The video game industry continues to evolve in exciting ways and as the next generation of gaming looms closer it’s fun to speculate on what genres of titles will be the most popular. Video game genres like shooters and fighters have always been reasonably successful, but the ‘90s were a huge time for RPGs.
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There has been an increased respect for RPGs over the years anda deeper interest in JRPGs, which fall back on the fundamentals of the genre. It’s easy to single out franchises likeFinal Fantasyfor the changes that they’ve made, but there are many other important JRPG titles out there, too.
10Breath Of Fire
Capcom had a serious contender of a JRPG series during the ‘90s and early 2000s with theirBreath of Fireseries. The franchise began on the Super Nintendo and acted as a satisfying alternative to theFinal Fantasygames. Something that helped make theBreath of Fireseries stand out among its contemporaries is the concept where the main character, Ryu, can transform into a dragon.
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This dimension adds a lot of depth and pushes the games in directions that were unexplored in RPGs at the time.
9Suikoden
Konami’sSuikodenfranchise came out in the mid-’90s during the height of JRPGs on the PlayStation and even though there’s a large and complex series that’s grown over time, theSuikodentitles are somewhat intimidating to newcomers.Suikodenis rather ambitious in terms of its scope, which contains overlapping narratives that cover multiple time periods.
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The games revolve around corrupt government, coup d’états, and battles that circle epic revolutions where the lines between good and evil are often in flux. They offer a more ornate and intense narrative that pulls upon Chinese history for its inspiration.
8Mother
Many JRPGs strive to create fantastical worlds that are so far removed from reality. TheMotherseries,more commonly known asEarthboundin America, isn’t the first JRPG that’s set in a contemporary, urban setting, but it’s perhaps the best example of it.
TheMothertitles really helped demonstrate how JRPGs don’t need to involve gruff protagonists or powerful dragons and that sometimes a boy and a yo-yo is more than enough to tell a powerful story. An impressive narrative spans across these three games, but its approach to weapons, enemies, and environments is still being emulated in modern titles.
7Xenogears
Xenogearshas a fascinating history where it started as both a pitch forFinal Fantasy VIIand then a sequel toChrono Triggerbefore Square thought it should be its own project. TheXenogearsfranchise is still going strong and it managed to survive thanks to how it incorporates mechas called Gears into the combat and gameplay.
There’s also a brilliant blend of science fiction with probing psychology and religious themes, all of which highlight how JRPGs can become quite operatic and diverse in their scope.
6Fire Emblem
TheFire Emblemfranchisetook some time to catch on in America and while they’ve progressively incorporated matchmaking components, the franchise has still made an undeniable mark on the JRPG genre. TheFire Emblemgames feature courageous knights and the kinds of archetypical heroes that dominate the genre.
It adds a tactical strategy element to the RPG structure and it creates a game with a much more intricate battle system that deals with massive armies. TheFire Emblemgames help show the evolution and risks that were being taken as these games still tried to learn what’s successful.
5Kingdom Hearts
Something likeKingdom Heartssounds like a crazed fever dreammore than it does a popular video game franchise, but that’s part of the magic of the elastic boundaries of JRPGs. TheKingdom Heartsseries decides to mash together the worlds ofFinal Fantasyand Disney films to create a truly unique experience.
Arguably, the overarching story of these games has gotten out of control, but they’re still important for what they’ve shown is possible with crossover ventures and how opposites can attract in a truly wild way.
4Chrono Trigger
AlthoughChrono Triggercame out decades ago on the Super Nintendo, it’s still a title thatroutinely gets brought up in discussionsabout formative video games. There are many current RPGs that strive to mimic its style and scope but often struggle.
Chrono Triggertakes the best elements fromFinal Fantasyand then pushes it all to a more challenging place with a plot that heavily revolves around time travel. The fluid use of time, its cause and effect nature, as well as the large roster of possible characters helped show that time can be just as important as location.
3Phantasy Star
TheFinal Fantasyseries stayed away fromSega systems and during the earlier years of the console wars, it was thePhantasy Starseries that was the JRPG alternative for Sega fans. The series is set in a futuristic world that borrows plenty fromFinal Fantasybut still forges its own path.
The science fiction influence on the series makes it a standout and it reaches some darkly apocalyptic places. The first title, for the Sega Master System, also combines maze-like dungeons with the genre in an inventive way.
2Persona
Starting as theShin Megami Tenseiseries, thePersonagames are one of the best examples of how to approach a modern JRPGthat looks towards the future of the genre. The series mixes JRPG staples with the minutiae of high school.
It’s as much a gripping sociology experiment as it is a game about combat.Personaproves that a mysterious world with dangerous enemies can hide in plain sight and it’s been incredible to see the tangents that thePersonaseries has taken over time.
1Dragon Quest
If there’s any JRPG franchise on here that has as much notoriety as theFinal Fantasygames then it’sdefinitely theDragon Questseries. The franchise doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel and it features a typical adventure where good vanquishes evil in a lush fantasy world.
A solid series of games that steadily refines its gameplay and features progressively moving narratives have helpedDragon Queststand out over the years. Additional elements, like Akira Toriyama’s character designs, have also helped the series build a unique personality.
