I have spoken before of my adoration of Japanese games and I believe that no example of this is greater than my love of JRPGs. However, JRPGs went into a bit of a decline from around the beginning of the 7th generation of consoles and while we have seen the beginnings of a recovery since then, JRPGs remain in an unusual place. In my effort to bring more attention to the genre, I thought it would be worth making a list of recommendations for people who might be looking for some JRPGs to play.
With regards to these titles, it is important to remember that I (as of currently) only play games on PC. All of my recommendations for JRPGs are going to be available on the PC platform but many will also be available on other platforms as well. I am also going to be trying to pick titles that might not be immediately obvious when discussing JRPG recommendations. For this reason, you will not see me recommending Final Fantasy games (I’ve already made a list for those!) or some of the other more recognisable titles.
Grandia
For my first recommendation, I thought I might draw attention to a title that was remastered last year. Originally coming out in 1997, Grandia sees us follow the characters of Justin and Sue who discover that the Spirit Stone left by Justin’s father is connected to an ancient civilisation in the east and set out on a journey to discover it. The cast of this game is oozing with charm and the HD remaster polishes an already excellent anime art style (although the environments are admittedly on the rough side).
The combat system is what a lot of people will point to when recommending this game. Starting out as a relatively simple turn-based combat system, you quickly learn that the game does not feature a typical “Attack” command as in many other JRPGs. Instead, it features a “Combo” attack which sees your character do two quick physical attacks and a “Critical” attack which does a single strong attack that, when timed correctly, can cancel enemy attacks. The only annoyance I can remember coming across in the remaster were some cut-scenes near the end of the game that did not have subtitles (I was playing the game in Japanese) but I still do not hesitate to recommend Grandia as I think anyone interested in JRPGs should give this game a try (and it’s great value on Steam!).
Shining in the Darkness
Released in 1991, Shining in the Darkness was the first game in the Shining game series and sees the princess of the Kingdom of Thornwood kidnapped by a powerful being called Dark Sol. Our protagonist is given the task of exploring Dark Sol’s labyrinthine castle while assisted by his friends Pyra, an elven mage, and Milo, a priest in training. Admittedly, the story is relatively basic when compared to many other JRPGs but serves the purpose of the game quite well with a few twists and revelations.
What really makes Shining in the Darkness stand out amongst JRPGs is the fact that it’s a dungeon crawler. In the game, you travel throughout each dungeon in first person. There is no mini-map to tell you where you are going or where you have been and you must learn to traverse each part of the labyrinth while fighting monsters and setting off traps. It is available for only €0.99 on Steam (an absolute bargain considering I spent 40 hours playing it!) but I would recommend getting it as part of the Sega Mega Drive Classics collection which includes over 50 other games including some other JRPGs such as the Shining Force games as well as Phantasy Star II – IV.
The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky
With the recent popularity of The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel, I thought it worth going back to the beginning of the Trails games. Originally released in 2004 for the PC, The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky takes place in the land of Liberl and follows the characters of Estelle Bright and her adoptive brother Joshua as they travel the land to prove themselves worthy of becoming Bracers, an NGO that protects citizens and maintains stability. While they do this, Estelle and Joshua come across many signs and incidents that point to an international conspiracy.
The various games of The Legend of Heroes are well known for their excellent world building and Trails in the Sky does not disappoint, taking the time to establish a fascinating world of technological advancement, international intrigue and likable characters. The turn-based combat system is also excellent, taking into account the positioning of the party and allowing you to manipulate the turn order to access bonuses. Trails in the Sky is the first part of a trilogy that is currently only available in its entirety on PC outside of Japan.
I hope that you have found these recommendations interesting and I am eager to hear if any of these games have grabbed your attention. Let me know if you have played any of these titles, what you thought of them and what other JRPGs you would recommend to either me or others readings this article.
Thanks for reading and if you wish to seek any of the titles I mentioned, don’t hesitate to use amazon.co.uk or amazon.com for all of your needs! Also feel free to follow my curator page on Steam “JRPG Reviews” for thoughts and opinions on any JRPGs that I play and my YouTube channel “Victory Achieved Gaming” where I guide my friend through challenging games.