there are RPGs and then there are jrpgs
you betcha
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we're
counting down our picks for the top 10
Japanese role-playing games of all time
I dreamt about tuned for this list we
are only considering games that were
given unofficial English localization
release while the games in question do
not have to be turn-based they have to
feature the genre staples like
experience points and multiple
characters I understand so games like
Monster Hunter are unfortunately out
tactical strategy RPGs like Fire Emblem
are also excluded and our usual rule of
one game per franchise still stands no
no number 10 Secret of Mana the second
mana game to arrive in North America if
you count final fantasy adventure on the
Gameboy here we follow our unnamed hero
as he discovers the legendary weapon the
mana sword your ultimate goal is to use
the sword to destroy what is known as
the mana fortress a flying warship once
controlled by an ancient civilization
the title was revolutionary for its time
allowing up to three players to operate
each one of the main characters
simultaneously and for its wheel system
which made casting spells a breeze
number nine so we could into our next
entry is another classic in the JRPG
catalog so we could end to known for its
multi branching story the player
controls ryu our young hero who gets
swept up into a multi nation war you
know like we all do from time to time
the gameplay will keep you on your toes
as it switches quite often between
skirmishes with up to six characters to
full-on army assaults we recommend you
play this game with a guy as you may not
get the real ending if you haven't
collected all a hundred and eight
characters and that's a feat all by
itself
go ahead we dare you to try number eight
earthbound released in Japan with the
less appealing title mother two we
follow the story of ness and his four
friends as they attempt to stop the
alien gigas from destroying the world
[Applause]
how do you ask by using a collection of
melodies of course contrary to this one
of the main creators of the game writer
shigesato itoi's considered earthbound a
satirical statement about Western
culture as well as of common RPG tropes
as evidenced by the seemingly mundane
characters that serve as enemies as you
may have guessed earthbound went on to
sell poorly in the United States but is
remembered as a cult classic number 7
Shin Megami Tensei persona for the
newest game to make our top 10 Shin
Megami Tensei persona 4 pleased new life
into a genre that was mainly ruled by
the Final Fantasy franchise everyone on
guard persona 4 is essentially two games
in one as when you're in the real world
of Inaba the game functions as a life
simulator allowing you to live out your
day as you wish when you enter the TV
world you use each character's persona
essentially a mask the character wears
to deal with the hardships in their
lives to gain experience and levels
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the game attempts to blend RPG and
simulation elements together and largely
succeeds such a passionate approach
number six Kingdom Hearts this is what
happens when Disney and Final Fantasy
are mashed together taking control of
the young boy Sora the player visits
various Disney worlds like Agrabah from
Aladdin and the deep jungle from Tarzan
to defeat the Heartless which serve as
the main force of darkness in the game
when the Heartless came everything
changed although only the most devoted
fans can follow its convoluted storyline
beyond its multiple spin-offs on
different consoles when you get back Wow
the original is still a shining example
of an action RPG done right number 5
Xenogears while xenoblade chronicles was
another critically acclaimed entry in
the series
you know gears just barely edges it out
in terms of legendary status in
Xenogears we take control of protagonist
faith for long as he tries to uncover
the truth behind the mysterious machines
that exist in his world the game serves
as an analysis of humanity's
relationship with machines mainly due to
the existence of years
gears are various machines that any
character the player controls can
operate much like one of our earlier
entries Xenogears uses two different
systems for battle a traditional
turn-based format and a giant robot
battle when you're operating a gear
number for Dragon Quest eight journey of
the cursed King yes yes here we are in
dragon quest aid the player controls a
silent protagonist and his allies in
their battle against doll Magus a court
jester who obtained a magic scepter
containing you'll never guess the Lord
of Darkness which he's trying to use to
take over the kingdom oh no no no the
eighth iteration of the Dragon Warrior
franchise Dragon Quest uses a mixture of
3d animation and cel shading technology
a style that was underrepresented in the
JRPG Chara I am 5 as I am to top it off
the battle system was improved from the
previous titles to include first-person
and third-person viewpoints seamlessly
switching with ease
Western world meat Dragon Quest not
Dragon Warrior well they certainly took
us by surprise but nothing we couldn't
handle
number three pokemon gold silver crystal
you've got to catch them all and a lot
of people did the second major
installment in the Pokemon franchise
gold and silver added a hundred new
Pokemon to an already expansive list
this time around there are sixteen gems
to take on spread across two separate
regions you can collect Pokemon the
traditional way by catching them in the
wild trading them with other players or
by using the newly introduced breeding
system
[Applause]
it also added a time system to the
series which is integral to the
appearance of a few rare Pokemon can you
be the one to capture the legendary
Pokemon probably number two Final
Fantasy 6 this shara is loaded with
Final Fantasy so the only question is
which one would we pick for more on this
difficult decision please check out our
top 10 Final Fantasy games list anyway a
Final Fantasy 6 is steampunk-inspired
main story you take control of up to 14
playable characters in a rebellion
against the Empire and their magitek
knights most notably kefka
Kefka is the driving force behind the
end of the world and serves as one of
the greatest antagonists gaming has ever
seen
while battle wise the game doesn't bring
anything new to the table its peerless
in terms of its story before we reveal
our top pick here are a few honorable
mentions
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[Applause]
number one Chrono Trigger no other game
has done JRPGs and time travel more
justice than this 16-bit masterpiece
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from its rather simplistic beginnings to
save a princess lost in time the game
quickly evolves into something much much
bigger in the future humanity is
clinging to life on a dying world thanks
to a being known as Lavos who has
devastated the planet Chrono Trigger
story is compelling without being overly
complex just like its combat system on
top of it all there are multiple endings
to give you more reasons to relive this
fantastic journey for no trigger just
isn't the best jrpg it's one of the best
games ever made
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do you by any chance agree with our list
he wishes which JRPG do you love for
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watchmojo.com zum steep yourself and
darkness to long
the Heartless consume the cares
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