• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

What JRPGs released over the last handful of years would you say came closest to capturing classic old school RPG nostalgia greatness?

DragoonKain

Neighbours from Hell
I've been craving an old school JRPG style game, and I'm looking to play a couple this year. Rather than replay old games, I was looking for something that feels like I'm playing something old school.

What games released over the last handful of years have scratched that itch for you? Any console, I don't care.

I know Tokyo RPG Factory has a few. I Am Setsuna, Lost Sphear, Oninanki. Then there's the Bravely Default games, Radiant Historia and Octopath Traveler. I've never played any of those yet. I'm sure there are a bunch of others.

It doesn't necessarily have to look like an old school game graphically, although I'd prefer it. For example, Lost Odyssey when it came out looked new school, but it had the feel of a classic FF game in gameplay.

Btw, no Shin Megami Tensei games. I've never been able to get into them. I hope at some point down the road I may acquire that taste, but right now I'm not interesting in playing any SMT/Persona games.
 
Last edited:
Dragon Quest XI S did it for me until:

The end of Act 1 and the Start of Act 2 with the interludes. They really broke up the flow of the game for me. Plus, I really disliked the idea of the party being split up. I put it down at that point and haven't gone back to it.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon, really has that "old school" JRPG feel, despite the modern subject matter.

Legend of Heroes games is great. I played Cold Steel 1 and am now going back to play Trails in the Sky before moving forward with Cold Steel.

Also, I know you said no SMT games, but you might want to think about picking up SMT 3: Nocturne when the remake comes out next month. It's a great game and was my introduction to the series way back in the early 2000s when it was first released on PS2.
 

Neil Young

Member
Dragon Quest XI S did it for me until:

The end of Act 1 and the Start of Act 2 with the interludes. They really broke up the flow of the game for me. Plus, I really disliked the idea of the party being split up. I put it down at that point and haven't gone back to it.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon, really has that "old school" JRPG feel, despite the modern subject matter.

Legend of Heroes games is great. I played Cold Steel 1 and am now going back to play Trails in the Sky before moving forward with Cold Steel.

Also, I know you said no SMT games, but you might want to think about picking up SMT 3: Nocturne when the remake comes out next month. It's a great game and was my introduction to the series way back in the early 2000s when it was first released on PS2.
Totally agree on the spoiled part. It's like they chose to add content for the sake of adding it. I also thought the little slime dude quests were HORRIBLE. Did a few but never went back to them. But, I thought the game overall was pretty great.

Also agree on Yakuza. Just a wacky, goofy ass fun game. Stopped playing when you got to the business part, have to go back to it.
 

MagnesG

Banned
I own it, but never opened it yet.
You should someday. The game have some mix of Brave system from BD, saga-esque skills unlock and a couple of other world interaction mechanisms that are fun to unlock as you progress, I might even forgot a couple more. Basically a classic game full chockful of things to do that you wouldn't expect, certainly would keep you busy.
 
Last edited:

Danjin44

The nicest person on this forum
Dragon Quest XI, Bravely Default and Octopath Traveller is definitely what your are looking for.
 
DQXI most of all. Just the overall feel of it was classic.
After that, Octopath. Though I did not enjoy the scrambled storyline, they absolutely nailed the look and feel, incredible music, and turn based combat.

Next I would say Final Fantasy VII Remake. For real. It felt like an old school RPG again, especially after playing through FFXV.
 

cireza

Banned
Most recent game that felt old-school good was Shiren 5+ on Vita for me. But you can definitely see the old-school roots anyway, the game could run on SNES more or less.

Awesome rogue-like, not JRPG.

I would not say that FF XV matches, however I got some really nostalgic feels about the act of camping inside the dungeons. Really felt like an expansion of using a cottage in whatever cave or dungeon in FF V.

There is actually another one I forgot to mention : it is Brigandine. Awesome Strategy-RPG. Felt definitely old-school in the right way. Highly recommended.
 
Last edited:
Octopath hit the nostalgia sweet spots in so many ways.

Too bad the game ended up becoming so damn repetitive.

In terms of pure RPGness it's DQ11. That game felt (for better or worse) like the modern version of an OG JRPG - it didn't try to do too much.
 
Last edited:
Yakuza: Like A Dragon.

There are other good choices, but this right here is made by a group of true oldschool JRPG fans, and it shows. It's super high quality. A person GOTY contender for me. It is THAT good.
 

TimeShinigami

Neo Member
I'll go ahead and disagree with the DQ XI supporters. As an RPG, the game mechanics function fine but its story and pacing are terrible.

I just beat Brave Default 2 yesterday, so I can heartily recomend it for those looking for an old school experience (if you don't mind some of the bosses being absolute damage sponges that is).
 

FeldMonster

Member
I absolutely love BattleChasers: Nightwar, having played through NG+ on both Xbox and Android. I am told it hearkens back to classic JRPGs, but I haven't personally played any to compare.
 

SinDelta

Member
Dragon Quest XI S is pretty great.

Bravely Default in its own way. (Spiritual sucessor to Final Fantasy V.)

Xenoblade Chronicles DE (Spiritual sucessor to Xeno series)

I've heard mixed things about Ni No Kuni Wrath of the White Witch, Octopath Traveller and Bravely Default 2. Some good, some eh.
 
Last edited:
I'll go ahead and disagree with the DQ XI supporters. As an RPG, the game mechanics function fine but its story and pacing are terrible.
See the spoiler in my first comment. I totally agree
Xenoblade Chronicles DE (Spiritual sucessor to Xeno series)
Story definitely, but the gameplay is a bit "new."

I'm currently playing this and I can't say that I like the battle system all that much, but the story so far is really good.
 

dottme

Member
I would put FANTASIAN. Seriously, it looks like a classic PS1 JRPG slightly modernize to feel current taste.
wAvamGf.jpg
 

Rran

Member
I'm in this thread throwing thumbs-up everywhere for DQ11 recommendations.

As a lifelong SNES RPG fan, I was totally absorbed by Dragon Quest 11. It doesn't try to break the mold or push boundaries, but it's a super-polished, classic, turn-based JRPG experience with lovable characters and an emotional (if straightforward) story. I loved it!
 
Everyone is rightly saying DQXI, it really does keep the very old school combat DQ has always had, and adds a lot of great extras that enhance it without removing the underlying system.

Bravely 2 on switch is quite good. The bravely games are self contained stories so you can jump in right there. These titles kind of feel very old and new all at once. I couldn't have gotten anywhere on hard mode in bravely 2 without grinding if it weren't for exploits I found like the monk's armour piercing pressure point ability and beastmaster abilities, but part of the fun of jrpgs is figuring out what's broken and playing around with tricks so you can take out OP enemies without having to grind.

Yakuza 7 might actually fit your needs op. The combat is very like classic FF and DQ, but the setting is unlike a classic jrpg...only because it's in modern Japan. It is like a classic in terms of being a fun adventure with great party members.
 

NahaNago

Member
DQ games are super long and my patience in JRPGs wears thin very quickly. Only reason it wasn’t on there sooner.
My patience for long games has run thin since I got older. I really need to go back and play DQ11. I think I almost got halfway through the game.
 
See the spoiler in my first comment. I totally agree

Story definitely, but the gameplay is a bit "new."

I'm currently playing this and I can't say that I like the battle system all that much, but the story so far is really good.
You're certainly right that it isn't classic combat, but I think the obtuse, poorly explained battle system is actually fantastic when you understand its depth, which I probably never could have done without having its nuances explained to me by experts on youtube. Many of them are careful to keep their guides as spoiler free as possible but do look out for that because the reveals in the story are quite amazing. It might not be a thing you usually do, but once I understood all the power that was at my fingertips, combat became really enjoyable.
 

lefty1117

Gold Member
Maybe I'm misunderstanding the question but wouldn't Persona 5 fit the bill? Also I second Yakuza: Like A Dragon
 
Maybe I'm misunderstanding the question but wouldn't Persona 5 fit the bill? Also I second Yakuza: Like A Dragon
Op says he strictly doesn't want any SMT, and while P5 is so different that they even dropped the SMT prefix from the title, it isn't like an old school jrpg, which is what he is requesting
 
Last edited:
You're certainly right that it isn't classic combat, but I think the obtuse, poorly explained battle system is actually fantastic when you understand its depth, which I probably never could have done without having its nuances explained to me by experts on youtube. Many of them are careful to keep their guides as spoiler free as possible but do look out for that because the reveals in the story are quite amazing. It might not be a thing you usually do, but once I understood all the power that was at my fingertips, combat became really enjoyable.
Thanks for the video link. I'll give it a watch later tonight.


I HATED the combat until I switched away from Shulk. Now I'm using Dunban and it's a lot more fun.

I just reached the Frontier Village so I have a TON of game left to go.
Maybe I'm misunderstanding the question but wouldn't Persona 5 fit the bill?
OP said that he wasn't interested in SMT/Persona games.
 
Thanks for the video link. I'll give it a watch later tonight.


I HATED the combat until I switched away from Shulk. Now I'm using Dunban and it's a lot more fun.

I just reached the Frontier Village so I have a TON of game left to go.

OP said that he wasn't interested in SMT/Persona games.
Yeah Dunban's awesome. Although I guess I like playing as all the characters. I can confirm that nothing in that video is a spoiler for where you're up to.
 

fart town usa

Gold Member
iu

remember this? lol. Fun times.


In all seriousness, Dragon Quest 11. I'm out of the loop with other JRPG games but I would imagine that Switch has the most of them.
 
Top Bottom