Sonic RPG for DS

[BenoitRen]

Grindfest = most of the game consisting of having to fight battles to level up so you can beat the next dungeon/boss to progress in the game.

Cut-scene fest = most of the game consisting of cut-scenes. FFX is a good example.

[Zucca]

Btw. Have any of you played Landstalker? I loved it.
If any of you guys know similiar games for PC (preferably for Linux), please list any. Also similiar games from 16-bit era are welcome. I've played Wonder Boy - Moster World already. ;)

EDIT: Is there a translation for Lady Stalker? http://www.climax.co.jp/ledy/index.html

[Heroic_Chaz]

Grindfest = most of the game consisting of having to fight battles to level up so you can beat the next dungeon/boss to progress in the game.

Cut-scene fest = most of the game consisting of cut-scenes. FFX is a good example.

A huge cutscene fest is the .hack//G.U. series. Every time you take a few steps, BOOM, cutscene!

[The HuBBs]

ffx was not really that bad of a cutscene fest. games like the metal gear solid series and .hack are a better example. I would say that ffx has about the same amount of cutscenes as skies of arcadia.

[Abominae]

In the end, say what you want, but it's true that there just aren't as many games that made us feel the way we did when we picked up those original RPGs.

Not one of you can say that you've picked up a game that had you as glued to your TV as Final Fantasy 2 (4jap), Chrono Trigger, Super Mario RPG, Dragon Warrior, Phantasy Star, or any of the other greats made you feel.

That's why nostalgia is such a bankable idea. Even today some of us can go back and relive how we felt by replaying those golden age RPGs. See if you can find one in your local Gamestop or any video game retailer that'll make you feel that way. I dare you.

[meteor9]

In the end, say what you want, but it's true that there just aren't as many games that made us feel the way we did when we picked up those original RPGs.

Not one of you can say that you've picked up a game that had you as glued to your TV as Final Fantasy 2 (4jap), Chrono Trigger, Super Mario RPG, Dragon Warrior, Phantasy Star, or any of the other greats made you feel.

That's why nostalgia is such a bankable idea. Even today some of us can go back and relive how we felt by replaying those golden age RPGs. See if you can find one in your local Gamestop or any video game retailer that'll make you feel that way. I dare you.

Wild Arms 3, ten bucks.

[Heroic_Chaz]

Wild Arms 3 was great, too. I was happy to see the price drop. I'm glad I waited to buy it. It has a decent story, great soundtrack, and several sidequests, and my favorite, as in every rpg I play: New Game+

[Neo48]

Not one of you can say that you've picked up a game that had you as glued to your TV as Final Fantasy 2 (4jap), Chrono Trigger, Super Mario RPG, Dragon Warrior, Phantasy Star, or any of the other greats made you feel.

I can. I've never played any of those. It has something to do with my dislike for turn-based games.

As far as nostalgia goes, it begins at the N64. Those were my glory days.

I do have some good NES memories however. Games such as TMNT 3, Godzilla and Mothra, and I laugh whenever I watch the Angry Video Game Nerd's review of Friday the 13th. I remember hating that game for all the same reasons.

[Heroic_Chaz]

Some good non turn-based rpg's I recommend would be Kingdom Hearts, the Tales Series, .hack//G.U., and Star Ocean.

[Neo48]

Tales of Symphonia was fun. Me and three other friends played through it multiplayer style. It was great.

As for the rest...I don't have Playstation access.

[Heroic_Chaz]

Yeah, Symphonia is literally my favorite game of all time. Sorry, Phantasy star! lol

[Danny]

In the end, say what you want, but it's true that there just aren't as many games that made us feel the way we did when we picked up those original RPGs.

Not one of you can say that you've picked up a game that had you as glued to your TV as Final Fantasy 2 (4jap), Chrono Trigger, Super Mario RPG, Dragon Warrior, Phantasy Star, or any of the other greats made you feel.

That's why nostalgia is such a bankable idea. Even today some of us can go back and relive how we felt by replaying those golden age RPGs. See if you can find one in your local Gamestop or any video game retailer that'll make you feel that way. I dare you.

I agree with this. Some new RPGs have indeed been great but not half as good as the old Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis ones in my opinion. Chrono Trigger had and still has me glued to my screen. My most favorite new RPG is Sword of Mana, but I still don't like it as much as Chrono Trigger, Star Ocean, Tales of Phantasia, Secret of Mana, Seiken Densetsu 3 or any of my other favorite snes classic RPGs of all time.

New RPGs in my opinion have strange graphic improvements. Not to mention that their plots, music and character selections are not as good as that of retro RPG games. Even remakes of the old ones seem bad. I absolutely hate the GBA version of Breath of Fire 1 & 2 and of Tales of Phantasia. Nor did I like the PS remake of ToP or any of the BoF games after the original BoF 1 & 2 for the snes. The snes versions are better. Not just the graphics but everything else too. Remakes usally have changed and/or cut out plot scenes just to try and make it more sellable. That's the main reason I dislike many of the new games and remakes. Before companies wanted to make the best games that they possibly could where as know they just try to make them sellable with "graphic improvements". This is also the main feeling expressed by fans such as myself on forums when comparing Starcraft to Starcraft II.

Like Zucca, I'm also mainly a retro game. I guess that's why I'm stuck in the 16 bit era. I just can't "get into" the 32 bit gaming era...

[Zucca]

Like Zucca, I'm also mainly a retro game. I guess that's why I'm stuck in the 16 bit era. I just can't "get into" the 32 bit gaming era...

<Somewhat OT>
I still own Sega Saturn and I have Shining the Holy Ark for it. The game is quite great. But it already had some of the irritating "features" what the RPGs of PlayStation 1 era had. It's very slow to move in towns (too heavy graphics for CPUs?). You only have few routes to walk. You don't have the same freedom to move as you would expect from a 3D game. This "locked route" technique was propably made only to avoid glitches, ie walking trough walls. Also this method was most propably more easy to code.
Also some of the special attacks (spells etc) last quite long. Ok. It looks cool, yes, but watching that every time... C'mon! And because of this new trend, "visualizing battles is everything", I never even started to play Final Fantasy 7. Sad, because Final Fantasy 6 for SNES was (and is), one of the greatest RPGs ever made, I had such hight hopes for FF 7.
Anyway. Shining the Holy Ark has a great battle engine. If you liked Shining in/and the Darkness, then you'll love this game.

Also Playstation 1 had some retrostyled RPGs. I never get to play those, but I have seen few. The engine was still propably 3D engine, but it propably was used to smooth the graphics and to give some perspective when you moved your party in the game. I just wonder if these RPGs were long? Or was the space "wasted" to scene animations? Just imagine how long retro styled RPG you could fit even into a single CD...
</Somewhat OT>

Anyway I don't limit my gaming by "bits". ;) But to tell the truth since 32-bit era, the new RPGs I have found to be intresting, have gone very rare. But I also admit that I haven't searched much.

[BenoitRen]

While the genre as a whole is stale, there are some gems. Skies of Arcadia and Baten Kaitos Origins are right up there with the old classics as games that are a blast to play. I also enjoy Grandia II a lot for its battle system, but the game as a whole is not for everyone.

[Heroic_Chaz]

Grandia 2? Last time I played that I was 12, and I kept dying over and over. Just goes to show that looks can be decieving. However, I tihnk that if I played that today, I'd ace it.