I have an Analogue Super NT and a MiSTer yet I still want to play these games on my Switch. I would love to see Square get M2 involved for this, OR just work with Nintendo to bring the games to SNES Online (but for pete's sake let me disable the border backgrounds!).
My chief fear is that Square sees the GBA and DS ports of these games as "definitive" and will therefore choose to port THOSE versions instead of the SNES versions. Here's hoping they can get M2 to rework the extra content into the SNES ROMs themselves.
If we get the awful PC/mobile versions instead I will throw up.
I believe I'm very close to the end of Chrono Trigger. Will probably write something up regarding it once I've had a moment to let it sit, but I wanted to ask, should I know anything before starting Earthbound? I almost always try to play every game entirely blind and without looking anything up if possible. FFFVI and Chrono have been pretty straightforward, but I've heard people say Earthbound is notoriously obtuse and often benefits from outside material. If this is true, I thought it might be fun to try and get in the headspace of someone playing it back in the day by downloading a PDF of the original physical guide.
Were people exaggerating about the game or any advice here?
It's not that obtuse (I completed Earthbound for the first time early this year or late last) - the game's internal logic is very bizarre but generally points you in the right direction. You have an in-game guy you can pay for hints too.
You'll have to grind a bit up to level 4 or 5 in Onett at the beginning but the level curve is mostly even after without much grinding (maybe a little catchup for new party members).
BTW the Steam version of Chrono Trigger has the original graphics, unlike the FFs.
The fact that you can play through Chrono Trigger in like 20 hours is so underappreciated. Persona 5 is awesome but 100 hour games are turning into such a grind.
I want to play these games as well, never have. I have a SNES Classic but it would be nice to have a good mobile version. Is the DS version of Chrono Trigger good? I have one of those lying around. I wonder if I could get the GBA version of FF6 and play it on the DS too.
Yup, I'd put PS IV very close behind FF3 and CT. It has some interesting battle mechanics somewhat akin to CT link attacks except they aren't spelled out.
So if your characters cast or do specific skills in the right order they combine into another ability. Can be hard to remember, but it also gives you easy to use macros to set up if you want.
The music is excellent, the presentation of story cut scenes is cool.
I want to play these games as well, never have. I have a SNES Classic but it would be nice to have a good mobile version. Is the DS version of Chrono Trigger good? I have one of those lying around. I wonder if I could get the GBA version of FF6 and play it on the DS too.
I played FFVI on the SNES Classic and Chrono Trigger on DS.
I'm obviously no expert on these, but the DS port of CT seemed good. I have been told that the only bad version is the PS1, and that the DS is largely okay.
Regarding the DS port, there were some optional added dungeons and a new arena where you can raise and fight monsters or something. These were fully optional and I opted to completely skip over them.
They added new animated cutscenes, these seem to be slotted in during gameplay or dialogue and don't seem to replace anything from the original. I liked them, I could see people disliking this addition, but you don't have to watch them and again I don't think they overwrite anything.
There's also a new localisation. I am very curious what the opinion is on that, I had no issue, but I've got no experience with the original.
Finished Chrono Trigger. Got the Beyond Time ending.
Loved the game, pretty much instant favourite for me. Every element of the game was wonderful, to a degree that I rarely ever see. Felt like there were a ton of quality of life decisions that made it more convenient than the earlier title, FFVI. Your inactive party levels up with your active party, enemy encounters aren't random they exist in the world and combat takes place seamlessly within a dungeon. Curious how impressive that stuff felt at the time or whatever.
I believe I enjoyed the themes of Chrono Trigger more than FFVI. CT also had a huge amount of diversity in settings and tone. Loved how bleak the future was and how that contrasted with the other different settings. I think the minute to minute writing seemed better in CT too, though this may come down to localisation. There's also a lot more charm and humor in Chrono Trigger, the gags land pretty well too. Although, I think there's something about the cast and maybe tighter overall narrative and conflict in FFVI that I preferred and found more resonant. I just finished an hour ago, I gotta let these thoughts marinate a bit. I'm suddenly wondering if it's a disservice to play GOATs back to back.
Regarding content I did, or missed:
After finishing, I've looked up some of this stuff to see what I missed, or failed to do.
-I revived Fiona's woods. Particularly loved this quest, it was really cool to see Robo working the land in the overworld. Had no idea I could save Lucca's mom though.
-Stopped Ozzie. Really enjoyed how goofy they were willing to get for this questline.
-Got the Rainbow shell and ended the unjust trial. This segment felt really high production, there were moments where it was flipping back and forth between the trial and my cast fighting to the shell. Favorite part of this whole quest-line was pouring one out on the explorers grave though.
-Fixed the northern ruin and put Cyrus to rest. This was definitely one of my favorite moments in the game.
-Did not complete the Son of the Son / Sun Shrine content. Though I did give that lady some jerky.
-Defeated Mother Brain and encountered Robo's friend. Honestly, the stuff here got way darker than expected, I'm in for it too. Definitely wasn't expecting death screams from people being executed on convener belts.
-Fought through the Black Omen to reach the endgame.
I killed Magus, had no idea he was a potential party member. The setting for that 1 on 1 was pretty wonderful though.
Wondering how much I missed by never having him in my party.
It's not that obtuse (I completed Earthbound for the first time early this year or late last) - the game's internal logic is very bizarre but generally points you in the right direction. You have an in-game guy you can pay for hints too.
You'll have to grind a bit up to level 4 or 5 in Onett at the beginning but the level curve is mostly even after without much grinding (maybe a little catchup for new party members).
Okay, that sounds fine then. Thanks. Think I'm going to start Earthbound tonight.
I'm particularly hyped for this one as I feel like it's tonally probably the most up my alley. Also, I love Lisa the Painful a lot. Undertale is pretty good too. It'll be nice to play the inspirational work.
The list in the OP is great for JRPG's of that era. I will say if you're looking for more story stuff in the vein of Disco Elysium, I can't recommend the Baldur's Gate series enough, alongside the flawed but still great Planescape Torment.
As for CT's localization, the DS one is certainly more faithful than the original Woolsey-fied script, though it too makes some changes even from the original translation that I'm not crazy about, but I grew up with CT so I'm probably pretty biased. I'm glad you skipped the DS exclusive content though, it's pretty much all tacked on low-effort trash, one of which makes a pretty terrible retcon to try to sync up "better" with Cross.
As a hardcore Chrono Trigger fan and as a super huge fan of FF6, I'm a little jealous you got to experience these games for the first time recently.
FF6 brought storytelling and presentation to a new level. Chrono Trigger was the complete package with new mechanics like no random battles, party techs, time travel implications, and new game+,
BTW, the DS version of Chrono Trigger strips way any of the charm the original translation had.
As for CT's localization, the DS one is certainly more faithful than the original Woolsey-fied script, though it too makes some changes even from the original translation that I'm not crazy about, but I grew up with CT so I'm probably pretty biased. I'm glad you skipped the DS exclusive content though, it's pretty much all tacked on low-effort trash, one of which makes a pretty terrible retcon to try to sync up "better" with Cross.
I'd be super interested to hear more elaboration on the localisation stuff.
When I play through the game next, I'll definitely do the SNES version so I can see for myself.
The list in the OP is great for JRPG's of that era. I will say if you're looking for more story stuff in the vein of Disco Elysium, I can't recommend the Baldur's Gate series enough, alongside the flawed but still great Planescape Torment.
CannonFodder52 You should definitely play Xenogears next. That team was originally supposed to work on Chrono Trigger 2 and then the game became it's own thing. Plus, It's got that sweet, sweet Mitsuda sound and has Kato as the scenario writer / planner.
CannonFodder52 You should definitely play Xenogears next. That team was originally supposed to work on Chrono Trigger 2 and then the game became it's own thing. Plus, It's got that sweet, sweet Mitsuda sound and has Kato as the scenario writer / planner.
I swear it doubled in price on eBay over the last 12 months. I see it's digitally available on PSN, though I really dig having physical media.
But yeah, I'm really stoked to play it. I just feel like I should hit up more stuff on SNES before moving to PS1, so I get a more natural evolution.
Obviously I like them both but CT really feels like the origin point where modern RPGs truly started from whereas FF VI feels like the ultimate swan song for everything that came before it
Hm, i think everything you can see about SE and the way they look at FFVI themselves, can show you that they'll consider the game more light hearted, cute, anime, or whatever makes it more for kids i guess nowadays. FFVI being a dark, slow, sad drama about broken people will NOT be how they sell that to a new audience.
Hell even some orchestrations of the music make the game way more dynamic and epic, listen to the main theme one.
My only hope for a proper tone is this:
This arrangement, to me, is worthy of the darkness and deepness of FFVI. And also if you think about it regarding the entire series, it shows how different and more mature FFVI is.
As a hardcore Chrono Trigger fan and as a super huge fan of FF6, I'm a little jealous you got to experience these games for the first time recently.
FF6 brought storytelling and presentation to a new level. Chrono Trigger was the complete package with new mechanics like no random battles, party techs, time travel implications, and new game+,
BTW, the DS version of Chrono Trigger strips way any of the charm the original translation had.
The DS version does strip it away but the rest of it is the best version of the game. I've seen ROM hacks for the DS version that gives back the original translation.
Please please please don't do this. Very possibly the worst way to play.
I'm not a lawyer so I can't speculate about the legality of this, and mods are free to warn me if I'm out of line, but:
If you have a PS3 you can buy the PS1 port digitally and legally, at least in the US.
If you can't play it on the PS3, you could still BUY it there so that you're paying the developer for the game, and then emulate either the SNES or GBA version on your PC.
Please please please don't do this. Very possibly the worst way to play.
I'm not a lawyer so I can't speculate about the legality of this, and mods are free to warn me if I'm out of line, but:
If you have a PS3 you can buy the PS1 port digitally and legally, at least in the US.
If you can't play it on the PS3, you could still BUY it there so that you're paying the developer for the game, and then emulate either the SNES or GBA version on your PC.
Don't know about mods, but it definitely holds up. Honestly I think from a gameplay perspective it holds up better than something like Persona 3.
Anyways it's probably in my top 10 games of all time now.
OP, your post took me way back. I loved these games so much. As for what you should play next, I can't pick one off that list that isn't a great choice! You have Xenogears on there--one of my favorite experiences. Infamously unfinished (but still pretty great), my friend and I spent countless hours discussing the plot of that game. Loads of great memories there.
That was back when you could hang out a friend's house and discuss JRPGs over pizza.
Gotta play Xenogears first. And yeah, outside of Nocturne there's a lot of SMT stuff that's well regarded too.
Regarding difficulty, I've played Persona 3 FES, is it somewhat close to a typical SMT game in terms of challenge?
Yeah, I'm stoked to try a non Persona SMT game. Should be a more condensed experience too.
Also, Nocturne looks gorgeous from the screens I see posted, it would be awesome if it had a modern port like Okami. I think it would shine without much effort at all.
Strange Journey is the other one that visually jumps out to me as something that I'd like to experience.
OP, your post took me way back. I loved these games so much. As for what you should play next, I can't pick one off that list isn't a great choice! You have Xenogears on there--one of my favorite experiences. Infamously unfinished (but still pretty great), my friend and I spent countless hours discussing the plot of that game. Loads of great memories there.
Yeah, a lot of people are talking about Xenogears. From what I've heard it has heavier themes than a lot of its contemporaries, though I gotta admit after playing Chrono Trigger and FFVI, I'm pretty surprised at how grim and dark some of the topics they dealt with were.
OP, have you ever played any Dragon Quest games? Most people heavily associate CT with the Final Fantasy team but Yuji Horii, the mastermind behind Dragon Quest, was heavily involved in CT as well. Chrono Trigger was a "dream team" of people from both Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest.
If you like CT's approach to scenario design then the Dragon Quest series would be right up your alley.
OP, have you ever played any Dragon Quest games? Most people heavily associate CT with the Final Fantasy team but Yuji Horii, the mastermind behind Dragon Quest, was heavily involved in CT as well. Chrono Trigger was a "dream team" of people from both Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest.
If you like CT's approach to scenario design then the Dragon Quest series would be right up your alley.
Yeah DQ4-8 all have remakes on DS/3DS. The cart for DQ5 is pretty rare, I believe, and expensive.
The IOS verions of DQ4-6 are surprisingly good (DQ4 is arguably better on IOS than on DS due to the inclusion of party talk). Stay away from the IOS port of DQ8 though.
Since a lot of people are discussing it here, classic JRPG question from someone who's played a crapton of JRPGs classic and modern: what would be the best entry point into Suikoden for someone who has gotten used to a lot of modern QoL features? I hear about 3 a lot, but does anyone have recommendations for 2 or 3 or 4 to start with?
As an example of what I mean, I tried playing Blue Dragon recently and was already struggling because of how slow everything was in that game (animations, menus, fights), but then got in a fight with an enemy that turned out to be a miniboss that oneshot my party members with standard attacks I lost an hour of progress. That put me off the game because I just don't have time or inclination to go through that again when it was already slow feeling.
This reminds me once again that I should return to my Chrono Trigger DS playthrough. Just so many other things to play and it's been about 2 years?? Crazy how time flies.
I also really want to get to FF VI (and also the original VII), but I feel like I won't get as much out of then because I basically know almost 80% of all the major plot beats and even a lot of details (particularly when it comes to FF VII). Same also applies to Xenogears, Xenosaga, Xenoblade X, FF VIII, IX, X, and to a certain extent DQ XI past act 1 (since I got distracted by other games there on PS4, haven't been able to catch up on Switch yet, and now know a lot of spoilers for the rest, unfortunately).
Just wondering if anyone can assure that knowing lots of plot details before hand doesn't diminish the impact of these games. Thanks in advance to anyone who cares to respond.
Xenogears is great but is not near the same tier as some of these others. I can't get into problems with it because they pop up later in the game, but hopefully you make a thread after you beat it because it'll be a fun conversation.
I personally love DQ8, but I played it after FF7/8/9 and man, the tonal shift to a "true" fantasy setting is great. It's just a breath of fresh air.
Keep us updated on your journeys here! I wish I could play some of these for the first time again as well.
This reminds me once again that I should return to my Chrono Trigger DS playthrough. Just so many other things to play and it's been about 2 years?? Crazy how time flies.
I also really want to get to FF VI (and also the original VII), but I feel like I won't get as much out of then because I basically know almost 80% of all the major plot beats and even a lot of details (particularly when it comes to FF VII). Same also applies to Xenogears, Xenosaga, Xenoblade X, FF VIII, IX, X, and to a certain extent DQ XI past act 1 (since I got distracted by other games there on PS4, haven't been able to catch up on Switch yet, and now know a lot of spoilers for the rest, unfortunately).
Just wondering if anyone can assure that knowing lots of plot details before Hanna doesn't diminish the impact of these games. Thanks in advance to anyone who cares to respond.
Not gonna lie, it does diminish their impact but they are still worth playing as you'll get to discover their world and characters and have fun with the gameplay and music.
Not gonna lie, it does diminish their impact but they are still worth playing as you'll get to discover their world and characters and have fun with the gameplay and music.
Haha, well I appreciate the honesty! 😂 I just remembered that I started the MGS series with 4 and knew a lot of things here and there from looking up stuff before hand, but still found them surprising and enjoyable to catch up on when I decided I needed more context once the Shadow Moses chapter started and went back to them. Then again I feel like I still knew a bit less about MGS1-3 then than I do about all the games I mentioned now, but nowadays I kind of forget I even played them out of order that way.
I guess mostly it really is just a matter of not having anywhere close to the amount of time now as I did back in high school and stuff, so it's really hard to go backwards when there's also so many new games every day.
Since a lot of people are discussing it here, classic JRPG question from someone who's played a crapton of JRPGs classic and modern: what would be the best entry point into Suikoden for someone who has gotten used to a lot of modern QoL features? I hear about 3 a lot, but does anyone have recommendations for 2 or 3 or 4 to start with?
As an example of what I mean, I tried playing Blue Dragon recently and was already struggling because of how slow everything was in that game (animations, menus, fights), but then got in a fight with an enemy that turned out to be a miniboss that oneshot my party members with standard attacks I lost an hour of progress. That put me off the game because I just don't have time or inclination to go through that again when it was already slow feeling.
The first Suikoden by far. What makes a good JRPG in my opinion? Battle Mechanics, Music, and Story. The first one has the trifecta. After 2 it kind of went downhill for me as a franchise though. 3-5 are good generally speaking, just not as good as the first two entries.
Still, I hope for a Suikoden VI someday, even if the original team disbanded.
Very happy to hear people getting into these games way after the fact. I have tried to play FF VI so many times and just can't get very far. Not because I don't like the game or anything, I just have a weird mental block or something that prevents me from persevering through it. That said, I did finally manage to finish Xenogears after playing it off and on for twenty years, so I guess there's still hope.
OP, if you're willing to move into the tactics side of things, I can't recommend Shining Force II enough. Also Revelations Persona (the original PlayStation version, not the PSP re-release). I kinda thought it would feel outdated compared to the newer games, but it has such a weird atmosphere to it that I just loved. It's a seriously underrated game. Worth buying a PlayStation Classic for.
Very happy to hear people getting into these games way after the fact. I have tried to play FF VI so many times and just can't get very far. Not because I don't like the game or anything, I just have a weird mental block or something that prevents me from persevering through it. That said, I did finally manage to finish Xenogears after playing it off and on for twenty years, so I guess there's still hope.
OP, if you're willing to move into the tactics side of things, I can't recommend Shining Force II enough. Also Revelations Persona (the original PlayStation version, not the PSP re-release). I kinda thought it would feel outdated compared to the newer games, but it has such a weird atmosphere to it that I just loved. It's a seriously underrated game. Worth buying a PlayStation Classic for.
I am fully onboard with this suggestion of Shining Force II; I was in love with RPGs as a kid, and Shining Force II was one of the few games I religiously replayed, next to Final Fantasy IV and VI. Jump into that if you have the chance.
Don't sleep on Secret of Mana; it's one of the most beautiful SNES games and the soundtrack is fantastic. I can't imagine you not having a great time with that one.
If you manage to make your way through Earthbound, pick up a translated copy of Mother 3 at some point. I know you're looking for SNES / Genesis era games, but is a Gameboy Advance really that different from a portable SNES?
This reminds me once again that I should return to my Chrono Trigger DS playthrough. Just so many other things to play and it's been about 2 years?? Crazy how time flies.
OP - these are two of my very favorite games ever made. Absolute masterpieces, both of them. Both have great battle systems, memorable varied casts, and fantastic music. I'd love to get around to playing these again.
Obviously I like them both but CT really feels like the origin point where modern RPGs truly started from whereas FF VI feels like the ultimate swan song for everything that came before it
I've never heard it said that way but it's pretty accurate when I think about it. The only game that reminds me remotely of FF6 now is bravely default and octopath and that was intentionally by design.
Took a break from these older JRPGs to play some new stuff. But I've returned by starting up Earthbound. I'm only a few hours in and while it feels much smaller in scale, I think I'm getting the most enjoyment and frequent smiles here of the three games so far.
Hahah, same. Originally FFVI was my favorite of the two because of the more mature, grittier story that felt like a step up from most stories of the time. Since then, however, the trend has reversed, and there's no shortage of games that tackle relatively dark subject matters; between that, Chrono Trigger's visuals being slightly more impressive (although both are peak SNES Square), and the fact that Chrono Trigger's dual / triple tech system has simply not been rivalled ever after, makes me sometimes prefer the latter.
Hahah, same. Originally FFVI was my favorite of the two because of the more mature, grittier story that felt like a step up from most stories of the time. Since then, however, the trend has reversed, and there's no shortage of games that tackle relatively dark subject matters; between that, Chrono Trigger's visuals being slightly more impressive (although both are peak SNES Square), and the fact that Chrono Trigger's dual / triple tech system has simply not been rivalled ever after, makes me sometimes prefer the latter.
Pretty much exactly my reasoning for it, too. I think if pressed I would probably side with FF6, but honestly both games are so special to me (alongside Secret of Mana) that it's really not a fair competition.
Took a break from these older JRPGs to play some new stuff. But I've returned by starting up Earthbound. I'm only a few hours in and while it feels much smaller in scale, I think I'm getting the most enjoyment and frequent smiles here of the three games so far.
