PSP JRPG recommendations

[Saladin]

Hi all, looking to pick up some new PSP games now I'm bussing to/from work everyday..

So far I've only played two JRPGs on the system..

Jeanne D'Arc, which I liked
Brave Story: New Traveller which I didn't like so much

Main reasons for not liking the latter is the battle system, purely menu driven with no character positioning at all.

So I need to find some more games where there's a bit more thought in the battles, though it doesn't have to be full on tactical like Jeanne..

Anyone have any recommendations please?

[Camel]

Crimson Gem Saga just came out, but unfortunately it's about as traditional as it gets. If you don't like purely menu-driven combat, then it's probably not the game for you, although I am really enjoying it so far.

Have you ever played Final Fantasy Tactics or Disgaea?

[violent]

Disgaea will probably outlive your position at that job.

[Gorvi]

Yep, Disgaea is a great choice, and Disgaea 2 is coming out in a few months.

Wild ARMs XF would be my recomendation past the Disgaea games, it's a very fresh take on the tactical grid based genre. And hey, it uses hexes instead of squares. ;)

Both Star Ocean First Departure and Star Ocean Second Evolution are worth a look, though I'd recommend Second Evolution over First Departure.

If you're willing to play a card based game, both Metal Gear Ac!d and its sequel are worth picking up, with the second game being far superior. Don't let the fact that it's Metal Gear or card based scare you away, they're very good tactical games.

There's the ports of Final Fantasy Tactics and Valkyrie Profile if you never played those.

Later on in the year you've got the redone Shin Megami Tensei: Persona release as well as the remake of Lunar and 30 Second Hero.

You can also download Final Fantasy VII, Suikoden, and Wild ARMs as PS1 games from the PSN if you're feeling nostalgic.

[RandoM51]

Riviera is interesting.
Disgaea is the last game a min/maxer would have to buy.
Jeanne D'Arc is well-made, albeit a bit on the easy side.

JRPGs are few and far between on the PSP and most of them are tactics games.

If you have custom firmware you also have the option of dipping into the old PS library.

[frederec]

If you have custom firmware you also have the option of dipping into the old PS library.

Not only that, it looks like the late gen PSP2000's and PSP3000's have just been hacked. (http://www.psp-hacks.com/2009/06/06/custom-firmware-503gen-a-for-hen-released-support-for-the-psp-3000/) It's not a full firmware rewrite, as in you're back to the original firmware when you restart the machine, and if you screw it up there's no fixing it, since pandora still doesn't work on those models. However, it's progress on the newer models.

[Chris_D]

Star Ocean Second Story is OK, but Star Ocean 4 is better than it in almost every way. It's getting a bit outdated now, the difficulty is harsh, and way too many instance deaths in battles. Also, the character story building is a bit off compared to modern JRPGs.

Brave Story is ass, yes :).

Definitely the best JRPG is Final Fantasy Crisis Core. One of the best Final Fantasy games period, and you should enjoy the more active combat. Tells it's story far better than FF7 ever did.

Riviera I found too quirky and odd (gameplay wise). I wouldn't recommend it.

Wish they'd localise more of the Japanese releases.

[violent]

Definitely the best JRPG is Final Fantasy Crisis Core. One of the best Final Fantasy games period, and you should enjoy the more active combat. Tells it's story far better than FF7 ever did.


The problem I found with this game is that it's so damned easy and it really requires very little skill to play.

[frederec]

Star Ocean Second Story is OK, but Star Ocean 4 is better than it in almost every way. It's getting a bit outdated now, the difficulty is harsh, and way too many instance deaths in battles. Also, the character story building is a bit off compared to modern JRPGs.

I think that's the first time I've heard that opinion. I've been hearing that Star Ocean 4 is the worst one of the lot, and 3 wasn't that great either.


Riviera I found too quirky and odd (gameplay wise). I wouldn't recommend it.


I agree with that first statement, but not the second. Riviera is one of the weird series of games including it, Yggdra Union, and Knights in the Nightmare. All of these games take a bit to wrap your head around the gameplay, but are totally worth it (assuming you go in for that kind of thing).

[Chris_D]

I think that's the first time I've heard that opinion. I've been hearing that Star Ocean 4 is the worst one of the lot, and 3 wasn't that great either.


They're absolutely on crack. Truckloads.. I can't even fathom such an opinion.

Graphically it's impressive, especially some of the wide ranging Sci-fi style environments. Combat is a big improvement, probably only a step behind Tales of Vesperia. Item creation is done much better, you get your party members together and they thrash out ideas. No more wasting resources trying random combinations. The character meetings are done much better and well signposted so you won't miss them like you did in 2nd story. Voice acting is better.

One thing about SO2 that always bothered me:
(spoiler if you haven't played past about the 15-20 hr mark of SO2)

After everyone's home planet is destroyed (well apart from the main male character) no one seems to give a shit or even talks about it.


Like I've mentioned before, I've seen criticism leveled at the game that seems partially motivated by it being a 360 exclusive. Again, I won't mention any particular forums or members (I hang out on a few), but any true fan of Star Ocean Second Story owes it to themselves to at least try this game. It definitely has flaws, which I could go into, but it is the best game in the series.

[Chris_D]

Btw, I found the other posts I already made on Star Ocean 4:

http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?p=264626#post264626
http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?p=264801#post264801

Clearly ClannerDelta wasn't a fan, although it was his first Star Ocean game. I doubt he would have liked the others either.

[Chris_D]

Btw, was just playing Persona 4 (close to the end) and thinking how sad it was that there were never ports of P3 or P4 for the PSP. As much as I enjoyed both games on my PS2, I would have definitely enjoyed the experience more both on the go, and at home. Maybe some time down the line?

[violent]

Btw, was just playing Persona 4 (close to the end) and thinking how said it was that there were never ports of P3 or P4 for the PSP. As much as I enjoyed both games on my PS2, I would have definitely enjoyed the experience more both on the go, and at home. Maybe some time down the line?

The first one is on it's way. Let's hope it sells.

[Purple Santa]

I'll second the vote for Wild Arms XF. It was my first SRPG, and I found it to be a good game. Good enough that I looked into the genre further. I wish it sold better and had gotten better reviews...I would of liked a sequel...

[Chris_D]

Wild Arms XF is on my Play Asia "save for later" list.

[jpublic]

Wow, I can't thank you guys enough for this thread. I was sitting here planning on getting a PSP for some alternate portable gaming from my DS, but if that's all the JRPGS out there - SRPGs (which I avoid), some PS1 ports, and only a couple decent games, I may just hold off until Persona. Maybe it'll be cheaper.

[Chris_D]

Yeah, as I've said many times, the original JRPG content on both handhelds has been pretty disappointing so far.

[Camel]

Yeah, as I've said many times, the original JRPG content on both handhelds has been pretty disappointing so far.
Soooooo many awesome games if you like SRPG's, though. I haven't noticed a lack of RPGs on the handhelds at all. In fact, the PSP and especially the DS have been my most-played consoles this generation, by FAR.

I guess I'm not exactly starved for RPGs though since I still have a ton of them to play on the PS2.

[Chris_D]

Yeah, but if you do exclude SRPGs, you aren't left with much. The only ones I would probably recommend would be Suikoden Tierkreis on the DS and Final Fantasy CC on the PSP. Kind of incredible considering how long both have been out.

[Savok]

No one has answered the important question yet, how many have lesbian tension?

[jpublic]

OOOkay. Clearly, Chris_D, you have differet recollection of the DS library than me:

http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?t=125487
There's a lot on there I'd recommend, remakes and not.

Also, for the PSP:
http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?t=126374

So, what's worth getting on that PSP list?

[Gorvi]

So, what's worth getting on that PSP list?
Sadly, a lot of that is absolute garbage. Avoid like the plague stuff like Valhalla Knights, Dragoneer's Aria, Generation of Chaos, Neverland Card Battles, Spectral Souls, and Ys: Ark of Napishtim.

That list does remind me of some decent stuff (and I stress decent), like the Legend of Heroes games, Blade Dancer, and Phantasy Star Portable, but most of it isn't worth a second look. At least the stuff that's not been mentioned here.

It also reminds me that I forgot to mention Riviera and Yggdra Union.

[Cpl_Punnishment]

Not only that, it looks like the late gen PSP2000's and PSP3000's have just been hacked. (http://www.psp-hacks.com/2009/06/06/custom-firmware-503gen-a-for-hen-released-support-for-the-psp-3000/) It's not a full firmware rewrite, as in you're back to the original firmware when you restart the machine, and if you screw it up there's no fixing it, since pandora still doesn't work on those models. However, it's progress on the newer models.

Not sure what exactly you are saying here, but I have a PSP 2000 and it has in fact been hacked with a Pandoras Battery, as well as having fully custom firmware (updateable). I cannot speak on the 3000's though as I have no experience there.

it would seem though that with the advent of digital distribution options hacking the unit may be a moot point.

I like the fact that I can copy my umd's to my MS Duo and carry around many, as opposed to flailing around with the umd's. I also like the extended battery life I get from it, as well as some of the other features I can enable.


Sorry for the thread Hijack.
I have only a small contribution:
Crisis Core is fun, I still preferred Jean D'ark, but you've already been down that road!

[frederec]

Not sure what exactly you are saying here, but I have a PSP 2000 and it has in fact been hacked with a Pandoras Battery, as well as having fully custom firmware (updateable). I cannot speak on the 3000's though as I have no experience there.


I have a bad habit of hijacking these threads into hacking discussions. Besides, everyone else is covering all the major bases, so I don't have anything to add to the main discussion.

But as for hacking, I also have a hacked PSP2000 (well, my wife does, mine is a fatty). The thing is, after a certain point PSP2000's started hitting the shelves with newer versions of their motherboard that Pandora's Battery can't touch. I've tried hacking these, the screen just goes dark and nothing happens. Similarly, Pandora's Battery doesn't work on any PSP3000's. The scene has been pretty stuck on it for a while (it all has to do with something called a pre-ipl that can't be touched currently), so the hack I linked to seems to be the closest the community's gotten so far to a full hack of these Pandora resistant models.

[Daytime_Lantern]

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness

Own it, have yet to play it. From what I hear, it's like diablo (grinding)& a crazy whacky SRPG (mechanics).

Sadly, PSP has very few knock out RPGs. There's always Final Fantasy VII, Suikoden and Wild Arms on PSN.

[Chris_D]

OOOkay. Clearly, Chris_D, you have differet recollection of the DS library than me:


Yeah I was deliberately excluding remakes. Remakes or more often simply rereleases don't interest me for a few reasons:
- I've already played the game, don't need to play it again. Or would just rather play something new.
- They're trying to charge $40 - $50 for a barely modified version of the original.
- There's a reason I didn't play the game in the first place so a remake isn't suddenly going to change my mind.
- For older games, I find the interfaces archaic, and the story and characters aren't as fleshed out.

Going through that LOOOOONG list, other than remakes:

Etrian Odyssey - horrible dungeon crawlers with almost no story.
Pokemon / Digimon / Naruto / Sonic Chronicles / Inu Yasha / Mario / Megaman / Dragonball - licenses that just don't appeal to me.
Children of Mana - Thought this was more like an RTS?
Retro Game Challenge - Cmon, putting this game on there is a stretch.
Lost Magic, Lunar Dragon Song, Blue Dragon Plus (wasn't this a SRPG?) - poor reviews
World Ends With You - the dual screen screen battles always seemed too clunky and the setting was unappealing.
Lunar Knights - This is pretty much my favourite DS game ever, but if it's an RPG, then so is Zelda LTTP.
Rune Factory - I thought these were mostly just Harvest Moon games with a new skin and some extra RPG elements?
Lock's Quest - A tower defense game.
Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, The - another adventure game
Elebits: The Adventures of Kai and Zero - also appears to be an adventure game.

Other than that:
Summon Night: Twin Age - hmm, reviewed OK, haven't played it, might be good.
Lost Magic - middling to poor reviews, but could tide you over.
From The Abyss - reviewed poorly.
Away: Shuffle Dungeon - reviewed poorly.
Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure - middling to poor reviews, but looks like I might like it.
Magical Starsign - middling to poor reviews, doesn't seem so appealing.


So now you can roast me over coals for being too picky or whatever. Part of it is that I need a decent story and characters in my JRPGs (preferably in my SRPGs also). So, something like the much loved Etrian Odyssey goes straight out the window. Also, many remakes or retro style JRPGs, well the writing just doesn't hold up (part of it being the restrictions on cartridge memory limited how much text they could put in). Games like Pokemon and Sonic are super well reviewed and liked, but I prefer a more mature setting. Either that, or it needs to be done in a witty, dark way, like say Disgaea.

Finally, there are quite a few games like Zelda or Lunar Knights that are adventure games. Of course I highly recommend Lunar Knights!

If I compare the RPGs on the handhelds compared to what's on the 360, or more so, the PS2/PS1, well there's a lot more for me to like on the consoles. Apart from that, there are TONS of promising handheld RPGs that never got localised for some reason, so that's also annoying. Like, how about at least one Tales game on the DS?

Anyway, Suikoden Tierkreis rocks, buy it.

[Savok]

You realize you can run your own eugenics program in Pokemon? Which sometimes includes incest and a purple blob of goo that can grow the uterus of just about anything you want?

[Chris_D]

You realize you can run your own eugenics program in Pokemon? Which sometimes includes incest and a purple blob of goo that can grow the uterus of just about anything you want?

Thank you but pass.