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Japanese dungeon crawlers

R

robotnik

Member
I decided to create this thread, because I realized the fact there is so little information about this niche genre (1st person, hand crafted dungeons), its history and evolution on the internet. Thread about Expierence really helps, but it covers only this developer.

I played relatively new games and it would be great if someone will be able to enlighten me and others about older or hidden gems.

Really enjoyed:
Etrian Odyssey series
Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey
Persona Q
Demon Gaze
Lost Heroes
Dungeon Travelers 2
King's Field IV
Shadow Tower: Abyss

Bonus - Theresia (it's first person adventure without enemies and isn't typical DRPG, but still want to mention it, so maybe more people play this gem)
Just listen this (reminds me Parasite Eve's OST) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqaPo6edM1k
Trailer - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDcD06IP91A

Average:
Unchained Blades
Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers
Sol Trigger
Saigo no Yakusoku no Monogatari
Tokyo Mono Harashi
Moero Chronicle

Disliked:
Mind Zero
Class of Heroes 1,2 (thinking about giving a second chance, dropped too early)

Plan to play in the future:
Operation Abyss
Beyond the Labyrinth
Dark Spire
Lost Heroes 2
Seisou no Amazones (know nothing about it though)
UnchainBlades EXXiV
Shining in the darkness
Phantasy star
Wizardry: Labyrinth of Lost Souls (waiting for english vita version)
Wizardry: Tale of the Forsaken Land (waiting for ps4 classics since my ps2 is broken. Atlus, please)
Elminage Original (no Gothic for me since I don't want to turn on my PC outside working hours)
other King's Field and Shadow Tower games
and all upcoming vita DRPG of course

What else am I missing?
And let's discuss this interesting genre.
 
L

LifeBrandRobot

Member
Man I really want to like the Etrian games, but I can't stand having to draw my own map. Really kept me from getting sucked into Persona Q even though I love Persona.
 
S

Syril

Member
Have you looked at any of the 80's and 90's computer RPGs that these games are descended from? Stuff like the original Wizardry games or Might and Magic.
 
Y

YianGaruga

Banned
I really enjoy the genre but I'm still kind of new to it and you listed way more than I even know so I can't contribute much. :) Still have quite a few in my backlog as well.

Really looking forward to Stranger of Sword City, Ray Gigant and Moero Crystal (English Asian version) next year. While I prefer them on handhelds I wish they'd make/port some to the PS4 as well.

Ultimate_Trainer said:
The Kyuuyaku Megami Tensei remakes of the original 2 Megami Tensei games. If you don't restrict it to just Japanese 1st person Dungeon crawls I'd reccomend the Legend of Grimrock series. There's gonna be an indie King's Field like game coming out by Playism, but I can't remember the name of it.
Click to expand...

Yeah if you want to branch out a bit into similar-but-not-quite-the-same games, I recommend Brandish as well.
 
U

Ultimate_Trainer

Member
The Kyuuyaku Megami Tensei remakes of the original 2 Megami Tensei games. If you don't restrict it to just Japanese 1st person Dungeon crawls I'd reccomend the Legend of Grimrock series. There's gonna be an indie King's Field like game coming out by Playism, but I can't remember the name of it.

edit:Dungeons & Darkness was the name of the King's Field like game.
 
N

Nachos

Member
LifeBrandRobot said:
Man I really want to like the Etrian games, but I can't stand having to draw my own map. Really kept me from getting sucked into Persona Q even though I love Persona.
Click to expand...

The games have been getting progressively better about offering more and more auto-map options with each game to run on the engine. I could honestly see V offering the most robust set of options yet, for those who just can't get into the cartography aspect.
 
R

robotnik

Member
LifeBrandRobot said:
Man I really want to like the Etrian games, but I can't stand having to draw my own map. Really kept me from getting sucked into Persona Q even though I love Persona.
Click to expand...
But there is automapping. It works for tiles you stepped on and walls you passed by.

Syril said:
Have you looked at any of the 80's and 90's computer RPGs that these games are descended from? Stuff like the original Wizardry games or Might and Magic.
Click to expand...
I'm more interested in japanese branch. Someday maybe.
 
J

Jazz573

Member
robotnik said:
I decided to create this thread, because I realized the fact there is so little information about this niche genre (1st person, hand crafted dungeons), its history and evolution on the internet. Thread about Expierence really helps, but it covers only this developer.

I played relatively new games and it would be great if someone will be able to enlighten me and others about older or hidden gems.

Really enjoyed:
Etrian Odyssey series
Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey
Persona Q
Demon Gaze
Lost Heroes
REDACTED REDACTED REDACTED
King's Field IV
Shadow Tower: Abyss

Bonus - Theresia (it's first person adventure without enemies and isn't typical DRPG, but still want to mention it, so maybe more people play this gem)
Just listen this (reminds me Parasite Eve's OST) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqaPo6edM1k
Trailer - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDcD06IP91A

Average:
Unchained Blades
Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers
Sol Trigger
Saigo no Yakusoku no Monogatari
Tokyo Mono Harashi
Moero Chronicle

Disliked:
Mind Zero
Class of Heroes 1,2 (thinking about giving a second chance, dropped too early)

Plan to play in the future:
Operation Abyss
Beyond the Labyrinth
Dark Spire
Lost Heroes 2
Seisou no Amazones (know nothing about it though)
UnchainBlades EXXiV
Shining in the darkness
Phantasy star
Wizardry: Labyrinth of Lost Souls (waiting for english vita version)
Wizardry: Tale of the Forsaken Land (waiting for ps4 classics since my ps2 is broken. Atlus, please)
Elminage Original (no Gothic for me since I don't want to turn on my PC outside working hours)
other King's Field and Shadow Tower games
and all upcoming vita DRPG of course

What else am I missing?
And let's discuss this interesting genre.
Click to expand...

FTFY :p

But in all seriousness that's a lot of stuff. Maybe you should tackle some of that before looking for more.

You might want to play the original non-Japanese Wizardry games, also there were some GameBoy ones that have fan translations. Might and Magic series as is the Eye of the Beholder series are good dungeon crawlers too.

If the 7th Dragon series was available in English I'd recommend it too.
 
Y

YianGaruga

Banned
Jazz573 said:
FTFY :p

But in all seriousness that's a lot of stuff. Maybe you should tackle some of that before looking for more.

You might want to play the original non-Japanese Wizardry games, also there were some GameBoy ones that have fan translations. Might and Magic series as is the Eye of the Beholder series are good dungeon crawlers too.
Click to expand...

You remove DT2 but leave Moero Chronicle? lol
 
Tizoc

Tizoc

Member
YianGaruga said:
I really enjoy the genre but I'm still kind of new to it and you listed way more than I even know so I can't contribute much. :) Still have quite a few in my backlog as well.

Really looking forward to Stranger of Sword City, Ray Gigant and Moero Crystal (English Asian version) next year. While I prefer them on handhelds I wish they'd make/port some to the PS4 as well.



Yeah if you want to branch out a bit into similar-but-not-quite-the-same games, I recommend Brandish as well.
Click to expand...

Co-sign Brandish is my Goty 2015 too.
Though to be fair I don't play many dungeon crawlers so I can't compare, but I enjoyed the exploration elements in Brandish for the most part.
 
V

vocab

Member
Japanese wizardry clones suck. Give me an actually story driven dungeon crawler one or one without the setup of a japanese wizardry clone and ill eat it up.
 
Ranmo

Ranmo

Member
How would you all rate Persona Q? I've been tempted to play it and add it to the backlog I'm going to tackle this coming year, but a lot of people seem to not like it and the game isn't any cheaper now.
 
A

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
Ranmo said:
How would you all rate Persona Q? I've been tempted to play it and add it to the backlog I'm going to tackle this coming year, but a lot of people seem to not like it and the game isn't any cheaper now.
Click to expand...

Not as good as etrian and you can really easily make it game-breakingly easy, but it's still fun.
 
Z

Zophar

Member
Tizoc said:
Co-sign Brandish is my Goty 2015 too.
Though to be fair I don't play many dungeon crawlers so I can't compare, but I enjoyed the exploration elements in Brandish for the most part.
Click to expand...

Thirding Brandish - great game. I also really like Labyrinth of Lost Souls.
 
O

OniBarubary

Banned
YianGaruga said:
You remove DT2 but leave Moero Chronicle? lol
Click to expand...

Imma be honest, and brief since it's banned here, but DT2 was one of my most played games of the year. Over 100 hours. Awful AWFUL fan-service aside (and it was awful) I thought the plot/characters were serviceable and the actual combat/class system was fun as all fucking get-out.
 
G

GloriousBagel

Banned
Ultimate_Trainer said:
The Kyuuyaku Megami Tensei remakes of the original 2 Megami Tensei games. If you don't restrict it to just Japanese 1st person Dungeon crawls I'd reccomend the Legend of Grimrock series. There's gonna be an indie King's Field like game coming out by Playism, but I can't remember the name of it.

edit:Dungeons & Darkness was the name of the King's Field like game.
Click to expand...

The Kyuuayaku remakes are God like


OniBarubary said:
Imma be honest, and brief since it's banned here, but DT2 was one of my most played games of the year. Over 100 hours. Awful AWFUL fan-service aside (and it was awful) I thought the plot/characters were serviceable and the actual combat/class system was fun as all fucking get-out.
Click to expand...

Yup, DT2 has an amazing and satisfying combat system.
 
R

robotnik

Member
YianGaruga said:
I really enjoy the genre but I'm still kind of new to it and you listed way more than I even know so I can't contribute much. :) Still have quite a few in my backlog as well.

Really looking forward to Stranger of Sword City, Ray Gigant and Moero Crystal (English Asian version) next year. While I prefer them on handhelds I wish they'd make/port some to the PS4 as well.

Yeah if you want to branch out a bit into similar-but-not-quite-the-same games, I recommend Brandish as well.
Click to expand...
Yup, I'm also looking forward to new expierence games. Not sure yet about Moero Crystal, but I'll buy it anyway probably.
Finished Brandish even before localization. Amazing game.

Ultimate_Trainer said:
The Kyuuyaku Megami Tensei remakes of the original 2 Megami Tensei games. If you don't restrict it to just Japanese 1st person Dungeon crawls I'd reccomend the Legend of Grimrock series. There's gonna be an indie King's Field like game coming out by Playism, but I can't remember the name of it.

edit:Dungeons & Darkness was the name of the King's Field like game.
Click to expand...
I heard about it, but it's on PC...
Need to check Megami Tensei.

Jazz573 said:
FTFY :p

But in all seriousness that's a lot of stuff. Maybe you should tackle some of that before looking for more.

You might want to play the original non-Japanese Wizardry games, also there were some GameBoy ones that have fan translations. Might and Magic series as is the Eye of the Beholder series are good dungeon crawlers too.

If the 7th Dragon series was available in English I?d recommend it too.
Click to expand...
Being a little greedy :)
7th dragon is more common JRPG, than DRPG and isn't even 1st person. Finished it and its sequel.
 
F

Fewr

Member
Argh! I really want to finish Etrian Mystery Dungeon soon so I can start Persona Q. I played the intro and had a great great time with it.
 
R

robotnik

Member
Ranmo said:
How would you all rate Persona Q? I've been tempted to play it and add it to the backlog I'm going to tackle this coming year, but a lot of people seem to not like it and the game isn't any cheaper now.
Click to expand...
Kinda easy compare to EO. Dungeons are more simplified, but still very enjoyable. Love that horror dungeon!
 
D

djplaeskool

Member
Add Shining The Holy Ark to your prospect list if you can play it.
It's a great mix of dungeon crawler and traditional jrpg, and one of my all time favorites.

Also
Moero Chronicle
was a better game than it probably had any right being.
 
K

Krammy

Member
It's not a first person, but 7th Dragon 2020 and 2020-II for PSP and 7th Dragon III code: VFD for 3DS are Japanese dungeon crawling games with some first-person like battles (think Dragon Quest). I'm recommending them based on the games from your list, even though it doesn't meet the criteria 100%.

3hmE7uV.jpg


EDIT: Damn, apparently you've already beaten them~!
 
P

PSqueak

Banned
Not first person, but the Tartarus portions of Persona 3 pretty much can be described as Dungeon crawling, it's randomly generated each time you enter and it's where you spend most of the game while you (literally) wait for plot to happen.
 
Y

YianGaruga

Banned
Krammy said:
It's not a first person, but 7th Dragon 2020 and 2020-II for PSP and 7th Dragon III code: VFD for 3DS are Japanese dungeon crawling games with some first-person like battles (think Dragon Quest). I'm recommending them based on the games from your list, even though it doesn't meet the criteria 100%.

3hmE7uV.jpg


EDIT: Damn, apparently you've already beaten them~!
Click to expand...

So sad that these never came out in English. They look really cool AND feature Hatsune Miku. Apparently someone is still working on an eng patch for 2020-II though. Bought them both on JP PSN in a sale and WILL play them someday, somehow.
 
L

LifeBrandRobot

Member
robotnik said:
But there is automapping. It works for tiles you stepped on and walls you passed by.
Click to expand...

I really wish they would just go all the way with it and just give you the option for full auto mapping. It's really annoying to stop once in awhile and draw in walls. Trust me I've tried to like EO, I bought EO: 4, Untold: Millennium Girl and PQ. Maybe I'm just a filthy casual when it comes to FPDRPGs lol.

I do love Demon Gaze though, even Platinumed it. DG2 is the DRPG I'm looking forward to the most.
 
J

Jazz573

Member
YianGaruga said:
So sad that these never came out in English. They look really cool AND feature Hatsune Miku. Apparently someone is still working on an eng patch for 2020-II though. Bought them both on JP PSN in a sale and WILL play them someday, somehow.
Click to expand...

Damn you Sega. ;_;

LifeBrandRobot said:
I really wish they would just go all the way with it and just give you the option for full auto mapping. It's really annoying to stop once in awhile and draw in walls. Trust me I've tried to like EO, I bought EO: 4, Untold: Millennium Girl and PQ. Maybe I'm just a filthy casual when it comes to FPDRPGs lol.

I do love Demon Gaze though, even Platinumed it. DG2 is the DRPG I'm looking forward to the most.
Click to expand...

I think they're trying to recreate the feel of 80s and 90s dungeon crawlers.
 
S

SpaceBridge

Member
Krammy said:
It's not a first person, but 7th Dragon 2020 and 2020-II for PSP and 7th Dragon III code: VFD for 3DS are Japanese dungeon crawling games with some first-person like battles (think Dragon Quest). I'm recommending them based on the games from your list, even though it doesn't meet the criteria 100%.

3hmE7uV.jpg


EDIT: Damn, apparently you've already beaten them~!
Click to expand...

Wow, those 7th Dragon games all look like fun to play. We never got any in English, right?
 
V

vocab

Member
PSqueak said:
Not first person, but the Tartarus portions of Persona 3 pretty much can be described as Dungeon crawling, it's randomly generated each time you enter and it's where you spend most of the game while you (literally) wait for plot to happen.
Click to expand...

It can also be described as garbage.
 
M

MrDoctor

Member
Shadow Tower Abyss is the greatest game of all time. Having already played it means you are more than a decent person who has done their research. This is a good start.

The most glaring omission from the op is Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne. You absolutely need to play this next. Digital Devil Saga has cool dungeons that appeal to fans of Atlus crawlers, but isn't really structured like a DRPG.

You can check out Shining the Holy Ark and Baroque on Saturn. The Wizardry I-III remakes might also be of interest to you.
 
I

Ivan Amiibo

Banned
tiBhUZ9.jpg


Nightmare Of Druaga's awesome. cheap PS2 game that nobody knows, got hammered for being a rogue-like in 2004 and everyone passed it up for being too hard. in reality, you can stay alive just by staying aware and intelligently using everything the game gives you and death is not nearly as bad as it seems at first.

also, it does amazing stuff if you try to cheat by resetting. Can't find a vid of it, but if you turn off or reset your ps2, the next time you play the game, a character gives you some serious shit for it. You get lectured and have to keep answering questions, like "do you promise not to trip on your power cord?" etc. Then it starts asking trick questions to make sure you're paying attention.

You have a couple chances to reset before consequences set in, which are the same as dying-- lose all un-inscribed items and half your gold. Better to save those chances in case of a power outage or something b/c like i said, death ain't no thing if you've got enough stuff inscribed and banked.


MrDoctor said:
You can check out Shining the Holy Ark and Baroque on Saturn. The Wizardry I-III remakes might also be of interest to you.
Click to expand...



Baroque is another good one that got shit on at release! Love the weird dark sci-fi setting. It's also more of an action-roguelike, with light beat em up elements like spatial awareness and crowd control at play.

It had a PS2/Wii remake that got a U.S. release, so no need for the saturn.
 
R

robotnik

Member
Syril said:
On iOS they released Shin Megami Tensei 1 in English finally.
Click to expand...
I played it until the moment
my party member was fused with demon
and something distracted me. Definitely need to return to it.

djplaeskool said:
Add Shining The Holy Ark to your prospect list if you can play it.
It's a great mix of dungeon crawler and traditional jrpg, and one of my all time favorites.

Also
Moero Chronicle
was a better game than it probably had any right being.
Click to expand...
Looks really cool, but it was Saturn's exclusive and never was re-released...
 
T

Tye The Czar

Member
Any idea how deep the Japanese Wizardry games are compared to the U.S. releases? I know U.S. Wizardry has a lot more D&D influence with skills used outside of battle and having to greatly strategize in fights.
 
R

robotnik

Member
Krammy said:
It's not a first person, but 7th Dragon 2020 and 2020-II for PSP and 7th Dragon III code: VFD for 3DS are Japanese dungeon crawling games with some first-person like battles (think Dragon Quest). I'm recommending them based on the games from your list, even though it doesn't meet the criteria 100%.

3hmE7uV.jpg


EDIT: Damn, apparently you've already beaten them~!
Click to expand...
Not all of them :) Only original and 2020. Didn't like 2020-II because of re-used locations and dropped it. VFD is new game and I'm hoping for localization before importing it. My japanese is far from perfect.

PSqueak said:
Not first person, but the Tartarus portions of Persona 3 pretty much can be described as Dungeon crawling, it's randomly generated each time you enter and it's where you spend most of the game while you (literally) wait for plot to happen.
Click to expand...
I hate these portions -_- Especially random generating part.
 
O

OniBarubary

Banned
I'll be honest, the map drawing aspect of EO is one of the biggest draws of it to me. There are a lot of dungeon crawlers that auto map that I simply stopped playing because there was little else to draw me in. The map drawing is super damn fun for me.
 
T

Tapejara

Member
I've been playing Demon Gaze here and there and I'm enjoying it. Still early on, but yeah. I also picked up the Shadow Tower PSOne Classic during the Holiday Sale a few weeks ago; it's quite fun but also very unforgiving.
 
R

robotnik

Member
SpaceBridge said:
Wow, those 7th Dragon games all look like fun to play. We never got any in English, right?
Click to expand...
There is translation patch for it - http://www.romhacking.net/translations/2176/

MrDoctor said:
Shadow Tower Abyss is the greatest game of all time. Having already played it means you are more than a decent person who has done their research. This is a good start.

The most glaring omission from the op is Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne. You absolutely need to play this next. Digital Devil Saga has cool dungeons that appeal to fans of Atlus crawlers, but isn't really structured like a DRPG.

You can check out Shining the Holy Ark and Baroque on Saturn. The Wizardry I-III remakes might also be of interest to you.
Click to expand...
I love Nocturne, but yet to play DDS. Also hoping for ps4 classics.
I believe I heard something about Baroque. Is it random generated?
 
P

PepsimanVsJoe

Member
Tye The Czar said:
Any idea how deep the Japanese Wizardry games are compared to the U.S. releases? I know U.S. Wizardry has a lot more D&D influence with skills used outside of battle and having to greatly strategize in fights.
Click to expand...

It depends on the game really.
Tale of The Forsaken Land is very different compared to every other Wizardry title. The bulk of the combat is in using special orders to destroy monsters and minimize damage. Plus, exploration is completely different due to the lack of random encounters (monsters roam the halls).
Titles like Labyrinth of Lost Souls and Elminage are practically 1:1 with the older Wizardry games. They use many of the same skills and spells.

A lot of other Japanese dungeon-crawlers pull elements from Wizardry (Operation Abyss, Dark Spire, Class of Heroes), but they also do a few things differently to set themselves apart.

orborborb said:
But don't miss out on Legend of Grimrock (I prefer the first one) just because it's not Japanese, it's probably my favorite of all.
Click to expand...
Too much time spent on puzzles, plus I really didn't care for the combat.
 
O

orborborb

Member
I enjoyed Shining in the Darkness, King's Field 1-4, Eternal Ring, Shadow Tower & Shadow Tower Abyss, Wizardry: Tales of the Forsaken Land, Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne, and Brandish: Dark Revenant

But don't miss out on Legend of Grimrock (I prefer the first one) just because it's not Japanese, it's probably my favorite of all.
 
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