Are JRPGs quickly becoming irrelevant among the younger generation of gamers?

[Poetic.Injustice]

Talking to younger generation of gamers online and in real life I find they are pretty clueless about the JRPGs in general, yet are fairly knowledgeable about pretty much every other genre.

It seems like a whole new generation of gamers will grow up without any affinity towards JRPGs which is a damn shame.

 

[Trigonometrize.]

What do you mean by redundant?

 

[bananafactory]

I don't think that's what the word redundant means


But it's a niche genre at this point so it's not surprising that not as many people are exposed to them

 

[Sumio Mondo]

JRPGs practically live and die on nostalgia nowadays. Look at the JRPG fanbase, they're cuckoo over JRPG IP revivals.

 

[Escalario]

Well. Pokemon still pulls 10 millions per release, and I doubt those numbers come from older gamers only.

 

[Robert at Zeboyd Games]

Do scores of kids still buy Pokemon games? There's your answer.

 

[mrjohill]

They know about kingdom hearts tho right? Kingdom hearts is still pretty popular even among the younger audience

 

[DNAbro]

They haven't had a defining game in awhile. Persona can get new fans in on a small scale but Final Fantasy VII it ain't.

was going to say this. I can't think of the last actually big JRPG to come out with tons of hype around it.

Edit: oh i guess pokemon.

 

[RedAssedApe]

redundant? err...no? unless you mean something like they think jrpgs are unnecessary because of the existence of wrpgs or something weird like that

niche genre for sure. jrpgs were already dying out last gen

 

[#sorrynotsorry]

It's a genre that stopped really evolving a long time ago. It'll stick around, but only as a niche genre. Japanese games just don't sell in the West relative to Western games like they used to.

 

[Arcipello]

i suspect you are referring to the younger generation in the west

 

[DrROBschiz]

JRPGs practically live and die on nostalgia nowadays. Look at the JRPG fanbase, they're cuckoo over JRPG IP revivals.

LOL

Yes... yes we are

Hammer meet nail. NO REGRETS

 

[NullPointer]

What do you mean by redundant?

That's throwing me for a loop too.

Do you mean irrelevant? Relevance seems to be the term for everything these days.

 

[LegendofLex]

They really only got their start by riding on the popularity of The Legend of Zelda (Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest couldn't have gotten off the ground without much of the groundwork laid by that game), so as that franchise and games like it have gone out the window (to be replaced by open world WRPGs), JRPGs haven't had a successful template to model their genre after in quite some time.

 

[Angst-Incarnate]

Honestly, Pokémon is it's own genre at this point.

JRPGs still have a sizeable fanbase, it's just moved from console to handhelds.

 

[RedAssedApe]

it didn't help that the flagship jrpg series final fantasy put out only one mainline title (i don't count online or the sequels to 13) and it was really mediocre compared to the preceding games

 

[Tizoc]

Do scores of kids still buy Pokemon games? There's your answer.

But do they know its an RPG series >_>;

 

[Trace]

There are very few compelling options for new players today in the JRPG space. Kingdom Hearts and FFXV aren't out yet, and (insert random niche jrpg) isn't going to do it. Persona 5 is going to be fantastic, but there's no chance that it gets popular over here with a younger generation. It's too Japanese.

 

[YianGaruga]

Was it ever big outside of Final Fantasy? Are niche genres ever "popular with the kids"?

Last gen was just a lot of garbage, especially SE just completely dropped the ball, so I doubt the genre won a lot of fans in that time.

I think we see some promising developments right now that can make the genre a bit stronger again, but I don't think it'll ever leave the niche (again).

 

[YuriLowell]

That's because the JRPG genre hasn't been relevant since Final Fantasy X.

 

[Flarin]

was going to say this. I can't think of the last actually big JRPG to come out with tons of hype around it.

Edit: oh i guess pokemon.

The last non-Pokemon JRPG I can think of with decent hype was Ni no Kuni. While it did well for what it was it didn't light the world on fire like a Final Fantasy would.

 

[batbeg]

It's a genre that stopped really evolving a long time ago. It'll stick around, but only as a niche genre. Japanese games just don't sell in the West relative to Western games like they used to.

"stopped evolving" is really not at all the prognosis I would suggest. The gameplay between any 2 JRPGs 5 years apart is usually pretty varied and new. The problems are probably more to do with how the aesthetics and demographics being targeted have evolved.

 

[Trojita]

Make JP Minecraft.

aka I guess DQ: Builders

 

[wheeplash]

That's because the JRPG genre hasn't been relevant since Final Fantasy X.

Hey hey, let's not go into that territory now.

 

[yanipheonu]

Final Fantasy, Persona and Pokemon seem to be holding up the genre for now.

Sad fact is, there aren't that many console JRPG. PS2 era was a golden age for that stuff, but once the PS3 came out, things dropped of. They even stopped localizing Tales for a while.

I remember being super hyped for FFXIII just because it was that or no JRPGs at all. We all know that game has huge problems. It was better than nothing.

Handhelds luckily have held up better in this regard.

Things are looking up though, Square's moving back to the traditional, and a Persona 5 will be sure to impress.

And yeah, redundant technically works. But it's pretty ineloquent, think you'd want "unwanted" or "irrelevant".

 

[JCX]

They're nowhere near as big as they were, but with Persona 5 and FF15 coming next year, there is a chance for a genre-defining game.

JRPGs' biggest hurdle is that gaming has become more multiplayer focused - everything must have online co-op, deathmatch, etc. JRPGs haven't really found a way to meaningfully adding online elements without sacrificing story/setting.

I'd love a competitive dungeon crawling mode in Persona, where you can take your party online against and compete to finish a dungeon first, while being able to see where all your competition is.

 

[Ran rp]

are there any modern jrpg IPs that have become as successful as 80s/90s IPs?

 

[Etria]

There are very few compelling options for new players today in the JRPG space. Kingdom Hearts and FFXV aren't out yet, and (insert random niche jrpg) isn't going to do it. Persona 5 is going to be fantastic, but there's no chance that it gets popular over here with a younger generation. It's too Japanese.

Well, my little sister really enjoyed P4G when it came out, and P5 looks to top that in pretty much every aspect. It's more probable that younger people are just unaware of JRPGs (except for Pokemon) because they didn't grow up with many.

 

[whiteninja]

Cant the same thing apply to non-AAA wrpgs? Many need kickstarter to even come to fruition.

 

[kayos90]

I think you're looking for the word irrelevant.

 

[Cleve]

Do we not consider Pokemon a jrpg anymore? It's still hugely successful.

I don't think the JRPG market is that much smaller than it was before, but it certainly hasn't grown with the other genres and has probably lost a massive amount of market share.

How do FF7/10's numbers compare to the various releases of 13?

 

[Balb]

Was it ever big outside of Final Fantasy? Are niche genres ever "popular with the kids"?

Last gen was just a lot of garbage, especially SE just completely dropped the ball, so I doubt the genre won a lot of fans in that time.

I think we see some promising developments right now that can make the genre a bit stronger again, but I don't think it'll ever leave the niche (again).

You're forgetting Pokemon. Pokemon has been a JRPG gateway for kids for nearly 2 decades.

 

[Sumio Mondo]

are there any modern jrpg IPs that have become as successful as 80s/90s IPs?

None of the top of my head. That is unless we include the Souls games, but certain people get pissy over including them, so I won't. Any new IP JRPGs released in the past decade? Not really, no. All of the biggest upcoming JRPGs are, of course, IP revivals/sequels/remakes. To be honest, there's really only Square-Enix keeping AAA JRPGs alive.

 

[Arttemis]

Well. Pokemon still pulls 10 millions per release, and I doubt those numbers come from older gamers only.

Do scores of kids still buy Pokemon games? There's your answer.

Maybe that's the source of the redundancy!?

But no, this is an inappropriate use of the word, "redundant".

 

[Sakura]

I thought the Souls games were still popular amongst younger people

 

[YianGaruga]

You're forgetting Pokemon. Pokemon has been a JRPG gateway for kids for nearly 2 decades.

As someone else said, I'd almost consider Pokemon its own thing or at least an outlier.

If we want to include it then the conversation is very different.

I thought the Souls games were still popular amongst younger people

...

 

[Greddleok]

Good modern JRPGs are hard to come by.

 

[Robert at Zeboyd Games]

are there any modern jrpg IPs that have become as successful as 80s/90s IPs?

Yo-Kai Watch is the obvious one.

 

[Cleve]

None of the top of my head. That is unless we include the Souls games, but certain people get pissy over including them, so I won't. Any new IP JRPGs released in the past decade? Not really, no. All of the biggest upcoming JRPGs are, of course, IP revivals/sequels/remakes. To be honest, there's really only Square-Enix keeping AAA JRPGs alive.

Uh oh, you mentioned souls. Time for this thread to spiral out of control in to people arguing about one of the worst genre labels.

 

[suzu]

Well, there isn't a whole lot of new JRPGs for younger players to get into. It's a niche genre.

 

[Daingurse]

Not sure about redundant, but they certainly seem far less relevant than they used to be.

 

[Nekofrog]

JRPGs are pretty much dead to younger western gamers. They have no reason to.

When you were a kid, you got lost in a JRPG with the aid of your imagination.

Young gamers these days are doing that with western open world RPGs that feed their imagination in ways JRPGs never could.

 

[DrROBschiz]

Im more sad that JRPGs aren't as diverse, risktaking, and inventive as they used to be

Starting to feel like the 80's and 90's were some bizarre flash in the pan fo the genre that we will never see again

 

[ATXAlchemy]

What do you mean by redundant?

.

 

[Ran rp]

Yo-Kai Watch is the obvious one.

oh yeah! forgot about that one.

 

[FluxWaveZ]

Im more sad that JRPGs aren't as diverse, risktaking, and inventive as they used to be

Starting to feel like the 80's and 90's were some bizarre flash in the pan fo the genre that we will never see again

It's because people didn't buy The World Ends With You or Radiant Historia. Instead, let's anticipate the release of Final Fantasy XV forever.

But, from my perspective, there's a great variety of JRPGs these days.

 

[Son Of D]

They know about kingdom hearts tho right? Kingdom hearts is still pretty popular even among the younger audience

KH is more of an action RPG than traditional JRPG though.

 

[DarkLordMalik]

Bravely Default sold more than a million. Persona is still popular. Pokemon still sells a shit load of copies. Still there just aren't that many big scale turn-based JRPGs anymore, sadly. Those who are left have dipped in quality.

On the other hand, I think games like Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts 3 can return in a big way on PS4 and XBO. Dark Souls is already doing well as a series. Tales of Series still has a dedicated fanbase that keeps buying each new game. Yes, I have separated these games because they are not the traditional JRPGs but they still count as a JRPG.

 

[DrROBschiz]

It's because people didn't buy The World Ends With You or Radiant Historia. Instead, let's anticipate the release of Final Fantasy XV forever.

Thats maybe part of it for sure. Money had a big hand to play in the constriction of JRPGs though you still had plenty of odd ducks here and there. They just rarely get localized...

That might be the LARGER issue. Localization of todays JRPGs, while still happening at a significant scale thanks to some key players, doenst seem to be serving the genre in the same way it once did

 

[Alucrid]

You only really start to appreciate waifus once you hit 30+