1. Shining Force II I visited my friend’s house and Shining Force II was blaring through the CRT TV speakers with its exquisite battle music as my compadre walked up to orcs and gargoyles in top-down strategic glory. Until then, I had only played traditional RPGs, so this blew my elementary school m… Read More »
1. Star Ocean: The Second Story It was summer 2001, my two BFFs went on vacation with their families, and I was left at home with a small TV in my room to watch DVDs and play videogames. A little isolated, but entertained, I devoted myself to the first major RPG I’d play (nay, CONQUER) multiple time… Read More »
1. Chrono Trigger Chrono Trigger earns instant inclusion on my list as it’s my favorite game, but more importantly, it’s the game that made gaming my hobby and cemented my enduring love for JRPGs. I was entranced when my step-cousin showed me Chrono Trigger on an emulator in the mid-2000s. My unders… Read More »
1. Pokémon Pokémon has been a defining factor in my life. It got me into anime, it got me into RPGs, it introduced me to new people and, most importantly, it got me through one of the hardest points of my life. Being the video game franchise that means the most to me, I can’t choose just one game fr… Read More »
1. Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen Dragon Quest as a series is what drove me to RPGs in the heady days before school, before even knowing to read. The original Dragon Warrior release on NES drove me to learn to read. And it was my continued history with the series that caused me to branch ou… Read More »
1. Fire Emblem If I owe my love of RPGs (and video games in general) to a single game, it’s Fire Emblem. The combination of fantasy setting and in-depth tactical gameplay was unlike anything I had ever seen before, and I fell in love with the robust cast of characters and well-developed setting of E… Read More »
1. Valkyrie Profile When I discovered RPGs as a child, I experienced simplistic and slow-paced battles with teenage boy protagonists rescuing damsels in distress. I wanted something different and exciting, dark and mature, and wholly unique. Valkyrie Profile granted this in spades and shattered my e… Read More »
1. Final Fantasy VI There was a time when Final Fantasy VI was on the shortlist of the greatest games ever, so how could this one from my formative years not influence my tastes? Several of the 14 party members have more development and personality than most solo protagonists. In a way, I feel like… Read More »
1. Final Fantasy VI Final Fantasy VI came out the year I was born, so suffice to say I didn’t play it on release. I did, however, grow up in a house with two older brothers where the game was heavily in rotation. Before they even trusted me to handle their precious games and pick up the controller m… Read More »
1. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic When I met my future wife in 2005, the only RPGs I had played up to that point were JRPGs. Furthermore, she did not even know what the term RPG meant (at the time). Both these things changed when we discovered Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. Being th… Read More »
1. Suikoden II If FFVII holds a special place in my heart as my first ever RPG, Suikoden II holds one for being the first I bought with my own money. My sister and I pooled our saved allowance to buy it solely based on its gorgeous cover art and premise. We weren’t disappointed, immediately sucked i… Read More »
1. Final Fantasy VII Purchasing a copy of this landmark RPG from my local HMV store in 1997 was a shot in the dark for me. I hadn’t been that aware of JRPGs, or much of the broader Japanese entertainment culture, prior to this act. But the cover looked stylish, and the screenshots on the back seemed… Read More »
1. Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride Dragon Quest games always have simple core mechanics serving as vehicles for tightly-written fantasy stories, given life by the late Akira Toriyama’s vibrant character and monster designs. I love that every Dragon Quest game has combat and menus from the… Read More »
1. Chrono Trigger Even if I didn’t have a love for time travel tales, Chrono Trigger is always on my list. It is, for me, old-school JRPG perfection, with timeless and gorgeous artwork and music, a cast I overwhelmingly love, and one interesting and innovative gameplay idea after another. Battles ta… Read More »
1. EarthBound I don’t think EarthBound was the first RPG I played, but it was definitely one of the first I owned and the first one I remember sinking my teeth into. I saved up a considerable amount of money to buy it and pored over the strategy guide whenever I wasn’t near my SNES. I try not to hol… Read More »
1. NieR Over the course of my life, there have only been a handful of games that caused me to shift my paradigm around what I wanted. The 2010 release of NieR showed me the things I wanted in a game that I didn’t even know I wanted. The series’ tradition of excellence continues, but I’ll never forge… Read More »
1. Final Fantasy VIII Final Fantasy VIII was my first Final Fantasy game and just happens to be the one that most accurately reflects my tastes in many aspects — the world, story, and gameplay. Due to my age when I played it, you could even say this game helped form my taste in RPGs and fantasy fict… Read More »
1. Final Fantasy X-2 To some readers this may be a controversial choice, but I proudly stand by it. Apart from the fact we haven’t had a mainline entry with both classic ATB and job systems since, Final Fantasy X-2 ties together multiple interests from my formative teenage years. As a blossoming fan… Read More »
1. Tales of Vesperia The Tales series has never had the production value of some Square Enix titles, but what they lack in spectacle, they make up for with some of the best casts in the genre. The famous skit feature ensures that you remember every party member and their relationships with each othe… Read More »
Winner: Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Writeup by Tim Rattray I scoffed when Final Fantasy VII Remake was revealed not to be a purely turn-based game, and yet I walked away from playing it thinking it had the greatest action combat of all time. Now, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth has put even that to shame. I… Read More »
Winner: Cloud Strife (Final Fantasy VII Rebirth) Writeup by Des Miller Weird. Awkward. Dorky. None of these are words I’d use to describe Cloud from 1997’s Final Fantasy VII, perhaps due to the original game’s lackluster localization. Yet in Final Fantasy VII Remake and its sequel, Final Fantasy VII… Read More »
Winner: Metaphor: ReFantazio Writeup by Aleks Franiczek With the Shin Megami Tensei games, Atlus continually shows how masterful they are at crafting traditional RPGs. With the Persona spinoffs, they effectively redefined the conventional RPG. What do you get when you combine both these traditions?… Read More »
Winner: Sephiroth (Final Fantasy VII Rebirth) Writeup by Abe Kobylanski We all had an idea of how Final Fantasy VII Rebirth would end and that Sephiroth would have a role in that ending. In the prologue, Cloud recalls a moment where he was assailed by a terrifying act of cruelty, and from that point… Read More »
Winner: 1000xRESIST Writeup by Aleks Franiczek One of 1000xRESIST’s most impressive achievements is how thoughtfully it is structured, leveraging shifts in its presentation to support its storytelling. It’s not really an adventure game. It’s not really a walking sim. And it’s certainly not an RPG. B… Read More »
Winner: Aerith Gainsborough (Final Fantasy VII Rebirth) Writeup by Tim Rattray Well, the votes are in. Aerith is better than Tifa by a margin of Barret. The shipping wars are over. Okay, I jest (mostly). Aerith in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is one of the best video game characters ever written. Her s… Read More »
RPGFan uses cookies to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.