I want to start off by saying that I love JRPGs. My favourite game of all time is a JRPG and I am continually drawn to these games as I quite often enjoy their storytelling, graphical style, gameplay etc. However, there is something that I’ve come to dread now when I play JRPGs and that is having to deal with their side-quests. It feels like JRPGs are not only behind Western RPGs when it comes to side-quests but that they’re getting progressively worse as well! Given that, I wanted to discuss this problem and take a look at some JRPGs that are rife with bad side-quests.
Before I start discussing the problem of bad side-quests in JRPGs, I want to take a moment to discuss what side-quests are, what makes a side-quest good or bad and some examples of JRPGs and Western RPGs that have great side-quests. At its most basic, a side-quest is an optional quest that the player can do to earn some kind of benefit such as new gear, lore and experience. Ideally, the task presented to the player should be enjoyable, contribute to the world and characters and have a reward that makes the side-quest worth doing. It’s easy to point to Western RPGs such as The Witcher games and The Elder Scrolls as great examples of how to do side-quests right but I also want to point out some JRPG examples. One JRPG side-quest that I remember very fondly is the Wutai quest from Final Fantasy VII. The side-quest introduces a problem that shakes up how you’ve been playing until then, presents quite a bit of backstory to one of the characters and their motivation, completes the arc of a villain from earlier in the game and presents numerous new equipment, materia and experience to make it worth doing. Chrono Trigger is another great example of a JRPG with great side-quests which develop your party members’ backgrounds while presenting great rewards for doing them.
Now, let’s take a look at some examples of JRPGs that don’t do side-quests anywhere near as well. I’ll start with a game that I genuinely did enjoy with the bad side-quests being one of its few blemishes, Dragon Quest XI. The problem with the side-quests in Dragon Quest XI is that they are very basic tasks such as fetch quests or doing specific things in battle that aren’t very interesting to complete, contribute little to no lore and only occasionally have rewards that make them worth doing. NieR: Automata also falls into this category although I would argue that there are more lore related side-quests in NieR: Automata. These uninteresting, lacklustre side-quests are a real shame as the games themselves are generally excellent.
However, when I think of bad side-quests in a JRPG, my mind always goes to Final Fantasy XV. As I’ve stated time and time before, I love Final Fantasy and I don’t even think Final Fantasy XV is that bad of a game, I do think it’s one of the weaker ones though, but the side-quests are unbelievably bad. The vast, and I do mean VAST, majority of the side-quests contribute nothing to the world whatsoever and if you thought the basic tasks of Dragon Quest XI were bad then you haven’t seen the depths of dull, uninteresting content that is Final Fantasy XV’s side-quests. Occasionally you’ll come across a side-quest that seems marginally amusing but they are generally awful. The rewards from them are generally not great either and you’ll mainly be doing them to gain experience and level up.
So what would solve this problem? I personally think that Japanese developers are looking at Western RPGs and only seeing that there are loads of side-quests rather than the content of the side-quests themselves. Looking at many JRPGs, they seem to fill the game with tons of side-quests, most of which lack substance. Therefore, I would argue that the solution is to reduce the overall number of side-quests and to spend the time and resources that would’ve gone into the extra side-quests on fleshing out the remaining ones. I’m sure it isn’t as easy as that and that there are other problems which prevent a lot of JRPGs from developing interesting, intricate side-quests but until I hear about them, I’m going to continue to point my finger at the quantity over quality approach that many JRPG developers seem to employ when it comes to their side-quests.
What are your thoughts on the problem of bad side-quests in JRPGs, do you agree with me or disagree with me, what do you think the problem behind many of these uninspired quest designs is, what are some of the best and worst side-quests you’ve come across in JRPGs and any additional information you might have on the topic.
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.