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JRPG vs WRPG - Who is the current king?

Who is the current RPG king?

  • JRPG

    Votes: 191 55.0%
  • WRPG

    Votes: 156 45.0%

  • Total voters
    347

FStubbs

Member
wRPGs have been in a rut for a bit. What's the last big wRPG that people were excited about other than Souls games? Diablo 4 isn't out yet.
 
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Bakkus

Member
wRPGs have been in a rut for a bit. What's the last big wRPG that people were excited about other than Souls games? Diablo 4 isn't out yet.
If the Souls games are WRPGs, then those Obsidian South Park games and Undertale are JRPGs
 

Fuz

Banned
  • Persona 5
  • Final Fantasy VII Remake
  • Dragon Quest XI
  • Bloodborne
  • Demons Souls Remake
  • Nioh 1 and 2
  • Octopath Traveller
  • Xenoblade 2
  • FFXIV Expansions
  • NieR Automata
  • Monster Hunter World
  • 13 Sentinels
  • Fire Emblem Three Houses
  • Dark Souls 3
  • Kingdom Hearts 3
  • Yakuza Like a Dragon
  • Final Fantasy XV
  • Paper Mario the Origami King
  • Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel series
Half of those aren't even RPGs.
 

Aenima

Member
Some very quality JRPGs this gen like Persona 5, DQ11, Ys8 and many more. So JRPGs right now.

RPGs are my favorite genre dosent matter if they are JRPGs or WRPGs.
 
No doubt JRPG. There's loads of 8-10/10's been released the past 5 years that have blown almost everything released by the west out of the water. Trails, Tales, Final Fantasy, Stella Glow, Utawarerumono, and others make Dragon Age look like the bottom of the barrel CW-tier trash it is.
 

sublimit

Banned
The terms "JRPG" and "WRPG" are problematic and don't make sense.

The right question would have been:
"RPGs made in Japan vs RPGs made in the West,who is the current king?"
 
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I enjoy the Persona games although I much prefer WRPGS, particular older Bioware games. Turn based game gameplay in particular is not a favourite of mine.
 

FStubbs

Member
The terms "JRPG" and "WRPG" are problematic and don't make sense.

The right question would have been:
"RPGs made in Japan vs RPGs made in the West,who is the current king?"
That's the wrong question. It's Japanese-style RPGs vs Western-style RPGs.

Unless you're telling me if someone says "Hey, I liked Legrand Legacy, tell me a game that's like that", you would seriously tell them Skyrim, Baldur's Gate, or Mass Effect and not Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest?
 
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JRPGs all the way.


There are some decent WRPGs as well - SSI Gold box, Fallout 1/2, Infinity Engine games (and their modern imitators), etc... but games like Witcher 3 and the modern fallout series have never appealed to me.

That said, it seems like there's a trend with modern JRPGs where developers want to make them as complex as possible. Persona 5 is a good example - great game but I absolutely feel like I need to play it with a walkthrough open next to me to ensure that I don't miss anything important to the story. There are several JRPGs like this these days, where I feel like I'm going to miss something if I don't use a guide and I'm not talking about items either, but important plot points.

I'll also add, that I dislike the "time limit" convention that many games using today. Many of them taking after Persona where action x will advance time and you'll be unable to complete quest A & B or see cutscene C after it advances.
 

Aion002

Member
Tough choice. I will go with WRPGs right now, but I think that after FFXVI is released, Japan will once again be the king.
 

darrylgorn

Member
I'm really enjoying Dungeon of Naheulbeuk, probably moreso than Divinity, Pillars or Pathfinder.

As for JRPGs, LOTR: Third Age definitely has my vote 🙈
 
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HoodWinked

Member
There's kind of a wall they've hit on both fronts I'd say neither at the moment.

I haven't gotten the kind of enjoyment like a Chrono Trigger, FF7, Lost Odyssey, Odin's Sphere, Mass Effect 1+2, or Oblivion.

The thing I'm probably looking forward to most is the Saga Frontier remaster for the cut content from decades ago.
 
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Kokoloko85

Member
PS3 /360 Era it was WRPG’s

XB1/PS4 era it was JRPG’s for sure.

Yes Witcher 3 and Dragon age were good but alot were shite, whereas JRPG’s made a comback last gen
 

German Hops

GAF's Nicest Lunch Thief
I prefer JRPGs overall, especially lately.

Gameplay

In my opinion, Gameplay is the King, and I think that overall, JRPGs have better Gameplay. I enjoy turn-based as well as real-time combat, but I enjoy the depth that JRPGs offer over WRPGs. Games like Lost Odyssey and Xenoblade really upped the Gameplay in terms of JRPGs. Adding things like jewels and slots and extra abilities as the game progresses really keeps the combat from getting stale.

While WRPGs aren't necessarily shallow experiences by any means, you tend to be able to start the game with all the abilities and gameplay mechanics you will ever get in the game. The only progression is the level of power of each ability. That isn't a bad thing, but when it's done poorly (like the Magic system in Skyrim, for example), it really takes away from the game.

Character Design

I think this is a pretty obvious win for JRPGs. Yes, both have their cliché characters, but in terms of overall character design, JRPGs have way more variety. I don't hate WRPG design though, I just prefer JRPG. As far as character development, because many WRPGs have you as the character, there isn't that much in terms of that. In JRPGs, however, there is a lot more development of the characters as the game and story progress. However, that also makes WRPGs much better in terms of in-game role-play.

Because WRPGs tend to be a lot more open-ended, you can really alter your play-style with each playthrough. That's something that WRPGs definitely have over JRPGs, and that has a lot to do with Character Design/Development

Storyline

I would say that WRPGs probably have the edge here, though there are some really outstanding exceptions in my mind (such as EarthBound and Xenoblade). JRPGs are typically save the world, major plot twist, good guys become bad guys, really anti-climactic ending. I'm thinking particularly of Tales of Symphonia. Amazing game, one of my favorites of all time, but the story left me scratching my head more often than not.

Probably the best plot of any WRPG for me was Morrowind. It wasn't "Save the entire universe from doom" and it didn't have a bright-line good v. evil dichotomy. It was up to the player to determine who was good and who was bad, even though in the end, your actions were the same, it left the story open-ended enough that it made for some amazing conversations in Morrowind/Elder Scrolls forums back in the day.

Most WRPGs don't have the guts to do that anymore, though, and most recently have had pretty cookie-cutter plots.

But between cookie-cutter plots or plots that don't make any sense, I'll take the cookie-cutter ones
 

Melubas

Member
For me WRPGs take the cake. Witcher, Cyberpunk, Disco Elysium, Divinity Original Sin. Just such great games. JRPGs are cool too but I tend to dislike the anime tropes present in so many of them. Dark Souls and the likes are wwhere it's at for me when it comesto JRPGs.
 

Xeaker

Member
JRPGs are pretty much dead by now. How many do we get a year? 2-3?

giphy.gif


I miss the good old PS1-PS2 times. JRPG devs should just go back to HD PS2 graphic and start putting out some nice games.
 
Since when CD Projekt is a western dev, OP? Since when Poland is west?

Poland is in central Europe and close to the eastern. Don't you know, it was a communist country for decades?

Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk have nothing to do with western games.
 
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NahaNago

Member
Since when CD Projekt is a western dev, OP? Since when Poland is west?

Poland is in central Europe and close to the eastern. Don't you know, it was a communist country for decades?

Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk have nothing to do with western games.
It's European so considered the west. Then again even Russia is considered west since they are mostly white (sounds wrong but that is how folks see it).
JRPGs are pretty much dead by now. How many do we get a year? 2-3?



I miss the good old PS1-PS2 times. JRPG devs should just go back to HD PS2 graphic and start putting out some nice games.

Not sure if serious but I really do feel like that the limitations of the hardware is what led to the ps1 having so many great jrpgs. The jump to hd has not been kind to a lot of jrpgs companies. My advice to them would be to create something small that is amazing ,then make the next game just a little bit bigger, and continue doing this until you are making large jrpgs.

edit: beloved ps1 jrpgs though are like the dragon ball z cartoon and the modern sequels are the live action remake. Something has definitely been messed up in the transition.
 
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Impotaku

Member
The problem with western rpg games is they all look like lord of the rings / medieval environments and to be fair a lot of japanese ones fall into this exact same problem. There are only so many times i can play yet another rpg in a fantasy medieval world i find them dull as fuck.
 

RGB'D

Member
I enjoy JRPG but the quality just isn't there unless you really like anime. Persona is a waste of time... I tried with 4 Golden for 60 hours and it never was good. FF7:Remake was good but I prefer Divinity Original Sin 1&2 were some of my favorites. And Larian is making Baldur's Gate III, it's going to be incredible.
 
Persona is a waste of time... I tried with 4 Golden for 60 hours and it never was good.
I really wish that Persona would go back to the gameplay found pre-Persona 3. Persona 3 - 5 are good games but because of the complexity and very hard time limits on some activities, I feel like I can't play them without using a walkthrough. This is especially true with 5 and 5 Royal where there is so much to do and the potential to miss so much that playing the game essentially becomes checking off boxes from a guide to ensure that you don't miss anything.

Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE is more like Persona 1 & 2 and I think overall it's a better game because of that.
 
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Impotaku

Member
Funny to hear persona not been mentioned as good as 5 royal is pretty much sitting at the top of my most liked rpg games of all time list not tried 4 though as 5 was my first ever persona game, the story totally hooked me and i loved that it was set in modern times. Like i said i'm totally fucking done with medieval worlds they are so played to death.

While persona 5R sits at the top for me, one of my most loved rpg games is actually Giftpia on gamecube it's not like any rpg game out there as it has no battles it's all to do with solving the story. It's weird and a lot of fun i loved the island it's set in, just living your days one at a time as you try to solve everyones wishes was a lot of fun. Nowadays i prefer games that try to do something differently, persona did this with having the metaverse as it's quirky twist.
 

Impotaku

Member
I really wish that Persona would go back to the gameplay found pre-Persona 3. Persona 3 - 5 are good games but because of the complexity and very hard time limits on some activities, I feel like I can't play them without using a walkthrough. This is especially true with 5 and 5 Royal where there is so much to do and the potential to miss so much that playing the game essentially becomes checking off boxes from a guide to ensure that you don't miss anything.
Thats what new game plus is for silly hehe, although i do appreciate not everyone wants to go in for a second loop when the game is 100+ hours long. In the second loop i have already maxed out the relationships of at least half the eople so this second run i'm going for the rest but yeah unless you keep track of everything it's hard to max your time as there's so much to do in raising your stats and other stuff. Thankfully the social stuff i got maxed out on my first run so i have loads of free time to devote to confidant stuff as i no longer have to study ect.
 
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Fredrik

Member
Since when CD Projekt is a western dev, OP? Since when Poland is west?

Poland is in central Europe and close to the eastern. Don't you know, it was a communist country for decades?

Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk have nothing to do with western games.

Interesting! I would definitely call their games western RPGs. But does the people in Poland consider themselves western people? I have no idea tbh.

West and east is complicated terms when you live on a globe though. A japanese dev would fly to the east to meet nice guy Phil to be acquired. From their perspective, is USA an eastern country? 🤔
BgeLYxB.jpg


But maybe we can go after the prime meridian? Then USA is western. But then the whole Europe is eastern 🤔 Sigh I think I need to go back to school! 🤣
 
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Thats what new game plus is for silly hehe, although i do appreciate not everyone wants to go in for a second loop when the game is 100+ hours long.
I barely have time to play all of the games I want now. I don't think I could play the same 100+ hour game twice, no matter how good it was.
 

RGB'D

Member
I really wish that Persona would go back to the gameplay found pre-Persona 3. Persona 3 - 5 are good games but because of the complexity and very hard time limits on some activities, I feel like I can't play them without using a walkthrough. This is especially true with 5 and 5 Royal where there is so much to do and the potential to miss so much that playing the game essentially becomes checking off boxes from a guide to ensure that you don't miss anything.

Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE is more like Persona 1 & 2 and I think overall it's a better game because of that.
I can definitely understand this and felt like I had to look up what to do each day constantly. Also might be an unpopular take but the TV world aesthetic was terrible and felt bland, and the story never interested me that much. I must have googled "when does Persona get good?" a handful of times as I forced myself to play since it was so revered around here. I really don't understand the allure to that game series. The combat felt really clunky/as did the progression for the personas and the payoff was supposed to be the story that felt really generic...
 

Kev Kev

Member
in all honesty, there is no "king". there is just what you personally enjoy, regardless of sales or other people's opinions. why do humans have to make everything a competition lol
 

sunnysideup

Banned
I never really liked western rpgs. I have tried on multiple occasions. But they always come of as buggy and jittery and generally unfinished and unpolished software. It always feels like a work in progress.

I used to love jrpgs back in the day in square and segas hayday. But these days i rarely play them. For the same reason i dont watch modern anime.
 
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I never really liked western rpgs. I have tried on multiple occasions. But they always come of as buggy and jittery and generally unfinished and unpolished software. It always feels like a work in progress.

I used to love jrpgs back in the day in square and segas hayday. But these days i rarely play them. For the same reason i dont watch modern anime.


Which ones would you say are buggy and unfinished ? We know, of course, WRPG's created the entire genre and mold and rules and gameplay. jrpgs are just copies of them that riped most of what makes rpgs' rpgs, turned them into linear, grindy adventure games and people called them at some point jrpgs. I dont even consider them rpgs
 

sunnysideup

Banned
Which ones would you say are buggy and unfinished ? We know, of course, WRPG's created the entire genre and mold and rules and gameplay. jrpgs are just copies of them that riped most of what makes rpgs' rpgs, turned them into linear, grindy adventure games and people called them at some point jrpgs. I dont even consider them rpgs
jade empire, mass effect 2, fallout 3, skyrim, witcher 3. I played them on console thought.

I might give witcher another go on pc now.
 
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FStubbs

Member
Which ones would you say are buggy and unfinished ? We know, of course, WRPG's created the entire genre and mold and rules and gameplay. jrpgs are just copies of them that riped most of what makes rpgs' rpgs, turned them into linear, grindy adventure games and people called them at some point jrpgs. I dont even consider them rpgs
That's like saying "only New York style pizza is real pizza".
 
That's like saying "only New York style pizza is real pizza".


Its really not. The original thing with rpg's is making your character, classes, abilities, choice&consequence, freedom, openess, reactivity. JRPGS are mostly a sequence of liniar tunnels, with fixed protagonists following a predetermined path, doing what the script says. They're really just adventure games for the most part.
 
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