20. NieR: Automata
The Earth was suddenly invaded by beings from another planet and mechanical life forms with devastating power were used as weapons of war, which forced the human race to flee to the Moon. To take Earth back, a force of resistance formed by android warriors was created by humanity to fight the invaders. You control one of these androids, 2B.
The game is a very frenetic RPG action. 2B has two slots of weapon, fast or strong that changes the variations of attacks depending on the weapon equipped. A drone helps you in battle using various firearms. In some phases, you control a ship in a style of bullet hell game.
19. Tales of Symphonia
The world suffers from a great collapse with the excessive use of mana, which is the source of energy in the world. You play as Lloyd, a resident of Iselia. Collete Brunel, a resident of the village and your friend, is chosen to save the world from destruction. You are selected as one of her guardians to embark on “The Journey of World Regeneration” so the world can finally be saved.
As in previous games of the Tales of series, Tales of Symphonia uses a new version of the Linear Motion Battle System that almost every game in the series uses. Your movements are limited to 2D and you can change characters during battle. By pausing the game you can use spells from other members. There is also a new feature called Unison Attack, if characters use certain skills at the same time, they will combine into a more powerful version.
18. Kingdom Hearts II
Kingdom Hearts II is one of those sequences that I have described several times here. It followed the same formula as its predecessor but improved it. The first was like eating ice cream. The second added chocolate sauce. The story continues from Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, which caused some discontent in players who could not play the game because it was on another console.
You start the game with Roxas, which has recurring memories of Sora’s life. At one point, some enemies appear in the town, known as Nobody. With his newly acquired power, the Keyblade, Roxas faces them while trying to understand his dreams and who he is. The mashup between Final Fantasy and Disney is also there, with new worlds to explore. The gameplay is the same, with the addition of reaction commands, powerful attacks that vary according to the enemy you fight.
17. Final Fantasy VI
The favorite of many fans, Final Fantasy VI is a masterpiece of its era. With the magic long forgotten, the Gestahl Empire started to use Espers (you may know them as summons) to relive this ancient power. Terra, an innate magic user, is being mind-controlled by the empire and is sent on a mission that ends up going wrong. Luckily, she is saved by Locke, a member of the resistance that frees her from mental control. From this point on, the girl is placed during events that would end up making her the only hope of the rebel group.
Kefka, the villain, is the first to have several layers and not simply be a megalomaniac who is driven by world destruction. Even if eventually he becomes one. The battle system brings back the ATB and its innovation is in the team members, fourteen in total, each with their skills. It’s the first time you could change your party.
16. Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King
The plot follows the Hero, who you may name whatever you like, whose mission is to end the curse that plagues a king and his daughter: he was turned into a troll and the princess into a mare. For this, the protagonist needs to destroy the one who put the curse, a mysterious court jester named Dhoulmagus, although he eventually finds out that there are more forces behind the event. Other characters have the same motivation to kick Dhoulmagus’s magical ass, so they join your party.
It’s the first game of the series fully made in 3D and the combat has incredible animations that show, finally, your character attacking. The combat is turn-based and the progression is somewhat customizable. You level up and allocate points to the mastery of a weapon of your liking or one specific attribute, like Courage for the Hero. After a specific number’s been allocated, they learn new skills with that weapon.
15. The Legend of Dragoon
To this day, people ask for a remake or a remaster of this legendary game. You play in the shoes of Dart, a warrior that returns to his village of Seles after training and discovers it was attacked by soldiers and that his childhood friend, Shana, was kidnapped. He then goes on a mission to rescue her, without knowing that this is only the beginning of a journey that will change not only his life but the world he lives in.
The combat gameplay is turn-based and dynamic due to the Addition mechanics, a combo system. With each attack, a square appears on the screen and if timed correctly, you keep attacking until the combo is complete. You will now because the character will say the skill name out loud like an anime character. The more you get it right, the more points Addition earns until it levels up and increases its status.
14. Final Fantasy VII
Feels a bit weird to write about the original after the remake! The biggest difference from the remake is that the original is a whole game. It was our first contact with Cloud and the AVALANCHE crew, as well as some of the most famous characters of the series. I can’t say for sure why it was such a success at the time. Maybe the transition to 3D, or the cinematics, or the epic soundtrack, or the timing where Playstation 1 was on a roll, but it was a huge success and worthy of it.
It kept the ATB from the previous games of the series and added materia, condensed mako that allows characters to use magics, skills, or amp their status. The game is filled with side quests and secrets. There were even two optional party members – which I consider a rascality since Vincent is one of the best characters of the franchise. No matter the reason and even though there is a remake totally in HD with gorgeous characters and voice-acting, the original game still deserves our love.
13. Chrono Trigger
Hold your stones, no throwing, please! I know that if I put this one first, most of you would accept it. But in 13? Not even in the Top 10? Remember, you’ve read 86, don’t give up on me now.
Chrono Trigger is the state-of-the-art JRPG game of the SNES. Set up with a dream team, he was born in a golden cradle and was planned to become the legend he is today. You play with Crono, a silent protagonist who by circumstances of life and his heroism finds himself entangled between different times while trying to save the world from a parasitic alien.
Fluid gameplay, awesome characters, remarkable soundtrack, and engaging combat, the game has it all. BUT, it’s not perfect. Mechanically, and to its time, it is. But I feel most characters lack the motivation to throw themselves into the fray and they don’t have development outside their era or even interaction between them. To summarize, the reason it’s in this position is that I believe there are 12 RPGs better than it for whatever reason.
12. Final Fantasy IX
The ninth game of the series has returned to its fantastic and epic origins. The game puts us in control of Zidane Tribal, a flamboyant and womanizer boy who is part of a traveling troupe that wants to kidnap Princess Garnet. While trying to do so, you will be thrown into an adventure to…? If you said “save the world of Gaia”, you were right. You can also intertwine between side quests in the nostalgic world map.
The combat once again uses the Active Time Battles. Each piece of equipment gives the character a new skill and if you gain enough AP, they can use it without the need for the item. Each character has a “class”, however discreet it may be. Vivi as a Black Mage, Zidane as Thief, and Steiner as Knight, for example. To close with a golden key, maestro Nobuo Uematsu is responsible for the soundtrack, dispensing further comments.
11. Breath of Fire IV
One more from the “It’s only here because it’s my favorite series” list. But joking aside, the game would be here anyway. The main essence of Breath of Fire IV is the duality of the plot. On one side, we have Ryu, a boy with no memory recently found by Nina and Cray who get to know the world with a naive and kind look. On the other, Fou-Lu, a reawakened emperor of the world’s largest empire who tries to understand humans as they insist on misrepresenting humanity. It is in this double narrative that we know a little more about the world and the motivation of the characters.
The gameplay is fun. The game allows us to use all the members in combat, three in front and three in the back, and can change at any time. The system of combos is a great addition, which allows magic and skills to intersect and cause more damage.
