The Next-Gen Console Winner will be Decided by the JRPG

"People will always debate which genre is most popular among gamers. That’s simply because gamers, like every other hobbyist or animal, have varied tastes and different opinions. Up until this generation of hardware, there was one genre that stayed in the background while quietly deciding which platform won the console war of each previous generation."

[vgn24]

I agree that they once had some kind of influence, but does anyone even play JRPGs anymore?

[GunShotEddy]

A lot of people still play turn-base JRPGs, when they actually get released. That's the point IMHO. They're enoigh of them.

[limewax]

Read the article, the point is that for every generation of gaming so far the console that had the most JRPG's is the console that also had the highest sales.

Love them or hate them, the guy has a really valid point

[vsr]

PS3 the winner FF versus 13

[Charazani]

@limewax

Correlation is not causation. JRPGs are mostly stagnant messes with no innovation or understanding of audiences out their niche (I'm not talking about the philosophy of whether they need to be.)

I'd say the opposite, they'll have even less influence or importance next time around.

[Redempteur]

"JRPGs are mostly stagnant messes with no innovation"

And your point of view is not stagnant at all /s

you really need an update on things happenning..

[TheDivine]

This is why i got a 360, JRPGS
Lost Odyssey (best jrpg)
Blue Dragon (the dragon quest of this gen)
Magna Carta 2 (best battle system)
Vesperia (best tales game)
Last Remnant
Infinite Undiscovery
Eternal Sonata
Enchanted Arms
Resonance of Fate
FF13
Star Ocean 4
The 360 really stepped up although there arnt many anymore. I remember when there was jrpg after jrpg. I was soo hyped for magna carta 2 and resonance of fate, great games. The 360 has a ton of wrpgs also. Its the rpg console this gen. The original xbox had wrpgs on lock with lionhead, bioware, and bethesda and this gen they have even more. Cant wait for ff13vs.

[Stealth20k]

I play them.................

maybe you like pew pew

[Coogi]

Of course they do, JRPGs don't even get hyped anymore unless it's a Final Fantasy. All these magazines never even really mention them now all they talk about are FPS games and squeals to other games...Hell, they rarely even talk about new IPs.

Just look at Lost Odyssey, it was amazing and it was a game that never even really got talked about, Infinite Undiscovery was good too but people seen that graphics weren't amazing so they threw it aside. Star Ocean was good as well but people cried over voice acting. -_-

[lelo2play]

"The Next-Gen Console Winner will be Decided by the JRPG"

In Japan... yes.
In the rest of the world... No.

[JsonHenry]

Doubtful on that..

[Pozzle]

A bit off-topic, but that picture is closer to how I imagined a CGI Tifa looking, instead of how she looked in Advent Children.

[BeaRye]

Yea. I never understood why she looked like that in the original game's cut-scene and then she looks completely different in AC.

[VG_Releaser]

JRPG? if you mean action will decide it, then yes. Assassin's Creed, Castlevania AND THE LIKE.

[kennykramer]

You're a fool. I don't mean that in a mean way, but anyone who thinks Assassin's Creed and Castlevania are decided who wins, must be out there. If they were exclusive, they MIGHT have an impact.

[caseh]

Hmmm I would have said Next-Gen console winner would be decided by FPS rather than JRPG.

Every man and his dog plays FPS games and when you get massive JRPG releases like FF13 that fail to deliver (not an epic fail, but a fail for many) that doesn't do the genre any good. Most people who had never really experienced a FF game before are probably looking at the franchise now and thinking 'whats the big deal?'

[kennykramer]

FF XIII wasn't a JRPG. It was a horrible attempt by SE to merge JRPG and WRPG. The only real JRPGs I find are the rare Japanese imports or localized games like Hyper Dimension Game Neptune.

[caseh]

Valkyria Chronicles isn't even an RPG yet its consistantly listed as a JRPG. FF franchise is commonly known as JRPG.

Was just a reference point for what is considered, to date at least to be the biggest (by commercial standards) JRPG to be released.

[Redempteur]

valkyria chronicles is an rpg , just like disgaea
strategic or turn based, both are Jrpgs ..

Valkyria damage is based on stats and luck , same with movements . you manage a team of soldiers/heroes and go toward victory ..
heck they even got classes to choose from and recruitment of team members

[LimeyOtoko]

Of course it's a JRPG. It's made in Japan.
It's still TERRIBLE, though.

[caseh]

@LimeyOtoko

Your logic is flawed, Demon Souls was made in Japan but it that doesn't make it a JRPG...its a WRPG.

And Valkyria Chronicles was a very good game, terrible game...how do you come to that conclusion?

[kennykramer]

@caseh - I know exactly what you mean. GameFly has games that are nowhere near RPG listed as such.

[knifefight]

Valkyria Chronicles isn't an RPG?

Um, the more enemies you fight, the more you level up. That's like, the definition of an RPG.

They took a TRPG like FFTactics or Disgaea, added defensive firing, and voila.

[caseh]

The definition of RPG etc has become blurred over the years.

Look back to older PC games like XCOM and Jagged Alliance, FAR more depth than Valkyria yet the EXACT same play style yet they were always called Turn-Based Strategy which is far more fitting than JRPG which is what i would associate with games like Final Fantasy, Star Ocean etc etc

These days games like Valkyria get classed as JRPG just because troops have an exteremly basic leveling system and the art style resembles anime. *shrug*

[knifefight]

Not really. Did those games you name have experience-based growth?
That's basically the most important factor.
Q: Does fighting the same thing over and over make me stronger?
A: Yes.
Conclusion: Probably an RPG.

See also "Can you level grind in it?" VC was as grindy as Dragon Quest, heheh.

[BubblesDAVERAGE]

Im still wating on a real one...

[INehalemEXI]

One extremely great Jrpg could tip the scales...I have not seen one so badas$ this gen yet that I can recall.

[kennykramer]

FF VII was the nail in the Saturn's coffin. And that was early in the lifecylce.

[Troll-without-Bridge]

The article has a good point. Gamers have a short memory though, in every generation we get great WRPG's, who get tons of awards as well (see morrowing and KOTOR) yet its the JRPG's who are remembered the most, and carry on the most sales across all regions.

[EditorAtGNG]

I highly doubt people will remember Final Fantasy XII (in truth, they will try to FORGET IT). As for WRPGs, Mass Effect, KOTOR, Fallout and now Dragon Age... I highly doubt they'll get forgotten pretty soon.

[Troll-without-Bridge]

FFXII, or any FF genrates more forum bandwidth than those games. FFXII is still highly regarded, Fallout was better in previous generations, mass effect sold poorly, and dragon age had the terrible accident called Dragon age 2. KOTOR is not forgotten, no game is, and its still a better game than most WRPG's this generation.

what im saying is the story repeats itself, in the end JRPG's are always the ones who collect more popularity, specially amongst non hardcore gamers, across all regions, whereas WRPG's gather the most sales on US territory. I mean dragon quest IX alone sold almost more than mass effect 2 and New vegas combined. FFXIII the same and pokemon as well as Kingdom hearts. Its a powerhouse that shouldn't be underestimated.

[humbleopinion]

@Troll-without-Bridge
You actually bring up a better point: Morrowind and Kotor.

Before those games, console players had to live with lousy JRPGs that had ridiculous plots, terrible writing and zero freedom and choice - which is the thing that defines a proper RPGs.
Proper RPGs lived in the realm of the PC for decades: The Ultima series, SSI games, Fallout, Planescape, Neverwinter, Diablo, Krondor, Lands of Lore, the almighty Baldurs gate... the list goes on.

Once console gamers started getting the WRPG treatment thanks to Morrowind and KOTOR and realized how lacking most of the JRPG games they played were - it suddenly tipped the scale. This is basically what killed JRPGs and made them almost completely irrelevant for this generation.
Some JRPGs still have a cult following, but it's the Western RPGs and RPG hybrids (like Borderlands and Fable) that get both the sales and the recognition this gen.

[Troll-without-Bridge]

There's a few things that kills your logic:

1- timeline, while morrowing and KOTOR were a success on consoles, they were still pretty much neglected for Dragon quest VIII, FFX or Even FFXII. Then you have the fallacy for thinking that people only like JRPG's "till something else better comes along". Thats a huge misconception because PC gamers, and gamers in general always had access to great JRPG's and WPRG's simultaniously (fallout, baldurs gate as opposed to Chrono trigger, FFVIII, FFIX and C.Cross to mention a few, gamers made the choice for Jrpg's because thats what appealed more to them.

2- You say that JRPG's are irrelevant this generation, yet they still manage to get more sales and popularity amongst gamers of all demographics and sectors, whether hardcore gamers or not, then your regular WRPG. You can say things are pretty much balanced out, but the JRPG as a style of RPG's still manages to do very strongly across all platforms.

[humbleopinion]

@TWB:
"while morrowing and KOTOR were a success on consoles, they were still pretty much neglected for Dragon quest VIII, FFX or Even FFXII"

No they weren't neglected. They simply didn't sell on the same console or had the same userbase so if you're trying to make a "who sold better" point then it's irrelevant (WRPGs were almost exclusively offered on the Xbox while JRPGs were mainly on the PS2).
Only in this generation we the PS3 offers these kind of games, and you can see exactly how well WRPG sell and score against JRPG on consoles.

Oh, and if you're talking critical reception - then I don't know any JRPG with better scores or critical reception then KOTOR. I'd hardly call over 100 GOTY awards "neglected".

"Thats a huge misconception because PC gamers, and gamers in general always had access to great JRPG's and WPRG's simultaniously"
I think that you're having the misconception here:
Gamers in general don't always had access to WRPG. You *ASSUME* that all console gamers had access to gaming PCs all the time, whereas for the majority of the population this is not really true (unless you have some statistic to back you up).
Oh, and even for dual owners you're missing one thing: I for example was well aware back in the 90s that WRPGs offered me a better personal experience. But I still got games like Star Ocean for my SNES simply because that is what I was able to get on the console.

"2- You say that JRPG's are irrelevant this generation, yet they still manage to get more sales and popularity amongst gamers of all demographics and sectors"

No they don't. I already mentioned that some JRPGs still have a cult following, and FF XIII is obviously a big seller - but that's the exception not the rule.
And even a behemoth like FF XIII is pretty much at the same ballpark figure (of 6 Million units) as Fallout 3.
Try to compare how well other JRPGs performed on the X360 and PS3 in comparison with the WRPG I mentioned. I would be more then happy to see even one counter example (except for FF XIII).

[koehler83]

The JRPG was a contentious subject this generation but ultimately played no role whatsoever. So I have to disagree with the thesis.

[DelbertGrady]

Just like this gen /s

[THAMMER1]

So who lost this current Generation??? The system with the lowest hardware sales or software sales or both. The PS3 is hold both those titles to date.

[Titanz]

But as long as shooters are around, I highly doubt it.

[pcz]

but nice tits

[TheMachete]

What will win the next war is backwards capability... and i mean full capability.

[CrzyFooL]

LOST ODYSSEY 2!!!!!!!

[Relientk77]

Well I guess no one wins then cuz JRPGs suck this generation and are severly lacking

[FailOverFail]

I'm sorry but this won't be the case.
JRPG's did *help* Sony win both previous generations, with helping the PS1 more than the PS2. But as for now? Nope.

For some reason, now it all comes down to feature sets and console price. Not to mention more online games = more profits. We've hit a point now where if games lack a multiplayer mode, people generally look the other way.

So really, the title should be "the next gen console winner will be decided by the feature sets, console price and multiplayer games".

[ASSASSYN 36o]

The whole reason JRPGs existed was because the technology was too limited to make the WRPGs games we have today. I see no point in them unless you experienced them back in the day and miss that type of game. I played plenty but I love WRPGs over JRPGs any day. I like to be immersed in the role playing environment and hands on. Not merely a spectator with slight input.

[Bimkoblerutso]

Look, even if you're some kind of weeaboo JRPG fanatic, you have to be crazy to believe that the sub-genre is anything but a niche market at this point. The Wii's success was apparent LONG before it became the go-to system for JRPG fans. In fact the best selling JRPG this gen (by a long shot) wasn't even on the Wii. It makes absolutely no sense to assume that JRPG's are somehow magically responsible for the Wii's massive, breakaway success this gen.

In general, JRPG sales and scores are down considerably (in the U.S.) from last generation. Not that you kooky Wapanese crazies can't still enjoy these games...just stop trying to build them up into something more than they are. They're released here for a very specific demographic.