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My summer of JRPGs 2.0. Need input.

DragoonKain

Neighbours from Hell
Last year, I got some input here and it was what pushed me over the edge to finally play Dragon Quest XI and I absolutely loved it. I planned on playing Ys and the recommendations here of VIII and IX made me feel much better about playing them so I bumped them up from my games to play list and loved both of them as well. Played a bunch of JRPGs last summer, but just listed the ones I got input on here.

So far for my summer of JRPGs I have Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition, Octopath Traveler, and Bravely Default 2.

I need two more JRPGs to start. I prefer something that captures the classic JRPG feel, but it doesn't have to. Because I'm not sure most of those that I list will capture that feel.

The games I'm considering are:

Trails of Cold Steel
The Alliance Alive
The Legend of Legacy
Stella Glow
Cosmic Star Heroine
Crosscode
Shin Megami Tensei V
Oninaki

These are all games I currently own and are in my backlog and haven't played yet, so that's why I specifically chose those. I know SMT5 is probably far and away the most highly regarded game of the bunch. Not sure it fits what I'm craving at the moment, but if it really is just that far superior to the others, I may just go with it anyway.
 

Merkades

Member
Of those, I like Trails the most by far. That said, and in a truly rare instance, I would like to recommend Crystal Project, an indie game. It just released and uses a turn based system using sprites on a 3d minecraft-ish world. A class change system, a ton of platforming, hidden secrets, a 15$ price tag, no hidden mechanics, frequent updates (12 since launch, which was like 2 weeks ago) and more, worth it imo.


Last note, I have not tried SMTV or Stella Glow, so can't fairly judge them.
 

Y0ssarian

Banned
The games I'm considering are:

Trails of Cold Steel
The Alliance Alive
The Legend of Legacy
Stella Glow
Cosmic Star Heroine
Crosscode
Shin Megami Tensei V
Oninaki

I know SMT5 is probably far and away the most highly regarded game of the bunch.
Didn't like Cold Steel. I had Alliance Alive and never played it. Legend of Legacy wasn't great. Stella Glow is ok. Never played Cosmic Star Heroine or Crosscode. Played Oninaki demo - thought it was ass.

Go with SMTV
 

DragoonKain

Neighbours from Hell
Didn't like Cold Steel. I had Alliance Alive and never played it. Legend of Legacy wasn't great. Stella Glow is ok. Never played Cosmic Star Heroine or Crosscode. Played Oninaki demo - thought it was ass.

Go with SMTV
What didn't you like about Trails? Curious if it's the same as I've heard from others.
 

anthony2690

Banned
Lost Odyssey (best jrpg ever)

Captures the magic off older FF titles (I would say it is the best FF title to be honest)
 

drganon

Member
SMT v is pretty awesome, but it's not very story heavy. Trails of cold steel is pretty good too, but very story heavy, so you'll want to start with the first. If I had to choose, I'd go with smt v first since you'll only have to play one game to wrap things up. The rest I don't have an opinion since I haven't played them.
 

DragoonKain

Neighbours from Hell
It's more of an action RPG but I think Scarlet Nexus is fantastic and definitely worth checking out
a lot of people liked this game and it didn’t work for me though I did finish it. I thought it had a lot of potential but some small things about it that bothered me added up and I hated the final dungeon so much to where I almost rage quit. It went on for hours. But I get why people loved it though.
Lost Odyssey (best jrpg ever)

Captures the magic off older FF titles (I would say it is the best FF title to be honest)
love that game. One of my favorites ever honestly.
 

Y0ssarian

Banned
Cute DQ7 waifu

827719.jpg
Thanks googoo. I need a better one though. I don't like the white background
 

Guilty_AI

Member
Crosscode is pretty good, its like a modernized version of games like Secret of Mana with faster paced combat, larger areas, tighter controls, etc. Story and characters are good too.
 
Crosscode is pretty good, its like a modernized version of games like Secret of Mana with faster paced combat, larger areas, tighter controls, etc. Story and characters are good too.
Is the story actually good? I played a bit on the Switch, and it seemed like some MMO-like thing, which turned me off a bit. I was liking the MC a lot tho, she had very cute dialog.

Btw I dropped it because of the frame drops, but would love to give it another chance on PC
 

Arthimura

Member
I recommend Shin Megami Tensei V.

It's heavy on gameplay, which is fine by me.

It's not heavy on story, but it was interesting enough to keep me engaged and it presents more of a "mythological" aspect of the series. It's more focused on lore than narrative and character develpment.
 

Guilty_AI

Member
Is the story actually good? I played a bit on the Switch, and it seemed like some MMO-like thing, which turned me off a bit. I was liking the MC a lot tho, she had very cute dialog.

Btw I dropped it because of the frame drops, but would love to give it another chance on PC
Its slow at first since initially the game is more worried about familiarizing you with the setting, gameplay, etc; you won't get much aside from interesting interactions between characters.

The plot 'thickens' later but ultimately i'd say the characters are still the most enjoyable part of the story.
 

Shifty1897

Member
I'm a big fan of The Alliance Alive, it's a SaGa game in all but name, the production values are not triple A though.
The Legend of Legacy is terrible.
Cosmic Star Heroine is fun and it has heart, but it is probably the buggiest game I've played in a decade. I never ended up finishing it because the game kept softlocking during battles in one section.

Of the games you listed that I haven't played, people really love Trails of Cold Steel and CrossCode.
 

PhaseJump

Banned
Play Crosscode.

It is better than most of the "real" JRPGs these days. It hits all the right beats with pacing out the story, it handles item collecting and progression well.

The game is the closest we have gotten going back to the days of Chrono Trigger and Secret of Mana.

Seriously, don't listen to the weebs that blindly recommend sequels and status quo shit from old companies that usually don't know how to make good games anymore.
Crosscode is THE game you will want to get into for a few weeks, without getting any sleep over it.

Go into it blind, avoid the internet.
 
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Crosscode is excellent. I'll second that it's like Secret of Mana but better.

I didn't like Cosmic Star Heroine. It looks the part but it was missing the important components that make a good JRPG like story/combat. Lots of people seem to like it though and it's fairly short so it's probably worth checking out yourself anyway.
 

HercRaato

Member
Out of that list Trails of Cold Steel. Great series, story telling and world building. It's even better if you have played Trails in the Sky series.
 
Cosmic Star Heroine is exceptional in how it sucks. Everything looks and plays good, but all the characters or NPCs read as if they're fan fiction. Speaking with the same tone, juvenile attitude or whatever you want to call it. It's the same with Pier Solar.
That's why I couldn't get far into CSH, despite loving the pixel art, animations, and the level of thought that went into the battle system. The writing is terrible and takes you out of the story instead of immersing you in it. It's been my opinion for years that indie developers underestimate the importance of writing especially for a story-driven game and just half-ass it instead of hiring someone is competent at it. I know the developers of CSH were earnest in their writing effort but it clearly didn't receive the same amount of care as their spritework and battle design.
 

Xaero Gravity

NEXT LEVEL lame™
a lot of people liked this game and it didn’t work for me though I did finish it. I thought it had a lot of potential but some small things about it that bothered me added up and I hated the final dungeon so much to where I almost rage quit. It went on for hours. But I get why people loved it though.
not safe for work no GIF
 

VidKid369

Member
Mm. Much of the stuff you mentioned seems really new-school to me, I'm only familiar with the classics. If anything, I'm thinking about finishing the Breath of Fire series and some of the old-school Persona games like Eternal Punishment and Persona 3.
 

cireza

Member
Cosmic Star Heroine is exceptional in how it sucks. Everything looks and plays good, but all the characters or NPCs read as if they're fan fiction. Speaking with the same tone, juvenile attitude or whatever you want to call it. It's the same with Pier Solar.
Thanks for the feedback on Cosmic Star Heroine and Cross Code.

Have you played Phantasy Star series ? Lunar ? Grandia ? Shining Force ? Persona series ? Just to get your opinion on these and see how close our tastes can be.
 
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I looking forward to discussing Trails with you. Welcome to the fanbase.
Haha thanks! So far it's pretty comfy. I like that it's taking things slowly and the story and characters seem to have alot of charm.

The battle system is cool too. Nothing too crazy so far, but I like that you have to take positioning into account, and it's fun to steal turn bonuses from enemies.
 

Mister Wolf

Member
Haha thanks! So far it's pretty comfy. I like that it's taking things slowly and the story and characters seem to have alot of charm.

The battle system is cool too. Nothing too crazy so far, but I like that you have to take positioning into account, and it's fun to steal turn bonuses from enemies.

Alot of times I will attack with my character then immediately trigger their super move afterward so I can attack twice in a row with them.
 

ANDS

King of Gaslighting
CROSSCODE isn't really a JRPG. It is an action RPG akin to Zelda. Some might find it more Zelda than Zelda honestly, because it is stuffed to the brim with puzzles. Story is also good and the game world "hook" is actually pretty imaginative. I played COLD STEEL and it is indeed fantastic, but I started on NIGHTMARE as a first timer and that was a mistake (that you can't change mid game). The characters are fantastic though and I will eventually return to the game because that sub-series followups are rated very well. Never played any other TRAILS (you can tell this is a story within a MUCH larger world, but you aren't made to feel like you are missing anything).
 

DragoonKain

Neighbours from Hell
Bravely Default II:

Not an elite tier JRPG, but a very solid one. Loved the battle system and the different strategies it opened up to you with the Brave system. Also always love a world map, there's not too many RPGs with them these days. Was very difficult to start, then got progressively easier as you level up.

One JRPG down.
 
Bravely Default II:

Not an elite tier JRPG, but a very solid one. Loved the battle system and the different strategies it opened up to you with the Brave system. Also always love a world map, there's not too many RPGs with them these days. Was very difficult to start, then got progressively easier as you level up.

One JRPG down.

I spend 250+ hours on it
I did everything in that game
 

Celcius

°Temp. member
If you need a jrpg OP, I’m currently playing through ff12 for the first time and really enjoying it.
 

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
I put about 80. Next up for me is Xenoblade Chronicles. Now that's a long one.
It doesn't have to be. The game has a massive amount of side-content. While it's generally recommended to complete at least some of it, it's entirely possible to mow through the main story in 35 or so hours. Less if you skip all the dialog. Not that I recommend doing that, especially if its your first time through!
 
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