What do you really think of JRPGs?

I can't get into them anymore.

I don't know what it is but I haven't enjoyed one in the slightest since Persona 4. I was 19 when that came out and the idea of high school was still pretty fresh so it was a cool idea to set a game in one. I hadn't ever played a game quite like it and haven't since.

But I can't enjoy them anymore. I find the dialogue too poorly written/spoken, and every character always seems like they're screaming every time they get even slightly emotional, and they never get "slightly emotional", they just got from calm to batshit insane whenever things start going south.

Does anyone else feel this way? Is it just me or is the whole genre gotten too stale for other people?

Is it strange that as I get older I enjoy these games less and less, but I can still play Mario and other stuff for "all ages"?

What do you, System Wars aficionado, think of JRPGs?

They've declined in quality, though some excellent games slip through. Legitimately, handhelds holds the best JRPGs nowadays.

They've declined in quality, though some excellent games slip through. Legitimately, handhelds holds the best JRPGs nowadays.

lundy86_4

Have little to no interest in the genre.

They've declined in quality, though some excellent games slip through. Legitimately, handhelds holds the best JRPGs nowadays.

lundy86_4

JRPGs are doing well to me, I feel like I usually see around 5 JRPGs every year the interest me.

They've declined in quality, though some excellent games slip through. Legitimately, handhelds holds the best JRPGs nowadays.

lundy86_4

I can't play those big JRPGs anymore like FF (but XV might change that again). I prefer "small" RPGs now like Ni No Kuni.

the golden age of the jrpg is long gone. there was a sharp decline during the ps2 era and it has never recovered. i can still go back and enjoyably play the nes, snes, ps1 classics but the newer stuff just doesn't do it for me.

I like the people saying handhelds have the good Rpgs when they are the same rpgs that killed them off on consoles in the first place.CheetahAquaman

Well, yeah... More proficient JRPG devs focussed on handhelds for differing reasons. I do not doubt, that one of them, was the cost.

I stopped playing JRPGs for a while. They require so much time usually that it is hard to find the ambition to start one up when I could instead play four or five fast-paced action games in the same time it would take for me to beat one JRPG. So it's a combination of lacking the ambition to start one and feeling overwhelmed by a 40 - 80+ hour project. 

Then I picked Chrono Trigger DS back up and finally beat it. That in combination with the fact that I'm more in the mood for some slower games instead of fast-paced ones have gotten me back into JRPGs. Currently playing Ni No Kuni and Persona 4 Golden now and they are both incredible. 

Not as good as they used to be. Wish they woulkd just make a new Grandia, with the same gameplay style as Grandia 2 but with amazing updated graphics.

Yeah thats the biggest problem Gameplay, quality enviroments and story have taken a dive since the PS2 and before days.

I never liked the English subtitles in JRPGs. They are too cheesy and trying to hard to be funny. But apart from that, I think JRPGs are cool. They have some good and fun gameplay.

I like some JRPGs like SMT, Pokemon, Xenoblade, Ni No Kuni, The Last Story and SRPGs like Valkyria Chronicles and Fire Emblem. But I am not terribly huge on them. That said, I greatly prefer modern JRPGs over the filth that is the modern WRPG.

Maybe it's just me, but I enjoy more old WRPGs than old JRPGs, and enjoy more new JRPGs than new WRPGs.

Maybe it's just me, but I enjoy more old WRPGs than old JRPGs, and enjoy more new JRPGs than new WRPGs.

Yangire

Oh trust me it is not just you.

Old School WRPGs>Old School JRPGs
Modern JRPGs>Modern WRPGs

The reason for this is mainly because of all the good WRPG devs going out of business or turning to crap, making single player mmorpgs and wannabe akshun games.

I was actually planning on making a youtube vid showing how I feel about the changes of WRPGs as of late. Ranging from itemization, to quest design to overall mechanics.

I don't think highly of JRPGs. Most RPGs rely on story, and the stories in most JRPGs are either recycled or just awful.

Looks like JRPGs quality have stagnated or declined, with the exception of a game called Demon Souls.

Apart from that game, the FF franchise, the Tales franchise and the Persona series have NOT IMPROVED to the qualities such as Skyrim or The Witcher. 

If The Witcher 3 fullfills gamers expectation as that was shown on E3 2013, games like FF XIII: Lightning Returns or Tales of Xilia will just be an after thought. :|

BUT I'm STILL waiting for FF7 The Remake! :cool:

I think that it's rare they are ever actually good, but that goes for a lot of things.

Still my favorite genre. I prefer playing them on consoles, but handhelds seem to have the best quality and quantity at the moment.

They all look identical to me.

Not many this gen really impressed me a whole lot. the best I've played was probably Xenoblade, but even then I didn't think the game was THAT good. It was very good, but not "great."

Zero interest other Final Fantasy and that is only because I keep hoping they can recapture the magic of FFVII. JRPGs are just inferior to modern games.

Garbage

Once my favorite genre, now a genre that I care very little for.

Zero interest other Final Fantasy and that is only because I keep hoping they can recapture the magic of FFVII. JRPGs are just inferior to modern games.

StrongBlackVine

OT: Dark Souls is the only JRPG I've enjoyed this gen 

I've only played a few like Chrono Trigger and FF7 but the combat is boring and easy. And the stories sure as hell don't make up for the crappy gameplay.

[QUOTE="StrongBlackVine"]

Zero interest other Final Fantasy and that is only because I keep hoping they can recapture the magic of FFVII. JRPGs are just inferior to modern games.

princeofshapeir

Yep.  I still loved the game though and a few great Square/SE games to come after.  But FFVII was certainly the turning point for the company.

Chrono Trigger cain006

the combat is boring and easy. And the stories sure as hell don't make up for the crappy gameplay.

cain006

[QUOTE="cain006"]

Chrono Trigger princeofshapeir

the combat is boring and easy. And the stories sure as hell don't make up for the crappy gameplay.

cain006

Turn based combat is usually a clean safe bet.CJ_ofCamelot

[QUOTE="cain006"]

Chrono Trigger princeofshapeir

the combat is boring and easy. And the stories sure as hell don't make up for the crappy gameplay.

cain006

He might not have made it very far.  I have friends that tried older JRPGs and gave up in the first couple of hours.  Because honestly, the gameplay is typically boring early on.

But yes, I dont see how he could call the gameplay crappy if he played through the game.

[QUOTE="CJ_ofCamelot"] Turn based combat is usually a clean safe bet.princeofshapeir

[QUOTE="princeofshapeir"]

[QUOTE="CJ_ofCamelot"] Turn based combat is usually a clean safe bet.hayato_

Traditional turn-based means when it's your time to attack, opponents can't do anything for the duration of your turn

In active combat in CT your opponents can attack you while it's your time to attack, and vice versa

Positioning and movement isn't the defining element of turn-based RPG combat, though it is something that sets turn-based RPGs apart from real-time RPGs. Chrono Trigger still uses a combat system that is closer to real-time combat and does not utilize turns in a traditional sense, like FF6

Like any other media, most range from mediocre to crap with a resounding 5% actually being worth it.

That 5% though has dramatically moved away from consoles (outside of a few). People really need to just know that handhelds are where it's at.

Also, the YS series on Steam are fantastic :)

When the games are legit good they can be fantastic for reasons like some excellent battle design, clever and engaging boss fights, fun game worlds/questing, good soundtrack, and some decent story beats along the way.

Usually though the genre's main drawbacks across the board usually cover the story being anime level nonsense, the battles being straight forward and simplistic to a fault, the game is poorly paced and padded for the people that pretend 40 hours of garbage is better than a better paced 10 hour game, some really bad level design, and all around the game feels like work before the game is ready to be enjoyable.

Back in the PS1/PS2 I was more willing to tolerate waiting for a game to be fun. Now? f*ck that.

I Like JRPGs, sadly like many others said, alot of them have declined, trying to imitate games and stories already out there.

The impact of the RPGs simply can not be recreated, because we already experienced it, but somehow The devs does not seem to agree.

I REALLY like the persona games, The world ends with You was really good aswell, and ther ehave been the random interresting games. But this gen most of the games have been remakes of stories I allready saw, with character stereotypes I allready playied, except they get less and less unique and more and more run of the mill.

I played Ni No Kuni, that was fun. That's pretty much it :P.

[QUOTE="hayato_"][QUOTE="princeofshapeir"] CT isn't exactly turn-based if you choose active combat

princeofshapeir

Traditional turn-based means when it's your time to attack, opponents can't do anything for the duration of your turn

In active combat in CT your opponents can attack you while it's your time to attack, and vice versa

Positioning and movement isn't the defining element of turn-based RPG combat, though it is something that sets turn-based RPGs apart from real-time RPGs. Chrono Trigger still uses a combat system that is closer to real-time combat and does not utilize turns in a traditional sense, like FF6

I think JRPGs are one of the worst type of games in existence.

Firstly let's start with aesthetics, these games have some of the worst art designs in history. They either have this washed out low budget anime look, or use the lame ass chibi designs. Very few try to look like FF13 or Xenoblade.

Secondly the stories are something you expect from some random lame shounen anime, with tons of cliches, asspulls and shitty characters meant to appeal to a teenage audience. Vanile? Seriously?  

Thirdly the voice acting in these are generally atrocious. Just look at the tales english trailers for an example.

Next up, the gameplay of these is normally bad, or very grindy. Random battles in a turn based game isn't cool, neither is having to grind (AT ALL) to progress.

The only thing I can say good about them is that some have some truly outstanding soundtracks.