FINALLY!!

[Judas]

Back in February, I bought a Playstation Vita in hopes of playing PSOne Classics atleast soon after launch.

...........

Right. Still nothing. Months of waiting and wondering if they were ever going to even add them has finally come to an end! August 28th - they will be made available for download.

So! With that said, I ask for suggestions of great PSX RPG classics that I can download off the PSN. 

Keep in mind, when this young teenage boy was faced with the decision to follow Nintendo into the 64 bit era or try out this rivaling Sony Playstation - I made the mistake of going with the N64. I thought the N64 would be the home of many great RPGs like the SNES was. (I made the mistake again when I went with the GameCube! I suck!)

I've played no PSX RPGs. That's what I'm getting at. Even the famed FF7. So please...lend this old school RPG fan some good PSOne Classics?

[Lard]

Suikoden
Grandia
Xenogears
Wild Arms
Chrono Cross
Legend of Mana
Threads of Fate

Good start.

[Dice]

Suikoden
Grandia
Xenogears
Wild Arms
Chrono Cross
Legend of Mana
Threads of Fate

Good start.

Still no Suiko II. 
But definitely a good start.

If only the Vita were cheaper... le sigh.

[Kevadu]

Keep in mind that they said they would be rolling out titles gradually.  They won't all work on the Vita off the bat.  So if you really want to play them on your Vita you might want to wait and see what actually plays on the Vita.  Sad, I know, but this is Sony we're talking about...

Of course if you had a PSP you'd be fine ;)

I need to buy a Vita...I already have on Vita game on my shelf and another preordered.  Yes I buy games before systems...

[Judas]

Definitely. I've heard two different stories to this, so I guess we will have to wait and see.

Ign reports they will all be available. There's no direct comment from Sony on the issue. Lol. Believe me.

[Pmayo]

Suikoden
Grandia
Xenogears
Wild Arms
Chrono Cross
Legend of Mana
Threads of Fate

Good start.

Still no Suiko II. 
But definitely a good start.

If only the Vita were cheaper... le sigh.

Totally agree with the price point. The fact that it does not even include a memory card jacks up the price even more. Until a good affordable bundle comes out, I am going nowhere near it. I really want P4 The Golden to :(

[John]

Chrono Cross - despite having not as strong of a cast as Chrono Trigger, this game is absolutely fantastic.
Final Fantasy IX - The best of the PSone Final Fantasies.  Note that FF7 is incredibly tough to play today due to its total lack of analog control.  You never think about it until you try and play a 3D game with digital control only.
Xenogears - I'm personally not a big fan of Xenogears as a game.  There's way too much tedious exposition, but this is one that's looked at as a necessity.
Front Mission 3 - If you like SRPGs, this is probably the best PSone classic available for that itch.

[Dice]

Xenogears - I'm personally not a big fan of Xenogears as a game.  There's way too much tedious exposition, but this is one that's looked at as a necessity.

This game is killing me just because it's...sort of awkward to play.  Hell, I remember thinking this back then too.  It's easy enough to play, sit with it for a couple of hours and habituate to it (the same way I got used to FF7's.... "origami" graphics and lack of analog), but for some reason XG annoys me.  I really wanna do it for the story though.

[Taelus]

Chrono Cross - despite having not as strong of a cast as Chrono Trigger, this game is absolutely fantastic.
Final Fantasy IX - The best of the PSone Final Fantasies.  Note that FF7 is incredibly tough to play today due to its total lack of analog control.  You never think about it until you try and play a 3D game with digital control only.
Xenogears - I'm personally not a big fan of Xenogears as a game.  There's way too much tedious exposition, but this is one that's looked at as a necessity.
Front Mission 3 - If you like SRPGs, this is probably the best PSone classic available for that itch.

John's assessment here is quite solid. Plus, he said FFIX was the best on PSone, which is the best way to make me agree with anything.

I'd also highly recommend FF Tactics-- although the translation and new content in the PSP version does make that one a little better.

I really enjoyed Xenogears' story and music, but I absolutely hated PLAYING that game. Some contend that the second disc sucks because it's all exposition with little gameplay, but I actually loved it because I got to actually stop PLAYING the game.

[beLIEve?]

i think the only ones not mentioned yet are breath of fire four, alundra, arc the lad series and saiyuki journey west. i think there was another robot fighting game released not long ago vanguard bandits. i think that is the only rpg psx classic i don't have.

[EmeraldSword]

I'm sad Vandal Hearts isn't on PSone Classics. If it wasn't for Vandal Hearts, I probably wouldn't have ventured into SRPGs as much as I have as a gamer. That said, I'd recommend either Xenogears or Suikoden as others have mentioned here. Memorial music, story, characters, gameplay, all top notch qualities in a well rounded RPG.

*edit changed "no love for" to isn't to clarify VH is not a PSone Classic.

[Kevadu]

Totally agree with the price point. The fact that it does not even include a memory card jacks up the price even more. Until a good affordable bundle comes out, I am going nowhere near it. I really want P4 The Golden to :(

Several bundles have already been announced, which include a game and a memory card (OK, it's the practically useless 4 gig card...but it's a start) for the same price the system alone is selling for now.  In addition to the Assassin's Creed one that was announced back at E3 there are also going to be LittleBigPlanet and Call of Duty bundles.  I don't have much interest in Assassin's Creed or Call of Duty, but LittleBigPlanet Vita looks pretty sweet (and it's also coming out before the other two).

I'd also highly recommend FF Tactics-- although the translation and new content in the PSP version does make that one a little better.

The Vita plays PSP games (and it does so right now, no need to wait), so why would anyone pick the PS1 version in this case?  Just get the PSP one.

[John]

I'm sad Vandal Hearts gets no love for PSone Classics. If it wasn't for Vandal Hearts, I probably wouldn't have ventured into SRPGs as much as I have as a gamer. That said, I'd recommend either Xenogears or Suikoden as others have mentioned here. Memorial music, story, characters, gameplay, all top notch qualities in a well rounded RPG.

As far as I know, Vandal Hearts isn't available via PSone Classics.

[Yggdrasil]

Vagrant Story.

[GuardianBoi]

Wild Arms 2 was one of the best RPG's I played for the PSOne. And it was one that not as many people either played or enjoyed as much as I did. But I stand by it to this day. The graphics may be very dated now a days, but the story, the characters(there's even a secret one) and the game play were near flawless.

I didn't see anyone mention Legend of Dragoon either. I was thrilled when they put that on the PSN. The idea of playing that game handheld was awesome! Yet another game that I remember almost everything about, to this day. Most of all, just for it's very addictive battle system. :)

I don't think it's on the PSN, but Valkyrie Profile was a game I played more than once as well. And it'll be a great day when they put Suikoden 2 on there.

And yeah, the basics, Everything the first person said as well as:

Final Fantasy 7 and 9. (didn't care for 8) And Final Fantasy Tactics

Breath of Fire 3 and 4. (both great games)

Man, this is making me want to put down the other stuff I'm playing to and jump into some old school games. :)