Game Recommendations

[a bad post]

So I've got some gift cards lying around that I plan on using soon, as well as a little extra money. Basically what I'm looking for are some recommendations for some turn-based RPGs (similar gameplay to Persona/FFX) or some strategy RPGs (similar gameplay to DeSu/FE). As for what system it doesn't matter just through ideas out there and I'll worry about whether or I can play it or not later. 

[Yosuke-kun]

rpg's:

[b]Resonance of Fate:[/b] Kind of an rpg game made by Sega. It's multiplatform so the sytem you play it on really makes no difference. Don't bother getting into the story though, because it's fucking confusing to understand and not very good anyways. By that, I mean they give you only fragments of the plot and then say "piece it together". Some of the levels are downright BS too. That being said, it's a ton of fun to play and mixes real time combat with turn based combat fairly well, and is overall just fun to play.

 

[b]Tales of Xillia:[/b] By far one of the most engaging plot's that I've ever experienced in an rpg game. Each of the characters feels like they get a fair amount of development and there's not a single one that I don't like. Okay that's not true. Milla is honestly one of the saddest excuses for a female protagonist that that I've seen. If you like her though, then the game is fine. Combat takes a more fast-paced action game approach to it, and focuses on comboing the hell out of enemies while still strategizing how to keep you and your team alive, as well linking attacks together with your team. This is one of my favorite games out there, and is definitely worth looking into if you're a fan of rpgs. Oh and I believe it's animated by ufotable, which for those who don't know is the animation company behind Fate/Zero. I don't know for sure if it was them, but I heard somewhere that it was.

Will add more, but I got a doctors appointment I need to get to.

[Kazooie]

Bravely Default if you haven't played it already. It's very similar to FF (Think it was by the same people, can't remember) and very good. Warning that the mid game does tend to drag on, but if you're doing the sidequests it's still pretty awesome. Early game and late game are both fantastic.

 

Also getting a sequel sometime, no idea when though. :'D

[.Rai]

I'll echo Bravely Default. Child of Light perhaps as well. Totally different aesthetic to. All the games listed here, but it's absolutely gorgeous and a quite elegant whimsical take on the RPG genre.

[Kazooie]

Oh I dunno if it's quite what you're looking for, but Eternal Sonata is a fantastic game too. Would recommend it.

[Yosuke-kun]

Oh I dunno if it's quite what you're looking for, but Eternal Sonata is a fantastic game too. Would recommend it.

I was gonna recommend that too. It's really good but it's major drawback is that the pacing and plot is written as if it were a play rather than a video game. While I personally don't have a problem with that but it's turned people I know away from it before. The music is also, as you might assume with a name like Eternal Sonata, is one of the best parts of the game too. Also it's a fairly cheap game anyways, so even of you don't like it in the end you won't have spent too much on it. Overall it's at least worth looking into.

Shin Megami Tensei IV: If you liked Persona and Devil Survivor you'll probably like this. I say 4 specifically because it's most recent, so it's probably the easiest to get a hard copy for. While the plot is lackluster and ultimately the same recycled plot that the last 3 games used, the setting is what really holds the game together. It's a perfect example of a story that despite being just meh on it's own is made great due to the world you play in. The difficulty is a little strange, since the first couple parts are incredibly hard only for the remainder of the game is laughably easy, but it's still enjoyable nonetheless.

Final Fantasy Tactics: Literally FF x Fe. Tactics sports an amusingly challenging gameplay system that plays a lot like the FE games. The story for most of them is interesting as well with a pretty amazing art style. The fact that you can basically create your entire army is a fun addition too. Admittedly the setting wasn't that interesting, but where SMT falls short FFT exceeds and vice versa.

[The Amazing Avian]

If you like Westerns, Wild Arms.

[a bad post]

I've played Bravely Default (I've even asked you for help sometimes Caeda don't you remember ;-;) and SMTIV both thoroughly  and can't wait for Bravely Second. Tales, I've played a little of before, but I don't think I've ever finished any of the tales games either. Resonance of Fate doesn't seem to be what I'm looking for though. Child of Light and FF Tactics seem to be right up my alley. Thanks for all the suggestions guys!

[Kazooie]

(I've even asked you for help sometimes Caeda don't you remember ;-;)

 

i can't remember anything elly ;-;

[Tourmaline]

Were you into Bleach at all?

 

If you want a strategy RPG reminiscent of Fire Emblem, Bleach: 3rd Phantom is almost exactly Fire Emblem with a Bleach skin on it. The characters can reach a cap of level 99, though, and all their stats can reach that and you can also focus on specific skillsets. 

[Supreme Gamesmaster]

DID SOMEBODY SAY RECOMMEND THEM ROLEPLAYING GAMES

I THINK SOMEONE IS SHINING THE LABYRINTH OF TOUHOU SIGNAL

QUICK, ROBIN, TO THE TOUHOUMOBILE

 

Labyrinth of Touhou 2: Gensokyo and the Heaven-Piercing Great Tree.

My favourite RPG ever. It doesn't have an official English release, so buying it is a bit of a pain, but there's instructions on how to do it [url=https://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php/topic,17586.0.html]here[/url] (along with patch links, discussion, info, etc.) English patch is [url=http://www.mediafire.com/download/5vxm0keb11l4o3b/Labyrinth+of+Touhou+2+exe+files+img12.rar]here[/url], or you can Google it if the link dies. This is for PC, of course.

What I love about this series is, it makes things convenient for you. It doesn't tie you down with false difficulty; it instead makes managing your party as convenient as possible so you can focus on the challenge of the actual fights. There's no need to pay for Scrolls of Recall or the like - you can return to your home base at any time, and then return to any point in the dungeon you have a relay point at, at will. Likewise, no need to pay for inns - characters automatically fully recover every time you return to home base, and they recover all their HP after every fight anyway. Defeat is downright common, even on random encounters (which are about as sophisticated as random encounters can get) - but "game over" is a formality, to the point where there's an achievement for getting wiped twelve times.

The combat system is the most consistently involving one I've ever seen. Each character has two to five spells, and they essentially can't learn any more. However, there are forty-six characters, and you can have twelve with you at any one time: four in battle, and eight in "reserve," where they recover HP and MP. Battle involves switching among these various characters and using their array of buffs, debuffs, status conditions, and utility spells to overcome increasingly fascinating enemies. Mashing "attack" is very rare: the "attack" command is only good for cleaning up weak random encounters after you've already softened them up. Every battle is interesting, and every game mechanic - speed and the action economy, MP, debuffs - is up for grabs (e.g., there's a character who focuses on debuffing herself as much as possible, since she has a skill where all the debuffs on her are treated as buffs instead).

The balance is incredibly good - no character is ever completely useless, and even the toughest bosses are fair (with one notable exception on the eighth floor, ahem). This is a game that knows you've played lots of RPGs before, knows what makes RPGs good, and then skips to the good stuff, letting you jump over everything in between. Grinding is rarely necessary, and when it is, it doesn't take long at all. The time most games spend on grinding, Labyrinth of Touhou spends having you explore the rather expansive dungeon for treasure and the like. And, of course, trying tough battles over and over, slightly refining your strategy each time. (Get a game over against a boss, and the game gives you a "Retry" button to immediately start the fight over with the same party and items.)

Caveat: The story is perfectly good, but it's very minimal. This is a gameplay-focused game; it won't spin an epic saga for you. It's possible to ignore the story completely and not miss anything.

 

Labyrinth of Touhou.

The above is a sequel to this. The production values are lower, and the beginning is a bit of a slog. It has a different MP system, fewer characters, no skill trees, and no store, and it's missing a lot of the small conveniences that make the sequel great. But besides that, it's basically the same game. Once you get up to the 5th, 6th, 7th floors, it starts getting really good.

Not sure where you can buy it. It's probably much easier to find free downloads than paid ones at this point. Still recommend it like crazy, though. If you're at all interested in playing both games in this series, I recommend you play the first one first. Once you've played the second game, it's hard to go back to the early floors of the original. If you aren't interested in playing both games, skip to the second one; it's much more polished, though again, they're basically the same combat system both times. And the second game makes no reference whatsoever to the first one, so you aren't missing anything skipping to the sequel except another amazing RPG.

Also: Again, very little story. Actually, the start of this one has almost no story. I think the developers weren't quite sure what they wanted when they first started making this one, which is why, for both gameplay and story, it only hits its stride a few floors in.

I've actually beaten Labyrinth of Touhou two or three times, and my first playthrough's gotten to the last floor of the postgame and level three hundred something. I'm playing my second playthrough of the sequel now. I, uh, like this series. A lot.

 

</fanboyrantingaboutobscuregames>

[Agro]

Don't play a Touhou game. You don't want to go down that dark alley.

Ni No Kuni isn't turn based, but it's basically Ghibli Pokémon.
Suikoden II had been impossible to find until it got released on PSN for PS3 (and I think Vita), so def take a look at that.
Banner Saga is amazing and I'm surprised Rai didn't at least mention it.
Dragon Quest VIII > FFX
Earthbound
Costume Quest for when October rolls around
Final Fantasy Tactics
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Chrono Trigger

I don't know my rpg genres

[Smear]

The World Ends With You basically because it's the best NDS game ever made in the history of like ever

#fanboy

[Cosmo.]

Good rpg games mhmm......

 

 

Child of Light: Graphics are stunning, music too, and it has a very cool fightning system

Earthbound: Super quirky game, give some love to it, so we might see Mother 3 in the rest of the world!

 

Then idk, i haven't played many rpg games

[Yosuke-kun]

I can attest to Chrono Trigger.

Xeno Gears is also worth looking into.

Oh and it's not quite and RPG but Parasite Eve is also really good. Really any rpg that Square made post FFXII is really good with FFXII being okay, but somewhat underrated since it had a plot that was somewhat reminiscent of Game of Thrones x Final Fantasy. Avoid FFXIII like the plague though. It's unadulterated garbage in terms of rpg's and does literally everything an rpg's can do wrong.

[.Rai]

Banner Saga is amazing and I'm surprised Rai didn't at least mention it.

I'm dumb. Yeah, Banner Saga is also a massive recommendation.