No more turn based AAA RPGs. WTF?

Recently felt the desire to play a traditional turn based RPG, you know where you must control each individual character and make each decision manually as opposed to characters fighting on their own.

I realized that somewhere along the line they stopped making AAA turn based RPGs, every single AAA RPG uses auto combat, Final Fantasy, Tales of Zesperia, etc, etc.

It seems all major RPGs have adopted to the auto combat method, you control 1 character while everyone else just fights on their own using preassigned gambits.

Is it just me, or is this very sad. Because the only way to allow users to control all characters at once is through turn based combat, and its all but vanished. Who wants to play a game where half the characters just play by themselves. Takes out all the strategy when character fight and heal automatically.

Anyways, does anyone have any good AAA turn based RPG recommendations on a next current gen console.

The only one I was able to find was "Legend of Heroes Trails of Cold Steel" and that's not exactly AAA quality.

If you haven't played it already, I suggest getting the Final Fantasy X/X-2 remaster for PS4. It's old, yes, but it's still a fantastic game.

Persona 5 should be turn-based. I don't know exactly what changes there will be from previous games, but I'm sure it will remain turn-based at its core.

Any suggestions for PS3? PS4 pickings are pretty slim. Persona 5 looks good but is not out yet.

Atlus still makes traditional turn based RPGs as the above posters have mentioned. PS2 had a lot of turned based games.

Also, pick up a 3DS. Games like Bravely Default are still turn based among many others.

On PC there has been a resurgence of tactical turn-based isometric games that are turn based like pillars of eternity, x-com 2, or (can't think of the name of this, but there's another on that came out recently).

Check out Divinity Original Sin for turn-based combat. Not turn-based, per say, but if you have PC then Pillars of Eternity gives a good old school experience

Try dropping the AAA and consoles requirements. Traditional style RPGs live on PC.

http://www.rpgcodex.net/forums/index.php?threads/the-list-of-incline-2016-edition.106037/ (don't forget to click those spoiler tags)

AAA & consoles pretty much = AWESOME ACTION

Yea, there's a few like Original Sin & Wasteland 2... but def few & far between and not the place to be if you enjoy these types of games

@bussinrounds: I miss the old days when AAA console RPGs were still turn based. Even in the beginning of PS3 and XB360 there were good turn based RPGs like Lost Odyssey, Enchanted Arms, Blue Dragon, etc. It all started going downhill when Final Fantasy XIII became auto combat, now every single RPG is auto combat. I curse the day they invented auto combat, it all started from Final Fantasy XII, I curse the day Final Fantasy XII was released. Now every single Final Fantasy is auto combat.

Now I only have Dragon Quest and Persona to look forward to for my turn base RPGs.

I don't get the auto combat thing, how much fun is it to watch the AI play for you? It boggles the mind.

@kazeswen: Idk, didn't realize you were coming to it entirely from a JRPG angle. I'm more of a cRPG guy myself, but my friend Maroxad can prob help you out though. I'll try and summon him for you.

And I guess I also linked the wrong thread/sub forum for you too. You can try looking through here though...

http://www.rpgcodex.net/forums/index.php?forums/jrpg-weeaboo-discussion.60/

And again, you should forget about AAA, cause AAA these days is an entire different beast from what it was back then anyways. The budgets are so outta hand now that they have to market the games to attract a lot more ppl, not just the RPG fans.

@bussinrounds: For now I got desperate, so I'm playing "Legend of Heroes Trails of Cold Steel". This game has very dubious production value, literally looks like they just upresed an old PS2 RPG and call it a PS3 RPG. The production value is very shoddy for this game, but since its like the ONLY new turn based RPG in the market, I have no choice.

Man, its become a beggars land for us turn based lovers.

I understand how AAA budgets are sky rocketing, but why the hell do they gotta make every RPG auto combat? Does making the games auto combat attract more sales? I guess people like games that play themselves nowadays. It used be that only the Tales games were auto combat, now everything is auto combat. So sad.

@kazeswen: That's it man. You wanna go the AAA route for RPGs in this day and age, you jump in the game, follow your quest compass and hit your awesome button. Ratio fixed, job done, time to call it a day.

If you're limited to new consoles you definitely shouldn't be too picky when it comes to aesthetics either, especially if you're such a fan of turn based combat like you say you are. Original Sin and Wasteland 2 were mentioned earlier, but you also have stuff like Invisible Inc., Darkest Dungeon, Banner Saga games and X-Com 2, which will be on the PS4.

Hmm..there's no decent Japanese Wizardry like games on or coming to PS4 ? I know they had one for the PS2 and 3. With the one on the PS2 being better. Tale of the Forsaken Land.

Divinity: Original Sin.

Nintendo, and Atlus in general make their RPGs turn based. Firaxis makes their premier RPG franchise NuXCOM turn based as well, and they market their turn based combat.

Valkyria Chronicles, South Park. If you havent owned a PSP, check to see if Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together is on the PS4 digital store. Full of C&C, politics and is in many ways a predecessor to Final Fantasy Tactics.

People that do not like that game play and scream about it until it became less. They use the stupid ideal that the game play is outdated. With fewer games that are turn base RPG then fewer player will find they like that game play so that market for those type of game is not growing.

@wiouds: Yes, the problem is there is no physical way for a gamer to control all 3-4-5 characters in combat simultaneously without turn based mechanics. Its not physically possible unless you possess the ability to stop time, which really is what turn based combat really is, its just a way of showing time stopping for you to make your decisions before executing them.

I get that they got rid of turn based because they felt it was outdated, but they have not found an alternative method to replace it. Since real life time stoppage is impossible, there is no physical way for us to control every character without resorting to AI (Auto Combat), which really amounts to nothing more than the AI playing the game for you and making the tactical decisions for you, which begs the question why even bother playing the game?

Its one of those odd things where people don't like the turn based mechanics, yet have no solution to replace it with anything better. So instead of having turn based games, now we have games that play for you, making the new Final Fantasy games almost unplayable.

The problem is that you are only looking for high-budget console games. Check out the PC, there are plenty of turn-based RPG's.

@foxhound_fox: Yeah I've been spoiled, by the great turn based games of the past, like Resonance of Fate, Dragon Quest, etc. Its hard for me to play lower budget turn based RPGs. I'm struggling to play Legend of Heroes Trails of Cold Steel right now because it looks so damn low budget. Its like my mind is stuck on those great big budget games of the past.

A game's budget is not a reflection of it's quality. Perhaps you should give one a try and just see?

@foxhound_fox: Trying right now with Trails of Cold Steel. But fck its hard, this thing looks cheap as fck.

a AAA turn based game probably wouldnt sell well enough these days unfortunately

@Flubbbs: We'll see how Persona 5 sells. If it sells bucket loads, we might see an resurgence. Looks like Square Enix has 100% ditched turn based for auto combat, though.

@kazeswen: i dont even consider Persona to be a AAA game

Fire Emblem baby!

That´s because it isn´t.

@MrYaotubo: Then what is? Final Fantasy, that's it? Persona is one of the highest budget RPGs in Japan, with its official releases taking ages to develop. If that ain't AAA, then there is no such thing as a AAA JRPG. Which leaves no barometer to split the Legend of Heroes production value with the Dragon Quest production value.

Does this work? Comes out next month to PC and PS4.

@kazeswen: most modern kids (who are the target market for most game companies) do not like to think. They realised that MOST kids would rather have dramatic fights where they just mindlessly hack down enemies rather than a slow turn based rpgs that require lots of thought and planning. That is why fps games like cod are very famous among kids, they are games that dont require you to think or plan. They just put you into the middle of a battlefield and tell you to fight. No thinking necessary.

@Ish_basic: Yeah that's what I'm talking about. Now more of these with bigger budgets. C'mon Square.

Yeah that sounds about right. So, sad cause I skipped a lot of what may have been descent RPGs due to the auto combat system. I played FF XIII, hated it so much, that I skipped FFXIII-2 Lightning Returns and may skip FFXV as well if it uses the same auto combat as FFXIII

It's on PS3 this game fits the bill I played it over a hundred and 20 hours to get to the end.

GAME:

The legend of Heros: trails of cold steel.

It is also on PSVITA because that is where it was translated from ...There are several more coming two from Square. Final Fantasy XVius....and I am Setsuna...and more especially from competition.

Oh This one is out too (I'm heading to get it right now in fact ) Check out the trailer. This is why

Square is getting back on board because these games are growing. I'm already addicted to the music they used for this youtube exhibition. This game came out June 7 2016

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oL9f1I_bebA

The name is:

Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book

There are lots of great turn based games on handhelds. On consoles the genre is pretty much dead, but it's doing pretty well on systems like the 3DS, with games like Etrian Odyssey, Shin Megami Tensei, Fire Emblem, Mario and Luigi, and Pokemon. That's not to mention the staggering amount of old school RPGs on the regular DS.

Japanese games outside of Phantom Pain and FF15 lack the budget of Western games. Not sure why that is other than the companies themselves are smaller or they don't want to take the risk of having a project that big fail.

While I personally like Persona 3 and 4, it does not have close to the level of production values to Western games of the time period you are comparing (for better or worse). Then there is those spin-off games that I'm not sure why they both making instead of another true Persona game.

Who knows if Persona 5 will have more production, as we don't have enough details yet, but I can say from what I have seen it looks very similar to the PS2 games with better graphics. It seems more like a PS3 game than a PS4 to me however.

Its funny how people say it's not realistic to control more than one... It's a game of course it's not realistic and that is why we enjoy them coz of the fantasy. Turn based is not dead it's just a lot of gamers joined in the last few years and they want other games and companies will make them coz they're the majority...

Btw if you want a good turn based rpg go for lost odyssey it's amazing

Like Ish I was going to recommend I am Setsuna. But then it came to my attention this is someone buffing another old thread.

World of Final Fantasy, get it, man up about it being cute graphics, enjoy the game, stop crying.

Persona 5

@awkwardblobfish: And hopefully gaming is like a river....it repeats itself. Point I'm making have hopes the popularity of turn based games will return. First person games will only be at the top for so long. There's a rise and fall for almost everything. As long as games like Ni No Kuni, a must play turn based rpg on the PS3, are produced, just enough turn based games will be around to help ensure the return of that style of gaming.

You probably got the wrong system. Ps4 seems to have steady turn based rpg releases on its psn and physical (not AAA though). Most obvious example is world of ff, disgaea 5 and valkyria chronicles. Also ni no kuni 2 and persona 5 next year.

For western turn based, banner saga and xcom fills the gap. But its more SRPG