Four Things That Make JRPGs Great

What Makes A Great JRPG?

           

There’s something almost intangible about what makes an RPG truly special. Sometimes, the game’s mechanics, storyline, and presentation all come together and make a truly great experience, one that is more than the sum of its parts. Of course, sometimes one aspect of a game can be lacking, but it will have other features in excess, and it will still end up being enjoyable. Still other games just flat out suck, and fail to grasp even the fundamentals of good game design, making for a joyless, soul-crushing experience.  

            

Now, I came off from playing Xenosaga Episode 1 (which is one of those games that flat out sucks, just so we’re clear) and was feeling very, very disengaged from gaming afterwards. A double dose of Ocarina of Time and Shin Megami Tensei IV provided a cure of sorts, and though the Xenosaga games left a bitter taste in my mouth, they got me thinking about what makes the RPG genre tick for me. Where do some games succeed where others fail? I don’t really have any grand thesis where this topic is concerned, since a lot of it boils down to personal preference, but there are a few things that I think makes RPGs that much more enjoyable. Interestingly, these are all things that Xenosaga Episode 1 completely failed to provide, so consider this a protracted takedown of this awful, awful game, as well as an opportunity to remember some truly fantastic games that are far more deserving of a player’s time.

           

I will, for the record, leave my original review of Xenosaga 1 on the site, even though it really isn’t representative of my opinion of the game anymore (I would have been much, MUCH harsher).

Number One- Have an Exciting Beginning

         

My Review: Final Fantasy IX (PS1)

My Review: Final Fantasy IX (PS1)

It could be said that each generation of consoles put a unique spin on its particular batch of Final Fantasy games. This is particularly evident with the Playstation trio of Final Fantasies VII, VIII, and IX, which are among the most influential games of their genre. Final Fantasy IX is, in many aspects, the end of an era for the series: afterward, the series would go through many radical changes, and IX does seem to be the most recent ‘traditional’ Final Fantasy game. Perhaps this is because Final Fantasy IX was made as a throwback to the classic style of Final Fantasy, but with the design of the PlayStation entries, blending more lighthearted tone and colorful aesthetics with the storytelling and technological panache we expected from Square at the time. Final Fantasy IX isn’t just a great game- it’s a swan song for the entire series, as well as one of the best Playstation RPGs ever made.

STORY

Final Fantasy IX takes place in the world of Gaia, a land enshrouded in a Mist made from the spirits of the dead. In the Kingdom of Alexandria, Queen Brahne lists for power, and is waging war on neighboring kingdoms in order to expand her domain. When Zidane Tribal, a monkey-tailed member of the theater group Tantalus, kidnaps Princess Garnett of Alexandria, he discovers that she intended to escape from her mother, and wants to discover why she is behaving in this manner. Along with Garnett’s loyal knight Steiner, the young black mage Vivi, and a host of other colorful characters, Zidane becomes embroiled in a quest to save the world from Brahne’s ambition, as well as to free Brahne from the influence of an arms dealer named Kuja, and eventually discover the secret of another world linked to Gaia…

Final Fantasy IX- First Impressions

It seems odd that, this Christmas, I completed my collection of the main numbered Final Fantasy titles (not including, of course, XI and XIV) when I got a PSP and Final Fantasy 1 and 2 for it. This segues into something completely unrelated, because I'm playing Final Fantasy IX as my current console playthrough after downloading it from the Playstation Network. So, there you go.

Final Fantasy IX is one of the most highly regarded RPGs of all time, one I'd been looking forward to playing for a while. While some people were put off by it's more colorful and cartoony aesthetic, myself and others really enjoy the game because of it's throwback to a more traditional style of Final Fantasy. It's more lighthearted tone and upbeat characters serve as a refreshing breath of fresh air after dealing with ennui-exuding protagonists such as Squall. It helps, too, that Final Fantasy IX is one of the best looking 32 bit RPGs ever made, rivalling Chrono Cross.

The plot stars Zidane, a happy-go-lucky bandit who, along with his band of merry men, tries to kidnap Princess Garnett of the kingdom of Alexandria. They are pursued by her loyal knight, Steiner, as well as a black mage named Vivi. I'm not very far into the story- I only just got out of the Ice Cavern- but so far, while the characters are clearly meant to invoke RPG archetypes (paladin, white mage, thief, etc.), they are still an interesting group of characters, and so far they don't seem generic or boring in the slightest. This is a game where use of classic RPG storytelling tropes serves it well.

Final Fantasy IX also has a very interesting character development system. Character abilities are tied to their equipment- by equiping a piece of armor or a weapon, characters will be able to use the ability tied to that piece of equipment (unless the character is unable to use that ability in the first place). Once enough AP is earned in battle, though, the character masters the ability and no longer needs the equipment to be able to use it- it's theirs to keep. If I could have one complaint about the game so far, it's that the Trance mode, the game's Limit Break system, takes a long time to build up, considerably more than those in other FF games. I've heard there is an ability later down the road which speeds up Trance mode, so we'll see if this remains an issue.

Old Review- Dragon Quest IX (DS)

In all honesty, one of the best RPGs in recent memory. I wrote this review in March, right before I beat the game.

My Review- Dragon Quest IX : Sentinels of the Starry Skies (DS)

The Dragon Quest series is one of the most famous in RPG history, right up there with Final Fantasy. Created by Square’s rival company Enix, the Dragon Quest series began on the NES and is widely seen as the first ‘console-style’ role-playing game. The series was taken over by Square Enix (the two rivals having merged), and with help of developer Level Five (creators of Dark Cloud and Rogue Galaxy), they brought the series into the 21st century with Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King, which is often recognized as one of the best role-playing games on the PS2.. Journey of the Cursed King had a massive open world, superb voice acting, and a lengthy quest, while keeping series traditions intact. It was surprising, then, when series creator Yuji Horii announced that the 9th installment would be on the Nintendo DS rather than a modern console. Dragon Quest IX continues the trend of obscenely long subtitles, but does it live up to its respected name?