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[DelireMan7]

I am a bit confused. It might be personal but no genre is "improved" by better visual. Of course it's nice to have gorgeous environment but graphics is usually not something I look at.

I like a videogame because of the setting, the story, the gameplay, the art direction, the atmosphere...

I see what you mean because JRPG tends not to focus on graphics but it doesn't mean they don't benefit from better graphics (I mean they will "benefit" as much as the others by just looking prettier).

But again, I am biased because I have no problem playing old games with outdated graphics.

 

[Strider7]

I don't really play many JRPGs anymore, (aside from FF7 remake as of late). I used to pick up every one I could get my hands on back in the PS1 era.

For me, as graphics got better, JRPGs became less appealing. Part of it is that I sort of grew out of the anime-ass stories. But I think the main reason is that I liked the 2d sprites better.

They don't make JRPGs like Xenogears anymore, and it's a damn shame.

 

[Cybrwzrd]

Absolutely 100% yes. The freedom of choice in regards to gameplay mechanics in Skyrim surpasses A LOT of games. Wanna be a melee ranged mage? go right ahead?

Having lots of choice doesn't equate to good gameplay. Skyrim's core gameplay is not much different from previous Elder Scrolls games. And Elder Scrolls combat design is about as tight as Belladonna after a double fisting session.

 

[The Cockatrice]

Having lots of choice doesn't equate to good gameplay. Skyrim's core gameplay is not much different from previous Elder Scrolls games. And Elder Scrolls combat design is about as tight as Belladonna after a double fisting session.

What equates as good gameplay depends on taste. I'd take skyrim's gameplay over any jrpg any day which have depth as much as my spit.

 

[vaibhavpisal]

Jrpgs that have cel shaded or cartoony art style might not improve with very high quality graphics. And I agree a lot of them are in that vein.

But some jrpgs like ff7 remake definitely have good enough graphics to make a huge impact.

Also a lot of times art style Trump high fidelity. Eg bravely default. It looks amazing on 3ds.

 

[Hinedorf]

Isn't that because JRPGS primarily rely on text based story for content versus graphics.

This is essentially the FF7 story all over again..... how successful can JRPG's really be? See FF7 and FF7 remake.

The reality is a great JRPG combined with graphics has always had the potential to be GotY candidates, they just take a lot more time that shilling out another call of duty retread.

This is also why I hate people who treat FF7 like the first successful JRPG, no it's just what the genre's potential can reach when it's supported by all aspects of the business.

 

[Cybrwzrd]

What equates as good gameplay depends on taste. I'd take skyrim's gameplay over any jrpg any day which have depth as much as my spit.

That's a normie take right there if I have ever seen one. Do you even Final Fantasy Tactics bro?

 

[MisterBrimstone]

I think I get what you mean OP. Most JRPGs tend to gravitate towards the "old school" look and feel.

They don't have to let go of the anime/cartoony look to embrace 2020 graphics though, they should go for it more but I guess those companies hire mostly writers to come up with fetch quests.

 

[jakinov]

Japan has been doing okay at being creative with unique art ideas but realistic graphics and using advanced technique require good programming. These consoles have finite resources, and making things look pretty isn't a flip of a switch. Japan, generally speaking, isn't great at programming. Not because of their race, ethnicity or geography but because of social reasons and history, programming isn't their strong suit. It's something heavily discussed outside of gaming in regards if you google it. Programmers there are paid significantly less than the west and the people don't think it's that important of a career. They don't output great software and software they use to output used to be criticized for being slow and not user friendly.

Having advanced graphics involves advanced work. If you have limited resources then you have to also optimize more and people with strong programming and CS skills is going to do that a lot better. Two companies known for having really good graphics tech are naughty dog and Santa Monica studios. They are in a state known for attracting and having the best programmers in the world. Naughty Dog is known to house a team of very technical people who help them create tools and squeeze out extra performance or whatever. The PS3 OS was garbage and slow. The PS4 OS seems like it was developed in America (LinkedIn, job postings and implications from Cerny) and was a massive improvement. Some countries are better than others at doing this and some countries are worst than others at doing things. Japan and Germany are highly regarded for their ability to create reliable cars whereas counties like America are criticized. It doesn't mean that there aren't great people that live In these countries that are really good it just means they are likely rarer and because of their environment that there's more obstacles.

 

[NahaNago]

The reason for least improved graphical upgrades is because these jrpg companies aren't aiming for the millions of sales like square does for its games.

 

[Virex]

Unfortunately a lot of Japanese devs making jrpgs have not realised that we've moved on from the PS2 Era graphics wise. While gameplay is king for me. A lot of jrpgs on ps4/switch look 2 gens old.

 

[Danjin44]

Unfortunately a lot of Japanese devs making jrpgs have not realised that we've moved on from the PS2 Era graphics wise. While gameplay is king for me. A lot of jrpgs on ps4/switch look 2 gens old.

I don't know I'm currently playing Sakura Wars and that game looks gorgeous and very nice amount of detail and I love most JRPG art directions, that way more important to me than having high tech graphics.

 

[MadchesterManc]

It's mainly budget. Most developers would have brought their engines over from last gen & updated accordingly to get games out in the beginning. Past few years have seen some nice improvements though, which mainly seems to be from an uptick in Japanese developers moving over to Unreal Engine 4. I remember playing Cyberdimension Neptunia not long ago and being genuinely impressed at the improvements over previous Neptunia games on Ps4. Obviously doesn't compare to something like FFVII Remake seen as they don't have anywhere near the budget to build a cutting edge proprietary engine.

 

[JoeyWestSide]

jrpgs still have better game play then most AAA western games what they lack in graphics fidelity they make up x10 folds in characters,art style, game play and music. I had fun with witcher 3 and skyrim and mass effect 2 but the gameplay in Tales of grace f,xilla,Zesteria,Berseria ,Xenoblade 2, Nier autoamta, yakuza 0-6, persona 2-5 + remixes. Stomp all over witcher,skyrim and mass effect.

I think it depends on the characters (part on your list), some are great, others are forgettable. Anybody truly care about all 8 characters in Octopath?

 

[Virex]

I don't know I'm currently playing Sakura Wars and that game looks gorgeous and very nice amount of detail and I love most JRPG art directions, that way more important to me than having high tech graphics.

If you read my post you will see i said "a lot" not all japanese devs. Learn to read.

 

[4EZCOOLDART]

One of my favorite games from 2019 was "Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass", a turn-based RPG that looks just like Earthbound, so I can't disagree with the OP. Though I also can't disagree with someone else that mentioned Xenoblade Chronicles as a game that uses improved visuals to really immerse you in a new world. It can go either way if done right.

 

[DragoonKain]

Yeah, I just don't agree JRPGs have better gameplay. First, I guess it depends on what you define as "gameplay" I consider anything not story of visuals under the "gameplay" umbrella.

I consider just walking around and exploring gameplay. Platforming elements, puzzle solving, doing quests, interacting with the environment. I think most JRPGs do that poorly. And yeah, there are reasons for that, things like budget, but I mean regardless, I think JRPGs do those elements poorly sans some exceptions.

I really don't think JRPGs are very good anymore. There are soooo many and the genre is watered down. They used to rule the RPG genre, but I feel WRPGs have surpassed them in almost all key areas. Tales has sucked for years now, thank goodness they're rebuilding it from the ground up with Arise. That doesn't mean all JRPGs suck. Xenoblade, Persona, Yakuza.

It's funny, there was a debate on Colin Moriarty's podcast last week about what makes a JRPG a JRPG anymore. Is it style or does it have to come from a Japanese studio? I think it's a good question, because honestly in terms of gameplay I actually think the Souls/Bloodborne series is the best in terms of gameplay possible from a Japanese studio, but those games ironically play like WRPGs in terms of their style, go figure.

 

[Danjin44]

Yeah, I just don't agree JRPGs have better gameplay. First, I guess it depends on what you define as "gameplay" I consider anything not story of visuals under the "gameplay" umbrella.

I consider just walking around and exploring gameplay. Platforming elements, puzzle solving, doing quests, interacting with the environment. I think most JRPGs do that poorly. And yeah, there are reasons for that, things like budget, but I mean regardless, I think JRPGs do those elements poorly sans some exceptions.

I really don't think JRPGs are very good anymore. There are soooo many and the genre is watered down. They used to rule the RPG genre, but I feel WRPGs have surpassed them in almost all key areas. Tales has sucked for years now, thank goodness they're rebuilding it from the ground up with Arise. That doesn't mean all JRPGs suck. Xenoblade, Persona, Yakuza.

It's funny, there was a debate on Colin Moriarty's podcast last week about what makes a JRPG a JRPG anymore. Is it style or does it have to come from a Japanese studio? I think it's a good question, because honestly in terms of gameplay I actually think the Souls/Bloodborne series is the best in terms of gameplay possible from a Japanese studio, but those games ironically play like WRPGs in terms of their style, go figure.

To me it sound more like you personally enjoy gameplay of WRPG more but it doesn't make it better than JRPG, this also true for me as well. I like JRPG gameplay more but it doesnt make it better than WRPG.

 

[SantaC]

Tales of Arise is going to take jrpgs next level

 

[Danjin44]

Tales of Arise is going to take jrpgs next level

I'm also looking forward Grandblue Fantasy Relink.

 

[Thabass]

Better combat maybe, but not overall gameplay. I'll strongly disagree on that one. That's irrespective to my main point though.

Witcher 3, I disagree with. Any Bethesda RPG, that's a big 10-4. Gameplay wise, Bethesda RPGs are a slog. And since gameplay is #1 for me when it comes to my games, their RPGs are garbage.

I'm also looking forward Grandblue Fantasy Relink.

I cannot wait for this one. And I'm a total n00b when it comes to Grandblue.

 

[The Cockatrice]

That's a normie take right there if I have ever seen one. Do you even Final Fantasy Tactics bro?

Well, technically it's not fair for the jrpgs to compare them to a sandbox rpg. The sandbox aspect, the freedom will always surpass the boring repetitiveness of jrpg combat and yes that includes FFT. Obviously I am generalizing and not all jrpgs are boring to me, for example I enjoyed a lot P5R which I finished twice, something I didn't even do in Skyrim. I also like tough games by design were they don't force you to grind forever just to be able to face enemies(dragon quest). I hate grinding to the bone and it's amazing how I managed to finish P5 twice on hard, a genre I despise.

 

[jshackles]

OP I agree with you. The real measure of a good JRPG is usually in it's story, battle systems, and characters. Final Fantasy VI is still one of my favorite games of all time (even the mobile version is okay, don't hate) simply because it's outstanding in all three of these categories. And the "modern" version is pretty butt ugly

That being said - I feel like the farther graphics have advanced, the more some games are able to elevate these three key characteristics. For example, the jump in Dragon Quest's graphics in the US. We went from

to this

in a single entry (IX -> XI, as we didn't get a release of DQ X in the states).

While Dragon Quest IX is still an amazing game, I feel like having more fully realized graphics that are possible on the PS4 / Switch (vs the DS) make it a much more enjoyable experience.

 

[Burrito Bandito]

In what way do games like Witcher 3 have better gameplay than JRPGs like FFVII Remake, Nier Automata, Persona 5, etc?

thats such a silly question. personally i cannot stand tje gameplay of FFVII. I was so excited to finally sink my teeth into that game but couldnt get into it because i felt combat and the gameplay as a package was lackluster.

games like the witcher and western rpgs put an emphasis on player choice and i prefer that. its more immersive when playing an rpg that im role playing more than just the characters mechanical aspect. Western rpgs do a much better job at making rpgs about the character, not the mechanics.

with jrpgs i feel like im playing the role the writer wants me to play. with wrpgs, i feel like im playing the role i want to play. to me thats more in the spirit of rpgs

 

[unintelligent orange]

Final Fantasy/Kingdom Hearts in particular have been so lackluster since graphics have become such a main focus of square enix on the PS3/PS4.

Back in the PS1/PS2 days, yes the graphics for FF7/Kingdom Hearts were pretty cutting edge at the time, but back then it was not nearly to the level it is now. These days graphics are far more complex and expensive to chase, and therefore are too much of a thing to focus on. Give us good gameplay with moderate modern graphics = great Final Fantasy.

Minimalistic, fun, simpler gameplay mechanics always trump overtly complex ones, for that matter. Some philosphical advice for any game designers who may be reading this.

 

[Fbh]

Well, the point wasn't that graphics can't improve JRPGs. It's that they improve the genre less than it improves other genres overall.

But I agree I think art direction and music are more important for JRPGs overall, it's a reason some old school JRPGs have aged so well compared to other genres. Go back and try to play even ps2 era shooters compared to RPGs, it's not even close IMO.

I see your point.
Though I think it's more like JRPG's are least affected by "improvements in tech" more than just purely graphics.

For your Ps2 comparison I think the biggest difference between shooters on Ps2 and modern ones isn't how good the new ones look but it's more related to level design, physics, frame rate, amount of elements on screen and general improvements in gameplay with a controller

 

[Kumomeme]

Absolutely 100% yes. The freedom of choice in regards to gameplay mechanics in Skyrim surpasses A LOT of games. Wanna be a melee ranged mage? go right ahead?

nah.....combat suck thought....and there even complaint about the skill tree...i not really remember..old stuff last gen...in this department dragons dogma miles ahead

 

[D.Final]

I'm fill comfy with Square Enix