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[Jisgsaw]

Nice to have you back doing this kswiston ;-)
Not that much changes for me since 2015... As I'm lazy, I'll take over most of my descriptions of that thread.

With no particular order except for the top 3 and the separation ranked/honorable mention; I tried to limit myself to only one game per series (with two exceptions: The Witcher and Persona; Nier: Automata and several others however were axed because of this):

Ranked Games

Shin Megami Tensei III (aka Nocturne (J/US) aka Lucifer's call (PAL)) (3 points)
Probably not just my favorite RPG, but also my favoite game overall.
Almost everything in this game is perfect: the art direction is gorgeous (thanks Kaneko), the resulting aesthetics (including dungeons) ingame is... whoa, the atmosphere in the game is quite unlike anything I've seen in other games (and tops them all), the OST is accordingly good, the fusion system is addictive, and it has the best turned based gameplay in RPGs, supported by a consistent difficulty throughout the game, which keeps the combats interesting.

You are basically, after 10 minutes of gameplay, put in a destroyed Tokyo after the Wrold ended; your role is to decide how the world will be rebuild. Everything in this game is made to emphasis the desolation that became Tokyo, and that hooked me up for 80+ hours. Every step of the way, you'll have to be thinking of your party management: should I heal now, or wait a bit? What demons to take in my default party to not get whipe out in a turn? Should I maybe fuse some demons to get better ones?
All this is tied to the combat gameplay, the Press Turn System. You basically have to watch out for the elemental weaknesses of your party and your ennemies, as that will pretty much decide the battle. And we finally have a jRPG where buffs and status/death spells really work well, so you'll have to take that into account too.

On the down side, some could wish for a more dense story; the storytelling is minimalistic, the game focuses more on wolrd-building and gameplay mechanisms.
I'd definitvely recommend for Persona 3/4 fans to try it at least a few hours. There is no social links, but all the rest tops these games. Also a good pick for those who prefered Persona 3's atmosphere over Persona 4's; it's quite dark.
Likewise, those that like SMT4 could give it a try, as it tops it in every compartiment aside story and ergonomy of the menues.

The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt
There's not much I could say that wasn't said already about this great game: increadible wolrd, excellent characters, perfect MC, serviceable combat, great story, beautifull music and sceneries...
The first Witcher was my second favorite game, and I honestly was a bit scared when CDPR anounced the massive open world and how they would introduced two of my favorite characters of the books (Yennefer and Ciri), but god did they deliver for both. And then managed to top themselves again with both expansions.

Nier
Nier is an intersting game: taken separartly, everything in this game ranges from mediocre to bad, except for the music that is god tier.
But put together, a synergy becomes visible which turns in a very emotionnal, harrowing experience (especially the NG+); the melancholic feel of the game is hard to top. I especially liked how the gameplay switches (A-RPG, shoot'em up, Light Novel, RE-like) introduced a change of pace to the storytelling.
I'll definitively look forward to Taro's next games (future me note: and I was right to, Automata is great). His views on game developping are quite refreshing ( 40 minute conference on GDC, with spoilers of Nier ).
Also, have I mentioned this has the best original soundtrack ever?

Definitively a divisive game, as I can quite understand the people who disliked it. Either the game's charm works or it doesn't, and if it doesn't I guess you'll hate the approx. 20 hours the first run takes.
If you tried it and liked your first playthrough, doing the quick (ca. 5 hours) NG+ is an absolute must.

Persona 3
Persona 3 was notable for its clever inclusion of "dating sim" like elements in its RPG-elements. Both aspects work quite well together, and especially are combined together, with the LN elements having direct impact on the RPG gameplay. I'd like Persona 5 go even further down this road, but we'll see what Atlus will do (future me note: they didn't, hence why 3 stays the ranked Persona, P5 didn't bring enough new things to top it, despite its amazing aesthetics).
Now, Persona 4 largely improved on the gameplay and mechanisms of Persona 3, which is why one could arguably rank Persona 4 higher.
I, however, was far more touched by Persona 3's atmosphere (notice a trend in what I like in games?) and story, which is why Persona 3 ranks higher.
Also, that music... And that scene almost right at the beginning.

Resonance of Fate
Tri-Ace always has a knack to make great combat systems. Resonance of Fate may very well be their masterpiece in that regard. Turn based, the combats are decided by your placement and movements compared to your ennemies and allies. The tutorials are... let's say not very good, but once you get the hang of it, it's great.
This is compled with a nice steam punk universe, and crazy character and gun customization.
Tri-Ace also has a knack on not being great on the stroytelling department. This is sadly also true for this one. While the story itself is rather interesting, it's relegated to some couple scenes at the start and end of each chapters. The first chapters are mroe "slice of life" scenarios 'which are great), but this results in almost all the story being relegated at the end of the game, and not much being explained about it.

Shadow Heart: Covenants
Again a game which impressed me with its setting, atmosphere and story. The wheel during the combats was a nice addition to traditional turn based combats, and Yuri's fusions were quite fun to unlock and develop.
Unlike many fans of the series, I almost quite equally enjoyed From the New World, but Covenant still is the more consistent good game.

Divinity: Original Sin
This'll probably be replaced by D:OS2 when I finish it (which may well be before the end of the votes).
I actually skipped and didn't notice this game until 2016, when a colleague talked to me about it. I wasn't that taken by the story (despite some nice characters and setting), but by god are the combats fun. Absolute masterpiece in this regard, each combat has so much possibilities. And playing with the environment is an absolute must( and a blast).

Alpha Protocol
Having so much choices which have such important impact on the rest of the game was great.
The lame combats and bugs not so much.

Atelier Escha & Logy
I love alchemy in Gust games, and Esha is by far the best Atelier game I played. I wish more games would go for the formula of the Atlier series (illustrated in that image), maybe with a darker or different tone (I have to admit, the Moe effect can get on my nerves sometimes).
For those unfamiliar, Atelier games iintroduce a very "moe" cast (which can get on your nerves), usually in a desolate world where alchemy, the ability to create new objects from ingredient, excist. This alchemy is the pmain focus the games, with each game bringing some new mechanism for it. Your main fopcus is then to optimize your created object to create OP bombs and equiment, and to find the material to do that. The first PS3 game also had a time management aspect, which was dropped afterwards.

Final Fantasy 10
My first dip into jRPG, I really enjoyed it, which lead me to be more interested in the genre (and sadly skipping WRPG at the time). Great setting, nice story, interesting combats, the english voices and boring post game content were a letdown though.


Honorable Mentions

Persona 5 - This'll replace P4 for me. The best post P2 persona game, it looks positively gorgeous. Like P3 and 4, there are some pacing issues; I also wasn't as hooked for the main cast as in the other two.
Devil Survivor 2 - I don't like tactical RPGs, but this one convinced me, partly because of the adapted press turn system, partly for (again) the SMT-esque setting and atmosphere.
Valkyria Chronicles - same as above, it's unusual for me to like tacticals. This one though looks gorgeous, and the mixed in real time combats are great. The compagnon stuff was better managed in Valkyria 2 though imho. I need to test 3, but a Valkyria 4 on PS4/Vita would be an instant buy.
The Witcher - The game that braught me back the WRPGs. Absolutely increadible atmosphere, and already great MC and characters, the game was completely surpassed by TW3 in every point. Still a great kick off for Geralt's Story, and I'll always have fond memories of it (except for the swamps. Damn those swamps)
The Last Remnant - Hands down one of the best combat system (on PC), but also the least well explained one in jRPGs I've played. I'd love SE to expand on this system, but alas that won't happen.
The Last Story - Good combat, but what sold me was the solid storytelling: nothing fancy or new, just a decent game story very well told.
Pandora's Tower - Great setting, story and OST, intersting gameplay. Bit of a surprise hit for me, as this was the least talked about of the Operation Rainfall games. I'd probably have given it full points if it had more RPG elements.
Final Fantasy XIII: Lightning Returns - I think everyone is sick of Lightning by this point, and the story was kinda bad in this one (even more than in the first two games), but the combat system is magnificent in this one. The semi-permanent world, where you can decimate an entire species of ennemies, was also very nice; the timer is a non issue, given how you can stop it.
Xenoblade Chronicles X - Who has never dreamed to pilot a Gundam on an unknown alien planet, with increadible panomaras? If you haven't, I pity you, if you have, this game is for you.
South Park: The Stick of Truth - Best licence adaptation ever (just before the recent Batman games), of a show I really love on top of that, and it just so hapens to be a (actually pretty good, even if on the easy side) RPG, so it earns its place in this list.


Unranked Honorable Mentions
- Pokemon Red/Blue - The SMTs collecting/fusion system Pokemon copied is still better, but I don't have to describe the hystery this game caused small children like me when in came out in the late '90s.
- Mana Khemia 2 - As with every Gust game, great crafting (/alchemy) system, this PS2 game on top of it has an increadible, fun cast of characters. Alas, I have given hope for a MK3.
- Nier: Automata: Does the craziness of Yoko Taro and the attention to gameplay of Platinum Games work together? The answer is yes, god yes. And the OST is as godly as in the first one.


--VOTE INFO START—

<FULL POINT GAMES &#8211; 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT &#8211; 3 points} Shin Megami Tensei 3 / Nocturne / Lucifer's call
The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt
Nier
Persona 3
Resonance of Fate
Shadow Hearts: Covenant
Divinity: Original Sin
Alpha Protocol
{UNDERRATED &#8211; 4 points} Atelier Escha & Logy
Final Fantasy X

<HONORABLE MENTIONS &#8211; 1 point>
Persona 5
Devil Survivor 2
Valkyria Chronicles
The Witcher
The Last Remnant
The Last Story
Pandora's Tower
Final Fantasy XIII: Lightning Returns
Xenoblade Chronicles X
South Park: The Stick of Truth

--VOTE INFO END--

 

[FiveSide]

2. Pokemon Red & Blue

Likewise, the original Pokemon hit lots of those same grace notes as Earthbound. ”All boys leave home one day. It said so on TV." Pokemon Blue was that moment for so many young children. Leaving home, going into your backyard and discovering new creatures.

Pokemon is about fighting, sure. But it's important to remember the first listing in your menu isn't your team, it's your Pokedex. Pokemon is asking you to learn. Learn about the world around you, document those findings and explain that to friends. As a science nerd, this spoke deeply to me. I was more concerned with reciting Pokemon trivia then link cable battling. Because Pokemon knew that kids want to absorb as much information about things they care about, and I deeply cared about Pokemon.

Great write-up of Pokemon. The games have very strong themes of learning and teamwork, both of which are conveyed pretty effectively through the mechanics and game systems.

I generally prefer the sparser storytelling in the earlier entries, where those mechanics did most of the heavy-lifting, rather than dialogue and in-game cutscenes. Though I don't begrudge anyone liking the changes the series has undergone, particularly the recent emphasis on conventional storytelling in Sun/Moon.

My favorite entry are the Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald games, and Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire by extension (for the most part, anyway). I felt the games of that gen struck the best balance between storytelling through dialogue/plot, and storytelling through mechanics. Great soundtrack and setting too, yes there was a lot of water, but it made sense given the important story distinction between ocean and land.

Hoenn always felt to me like the most "wild" of the Pokemon regions, where there are isolated pockets of society and vast swaths of nature. Later games felt more and more like the nature routes were just interludes between towns and cities.

 

[MoonFrog]

As a kid, I always really liked Johto. I played Blue to completion, but Gold was the first game I tried to master (by which I mean catch and train them all--I failed to do so . I did get to Kanto). I liked the traditional Japanese buildings, night/day cycle, breeding, and the expanded Pokedex (The first two generations are probably the last time I liked so much of the Pokedex additions. It has always been much more of a mixed bag for me since then).

Gold just came across as the sequel that "completed" Blue to me.

Obviously, the series has grown since then and in ways that I really appreciate (like the special/attack divide becoming distinct from type divides).

 

[Niahak]

Suikoden 3 Highlight - Three viewpoints contribute to the building of a rich background for a region (yes, a region - not even a world) in which cultural history clashes with technical advancement while a larger threat looms on the horizon. Only one of the heroes is typical, in that Chris is an already-accomplished leader of a powerful military faction (who faces barriers due to her gender) and Geddoe is a veteran mercenary captain often working behind enemy lines. A few minor deviations from standard Suikoden make it especially good. Its use of multiple viewpoints provides a wider range of characterization, so by the midpoint around 60 characters are introduced and developed. Its battle/skill mechanics, though unintuitive, combine with its strategy battle system to incentivize using a broad range of characters. Its plot, more so than other games in the series (ironically,

Spoiler

given its later theme and finale

) focuses less on "True runes save everyone!" cop-outs and more on people banding together. Its post-game section (

Spoiler

hidden villain chapter

) also complements the main plot well.

Destiny of an Emperor Underrated - No, Breath of Fire wasn't Capcom's first RPG. DoaE was a latecomer to the NES, and one of the most polished games on the console. Between its fantastic music, surprisingly good localization, and brisk-paced battles, it's easily my favorite RPG on the platform. It sparked my love for the Three Kingdoms novel, despite twisting the story in every way possible to make Liu Bei the hero who defeats everyone. The game is far from perfect - its opaque tactic names and sometimes inaccurate hints at where to go do hold it back - but there is plenty of charm to go around, my favorite being its mockery of the "but thou must" RPG trope. Although only a select few characters level up properly, the ability to recruit many enemies after they are defeated adds further replayability. Its Japan-only sequel, though still a good RPG in its own right, lost much of the first game's charm by putting the story on rails, removing most of the party configurability, and slowing down the overall pace.

Persona 3 - Although I had played and enjoyed the first Persona, I was stunned when I played Persona 3 for the first time. The battle system was vastly simplified, but the story was expanded, the voice-acting was the best I had heard, and the game was stylish to a fault. Although I don't like its sequels as much for embracing anime tropes, Persona 3 was my first exposure to visual novel-style gameplay. The gameplay mechanics, later refined further, were simple enough to be easily understood and complex enough to be interesting. The series has since been milked to death, but P3 has been largely unscathed with mostly good rereleases (both FES/PSP expanding and improving the game). Waifu/"best release" discussions tend to make constructive conversation about the game difficult, but there's no questioning its impact on the genre.

Opoona - Mechanically similar to Persona 3 in that it has jobs and friendships, it couldn't be more dissimilar thematically. Opoona follows a young alien crash-landed on a mysterious planet. In a reversal of the usual "human in alien world", you're the weird one. In spite of its flat localization, Opoona oozes charm - its bright colors and playful tone bring an unusual, childlike feel to gameplay. Art pieces scattered throughout towns and fields (hardly "dungeons", since many of Opoona's random encounter areas are outside) add to its worldbuilding, as do "TV channels" which build up everything from Landrollian art trends to kids' stories. Although the main story gets pretty dark (to the point of

Spoiler

Opoona himself getting incapacitated by an induced hallucination of paradise

), the overall tone remains playful in many ways. Despite being a Hitoshi Sakamoto-led production, the music is bouncy, sci-fi, and pairs perfectly with the theme of Opoona. Although the overall sense of Opoona may be childlike, it's far from childish, and doesn't stray from some mature themes.

Xenogears - Its plot may be too complicated for its own good, and riddled with nonsensical bible references, but Xenogears is one heck of a weird ride. You won't fully understand what happened in the first hour (much less five hours) until much later, but along the way you'll resolve dozens of interesting subplots, meet all kinds of interesting people, and enjoy some decent turn-based combat complemented by excellent music. It's definitely wordy, and the text speed can be a little too slow at times, but it helps gradually digest the plot since Xenogears can be very dense at times, despite how needlessly wordy it is at others. The notorious "second disk" can be frustrating for some, but to be honest, it pared the game down to the most enjoyable parts for me - dialogue and dungeon/battle - and the changing perspective and "chair talk" sections add to the otherworldly feel of the story later on.

Mount & Blade: Warband - It may seem out of place in a set of rankings otherwise dominated by "Story story story" and "music music music", but an open-world medieval RPG with smatterings of strategy, trading, army development, and politics is totally awesome and better than the sum of its parts. The feeling of building up from practically nothing (being bullied by bandits) to a competent mercenary to a lord in a kingdom (or starting your own) is fantastic. The core combat is fantastic and really doesn't get old, no matter which kind of weapon you prefer, while the strategy components can get tedious at times. An active modding community keeps the game very interesting, even though I hate the multiplayer mode.

The Spirit Engine 2 - If I can persuade you to play any of these games, please try this one! It's free and almost never gets discussed on GAF. An Indie RPG sequel to a freeware game released before indie RPGs could get on Steam, its initial launch was a flop and it was released as freeware. It was well worth the price at release, and is even more so now. It's a short, snappy real-time game with a great setting and almost harshly balanced mechanics. It provides a sense of adventure and hints at further exciting things to see in a world you see all too little of. At the same time, the mix-and-match character selection offers varying perspectives and new sidequests depending on your party loadout (as well as different challenges throughout), while requiring one character of each "personality base" keeps the core plot interesting. Each character also keeps a journal, which for some less literate characters is especially entertaining. All the mechanics, programming, artwork and writing were done by one person (Mark Pay), which makes the overall feat more impressive. Unfortunately, due to timing and the limitations of the engine, The Spirit Engine 2 is unlikely to see a wide audience.

Warsong - While I like the Shining Force games, they lack in conveying scale. Warsong provides it in spades; each named character is a general in your army, and they have 2-8 soldier units as well. The general is usually powerful in their own right, but can get cornered easily if you're not careful. Animation and sound design lend credence to the illusion of hundreds of soldiers storming a castle in the very first scenario. I was sold at that point, and what follows is a fun strategy RPG that has enough automation to keep things from getting tedious on its large levels (I find many strategy RPGs get bogged down mid-game). Great music keeps you engaged during the more boring turns, and promotion options make for larger strategic decisions. Although its Japan-only successors improved on the mechanics, they lost some of the magic in the first entry.

Earthbound - Earthbound is a weird game. In part, it's as conventional a JRPG as can be, copying age-old JRPG mechanics in overall structure, inventory, and basic mechanics. At the same time, its unusual setting, goofy humor, and heartfelt, powerful writing set it apart from many in the genre. That writing even carries through to the mechanics - sometimes to a player's frustration, when Ness gets homesick in the middle of a crucial battle - which encourages the player to see it as their journey as much as Ness, Paula, Jeff & Poo's. Its tone manages to be whimsical even when it's somber or thoughtful.

Dragon Quest V - Earthbound is a heartfelt game where the core plot doesn't directly impact the main character, but Dragon Quest V is one where it does, repeatedly. It is more a story about the life of a person than it is a story about saving the world. This gives the story the most emotional oomph of any game I've played, even in the least consequential dialogue (take advantage of party talk throughout the game). At the same time, it offers the biggest branching decision of a Dragon Quest game. Mechanically, it's a fairly normal Dragon Quest game, although faster-paced than others in the series (especially 6, 8, and 9). Between the standout plot and time-tested Dragon Quest mechanics, it's one I suggest you don't miss.

Honorable mentions

Suikoden 2 - Almost made the cut. Short (in a good way), snappy, much more intuitive than its predecessor and with beautiful sprite animation, it's an exemplar in the genre on PS1. Its story is one of my favorites in the genre, a balancing act between politics and personal feeling.

Suikoden 5 - Almost made the cut. More linear and less innovative than 2 and 3, Suikoden 5 is a bit like RPG comfort food (if you like wordy games that take 6 hours to establish the setting properly before starting "the game"). The core gameplay flow is very familiar to Suikoden 2 fans, but the execution is top-notch. Strategy battles hit the sweet-spot between "too complicated to manage" and "snorefest". Regular combat, unfortunately, mostly falls under snorefest (although it is fun to avoid using the most broken characters). Plot, though, is the highlight. Early on you get a feel for the backdrop - a court dominated by bureaucratic profiteers on the one hand, and hardline nationalists on the other - and can sense the powderkeg that is Falena. The introduction's finale (weird as that may be to write) is fantastic

Spoiler

although hopeless and tragic

, and the villains remain fascinating to watch throughout - perhaps especially once things stop going well for them.

Skies of Arcadia
Lunar 2: Eternal Blue Complete
Planescape: Torment
Chrono Trigger
Xenoblade Chronicles
Phantasy Star 4
Dark Souls
Infinite Space

--VOTE INFO START&#8212;

<FULL POINT GAMES &#8211; 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT &#8211; 3 points} Suikoden 3
{UNDERRATED &#8211; 4 points} Destiny of an Emperor
Persona 3
Opoona
Xenogears
Mount & Blade: Warband
The Spirit Engine 2
Warsong
Earthbound
Dragon Quest V

<HONORABLE MENTIONS &#8211; 1 point>
Suikoden 2
Suikoden 5
Skies of Arcadia
Lunar 2: Eternal Blue Complete
Planescape: Torment
Chrono Trigger
Xenoblade Chronicles
Phantasy Star 4
Dark Souls
Infinite Space

--VOTE INFO END--

 

[Ladekabel]

Just votes, will do more later. Not in the mood currently.

--VOTE INFO START—

<FULL POINT GAMES – 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT – 3 points} Earthbound
Persona 4: Golden
Chrono Trigger
Divinity: Original Sins
Suikoden 2
Final Fantasy Tactics
The Witcher 3
Fallout: New Vegas
Dark Souls
Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky

<HONORABLE MENTIONS – 1 point>
HM Title 1 here
HM Title 2 here
HM Title 3 here
HM Title 4 here
HM Title 5 here
HM Title 6 here
HM Title 7 here
HM Title 8 here
HM Title 9 here
HM Title 10 here

--VOTE INFO END--

 

[Notorious_Roy]

Ah, one of my favorite NeoGAF threads returns! Interesting way to count points, I wonder if it'll shake up the top 20. When reading the previous threads I see so many games I have yet to play. It's going to be really something when I get my SNES Classic and finally start with Final Fantasy VI. Also, one day, I will play a Persona game.

Chrono Trigger is such an amazing experience that it will forever be my favorite game. Thinking back to all the times I've played this masterpiece overwhelms me with nostalgia. Chrono Trigger is the perfect rpg for newcomers and veterans alike. There's something here for everyone.
Xenoblade Chronicles X is one of those games that a lot of people will write off since there are some odd choices. Some of the music tracks in the city can be a little annoying, just as the walking potato (although it looks delicious). The overall scale of the game, and sense of discovery makes up for everything. And the moment you get into your skell for its first flight is absolutely amazing.
Earthbound didn't arrive in Europe until it got released on the WiiU Virtual Console. This game alone makes the WiiU VC worthwhile. It's a little weird at first but after you set out on your journey you'll fall in love with it. Please Nintendo, release Mother 3 in Europe.
Fable is the game where I went from 'meh' to 'wow' with just playing a couple of minutes at some demo kiosk. The art style never really grabbed my attention but when I saw it in motion I was amazed. This was beautiful. I loved the setting and the humor. RIP Lionhead.
Fallout New Vegas gave me so many options that I actively payed attention to my saves. Whenever I thought something big was going to happen, or some important decision was to be made I made a save file just to be able to see what the other outcomes would bring me. I probably played through the game three times at once.
Final Fantasy IX and Final Fantasy VII are in a constant battle with each other to decide which one is my favorite. This year IX wins since the recent news about the rerelease got me all hyped up again like it was 2001. I'm curious if VI can join the battle next year.
Radiant Historia has two elements I really enjoy. One is the battle system where you can move enemies over the battlefield and attack more of them in normal single attacks. The other one is the time travel part. It blew my mind from time to time, really clever!
Terranigma was the game that felt like a weak excuse for not releasing Earthbound, Mario RPG, Chrono Trigger and Treasure Hunter G in Europe. It turned out to be more, a lot more. The rebuilding of the world was epic and the plot twist really got me, I never saw it coming.
Tales of Symphonia was my first Tales game and is still my preferred entry in the franchise. Partly because it was one of the few rpg's we got on GameCube in a period where I was only playing on Nintendo consoles. It felt good getting a great rpg in a time where every rpg seemed exclusive to PS2.
The Witcher III is simply amazing. The world that CD Projekt Red has created is beautiful, full of life and fun to travel in. Large cities, small settlements, caves, forests, everything is worth visiting and checking out. And as if the base game isn't enough, the two dlc stories add even more to the package.

--VOTE INFO START—

<FULL POINT GAMES – 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT – 3 points} Chrono Trigger
{UNDERRATED – 4 points} Xenoblade Chronicles X
Earthbound
Fable
Fallout New Vegas
Final Fantasy IX
Radiant Historia
Tales of Symphonia
Terranigma
The Witcher III

<HONORABLE MENTIONS – 1 point>
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
Dragon Quest VIII
Borderlands
Final Fantasy XV
Lost Odyssey

--VOTE INFO END--

 

[6:10:50]

Final Fantasy Tactics (masterpiece)
Few titles figure out a truly enjoyable set of systems where character customization fuses with party balance and battlefield layout to create a mix of strategies for any situation. Even fewer figure out a mature, knotty narrative that cribs heavily from the bloodier end of historical dramas, one obsessed with class, religion, inheritance, and just how histories come into being. Attach all that to a distinct visual identity forged from Akihiko Yoshida’s character design, a brilliant score by Hitoshi Sakimoto, and the larger universe that is Ivalice, and you have an endlessly replayable game that only gets better with age. Even the game’s notorious difficulty curve is part of the total package – if you can beat Velius solo or swipe every piece of Genji equipment, congratulations, you’ve likely internalized the game’s ruleset and made it work for you. (S)RPGs don’t get any better. Most video games don’t either.

Bloodborne
A very real argument could be made that Dark Souls has a far more robust set of options to craft your character build, and thus, closer to an RPG in the traditional sense. I get that. However, I’d argue that Bloodborne builds role-playing around smart, sustained use of its weapons: you think about the world in relationship to your tool of choice, but unlike, say, Devil May Cry, there’s enough malleable freedom in the larger systems and order of exploration to fit the RPG bill. You augment your character according to a moveset, level your items to support it, get your Fashion Borne on, and eventually become such a well-oiled killing machine that you’re not just role-playing, you’re role-inhabiting. And as brilliant as Dark Souls is up to and kinda including New Londo, it decidedly plateaus, while Bloodborne has top-tier (that you can miss entirely!) content spilling out the sides even as you approach the final battle (or not!) of your choice. A highlight of this generation or any other.

Fallout: New Vegas
New Vegas is not a perfect game; I don’t think anything built on Gamebryo could ever aspire to that title, and the seams decidedly show from its hurried development. (Oh, for those lost quests on the Caesar’s Legion side.) But if this is what they managed to cobble together in 18 months? I end up replaying New Vegas about every two years, and am still finding little things tucked away. Every town and settlement has something going on, some mix of narratives—big and small—to trace out along a path that typically lets you intervene in a variety of ways. The faction system lets you decide a variety of identities depending on your needs. Perks and trait choices feel significant, and even if Speech 100 turns you into a god of sorts, well, that’s the inevitable nature of voice-acted choice systems. I’ll take it over quicksave-to-win dice rolls. Most companions are great, even if some got the clear short end of the story stick (Lily, Raul to an extent) while others seem utterly essential to the game’s universe (Arcade, Veronica, Cass). Most of all, it feels like an actual place, a universe of people whose goals will collide in significant ways thanks to the actions of the player—and isn’t that what role-playing does at its best?

Final Fantasy VI
It’s hard for me to view VI “objectively,” as if we could ever see a text outside our own experiences. I played it for the first time at a friend’s house in 5th grade, during a time period where I was convinced that Sega doesn’t what Nintendon’t. After three straight hours of plowing through the snowy outskirts of Narshe and heading down to Figaro, I was hooked—for life, it would turn out. As I’ve gotten older, I find more faults in the game; the first half remains nearly flawless, yet everything after the “cataclysm” is more of a mixed bag in terms of pacing and combat balance. But as an aesthetic object, it remains almost timeless. Uematsu never wrote a better soundtrack, and the sprite & tile work pack a metric ton of personality into every pixel. While the story feels typical now, it was ambitious for its time, and does so via an extremely strong set of central characters and the best sociopath in the series. It’s not a hard game, but it’s a satisfying game: the eternal comfort food of RPGs.

Persona 5
Style’s not everything, but Persona 5 takes it as far as it can go. I’ll have the music burned into my brain forever. It knows how to get the most out of a PS3 engine, using color and art direction to dance around polygon-packing limitations. And for a really long while, the narrative and combat holds its own too; I didn’t sleep well for about two weeks since every night was spent going just a little deeper into a palace, a little further down a social link. Battles are the most satisfying in the series so far, and the usual mix of fusing & collecting personas has some new wrinkles via the twins. Like so many games on the list, the momentum sputters at the end. It’s about one dungeon too long, one character too thinly developed (poor Haru), and one painfully out of place gay stereotypical couple too… well, present at all. But the last part of the ride doesn’t negate the quality prior to it. I’d put the Futaba arc in particular up there with the very peaks of the genre.

The Witcher 3
If the entire game was at the level of Hearts of Stone, this would sit on a mountain staring down on all other contenders with a smile and a smirk. It’s not, which makes sense: HoS works so beautifully because of its smaller, self-contained nature, which the rest of the game has to avoid for the sake of allowing large-scale freedom. And again, it sputters at the end; despite the lovely epilogue, I couldn’t tell you with a gun to my head who the head of the Wild Hunt is, or why exactly the final events happen. But there’s still a pretty remarkable level of storytelling consistency given the size and scope of the game, and Geralt himself has never been more endearing as a character to command. It’s the best of the series by a substantial margin, and suggests even better things down the road for CD Projekt.

Valkyrie Profile
The peak of Tri-Ace, even moreso than Star Ocean 2 (which will snag an honorable mention below). Gorgeous art, a Sakuraba score before he started autopiloting everything in sight, a battle system that rewards timing, planning, and smart party structure, and a pretty good story despite the game’s best efforts to not allow the vast majority of players to see its true ending. Few games need a PSN release more than this one.

Diablo II: Lord of Destruction
A game that truly hit its stride once the expansion released, and perhaps the most addictive loot game ever devised. Even with multiplayer offering so many pleasures, it actually works single-player, surprisingly; you cobble together tiny, incremental upgrades that slowly but surely let you survive further and further into the sprawling areas (even if, after literally hundreds upon hundreds of hours of gameplay, I’ve never set foot in certain parts of Act 3). And given the absolute wealth of options with runewords, skill synergies, jewels, charms, and cube recipes, you could forge a ton of different character types together. I’ve come to really enjoy Diablo 3, but it’s so oriented to end-game play that I never feel compelled to revisit anything other than rifts. Throw me back in the Blood Moor, however, and I’m right at home. Beware, foul demons and beasts.

Dragon Quest VIII
I didn’t expect to throw 50 hours into a game I’d played through twice before in a packed 2017, but playing VIII again on the 3DS this summer hooked me right back into its world with ease. And I think the 3DS version has become my preferred version, even with the visual downgrade and MIDI soundtrack; faster battles, the new alchemy pot, extra items, and the addition of Red and Morrie offer a stronger overall package with even more replayability. It’s a world driven by visual charm and warm characterization, allowing the story to unfurl through its environments as much as its events.

Shadowrun: Dragonfall (underrated)
What an absolute gem. This is how you do a small-party game right, with quests and dialogue that both flesh out your fellow adventurers and let you craft the identity of your avatar in relationship to them. Attributes matter! Choices matter! Dialogues can go a ton of different ways, and actually bring about different results! “APEX Rising” alone would elevate it over most games. Combat can be a little clunky, but when it works, you feel like a properly ruthless shadowrunning squad. I try to give a copy of this game to at least one friend a year.

--VOTE INFO START—

<FULL POINT GAMES – 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT – 3 points} Final Fantasy Tactics
{UNDERRATED – 4 points} Shadowrun: Dragonfall
Bloodborne
Fallout: New Vegas
Final Fantasy VI
Dragon Quest VIII
Persona 5
The Witcher 3
Valkyrie Profile
Diablo 2: Lord of Destruction

<HONORABLE MENTIONS – 1 point>
Mass Effect 2
Valkyria Chronicles
Star Ocean 2
Chrono Trigger
Final Fantasy VII
Xenosaga III
Undertale
Fallout 2
SMT: Nocturne
Dark Souls
--VOTE INFO END--

 

[Morrigan Stark]

Final Fantasy Tactics (masterpiece)
Bloodborne
Fallout: New Vegas
Final Fantasy VI

Great taste!

 

[MoonFrog]

Hmmm...I think I need to make a thing of replaying/finishing some of the older Final Fantasies (and some of the newer).

I'm comfortable with the original and FFVI through FFX. I've beaten all of those in relatively recent memory (save VIII where I stopped at the boss but couldn't care less ), and many of them twice or more times.

I've played FFV through to Exdeath (with my sister, as a kid), but it is a game that I want to go back over at some point.

FFIV is a game that I need to finally play all the way through. I've gotten fairly deep into it on two occasions but never finished it.

FFII is another game I'm very curious about and, again, I've played a decent chunk of it a couple times now, but never got all the way through it.

The problem is that Final Fantasy was the first JRPG series I tried to get through and it was at a time in my life when I was worse at getting through games than I am now.

II and IV were always games I wanted to like more than I found myself liking them but they are, as I see it, the foundations of the trend towards a focus on characters and world-building, which exploded in VI through X. It was their brand of Final Fantasy that pretty much took over the series, crowding out the I, III, V brand, as I see it. They just feel like classics I should play to put the later games into context.

With II it is mostly just I never got as into it as I'd want to. No real strong objection to it, just a bit cold to it is all.

As for why I could never appreciate IV as much as I wanted to well... I really liked the Cecil DK->Cecil Paladin conceit. I didn't really like a lot of the scenario, however, with its constant fake deaths and what not.

They're just games I feel I ought to give a second chance.

(I also feel I ought to give Dragon Quest VI a second chance, which I've put some time into).

 

[FiveSide]

Hmmm...I think I need to make a thing of replaying/finishing some of the older Final Fantasies (and some of the newer).

I'm comfortable with the original and FFVI through FFX. I've beaten all of those in relatively recent memory (save VIII where I stopped at the boss but couldn't care less ), and many of them twice or more times.

I've played FFV through to Exdeath (with my sister, as a kid), but it is a game that I want to go back over at some point.

FFIV is a game that I need to finally play all the way through. I've gotten fairly deep into it on two occasions but never finished it.

FFII is another game I'm very curious about and, again, I've played a decent chunk of it a couple times now, but never got all the way through it.

The problem is that Final Fantasy was the first JRPG series I tried to get through and it was at a time in my life when I was worse at getting through games than I am now.

II and IV were always games I wanted to like more than I found myself liking them but they are, as I see it, the foundations of the trend towards a focus on characters and world-building, which exploded in VI through X. It was their brand of Final Fantasy that pretty much took over the series, crowding out the I, III, V brand, as I see it. They just feel like classics I should play to put the later games into context.

With II it is mostly just I never got as into it as I'd want to. No real strong objection to it, just a bit cold to it is all.

As for why I could never appreciate IV as much as I wanted to well... I really liked the Cecil DK->Cecil Paladin conceit. I didn't really like a lot of the scenario, however, with its constant fake deaths and what not.

They're just games I feel I ought to give a second chance.

(I also feel I ought to give Dragon Quest VI a second chance, which I've put some time into).

I'm not sure if I'd bother with FFII. It has some interesting moments, and is probably the most ambitious of the NES-era entries, but I just found it not very fun at all. Final dungeon was the slog of all slogs, would've dropped the game if I wasn't playing a version where I could save anywhere.

FFIV is absolutely fantastic though and is my third-favorite in the series behind VIII and VI. And it's actually very close to VI in my mind.

The fakeout deaths in IV are kind of dumb, but other than that it has a strong, focused narrative imo. Both the mechanics and the scenario have a lot of storytelling depth if you really get into them. The love triangle between Kain, Cecil, and Rosa is a strong core to base the character interactions around. And the soundtrack is absolutely one of the best both in the series and in games in general.

I even enjoy the gameplay, I think having a fifth character adds a lot more speed and intensity to ATB. If I remember correctly, it's the only game in the series to have five active party members.

It's a pretty short game so I would initially play the PSP version, then if you like it play the DS version. Personally I think the DS version of IV has the second-best gameplay of the ATB games, behind FFV.

Cecil DK -> Cecil Paladin is the best class change of all time haha. Amazing storytelling through game mechanics.

 

[Firemind]

The classic FF games really aren't that great by modern standards. If you've taken the time to analyze the writing of, say, FFIV, it comes off as kind of shallow and simplified. The SNES cartridges just couldn't store so much text (especially as English takes up more space than Japanese) and the standards of storytelling are higher now than in the early to mid 90s. The gameplay isn't that great either by today's standards. Dungeons are completely uninteresting. That's not just a knock against FF. A lot of other contempary RPG series like Breath of Fire have the same issues. Yes, they were important to how RPGs got shaped in Japan, but I think games like Four Heroes of Light and Bravely Default are severely underrated here because they took those classic games and added modern sensibilities. I suppose it depends on your definition of essential.

Actually, I think I might put Four Heroes of Light in my top ten essentials.

 

[FiveSide]

The classic FF games really aren't that great by modern standards. If you've taken the time to analyze the writing of, say, FFIV, it comes off as kind of shallow and simplified. The SNES cartridges just couldn't store so much text (especially as English takes up more space than Japanese) and the standards of storytelling are higher now than in the early to mid 90s. The gameplay isn't that great either by today's standards. Dungeons are completely uninteresting. That's not just a knock against FF. A lot of other contempary RPG series like Breath of Fire have the same issues. Yes, they were important to how RPGs got shaped in Japan, but I think games like Four Heroes of Light and Bravely Default are severely underrated here because they took those classic games and added modern sensibilities. I suppose it depends on your definition of essential.

Actually, I think I might put Four Heroes of Light in my top ten essentials.

The writing is something completely separate from the storytelling though (or more accurately, just one component of it). The storytelling includes stuff like the scenario and the game mechanics. The writing - as in, the dialogue itself - is poor, so I agree with that, but for the most part that's just the name of the game for JRPGs from that era.

The only FF that I thought had decent writing, on a line-by-line basis, was the War of the Lions version of Tactics.

I think the GBA version of FFV is better than 4 Heroes as an overall package. 4 Heroes has deeper progression mechanics, but FFV has a better story (not great; but better), better pacing, and better music.

I have not played the Bravely games unfortunately. Got scared off by the pacing issues I keep hearing about.

 

[Silvergun-Blue]

Loving reading everyone else's picks, there are no wrong answers here.
I always struggle to make lists because it's generally not how I view things, but it's made a little easier by my general feeling of some of the more obvious choices not really qualifying as rpg's in my personal headspace.
I adore my Souls games for example, but I just play them for different reasons if that makes sense.

 

[Fou-Lu]

The only reason I can make my list at all is because it's an essentials list, not a best list. Plus I still have to force myself to not think about it too much after making my list or I would be replacing things and moving them about constantly.

 

[Aters]

The classic FF games really aren't that great by modern standards. If you've taken the time to analyze the writing of, say, FFIV, it comes off as kind of shallow and simplified. The SNES cartridges just couldn't store so much text (especially as English takes up more space than Japanese) and the standards of storytelling are higher now than in the early to mid 90s. The gameplay isn't that great either by today's standards. Dungeons are completely uninteresting. That's not just a knock against FF. A lot of other contempary RPG series like Breath of Fire have the same issues. Yes, they were important to how RPGs got shaped in Japan, but I think games like Four Heroes of Light and Bravely Default are severely underrated here because they took those classic games and added modern sensibilities. I suppose it depends on your definition of essential.

Actually, I think I might put Four Heroes of Light in my top ten essentials.

What they lack in good writing, they make up with heart and soul. FFVI is, more than anything, a genuine game, and it still shines to this day. Stuff like Bravely Default simply do not compare for me, and I'm saying as someone who played FF6 for the first time in 2013.

 

[Flying Fish]

Well, here goes nothing!

1) Fallout: New Vegas
Developer: Obsidian Entertainment
”They asked me how well I understood theoretical physics. I told them I had a theoretical degree in physics. They said 'welcome aboard!'"

This is everything a modern Fallout game should be &#8211; Choices and consequences blending together with a narrative involving many large and small factions that all have their own goals and behaviors.

My largest praise is for the quest design &#8211; both the main plot and the side quests. There are three main factions vying for control of the pivotal Hoover Dam, and four different outcomes. The game's ending details what happened to every major faction and character you have encountered, and are determined by which main faction is victorious and how quests relating to them were resolved. This means you will almost certainly get a different permutation of endings every time you play.

You are given a myriad amount of options on how to resolve quests and problems, both in terms of gameplay approaches and in terms of dialogue options. For example, one faction known as ”The Kings" are a gang of Elvis impersonators. In the quest ”King's Gambit", tensions between The Kings and the major faction The NCR are escalating, and the NCR ambassador would like you step in and either negotiate a truce or covertly eliminate the person he knows is responsible for them.

If you choose the violent option, you can use five different methods to bring about his demise, from marching in and shooting him (resulting in the quest's failure as foul play is evident), to spiking his drugs with a medicine check, to framing a nearby weapons dealer for stealing from him. And this is all just if you choose to resolve the quest violently. The diplomatic solutions are just as varied, including using your personal favor that you may have acquired from the boss of The Kings on telling them to stand down, or getting one of two NCR colonels to back you up while the negotiations occur. Enlisting one of these colonels will

Spoiler

guarantee a shootout, while the other one MIGHT avoid one.

The game has issues though: mainly in that it's buggy as heck. I highly recommend playing the PC version of the game as the large modding community provides many solutions to the messed up event flags, bugged quests, crashes, and other issues.


2) Shin Megami Tensei IV
Developer: Atlus
”Adam did not eat the apple because he desired it. He ate it because it was forbidden. Now the apple has been set before all of you. Eat well!"

The plot begins in the strangely unsettling medieval kingdom of Mikado. The protagonist is among those selected by a divine force to become a samurai, or demon slayer. The gameplay begins when he enters the first dungeon and the source of these creatures, ”Naraku". You must recruit some of these demons (a catch-all term for supernatural creatures) to your side and build a team of them in order to stand a chance, sort of like in Pokémon. This is done through the negotiation mechanic, where anything not hell-bent on your death can be spoken to through dialogue options and gifts. If successful, you will gain a new party member.

The demons themselves all fall into several different personality types, including but not limited to from ”Ancient Warrior" to ”Street Punk" to ”Confused Child" to ”Grandpa". The conversations are amusing and I wish there was a text dump of them somewhere. You can also fuse recruited demons together to make new demons, an SMT staple. This entry gives you the most robust options to do this, by allowing you to preform customized searches in your compendium to letting you directly choose which moves are inherited.

Early on in the plot, you discover that Mikado exists on a layer of crust surrounding a post-apocalyptic Tokyo ravaged by a war between angels, demons, and humans. This provides an interesting backdrop as you explore the city and eventually discover the circumstances that lead to Mikado's creation, and obtain one of four different endings based on your character alignment.

Unfortunately, with the exception of some mid to late game bosses, the game's difficulty is front-loaded, meaning that you will have a much easier time with the game after completing the first few dungeons. The alignment system is also obtuse, with the alignment meter only being visible when talking to one NPC. Despite this, I rather like the concept of your actions and dialogue choosing your route.


3) Undertale
Developer: Toby Fox
”Despite everything, it's still you."

A funny yet touching indie JRPG made by one person in a cave with a box of scraps. It is difficult to discuss much of what makes this game fantastic without spoilers, so I am going to do just that. First, the soundtrack is incredible &#8211; easily somewhere in my top 10. Every major track is incredible at conveying atmosphere, from adventuresome to haunting to silly to exciting.

The following three elements would all be novel individually, but Undertale manages to make them all neatly interact and flow together, painting an overarching narrative that is greater than the sum of its parts and can only be told through a video game. The game takes the best advantage of its medium I have seen, and for that, it receives the highlight. The combat is a prime example of this, with the moves a monster uses shedding light on their personality. One boss

Spoiler

is bluffing and will deliberately miss their attacks when your health is low.

Another boss

Spoiler

cannot bear to look at you as they kill you, and all of their attacks are AOE.

It's spoiler time!

Spoiler

1. The ability to save, load, and start new games is an implicit power most other video game protagonists have, but Undertale's hero has this as an explicit one. 2. Many games have a new game plus feature, and this one forces every new game to be a new game plus. 3. The character you are controlling and the protagonist onscreen are two different entities.

Spoiler

There are three main paths, the ”neutral", ”pacifist", and "genocide" routes, described in the order that the narrative seems to intend you play through.

Spoiler

The neutral route occurs at the end of the player's first game, and actually has a large number of endings that could hold the game on their own. Each of these endings revolves around one character in the plot, and provides development and a better understanding as to who they really are and how they react to various circumstances. For example, one character's ending has them either rise to power on the back of a military coup, or sink into utter despondency as your betrayal has crushed their spirit and taken everything they love from them.

Spoiler

The pacifist route requires the completion of any neutral ending, as another character that has the ability to perceive saves and resets learn information vital to their plan from your first run. It is unlocked when you complete the game without gaining any EXP. This is clearly the game's true ending as it gives the most resolution and reveals. You learn the true nature of the main characters and their powers &#8211; you're not playing as the main character, but rather as the being possessing them. The saving and loading comes from this being, and as the game ends and you stop playing, the hero's powers presumably fade with you.

Spoiler

Methodically encountering and killing monsters until they stop spawning activates the genocide route. In this route, the events of the story change drastically as the world reacts to your actions. Entire towns have been evacuated, and formerly morally ambiguous characters become heroes as they aim to prevent the world's destruction. If you obtain this ending, the main character becomes irreversibly warped into a demon, and the pacifist ending is permanently altered no matter how many times you start a new game.

The game isn't perfect however. The shoestring budget is unavoidable &#8211; nonexistent battle backgrounds, black and white battle sprites, and MS paint art that makes it difficult to discern what characters are supposed to look like are the most prominent issues.

Spoiler

The narrative is not spotless either, as the series of events that occur in the neutral and pacifist routes are nearly identical before the route split, adding repetitiveness where there could have been additional content and story. Some characterization is also overly hidden. One boss insists on fighting you on equal terms, and hands you a weapon before battle. You only learn this if you intentionally get hit by their first attack.

Overall, I adore this nonconventional take on karma systems and story routes.


4) Dark Souls
Developer: FromSoftware
”Hrgrraaaaggh! Hiyaaaaaah! C'mon! Over here, you fiends! Perish, foul creatures! I am Siegmeyer of Catarina, and you shall feel my wrath!"

A popular pick, and for good reason. A zombie apocalypse in a medieval fantasy setting is great! This game takes a fair yet merciless design philosophy. If you die, then all of your souls (currency used to level up or buy stuff) are dropped near the site of your death. Get back there before dying again or they are gone for good.

The combat is among the best I've seen in an action RPG. Blocking, dodging, parrying, and interrupting attacks are all skills you will need to learn if you want to survive. Nearly every weapon in the game is viable if upgraded, making it more like picking a character in a fighting game.

The narrative does one of my favorite things: integrating the gameplay and the story! The protagonist is a zombie or ”hollow", and their resurrection occurs because of this condition. Resting at a checkpoint or ”bonfire" resurrects all of the undead hollows that you have slain as well, as the same rules apply. The main story is told in an interesting matter, as the events of the plot have already occurred, and you explore its aftermath. What happened is somewhat ambiguous, and clues to the history of Lordran are found in enemy placements, item descriptions, and NPCs.

One of my favorite moments in the game is

Spoiler

meeting the Everlasting Dragon in the Ash Lake. Despite having literally has zero lines of dialogue, its very presence, combined with how its faction work and how it doesn't care if you chop off its tail are all thought provoking character traits.

And then there's the most original multiplayer mode I've seen, which somehow manages to combine the single and multiplayer modes into one experience. If you are in human form, you can directly interact with other players in either friendly or hostile ways, with factions emphasizing different methods of play. You can join the Warriors of Sunlight and be rewarded for helping another player defeat a boss, join the Forest Hunters and defend the sacred forest from intrusion, or join the darkwraiths and be rewarded for invading and killing other players in the middle of a game.

The lack of a map in a Metroidvania game makes exploring confusing, and pausing is done by quicksaving the game and exiting to the title screen. The crafting system is also obtuse, with weapon upgrades requiring expensive or rare materials in order to max out stats. I suggest quickly finding weapons with movesets you like, and going all out on upgrading them.


5) Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door
Developer: Intelligent Systems
”Gonzales! Check me out! Thanks to you, I hatched safe and sound! Thanks, man!"

Another popular pick for best Nintendo RPG. Excellent RPG gameplay, action commands that are consistently satisfying to pull off, and lovable party members with their own personalities and motives. Each chapter presents a cool scenario, such as a mystery on a train, a wrestling gig, or a

Spoiler

trip to the moon.

The art design is a treat to look at, as Intelligent Systems took great effort into creating the paper craft world that is the game. For example, doors fold and houses open, and the screen crumples into a wad whenever you use a warp pipe. The leveling up system works well. You can increase your health, mana, or badge points. This last one allows Mario to equip an arsenal of ability granting badges, including active (Multibounce, Piercing Blow) and passive (Defense up, Feeling Fine)

It's time for the obligatory flaws section! There is some padding throughout the game, as you frequently are sent back and forth across the same few stretches of land. This is particularly noticeable in chapters 4, 5, and 7.


6) Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift
Developer: Square Enix
”Oh, feathers and foozles, kupo!"

Here's my unconventional pick. I love SRPGs where you can create an army of characters specializing in every skill, niche, and technique the game has to offer, and this is my favorite example. There's enough experience and encounters to go around for a complete party of characters allowing you to create a large army that can field troops best equipped to deal with the current situation.

The plot is mostly shafted to the side in favor of the gameplay, which is a shame given the first entry in the series, but the gameplay clicked with me so much that I'm giving it the ”Underrated" award.


7) Chrono Trigger
Developer: Square
”My name is Gato/I have metal joints/Beat me up/And earn fifteen silver points!"

There is nothing I can say about this masterpiece that hasn't already been said a hundred thousand times already. I don't really like SNES rpgs that much, but this timeless classic not only manages to be the best on the console, it still remains a blast to play even compared to modern games.

I guess 65 Million BC is kind of a drag at times.


8) Pokémon Black 2 and White 2
Developer: Game Freak
”Come on! More! Bring out your Pokémon's power!"

The Pokémon games are one of Nintendo's flagship franchises, and for good reason.
Capture and raise your team of critters and beasts and robots and aliens and ghosts to become the champion! This one is the game that provides the most complete Pokémon experience in my opinion, with wonderful quality of life improvements such as telling you when you've caught all the Pokémon on a route, lots of side events such as Pokéstar Studios and the Pokémon World Tournament, and a nearly complete roster of catchable legendary Pokémon.

Despite Game Freak's insistence on reinventing the wheel with every single new generation, this entry is an excellent refinement of the series. Unfortunately, with the shutdown of the DS and WII Wi-Fi services, the game's wonderful online mode and customizable Join Avenue are lost forever.


9) Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan
Developer: Atlus
”You realize that you have no need for a crayfish."

A first person dungeon crawler where you create a party at the beginning then explore the world, fight monsters and get pulverized, complete quests, and level up!
The series takes advantage of the NDS hardware and places the fully creatable map on the bottom screen.

Not much more to say then that, as I love Atlus games, I love team-creating RPGs, and I love creating builds. I don't love excessive grinding, though.


10) Fallout 2
Developer: Black Isle Studios
”If I like you, you can call me Sarge. But guess what? I DON'T LIKE YOU! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?""

I feel that this is an improvement over its predecessor. How? By adding more stuff! More Locations! More factions! More quests and ways to complete them! More jokes! Usable party members! The Charisma stat is useful!

The combat is slow but very satisfying. Kill enemies with a burst weapon and they are ripped to shreds! An energy weapon reduces them to a puddle of goo! A rocket launcher blows them all over the map! And so on. The writing is great, with the protagonist being able to hold a detailed conversation with great characterization in the dialog options . The very first speech check in the tutorial, for example, has the hero convince the guy he's supposed to fight at the end of the test that a) they've already proven themselves by navigating the scorpion and trap ridden temple and b) an unregulated fight like this could result in an unintentional fatal injury.

Just like New Vegas, it is also bugged as heck, and just like New Vegas, it has unofficial patches to fix bugs.

--VOTE INFO START&#8212;

<FULL POINT GAMES &#8211; 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT &#8211; 3 points} Undertale
{UNDERRATED &#8211; 4 points} Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift
Fallout: New Vegas
Shin Megami Tensei IV
Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan

Dark Souls
Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door
Chrono Trigger
Pokémon Black 2 and White 2
Fallout 2

<HONORABLE MENTIONS &#8211; 1 point>
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 Portable
Final Fantasy Tactics
Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn
Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin
Earthbound

Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
Mario and Luigi &#8211; Bowser's Inside Story
The World Ends With You
Mario and Luigi &#8211; Superstar Saga
Star Wars &#8211; Knights of the Old Republic

--VOTE INFO END--

 

[MoonFrog]

I'm not sure if I'd bother with FFII. It has some interesting moments, and is probably the most ambitious of the NES-era entries, but I just found it not very fun at all. Final dungeon was the slog of all slogs, would've dropped the game if I wasn't playing a version where I could save anywhere.

FFIV is absolutely fantastic though and is my third-favorite in the series behind VIII and VI. And it's actually very close to VI in my mind.

The fakeout deaths in IV are kind of dumb, but other than that it has a strong, focused narrative imo. Both the mechanics and the scenario have a lot of storytelling depth if you really get into them. The love triangle between Kain, Cecil, and Rosa is a strong core to base the character interactions around. And the soundtrack is absolutely one of the best both in the series and in games in general.

I even enjoy the gameplay, I think having a fifth character adds a lot more speed and intensity to ATB. If I remember correctly, it's the only game in the series to have five active party members.

It's a pretty short game so I would initially play the PSP version, then if you like it play the DS version. Personally I think the DS version of IV has the second-best gameplay of the ATB games, behind FFV.

Cecil DK -> Cecil Paladin is the best class change of all time haha. Amazing storytelling through game mechanics.

I'm thinking about trying the DS version. I think the gameplay overhaul might keep me more engaged.

I got to the Kingdom of Dwarves or so on the PS version. It should be noted there were also technical issues involved in me dropping the game. I'd started it on one of the PlayStations (PSX or PS2) where there were no problems and picked it up some years later on a PlayStation (PS2 or PS3) where the game had really bad visual glitches.

Same with FFII actually...I got a fair ways in and then when I tried to restart and play it again it was on a console where the game always froze when the dreadnought took off.

So those glitches are also part of the story here . But the initial problem was that I put the games down in the first place--not too uncommon in my childhood/teenage years, but I did beat other FF games at that time and since.

But yeah, I really enjoyed what they did with Cecil.

 

[Remk]

1 - Final Fantasy VI
The culmination of the 16 bit era, a wide interesting array of characters with an engaging story coupled with one of the best soundtracks ever made and gorgeous presentation. Also it still stands the test of time, still fun to play in any way you can get a hold of it.

2- Phantasy Star IV
One thing I always enjoyed of owning a Genesis was how the games were notably more technically advanced as time went on. The presentation is simply marvelous and its great characters and story just keeps pushing you forward.

3 - Final Fantasy Tactics
A deep strategy game with a beautiful presentation makes it it still the best of the genre to this day. I can still replay it with different classes and strategies and still enjoy it as much as the first time I played through it

4- Grandia
You know how RPGs can give you that sense of adventure and excitement? Grandia encapsulates that perfectly all while listeniing to that awesome soundtrack

5- Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor
So I heard you liked turn based combat and strategy rpgs, so we made you a game with both! The game is flexible in letting you arrange your own strategy and the present day setting with teenager protagonist that dont suck make it a unique experience

6 -Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3
Speaking of teenagers that don't suck, after 120 hours to finish the game I was only left wondering why there wasn't more of it, from its gameplay loop to the stylish presentation to its story themes this make for a great ride

7 - Skies of Arcadia
Experiencing those beatiful locations and airship battles with the VGA adapter on the Dreamcast will remain an exciting experience, a fun and engaging adventure from start to end

8 - Shining Force
While later entries on the series improve on its formula, this still remain as my favorite, its unique presentation at the time and fantastic soundtrack with a fast paced strategy gameplay that is still fun to replay today

9 -Wild Arms XF
A Srpg that keeps challenging you with its varied battle objectives and scenarios and the fact that you need to switch from different jobs and outsmart the AI provides a lot of unique and satisfying moments

10 - Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Getting to use your custom light saber and explore the galaxy with decisions that impact your story progression,

--VOTE INFO START—

<FULL POINT GAMES – 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT – 3 points} Final Fantasy VI
{UNDERRATED – 4 points} Phantasy Star IV
Final Fantasy Tactics
Grandia
Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3
Skies of Arcadia
Shining Force
Wild Arms XF
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic

<HONORABLE MENTIONS – 1 point>
HM Xenogears
HM Final Fantasy IX
HM Shining Force III
HM Final Fantasy IV
HM Shin Megami Tensei: Persona
HM Phantasy Star II
HM Demon Gaze
HM Lunar: The Silver Star
HM Secret of Mana
HM Sword of Vermilion

--VOTE INFO END--

 

[Dambrosi]

I wish I'd seen this thread yesterday. Number order in the list at the bottom, this is kinda off the cuff for me. Anyway:

Secret Of Mana (SNES)
One of my first ever RPG experiences, and certainly one of the most formative. Those lush graphics, the real-time-ish battle system and That Music all just came together to create an ambience that is unmatched in any other game that I know to this day. I'm really looking forward to reliving this experience when I get my SNES Classic next week sometime.

Final Fantasy III/VI (SNES)
Speaking of the SNES Classic, here's another piece of Squaresoft gold, and one of the few full-length RPGs I've ever finished to completion without a walkthrough. The story, the characters, the Ted Woolsey localization, Kefka, the final battle and all that followed, the train suplexing, the opera singing, the creeping realization that I will never be as cool as Setzer...it's all come flooding back, I feel light headed.

As an aside, we all know why Squeenix have remade or are remaking nearly all the Final Fantasies (including IX to PS4 and Steam very recently), but no sign of VI. Why? I think we all know why - they're afraid they wouldn't be able to do the game justice. The game's that good. I'd be intimidated too, frankly.

Yakuza Zero (PS4)
Yes, it's an RPG at heart, with levelling and stat progression and even licence grids of a sort, all wrapped up in a story-led freeform beat-'em-up coating, delicious like fried chicken skin. This sordid tale of the fall and rise of our two main characters engages me at every turn, with almost too much content to distract me from the straight and narrow path to the ending - cabaret club management, real estate entreneurship, gravure booth creeping, almost-naked daiper-wearing weirdo super-creeping, classic arcade game playing, or just wandering around two faithfully recreated visions of 80's Japanese towns picking random fights for money, I can do whatever I want. And that's an issue - I really need to knuckle down and get on with the story.

Dark Souls (as a series, all PC in my case)
For lore (and many other) reasons, I tend to take the Dark Souls series as one continuous narrative, spanning thousands of years of forsaken history. The legendary "difficulty" that made the series' name is a lie, of course - the battles are never easy, but once I got used to the control system and how everything in the world works, I found that each subsequent game felt easier to get into and progress through. And yet, even so, I still came away from DS3 wanting more. But, if I can pick only one, let it be the series' masterful conclusion, Dark Souls 3, which was everything good about the series refined and perfected.

Bloodborne (PS4)
So thank the Elder Gods at From for Bloodborne, the one game that made me buy my original PS4 back in the day. It's a different take on the souls archetype, for sure, with swift, agile movement, dual-purpose trick weapons and a new method of stunning enemies making sure that this time, twitch reflexes prove just as vital to surviving the eldritch depths of forlorn Yarnham and its bestial denizens as high levels, the right choice of arms and quick-select items. I wonder what the chances are that a 60fps remake would ever be made for PS5?

Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne (PS2)
My first foray into the wild and stylish world of Atlus' SMT series, predating Persona 3 by a good couple of years. I'd heard on forums about the difficulty, the imaginitive design work, the wonderful Kazuma Kaneko art, the Law and Chaos dichotomy, the allusions and tributes to mythologies from all over the world, but what I came away most impressed by was the battle system. Who would have thought that a thing as simple as Press Turn would help make the batles so tense and thrilling? As an aside, I do own Digital Devil Saga 1 & 2 digitally on PS3, and keep wanting to try it out to see if it's better than SMT3 like one of my friends swears, but new games keep distracting me, i suppose. I'll get around to it one day.

Persona 3 FES (PS2)
My first Persona, as it was for so many others who also never had the opportunity to play P2 (Innocent Sin or Eternal Punishment), was regular old Persona 3 on PS2. This one almost joined the select list of games I've finished without a walkthrough, but that final boss fight made me kneel before its might. But finish it I did (with GameFAQs' help), and then FES came out with a whole new post-story chapter, with yet more incredibly difficult floors to grind through as my party descended further into Hell, both literally and figuratively. That tickled my darkness fetish fine, though I can now admit that there were some problems with the way some chartacters acted that I ignored at the time. 2Edgy4Some, I assume.

Late in the PS2's lifespan, Persona 4 would come out, and though I enjoyed what I played of it, I honestly thought it didn't hold a candle to P3FES where it counted for me at the time - atmosphere and story. I never played P3P or P4G, or P4DAN for that matter, for that very reason - the milking, and the character dumbing-down that came with it, was becoming unbearable. The only reason I even own P4Arena Ultimax is because it's a (quite good) fighter, and I got (the not good) Persona Q for the Tarot cards that came with it. Even now, I prefer the artbooks for P3 to either of those two games, But I digress.

And no, I don't rate P5 all that much compared to its predecessors - too restrictive.

The World Ends With You (DS)
I know there's an iOS version as well, but I played the original and best. I came to this straight off the original Kingdom Hearts on PS2, and was wholly impressed with its demanding but innovative gameplay mechanics, especially the battle system, which saw you switching between D-pad and touch inputs to fight monsters on both of the DS's screens, the pin buff system, and the fashion-equipment shopping, where you had to visit different shops to buy clothes that raised or lowered different stats, and then mix and match different clothes brands to cover your weaknesses. The music and character graphics are great too. Sequel please, SE.

Dragon's Crown (PS3)
Yes, it's an RPG too, shut up - levelling, stat progression, equipment and inventory management, quests, fantastic setting, greatly differing character archetypes, in-depth story, all elements that make for a top-class RPG in my book. It's certainly more of an RPG than any of its Vanillaware predecessors, or its spiritual ones, the Capcom Dungeons & Dragons arcade beat-'em-ups, and if games like Nier: Automata and Dragon Quest Heroes can be considered RPGs - at least in part - then Dragon's Crown is definitely one as well IMO. That it has an arcadey side-scrolling beat-'em-up battle system with online multiplayer* is merely the icing on the cake. Yes, the scrumptious-looking cake that George Kamitani and his art staff lovingly depicted in the cooking mini-game, along with various other lavishly-rendered foodstuffs, as has become Vanillaware's trademark over the years. I'm salivating in anticipation at the recently-announced PS4 remake.

Final Fantasy XII (PS2); FFXII The Zodiac Age (PS4)
There's been quite a few Final Fantasy games on the PS4, actually - Type-0, the X & X-2 remakes, XV and its myriad DLC and spin-offs, the beat-'em-up, the shmup, the fishing game, the Assassin's Creed collab, and World Of FF, with its...odd systems and cutesy appeal. Not one of them holds a candle to my favourite FF of the PS2 era, though - The tale of dispossessed princess Ashe of Dalmasca, fighting the almost benign tyranny of the Archadian empire of ancient Ivalice, accompanied by a ragtag fugitive group of rebels, including a former knight accused of killing the Dalmascan King, a dashing sky pirate and his long-lived bunny-eared femme fatale, and a couple of kids from the Rabanastre slums who decide to tag along for basically reasons. Yes, Vaan is a wasted character who desperately needs a shirt, but he's good for a laugh sometimes, and otherwise inoffensive, and his surrounding cast more than make up for him.

Obviously, the Zodiac Age version on PS4 is the best version, with all its enhancements over the base version as well as its resolution bump and fast-forward feature, but I'll never forget the days of playing the PS2 version on my huge-ass 48" CRT (long since dead, unfortunately), trying to get the camera at just the right angle to sneak a peek up Ashe's belt-skirt...

Spoiler

only to see she's wearing a pair of short-shorts underneath. I spent hours trying to work out whether they were part of the same garment or not.

I'm too mature to find out for sure nowadays, though. It was a different time, back then. Yeah, a different time, that's it.

*ahem*

And without further ado, my rankings and honourable mentions:

--VOTE INFO START&#8212;

<FULL POINT GAMES &#8211; 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT &#8211; 3 points} Final Fantasy III/VI
{UNDERRATED &#8211; 4 points} Yakuza Zero
Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne
Persona 3 FES
Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age
Bloodborne
Dark Souls 3
Secret Of Mana
The World Ends With You
Dragon's Crown


<HONORABLE MENTIONS &#8211; 1 point>
Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth
Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE
Dark Souls (incl. Prepare To Die DLC)
Dark Souls 2: Scholar Of The First Sin
SMT Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers
SMT Devil Survivor (both)
Fire Emblem Awakening
Pokemon Sun & Moon (I played Moon)
Nier:Automata
Deus Ex: Human Revolution (PC and Wii U versions)


--VOTE INFO END--

 

[MoonFrog]

Having something that categorizes character growth does make sense, and I have been thinking of ways to do it. As always the trick is to find a fairly finite number of categories (say 3-6) that cover all RPGs, and finding a way to represent them graphically in a pretty tiny icon (I think the squares are 36x36 pixels, not counting borders).

For instance, here are the icons for battle flow:

If you read the icon legend that will eventually be in the OP when the aggregate list goes up, I think that you would be able to tell what each are without going back to re-read it. I don't want to use letters for the other 3 (well, 2. I have icons for party control) or it will just become a mess of acronyms.

The choice question is a pretty good one as well.

Hmmm what do you think about the categories I suggested in the further post? I think they have rough edges--as I point out in what I see as problem cases--but I think they might be exhaustive if tidied up:

Custom builds: player gets to choose at least the vast majority of abilities and stats a character has.

(problem case: I'm currently playing Digital Devil Saga. That and, say, earlier Persona games give you control over your main characters stats as well as the abilities of all your characters. They don't give you control over the other characters stats however (well in P2-2 your choice informs 1/4 of their stat growth iirc.

In general there is a problem when you can't control stats, but you can control abilities.

Maybe and/or?

Although I can't think of a case the other way around, where it is problematic that you can't control abilities but can control stats.

Also a problem in cases like SMTIII or IV where you get to build your lead character, but your demons have fixed classes.)

Class system: player gets to choose a class, which either removes or greatly determines future ability and/or stat choices.

(Problem case: Persona 3-5--you get to don classes and builds as the main character, but other characters have a fixed class.

Perhaps a problem in class-change games, like classic DQ or FF class-based games. Are you just equipping classes to customize your character? Still, at the end of the day your stats and often abilities are often determined by which class you operate in (like FFT limiting taking abilities from other classes))

Fixed-class system: characters have a preset class, which determines the majority of their abilities and stats.

(Problem case: Final Fantasy VI. Characters have preset classes and stat growths but the esper system allows for customization).

Perhaps another oddity of the system, unmentioned above, is that it would slot, say, Pokemon in as "fixed-class." Fixed Class sounds like something like Dragon Quest IV or Final Fantasy IV, where you have characters that very clearly (and may even be labeled) as having a class, which is explored in other DQ/FF games. And admittedly, that's where my terminology comes from .

At the same time, being a Pikachu is the largest determining factor of Pikachu's growth in abilities and stats. You can give it TMs, breed moves, have it hold items, train its EVs, etc. and different Pikachus have different IVs but the general shape of a Pikachu is constrained by its species. This would be calling that class, instead of species. Same thing with Megaten demons and what not. Perhaps that's too obtuse a label, though.

...

As for the problem cases given above, they generally come in the form of mixed cases where it is unclear what is the primary growth system. Pokemon, as illustrated above, is a mixed system too, it is just pretty clear that for Pokemon the species holds a lot of power over development. Something like Final Fantasy VI where you have both fixed-classes complete with fixed unique abilities, you've also got a customization system akin to what's going on in, say, Final Fantasy VII.

I'd Final Fantasy VII is clearly a case of customization, as Materia greatly determine abilities and stats, even if there are underlying differences in character growths that the player does not control and things like Limit Break, which are unique to characters. I don't know how people would want to classify Final Fantasy VI, though.

Or what about Final Fantasy X and the sphere grid? It is technically open to customization, but characters are situated in certain places for a reason and there are blockades in the way of making them stray from those paths. Personally, it comes across to me as a fixed class system in normal usage, but that could just be my bias in playing the game .

Shin Megami Tensei games also cause issues as they often have different rules for the protagonist than those that are for the rest of the party. E.g. Demi-fiend operates on customization of both stats and abilities, whereas Demons are on a Fixed-Class system.

...

Also a potential issue is the conflation of DQ/FF style class systems with western "roll a class" games. The category is designed to encapsulate both but they're radically different thinking about it just now. The former lets you choose another roll and oftentimes mix them together in certain ways. The latter confines you to a fixed-class after an initial choice.

Going to look at this another way ignoring the importance of initial class choice:

fixed class: would be a system where on level-up you just get abilities. Class choice games without skill trees or (as with FF1) item-based magic learning could fit here.

fixed class w/choice: would be something like Pokemon or SMT where you have to get rid of abilities because of a fixed number of ability slots. Or something like FF9 where certain people get certain abilities by wearing certain clothes. Initial class choice games with skill trees could fit here.

(class) custom w/ paradigms: this would be your classic DQ/FF class games. The general idea would be abilities come with the cost of donning a certain role. It would problematize games like Nocturne, where to learn abilities you do change your stats and strength/weaknesses by eating different magatama, but you keep all your abilities after learning them until you choose to discard them rather than having abilities restricted by class choice. But...FF7 could fall into this.

custom w/o paradigms: you just choose abilities/stats through some means. This would be like SMTIV MC or a Skyrim character. (FFVI would be torn between this and fixed class w/o choice)

This also gives the opportunity to drop the word class in favor of just fixed vs. custom.

 

[Rad Shadow]

Good lists guy.

There's tons of rpgs being mentioned that even I have missed out on.

Will definitely be looking to play some of these forgotten gems.

 

[thecrpgbook]

1) Baldur's Gate II

BG2 is the ultimate, quintessential fantasy RPG. It's mind-blowing how much BioWare got right here - the itemization, encounter design, quest variety & depth, NPCs, spell system, multi-classing, Jon Irenicus and that amazing voice talent...

I've been playing it for almost 20 years, and I still shocked by how much content there is here.

2) Tales of Maj'Eyal

The best way I can describe ToME is "traditional RPG + tactical RPG + roguelike".

I always played roguelikes, but they never became favorites - they always felt kinda limited and with a narrow focus. ToME, on the other hand, feels like a full blown RPG, with a nice story, side-quests, bosses, towns, etc... while keeping all the roguelike depth, randomization and challenge... PLUS an extremely complex tactical combat, with powerful spells and skills that favor creativity and mobility over high numbers.

Add a very flexible character system with many classes & races, the best interface of any roguelike, gameplay customization options, multiple starts & endings, over 1,000 achievements and a dev still pumping out expansions & updates and you have the best RPG in the last decade....

...that no one in this forum ever talks about!

3) Fallout 1

It's a shame that nowadays the Fallout series is instantly associated with Bethesda's open-world games, for they fail to deliver what made Fallout 1 & 2 so great: Role-Playing.

Fallout 1 is an RPG where you can roll a diplomat and finish the game without firing a single shot, even convincing the fina boss that his plan is doomed to fail. Or play as a stealthy rogue that achieves the same by arming a nuclear bomb. Or play as a meathead that can't even speak properly but will kill anyone who gets close enough. Or mix these playstyles anyway you like, plus many other alternatives expressed in its rich dialogs, flexible character system, atmospheric world and expert storytelling.

All this back in 1997.

4) Dark Souls

Dark Souls is the Dark Souls of gaming. And the first one remains the best one.

5) System Shock 2

Much like what Bethesda did with Fallout, I hate what Ken Levine did with the so-caled "Shock series". Yes, SS2 has a cool setting, bunch of audio-logs and a charismatic villain.

But it's so much more than that - it's a full RPG/FPS hybrid, that allows for several different builds and playstyles. But it's also a horror/survival game, where enemies are endless, resources are scarce, weapons break down as you use them and you'll often find yourself hiding in a corner (because the game had Thief's stealth system), with one nearly-broken weapon and 10HP, trying to figure out just how you'll get past that suicidal robot patrolling the hall.

Those moment become memories that remain for years

6) Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind

Everyone says this, but it's true: Morrowind is the most immersive RPG ever made.

In Skyrim you're a rich, spoiled tourist - you arrive as the famous dragonborn, fast-travel around a bunch of landmarks and the world scales to your level. In Morrowind you arrive as a poor immigrant, that must slowly explore, take the bus to work, study and slowly work your way up to become a legend.

To play Morrowind is to LIVE in Morrowind.

7) Age of Decadence

An indie RPG that combines a challenging turn-based combat with seemingly endless role-playing choices. You can play as a rich merchant that never touches a weapon, a deadly mercenary that triumphs at the arena, an assassin that kills the emperor, a nobleman that conspires his way into the throne, a loremaster that uncovers ancient demons - or any mix of these and many other stories!

The graphics are kinda crappy, but damn, if you love role-playing you owe to yourself to play this game.


8) Chrono Trigger

Hard to say anything new or creative about this one. The best JRPG ever made?

Probably.

9) Jagged Alliance 2

JA2 manages to combine one of the deepest tactical turn-based RPG systems with a large open world full of towns, NPCs and side-missions, plus recruitable NPCs that ooze charisma and constantly interact with other - praising, romancing, cursing and even betraying you if you fail them.

Listen to the doctors: BioWare's founders openly admit that the NPCs in Baldur's Gate and other RPGs were made inspired by Jagged Alliance.

10) Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura

Arcanum is a broken, buggy mess. It's clearly unfinished, has extremely tedious dungeons and some severe balance issues.

But beneath all that lies one of the richest and most interesting RPG worlds ever created - a Tolkien-ish fantasy land in the middle of an Industrial Revolution! This is a game about Orcs forming unions because of abusive work in factories, necromancers using the dead as cheap labor, gnomes conspiring to rule the world from the shadows, monarquies being overthrown by republics and wizards losing their status and wealth to inventors replacing their services with technology.

This is what a rich, living world looks like, not "muh ancient evil".


--VOTE INFO START—

<FULL POINT GAMES – 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT – 3 points} Baldur's Gate II
{UNDERRATED – 4 points} Tales of Maj'Eyal
Fallout 1
Dark Souls
System Shock 2
Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind
Age of Decadence
Chrono Trigger
Jagged Alliance 2
Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura

<HONORABLE MENTIONS – 1 point>
Wizardry 8
Planescape: Torment
Valkyria Chronicles
Final Fantasy IX
Legend of Grimrock 2
Realms of Arkania II: Star Trail
Undertale
7.62 High Calibre
Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne
Star Wars: Knight of the Old Republic II - The Sith Lords

--VOTE INFO END--

 

[Jimrpg]

--VOTE INFO START&#8212;

<FULL POINT GAMES &#8211; 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT &#8211; 3 points}
1. Yakuza 0
Perhaps the single best reason to give the Yakuza series a shot, is that there are times in the series when the story telling is among the industry's best and Yakuza 0 is literally fantastic all the way through its 25-30 hour long story. The game stands in stark contrast to the long, meandering, bloated structure of its predecessor game Yakuza 5, and instead offers up a tight focused rewarding experience. Gone are the 5 cities, 5 character setup of Yakuza 5, and in comes 2 cities and 2 characters - series stalwart Kazuma Kiryu, Majima Goro. The player will alternate control between the two, every two chapters, and it almost feels like the chapters always ends on cliffhangers like a good TV show.

Not only is the story the best in the series, but everything else in this game has been refined incredibly well. The combat is fast and fluid, and the encounters escalate into some incredible battles, some of the boss fights are amazing. Then there are mini games like bowling, mahjong, the side activities, cabaret management and property investment and the side stories covering the various citizens around town that are funny to witness.

It's probably my favourite game of all time.

{UNDERRATED &#8211; 4 points}
2. Yakuza 4
This would probably listed number 10 in this list, but I've decided to list it as underrated. Yakuza 4 marks the first time, when this series really nailed pretty much all aspects of the game, from the story, to the combat, to pacing to fun things to do. Only Yakuza 0 really takes it to another level, but Yakuza 4 is still fantastic. You can take pretty much everything I said about Yakuza 0 and apply it here, though there's 4 characters in this one, and 1 city to roam around in.

3. Final Fantasy X
This was the game that got me into RPGs, particularly turn based RPGs. I didn't know there was that much of a focus on story in video games, and I loved that about FFX. The gameplay was also simple enough for a first time player without having to use any guides. This is probably an excellent place to start for any one who's never played an RPG before, though I think the story might have aged a bit now its about 15 years old.

4. Utawarerumono: Mask of Deception
While this one is more like a VN, there are some sRPG elements here so I'm going to include it in the RPG list. While the combat plays great and is a lot of fun, the story in this takes the game to another whole new level, and gives a masterclass to anyone looking to be a writer. The characters are all incredibly well fleshed out and the game's tone flirts between serious and funny so well. The art and music top off the production and the whole thing as a total package is first class. It's a crime that its going to be one of the least played VN/SRPGs of all time. This would be my GOTY any year but this year.

5. Diablo
A game that I spent hours upon hours playing. I loved the design of this game and how as the player goes deeper and deeper, it gets more difficult and nastier. The controls were fantastic at the time. So simple and intuitive. I played this game until it was absolutely busted with hacks and yet it was still fun.

6. Zelda II
Beat this game when was a little kid, and looking back it wasn't THAT hard. I'd say TMNT was WAY harder than this given there were hardly any shortcuts in that game. As I love this game so much, its hard for me to enjoy top down Zelda as much, so I still haven't finished the original Zelda or Zelda:LTTP.

7. Dungeon Travelers 2
My first foray into a DRPG, DT2 is surprisingly good. I think that's a great way to describe it, because its hard to believe what an engaging experience something as simple as a turn based RPG with static images can be, as long as the game is focused and tight. The combat is simple but clever, the player needs to continually upgrade himself otherwise he'll get quickly overpowered by enemies, but in return there is satisfaction of taking down difficult enemies. The music and art style is also great.

8. Demon's Souls
What I loved about this game was the combat. After playing games like Assassin's Creed 2, Demon's Souls combat just felt like they did swords and shields justice. It was like a combat simulator. The game also was exemplary at capturing the atmosphere with its art style, the cryptic story and how investigative you had to be to piece it together.

9. Dragon's Crown
This remains one of my favourite Vita games, and Vanillaware delivers an extremley fun new age side scrolling beat them up with deep RPG elements and oodles of levelling up (grinding) and replayability.

10. Nioh
I only have two negatives about this game. One - its pretty darn long that it feels repetitive by about half way thru. It's completely terrible at telling a story. Other than that, I love everything about this game. It's really the only game that I can think of that combines the combat mechanics of Dark Souls and Ninja Gaiden and then with Diablo item looting added. And it works amazingly well. I was forever searching for better equipment. But I was pretty much done after finishing the base game.

<HONORABLE MENTIONS &#8211; 1 point>
Dark Souls
The Witcher 3
Puzzle Quest
Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls
Fire Emblem Awakening

--VOTE INFO END--

Would love to try Cosmic Star Heroine. Thanks in advance to Robert if I get a copy!

 

[Knurek]

Highlight: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Proof positive that having open world does not prohibit you from making amazing side content. Sure, the gameplay wasn't really all that special, but by no means it was bad, and coupled with the superior writing/quest design and stupendous expansion packs it was just an experience to die for. My longest playtime ever, clocking at 123 hours, and I'm still thinking whether I shouldn't start a second playthrough, this time with Polish VA.

Underrated: Might & Magic X: Legacy
Nobody else seems to remember this game, but it's pretty much the best (if not only) time I had with a cRPG. Performance issues aside, it was pretty much the perfect way to spend 50+ hours. Solid dungeon/world design, decent battle system that stayed decent throughout the whole game, and that Civ-like 'one more turn' feeling. Such a pity the game underperformed, I'd murder a Guillemot or two for a sequel.

Rest in alphabetical order.

Chrono Trigger
SNES era Dragon Quest quest design/worldbuilding and SNES era Final Fantasy battle system/dungeon design. I mean, it sounded like a dream come through, and, small wonder, turned out to be even better. Best SNES RPG. Pretty much jRPG essence distilled. Also, the game that put Yasunori Mitsuda on the map.

Dragon Quest 8
Case study in how to make a game that, to this day, looks amazing while staying true to 8-bit era design roots. Also, last DQ with good music? Pity about us westerners getting shafted twice (first the PS2 version with crappy music quality and added loading times, then the 3DS version with extremely crappy music quality).

Final Fantasy Tactics
There's something about Yasumi Matsuno design process that speaks to me. All of his games are broken, imperfect creations, but each and every one has something that allows you to simply ignore the faults and focus on the good parts. Case in point FFT - I usually hate sRPG games, I can't stand subpar, garbage-tier translations and the less said about Dorter Slums, Golgorand Execution Site and Riovanes Castle the better. And yet I loved every single second of my time with the game.

Final Fantasy XII
Matsuno's supposed removal from the project can be felt throughout the whole game, but that doesn't bother me much, since I always had respect for Kawazu's rabid incomprehensibility. More games, especially cRPGs need to look at Gambits and implement them. I much prefer the busywork of programming your own party's behaviour to the busywork of manually using the same bloody action each and every encounter. Really looking forward to returning to the game whenever Squeenix deems to release it on PC.

Mother 3
That Nintendo still to this day hasn't brought the game over is, I think, their worst offence to this day. While the actual gameplay, while still leaps and bounds above Earthbound, is nothing special to write about, the feels the game produces are unmatched.

Nier Automata
That music. That writing. I'm still midway through Route B, so supposedly the best the game has to offer is still before me, but I simply couldn't omit the game from the list. Pity about the shitty treatment of PC gamers (par the course for Squeenix, sadly).

Trails in the Sky 3rd
So a priest and a nun walk into a game...
This is pretty much the equivalent of Baldur's Gate II in the Kisekiverse. High level gameplay from start to finish. Kevin and Ries are better characters than Joshua and Estelle

Spoiler

Don't kill me Arthea

, the dungeon/encounter design is finally showing some teeth and that music... God, that music. Overdosing Heavenly Bliss all day every day.

Valkyrie Profile
tri-Ace's best game, no doubts about it. They are known for making amazing battle systems, and they have outdone themselves here. Rest of the game could have been terrible, unredeemable thrash (it's not) and it still would have warranted a place on the list, on battle system merits alone.

--VOTE INFO START&#8212;

<FULL POINT GAMES &#8211; 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT &#8211; 3 points} The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
{UNDERRATED &#8211; 4 points} Might & Magic X: Legacy
Chrono Trigger
Dragon Quest 8
Final Fantasy Tactics
Final Fantasy XII
Mother 3
Nier Automata
Trails in the Sky 3rd
Valkyrie Profile

<HONORABLE MENTIONS &#8211; 1 point>
Final Fantasy V
Final Fantasy VIII
Final Fantasy XIII
Dragon Quest 5
Trails in the Sky FC
Trails in the Sky SC
Etrian Odyssey III
Tales of the Abyss
Lufia 2: Rise of the Sinistrals
Pillars of Eternity

--VOTE INFO END--

 

[Eridani]

1.) Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor {Highlight vote} - The Shin Megami Tensei franchise is full of surprises. While Persona and the mainline games get the most attention, the spin offs actually contain my favorites of the franchise. One of those is Devil Survivor, an incredible strategy RPG from the director of the Langrisser and Growlanser series. The game manages to:

a.) Merge the SMT style press turn battles and demon fusion with SRPG gameplay incredibly well.
b.) Differentiate the different demons by giving different groups different powerful abilities. This is something I'm amazed hasn't been copied by every successive SMT game -
a lot of them suffer because the demons feel too similar (especially in the recent games, where changes to inheritance allow you to pretty much put whatever skills
you want on everything) and this goes a long way towards fixing that.
c.) Have really good mission design. There's a lot of missions that require specific strategies to beat. The bosses are also great, since a lot of them initially appear
unbeatable but can be overcome with clever strategies.
d.) Have some of the best atmosphere in the SMT franchise.

It's essentially both one of the best SRPGs out there, while also not only being true to its SMT roots, but also improving them in some key aspects. The sequel is also worth mentioning - it improves the gameplay by making it much more balanced, but loses a lot of the atmosphere. The story is also a much more generic anime affair.

2.) Planescape: Torment - Not much to say here really. I'm pretty sure everyone who cares about old CRPGs is aware of Planescape - that game that has incredible writing but terrible gameplay. So I'll just note two things:

a.) The gameplay isn't terrible at all. The combat's not particularly engaging, but it goes along quickly enough to not detract too much from the game. On the other hand the actual meat of the gameplay - exploring this incredibly weird world - is wonderfully realized. There's a ton of different things to discover, and the NPCs are a joy to talk to.

b.) The writing really is that good. "Great writing" is something that gets attributed to quite a lot of RPGs. Planescape is better then that. If you care at all about writing in video games and haven't played this yet, just go and play it. The Enhanced edition makes getting it running trivially easy and as mentioned before, the gameplay really doesn't detract much from the experience.

3.) Sunless Sea {Underrated Vote} - This is, in my opinion, the one true spiritual successor to Planescape Torment. Torment: Tides of Numenera might have the name going for it, but Sunless Sea is a better successor to Planescape in pretty much every way. Like Planescape, it has an incredibly weird and original setting, featuring things like:

a.) A sun that is also a Lovecraft god, controlling reality through sunlight.
b.) An underground world that, due to the absence of sunlight, has all sorts of weird things going on.
c.) Victorian London - having sunk to said underground world - continuing its imperial ambitions underground.
d.) Sentient icebergs, some of which also happen to be gods.
e.) An incredible variety of small islands, each offering a unique and interesting story.

It's the last point that's particularly interesting, because it really makes the game feel like it's about exploration. The gameplay loop is pretty simple - you sail around in your ship, exploring the vast underground world and finding new islands. Each island rewards you with a unique and incredibly well written story, and the individual stories then tie together for some of the lengthier quests. Since the stories are very diverse - ranging from comedic adventures inspired by old point and click adventure games to weird Lovecraftian horror - the game never gets old.

The world building is also handled incredibly well. Somehow, despite the game throwing all those insanely weird concepts at you, it all manages to tie together to create an incredibly coherent world. It also doesn't explicitly reveal many of its more interesting things, forcing you to piece them together through snippets of lore spread throughout the game. It's similar to the way Dark Souls handles its world building.

And the writing is amazing. The prose is wonderfully artistic, it flows incredibly well, and even the most throwaway item descriptions manage to be well written.

4.) Path of Exile - An essential RPG list wouldn't be complete without a Diablo style ARPG, and out of both the mainline Diablo games and the countless clones that came after, Path of Exile is the obvious choice. It takes the strong foundation that Diablo 2 provided - murdering hordes of demons for increasingly better loot - and updates pretty much every aspect of it. It enhances character building in a huge way by introducing an incredibly complex skill graph. It provides a surprisingly diverse and engaging endgame system. It embraces the online aspect by introducing leagues - timed servers that bring unique twists to the core game. The biggest improvement is in the gear system, or rather how the various items interact with it.

Diablo pretty much revolutionized RPGs with its randomized loot system - items could contain a number of prefixes and suffixes, which gave them different bonuses, such as extra fire damage, more attack speed or more armor. Path of Exile takes this core system and introduces items that can add, remove and change these affixes. Suddenly, an item with 5 really good affixes and 1 really bad affix becomes very interesting, since you can try to remove the bad affix and replace it with a good one. A magic item with good affixes can also be upgraded to a rare one, which means that even traditionally worthless magic items can be good. Another very cool thing it does is taking the affixes further than gear, and applying them to pretty much everything. Diablo 2 already had monsters with affixes, but Path of Exile also applies them to treasure chests and endgame areas, which spices them up in a way that's both intuitive, fun and ties to the most central game mechanic. Add to that the fact that the game has one of the more generous free to play systems and is still receiving constant updates years after release and it's hard to argue it's the best Diablo style game out there.

5.) Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon - Another great SMT spin off. Like Devil Survivor, it takes the core SMT concepts and transfers them to a different genre - in this case, an action RPG. And it works much better than I thought it would. Unlike Devil Survivor, the gameplay and game mechanics are not the star - the game's really fun to play, but it's not outstanding in the way Devil Survivor is. What makes the game really shine is the incredible combination of setting, story, characters and music, creating a game that has this really unique feel to it. Playing a detective/demon hunter in early 20th century Japan is already interesting enough by itself, but when you combine that with an off beat story, great characters and the best Shoji Meguro soundtrack, you really get something special.

I mean, just look at that box art. If that doesn't immediately draw your attention, I don't know what will.

6.) Ys: The Oath in Felghana - Less of an RPG and more of an insanely awesome action game, this is about as good as an action RPG can get. Incredibly tight gameplay, great bosses and that soundtrack make this a must play for anyone interested in action RPGs. It's not a complex game, but Falcom just nailed the core gameplay so incredibly hard that the end result is incredible

7.) Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn - Essentially the embodiment of everything good about CRPGs. It has great tactical combat with some of the best encounter design in the genre. It has a variety of classes that make progression and party building exciting and full of possibilities. It has incredible side quests, and a structure that encourages you to do them. The story and the characters aren't quite in the top of the genre, but they are still great, and the main villain really stands out. It is about as perfect as a CRPG can get.

8.) Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn - The Fire Emblem franchise always stood out from other SRPGs. The focus on high lethality and low health combined with perma death meant that the game prioritized positioning in ways other SRPGs do not. Placing a single unit in a wrong spot can easily mean losing that unit forever, which really makes every incredibly important. In combination with good level design and clever (if a bit simplistic) RPG systems, this pushes the franchise into the very top of SRPGs. A lot of other Fire Emblem games could take this spot, but I prefer Radiant Dawn because:

a.) The focus on the grand, overarching story is great. Most other Fire Emblem games suffer from simplistic, thoroughly predictable stories, which really brings them down for me.
b.) The mission design is great, and the game is not afraid to screw you over and shake up your strategies. Conquest probably outdoes Radiant Dawn in that department, but suffers in most other areas.
c.) It has the best music of the franchise.

9.) The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings - Even after the release of The Witcher 3, I feel like 2 is a much more special game. It handles player choice in a way very few other games do, completely changing the second act depending on your choices, and offering long lasting decisions without an immediately visible outcome. I was quite disappointed that The Witcher 3 regressed quite heavily in this department, offering only a few, rather minor, choices. The characters also stand out as incredibly memorable. Roche is still just about the best CRPG character, and the rest of the supporting cast is still very memorable years after I played the game. There's some frustrations, like the combat being incredibly unbalanced, but that's rather minor complaints compared to how well it pulls of the characters and player choice.

10.) Divinity: Original Sin 2 - This is honestly quite incredible. I didn't think very highly of the first Original Sin - the combat started off looking really great but rather quickly became somewhat broken, and apart from the combat there just wasn't anything to the game. Original Sin 2, on the other hand, seems to be up there with Baldur's Gate 2 in being about as perfect as a CRPG can get. I say appears to because I haven't quite finished the game (this is quite an unfortunate timing for a thread like this), but even if the game turns into complete shit in the second half I don't think my feelings would change. The quests are a drastic improvement from the first game, offering incredible diversity to how you can finish them - I stumbled across roughly 5 different ways to get a necessary key for one of the early quests. Very few quests give you explicit direction - rather, they expect you to figure things out through exploration. They also tie to the main story and connect between themselves in wonderful ways, meaning that no quest feels like a standalone, throwaway adventure.

The combat is also improved. After a while many of the encounters in the first game started feeling rather samey - rush in with your warriors, CC the hell out of everything, nuke the biggest threats etc. In Original Sin 2, the encounters feel wonderfully diverse, with unique terrain and encounter design that actually makes me think about every single fight - there literary hasn't been a single throwaway fight against thrash mobs in my entire 25 hours of playing, which is incredibly impressive.

And the writing improved too. The game strikes a wonderful balance between being serious and comedic. The first game suffered a lot from not taking itself seriously enough, and the second game manages to fix that, while also being funnier at the same time. It's incredibly impressive.

Overall, I can't remember the last time a game impressed me this much. I definitely didn't expect Larian to make one of the very best CRPGs in the last decade (or hell, several decades) without any excessive hype or fanfare. It's really great.

11.) Exile: Escape From the Pit - This is probably the weirdest pick on the list, but I feel like the game deserves a mention. It's:

a.) The first RPG from Spiderweb Software, a developer that was making indie RPGs before indie games were even a thing, and is still making them to this day.
b.) Focused on exploration - the game drops you into a huge underground world with no real direction and just lets you explore it. It's great, and I wish more RPGs followed the same approach.
c.) Freeware, which makes it easily accessible if you just want to check out an old school CRPG. You will need to use an OS with support for 16bit applications. In practice, the best option is probably either a Windows 95 virtual machine or DOSbox with Windows 3.1 installed.
b.) The game that got me into RPGs.

The series has also been remade two times now, so if Exile is too old for you, you can check out Avernum (the first remake) or Avernum: Escape From the Pit (the second remake), although that one loses much of the focus on exploration.

12.) Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book - My first experience with Atelier was Escha & Logy, which I thought was terrible. It was incredibly easy, extremely slow paced and structured in a way that ensured more then half the game the was just spent wasting time and grinding yourself up, making the game even easier. This meant that the alchemy systems were completely wasted, since fights were practically impossible to lose anyway. Sophie fixes this in two big ways:

a.) It changes the structure. The game is incredibly open. You're free to go anywhere you want to gather up materials, improve your alchemy and fight progressively harder monsters. The main quest progresses when you sufficiently improve your alchemy.
b.) It adds a special, extra hard mode, where even the weakest enemies can easily beat you if you are not prepared.

This essentially means that the game is completely focused around the alchemy system, since it's the only real way to improve your characters and progress through the game. The game boils down to exploring the world, running into a seemingly impossible to win fight, exploring some more to find better crafting materials, crafting better items and gear and beating that fight. It may sound a bit simplistic, but managing to find a new recipe, craft a great new item and defeat a boss that seemed impossible before feels great. It truly makes the game live up to being "about the crafting".

13.) Bloodborne - Any of the Souls games could take this spot - they are all great, even if I'm not the biggest fan of Dark Souls 2 - but I feel like Bloodborne deserves a special mention. After playing Dark Souls 3, I felt like the franchise ran out of ideas, like it was just regurgitating what came before without offering anything fresh. I then played Bloodborne and realized that's far from the case. I feel like Bloodborne takes the best from Demon's Souls - the insanely good but also insanely fun dodge, the glorious horror atmosphere and the overall bleakness, and combines it with the best of the Dark Souls franchise - the open world and great boss design. This makes it the perfect Souls game for me, so I feel like it deserves the spot on the list.

14.) Persona 5 - I'm sure by the time this is done, there will be dozens of posts describing why the franchise is great, so I don't really see the need to go into that. While Persona 3 and 4 are incredible games, I feel like Persona 5 makes some key improvements to the series that make it stand out as the best of the franchise. It finally improves the non-party member social links by giving them incredibly useful rewards - Persona 4 only did that for the party member ones, which made all the other ones feel a bit pointless. Apart from that, the hand made dungeons are obviously a huge improvement over the randomly generated ones in previous games, the combat is faster and snappier and SP management actually matters for most of the game. What I really like is the story themes though. I definitely did not expect one of the more popular JRPG franchises to focus so strongly on critiquing modern society (mostly Japanese society, although some of the themes certainly extend beyond that).

15.) Mass Effect - Mass effect stands out among RPGs by being pretty much the only one with an actual sci-fi narrative. Sure, there's plenty of RPGs which blend sci-fi and fantasy, but most of them lean heavily on the fantasy part. It's not as hard sci-fi as I would have liked, but it leans into that direction more than pretty much every other games. For example, ships rely on projectile weapons instead of lasers, with the in game codex dedicating a large portion to describing how ship battles play out. The same holds true for guns. There's a decent scientific explanation to how the stealth system on your ship works, and the codex even delves into how ships discharge static electricity. Not that most of those things actually show up in the game, but it's nice that the game tries to remain relatively grounded with it's science. The story also delves into some interesting things, particularly with the Reapers.

Unfortunately, most of this was immediately abandoned in the sequels. Mass Effect 2 opens with a ship firing a giant laser at you and effectively retcons most things from Mass Effect 1, and the less said about Mass Effect 3, the better.

16.) Guild Wars - I would have easily put this under full point games, but unfortunately, it's an MMO. This means that recommending that people play it now is a bit tricky, since the main draw definitely came from playing the game with other people. You can still play the game though, since one of the latter expansions introduced customizable heroes which can easily substitute for other people, but the experience is just not the same.

The game definitely stands out as one of the most interesting MMOs. The level cap is extremely low (20) and can be reached incredibly easily - and if that's still too much for you, you can just make a PvP character that starts at level 20. The best gear can also be easily acquired with no grind. There's a strong focus on the main story line and a huge focus on balanced PvP. The really interesting part though, is the skill bar. It allows you to only use a total of 8 skills for any PvE mission or PvP fight. This means that you have to carefully select the skills you want to use. You have to make sure they synergize well with each other and that they are suited to the content you are running. Experimenting with different skill builds like that is something no other game really offers. The skills themselves are also incredibly interesting, since a lot of them can be incredibly powerful. For example, there's skill that cuts all incoming damage to 10% of it's original damage for a short duration. This allows you to escape even the strongest nukes, but only if you time it correctly.

17.) Icewind Dale II - While overall not quite as good as Baldur's Gate 2, I feel like it deserves a mention because:

a.) It allows you to create an entire party from scratch. Few modern games (aside from DRPGs) offer you this option, and that's a shame because this really made me attached to the party in ways I'm not with premade characters. Seeing a party you created grow from being incredibly weak at level 1 to destroying gods at level 20 is great, and really gives you a feeling of progress you don't often get in RPGs
b.) It's unbalanced and broken in the best possible ways. This ties in with the first point, but seeing your mages go from being completely useless at level 1 casting some of the most broken spells in RPGs feels incredible. This, to me, is the best example of why balance is not always needed in single player RPGs.

18.) Magic: The Gathering (Shandalar) - The "use full titles" rule kind of fails in this case, since the game is simply called Magic: The Gathering, though it's commonly called Shandalar to avoid confusion. At any rate, it's a rather simple concept - an RPG where combat is resolved by playing MtG. You are dropped into the world with a basic deck. You can then explore the world, running across random fights that give you extra cards, cities where you can buy cards or get quests and dungeons, which offer a sequence of fights with better rewards. There's some interesting additional RPG mechanics, but that's the gist of it. It's basically the perfect way to adapt a card game into a single player RPG, and yet this is the only game I know of that does this. As an interesting side note, Sid Meier was the designer of the game, which I didn't even realize until I looked the game up when writing this list.

19.) Risen - An essential RPG list obviously needs a Gothic style game. They provide an incredibly interesting open world experience, focusing on exploration, player freedom and choice. Out of all of them, I sadly feel like Gothic 1 and 2 are a bit too old and clunky to recommend to people, so I'm going with Risen instead. It's still really clunky and janky, but at least it adheres a bit more to modern RPG conventions.

20.) Stardew Valley - This is just such an addictive game. I didn't expect such a simple concept could be as addictive as it is. The combination of time management, taking care of your garden, crafting, talking and building relationships with people, fighting mosters and gathering resources means that you always have something to do and something to look forward to. It's a bit like Persona 3/4/5 in that way. Realistically, this could be replaced by another Harvest Moon/Rune Factory style game, but Stardew Valley just does everything so well that it feels like the obvious choice.

--VOTE INFO START—

<FULL POINT GAMES – 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT – 3 points} Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor
{UNDERRATED – 4 points} Sunless Sea
Planescape: Torment
Path of Exile
Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner 2: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon
Ys: The Oath in Felghana
Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn
Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn
The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings
Divinity: Original Sin 2

<HONORABLE MENTIONS – 1 point>
Exile: Escape From the Pit
Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book
Bloodborne
Persona 5
Mass Effect
Guild Wars
Icewind Dale II
Magic: The Gathering (Shandalar)
Risen
Stardew Valley

--VOTE INFO END--

 

[djtiesto]

Let's see. My overall favorites don't change much year over year. This is my list from 2013, cleaned up a bit and reposted The 10 runners up have changed though.

1. Phantasy Star 2 - some of the best dungeons in RPG gaming, amazing plot twists, a great futuristic setting, creepy monster design, and some nail-bitingly tough gaming. The most haunting ending I have ever seen in a game, too.

2. Star Ocean 2 - ridiculous amount of content, extremely fun battle system, tons of endings, and a hilarious English dub.

3. Valkyrie Profile - the combat system to end all combat systems, plus some dastardly challenging dungeons, very interesting and unorthodox gameplay structure (where you are on a "time limit" as you try to train and recruit soldiers to fight a war for Nilfgaard).

4. Phantasy Star 4 - a bit easy compared to the other PS games, but the Macro system and combo attacks were awesome, there were a ton of sidequests to do, the graphics and music were tops for Genesis, well-told story, such an amazing game.

5. Phantasy Star 1 - blew my mind as a kid... planetary travel, smooth-scrolling 3D dungeons, animated monsters! Even though SMS was an 8bit system as well, it looked like such a massive leap over DQ1 and FF1... This is the game that got me interested in game development as a possible career path, which led me to learning how to program... I am now a software engineer but didn't end up in the game industry.

6. Skies of Arcadia - the closest we've ever gotten to a true Phantasy Star 5... massive world with lots to explore, a great upbeat cast, giant airships to pilot, it was one of the first truly 3D RPGs I've ever played and the sense of scale was awesome

7. Dragon Quest 5 - the best DQ game, with the most heartfelt story in the series. Balanced, varied, doesn't overstay its welcome, traditional yet innovative at the same time.

8. Final Fantasy 5 - The job system is fantastic. Such an awesome gameplay setup that makes encounters and boss fights so much fun, also had an awesome soundtrack

9. Mother 3 - loved the storyline and the themes it conveys - commercialization of an idyllic, rural life.. the end of innocence... has a sense of humor that only the Mother series can manage, but at the same time it's a way more polished, balanced, and challenging game than Earthbound.

10. Xenoblade - The one game that salvaged an otherwise mediocre generation for me. expansive and imaginative world, fantastic music, tons of content. sure it has its flaws but it feels so innovative and unique that those were easily overlooked. i probably put more time into this game (145h) than any other game excepting maybe DQ7.

Runners up:
11. Trails in the Sky: SC
12. Wild Arms 4
13. Nier Automata
14. Persona 3
15. Ys Origin
16. Shadow Hearts: Covenant
17. Dragon Quest 8
18. Final Fantasy 4
19. Emerald Dragon
20. Live A Live

I need to do my 'top 100 RPGs' list some time. There are so many great ones I left off!


<FULL POINT GAMES &#8211; 2 points>
{UNDERRATED &#8211; 4 points} Phantasy Star 2
Star Ocean 2
Valkyrie Profile
Phantasy Star 4
Phantasy Star 1
Skies of Arcadia
Dragon Quest 5
Final Fantasy 5
Mother 3
Xenoblade

<HONORABLE MENTIONS &#8211; 1 point>
Ys Origin
Trails in the Sky: SC
Nier Automata
Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga 2
Shadow Hearts: Covenant
Dragon Quest 8
Final Fantasy 4
Live A Live
Emerald Dragon
Wild Arms 4
--VOTE INFO END--

 

[FiveSide]

Good lists guy.

There's tons of rpgs being mentioned that even I have missed out on.

Will definitely be looking to play some of these forgotten gems.

I've lurked earlier versions of this thread and loved reading the write-ups, but usually only found one or two games I'd never checked out before.

On the other hand, there have been a decent amount of games mentioned in this particular thread that I've never even heard of.

For example:

Opoona - Mechanically similar to Persona 3 in that it has jobs and friendships, it couldn't be more dissimilar thematically. Opoona follows a young alien crash-landed on a mysterious planet. In a reversal of the usual "human in alien world", you're the weird one. In spite of its flat localization, Opoona oozes charm - its bright colors and playful tone bring an unusual, childlike feel to gameplay. Art pieces scattered throughout towns and fields (hardly "dungeons", since many of Opoona's random encounter areas are outside) add to its worldbuilding, as do "TV channels" which build up everything from Landrollian art trends to kids' stories. Although the main story gets pretty dark (to the point of

Spoiler

Opoona himself getting incapacitated by an induced hallucination of paradise

), the overall tone remains playful in many ways. Despite being a Hitoshi Sakamoto-led production, the music is bouncy, sci-fi, and pairs perfectly with the theme of Opoona. Although the overall sense of Opoona may be childlike, it's far from childish, and doesn't stray from some mature themes.

I legitimately, 100% have never head of this game haha. But will look into it.

 

[Niahak]

I legitimately, 100% have never head of this game haha. But will look into it.

Probably a deadly combo:

Wii exclusive
Published by Koei (not known for RPGs)
Cutesy art doesn't stand out on the shelf

I delayed getting it a while and it was already dropped to $10. I think a lot of copies went straight to clearance. Poor Arte Piazza.

Another one that suffered the same fate around the same time, though a very different game (also on ps2 though) was Baroque. Well worth a check-out too!

I had to drop so many interesting games off my list. I think WRPGs got the worst of it (FFT also I really regret leaving off, but I would rather spend votes on lesser known games to get then seen than push a game from #23 to #22).

 

[Dandy Crocodile]

Probably a deadly combo:

Wii exclusive
Published by Koei (not known for RPGs)
Cutesy art doesn't stand out on the shelf

It also released the same day as Super Mario Galaxy so it was basically doomed from the start.

 

[FiveSide]

Wii exclusive

Well that explains it for me. I only played two RPGs on the Wii, Xenoblade and The Last Story.

I didn't play too many RPGs on the 'Cube either. Always wondered about games like Baten Kaitos and Arc Rise Fantasia (EDIT: just remembered ARF was on the Wii not the 'Cube).

I'll get to them someday!

Spoiler

Probably...

 

[Robert at Zeboyd Games]

Well that explains it for me. I only played two RPGs on the Wii, Xenoblade and The Last Story.

I didn't play too many RPGs on the 'Cube either. Always wondered about games like Baten Kaitos and Arc Rise Fantasia (EDIT: just remembered ARF was on the Wii not the 'Cube).

I'll get to them someday!

Spoiler

Probably...

ARF is a surprisingly good game, just make sure to turn off the voice acting.

 

[Lynx_7]

[...]
3.) Sunless Sea {Underrated Vote} - [...]
a.) A sun that is also a Lovecraft god, controlling reality through sunlight.

I already had this on my steam wishlist and wasn't sure when I would get around to it, if ever, but you immediately sold me on it with this. I might have to prioritize this alongside Divinity and Planescape.

This thread has been a good reference for W/CRPGS. Looks like I've got some homework to do.

 

[KiraXD]

Reserved until Battle Chasers comes out (10/3)

 

[Jigorath]

Reserved until Battle Chasers comes out (10/3)

You reserved a post on the 8th page.

Near the bottom.

 

[FiveSide]

ARF is a surprisingly good game, just make sure to turn off the voice acting.

I usually turn off voice acting when I play JRPGs, at least when there's an option. I'm a purist/stubborn mule about that. Usually prefer the voices I make up for the characters over the dub.

Cosmic Star Heroine is awesome so far by the way! I was going to PM you my thoughts on it once I finished it.

Anyone reading this, getting CSH just for writing up your favorite RPGs is a steal. Game has a great battle system with some unique mechanics, and it cuts the fluff that's accumulated in the genre over the years.

That tight pacing stood out as a real merit to me after some of the more recent notable JRPGs like Persona 5 and Trails. In both cases, I thought the biggest issue was arguably that the games were too long in the tooth.

 

[KuwabaraTheMan]

ARF is a surprisingly good game, just make sure to turn off the voice acting.

Yeah, it's one of the really great and criminally underrated RPGs from last generation. Just a shame about how awful the localization is (especially because it has a relatively good story overall).

 

[kswiston]

Yeah, it's one of the really great and criminally underrated RPGs from last generation. Just a shame about how awful the localization is (especially because it has a relatively good story overall).

I will admit that I stopped playing ARF because of the localization. My wife was watching, so she wanted the dub. 20 hours in, I couldn't take it anymore.

Reserved until Battle Chasers comes out (10/3)

Just start a new post when you are ready. If you don't want to forget about the thread, you could subscribe.

 

[gogosox82]

Man, I really need to play Masquerade: The Bloodlines. Bought it a year ago in a steam sale and never got around to actually playing it. Does anyone know if it plays well with windows 10 or do i need some mods to make it run?

 

[pettersson]

First Time participating

--VOTE INFO START—

<FULL POINT GAMES – 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT – 3 points} Planescape Torment
{UNDERRATED – 4 points} Icewind Dale
Chrono Trigger
Final Fantasy 6
Legend of Grimrock
Super Mario RPG
Earthbound
Shadowrun Dragonfall
Paper Mario 1000 Year Door
Gothic 2

<HONORABLE MENTIONS – 1 point>
Mario&Luigi Superstar Saga
The Witcher 3
Fallout New Vegas
Wasteland 2
Divinity Original Sin
Undertale
Final Fantasy 7
Vagrant Story
Blue Dragon
Lost Odyssey

--VOTE INFO END--

 

[manzoman96]

I'm so glad that this thread is back! Finally have some time for a write up.

1. Final Fantasy VII (Highlight Vote)
I often have a good time separating things that are my favorite and things that I believe are the best. While arguments can be made for other RPGS, Final Fantasy VII has the perfect combination of being one of my favorite games (if not my number one favorite) while having a legitimate case for GOAT to land at number one on my list. This game is the complete package. It has a phenomenal story that deals with themes of personal identity, life and death, and environmental themes, builds a world with a great lore, and has one of the most memorable main casts in gaming history. The game is well paced, not too long and not too short. It has your standard rpg turn based combat that's snappy and enjoyable. It has cultural significance and played a pivotal part in the history of square, playstation, rpgs, and video games in general.

2. Persona 4
Even after the release of Persona 5, the fourth entry in the series still takes the 2 spot for me. Although it's not as polished and refined as 5, persona 4's story and characters I still find to be better. The first experience I had when first playing this is something I'll never forget. I don't know or think if this will happen, but let's not have persona 5 make us forget how wonderful persona 4 still is.

3. Persona 5 (Highlight Vote)
While I rank this below 4, Persona 5 gets the highlight vote for 1. absolutely living up to they hype and exceeding it and 2. Being a high quality turn-based rpg in the year 2017. I had thought turn-based rpgs would suffer the same fate as one of my favorite movie mediums, traditional hand-drawn animation. To get one of such high quality this year really was a delight. The story of the phantom thieves was exciting and engaging from start to finish

Spoiler

well, maybe except for the morgana and ryuji argument segment

and we once again were treated to a cool cast of characters. The only real dud in the main cast for me was Ann, and Haru didn't get the development she deserved. The rest of the crew I could see fitting in well with some of the series' best characters. Also, I didn't know if I would like Yusuke beforehand, but he turned out to be one of my favorite party members. I'm not sure how time will treat this game, but it certainly deserves be in the same category as the classics of the genre.

4. Final Fantasy IX
My second favorite in the series. Zidane is one of the most endearing characters in gaming, and Daggar and Vivi are some of the most interesting and complex characters and Steiner is so underrated. That man needs more praise, he's like if squidward were a royal guard.

5. Chrono Trigger
Often referred to the GOAT and for good reason. Time travel stories are so hard to pull off, and the fact that they were able to make one of the mediums greatest games around it is astounding. Great characters, great story, and I really appreciate it not taking too long to finish. Plus the multiple endings make it a great game to revisit.

7. Kingdom Hearts 2
I wasn't sure whether to put this or Birth by Sleep here, but then I remembered that Riku the GOAT is in 2, plus 2 still has the best gameplay in the series.

8. Barkley Shut Up and Jam: Gaiden (Underrated Vote)
I'm not sure if this counts or not but I don't care if this doesn't, Playing this was one of the most memorable and hilarous gaming moments I've ever had. As an RPG and basketball nerd, this game is 100% catered to my taste. And, it's actually a competent game. More people need to experience this.

9. Pokemon Gen 2
While yellow will forever be my favorite and most sentimental, gen 2 is the best Pokemon I've played. I haven't played it in quite some time, however, so I need an updated experience.

10. Final Fantasy X
Really enjoyed playing this game, but you can definitely see the transition of how square's stories went from how they were pre-2000 to how they got to XIII. People always rip the l'cie and fal'cie crap but no one ever gets on how convoluted X was. Maybe I need to play it again, but I remember being confused by the plot at times. Regardless, this is still a great game. Plus, blitzball is the best FF minigame.

If coming up with this list has taught me anything, it's I need to catch up on some more greats of the genre. I have a snes classic pre-ordered, so I look forward to playing through FFVI, Secret of Mana, Earthbound, and Mario RPG for the first time. I also want to catch up on the Ys and Phantasy Star series. I have plenty of other ps1 classics like xenogears and suikoden, but have yet to play them. Regardless, I love this celebration of my favorite genre. I can't wait to see the new list!

 

[Eridani]

Man, I really need to play Masquerade: The Bloodlines. Bought it a year ago in a steam sale and never got around to actually playing it. Does anyone know if it plays well with windows 10 or do i need some mods to make it run?

It should be playable on windows 10, but you'll really want to use the unofficial patch, since the base game full of bugs.

I already had this on my steam wishlist and wasn't sure when I would get around to it, if ever, but you immediately sold me on it with this. I might have to prioritize this alongside Divinity and Planescape.

This thread has been a good reference for W/CRPGS. Looks like I've got some homework to do.

A small tip for anyone who wants to check out Sunless Sea: don't try to grind. I've seen a lot of people complain that the game is too grindy, but that's just not true at all unless you intentionally chose to play it like that. Just exploring the world gives you more than enough money, and your starting ship is capable of doing about 99% of the content in the game.

 

[Elandyll]

Will develop more soon, but as a first draft

Baldur's Gate 2 - The consumate PC RPG in which I have invested hundreds of hours between the original game and its insane ToB expansion. The ultimate D&D experience on computer, it has both an engrossing story, great characters to recruit, and a really faithful (perhaps too much at times) recreation of D&D rules as a computer game.

The Faery Tale Adventure - Might be the nostalgia talking, and I do miss my Amiga, but I have absolutely incredible memories of this game which I was replaying over and over on Amiga. Open world, which was a mix of classic heroic fantasy and fairy tales ala Grimm. Amazing, and rarely talked about, the game oinly msotly suffer of power creep throughout the later stages but is otherwise a forgotten classic in my opinion.

Bloodborne - Perhaps my favorite game this gen so far, and one of my all times favorites, in spite of brutal difficulty. Gothic RPG, meeting fantasy and Lovecraft. Say no more. The combat is also excellent, Monster design absolutely incredible, and the action is nearing perfection. The score is also both chilling and beautiful, and the story, while hidden through in game clues, really inspired thousands as they combed the game for clues as to what was really happening.

Deus Ex Human Revolution - Few games have blended a great sci-fi story, solid stealth, action, FPS and a huge amount of freedom in how to play the game as well as Deus Ex HR. Add to that killed voice acting and a terrific score, and it's one of my all time favorites.

Final Fantasy VII - Pretty much a legend among RPGs, FF7 made me fall in love with Final Fantasy back in the PS1 days, a series I did not even know before. It seemed revolutionary at the time, due to its incredible (CD Rom supported) graphics, CGI cut scenes and all time great score, but throughout the years the spell has been maintained and still now I love to play FF7.

Suikoden - My first JRPG crush, and one of the all time great. Back in th days it was revolutionary in its collection of characters to have join you (100+), blend of genras (RPG, wargame, base building...) and great story alongside another classic score. Still today it is as good as it ever was.

Horizon Zero Dawn - I won't even go through the debate. It's an Action RPG, period. This being said, I was completely flabbergasted by not only how incredible the graphics were for an open world Action RPG, but also how good the story or combat was. I had lofty expectations from GG after the reveal, and this game shattered them. Imo, a new classic.

The Witcher 3 - Perhaps the gold standard of Western open world RPGs, even though /I was a bit disappointed by the main story and the combat jank, it is still a monumental achievement in world building and the side quests are some of the best the genre has ever seen. And Gwent, the card game introduced as an in game mini game, is god tier, of course.

Valkyria Chronicles - An amazing strategic RPG with both character and vehicular (a tank) combat, VC has everything you could want from such a game, from great charactes, great story, great gameplay and score, to graphics which do not age thanks to a very beautiful "crayon" art style.

Nier Auotmata - Another surprise of 2016, and for someone who had never played any Nier or Drakengard game, I have to admit I fell in love with the world crested, super solid gameplay by Platinum and a haunting score. The story is crazy, and very obtuse at times, but also very rewarding if you can hang on through route B. 2B and 9S are fascinating (artificial) characters that I enjoyed playing with tremendously.

--VOTE INFO START&#8212;

<FULL POINT GAMES &#8211; 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT &#8211; 3 points} Baldur's Gate 2
{UNDERRATED &#8211; 4 points} The Faery Tale Adventure (Amiga)
Bloodborne
Deus Ex Human Revolution
Final Fantasy VII
Horizon- Zero Dawn
Nier Automata
The Witcher 3
Valkyria Chronicles
Suikoden

<HONORABLE MENTIONS &#8211; 1 point>
Fallout 3
Mass Effect 2
Dragon Age: Origins
Neverwinter Nights
World of Xeen (Might and Magic IV & V combined)
Final Fantasy Tactics
Planescape Torment
Elder Scrolls 3
Diablo 2
Pillars of Eternity
Ni No Kuni
--VOTE INFO END--

 

[Head of Vengarl]

1. Dark Souls III

This game is a masterpiece. It was my first Souls game and I was absolutely blown away by the gameplay - difficult yet extremely rewarding combat (especially the boss fights), reactive controls (basically the opposite of TW3), crazy precise hitboxes, and many other nuances that made it all work so well. This game set the bar so high for action RPG gameplay I felt a little depressed afterward, knowing that most games will never live up to it. The minimalist story worked perfectly, the sound design was brilliant, the art direction superb, and the PvE/PvP summon/invasion system kept me coming back to the game long after I beat it. The summon/invasion system is the coolest way I've seen a game integrate multiplayer into an otherwise single-player experience. I know it sold well but I still feel this game is underrated due to "Souls fatigue." For me, it was a gaming experience unrivaled in its intensity, and by the time I beat the final boss I knew I had a new favorite RPG of all time.

2. Xenoblade Chronicles

What manner of sorcery did Monolith Soft use to pull this game off on the Wii's hardware? Perhaps we will never know. What I do know, is that Xenoblade was an incredible adventure with an over-the-top story, immersive world, irresistibly charming and memorable characters, and visuals that prove one-and-for-all that art direction > raw graphical quality. Some of the locations in this game are just stunningly beautiful, aided by perhaps the greatest RPG soundtrack of all time. The combat system was fun and refreshing in that there was no mana (just cooldown management), the party-based combat was fun (and ridiculously OP once you figured out how to topple) and your HP got healed to full after finishing a battle. And can I give an honorable mention to the English voice actors? Most of them absolutely knocked their roles out of the park.

3. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

This game is a classic, and deservedly so. Full disclosure: I'm ranking this game based on the modded experience I had. I'm not sure if that's totally fair or not, but I never played the vanilla version. I got this game a couple years after its release, so I was lucky to jump right into a mature modding community that added tons of improvements and cool extra stuff to the game. Of course, a shitty core game would still be shitty with mods, but Skyrim is of course a brilliant open world RPG, absolutely packed with lore, beautifully imagined locations, and interesting characters and sidequests. As far as immersion goes, this game stands unrivaled in my experience. Skyrim's most common criticism is that its combat was lackluster, but thankfully I had some mods that improved the magic system, and made it tons of fun.

4. Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen

"Aye, raise your weapon... your teeth of steel, your blood-red voice... show me your power Arisen! Prove yourself worthy of what lies beyond my corpse! Show that you possess the strength to still my heart. The will to do it. The soul!"

Oh man, I just love this game. The action combat is so good, and the pawn (AI) system is very neat and surprisingly deep, letting you experiment with lots of different party setups and making it feel like a single-player MMORPG. With 9 vocations and plenty of skills for each, there are many different ways you can approach combat, keeping it exciting and fresh for a long time. This game isn't for everyone though - it's for those of us who prefer good gameplay over everything else. The story and open world are nothing to write home about, with the major exception of the dragon Grigori, who is one of the most superbly voice-acted villains of all time. The post-game area introduced in Dark Arisen, Bitterblack Isle, lends a Dark Souls feel to the game in both aesthetic and the increased difficulty, which cemented this game as one of my favorite RPGs.

A gif showcasing the awesomness of the combat and pawn systems: Knocking down a bandit with a dagger flurry + kick combo, then picking his ass up, and having your warrior pawn smash him to death with a huge sword strike.

5. The World Ends With You

Simply the most fun and innovative handheld RPG I ever played. The story was interesting, the gameplay was fun and totally different from anything else I've experienced, and the supporting cast was great. As someone who usually can't stand J-Pop, it totally worked in TWEWY and was surprisingly enjoyable. I have almost no complaints about this game, except that the main character was the typical RPG/anime trope of being a rude, antisocial little shit for most of the game, which was annoying. But don't let that turn you off - TWEWY is an absolute gem.


--VOTE INFO START&#8212;

<FULL POINT GAMES &#8211; 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT &#8211; 3 points} Dark Souls III
Xenoblade Chronicles
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen
The World Ends With You
Title 6 here
Title 7 here
Title 8 here
Title 9 here
Title 10 here

<HONORABLE MENTIONS &#8211; 1 point>
HM Title 1 here
HM Title 2 here
HM Title 3 here
HM Title 4 here
HM Title 5 here
HM Title 6 here
HM Title 7 here
HM Title 8 here
HM Title 9 here
HM Title 10 here

--VOTE INFO END--

 

[ASaiyan]

Did I miss the free game? Lol.

This was really hard for me, especially since I tried to adhere to a '1 title per franchise' rule. But without further ado, here are my favorite games in my favorite genre, in ascending order:

10. Yakuza Kiwami
I've seen Yakuza show up on several people's lists now &#8211; and if Yakuza is an RPG, it is absolutely one of the best. I have never seen a game wax so flawlessly between tragedy and comedy, between its main story and hours upon hours of side content. In Yakuza you can dive into the gritty underworld of Shinjuku, with strong, likable heroes and evil, understandable villains. You can experience a deep and engrossing story that blows the doors off of what you thought was possible hour after hour. You can walk around town and fight people, and the combat feels very good; you can even upgrade your abilities with your favorite RPG skill trees to your heart's content. Or, you can spend literally hours doing stupid shit; bowling; singing karaoke; racing RC cars; helping local wannabes learn how to "act tough"; and it's all super fun. I've only played the first and zeroth entries of the series so far, and between the two I'd have to say Kiwami is my favorite. The plot is so dramatic and raw, underlined by the complex web of relationships between the heroes and the villains. Plus, Majima, y'all. He's everywhere.

Spoiler

Please localize the feudal samurai spinoff, SEGA. Please.

9. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
The Zelda series has long been labeled, among others things, "RPG" &#8211; and this is especially true for BotW. I had a long back-and-forth between this game and my love for Wind Waker, but ultimately I think I must concede to the new hotness. For one thing, BotW is the only open world RPG I've ever actually finished and liked. Why? Well, besides the great writing and character equity of the franchise, what sets this open world apart from all the other ones in town is that it is actually filled with things to do. The shrine system, which like other Zelda fans I was initially nervous about, is absolutely brilliant, because it actually incentivizes exploring every last of nook of the big beautiful world. Every few feet you will trip over a shrine, a sidequest, or an enemy camp. Every mountain can be scaled, every river swum, and the only thing stopping you from running straight to the end is not a lazy wall, but a terrifying horde of mechanoids ready to obliterate those who are not prepared; nothing is superfluous. And the story, good god, is easily the highlight of the series; fully voiced cutscenes and fleshed out backstories create the powerful, emotional feeling of a world that has been destroyed, its greatness buried, its heroes gone but not forgotten. I put 80 hours into this world and could've easily cleared it in 40; I think that says enough.

8. Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age
Yo GAF, I recently learned which Final Fantasy is best; it's 12. And what a number of reasons why. Actually sensical and engaging plot and well-built world? Whew, you don't find that too often in FF these days. Great, well-written and likable characters (besides Vaan and Penelo, who feel really inoffensive and tacked-on)? Check. An action combat system that actually works? Wow, now you have my attention. Seriously, this is what 'modern' Final Fantasy has always been trying to be, and should be. It's fantastic and you'll absolutely want to see it through to the end. And for gods sakes SE, please just set another mainline FF in Ivalice! Stop trying to reinvent the wheel! You don't remember what a wheel looks like anymore!

7. Undertale
So, uh, Undertale. Is it as good as people say? Like, really though? I have to tell you, the answer is yes. It's incredible to believe that an independent Steam game with basic pixel art made by someone who doesn't even know how to code could be so moving &#8211; that a concept as simple as "an RPG where you don't have to kill anyone" could do so much. But here we are. If you're incredulous, you can't possibly believe the Metascore, I urge you to just load up your PC and try it &#8211; after all, if you hate it, you're only out 10 bucks, right? In my nearly two decades in this hobby there are exactly four games that have actually moved me to tears. One of them is Professor Layton 2, which had a goddamn cheap shot of an ending. Two others are higher up on this list. And the last one is Undertale. Play Undertale.

6. Paper Mario (N64)
From crying to smiles, we have Paper Mario. Of the two successors to Super Mario RPG's legacy, this one is my favorite. I am actually in the minority of people who prefer the original N64 title to The Thousand Year Door; not because I don't like the latter, but because the original, imo, simply has more charm. Mario is adorable in his flat pixelly style as runs around saving the world with his ragtag pals. The Tubba Blubba chapter is great; Star Road and Crystal Palace both have impeccable music; and I actually like that in this one you are still going out after Bowser. Plus, that commercial is still absolutely fantastic nearly two decades later, you know it is.

Spoiler

I was actually sorta disappointed the final boss wasn't a paper shredder, lol.

5. Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch &#8211; UNDERRATED PICK
Here's something to file under 'best ideas ever': Studio Ghibli RPG! The world-famous animation and storytelling of Studio Ghibli; the storied orchestral scores of Joe Hisaishi; and a great real-time-with-pause battle system designed by RPG veterans Level-5? Sign me up. Oh, and also, they did their own whole series of ripoff Pokemon bigger and better than Yo-kai Watch! If you've ever seen a Ghibli film, you can imagine that this is an absolute joy to play, and somehow about 20 times longer than a movie. I'm actually not as excited about the sequel, as the aforementioned Familiar monsters have been axed; but no matter how that goes, I will always have this game.

4. Fire Emblem Fates
I know, I know. I know I'm the only one here who likes Fire Emblem Fates. I would proudly wear the tag "GAF's only fan of FE Fates [and DK64]". And I love it for probably much of the same reasons that you hate it. The Birthright route, standalone, would still be enough for me to call my favorite Fire Emblem game. The story was highly emotional and raw, and I liked being able to insert myself into it as the avatar. I liked the MyCastle system that let me put all of the 'between-maps' content into one place. And I loved, loved the characters &#8211; perhaps not all, but virtually all of them. I loved fighting with them at my side. I loved grinding out ships between them and then getting another great character as a child unit. And I was absolutely torn to pieces when I was forced to draw my sword against the ones I did not side with. I mentioned earlier in this list the three RPGs I've ever cried at? The ending of Birthright (massive spoilers)

Spoiler

when Xander dies, and then you 'die', and then all your dead loved ones urge you to get back up

was one of those. And holy shit, this is only a third of the glorious thing known as Fire Emblem Fates! Conquest brings the challenging maps for the hardcore FE fans, and Revelations has some of the most innovative maps in the series (albeit, yes, with a very weak wrap-up to the story). There is 90 hours of content on my limited edition cartridge, and that's not even including all the DLC maps. To put out this combined work in the three years after Awakening is nothing less than an absolute marvel. I would not ask the same thing of IntiSys again. But I cannot wait to see where the next entry in the series goes.

Spoiler

Also the Nohrian royals are basically the Trump family and you can't unthink this now.

3. Mother 3
Ah, sweet Mother 3 / Trapped forever across the sea [of Japan]. This was not a forgone choice, as its predecessor EarthBound was also fantastic and genre-resculpting &#8211; but again, it is in the strength of its story that Mother 3 wins out. This is certainly not the only game, but precisely the kind of game, that should be held up, when cinophiles and literati ask for proof of the "worth" of our medium &#8211; when they want to be convinced that a game can do everything a book or a movie can

Spoiler

and have 30 hours to spare

. What makes Mother 3 a joy to play is Itoi's stupendous sense of humor, interspersed throughout with a wackiness that is as uniquely his own as his innovations to the turn-based battle system (like, seriously, why has no one ever stolen the rolling health bar or instant-win battles?). What makes Mother 3 awe-inspiring, however, is the deep, dark, and profoundly emotional story that the humor interrupts, but never silences. "No crying until the end", eh? I think I held my tears in until then, but I very nearly cried in the beginning. Heck, if you've played this, admit it: you felt a little twinge of emotion just looking at that sunflower scene up there, yeah? I know I did.

2. Pokémon HeartGold/SoulSilver Version
I vacillate a lot a lot on which I think are the best Pokémon games &#8211; but in the end, I always seem to find my way back to Gold & Silver. This remains the only game in the series with two regions, and nearly forty hours of content to explore, and damned if it isn't still some of the best content in series history. The best 251 Pokémon ever made are in this gen. The best series villains, Team Rocket, are here. The music is baller. And even though the modern titles have innovated the formula and simplified out some annoyances, the OG progression remains popular to this day for a reason. You start a young kid in a small town. You get a magical monster from an old man and set off. You make a tour of the Pokémon League. You defeat an evil mafia. You unlock the legendary powers of the region itself. And finally, you climb a snowy, seemingly-unending mountaintop, and fight the greatest trainer in the world &#8211; the guy you played as in the previous game. The remakes, of course, took the best thing and spruced a few things up to make it even better. You have gorgeous new sprites. You can have your favorite Pokémon walk behind you and tell you how it's feeling every step of the way. And the Pokéwalker, that was pretty cool.

#1. Persona 5 &#8211; HIGHLIGHT PICK
Kneel in respect to the GOAT. The modern Persona series is, far and away, everything you could possibly ask for in a turn-based Japanese role-playing game, in part because it contains so many great things you never would have thought to ask for. Solid turn-based combat? Okay, that's a given, here you go. Like collecting Pokémon? Okay, you can do that too &#8211; you can collect cool demons and fuse them together. Want a visual novel where you can be an ordinary high school student and make cool friends and inspiring role models and kiss all the girls &#8211; here, here it is; I know you didn't realize these two things could go together, but they can, they can and they do now. In many ways, Persona 5 is in the league of sequels that are only polishing perfection (a la Mario Galaxy 2): take the few things that were could maybe be better about previous games in the series and iron those wrinkles away. Randomly-generated dungeons kinda suck? Fair enough, now let's do wonderful purpose-built set pieces. Getting bored fighting faceless enemies over and over? Okay, now the enemies are the vibrant and varied demons you're collecting. Graphics a little too gray and dull? How about some crazy shit with bright reds and cel-shaded models all set against a kickin' acid jazz score. Plot not 'exciting' enough? Okay, now the characters are phantom thieves and we're turning it up to 11! What more do you want?! No game, of course, is perfect. In fact, I could cite some things about P5 I disliked; for example, I thought the increase in element types and social link 'stat gates' made some things a little harder than they should be. And that damn cat needs to stop telling me to go to bed. But in the world of turn-based JRPGs, Persona 5 is about as close to perfection as you can reasonably get.

...Now for the quick summarized part for the vote-tallyers:
--VOTE INFO START&#8212;

<FULL POINT GAMES &#8211; 2 points>
{HIGHLIGHT &#8211; 3 points} Persona 5
{UNDERRATED &#8211; 4 points} Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch
Mother 3
Pokémon HeartGold/SoulSilver
Fire Emblem Fates
Paper Mario (N64)
Undertale
Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Yakuza Kiwami

<HONORABLE MENTIONS &#8211; 1 point>
None.
--VOTE INFO END--

 

[kswiston]

Did I miss the free game? Lol.

No, there are keys left. I have had a busy weekend, and haven't had time to read most of the posts since Friday, but there should still be at least 90 keys up for grabs.

Also, FE Fates released in 2016 in the west (after the last version of this thread), so it is not eligible for the underrated.

Great list though!

 

[ASaiyan]

No, there are keys left. I have had a busy weekend, and haven't had time to read mowt of the posts since Friday, but there should still be at least 90 keys up for grabs.

Also, FE Fates released in 2016 in the west (after the last version of this thread), so it is not eligible for the underrated.

Ah, okay. I will move that vote to Ni no Kuni then, which somehow is not on the list of beloved and ineligible titles.

I don't think FE Fates is qualified for underrated. It was released after the last vote right?

Yes. I've just fixed my mistake, lol.

 

[Aters]

{UNDERRATED – 4 points} Fire Emblem Fates

I don't think FE Fates is qualified for underrated. It was released after the last vote right?

 

[FiveSide]

1. Dark Souls III

This game is a masterpiece. It was my first Souls game and I was absolutely blown away by the gameplay - difficult yet extremely rewarding combat (especially the boss fights), reactive controls (basically the opposite of TW3), crazy precise hitboxes, and many other nuances that made it all work so well. This game set the bar so high for action RPG gameplay I felt a little depressed afterward, knowing that most games will never live up to it. The minimalist story worked perfectly, the sound design was brilliant, the art direction superb, and the PvE/PvP summon/invasion system kept me coming back to the game long after I beat it. The summon/invasion system is the coolest way I've seen a game integrate multiplayer into an otherwise single-player experience. I know it sold well but I still feel this game is underrated due to "Souls fatigue." For me, it was a gaming experience unrivaled in its intensity, and by the time I beat the final boss I knew I had a new favorite RPG of all time.

Always interesting to see DS3 impressions from people who played it as their first Souls game.

I think it's the best game in the series all things considered, and I do feel that "Souls fatigue" was a factor in why it wasn't as well-received as the earlier entries.

Given that DS3's biggest strength is consistency (i.e. there's no sudden dropoff in quality like post-Anor Londo in DS1), I can imagine it might be difficult for newer players to go back to the first one.

#1. Persona 5 – HIGHLIGHT PICK
The modern Persona series is, far and away, everything you could possibly ask for in a turn-based Japanese role-playing game, in part because it contains so many great things you never would have thought to ask for.

(1) Solid turn-based combat? Okay, that's a given, here you go.

(2) Like collecting Pokémon? Okay, you can do that too – you can collect cool demons and fuse them together.

(3) Want a visual novel where you can be an ordinary high school student and make cool friends and inspiring role models and kiss all the girls – here, here it is.

This is a good breakdown of why I like mainline SMT (points 1 and 2), and why I have never been able to get into Persona (point 3)

 

[Thud]

Persona 5 is the most SMT like modern Persona.

Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocaypse is the most Persona like SMT.

Something went wrong there during development

 

[Aters]

Persona 5 is the most SMT like modern Persona.

Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocaypse is the most Persona like SMT.

Something went wrong there during development

I don't know how P5 is more SMT than P3 and P4 other than you fight demons. SMT4A is Persona as fuck though. I sure hope that SMT HD is nothing like SMT4A.