In Japan, the classic turn-based role playing game is king. When new Dragon Quest games are released, people line up around the block for days. Schools shut down. People cry. You know, the kinds of things that happen here when Apple does just about anything. On these shores, however, RPGs aren't quite as popular. Still, a great many get localized and released here. Thank goodness for that because what would our sad, sad childhoods have been like without the calming presence of the Final Fantasy theme music? There is something so comforting about the turn-based RPG formula. Fight enemies. Level up. Get cool new moves and equipment. Repeat. Plus you get to save the world! What's not to love? Here are the best old-school RPG console video games of all time.
Note: These are localized versions only. I am a stupid American and therefore refuse to learn another language. Maybe when they throw Rosetta Stone on the DS. Also, these are the best turn-based RPGs. Similar genres like strategy RPGs and action RPGs have their own victors.
1. Chrono Trigger – 1995 – SNES/PS1/DS
If you whisper these two words around any gamer of a particular age, they are likely to get weak in the knees and could potentially vomit. In short, people go gaga for Chrono Trigger. Square's epic time traveling RPG set a new standard for the genre, one which many think has yet to be equaled. Let's do a rundown. It was created by Hironobu Sakaguchi and Y?ji Horii Horii, creators of Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest respectively. It re-created the same game world into several different time periods, complete with paradoxes and historical evolution. It eschewed random battles in favor of the "enemies shown on the map" approach that the just-released Dragon Quest IX has adopted. Oh yeah, it also had tons and tons of endings. Nothing was more fun than making up an outlandish ending to fool your friends on the schoolyard. The poor saps would buy it every time. Wait, you did do that too, right?
2. Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride – 1992 – DS/Sketchy emulators
This selection came at a lot of soul searching. First of all, how do you pick just one DQ title? They are all so good, and honestly, all so similar. Also, this game was only recently released in the West. The original title was, inexplicably, Japan only. So unless you were one of those weird smart kids, you never got a chance to play this during your innocent and vulnerable years. It's a damn shame, too. The game is utterly fantastic. It's old-school RPG-ing at it's finest. The story line is great, following your character to adulthood and then having you control his kids. It pulls at your heartstrings in the way only Dragon Quest games can. Y?ji Horii really is the Spielberg of role playing games. As if the game's multiple time periods and gigantic open world wasn't enough, it introduced the the ability to tame monsters and make them members of your party. This mechanic has since carried over into it's own series, Dragon Quest Monsters.
3. Final Fantasy III (VI in Japan) – 1994 – SNES/PS1/GBA
First a little primer as to the number discrepancy. Developer Square, in their infinite wisdom, decided to not localize a few of the early Final Fantasy games for American audiences. This led to what was the sixth FF released in Japan becoming only the third released here. It's a shame, because the golden era of Final Fantasy is a truly something to behold. Heavy on the game play, light on the, um, hours and hours of vapid CGI. So what makes this one so great? The game play is tight and refined, offering a fast and streamlined battle system. Of course, this doesn't set it apart from other early titles in the series. However, the story certainly does. There are so many charming characters, and so many plot twists, it no doubt blew your precious little mind. Who can forget the first time "beating" the game only to play witness to that, um, interesting world change? There's also the classic soundtrack which has more than a few awful YouTube renditions. Here is to hoping they get on the ball with a re-release soon.
4. Earthbound – 1995 – SNES
What other old-school RPG has you fighting new-age hippies and piles of puke? Due to it's quirky nature, Earthbound didn't find too much success when it was originally released here. It has since garnered tons of populist steam thanks to it's ridiculous sense of humor and interesting setting(The real world, well sort of.) The game has you controlling a series of neighborhood kids on their quest to rid the planet of hostile aliens. Along the way they'll face bullies, withdraw money at ATMs, and use real-world weapons like bats and yo-yos. It parodies and offers homage to both Japanese role playing games and American pop culture. In short, it's sort of like Goonies on tons and tons of acid. Which is saying something considering Goonies, well, had Sloth.
5. Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars – 1996 – SNES/Wii Virtual Console
If there's a genre of video game out there, you know Mario has dipped his sweaty mustache in it at some time or another. Kart racing, tennis, um, being a doctor. Mario has done it all, including starring in his own series of turn-based RPG games. The original was co-developed by Nintendo and Square, so you know what to expect. It plays similarly to Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy but it's set in the Mario universe. What it lacks in epic scope, it makes up for with a great sense of humor and Bowser as a playable character. Gotta love when sworn enemies begrudgingly work together for a greater good. This is one of the best-selling RPGs ever released in America and has since gone on to spawn the Paper Mario series and the Mario & Luigi series for the DS. Still, most fans swear by the original.
6. Suikoden II – 1999 – PS1
Suikoden II, and the Suikoden series in general, is known for it's vast number of playable characters. Well over one hundred possible characters populate the world and half the fun of the game is just trying to find them all. At it's heart it is a traditional turn-based RPG, however the game is set during a war and everyone knows what wars are good for, fun! The game offers up massive war-time battles that vaguely resemble strategy RPGs. Add to that tons of side quests, one-on-one duels, and a cool magic system and you've got yourself one classic role playing game. And no, I won't be making a "Party like it's 1999" joke here. Well, not another one at least.
7. Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne – 2004 – PS2
Until this title, American gamers were left in the dark(Get it? The games are about demons.) about this great series. The game play is all classic RPG. Turn-based battles, a cool world to explore and one hell(Game still about demons, sigh.) of a good story. In addition to some innovative battle controls, the game also allows you to fill your party up with the hell spawn you have faced in battle already. This mechanic is vaguely similar to monster recruitment in Dragon Quest V, however, demons aren't recruited so much as they are, um, bribed or seduced. They are demons, after all. The Shin Megami Tensei series has since bribed or seduced an American fanbase, as new titles are regularly localized and released on this side of the pond.
8. Shadow Hearts – 2001 – PS2
Shadow Hearts had the unfortunate luck of being released on the same week as a little game called Final Fantasy X. Thus, it struggled to find a fanbase. For fans of the genre, however, it's a must play. Shadow Hearts is as traditional as they come. It has random battles, hit points, magic points and all the rest of the familiar trimmings. The setting and story line, however, are anything but familiar. The game is an exercise in alternative history. Remember those comic books "What If?" that would show the world if Spiderman had died or if Wolverine had been born a girl or something? It's sort of like that. This "what if?" scenario takes place during the first World War and involves an attempt at religious cleansing. Wait, wasn't that the plot of the other World War? You crafty alt-history writers!
9. Phantasy Star IV – 1995 – Sega Genesis/Wii Virtual Console
Long before the Phantasy Star brand got mixed up in online dungeon crawling, it was Sega's answer to Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest. Simple, turn-based game mechanics were the order of the day. The early titles were perhaps too simple, however. They didn't offer much by way of bells and whistles. PSIV changed all of that, however. The game boasted an epic planet-spanning quest and a number of interesting characters to play as. It also had an interesting feature called "macros" which were strings of moves you could set up and save, releasing them in order at will. It made grinding a bit less, uh, grindy.
10. Final Fantasy 7 – PS1/PlayStation Network
Yes, the dialog is stilted and maybe just a little bit racist, but FF7 is still a damned good time. You can't say you weren't filled with awe when you realized the huge land you've been tolling around in for hours was merely the opening town. For better or for worse, this game redefined turn-based RPGs for years to come. Sure, it's still old-school in just about every sense of the word: Random battles, familiar magic system, etc. However, it was cinematic in scope in a way Square has been chasing after ever since. In short, it was dark and it was epic. Don't get mad people won't shut up about it. They also won't shut up about the Beatles or pizza. And those two things rule.
11. Grandia – 1999 – PS1/Saturn/PlayStation Network
This game was designed by the team who fielded the stellar Lunar: Eternal Blue, which just narrowly avoided being on this list. As such it's a traditional affair, offering by-the-books RPG thrills in a cute setting featuring cute characters doing, well, cute things. The story line isn't particularly grim but it has a certain charm that has kept people coming back to it year after year. Also, underneath the cute exterior lies some complicated game mechanics. Just about everything levels up in this game, from characters to weapons to spells. It's an addictive system as you always know another reward is just around the corner. Just one more battle. Ok, maybe two more battles. Did I hear three? So goes the life of the RPG gamer.
