Never played a JRPG

ntlbell

So after twenty odd years of gaming I have managed to never play a JRPG.
I've watched someone play one of the FF and skies of arcadia on a DC for about 10 minutes.

For shame.

Can anyone recomend something that might capture my interest in the genre?

At the moment I only have access to 360/PS3/Wii

seraphimvc

would be good if you have a psp, some jrpg/remake on psp are excellent. FFT remake is defo a nice jrpg for beginner (but it is a Strategic SRPG so not really a typical rpg). Valkyria Chronicles are good on psp and ps3 but i dont think i will recommend them for jrpg beginner - it simply didnt capture the Jrpg core element imo.

tbh atm there is no console jrpg that i'd really recommend to jrpg newcomer. Lost odysey is 'old-school', blue dragon is passable, ff13 is abit hit and miss (i hated it personally and i am a die-hard jrpg fan but some young gamers love it), Tales series is abit meh on this generation. some other titles like Infinite undiscovery, resonanse of fate, white knight are all have goods and bads depends on player's taste.

imo there is no all-rounder good jrpg at the moment,sadly. but keep an eye on the coming soon The Last Story!!from the look of it seems quite promising. and i am also waiting for the english released Xenoblade! both will be on wii in 2011 i guess.

Retr0gamer

There'sno way I'd recommend Final Fantasy Tactics to a mewcomer! It's a fantastic game but it's also one of the hardest games ever made!

Lost Odyssey for me isn't one I'd recommend either. It's very long winded and takes a good few hours before it gets good.

Valkyria Chronicles on the PS3 though is a must have. It really is an under appreciated classic and I can't recommend it highly enough.

If you have access to a PC or laptop you can always go the emulation route. The two I would recommend are FF6 and Chrono Trigger, two of the greatest JRPGs ever made.

If you can play PS2 games then the games you really should be playing are Persona 3 and 4 which are increidible and 2 of the best games made in the last decade.

On PSN you can't really go wrong with the FF games. The one I'd recommend is Final Fantasy IX which is far and away the best on the PS1 games. The plot is simple but cracks on at a great pace and it's just heaps of fun from start to finish.

FFVII although no where near as good as some people make it out to be. The battle system is simple and has no depth to it, the translation is beyond awful and the storyline falls apart after you leave midgar. It is however a lot of fun to play and well worth your time.

ntlbell

seraphimvc I don't have or have access to a psp :mad:

Retr0 you have yet to steer me down a path I wasn't happy with, if you were to pick just 1 of the above for a newbie what would you go with?

I've heard and read a fair bit on the persona series but I don't have a PS2 and my PS3 doesn't have the PS2 emulation.

Retr0gamer

Well I'd go with Valkria Chronicles since it's damn good and the graphics are absolutely beautiful. Also emulation is free so FF6 and Chrono Trigger aren't bad games to start with. If the PS1 versions of these are on PSN don't buy them! There's load times that kill the pace of the games. FFIX really is a good choice as well. I'd go with one of those. JRPGs are linear and rely on excellent battle mechanics rather than the non linearity of WRPGs. If you like any of those up there then there's a good chance you are a closet JRPG fan.

Pity you don't have PS2 emulation. Persona 3 and 4 really are amazing.

johnny_ultimate

It's a shame that the current consoles aren't really up too much JRPGs wise alright - DS and PSP probably have the best selection at the moment! But would +1 Valkyria Chronicles as a gateway drug of sorts - the only really confident blend of third person and turn-based that I've come across in a while. Plus, the graphics are absolutely mind-meltingly good.

As said, PSN is good for the classic likes of FFVII and FFIX. FFVIII is a bit nuts, been too long since I've played it but its a radical and not much loved change to the formula. I liked it at the time, but VII and IX are the way to go.

Honestly can't think of many more of the top of my head. Eternal Sonata is the only one springing to mind, which is only OK. It's a bit shallow and fairly short, but the presentation is vivid, the battle system compelling if simplistic and the storyline (focusing on a fantasy world conjured up by Chopin on his death bed - I know, only in Japan) is interesting. It's easy enough for a beginner, but not the best the genre has to offer.

But as Retr0 said, picking up a cheap PS2 and Persona 3/4 really will give you the best JRPGs currently have to offer

seraphimvc

Retr0gamer wrote: »

There'sno way I'd recommend Final Fantasy Tactics to a mewcomer! It's a fantastic game but it's also one of the hardest games ever made!

lol Retro, did you forget how every jrpg is hard to play back in 90s?:p

@ntlbell:
if you can get a snes emulator on pc(which is easy) :pac: i would strongly recommend Secret of Mana and Chrono trigger. and i believe FF4 is a perfect game for a newcomer! now i remember i pulled a friend of mine into jrpg by FF4! and if you wanna pick up a ps2 then we have a tonnes of jrpg to recommend to you:D

but they are ARPG(Mana series and Chrono), caused' deep down in my heart, turn base rpg is the 'real' Jrpg - i have to recommend FF4-10, you will love some of them and hate of them and then eventually you will understand the FF fanboyism:D (and how we 'old' FF fans hated FF13)

Persona series is abit too 'modern' in my taste:P while DQ(dragon quest) is too 'traditional', FF(4-10) was really the perfect fusion.

Retr0gamer

seraphimvc wrote: »

lol Retro, did you forget how every jrpg is hard to play back in 90s?:p

No? I thought they were all way too easy but FF Tactics really is a ridiculously tough game and not one a newcomer should start on. Definitely worth playing but you'd want to build yourself up to it.

Dragon Quest is a great series to get into as well. Can't recommend DQ8 on the PS2 highly enough and I've heard DQ9 on the DS is amazing.

seraphimvc

Retr0gamer wrote: »

No? I thought they were all way too easy but FF Tactics really is a ridiculously tough game and not one a newcomer should start on. Definitely worth playing but you'd want to build yourself up to it.

Dragon Quest is a great series to get into as well. Can't recommend DQ8 on the PS2 highly enough and I've heard DQ9 on the DS is amazing.

maybe i was very young :P Megami Tensei game was HARDCORE (for a kid like me back then i think, i forget which one i played). Grandia games for another example was quite frustrating of keep on dying in some stages. Tales of Destiny and chocobo dungeon spring to mind too. boy i think these games are not really 'hard', there are just some big design flaws in them lol there are some hard stages in FFT but overall i prefer FFT to grandia any day.... some ridiculous high level of chocobo in FFT one hit kill your character is funny tho.

nowadays only the hidden boss in rpgs can game over me. except that overly stupid ret*rded sh!te FF13. TURTLE.and those

ten times RETARDED

summon fights.argggggggg

Retr0gamer

Well Shin Megami Tensei is always a challenge. Persona is more casual but even they are challenging. I found Grandia a breeze? Maybe you were avoiding battles, I was fighting all of them since the battle system was so much fun.

F1ngers

Can you download off PSN?
If so, I'd recommend Vagrant Story, haven't played it in a long time but it's a great game.
I don't know if it's best to get off the US PSN or EU PSN, people complain about speed and borders in different versions.
I'd also recommend the 3 FF's on PSN, IX, VII and VIII in that order.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDiZNuAkqz0

Retr0gamer

Yep best to get the US versions of the PS1 games off PSN due to horrible slowdown and borders.

ntlbell

do i just need a us address to open a us account?

UberPrinny_Baal

From what i understand, Vagrant Story had an excellent plot.

I never got to it though, because I got stuck in it's brutal difficulty.

If you're going to play it, be aware that it's not easy in any sense of the word.

F1ngers

ntlbell wrote: »

do i just need a us address to open a us account?

No. You need a new email address to open up a US account.
To buy off the US PSN you need to "trick" it to accepting your credit card.
VISA works with no issues that I've heard of, but Mastercard is tricky.

When putting in your credit card details, give your normal address but when you get to state and zip put in a US area and zip code. I use Beverley Hills and 90210.

ntlbell

F1ngers wrote: »

No. You need a new email address to open up a US account.
To buy off the US PSN you need to "trick" it to accepting your credit card.
VISA works with no issues that I've heard of, but Mastercard is tricky.

When putting in your credit card details, give your normal address but when you get to state and zip put in a US area and zip code. I use Beverley Hills and 90210.

but if i have a $ psn network card i dont need to do any of this yea?

F1ngers

ntlbell wrote: »

but if i have a $ psn network card i dont need to do any of this yea?

True, but why make it easy on yourself...:p

ntlbell

Picked up Valkyria Chronicles on the PS3 was the easiest thing for me to do.

Only arrived today, thanks I'll get back to all other recomendations!

noodler

ntlbell wrote: »

Picked up Valkyria Chronicles on the PS3 was the easiest thing for me to do.

Only arrived today, thanks I'll get back to all other recomendations!

Ah you luckly man.

Wait til you get to the

desert

mission.