Best non-FF RPGs I’ve seen on Next-Gen systems in no order (obviously, I would reccomend them):
- Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter (PS2) - If you hated every other Breath of Fire game with an outrageous passion…Good. This game plays nothing like the previous BoF games. Though, I think strangely enough, it’s got a good enough appeal if you liked any previous BoF games (I personally think BoF3 was the only other good one).
Dragon Quarter plays like a turn-based Vagrant Story, only much harder. The game sort of expects you to lose and start over again (though, despite what ANYONE tells you, it’s possible to never start over - I didn’t), and as your reward, you keep equipment, progress on sidequests, Party EXP (special experience that you can distribute any way you like, or horde for later), and even unlock more storyline sequences.
That being said, you’ll wanna play it twice, cos the story is actually pretty good. It’s not ‘epic’, but as long as you can enjoy a story in an RPG without wanting an Epic journey, it’s easy to appreciate - it’s one of the first games I’ve seen make real use of the camera direction and panning for dramatic effect in its story sequences, and like a good script should, they convey a lot by saying a little (I’ve always hated the “You mean you’re doing ____ ____ _________ ________ ________ _____ ____ __ ___ so you can _____ _______ _____ ______ ________ ____ ______ ____!!!” “Mmmyes, that’s right…” sorts of scripts they have in most RPGs). Great music, decent graphics.
And, here’s the best part - The price range at EB and Gamestop goes from $12.99 to $19.99. It’d be hard to NOT be able to afford buying it, and it’s safe to buy cos it’s just so damn cheap. Just go for it.
Growlanser Generations (PS2) - This is actually a box set of two games - Growlanser 2 and 3. GL2 is probably one of the best and most original Tactics RPGs I’ve seen in years. There’s not much to say about it storywise, but it’s passable. Growlanser 3 uses a TRPG system, but it plays like a traditional RPG (it’s hard to explain…I’ll let someone else do it :P). Dialogue and story take the front seat in GL3, with the game being significantly easier than GL2, but a bit longer. As most Working Designs scripts are, it’s very well-written and manages to invoke a lot of emotion. I don’t know how expensive this game is nowadays.
Shadow Hearts (PS2) - Okay…so this isn’t Post-FFX (Actually, I’m quite sure that this was a LAUNCH title for PS2, which would explain the PSX style of the graphics), but it’s quite the gem. It’s a pretty edgy story with a dark tone to it. Though the game’s story and setting is kind of dark and creepy, the game manages to add a lot of flavor by being very original, and having a very funny main character (It’s not out of place, either; Yuri, the main character, just happens to be funny. It comes off a lot more realistic, and not just like some random comic relief). It’s a pretty short RPG, but a fun, old-school style experience. Unfortunately, this game carries a 50 dollar price tag on Ebay now, since the other two games in the series are really popular (I think they kind of suck, personally…but if you didn’t like the first one, you’ll probably like the second two a lot!)., but if you can afford it, I can’t stress enough how great of a game this is; you’ll probably never find another one like it.
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (GCN) - This game is just…funny. If you’ve played Paper Mario and you enjoyed it, this one is ten times better. If you played Paper Mario and you didn’t like it that much…this one is ten times better. It’s a pretty long RPG with standard Mario RPG gameplay (timed hits system), and it’s very, VERY funny. If you like lighthearted humor, this game will SLAY you, it’s just so damn funny. I don’t know what else I should say…It’s funny! Play it! I hear they’ve recently re-released it for cheap, too…