Hello everyone! I really want to get into the jrpg genre but I have no idea which game would be good for a beginner. I have played persona 5 and I really enjoyed it. Any recommendations would be really appreciated!
Are you into pixel art?
If so, I would recommend:
- Chrono Trigger is a genre-defining classic and definitely still enjoyable IMO. The difficulty is quite easy overall and the game doesn’t require any real grinding.
- If you want something more fresh, Chained Echoes is a modern take on a lot of classic JRPG formulas, but still retains a lot of that great classic feel and beautiful pixel art.
If you’re more interested in 3D stuff, Final Fantasy VII Remake is an excellent JRPG. While not turn based, it is accessible to beginners as you can tone down the difficulty a lot. Also, don’t worry about the “VII” - you don’t really need to know anything going into it.
I have had chained echoes on my wishlist for a pretty long time and I will probably buy it. It looks really good and I like pixel art but also want something more modern.
Chrono Trigger for sure. It’s considered one of the JRPGs of all time and is relatively short with little no grinding.
Xenoblade chronicals and dragon quest are both good
Xenoblade is one of my favourite series of all times! Definitely recommend!
Never played dragon quest but DQ11 looks so good.
Also it depends on what you’re looking for, jrpgs are a vast category and persona feels very different from final fantasy.
Are you looking for something turn based or real time/action? What setting would you like?
Honestly! Xenoblade is genuinely such a good game/series and I don’t see people talking about it as much as it deserves
Not seeing it mentioned anywhere, but if you manage to emulate mother/earthbound and start getting into it you’re in for a wild ride.
Those game made the history not only of jrpgs, but of videogames in general.
Furthermore, thier spiritual successors are contemporary classics, like Undertale and OMORI (which are both more story-heavy than gameplay-heavy)
I have played Undertale and it’s definitely in my top 3 favourite games. I have to look more into Omori though. My main concern with it is that it looks pretty dark but maybe it’s fun, I don’t know.
Final Fantasy VI, AKA Final Fantasy III, as it was called stateside when I first played it in the 90s (I bought it at Media Play, anyone remember that?).
Great cast of recruitable characters that isn’t too large, in my opinion, and the Esper system is pretty great. Also, for me, one of the most impactful JRPG storylines of all time.
Have fun, whatever you choose! It’s a great genre, but time consuming. If a game doesn’t click for you within 15 or so hours, it may not be one for you.
