RPGs part 2

A conversation about PS1 RPGs came up the other day and it really got me thinking about them. For a long time the Roleplaying genre was a colorful and interesting one, it was the focus of my gaming attention. I'm not talking for a little while either. My interest in RPGs ran from NES to PS2, a time frame which covers roughly 20 years. There was a time when new and innovative RPGs were coming out every few months and there was always a new game somewhere on the horizon to enthrall your attention after beating your current outing. While other games came and went there was almost always an RPG in the background that I was playing through long term.

Sadly the time for the console roleplaying game has passed. All of the features from classic RPGs have been dissected and implanted into every major game on the market. The interest in deep statistics has made its way into nearly all genres. Its so saturated now that there is a great difficulty in distinguishing what is a modern RPG. Games like Dragon Age and Oblivion are hardly traditional since they take most of their elements from western/computer RPGs. They've taken over the limelight from classic console/Japanese RPGs. Maybe it was time, as I've discussed in the past, since the Japanese seem content to stagnate. The DS carries the flag of the classic RPG while the consoles simply ignore the genre entirely. Times have changed, times have definitely changed.

To get to what is my original point I'm going to quickly discuss roleplaying games for the original PlayStation. I'm going to put down a list of good, bad and unplayed games for the system and put a little blurb about each one. Plus a pointless star system that I'll never use again! So enjoy my rundown and feel free to comment!

GREAT PS1 RPGS
- Final Fantasy VII -
One of the best Final Fantasy games and one of the top PS1 games ever made. It was a major jump from 2D to 3D, but this game did so successfully. It has one of the strongest legacies of any video game ever and is still much loved 13 years later. A personal favorite. *****

- SaGa Frontier -
Not everybody liked this game but for me it was great. Six scenarios to play through and dozens of characters across an imaginative open world. This Squaresoft game was the first non-linear RPG that I ever played. The prerendered (remember that term!) backgrounds were colorful and full of character. The music was catchy and always set an appropriate mood. I really loved this game. ****

- Persona 2 -
Though we only had half of this game released in America I have since played the other half. It's a solid entry into a great series. RPG games set in the modern era are few and far between and often not very good. This was set in modern Japan and featured a compelling epic story that wasn't as hackneyed as so many other storylines. So much better than the "Tactics Advance" games that came after. ****1/2

- Final Fantasy Tactics -
The best strategy RPG of all time was one of the first. Tactics was an offshoot of the popular series and featured many of the same elements as older FF games, including job classes and chocobos. The world in this game was well imagined and well planned out. It had a great political and religious storyline that is very serious, mature and original. Hard to believe such and mature, serious story came from a Japanese developer! If you haven't played it you MUST try it somehow. ****1/2

- Suikoden 2 -
True story, I made a $30 profit on this game! I held onto it for about 5 years then sold it on eBay for $90. If I still had it I'd be able to sell it for $200 or so I'm sure. This is in such high demand because it's one of the best RPGs of the system. The graphics are absolutely beautiful. The story is brilliant. The characters are great. It has all the elements of a great game but also has an x-factor that makes for something special. ****

GOOD PS1 RPGS
- SaGa Frontier II -
They hype for this game was very misleading to me. They built it up to be a game where your decisions could have an effect on the world and storyline. It was nothing like that. It was an odd game where small chapters, usually encompassing only a single dungeon, would be played out over the course of 50ish years and cover two distinct stories. It's playable but limited. Wonderful art at least. ***

- Breath of Fire III -
Breath of Fire was a decent SNES series that made the jump to the next generation in this game. It was a fun game that suffered from lacking anything distinct. The story was pretty strong and ended up sort of sad and hopeless. ***1/2

- Breath of Fire IV -
Not as good as the third one in my opinion. The characters were weaker and the story wasn't up to the same level. It used the same system and had similar graphics. ***

- Chrono Cross -
The sequel to the fantastic Chrono Trigger was nowhere near the level of it's predecessor. That isn't to say this was a bad game. It was very good in fact as a standalone outing. Attached to the all time SNES favorite, however, forced it to be measured against that game. It came up far short of the time traveling classic. ***

- Final Fantasy VIII -
7 it was not, but also bad it was not. It was also measured against it's predecessor and unfavorably so. I loved the game for many reasons. Not the story, oh god not the story. The characters were well done, in particular Laguna Loire who served as a side character. The battle system was solid and the graphics were amazing for the time. Realistic characters were featured for the first time in a Final Fantasy. ***

- Final Fantasy IX -
Not great but not bad. This game returned to the cutesy characters for the last time in a Final Fantasy game. It also featured the last low-tech world in a main series FF game. Comparatively the weakest of the series on the PS1. ***

- Final Fantasy: Origins, Chronicles, Adventures -
Ports of the Squaresoft SNES classics. Hard to really rate them. Cool to see them on a new system, certainly, even though they didn't play as smooth on a CD as on a cartridge. no rating

- Front Mission 3 -
A semi-futuristic strategy RPG that featured giant mechs as the combat tools. Cool storyline that involved four modern superpowers jockeying for position. The storyline seemed like something out of Tom Clancy. Another modern(ish) setting means it gets brownie points. ***1/2

- Grandia -
Originally a Sega Saturn game I believe. This port wasn't the best RPG out there and honestly had a lot of plot holes and a poorly imagined world. It had some cheerful graphics and music as well as a fun combat system. ***

- Legend of Dragoon -
I never beat this game in all honesty. It may not be well remembered, but at the time there was a lot of hype behind this game. It was Sony developed and thus got a lot of their advertising money. The game itself was okay but nothing special. It felt like a poor man's Final Fantasy, a cross between 7 & 8. It had unique combat mechanics that weren't seen again until Lost Odyssey. ***

- Legend of Mana -
An action RPG and maybe the only one I'll include. The USA never got Seiken Densetsu 3, so this was the first Mana game we'd seen since Secret of Mana. The 'world building' scheme was stupid, but the rest of the game was great. The backgrounds, characters, missions, weapons, and music just worked together perfectly. It was non-linear and not for everybody, but for me it was a worthy successor to the Mana spirit. ***1/2

- Lunar Silver Star Story -
At first I was reluctant to play this Sega Saturn port, but in the end I caved in and was glad I did. While unspectacular and featuring nothing new or original it did a fine job of utilizing the standard mechanics. Decent game and the anime cutscenes were well done. ***

- Tactics Ogre -
A lot like Final Fantasy Tactics and for a good reason, they were both made by the same guy. Originally a Super Famicom game, it was translated and released in the USA on the PS1. The story wasn't as good as FFT nor were the graphics. It was still quite fun. It was deep and had a lot of secrets to be found, like secret party members, if you were willing to look. I put a lot of time into this one. ***1/2

- Parasite Eve -
An old series that never moved beyond the PS1 (until recently). This Squaresoft game was set in a modern New York that was really well imagined. Very unique combat system that let this game stand out against all the rest. ***

- Persona -
The first in the brilliant series, and undoubtedly the weakest. A cast of teenage characters go into an alternate world to fight against demons and monsters. The graphics were lacking, but everything else was solid. Set the foundations for the series but not the best example. ***

- Star Ocean 2 -
An Enix game that featured a world spanning storyline about a space pilot from Earth that is stranded on an alien world. The game featured an affinity system that let the characters in your party build up friendships with each other that affected game play and the ending. The promise of "80 endings" was a bit misleading. The combat was live action, which hadn't been seen before really. ***1/2

- Suikoden -
One of the earliest RPGs for the system and it was a wonderful example of what to expect from the system. 108 characters to be recruited was unprecedented coming out of the 16-bit era. The story was a standard evil empire affair but the characters were well developed and their were so many twists and turns I was always on the edge of my seat. The large scale strategic battles were fun as hell. ***1/2

- Tales of Destiny -
One of the long running Tales series of games. It didn't strike me as anything special, but also it wasn't particularly at anything it did. Pretty standard fare except for the battles, which were fought on a 2D plane much like Street Fighter 2. It was tolerable but honestly not worth playing more than once or twice. ***

- Vandal Hearts -
Strategy RPG. It had a lot of bloodletting. It seriously gushed blood for every dead enemy. Just a fountain of blood! This story was about an army fighting against bad guys... the usual. The game was fun despite being nothing great. The ending was ambiguous and sort of sad. Memorable for the blood. ***

- Valkyrie Profile -
Similar to other games but very refined. The graphics were dark and detailed. The storyline was a unique blending of a fantasy world and Nordic mythology. Every mission was a recruitment mission. The characters were then built up and sent away to prepare for Ragnarok, and you could continually check the status of your 'einharjar". The sequel didn't live up to this classic. The combat was button mashing craziness! ***1/2

- Wild Arms -
The second RPG I ever played on the PS1. It combines standard RPG controls with a psuedo-wild west world. The graphics were hardly better than an SNES game, and the combat graphics featured very basic 3D models. The story wasn't great and left a lot to be desired. The game was, despite everything else, fun to play. There was a remake of this game on the PS2 that I never managed to play, and it spawned a series that is currently in it's 5th game. ***

- Xenogears -
This game would be higher up the list if it weren't for the second disc. The first disc, however, is some of the best stuff available. 2D sprites in a 3D world actually works in this game. The combat is exciting live action stuff, and comes in both mech and human form. The game world is well designed and thought out with some seriously interesting places to visit. Fate feels strong in this game as you are pulled by several manipulating forces towards the end. The second disc is terrible, though, and undoes everything from the first. It was rushed, clearly, and starts playing like a powerpoint presentation only broken up by the occasional battle. It's very, very bad and ruins the game. ***

- Wild Arms 2 -
Solid game though not better than the first one. Featured improved graphics and new gameplay ideas. The "seeker" system on the overworld still pisses me off as the Wild Arms developers have used it in every game since. **1/2

BAD PS1 RPGS
- Kartia -
The worst strategy RPG on the system. Boring mechanics, ugly graphics and a foolish chapter system make a terrible game. Does nothing new and doesn't draw you in. Forgettable. *1/2

- Beyond the Beyond -
The earliest RPG for the system so it was obligatory for a lot of people. Sadly it was a giant pile of shit. It had Genesis graphics and gameplay that was clunky and boring. A cookie cutter JRPG storyline. Absolute crap. *

- Legend of Legaia -
Thinking back I initially liked the game but ended up hating it. The whole game was a bit weird, from the story to the graphics. It didn't look good and it didn't play good and ended up being unsatisfying. **

- Rhapsody -
Awful, awful game. Japanese cutesy shit. It was like watching one of those terrible "cute girls" anime shows. Humor for idiots and characters clearly meant for and written by five year olds. The graphics were unattractive and the music sucked. It was a "musical" RPG and the music sucked! That says it right there. *

- Saiyuki: Journey West -
This strategy RPG was based on the classic Chinese tale. It was in the end just a standard game that offered nothing more than the battles, and those weren't great. The graphics were good but the game itself was so underwhelming that graphics didn't make up for it. Little was on offer here and that's why most people never heard of this game. **

- Thousand Arms -
Everyone confused this with a sequel to Wild Arms, but it was in reality something far different. An RPG crossed with a Japanese dating game. I'm not even kidding, the biggest feature this game had going for it was the ability to date a half dozen of the female characters! That's something that just does NOT play well here in the States. Since the dating was the focus of the game there was little else worth noting as it was just a below average RPG. *1/2

- Vandal Hearts II -
A better story than the first one and it had four or five different outcomes (I never got the damn GOOD ending!). The character designs were actually pretty terrible and bland. The biggest piece of shit about this game was the battles. You and one random enemy would move at the same time which would lead to some frustrating battles. **

- Jade Cocoon -
Overrated and promoted far too much. Not as good as was advertised. Didn't have a lot going for it in the end. *1/2

PS1 RPGs Never Played
- Vanguard Bandits
- Vagrant Story
- Tales of Destiny II
- Parasite Eve II
- Lunar 2 Eternal Blue
- Arc the Lad Collection (Played 2 0f 3)
- Darkstone
- Dragon Warrior VII
- Granstream Saga
- Hoshigami
- Koudelka
- Shadow Madness