I've tried getting into JRPG games in the past when i was younger but i sucked and didn't understand much, i pretty much finished the whole Yakuza series (idk if that counts) but i've always liked the character designs, the music (im a beat maker and always found JRPGs to have the best music to sample), etc. But now I feel like its time to really get into this, If any of you can give me recommendations and maybe a backstory of the game(s) it would be GREATLY appreciated.
looking to play anything from SNES-PS3/360 era
1. Yes, Yakuza counts. That’s a JRPG, it just isn’t turn based
2. Sounds like your problem is difficulty or mechanic overload so I’ll point you in some more simple directions
-Final Fantasy (preferably in between 4-7) games aren’t too complicated to learn, especially the ones in between 3 and 8. Final Fantasy’s battle system is essentially a pseudo action rpg one where you can attack multiple times but you have to mind the timer next to the character’s names in order to do another attack. Enemies kinda follow this too, as a lot won’t attack all the time. Of the ones listed, I think I’d go with 5 pretty much for allowing you to switch your play style on the fly, something that is rarely done in the franchise. It also doesn’t have much of a story, so if you’re paying attention to that, there you go
-DS Castlevania games (and/or Aria of Sorrow for GBA). They’re technically not JRPGs but the Castlevania games of this era have a lot of action RPG mechanics. They’re not very complicated to learn, save for holding Up + Attack to use a sub weapon in them (that gets me often too). Symphony of the Night falls under this too but the only reason I didn’t mention that is because it’s technically a sequel to Rondo of Blood which lacks those Action RPG elements as far as I know. But also Rondo of Blood didn’t release in the West initially- you know what add Symphony of the Night to the list too
-Breath of Fire. I’ve only played IV, but I remember being told III wasn’t too hard either. I can’t speak about I or II on the SNES, and it’s generally recommended to stay away from Dragon Quarter. Breath of Fire VI is a dead mobile game, don’t worry about it, it was shite anyway. Very standard battle system, press something on the menu and there you go, no frills.
-Pokemon. Pokemon needs no introduction or context, they are made for babies to play (not a bad thing)
-Xenogears. Like mechs? Like combos? Like a grandiose story tackling subjects you’d never think would be in a game? This PS1 RPG is for YOU.
-Earthbound or Mother 3, but Earthbound Beginnings is not recommended. Beginnings has the problem of every party member introduced to you being level 1, which means grind central as well as the problem of the random encounters right out the gate just being really damn hard. Earthbound and Mother 3 do a good job streamlining and making it an easier experience. The most grinding you’ll have to do in Earthbound is maybe getting to around Level 5-7 at the start of the game to have a chance against the first boss of the game but other than that, it’s all good.
-Hourai High, fan translated. Obscure Super Famicom game that’s pretty weird but simple to learn
-Atelier franchise. A mix between cozy game and turn based RPG to mix things up. The majority of them are widely available on Steam but a few others aren’t. Atelier Marie + Elie was fan translated, Atelier Iris trilogy is still exclusive to PS2, Mana Khemia are Atelier games that don’t have the Atelier name for some reason, Atelier Annie is a DS only game that’s part of a trilogy that’s yet to leave Japan besides Annie. There’s also the unrelated Atlus made Nora and the Time Studio for DS that plays very similar.
-If Strategy RPGs are on the table, Fire Emblem’s newer games are great options for a beginner. Mainly for one reason: the newer games have a casual mode. Fire Emblem games have a permadeath system where if a character fell in battle besides the protagonist, they stayed gone. The games had that as a default option for quite a while until Casual Mode became a thing. The mode has existed since New Mystery of the Emblem and every game since has had it. Most popularly, Awakening, the game that saved the Fire Emblem franchise and also the one that gets Smash fans up in arms.
