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Why Shin Megami Tensei 4 is my most anticipated JRPG of 2013
This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs has to offer. Like many people, my introduction to JRPGs came via the likes of Final Fantasy VI and Final Fantasy VII. Heavily story-based, limited dungeon crawling, turn-based battle systems with an emphasis on flashy animations. I loved them.Now it's 2013 (wow, I live in the future), and things have changed. I find that the RPG I'm looking forward to most isn't Tales of Xillia or Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII. Neither is it Ni no Kuni, which is as pretty an RPG as you will ever find. It's Shin Megami Tensei 4.
Three interesting trends found in 2012's JRPGs
This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs has to offer. As both a columnist and a fan, I've felt relatively lucky this a year with plenty of JRPGs to play and enjoy in 2012, including Persona 4 Golden, Xenoblade Chronicles, and The Last Story.I'm not exactly drowning in RPGs or anything, but this is probably the happiest I've been since 2008 or so, which was the year I discovered Valkyria Chronicles. I don't want to say that there was something for everyone, because it's a lousy cliché, and not really true either. But for those who were willing to look, it was a good year.Is this the beginning of a return to form for Japanese developers? Well, maybe not. The accelerated growth of mobile gaming, an aging population back home, and outsized budgets are all substantial obstacles for Japanese studios. But a few interesting trends are taking hold that could have a substantial impact on the industry in the near future:
Recommendation shortlist for rookie JRPG players
This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs has to offer. It used to be so easy to get people to try Japanese role-playing games. If they asked where they should start, all I had to say was, "Let me tell you about this little game called Final Fantasy VII." In the end, I would almost always have a convert.But times have changed. Many of the old PlayStation standbys have aged rather poorly, and modern RPGs are more complicated and time-consuming than ever. There are more high-quality JRPGs out there than the average person might think, but many of them are tough to recommend to newcomers.But from time to time, I'm approached by a gamer who has barely even played Pokemon, let alone Xenoblade Chronicles, and they ask me to recommend a good JRPG. It's a moment that can be every bit as delicate as recommending a good entry point into something like Star Trek. The goal is to recommend something that starts fast and makes sense, but also highlights the genre's relative strengths.
Nintendo's Wii U may be an attractive device for Japanese RPG fans
This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs has to offer. I didn't manage to get a Wii U over the weekend. By the time I got around to ordering one, pre-orders were closed, and I wasn't willing to camp outside in the rain or add my name to the wait list. I'm still getting a Wii U though, and not because of Nintendo Land, New Super Mario Bros. U, or even The Legend of Zelda. I'm getting a Wii U because I'm intrigued by the potential of its RPG library.[Ed. Note: For more on the Wii U, check out Joystiq's comprehensive coverage.]As I've discussed before, this is not a new development for Nintendo. Toward the tail end of the Wii years, it made a concerted effort to woo RPG developers. The result was the "Operation Rainfall" games – Xenoblade Chronicles, The Last Story, and Pandora's Tower. Last week, I listed the Wii's Top 10 RPGs for 1UP, and I didn't even have to include Shiren the Wanderer or Tales of Symphonia 2. That platform's RPG selection is deeper than many people know.
Genius Sonority's Denpa Men reaches back to the company's 16-bit roots
This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs has to offer. Genius Sonority made its debut under that name in 2003, with Pokemon Colosseum. It was billed as a successor to Pokemon Stadium, and I ended up putting in more than a hundred hours before eventually souring on the recycled sprites and Colosseum's grinding "purification process."Since then, Genius Sonority's name has mostly been a byword for "outsourced" among Pokemon fans, bringing the same shudders that Backbone does for retro gamers. But with the recent release of Denpa Men: They Came by Wave, a kind of augmented reality RPG for the Nintendo 3DS, I've found that their roots go back further than Pokemon.%Gallery-169215%
These Western-developed JRPGs deserve your time
In my drawer is an unopened copy of Muramasa: The Demon Blade. Having really enjoyed it at E3, I made a point to pick up a copy for myself, then proceed to completely forget about it following a trip to Japan. It's still there, waiting for me to finally start clearing out my backlog. I thought of Muramasa recently while playing another 2D action RPG – Dust: An Elysian Tail. Dust was developed by a westerner named Dean Dodrill, but it has much in common with Japanese-developed RPGs. The art style and the storytelling are just two elements that seem to take after Dust's Japanese counterparts. That Dust has so much in common with Muramasa is a reminder that an RPG doesn't have to be developed by the Japanese to be a "JRPG." I've heard arguments to the contrary, but there is definitely a certain style at work in JRPGs, which is most apparent in their console-friendly accessibility, animated look, and their focus on storytelling. These are all traits that can be readily replicated by western developers.
Five RPG extras that would probably be DLC in 2012
This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs has to offer. When the enhanced edition of Final Fantasy VII for the PC was announced, I spent some time imagining achievements. In the comments, a lot of people pointed out that Yuffie's sidequest (and indeed, Yuffie herself) would probably be downloadable content in the modern era of video games. This, I thought to myself, is probably true.I brought up that point with Polygon's Phil Kollar the other day, and we ended up chatting at some length about DLC. What other classic RPG bonuses, I wondered, would probably be downloadable content today? The two of us had a few ideas (full credit to Phil for reminding me of this idea). Let's explore, shall we?
Vita and 3DS give RPGs a chance to shine at E3
This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs has to offer. Next week, representatives from Nintendo and Sony will take the stage at E3 with the goal of fostering excitement for the Vita and 3DS. When it comes time for the sizzle reels and the assurances of publisher support, watch closely. For Japanese RPG developers, the time is now to make a splash.By any measure, Japanese-developed RPGs play an important role on mobile devices dedicated to gaming. It's not just that Monster Hunter dominated the PSP. Many of the best Japanese-developed RPGs of the past few years, The World Ends With You and Dragon Quest IX among them, have been handheld. With the 3DS exploding in Japan, there's little reason to believe that will change any time soon.
Among Japanese developers, Sting quietly thrives
This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs has to offer. In late 2008, Sony released the PSP-3000, giving me the perfect excuse to finally pick one up. When I got home later that day, I did what anyone with a new system does – I started downloading demos.Yggdra Union was among that early handful of downloads. I picked it because I liked the art style, not knowing what I was getting into. I soon discovered Yggdra Union is quite the complicated strategy RPG. There are different character types, and there are cards that dictate movement and status effects, and positioning matters too. And it didn't help that I was trying to play it in its native Japanese (though I eventually relented and found an English copy).As I later discovered, Yggdra Union is the rule rather than the exception to Sting Entertainment's ... unique design sensibilities. Almost every modern Sting RPG has some sort of interesting twist on the traditional RPG formula. Riviera: The Promised Land is part dating sim and part menu-driven point-and-click adventure, for example. Knights in the Nightmare is a strategy RPG, but it also has sequences in which you must guide a tiny wisp while avoiding a hail of bullets. Rather than simply going with what works, or the cheapest alternative, Sting has traditionally been extremely experimental, and its reward has been a small but fervent fanbase.%Gallery-152941%
Great Moment: Climbing Final Fantasy IV's Mt. Ordeals
This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs has to offer. I find Cecil interesting, which is not something I can say for many other video game protagonists. For instance, he's in a solid, mature relationship with a strong woman right off the bat. And from the very beginning, he's grappling with a clear moral dilemma--break his oath and step down or continue slaughtering innocents in the name of the Empire? It's evident that Cecil has a lot in his mind right from the beginning, which is all the more impressive for the fact that he's only a tiny 16-bit sprite.In fact, there was a lot going on with Final Fantasy IV's story in general. The cast is huge, and the heroic sacrifices and heroic twists almost constant. But the best moment happens early on, when Cecil climbs Mt. Ordeals with the twin mages Palom and Porum in a quest to shed his darker half and become a Paladin.
The delightful smoothness of classic Japanese role-playing games
This week, Rowan Kaiser and Kat Bailey have switched roles -- with Rowan taking lead in this week's column focusing on the wonderful world of Japanese role-playing games. I was only defeated once in Suikoden. Even that was an accident – I thought it was a fight I was supposed to lose. Calling the game "easy" is something of an understatement. With a little bit of planning, you can win virtually every fight in the game, including the final boss battle on auto-pilot using the "Free Will" option in the combat menu. Yet, despite this easiness, Suikoden is one of my favorite Japanese role-playing games. "Easy" isn't the right term for it exactly. Instead, Suikoden is smooth."Smoothness" isn't a common criteria used to judge games. If anything, it's the opposite. Getting the difficulty level just right, so that the game seems like a challenge but is completable with practice, seems like it's an ideal. Or, you can use Sid Meier's model of games as "interesting choices" – but if the game isn't challenging, those choices don't seem to matter, right? I think acceptance theories like those are part of the reason that Japanese role-playing games are considered less important than they used to be.
What can Japanese RPG developers learn from Rayman: Origins?
This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs has to offer. I wish more Japanese RPGs were like Rayman: Origins.Alright, I'll give you a moment to wrap your brain around that statement, then I'll explain. As most of you know, Rayman: Origins is a completely beautiful platformer that captures everything that is great about the genre -- precise controls, expansive levels, and high challenge. It's at the forefront of the genre's mini-renaissance, which has been ongoing for a few years now.I want all that for Japanese RPGs. More to the point, I think that it can happen, if only an enterprising publisher or developer were to pick up the baton.At the moment, I think there's something of a taboo against the classic form, at least among the larger developers. Even Dragon Quest -- long the bastion of reliability -- has been shaking things up with its multiplayer innovations. The unspoken mandate is that the genre must evolve or die.
Etrian Odyssey IV coming to the 3DS in Japan, classes detailed
Atlus has officially confirmed that Etrian Odyssey IV is on its way to the Nintendo 3DS in Japan later this year. The fourth in the series of popular RPGs (Etrian Odyssey 3 arrived in North America last year) will have an easier casual difficulty setting, and will boast seven different classes, including Rune Masters, Medics, Snipers, Swordsmen, Fortress units, and Dancers.Art for the game is being provided by Nizo Yamamoto (one of the artists on Princess Mononoke). Etrian Odyssey veterans Yuji Himukai, Shin Nagasawa, and Yuzu Koshiro are also on board. Daisuke Kaneda, taking reins as game director, served as battle advisor on the original game and directed Trauma Team.Atlus says the game will be out in Japan on July 5. Since older Etrian Odysseys have eventually found their way over to North America, there's a chance we'll see this one here too.
Do Japanese RPGs need good stories?
This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs have to offer. I'm going to sum up all of the cliches about Final Fantasy XIII in one sentence: "The battle system is pretty good, but the story is laughable." Gamasutra's Christian Nutt even went so far as to compare the direction of the series to the Star Wars prequels. I wish I could disagree. For all that though, I'm willing to stick out Final Fantasy XIII-2's jaunt through time and space, banal anime archetypes and all. Whenever one of the cutscenes pop up, I just go and check my email. Either that, or I pick up a book. It's mostly the battles that keep me going. I'm also a big fan of putting hats on monsters, and Final Fantasy XIII-2 has that in spades. The dirty secret is that I've always been more fascinated by RPG battle systems than the story within the game. In many ways, a character's mechanical growth is a story in and of itself. When the game begins, your character is a scrub with a wooden sword and a few potions. By the end, they can call down comets from the heavens and instigate supernovas. That's what I call a character arc.
Remembering the best JRPG ever
This is a column by Jason Schreier dedicated to the analysis (and occasional mocking) of his favorite genre, the Japanese role-playing game. Whether it's because they're too antiquated or just too niche, he believes JRPGs don't get enough attention in the gaming industry today. It's time to change that. Good news and bad news.The bad news is that today's column will be my last. I've accepted a full-time job elsewhere and I won't be able to write for Joystiq anymore. It's been a blast talking about JRPGs with you all, and I hope you enjoyed reading my articles almost as much as I enjoyed writing them.The good news is that I'm taking this opportunity to write about one of the best JRPGs of all time, a game I always fervidly rank at the top of every "Best Games Ever!!!" list. Few games know how to tell a story this poignant, this engaging, this memorable. Few games blend narrative and mechanics together this smoothly. Few games are so powerful that they convince you to ignore some significant flaws, like bizarre bugs and a terrible translation effort. But this one is.It's called Suikoden II.
Why silly JRPG dialogue may not be a problem
This is a column by Jason Schreier dedicated to the analysis (and occasional mocking) of his favorite genre, the Japanese role-playing game. Whether it's because they're too antiquated or just too niche, he believes JRPGs don't get enough attention in the gaming industry today. It's time to change that. I've been playing a lot of Final Fantasy XIII-2 lately. I can't post my full thoughts until the embargo's up (January 30), but there's one question I've been pondering ever since I popped in the disc: What's up with this dialogue?Thanks to a lot of silly jargon and awkward phrasing, a large chunk of Final Fantasy XIII-2's conversations elevate it into the "wouldn't want anyone to watch me playing this" category, alongside titles like Star Ocean: The Last Hope and any Tales game."Become an arrow through time and speed your way to Serah," one of the game's characters says in the game's intro sequence. Other bits of dialogue are similarly awkward, mixing metaphors, dropping strange proper nouns and completely confusing whoever's playing (read: me).(Another choice line: "If the paradox is eliminated, spacetime will return to normal.")Of course, it'd be unfair to only pick on the latest Final Fantasy for this issue. Japanese role playing games -- even moreso than other game genres -- are not known for their fluid, witty dialogue. JRPG scripts are more infamous for mistranslations ("This guy are sick.") than smart or clever bits of writing.But does it matter? Can a JRPG still be awesome even if its dialogue sucks?
Why Final Fantasy XIII just didn't work
This is a column by Jason Schreier dedicated to the analysis (and occasional mocking) of his favorite genre, the Japanese role-playing game. Whether it's because they're too antiquated or just too niche, he believes JRPGs don't get enough attention in the gaming industry today. It's time to change that. On January 31, Square Enix will release Final Fantasy XIII-2, a direct sequel to Final Fantasy XIII, which the developer shipped several years ago to mixed reactions. Some fans adored the game's gorgeous aesthetics and flashy combat; others cursed Square Enix for daring to defile their beloved series. Perhaps because of that fan ambivalence, a large part of Square Enix's marketing plan for Final Fantasy XIII-2 has revolved around the message "This is not Final Fantasy XIII!" During preview events and demos, the developer has been careful to show off all of the new elements that the first game did not have: towns, NPCs, sidequests, and so forth. Will Final Fantasy XIII-2 be worth playing? I'll tell you in a few weeks. But while we wait to see whether or not the newest Final Fantasy is worth our time, let's figure out why Square Enix is so eager to make it feel different than its predecessor. Just where did Final Fantasy XIII go wrong?
In defense of Xenogears
This is a column by Jason Schreier dedicated to the analysis (and occasional mocking) of his favorite genre, the Japanese role-playing game. Whether it's because they're too antiquated or just too niche, he believes JRPGs don't get enough attention in the gaming industry today. It's time to change that. When it comes to grandiose adventures, there are few games like Xenogears. Few games' stories are as stirring, as twisty, as poignant. Few games' characters are as bizarre and entrancing. But fans have skewered the sci-fi masterpiece for its second disc, a potpourri of cutscenes and monologues that may have been the consequence of rushed development. While the game's first 50 hours gave you access to a world map filled with towns, dungeons, and secrets, Xenogears' final act was more book than game, unfolding like a visual novel with very little player interaction outside of the final dungeon and a few boss fights. Gamers took umbrage at this sudden shift in pace. As one GameFAQs reader points out, "Xenogears would have been great... if it had been finished." Which is too bad, because I loved every minute of it.
Remembering an underappreciated JRPG trilogy
This is a column by Jason Schreier dedicated to the analysis (and occasional mocking) of his favorite genre, the Japanese role-playing game. Whether it's because they're too antiquated or just too niche, he believes JRPGs don't get enough attention in the gaming industry today. It's time to change that. As gamers, we spend a lot of time playing God. Whether it's building worlds in Minecraft or destroying them in Skyrim, we're always looking for ways to manipulate forces that are normally beyond our control. Some games even allow us to play God in less subtle ways. Simulation games like Ubisoft's From Dust and 2K's Civilization series allow us to steer the course of history and directly guide the fates of entire populations. These deity simulators are all well and good, but what if you want a more personal holy adventure? What if instead of playing as a god, you want to work for one? Or destroy one? Well then, you need to check out the Soul Blazer trilogy.
The beginner's guide to JRPGs
This is a column by Jason Schreier dedicated to the analysis (and occasional mocking) of his favorite genre, the Japanese role-playing game. Whether it's because they're too antiquated or just too niche, he believes JRPGs don't get enough attention in the gaming industry today. It's time to change that. The JRPG is an intimidating genre. For gamers accustomed to short sessions of turtle-hopping or soldier-blasting, it can be tough to commit to a sprawling, complex role-playing game. It's also a gigantic genre. There are hundreds of games out there with bizarre titles like Suikoden and Ar tonelico that are as hard to tell apart as they are to pronounce. So if you want to get into JRPGs but you've never so much as touched a Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest before, how do you know where to start? How do you know where to spend your time? How can you differentiate between silly tedium and fantastic adventures? A few weeks ago on Twitter, user @gurpreet_kambo suggested that I write a guide for inexperienced role-players, helping you all sort through the dreck and ease into the genre one over-sized sword at a time. So I've put together a list of charming, accessible adventures that all make perfect entry points for JRPG newbies. They also make great holiday gifts (and excuses to get away from your family).
