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/vr/ - Retro Games


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File: 131 KB, 1280x1200, NES Famicom JRPGs Chrono.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5692463 No.5692463 [Reply] [Original]

Talk about your favorites. I made this chart with some of the ones I keep seeing as being the best, using the original Japanese titles. They are, in order of release:

Dragon Quest: May 27, 1986
Dragon Quest II: January 26, 1987
Tōjin Makyō Den: Heracles no Eikō: June 12, 1987
Legacy of the Wizard: July 9, 1987
The Magic of Scheherazade: September 3, 1987
Faxanadu: November 16, 1987
Final Fantasy: December 18, 1987
Dragon Quest III: February 10, 1988
Final Fantasy II: December 17, 1988
River City Ransom: April 25, 1989
Destiny of an Emperor: May 19, 1989
Willow: July 18, 1989
Mother: July 27, 1989
Sweet Home: December 15, 1989
Heracles no Eikō II: Titan no Metsubō: December 23, 1989
Dragon Quest IV: February 11, 1990
Crystalis: April 13, 1990
Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light: April 20, 1990
Final Fantasy III: April 27, 1990
Tenchi wo Kurau II: April 5, 1991
Lagrange Point: April 26, 1991
Metal Max: May 24, 1991
Radia Senki: Reimeihen: November 15, 1991
Fire Emblem Gaiden: March 14, 1992
Just Breed: December 15, 1992

All of these have either official English releases or fan translations.

Yesterday I downloaded Metal Max and it's a surprisingly pleasant JRPG. Then again, it was released late in the lifespan of the NES.

>> No.5692485

>>5692463
>Final Fantasy II: December 17, 1988

Dude, this is GARBAGE.

>> No.5692491

>>5692485
Yeah, there are a few that people usually overlook
>Dragon Quest
>Dragon Quest II
>Final Fantasy II
>Fire Emblem Gaiden
I don't know about the Glory of Heracles games and Willow, but I've heard the Heracles games are pretty popular in Japan.

>> No.5692492

I enjoyed Niji no Silkroad. It's one of, if not the only, JRPGs based around trading. You go town to town, like in a trading sim, and "buy low, sell high" to make money and use that to buy better armor and weapons and hire companions. Far from the best on the system, but easily one of the most underrated.

>> No.5692496

>>5692491
Dragon Quest 1 and 2 are just really slow. I wouldn't call them "bad". Fire Emblem Gaiden was also a fine game even if all the other games in the series up through the GBA are all much better.

>> No.5692542
File: 4 KB, 256x240, Magic_of_Scheherazade_Title.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5692542

>>5692463
Man the Japanese title screen for Magic of Scheherazade looks so so much better than the western port.

I still very much recommend the game though.

>> No.5692573

My favorites are easily FF1 and DQ3, with FF3 and Radia Senki close behind.

>> No.5692590
File: 151 KB, 1280x1200, NES Famicom JRPGs English.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5692590

>>5692542
Yep, the Japanese covers as a whole have more soul. The notable exceptions are the DW2 and DW3 covers.

>> No.5692875
File: 437 KB, 245x118, 1558389743991.gif [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5692875

>>5692463
Dude where is legend of zelda?

>> No.5692890

Mother is based

>> No.5692891
File: 149 KB, 706x1000, 3b55db4a(1).jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5692891

>>5692463
The Megami Tensei games are worth a mention. I've only played the remake compliation of them on snes, Kyuuyaku Megami Tensei, but enjoyed them. Some time ago the Famicom version of first Megami Tensei game did actually receive a finished translation, though the second game remains incomplete. Still, I suggest checking them out in some way at least.

>> No.5692917

Destiny of an emperor is still on of the greatest RPGs capcom ever produced. The story of romance of the three kingdoms as liu bei and his generals played like final fantasy, but with soldiers as hp and tactics as spells.

Not a pretty game to look at but fantastic pacing and story telling.

>> No.5692971
File: 89 KB, 1280x720, 3.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5692971

HAS ANYONE PLAYED THE GANBARE GOEMON RPGS? THEY GOOD? THEY LOOK GOOD.

THEY GOOD?

>> No.5692983

>>5692971
I asked myself this question back when they had no fan translations. Then the first game was fan translated, and I decided to wait for the second. Then the second game was fan translated, and I told myself "I'm not interested in these games". Then I decided to fire up the first game, and it was more of the same old random encounters on an overworld map, except battles take longer than those of Metal Max which is fairly speedy (thankfully).

Such is my problem with untranslated games: first I want to play them, then when they are translated I'm not interested, and when I'm interested I discover they are boring.

>> No.5692994

>>5692983
I don't mind random encounters, Final Fantasy 1 is in my top ten. Was it funny and kabuki-ful? Hell I might just start it this weekend.

>> No.5693008

>>5692491
Heracles games are pretty bad. I played the third one on the snes and it has no real story. The world is barren and empty and the story doesn't really pick until the very end of the game. You just walk from town to town facing very high encounter rate monsters that deal a ton of damage and always status you.

>> No.5693027

>>5692994
Can't say I played much of it, only 15 minutes. I do think the Japan setting is awesome.
>>5693008
I also gave the third one a try first, I thought the setting was cool and the spritework looked great, but eventually I gave up after
>very high encounter rate monsters that deal a ton of damage and always status you
It was fairly annoying and killed my interest in the setting.

>> No.5693036
File: 17 KB, 480x360, hqdefault.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5693036

What about Captain Tsuabsa 2?

One of the best looking games in the console. Soccer/RPG

>> No.5693135

>>5692463
>No FF3
thread disregarded

>> No.5693142

>>5693135
nigga you blind

>> No.5693705

what is God Slayer? that sounds pretty cool

>> No.5693729
File: 28 KB, 392x361, oregi.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5693729

>>5692463
>Lagrange Point: April 26, 1991
I love this one more than any of the others, I've gotta say. The music alone is phenomenal, and that fucking gut punch, courtesy of this fucker.

>> No.5693745

>>5693705
It was localized as Crystalis. It's an action RPG.

>> No.5693756

Call me basic, but my farvoite game of all time is chrono trigger.

>> No.5693826

>>5693756
was there a NES backport of it?

>> No.5693872

>>5692463
NES JRPGs have a certain charm to them, dont they. I wish people were more willing to give them a try.

>> No.5693881

Are the Dragon Ball ones any good?

I played the SNES re-make dozens of times even though it's pretty bad and buggy as hell

>> No.5693989

>>5693881
Gekishen Freeza is much better than Super Saiya Densetsu and it got a new 100% translation earlier this year. The first game is extremely grindy but there is a patch for that. The third game is good.

>> No.5694009

>>5693881
Seconding what >>5693989 said.

>> No.5694260

I'm pretty fond of Dream Master. It's an RPG where all of your resources are limited: enemies stay dead permanently when defeated, so grinding isn't an option. Each area has its own objectives and hazards to deal with, and they end up playing out like large puzzles.

>> No.5694273

>>5692891
Megami Tensei II is easily the best RPG on the Famicom; I hope that translation gets finished some day.

>> No.5694282
File: 19 KB, 225x169, iu[1].jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5694282

Couldn't find a better pic, but Mahjong Taisen is an interesting RPG which combines mahjong with jrpg gameplay
the battle system felt ironically more strategic and unpredictable than most RPGs I've played

shame it will probably never get translated

>> No.5694285

>>5692496
DQ 1 and 2 issue is they they were just figuring out shit like level balancing. Mostly since they rushed DQ2 (based on interviews seem no one of the development team played enough to even get to the boat which is pretty damn funny) but also they played a lot of Wizardry and Ultima 3 which are pretty damn grindy if you don't know what you are doing. DQ3 is when they found a good balance regarding leveling up even if there's a few annoying bumps like right before Baramos.

>> No.5694287

>>5694273
Not saying it's the same but the SNES remake of 1 and 2 got a fan translation.

>> No.5694293

>>5694287
I've played through both on the SNES, MTII is still one of my favorite games; but the port of MTII completely butchered the soundtrack and it bums me out.

>> No.5694301

>>5694282
I saw this today in a store, it was on display as a somewhat big deal and I was like wtf is this.

>> No.5694321

>>5694301
>I saw this today in a store
that's a weird coincidence

wish I could say more about the game but I got stuck after getting my third party member and don't know how to progress
It was fun while it lasted

>> No.5694356

1. Faxanadu
2. Crystalis
3. Astyanax

>> No.5694435

Just going to say that if you aren't already a fan of JRPGs, I strongly recommend not trying to get into them with NES JRPGs. Japanese scripts take up a lot of space and this just butchered most NES JRPGs which so why they so often have incredibly threadbare plots/characterization/etc. I think if you're on the fence about JRPGs than playing NES ones could very well butcher your opinion of the entire genre (not to mention that they tend to have buggy/simplistic/awkward gameplay due to the youth of the genre).

SNES JRPGs fare better, but they still struggle from this too. The script of a modern JRPG free of constraints can range anywhere from 1mb to 3mb (with some rare games hitting 4mb+), but the entire SNES cartridge could only hold up to 4mb of data at all (simplifying here but you get the idea). Even famous SNES JRPGs like Chrono Trigger and FF6 had to simplify their plots and cut down heavily on dialogue due solely to space constraints. They had a lot more space than NES games, though, so they don't end up embarrassingly bad, just uncomfortably brief or lacking at points.

Anyway this kind of sounds like me dunking on retro JRPGs but that's not my intention. It's just I love the genre and know very well how size limitations severely hurt NES ones, so it's best to go into them with caution if you don't already like the genre and can appreciate lesser ones. (SNES JRPGs suffer less but if you play say Chrono Trigger and wonder why there was barely any party dialogue or what have you, this is why.)

>> No.5696402

>>5693036
My nigga

>> No.5696436

>>5694435
Those limitations that force threadbare plots are exactly their strength. As soon as the limitations opened up, jrpgs became a meandering mess of too many words for too little characterization / events. rpgs deserve minimalist plot anyway.

>> No.5696453

>>5696436
Good point.

>> No.5696456

>>5696436
>Those limitations that force threadbare plots are exactly their strength
No. The Heracles games on the SNES are like that and they suck donkey dick.

>> No.5696463

>>5696456
They are considered some of the best JRPGs ever made in Japan.

>> No.5696470

>>5696463
shit like this make me think jarpig posters have a point

>> No.5696475
File: 41 KB, 410x287, 2zsmyjm.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
5696475

For anyone looking for something unusual and obscure I suggest Tao

https://www.romhacking.net/translations/1603/
>This game is a rare gem, and is recommended for those who take the time to savor its strangeness. Don’t expect to know everything at the onset, as the main protagonist is a spiritual wanderer. The first area is a Temple of the Shingon Sect. The monks speak in mystical abstractions, as well as the Christian monks in later towns. The quatrains of Nostradamus are also infused in the story. At the end is an oral eastern tradition that is not documented in English, which is the Tennen Kobutsu. If you like the writings of Umberto Eco, Cayce, or Blavatsky, you will enjoy this. :) The main character goes in an out of reality much like the Matrix, which adds to the dreamlike quality. Enjoy!

>Translation Description:
>The Sci-fi mystical RPG set in a post apocalyptic world, where a young man unravels a mystery regarding his origins and attempts to thwart an Nostradamus-tinged apocalypse that begins as a meteorite slams into his hometown. Find eight pieces of a trigram, 7 chakra statues and 7 amulets of the star lords in 7 mystic cities while fighting a cast of bizarre demons and gods!

>> No.5696479

>>5692463
Add Mouryou Senki Madara to your image sometime

>> No.5696708

>>5696475
What the fuck did I just read

>> No.5696821

>>5696463
Only for the stories of 2-4. Written by the same guy who would do the scenarios for Final Fantasy 7 and 8. I looked it up on some Japanese websites and (according to Google Translate) they still think the combat for 1 and 3 are unbalanced.

>> No.5696826

Dragon Quest 1, 3, and 4 (fuck 2) are the best ones on the system. Recently played 3 for the first time and it is legitimately one of the best games I have ever played.

I also enjoyed FF1 and I'm going to go ahead and consider Zelda II an rpg as well since it relies heavily on a level up system too. That is one of my favorites for the system.

>> No.5697947

>>5696436
Nah. I think something you and many others would do well to remember is the simple fact that good developers will make good things. Don't over-value the tools, don't over-value mysterious spooky "cultural zeitgeist" bullshit, etc. At the end of the day, good developers will make good things. Well, sometimes good developers will stumble and make a bad game, or bad developers will luck their way into making a good game, but ultimately the idea is that talent and skill leads to good content.

Modern JRPGs made by good developers are good. Sure, some JRPGs are "meandering messes of too many words for too little characterization", but those are bad JRPGs and they're bad because the developer that made them is bad. The technology allowing for larger scripts ENABLED this to happen, but it didn't CAUSE it to happen, and that's a big difference.

Anyway I could go on but this is sounding more like an anti-retro JRPG rant than I intended. I only wrote anything because >>5696453 sounded convinced when in reality your points are garbo and should not sway anyone's opinion.