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Resetera's Top 101 Essential RPGs - Final Update. Top 101 up plus many extras.
- Thread starter kswiston
- Start date
Nothing you just said has anything to do with people who bought the game finishing it, apart from play time.
All I was saying was XV appeals to a mainstream audience more because action combat is more intuitive than having to script AI.
Me: Maybe fewer people beat XII because it's harder to figure out between battle system and quests.
You:"Yeah but FFXV has a tie in cell phone game."
Like... huh?
FF15 is a modern game with a modern marketing strategy that is wholly centered around the FF15 universe in order to keep the game relevant. FF15 is a game as a service that intends to sell you content that is mostly contingent on the player investing time into the game, FF12 is not. You're using data to make the wrong conclusions about both games. But this is to be expected from someone who said FF12 has no story a few hours ago in another thread.
Opinions. From the same range on this list, I'd say that FF VIII, FF X, DQ VIII are even less "essential".
You're talking about marketing and sales and I'm talking about game difficulty. You're just angrily typing random words now without any regard to what anyone is actually saying and bringing up stuff from other threads. I mean, I guess if you want to be FFXII's FrontierGamer then have fun
honestly doesn't deserve it, hence why it is a cult favorite
It's a good game, the gameplay is fun and original and the art style is nice (even if the Wii limitations are evident with the more realistic style). The story is meh (the characters are not bad at all) but you will enjoy your time with the game.
Is there something in these random words that prevents you from understanding that your argument is rooted on inconclusive data that might be better explained by the fact that both games are 10 years apart and coming from a wildly different industry ? I'd willingly hold your hand and walk you to the thought process that makes your generalizations about the pacing of the game through achievement completion not as relevant as you think it is.
Wait, what good games do you think are getting shafted for FFX?
The great thing about the thread / list is individual hot takes mean nothing. Are you salty because some game is on the list that you hate or shouldn't be there? The list cares not. Enough people wanted the game on the list, and your own or anyone else's hot takes about game X or game Y being horrible and game Z being the best ever are completely meaningless to the list.
The list shows what the most popular, essential RPGs are from the people who voted, and nothing anyone says will change that. The list will always win no matter how convincing your arguments may or (more likely) may not be, and the game you hate will still be there on the list, regardless how strongly you declare it doesn't deserve to be there - because it does deserve it, and it deserves it more than that other game that isn't there because that game didn't get the votes to make it, plain and simple.
Basically, seeing people try and knock games down is kinda silly (if anything it probably makes me more interested in playing the game), I'd much rather read about what people enjoyed about the games that are there and why they're great.
The list shows what the most popular, essential RPGs are from the people who voted, and nothing anyone says will change that. The list will always win no matter how convincing your arguments may or (more likely) may not be, and the game you hate will still be there on the list, regardless how strongly you declare it doesn't deserve to be there - because it does deserve it, and it deserves it more than that other game that isn't there because that game didn't get the votes to make it, plain and simple.
Basically, seeing people try and knock games down is kinda silly (if anything it probably makes me more interested in playing the game), I'd much rather read about what people enjoyed about the games that are there and why they're great.
There definitely is a problem (not entirely contained to JRPGs but seems to be big in it) that because every franchise/niche game has a super small dedicated fanbase (be it Star Ocean, Xenosaga, whatever the fuck) that it somehow deserves so and so number of entries to match the enthusiasm of it's fanbase.
Legend of Dragoon was the epitome of mediocrity, it doesn't belong on this list (but of course, worse games have made it, so whatever ;)).
Coming up with a list of 10 games isn't that much effort. You didn't even need to do long write-ups either to vote. It just didn't make you eligible in giveaways. You should just have voted, period.
Admittedly not that many, but those I have, have aged horribly and I would not recommend them to anyone but the most dedicated/hardcore. Hell, even Phantasy Star I probably wouldn't recommend to most players even if it was incredible at the time and aged relatively well. Ultra-retro games just are not very accessible or "essential" anymore.
That would make tons of games on this list also not RPGs... And those gear loadouts are extremely defining of the character at the moment you are using them. It's a different way to customize your character than raw stats, but deciding that it's "stat growth and nothing else" that determine what's an RPG or not seems arbitrary.
Sigh.
Sure, but voting for your favourites would have helped bump off games you like less by propping up games you like more. Like my Demon's Souls example. It beat FFVIII (a game I hate) by 2 points, and those 2 points were factored by the fact that Demon's Souls was my highlight vote (giving it 4 points instead of the normal 2 for the rest of the list).
Coming up with a list of 10 games isn't that much effort. You didn't even need to do long write-ups either to vote. It just didn't make you eligible in giveaways. You should just have voted, period.
Now now, negative/dissenting opinions are fine to have and he's allowed to criticize the games he wants. But I agree he should have voted because just coming here to bitch without having voted is very poor form.
I'm disappointed to not see a Lunar game represented. Though as a casual member here I was not aware of the voting and did not participate, so c'est la vie.
Xenogears is still coming right? I haven't followed one of these before.
Xenogears is still coming right? I haven't followed one of these before.
OP
OP
I don't think that it is controversial to say that many 80s RPGs have an accessibility issue, even if the underlying design is still strong.
Some people can power through the lack of modern QoL stuff, and still have a blast. Many cannot. So they are a bit of a mixed bag in terms of recommendations.
Luckily on the PC side of things, GoG sells many 80s classics for dirt cheap. So if you grab one during their major sales, you are at worst out the price of a coffee if you cannot deal with the lack of modern gaming conveniences.
Some people can power through the lack of modern QoL stuff, and still have a blast. Many cannot. So they are a bit of a mixed bag in terms of recommendations.
Luckily on the PC side of things, GoG sells many 80s classics for dirt cheap. So if you grab one during their major sales, you are at worst out the price of a coffee if you cannot deal with the lack of modern gaming conveniences.
One can easily argue that old WRPGs like Wizardry, Ultima and Bard's Tale are essential for their historical value. I agree they don't play well in today's standard. I couldn't get into those games.
I do want to raise Dragon Quest III, though. It was the best DQ at that point, which basically means it was the best JRPG as well. It sold over 3 million copies on NES alone, which makes it the best selling RPG of that era by a huge margin as well as a true social phenomenon in Japan. And it's perfectly enjoyable even today, at least the SNES remake I played is.
If you've played Yakuza 0, "Judgement " is very important!
I guess I just can't understand the need to complain and invalidate a list purely because a couple games you dislike ranked. The reason this thread exists is to encourage people to try more RPG's by letting posters vote for what they find important and explaining why. Ignoring all the hard work and effort just to whine about a position doesn't contribute to the intention of this thread. If a game you like didn't place as high as you wanted then use that to start a discussion on why you personally value that game and why it's such an important RPG to try. For me personally I wanted VIII to rank higher(I'm still very happy with it's position) but instead of complaining I wrote my feelings on why I recommend the game and encourage others to give it a chance. That resulted in a couple posters wanting to give the game a try. This is why it's important to discuss games you feel deserve more attention because you never know who you will convince to try something new.
Also once again this isn't a thread ranking the best RPG's. It's what people consider essential to play.
Also once again this isn't a thread ranking the best RPG's. It's what people consider essential to play.
You forgot some of the most annoying side quests ever found in a game. Capturing beasts, chocobo 0:00, and lightning dodges. I'm still baffled by the love this game gets.
I wasn't a big fan of FFX either. I respect it, but it was just okay at best.
Amazing final battle theme though.
Amazing final battle theme though.
oh you mean the optional stuff you can ignore and still beat the game?
I mean Xenoblade 1's sidequests are beyond garbage but we still love that game to death, because they are optional
And at least FFX actually has some good side quests/activities to go along with the (justifiably) criticized ones.
I almost feel like this should be posted at the top of every page
This list can't really be "wrong", it's a subjective thing by design. Honestly a "best RPG" list would be infinitely more boring in my opinion, too. At least with this I'm getting that nudge to play some niche classics I might have ignored, forgotten, or missed altogether.
If you only played a remake of Dragon Quest III, you shouldn't be making claims that NES version was better than Phantasy Star.
Some of us were on vacation! I would have loved to have given Unlimited Saga its sole pity vote.
Anyway, is Etrian on the list anywhere yet? I wonder how many smaller franchises are harmed by votes being split between entries.
Reasons why FFX is good
- Blitzball
- The lightning dodges
- Catching butterflies
- The airship looks really cool
- Some good music
- SEYMOUR
- The summons look cool as shit
- Lulu
- Those randomly mega hard bosses
- The memes
- Blitzball
- The lightning dodges
- Catching butterflies
- The airship looks really cool
- Some good music
- SEYMOUR
- The summons look cool as shit
- Lulu
- Those randomly mega hard bosses
- The memes
As far as I know this thread considers all versions of a game to be one, and uses the earliest release date.
Doing tantrums over how the list is invalid because it has stuff you don't like or your favorites ranked low is straight up childish, same as complaining without having voted, jeez. The purpose of the thread is to celebrate and share the games we've enjoyed the most in the genre, fair criticism of some games is all good, but constantly questioning others' tastes is just petty.
You should just complain about Blitzball instead as all the things you mentioned are completely optional. That's like saying Bloodborne isn't that good because chalice dungeons are disappointing.
Dragon Quest III is the next DQ we should raise. I'm extremely happy that you all went from 1 person besides me voting for DQIV to 19 in one year!
(DQXI probably has the best chance of being a new DQ to show up. DQIV could very easily fall off again.)
Of course, I also hope the same is repeated with SMTII. 2 people voted for it this time, myself included. I hope that dramatically increases next year :P.
(DQXI probably has the best chance of being a new DQ to show up. DQIV could very easily fall off again.)
Of course, I also hope the same is repeated with SMTII. 2 people voted for it this time, myself included. I hope that dramatically increases next year :P.
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Yeah, the voting here does. The way your post was worded, I thought you said it was the best JRPG when it first came out.
Eros didn't say the game is bad because of the garbage side content. Just that the side content is garbage.
Valid criticism. Some of it is pretty damn bad.
If people can't complain about the only things that gives a respite from the painfully linear main quest, then you're just shutting them down.
Everything after the wedding is just a rushed mess in my opinion. I just have to look at Seymour to realize how he just becomes a full-on crazy villain because the writers were out of ideas to pad the game further. I have never seen a FF tank so hard in its final stretch, the final dungeon was not even one.
That's not my opinion, just the impression I got over the years on the Internet. DQ3 is the best DQ among the first three, I don't think there's any arguement about that. DQ was the predominant JRPG franchise around 1988, the sales number speaks for itself. DQ3 would easily win best JRPG from 1988 and prior, if the poll is held in Japan.
Complaining is half the fun! I hope the thread goes in full meltdown mode by the time FFVI beats FFVII and we finally settle that once and for all
Agreed, the game was average for me until the wedding. From here goes downhill, I never finished the game even if I think that I was only a few hours from the ending.
A best RPG list would probably look exactly the same. The niche classics get votes because they have small but dedicated fanbases, and people vote for their favorite games regardless of what the title of the list is.
However, I agree that people need to stop complaining about games they don't like placing high, because obviously a lot of people on era would beg to differ.
It's interesting to realize how Japan loves FF7 much more than VI but enthusiast circles in the west are more biased towards 6. Even SQEX knows as much (but won't do any decision based on that data anyway)
I come here today, only to find my beloved FFX and my "awful taste" under attack.
But I will not give in. I will not let Sin win. I will defeat sorrow. I will stand my ground and be strong! I don't know when it will be but someday... I will conquer it.
I have a weird relationship with VIII. I initially played it on my pc which was a little too slow to run the game at a normal speed. Never got very far that first time, but I did fall in love with the soundtrack (Eyes on me is amazing) and my all time favorite Final Fantasy FMV: the dance.
Years later I started playing it on my PS2 to give it another go. Somewhere during the attack on Balamb Garden my game got stuck, no matter what I did or who I talked to, nothing happened to continue the story. I've searched the internet and found no solution. :(
I'm willing to give the game one more change, but preferably in an enhanced version like FFVII and FFIX on PS4. Square Enix doesn't agree with me though since they skipped that game for no reason at all.
True, although there are more accessible ones that most people haven't tried. I think using some early console ones as a gateway to more complex computer ones is a good idea. I already mentioned AD&D: Treasure of Tarmin on Intellivision but there's also Dragonstomper on 2600 Supercharger. If you can look past the simple graphics, it's much more accessible to play for the average person than something like Wizardry. And there are ARPG dungeon crawlers; Gateway to Apshai doesn't take a lot to learn how to play or require a ton of time to enjoy.
One of the more unknown console JRPGs from the '80s is the 1989 Famicom game Maharaja. It has some grinding to deal with but the graphic adventure interface and Hindu mythology make it stand out as something unique that holds up. There is a translated rom.
Star Cruiser is one I voted for. The translated Mega Drive version is from 1990 but the (more advanced in some ways) PC-88 and X68000 versions are from the late '80s. It might only borderline count as an RPG with its FPS and space sims elements but I think its navigation systems and controls are quite accessible. I was surprised how playable it was when the translation finally came.
Yeah, the Mark III sold like shit in Japan so it probably wouldn't do well in a poll. The quality of its RPGs is a separate thing, though.
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Hell the same can be said about games released during the PS2 era.
Nocturne is a masterpiece in gameplay design, tone and atmosphere but fuck is it hard to get into. You need a specific mindset to enjoy the game so it's much harder to recommend wholesale than the newer games like 4/4a. That's why I only gave it an honorable mention rating.
It's funny because FF7 was by far the more beloved game during like the early to mid 2000s in the West. It definitely had a bigger cultural impact (I mean, obviously it was a massive hit) and it took a ton of time for JRPG enthusiasts to play through the whole series and come to terms that FFVII is probably more interesting as a blockbuster and a technical achievement than as an all time great RPG.
Jade's 1000 Words > Koda Kumi's 1000 Words
Koda Kumi's Real Emotion > Jade's Real Emotion
Yeah... this is my first time seeing one of these threads, and I was hoping it would be more of the latter. My gripes with FFX are all very much subjective, but objectively I don't see anything "essential" about it. Not even in the FF line-up.
It would be nice to see Mass Effect 1 crack the top 10 but I'm guessing Mass Effect 2 will instead. I get why people like it but it is my least favourite of the 4 games.
I mean don't get me wrong I like FFVII a lot (there was a point when I HATED it) but I think it's a lot harder to judge now just because it's so iconic in the overall fabric of gaming culture. Sort how it's like impossible to do any real film criticism of the Star Wars series