9 Best Jrpg Games That You Should Know Update 05/2024

best jrpg games

Some people think that JRPGs were at their peak in the 1990s and early 2000s with the SNES, PS1, and PS2. The genre hasn’t slowed down at all in the last few years. Every year, there are at least two great JRPGs.

Deciphering the list of the best modern JRPGs gets more difficult with each new year. However, some of the best games have come out in the last few years, and Metacritic has given them high marks.

Etrian Odyssey 2 Untold: The Fafnir Knight (Atlus) – 82

Etrian Odyssey 2 Untold The Fafnir Knight (Atlus)

Etrian Odyssey was released in 2007, and it had a good run on Nintendo’s DS and 3DS systems. The Fafnir Knight is a remake of 2008’s Etrian Odyssey 2: Heroes of Lagaard. It adds a lot of content to the base game by introducing a Story Mode that has characters that stay the same. If that isn’t what someone wants, they can play the game in “Classic Mode,” which lets them play the game the way it was meant to be played.

Etrian Odyssey 2 Untold: The Fafnir Knight is a first-person RPG with dungeon-crawling elements. It’s a fun throwback to the genre’s old-school first-person games. If Etrian Odyssey makes it to the Switch, it would be a shame to see the series go out with the 3DS, so I hope it does.

Bravely Default 2 (Claytech Works) – 83

If you want to know what made Square Enix famous in the 1980s and early 1990s, you need to look no further than classic Final Fantasy games like “Battle Royale” and “Final Fantasy VII.” The first game is still the best in the series, but Bravely Default 2 is a good game for people who own a Switch or a PC.

There is a direct sequel to Bravely Second, but 2021’s game is its own thing, with its own world and characters and quest to go on. If you want to see that turn-based JRPGs can still be fun, look no further than Bravely Default 2.

Octopath Traveler (Square-Enix) – 83

Octopath Traveler (Square-Enix)

Afterward, Tomoya Asano and his team came up with a new JRPG series for Nintendo Switch. Octopath Traveler is about eight people who each have their own story. These fates bring each person together. Octopath is more like Final Fantasy 6 than Bravely, but with the Job system still in place.

Octopath Traveler has beautiful, clear graphics. It has beautiful HD effects with very detailed sprites. In this long game, there are more than 80 hours of fights, side quests, hidden bosses, dungeons, and some of the best-written stories in recent years. Octopath Traveler also came to both Steam and Google Stadia later, so more people could play it.

Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & The Secret Fairy (Gust) – 84

Gust’s Atelier isn’t as well known as brands like Final Fantasy, Persona, and Dragon Quest, but this series has been making fun games for more than two decades. Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & The Secret Fairy isn’t the first great game in the series, but it’s a big improvement over what came before. It gives newcomers a better experience.

Atelier Ryza 2 is one of the best JRPGs on modern consoles thanks to its quick start, fine-tuned crafting mechanics, fun dungeons, and a strategic combat system that blends turn-based and real-time elements, among other things. It’s possible that 2022’s Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream will be even better than the first one.

Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story + Bowser Jr’s Journey (Alphadream) – 84

Mario & Luigi Bowser's Inside Story

Original Bowser’s Inside Story for DS came out in 2009, and it was a big hit. Bowser, the enemy of Mario and Luigi, is also in this game. Bowser has powerful moves of his own when he wants to get back his castle from Fawful.

Bowser’s Inside Story gave us ideas about how Bowser would be a good anti-hero in a JRPG. As a bonus, the game has a solid world design, interesting puzzles, and cool big fights. As a bonus, there is a side story called Bowser Jr’s Journey in this remake. It stars the young boy as he goes on a quest to make his dad proud.

Shin Megami Tensei 5 (Atlus) – 84

Shin Megami Tensei games don’t come out very often, but when they do, they’re almost never a let down. Hard and dark, SMT 5 is a hard and dark JRPG that takes place after the world has been turned into a post-apocalyptic wasteland with dungeons full of powerful demons.

SMT 5 modernises ideas that have been in the series for a long time. It doesn’t start from scratch, instead focusing on perfecting a formula that has worked many times before. This is a hard-core JRPG with heavy themes, huge bosses, and a lot of strategic options.

NEO: The World Ends With You (Square Enix) – 85

NEO The World Ends With You (Square Enix)

Second to The World Ends with You, NEO puts players in a new Reaper’s Game and tells them to beat the other teams. NEO: The World Ends with You starts out on the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 before moving to the PC. It has a more simple action-based combat system, but it still has Pins that unlock moves and abilities.

The story, even though it’s a little long, has a mystery that keeps it moving along well. As for the characters, they are irresistible, especially the main heroes, and the music is nothing short of great!

Radiant Historia (2010)

When this list of the best JRPGs of all time starts, Radiant Historia is the first game on the list. I think it’s a great handheld game that expands on the original DS game. It has beautiful game worlds and a lot of interesting lore that Tolkien would be proud of.

The turn-based battles are what make this game so great to play. Other than the memorable characters and epic places to explore, this game has a lot to offer.

This game was a big hit with both critics and players. In the end, there was no follow-up.

How many FF games have been made so far? It wouldn’t have been that hard to make one more, for goodness sake!

It’s possible we’ll get a campaign like we did for Lunar 3.

Xenogears (1998)

Xenogears (1998)

What a great way to start an article!

Square Enix knows a thing or two about making the best JRPGs. Their name is on our RPG lists more than the word RPG is.

So, let’s talk about humanoid mecha warriors now, shall we?

With the time battles, the powerful ruler, and a quest to solve your home world’s mysteries, Xenogears is one of the most exciting games out there.

Now, things start to get weird.

Parts of religious symbolism and Jungian psychology are used in this fantasy story. In your whole life, this could be the most in-depth JRPG that you’ve ever played.

Because of this, this game almost didn’t come out. They thought no one would want to play a computer game with religious themes, but they were very wrong.

The next game on our list, Final Fantasy, is a great game if you like it. If you like it, get a copy right away!