it. Didn't even know they put it on the PSP.

[melkathi]

So anything interesting for PS3, Wii, PSP released lately in the western world???

 

PSP release wasn't "laterly" as such, but they did do a revamped version of Tactics Ogre: Lets Cling Together.

Bought a PSP just for that Rather good branching story with choices, loads of npcs.

Now if only they did a new version of Ogre Battle: March of the Black Queen. Now there was a game that really had choices that matter.

[Labadal]

Ragnarok Tactics (PSP) is supposed to be okay, but I don't know. Haven't tried it. Gungnir and Growlanser were good. Final Fantasy III (NDS port) was released on PSP. Can't think of anything recent off the top of my head.

 

Mugen Souls was released on PS3.

 

How is gungnir?

 

I can't seem to find the FFIII on the PSP...that's an absolute buy if I could find it. Didn't even know they put it on the PSP.

 

Sitting on the shelf, unplayed because of a big backlog, but heard it is supposed to be a good srpg.

[Mamoulian War]

Ragnarok Tactics (PSP) is supposed to be okay, but I don't know. Haven't tried it. Gungnir and Growlanser were good. Final Fantasy III (NDS port) was released on PSP. Can't think of anything recent off the top of my head.

 

Mugen Souls was released on PS3.

 

How is gungnir?

 

I can't seem to find the FFIII on the PSP...that's an absolute buy if I could find it. Didn't even know they put it on the PSP.

 

As far as I know FFIII was released on PSP only in Japan, but I heard it is with english and japanese voiceover. I do not know if it is true though :/

 

EDIT: AAAnd you have to tell me more about Mugen Souls!!! I liked few other Compile Heart games, so I am thinking about getting this one, but still would like more info... THX

Edited November 12, 2012 by Mamoulian War

[greylord]

Ragnarok Tactics (PSP) is supposed to be okay, but I don't know. Haven't tried it. Gungnir and Growlanser were good. Final Fantasy III (NDS port) was released on PSP. Can't think of anything recent off the top of my head.

 

Mugen Souls was released on PS3.

 

How is gungnir?

 

I can't seem to find the FFIII on the PSP...that's an absolute buy if I could find it. Didn't even know they put it on the PSP.

 

As far as I know FFIII was released on PSP only in Japan, but I heard it is with english and japanese voiceover. I do not know if it is true though :/

 

EDIT: AAAnd you have to tell me more about Mugen Souls!!! I liked few other Compile Heart games, so I am thinking about getting this one, but still would like more info... THX

 

The closest I can come is a more coherent and serious Trinity Universe type game. It's way over the top with much of what it does, more scandalous, and still with that wierd Japanese humor type thing. However, it feels to have a more coherent (though still very odd and no where near normal) storyline than the aforementioned Trinity Universe.

 

It has a great take on a turnbased combat system however, different but a unique take. If only developers looked at existing systems and evolved and created unique ideas with them rather than thinking everyone wants and action slash slash type thing we could end up with extremely unique takes on them like in this game. Basically you have turnbased combat, but you can also woo enemies to be your slaves. I guess that's the closest I can come to how that works in a very short summary.

[entrerix]

im still waiting for suikoden 2 to get some kind of re-release, the discs are too rare

[Streamlock]

On JRPG's.....Let me make an admission of guilt-As much as I now rag on JRPG's, I used to be an ardent fan of them. Up until FF VIII. I could not bring myself to finish that horrid excuse for a game. (I think I got to the part where you find out your all orphans of the evil witch Mom, or some nonesense). I am a bit of a compleionist, and for me not to follow through and finish a game I started is rare.

 

It jaded me so horribly bad, that I have not been able to get into another JRPG. The same thing happened with 1st person RPG's, the second Ultima Underworlds was so horrible, I refused to purchase/play another 1st person RPG. Skyrim changed that, it was the first 1st person RPG I had bought in ages, and despite it's myriad of shortcommings, I really enjoyed it.

 

Though most of my friends say I'm not missing much, I'm thinking there is some JRPG gem out there that is not totally some sick mess of "Saki puke on a story board, sexualization of 14 year old school girls, adrogynous ansgty teen, ridiculous outfits and hair, mini-game/quick time event" crap.

 

Is there something out there worth checking out? Or am I just to jaded?

[Keyrock]

For me there are some classics I love like Final Fantasy VI (still the best jRPG ever made IMHO), Chrono Trigger, Phantasy Star (all of them, but particularly IV), and Seiken Densetsu III (aka Secret of Mana 2). More recently though, I fell in love with Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor and SMT: Devil Survivor 2. Both are brilliant games combining elements on sRPGs, old school style menu driven jRPGs, Dragon Quest style monster collecting and training, and fusing of monsters. They're truly fun games that both gave me over a hundred hours of good times each.

[Amentep]

I've enjoyed most of the SMT games that I've played and related series (that said I never finished SMT: Devil Survivor).

[NOK222]

On JRPG's.....Let me make an admission of guilt-As much as I now rag on JRPG's, I used to be an ardent fan of them. Up until FF VIII. I could not bring myself to finish that horrid excuse for a game. (I think I got to the part where you find out your all orphans of the evil witch Mom, or some nonesense). I am a bit of a compleionist, and for me not to follow through and finish a game I started is rare.

 

It jaded me so horribly bad, that I have not been able to get into another JRPG. The same thing happened with 1st person RPG's, the second Ultima Underworlds was so horrible, I refused to purchase/play another 1st person RPG. Skyrim changed that, it was the first 1st person RPG I had bought in ages, and despite it's myriad of shortcommings, I really enjoyed it.

 

Though most of my friends say I'm not missing much, I'm thinking there is some JRPG gem out there that is not totally some sick mess of "Saki puke on a story board, sexualization of 14 year old school girls, adrogynous ansgty teen, ridiculous outfits and hair, mini-game/quick time event" crap.

 

Is there something out there worth checking out? Or am I just to jaded?

 

Persona series.

[Streamlock]

Ooops, let me phrase what I asked above in a different framework-I only have available a 360 and PC to game on at the moment....

[Drowsy Emperor]

JRPG's often have great premises, a nice opening to suck you in, more experimentation with settings than western RPGs.

 

All too often they fail at resolving the storylines or resort to cliches, shallow characters and rely on far too much grind to add more length to gameplay.

 

I've played:

Final Fantasy IV (finished it. shallow, simple and a waste of time)

Final Fantasy VII (finished it. rather unimpressed with the game in every respect)

Final Fantasy VIII (quit a few hours in, dunno why)

Final Fantasy X (finished it. Great game)

Final Fantasy X-2 (finished it. Too girly for my tastes)

Final Fantasy XII (top notch graphical design. in progress)

Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne (excellent visual design and setting. quit due to boredom with shallow and sparse story)

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 (finished it. Great premise, some fine parts, poor story outcome, too grind heavy)

Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga (in progress. Interesting premise, boring dungeons and gameplay)

Suikoden III (quit due to boredom)

Odin's Sphere (quit due to being too repetitive and boring)

Dragon Quest VIII (plan on playing it through)

Septerra Core (never finished it)

 

...can't remember if there was anything else

 

Overall the two I liked best so far are FFX and FFXII. Persona 3 made a great impression and subsequently did everything to ruin it.

Edited November 13, 2012 by Drowsy Emperor

[pmp10]

JRPG's often have great premises, a nice opening to suck you in, more experimentation with settings than western RPGs.

 

All too often they fail at resolving the storylines or resort to cliches, shallow characters and rely on far too much grind to add more length to gameplay.

That and they have developed terrible over-reliance on cinematics.

I don't know what exactly changed in JRPG design (or perhaps failed to change) but I just can't stand the genre anymore.

Maybe it's the whole teen-focus and character-drama that is driving me away.

Last JRPG I picked was Resonance of Fate and the protagonists teenage-sidekick made my blood-boil with constant sulking over his dark-past.