Recommendations on RPGs, please?

[Shadow Blade]

Ever since my PAL PS2 has been... let's put it as... "cyrogenically frozen", I decided to purchase more NTSC games. In other words, that gives more opportunities to get RPGs that have either:

A. Never been published in Europe
or
B. Have been published in limited quantities and 10 months after the American release.

So, right now I have (in terms of RPGs):

Dragon Quest 8
Shadow Hearts
Shadow Hearts: Covenant
Shadow Hearts: From the New World
Disgaea: Hour of Darkness
Dark Cloud 2
Crimson Sea 2
Star Ocean: Till the End of Time
and
Suikoden 5

Now, I have some RPGs I wanna tackle on:

Growlanser Generations
Shin Megami Tensei (any of them... DS2 even got a 99% game from one of the reviewers :O)
Suikoden 3
Atelier Iris (sorry for the mispell)
Kingdom Hearts 2
Makai Kingdom
Phantom Brave

So my question is, what game (or games) from the above list would you recommend? Do you have any suggestions of your own? I would love to know your opinion to make my collection better :).

Thank you :D

[John]

I recommend Digital Devil Saga and Digital Devil Saga 2.

I hear I gave the second one a 99%.

-John

[Cauton]

Absolutely the Digital Devil Saga games. The two games together constitute one of the best RPG experiences on the PS2.

And if you like them you should also pick up Shin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturne. It isn't quite as story heavy, but it's a fantastic game nonetheless. Atelier Iris is also a good game, but a little short and.

[Shadow Blade]

hmmmm, so except for the storyline, the Shin Megamis are the same?

[Eusis]

Not quite. The basic system is roughly the same, but there's some tweaks and alterations, the most notable being that you don't recruit demons in DDS and you're limited to 3 party members. It's more of a traditional RPG in that way, as well as having more cutscenes and the like. SMT:N is more like a demonic Pokemon in that you only have the main character, who goes and recruits demons to fight alongside him.

The story in both the DDS series and SMT:N are good, but it's different in presentation and focus. Others could describe it better, but a quick way to cover it would be to say DDS focuses more on the characters, while SMT:N focuses more on the setting.

[Alisha]

the best rpgs ever made are adyn chronicles,and quest 64 for nintendo 64. ^^;


in all seriousness dont play makai kingdom unless you are prepared to invest hundres of hours,because frankly the game sucks till you get to the point of getting secret characters.also if you get the bad ending with pram on your first playthrough you are fucked.

[Testament]

Others could describe it better, but a quick way to cover it would be to say DDS focuses more on the characters, while SMT:N focuses more on the setting.

That's a good way to say it.

I would suggest both Digital Devil Saga and Nocturne (assuming you can find them).

[Sketch]

The Digital Devil Saga series isn't one that should be missed, as pretty much everyone else in this thread has said. Nocturne is also a good choice, although I felt that the story in DDS(2) was way better due to the number and overall quality of characters.

Also, if you enjoyed Disgaea, the second installment in the series is coming out at the end of the month, if you're willing to wait. While I haven't played it, it is another Disgaea, so I'm thinking that it'll be worth it :P

[Akanbe-]

I endorse these posts.

DDS and DDS2 are great.   Those would be what I'd recommend as well.

[Seiken_Densetsu]

I WOULD recommend DDS I & II, but DDS II ruined it for me, so I won't.  

But I would definitely recommend Nocturne.  One of my favorite RPGs.

[Ashtrot]

Also, if you enjoyed Disgaea, the second installment in the series is coming out at the end of the month, if you're willing to wait. While I haven't played it, it is another Disgaea, so I'm thinking that it'll be worth it :P

Don't get it, it'll be a waste of your money.

Suikoden III is great, and Atelier Iris is good for a fun romp, if you want something lighthearted. Phantom Brave is possibly the pinnacle of NIS' SRPG series, so if you enjoy those you'll want that and not Disgaea 2.

[Cauton]

Don't get it, it'll be a waste of your money.

Suikoden III is great, and Atelier Iris is good for a fun romp, if you want something lighthearted. Phantom Brave is possibly the pinnacle of NIS' SRPG series, so if you enjoy those you'll want that and not Disgaea 2.

Hey Ley, why do you consider Disgaea 2 a waste of money? Now you're making me worried as I've already preordered (and pre-paid for) it. Is it a lot worse than Disgaea, or do you just not like the series at all?

[Seiken_Densetsu]

Don't get it, it'll be a waste of your money.

Suikoden III is great, and Atelier Iris is good for a fun romp, if you want something lighthearted. Phantom Brave is possibly the pinnacle of NIS' SRPG series, so if you enjoy those you'll want that and not Disgaea 2.

Hey Ley, why do you consider Disgaea 2 a waste of money? Now you're making me worried as I've already preordered (and pre-paid for) it. Is it a lot worse than Disgaea, or do you just not like the series at all?

I have heard that Disgaea 2 is just as good as the original, if not better.

[Dizzy]

Don't get it, it'll be a waste of your money.

Suikoden III is great, and Atelier Iris is good for a fun romp, if you want something lighthearted. Phantom Brave is possibly the pinnacle of NIS' SRPG series, so if you enjoy those you'll want that and not Disgaea 2.

Hey Ley, why do you consider Disgaea 2 a waste of money? Now you're making me worried as I've already preordered (and pre-paid for) it. Is it a lot worse than Disgaea, or do you just not like the series at all?

Knowing Ash, it's probably due to the lack of Flonne. :P

[Ashtrot]

Don't get it, it'll be a waste of your money.

Suikoden III is great, and Atelier Iris is good for a fun romp, if you want something lighthearted. Phantom Brave is possibly the pinnacle of NIS' SRPG series, so if you enjoy those you'll want that and not Disgaea 2.

Hey Ley, why do you consider Disgaea 2 a waste of money? Now you're making me worried as I've already preordered (and pre-paid for) it. Is it a lot worse than Disgaea, or do you just not like the series at all?

No be fair, it's not a TERRIBLE game... but it's almost like a carbon copy of Disgaea with new characters. There is virtually no improvement over the original game, which is what I look for most often in a sequel, and much of the wacky humor from the first game is gone. It really hurt Disgaea 2's standing with me. If you just want 'more of the same,' though, it's not too bad. But I expected a bit more.

And yes, a lack of Flonne made me stabbingly angry. :(