SMH writes: I really wish Japanese RPGs (JRPGs) were more prominent in the West nowadays than they used to be. I feel that there is a real deficit in terms of variety and quality when it comes to console JRPGs in particular. The most definitive JRPG off the top of my head in our current generation of consoles would most likely be Final Fantasy XIII and that’s not due to its quality (or lack thereof) but the feelings of nostalgia that many older gamers still hold in regards to the earlier iterations of the FF series and the disappointing attempt to bridge the gap between what many gamers grew up with and what we’re given today.
Here are the games that will be leaving the Extra and Premium tiers of the PS Plus subscription service in the month of May, 2024.
Absolver Downfall
Abzu
Adrift
Ashen
Elex
Final Fantasy VII
Final Fantasy VIII Remastered
Final Fantasy IX
Final Fantasy X | X-2
Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age
Final Fantasy XV Royal Edition
How To Survive 2
I Am Dead
Jotun
Last Stop
Minit
Moster Jam Steel Titans 2
My Friend Pedro
Observation
Sundered Eldritch Edition
The Artful Escape
The Messenger
This Is The Police
This Is The Police 2
World of Final Fantasy
Gary Green said: With my fondness for (most) Final Fantasy games and my side goal of finishing off games in my collection with loose ends, a return to Final Fantasy XV seemed inevitable. It also serves as my third Final Fantasy platinum trophy after VII and VIII, a reasonable substitute since Final Fantasy IX is nigh on impossible to master.
While FFVII ranks highly, there's more to the series than one game. Here's Chit Hot's picks for the seven best Final Fantasy characters.
Theres only been one good big budget AAA traditional turn based jrpg this gen. Lost Odyssey. It was one of the best ive ever played. Theres some grat jrpgs that arent traditional though. Vesperia, FF13 (it was good imo), Magna Carta 2, The Last Story, Xenoblade, Nier, Valkyria Chronicles and many on handhelds such as TWEWY, Radiant Historia, Crisis Core, Kingdom Hearts BBS/DDD exc. I think this gen was a transition for jrpg devs. Alot couldnt afford hd so they found homes on portables and others tried to modernize the genre. Some failed abit like FF13 but others succeeded like TLS. I think it will help the genre in the long run. Lots of creative stuff was made like TWEWY and Resonance of Fate. Little things like no grinding in TLS, landmarks in Xenoblade, and rety's on bosses have made the genre less time consuming and frustrating. There were growing pains but if devs realize that turn based combat still has a place along with realtime and hybrids we will be okay. Just cause you can now power fast flashy combat doesnt mean people dont want turn based. Lose the random encounters though (please)!
I think western games took most console folk (and japanese devs) by storm. Before the 360 consoles had japanese games and pc had western. Now the 360 made fps and wrpgs popular. People discovered stuff like Fallout, Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Oblivion exc. That overshadowed Japan. Instead of making the games they always made they made western games. Instead of making them better and using some of the innovations in western games they refused to stray from their safety zone. Now theyre catching on and i cant wait to see what happens.
Theres been alot but they suck this gen.. Nx year we have Xillia & Ni No Kuni.. Hopefully FF vs 13.. This is another reason i love handhelds so much.. They seem to get many more of them
True the JRPG is not the prominent genre they once were but that does not mean they are not around. Look around on each console and each of them has their fair share of games in the genre.
The XB360 early on had many JRPG like Lost Odyssey, Star Ocean, Infinite Undiscovery, Tales of Vesperia, FF13 are some that pops into mind. There aren't as many now cause the popularity of shooters has flooded the gamers of the 360 that JRPGs do not do well.
Nintendo's handhelds has had many games & late in the Wii's life it received 2 of the better games this gen in Xenoblade & Last Story. Shame it had to take a petition and fan outcry for these games to be localized, in the past these game would be guaranteed success.
Finally arriving on the PS3. This is where most of the games have consistently shown itself where it be high profile games like FF13, niche titles like Disgaea, to really obscure titles like Neptune. If you are looking for a JRPG the PS3 is usually the place to find the style of the genre you are looking for.
It is a shame that a once great genre has become such an obscurity & sometimes difficult to find if one is not actually looking for them.
The lack of JRPGS this gen, is more problematic if anything, to fans of the genre, (especially if it's the main genre they played) as it's sales helped shape last gen. As far as FF XIII being the definitive JRPG this gen, I highly disagree, just because it carries the name "Final Fantasy" doesn't mean it gives nostalgic feelings to FF fans. FF XIII, was anything but a FF game, it lacked what previous FF's had. The most definitive JRPG this gen would be an underrated one, like Eternal Sonata, regardless of what people say, the game was innovative. The battle mechanics of the party level, were unlike anything I'd ever see (i.e. the constant button randomizations) Another great candidate for such a title is Tales Of Graces F, which continues the tradition of the Tales series. This issue, is more a PS issue than anything, as JRPGS, were the bulk of PS2 library last gen. Those who transitioned to the PS3 from the PS2, know this all too well.
Japanese developers needs to get out if their comfort zone. Jrpg are really popular in japan but when you look at most of the games they all look the same. Same character design, same cliche story. There are some great jrpg this generation but the rest they are just a waste of time.