The 4 chests you shouldn't open was pretty dumb and probably the most blatant trolling I've ever seen done by game designers / programmers. Also, the layout of the skills grid was pretty bleh, given how you'd sometimes have to go through bows 4 to get to swords 6 or w/e, even tho that character hadn't progressed in bows at at all up to that point.

Other than that, it wasn't the worst. I too enjoyed tinkering with the gambit sequencing.

I loved the Breath of fire series, There was one breath of fire game where you couldnt die or the game would end. I remember it was really hard. Im still wondering why there isnt a bunch of final fantasy tactic games. Actually im kind of confused why they dont have new retro jrpg games on xbox 360 i would snap buy a chrono trigger 2 snes style game.

There should be a gaming company that just makes old jrpg games for the new consols. Insta profit imo.

It was a long long time ago prolly when it first came out. I enjoyed it probably because of the challenge . I think i only gave it like 3-4 goes because I had rented it. I played bof 2 alot though and that was one of my favorites many years go. Pretty sure i played up to bof 5 and beat them all but i can only really remember the story of bof 2.

Yea Dragon Quarter definitely wasn't for everyone. I was very addicted to diablo 2 hc as well.

Anyone ever play the Samurai Spirts RPG ? (Samurai Showdown) I never played the game but have wanted to. The only thing stopping me is the fact that I am not very good at reading Kanji. If I could I would import all my rpgs. I really hope that one day Japanese audio tracks are included when these software companies translate their games.

I wonder if Sunsoft will ever bring over the Cosmic Fantasy series over? I know Working Designs translated part 2 for the Turbo Duo.

I spent so much time playing dragon warrior 1-4 on the NES as a kid.

Loved those games.

This thread inspired me to start another play through of my favorite game.

Dragon warrior 3 on the nes. If you haven't played this I'd HIGHLY recommend it. It flew largely under the radar.

I only ever played DW1, and I LOVED it. The other three are comparable?

Three blows one away and it is not close. I was never a fan of 2 even though it's probably the most "balanced" game.

After a couple weeks of playing, Tales of Graces is grade A stuff. I like the storyline, and the battle system has that Tales feel. A couple well-knows actors that have been in other games/anime.

I agree with most of the opinions and ranks itt.

FF III/VI has to be #1 for me. Nothing to say that hasn't been said already. A classic.

Me and two friends from HS played through Secret of Mana together one summer. Great times.

Never played past Suikoden II, will have to do that sometime.

A great, great game that hasn't been mentioned is Lufia 2: Rise of the Sinistrals for SNES. Phenomenal game. Fairly standard story line (hero and friends vs. Evil out to destroy the world) but some of the characters are very memorable. Also has some great side quests for completionists, including a 99 level dungeon called the Ancient Cave that is super fun and a huge time sink. Would recommend this to anyone interested enough to read this thread. Can be found easily in emulator form.

If you only play one of the sequels post Suikoden II, make it Suikoden 5. It's more in line with the first two and its story is really awesome with maybe the best ending in the series. 4 was a tremendous letdown imo, lacking the depth in the characters that you've come to love with the series and overall the story was very meh to bad. Suikoden 3 is different with it's battle system and how you control 3 characters instead of 1. But it had a pretty solid story to it.

/brag

which is better between 1 and 2?

Suikoden II is longer and better. Highly regarded by many fans as the best in the series. it costs a lot more though. Don't go up reading the story too much. nice twist event in the game.


My Suikoden rankings go

V>III>>>IV>>II>>I


Thats what makes this series so good imo. Its been consistently good. and yea, I enjoyed the IVth one, Shoot me. III and V are in a class by themselves. too good

Ha wow, you may be the only person with those rankings.

2 will likely > 1 if you've never played either and can only play one. In reality they are 2 games that should have been 1. II will take you about 30 hours+ as 1 will take 17-20 hours. I think Sui I's story is better but its negligible, and II likely has more replayability.

IV's war system was so blah for me and I actually preferred the rock-paper-scissors in Sui I over IV. Sui V's War system though >> the rest of the series, followed by Sui 2.

My problem with IV is that it seemed like they created the game in less than 20 days, had a severe budget constraint. And the game never felt "complete" I was 20hours into the game(albeit I did little recruiting) and I was more than 2/3 of the way done,
The game flew by, and it did things quite differently than the previous 3 but I actually enjoyed it.

V and III are in a class of their own though. Both had great Plots/storyline and solid characters. Really enjoyed them both immensely.

Needle, what are your Suiko rankings?

II > I > V >> III >>>> IV

I could probably write a novel on the series as I've played each game at least 3 times and played I/II a total of 10+ times.

If II had V's war system it would be near GOAT level status. IV, to me, lacks any of the depth of the other games, you don't get that same attachment to Lazlo that you get to Tir or Riou. And his "hardships" are very meh compared to Tir and Prince. The war system in IV hurts it for me too. I like the idea of the navy but it still didn't seem to git into the series. I wish the storyline was better and the end game was WTF just happened? Not to mention 108 recruits, 4 man party.

If the first 8 hours of V wasn't so boring it would be at the top of the series but it takes forever to get going and then once it does get going you have some luck in recruiting some of the characters and then it takes time before the war system really becoems awesome. The War system in V is really epic, and I love the duel system as well. The formations were a cool addition as well.

Sui I maybe nostalgia but really it has the best protagonist, best rune, and it's story line is really epic. It hurts that its so short. And the rock-paper-scissors of the War battles/ only 2(3) duels.

II did everything gameplay better than I but I think the storyline took a bit of a hit and it kind of focuses on bringing back characters despite not really telling you why they are in the city-states, lol(why is Stallion running around there?)

III does have my two favorite characters of the suikoden series though. Futch is a badass and the GOAT enemy. I hated the paired parties though. And the game kind of goes into a lull after you finish the 3rd chapters until the final dungeon. Though Hugo's storyline is awesome, Geddoe is a sicko, and Chris is kind of a bitch. The War battles as extremely poorly done. Plus, outside of Hugo's early game, I don't really feel the plight of the main characters like the other games. I think that is where the first game really shines in showing the struggle of Tir(and its shown again in the second one).

Did not mind the slow start in V or III, felt Trinity system was a bold move imo, I liked it and hated it. When the going got good, you had to switch chapters. I did them in order so I would not get spoiled. Hugos 1st chapter is really slow imo



hehe youre all about the war battles. Still feel Suiko and Xeno storylines are prolly at the top tier of gaming. FF in their prime (7-9) up there as well.



Needle, ever play any of the Personas? I am, after 4 years, gonna try to best P3 this weekend. and even though some ******* spoiled who the killer was in P4, I will prolly give that a go this summer. p2 ep had a GREAT story but he game play ruined it

This is kinda me, well, I may play both, but who knows when. However, it looks like only 1 is in the PS Store, which is kinda weak, but since 2 will require significantly more effort than 1 to play it looks like I will go with 1.

I ordered Xenoblade yesterday. Anyone start playing yet?

nahh. Hate to sound like a hater. But not a fan form what I've read. At first I was excited, though tit would have roots to the xeno series I mean The guy at the helm has been involved with every xeno game. I already stated my hatred for FF XIIs battle system. thought it was boring and terrible. Xenoblade is almost the same way(tho i hear its more action packed w/o gambits)

But I did hear the story is well done.


Tell us how it is. if it would have came out for ps3, I might've looked into it, but would not have purchased it with any confidence. Still tho, tell us how it is

Xenoblade's battle system is really nothing like FF 12, apart from the fact that you can see the enemies and get in a first strike.

Xenoblade is a fantastic game (I'm about 30 hours in now). It takes elements from JRPGS and Western RPGS/MMOS and blends them together well. The only things that are bothering me so far is that the dialogues between the characters aren't exactly great and that the sidequests are for the most part fetch/kill quests.

On the other hand, there is always something to do: exploration, forging crystals for your gear, unique enemies, an extensive sidequest (don't want to spoil), a good story, fun characters and a truly beautiful world.

If you don't own a WII, love RPGS and have the cash to do it, I'd recommend you buy one just to play Xenoblade, it's that good. Besides, the WII offers plenty of other games + the download store.

BTW, another recommendation for those who own a DS/3DS: get Radiant Historia. One of the greatest RPGs of all time, no exxageration. There is a Let's Play available on YouTube if you're curious.

Suikoden 2 is one of the best games I've ever played. 1 is good as well but it never grabbed me like 2 did.

Shining Force is also amazing.

Yeah Shining Force is one of my favorite games ever. Would it be considered a JRPG?

I have the ps3 sega disk and it has Shining Force 2 on it but I've never tried. Any thoughts?

Yea Shining Force is a JRPG, sometimes they refer to that type of game as a tactical RPG. Purists might not call it a JRPG even though it's definitely a Japanese RPG. From Wikipedia: "A distinct difference between tactical RPGs and traditional RPGs is the lack of exploration."

And yes everything I've heard indicates that SF2 is great as well. I plan on buying that PS3 Genesis collection with SF2 being the #1 draw for me.