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NeoGAF's Essential Rpgs (2011 edition)

kswiston

Member
lolez2matt said:
FF7-2.jpg


is this a mod for the pc version???

why they aren´t super deformers??????

Ya, it's a mod. I think someone asked the same thing last year. Figured I would save myself some work by reusing the summaries that I made last year for repeating games. That way I can focus on making a more fleshed out list (summaries for the top 40 instead of just the top 20).
 

Haunted

Member
Fairly certain no essential RPGs came out this year, so it was kinda needless to repeat this thread from last year. :p


Although it got rid of a good portion of the "newness" factor for Demon's Souls which made it drop a couple places (and rightfully so), so I guess it did have its reason. Could even justify making another one next year to see DS fall out of the Top 10, as it should. ;)


edit: oh, vote counting isn't over? Then there's hope yet. Kick DS and get some Terranigma up in this bitch etc.
 

Hitokage

Setec Astronomer
Bah, noticed this thread too late. Oh well, it seems like my tastes don't converge much with others in this thread anyway.

Though if you considered voting for Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter or either Valkyrie Profile game, I tip my hat to you.
 

KAL2006

Banned
Damn Chrono Trigger is number 1. I tried playing that game for the first time (on DS) early this year and could not get into it, which is strange as I love JRPGS (especially Suikoden and FF series).
 

Haunted

Member
lolez2matt said:
FF7-2.jpg


is this a mod for the pc version???

why they aren´t super deformers??????
Yes: http://forums.qhimm.com/index.php?topic=8915.0


edit: oh god, while looking for that thread, I've found some pretty horrible stuff.

http://www.finalfantasy7pc.com/mods/apz-cloud-project/
http://www.finalfantasy7pc.com/mods/custom-cloud-advent-children-models/

...and I won't even link to the FFVII GTA mods.


Goddamn those modders. They're the best and worst parts of PC gaming. :lol
 
O yea. The Greatest Game of All Time was first. Chrono Trigger is my favorite game. Wow I really sound like a fanboy. I'm surprised that Final Fantasy VII was not where VI was located. It seem that everybody loves VII over VI.
 
It's as if Baldur's Gate II has only risen in significance after the success of Dragon Age, and arguably over the hubbub surrounding Dragon Age 2.
 
D

Deleted member 13876

Unconfirmed Member
jjasper said:
Interesting that Mass Effect jumped 2.

Probably because some people voted for Mass Effect as a franchise, as in 1+2, rather than Mass Effect 1. At least that's what I think, though a lot of people here seem to prefer 1 over 2 lately.
 

Durante

Member
Boo at BG2 taking place 3 from PST. But at least the first 2 places seem to be much closer now.

I've played 10 out of the top 10 and completed 8. Oh, and played 8 of 11-20.

Legendary Warrior said:
...how did that happen?
I wonder that as well. Maybe people played Mass Effect 2 and it made them realize what a good RPG ME1 was?
 
Because its a very small sample size. If I didn't vote for Mass Effect it would have been down two spots.

Edit: Ok that was way to egotistical. The separation is extremely minor. Any game can shift one or two spots if they are separated so so few votes.
 

jtb

Banned
Lostconfused said:
Because its a very small sample size. If I didn't vote for Mass Effect it would have been down two spots.

Edit: Ok that was way to egotistical. The separation is extremely minor. Any game can shift one or two spots if they are separated so so few votes.
:lol :lol Well, it's true. Just look at the first list - a three way tie for 6th place featuring of Baldur's Gate 2, Final Fantasy Tactics, and Knights of the Old Republic. I think you'd be hard pressed to find anyone who didn't think those games weren't "essential", or at the least, very very good.
 

kswiston

Member
Summaries are up for the top 20 now. I will continue with the next batch tomorrow.

As a preview:

21 Fallout
21 Fallout 2
23 The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion
24 Final Fantasy 12
24 Mass Effect 2
24 Persona 3
24 The Witcher
24 Valkyria Chronicles
29 Dragon Quest 5
30 The World Ends With You - 20 votes

Fallout 1 and 2 tied for #21, and there was a 5 way tie for 24. One of the downsides of having 75 fewer people voting this time is more ties.
 

Durante

Member
So TWEWY is the highest ranked handheld game? I like that.

Oh, and played 9 out of 21-30... I've played a lot of RPGs.
 

tiff

Banned
Durante said:
I wonder that as well. Maybe people played Mass Effect 2 and it made them realize what a good RPG ME1 was?
I figured time would be less kind to ME1's flaws, but maybe I'm just in the minority. It's the same deal with Fallout 3 and New Vegas, apparently.
 
Legendary Warrior said:
I figured time would be less kind to ME1's flaws, but maybe I'm just in the minority.
On the other hand the good parts of Mass Effect wont diminish until games start to have better stories and characters. Which might be never at the rate we are going right now.

Edit: Also most flaws in Fallout 3 and New Vegas can be fixed.
 

Fugu

Member
Holy god, words cannot describe how much I disagree with this list.

No Wizardry? Ultima? No gold box games in the top thirty? Might and Magic? Demon's Souls in the Top 20 but no sign of Diablo (2), any hack n' slash or roguelike? Where's the original Baldur's Gate? Were MMOs specifically excluded from this list?

It's definitely not just GAF that has a nineties Nintendo/modern bias, but the force is strong in this one. I suppose this is a good ranking of major console RPGs with some high-key PC games thrown in for fun but it categorically ignores the entire library of PC RPGs before the year 2000.
 

Camwi

Member
kswiston said:
- Might And Magic VI: I love most of the M&M games (save IX, and 1+2 which I have never played), but I am picking this game as a stand in for the rest. The series has a great blend of exploration, humour, and open ended game play.

Damn, I knew I was forgetting something! I love the Might and Magic series and M&M VI is definitely the best one. It's a shame the series has disappeared after the (mostly awful) M&M IX.
 

DaBuddaDa

Member
Old games aren't massively popular to the people posting on video games message boards nowadays. It shouldn't come as a big surprise really.
 

jjasper

Member
anaron said:
It's absolutely ridiculous - and I like the game! :lol

It really isn't. The list is for essential RPGs not greatest RPGs of all time. To me there is a little bit of a difference as an essential list includes games everyone should play because they were important to the genre. I don't it is the greatest Final Fantasy (or the worst as some people seem to think) but its influence and importance to JRPGs in America are undeniable.
 

Durante

Member
People complain about all kinds of titles, but I think the one entry that is most out of place is really Persona 4 on 5th place. It's not a bad game mind you, but following up on BG2 and PST is really overselling it.

Haunted said:
*shakes fist* three weeks
You can't imagine how much that annoyed me in the game of the decade thread!
 

BumRush

Member
KAL2006 said:
Damn Chrono Trigger is number 1. I tried playing that game for the first time (on DS) early this year and could not get into it, which is strange as I love JRPGS (especially Suikoden and FF series).

If you have an SNES play it on that instead. It is one of my favorite games of all time but it's hard to play such a grand game on a tiny screen (IMO)
 

Haunted

Member
Durante said:
People complain about all kinds of titles, but I think the one entry that is most out of place is really Persona 4 on 5th place. It's not a bad game mind you, but following up on BG2 and PST is really overselling it.
It's the only game on the Top 10 I haven't played.

That's a good hint how it can't be one of the 10 essential RPGs right there, otherwise I would've played it already.


Actually, out of the 18 the OP posted so far, the SMT games are the only ones I haven't played.

Durante said:
You can't imagine how much that annoyed me in the game of the decade thread!
haha


DaBuddaDa said:
Old games aren't massively popular to the people posting on video games message boards nowadays. It shouldn't come as a big surprise really.
qOeEz.jpg


:(
 

Shig

Strap on your hooker ...
DaBuddaDa said:
Old games aren't massively popular to the people posting on video games message boards nowadays. It shouldn't come as a big surprise really.
This list is dominated by old games.

I think the problem is more that 90's era PC RPGs are really hard to go back to, let alone play for a first timer. Super-zoomed-out prerendered graphics and early 3D are bitter pills to swallow.
 

Munin

Member
Shig said:
This list is dominated by old games.

I think the problem is more that 90's era PC RPGs are really hard to go back to, let alone play for a first timer. Super-zoomed-out prerendered graphics and early 3D are bitter pills to swallow.

You mean, as opposed to deformed anime characters consisting of 5 polygons on prerendered backgrounds with random battles every 10 steps?
 

Snuggles

erotic butter maelstrom
It looks like a good list. My top 2 aka Morrowind and Demon's Souls made the cut, so that's a good thing. Contrary to what some naysayers may say, I expect Demon's Souls to have a lasting impact and to be a regular on these lists, and it deserves it in many ways.

Anyways, the big one on that list that I haven't played is Baldur's Gate II. I consider myself a Bioware fan, so it's kind of shameful to have not played it, but I plan on getting it from GOG soon and catching up. I also haven't played Persona or any of the Final Fantasy's, but I don't see myself giving those a shot any time soon.
 

kswiston

Member
Fugu said:
Holy god, words cannot describe how much I disagree with this list.

No Wizardry? Ultima? No gold box games in the top thirty? Might and Magic? Demon's Souls in the Top 20 but no sign of Diablo (2), any hack n' slash or roguelike? Where's the original Baldur's Gate? Were MMOs specifically excluded from this list?

It's definitely not just GAF that has a nineties Nintendo/modern bias, but the force is strong in this one. I suppose this is a good ranking of major console RPGs with some high-key PC games thrown in for fun but it categorically ignores the entire library of PC RPGs before the year 2000.

Diablo 2 did really well last year, but this year it's #32. Ultima VII and System Shock 2 are both in the Top 50, which I suppose is an improvement over last year where U7 was #69 and SS2 was a couple places higher. Any PC game from the early 90s or from the 80s received too few votes to make the final list (which will have 94 games this time. I decided to make 4 votes the cut-off because I wanted a top 100, and 130 games had 3 or more).

Part of the problem with really old PC games, is that most people haven't played them. Not counting the C64, I got my first PC in late 1995. By the time I got into PC games (probably about the time that the original Diablo was released), those goldbox games were already ancient. EGA graphics were not exactly appealing when you were used to games running in at least 16bit color and 640x480 (if not 800x600) resolution.

Now, even if I wanted to try the games, I can't even buy them. Maybe GoG.com will solve that in the future.
 

Shig

Strap on your hooker ...
Munin said:
You mean, as opposed to deformed anime characters consisting of 5 polygons on prerendered backgrounds with random battles every 10 steps?
I'm no fan of FF7, but the world it presents is very unique unto itself. I like WRPGs but you're lying to yourself if you can't see where a lot of them tend to blend together into the same paint-by-numbers Olde Medieval Fantasie mold.
 

Munin

Member
Shig said:
I'm no fan of FF7, but the world it presents is very unique unto itself. I like WRPGs but you're lying to yourself if you can't see where a lot of them tend to blend together into the same paint-by-numbers Olde Medieval Fantasie mold.

Among JRPGs, FF7 stands out with its world in the same way. You can make that argument both ways, really.
 

Grimmy

Banned
Fugu said:
Holy god, words cannot describe how much I disagree with this list.

No Wizardry? Ultima? No gold box games in the top thirty? Might and Magic? Demon's Souls in the Top 20 but no sign of Diablo (2), any hack n' slash or roguelike? Where's the original Baldur's Gate? Were MMOs specifically excluded from this list?

It's definitely not just GAF that has a nineties Nintendo/modern bias, but the force is strong in this one. I suppose this is a good ranking of major console RPGs with some high-key PC games thrown in for fun but it categorically ignores the entire library of PC RPGs before the year 2000.

I completely agree. I voted for Wizardry, Ultima, Betrayal at Krondor etc. but instead people only play Bioware PC RPGS :( I mean, 3 of them in the Top 10? Come on!
 
BumRush said:
If you have an SNES play it on that instead. It is one of my favorite games of all time but it's hard to play such a grand game on a tiny screen (IMO)
The DS version has a better script and bonus content though.
 

kswiston

Member
Grimmy said:
I completely agree. I voted for Wizardry, Ultima, Betrayal at Krondor etc. but instead people only play Bioware PC RPGS :( I mean, 3 of them in the Top 10? Come on!

Bioware Rpgs have been on consoles since Kotor. Other than Baldur's Gate II, none of their PC-only titles made even the top 100.

There are 20 PC only games in the top 100 and most of them are in the bottom half of the list.
 

Durante

Member
kswiston, I just looked through the OP and it looks really nice aesthetically with the logo / screenshot / art piece setup. Great job.

But I noticed that the logo image for Xenogears had some ugly MPG artifacting and overall crummy quality, so I found a better one - it's also not cut off (I had to photoshop it a bit to remove the square logo):

logo3fhk.jpg
 

tiff

Banned
Lostconfused said:
On the other hand the good parts of Mass Effect wont diminish until games start to have better stories and characters.
Sure, but I guess my point is that ME1's plot doesn't really get better with age (it's fun, don't get me wrong, but it's not exactly deep), and once you can look past that aspect the problems with the gameplay really make themselves apparent.

That's what happened with me, anyway. I enjoyed my first playthrough but I couldn't stomach a second.
Lostconfused said:
Which might be never at the rate we are going right now.
ME1 only came out 3 years ago. I'd figure it'd have its hand in any trend the industry's going through right now.
Lostconfused said:
Edit: Also most flaws in Fallout 3 and New Vegas can be fixed.
I kinda stopped trying to fix games through modding after Oblivion. Seems like a "band-aid over a bullet hole" solution to me.

It is kind of a bad comparison, though, now that I think about it.
Munin said:
You mean, as opposed to deformed anime characters consisting of 5 polygons on prerendered backgrounds with random battles every 10 steps?
The difference is, many people listing FF7 didn't play it for the first time recently.
 

jjasper

Member
kswiston said:
Bioware Rpgs have been on consoles since Kotor. Other than Baldur's Gate II, none of their PC-only titles made even the top 100.

It isn't like there a whole lot of other Bioware RPGs. Isn't it just Baldur's Gate and Neverwinter Nights? Neither I would put above the ones listed and not sure where I would put them in the list (If at all for NWN).
 
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