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The winner has been purchased, and it is Grandia. It seems like this is exactly the sort of thing I was going for.
But I appreciate all of your suggestions! I'll file them away for the next time I get the itch.
Was that little known?
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3, for the PS2.
So bad (Except for the combat which is why I played it longer than I should have). It was everything cliche/bad about JRPGs and anime.
Apparently so!
Anyone mention Star Ocean: The Second Story yet?
I've never played Wild Arms, but since you haven't played FFIX I recommend you do so: It's fantastic - in many ways ahead of FFVII, IMO - and a particularly nice choice if you resent the pseudo-sci-fi, angst-ridden stylings that have come to dominate the series of late. Just saying!
Yeah, FFIX is easily my favorite PSX Final Fantasy (probably also my favorite Final Fantasy in general). It's got such a sense of whimsy to it... and yes, it's a lot less angsty than most Final Fantasies since the series left the SNES. I love Zidane's personality because he's so upbeat and mischievous, which isn't typical of Final Fantasy... or JRPGs in general. Most RPG protagonists are "cool," but characters like Zidane are more "fun" than cool, so that sets a different, refreshing tone for the whole game, I think. I've personally enjoyed all the traditional Final Fantasy games I've played thus far (IV and everything from VI on... working on V now), but FFIX still really stands out, in my opinion. Plus, it came out late in the PSX's lifespan so it's rather pretty and detailed. And it's got fantastic music as well. (Can you tell from what I've said in my recommendations that music is really important to me? Hmm?)
Disk One's production values are good enough for a play though, though.
I like Wild Arms quite a bit, it's a neat mix of traditional fantasy and old western (the second one moreso than the first). My favorite thing about it is that I never had to grind, as long as I fought more or less every random battle that I got into naturally. That's a big plus for me because I have never beaten a Final Fantasy game because it always seemed like there was some boss that you had to gain a whole bunch of levels for, and I don't have the patience for that. It's also the reason I love Chrono Cross, although the battle system in Wild Arms is much more traditional JRPG.
It's my favorite PS1 game besides Final Fantasy Tactics.
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I may be looking for another option to sate my appetite given all this, especially because a lot of these games are so cheap on the PSN. I'll look into the other recommendations in this thread, but does anyone have thoughts on other JRPGs that don't suffer much from the problems above? Something that's portable-friendly, with a good battle system and interesting environments that I won't waste a ton of time getting hopelessly lost in? A good story doesn't hurt, either.
... Too specific?
That sounds good. I guess I should clarify that I'm not necessarily looking for something straightforward, but I legitimately feel that Grandia's design makes the environments, towns and dungeons alike, pretty confusing to navigate. I might try to power through, though.
Still open to other suggestions. And I guess to help, series I've enjoyed quite a bit include Final Fantasy, Star Ocean, Tales of, Persona and Dragon Quest. I'm flexible!
My Backloggery
I wouldn't recommend BoF IV. I haven't played Grandia, but BoF's battle system isn't anything exceptional and the game is deviously slow to develop. Not to mention, navigation is encumbered by an obnoxious semi-isometric perspective that forces you to constantly rotate the camera in order to see things blocked by field objects. It's not a bad game, but I don't think it's what you're looking for.
I've been similarly exploring the PSone RPG classics that are on PSN, and nothing's quite been on the level of the Square products, which you've mentioned you've played to death. Most recently, I've been playing Wild Arms, which really hasn't stood the test of time. I never played later games in the series though, so maybe Wild Arms 2 would fair better? I know the series got progressively more unique as time went on, but I'm guessing Wild Arms 2 is still fairly traditional.
I'll scratch BoFIV off the list, then, as those flaws sound similar to Grandia's.
Can you skip the first and just play the second?
My Backloggery
Oh, I had assumed for a portable release that they would have implemented a quick save system of some sort rather than just relying on the fixed save points. When you're sat down on the coach I found the save points were just the right distance apart to feel like you've had a satisfying session of game play. On a portable system it would be a fair investment of time.
I made a game, it has penguins in it. It's pay what you like on Gumroad.
Currently Ebaying Nothing at all but I might do in the future.
It's literally an emulation of the PSX version since it's on the PSN, and not necessarily meant to be played on a PSP. Maybe I'll save this one for the big screen?
Yeah, I dunno, I was just kind of in the mood for something from the PSX era, like I mentioned. But if there's a particularly nice PSP RPG available on PSN (just for the sake of convenience), I'd check it out.
Long Live the C64!
There appears to be some potion that can help to mitigate random encounters in Dragoon. I played it a long time ago, and I can't remember how often you got random encounters, or how long the game is, but I think it was one of those in the 50 hour range?
With an awesome soundtrack, gorgeus hand painted scenery, crazy depth (Monster raising, golem building, gardening, item creation, level location determining plot) and awesome action, this is the game for you!
Loved this game when I was younger.
and Ogre:Tactics, was basically FFtactics in the Ogre Battle world, but enough of a variance to classes/power/abilities that it felt like new stuff.
EDIT: That description didn't do it justice. Here, watch this:
I sunk so many hours into that game.
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I really liked Azure Dreams, too. It's hard to find and not everyone's cup of tea but, it's a neat little game.
Shame 5 will never see the light of day in the US