A little assistance.

[CDink]

Now that I have a job, I really want to build my RPG library. I'm looking for real story heavy stuff, with prefferably turn based combat, but any system is probably fine. I've got all the Sony systems. I bought disgaea 1 and 2 for 30 bucks yesterday, and I like those I'm just uneasy at the lack of story related characters, but hopefully I get more. I enjoy big party selections, and replay value and bonus quests. anyway let me tell you some stuff i was looking at, and go from there.

So i've noticed some stuff come out for the PSP recently...what is Ys? Should I just get the Lunar's for PSP or buy the PSone games? Is there much difference? Any other PSP suggestions in the genre would be great

I know that the PSone has about a hundred RPG's(most of them being overpriced) but which ones are worth it? I don't buy games just to have a rare game, but I don't mind dropping 100 bucks if it's worth that price.

and the PS2....I honestly don't know too much about what I need to buy here...apparently a couple new ones just came out? i have persona 3 and 4, and Nocturne..thats about as obscure as the PS2 ones get and that's not saying much.


Thanks in advance.

[brunoafh]

I don't really like the Ys games for PSP, but the old ones they're based off of are pretty good. As for Lunar, it's ok, but I think the Star Ocean games are the better PSP RPGs.

I'll throw some out there.

PS1
turn based combat games:
Legend of Dragoon - good cast of characters, somewhat unique battle system involving timed button presses. You can get it very cheap.
Xenogears - very story heavy, good characters, awesome game. Could be expensive though. I'd look into this if you haven't.
Wild Arms - there are only three characters, and the story isn't very deep. It's a very fun game though that you should be able to find cheap. I hear the sequel is better, but I haven't played it.
Suikoden - a fantastic rpg, with over 100 characters available to your party. It is very story heavy, and one of my favorite PS1 RPGs. You should be able to find it pretty cheap. The sequels are suppose to be pretty good, but I haven't played them. Suikoden II is very expensive though.
Breath of Fire III - some cool characters, and a very cool system that enables your main character to transform into different forms of dragons (and other things as you get far into the game). The story is pretty interesting, but the cool thing about this game is that it feels like an RPG from the SNES era. I think it's the best Breath of Fire. Should be able to find it at a decent price.
Valkyrie Profile - this game is truly unique. You're a Valkyrie, and you go around collecting warriors in each part of the game. It shows you how one of the characters died, and then they join your party. You have to train them to fight for Asgard, and in each chapter you send one away, so you have control of how you want your party the entire game. The music is great. For PS1 it will be quite expensive, but you can get the PSP port for really cheap.

PS1
non turn based:
King's Field series - one of my favorite RPG series, it is basically a first person dungeon crawler. It's an action RPG, and it's really challenging. It's the predecessor to Demon's Souls if you liked that game at all. The best one is King's Field III, but due to the first one never being released in the US, it's called King's Field II here.
Mega Man Legends 2 - I think this game has a bad rep, I thought it was a lot of fun. It's an action rpg where you control Mega Man, he's a redesigned character for 3D worlds though. I thought it was good.
Carnage Heart - this may be a stretch, but it's a programing simulation game. Sounds weird, but you design the programming for your mechs, and then send them into battle. That's the basic point of the game.

There are so many more PS1 RPGs, as you said, but those are some of my favorites. There are Final Fantasy games of course, but I'm sure you know all about them.

I'm not to keen on PS2 RPGs myself. I can suggest the Kingdom Hearts games and the Yakuza series. Yakuza is a really cool action RPG series with beat em up combat. It's not a very traditional RPG, but you're sure to like it. There's also Final Fantasy X.

You probably know about the PS3 RPGs being that there aren't many. Demon's Souls, Enchanted Arms (turn based strategy game), 3D Dot Game Heroes, Way of the Samurai 3. Those are good. You can import Ryu ga Gotoku Kenzan, Red Seeds Profile (RPG/survival horror, very weird game) and Tales of Vesperia.

For PSP, Half Minute Hero is awesome. The gameplay is tough to describe, but in each level it boils an entire RPG into 30 seconds. In each level you have to grind, gather items, do side quests, etc. The game tries to be humorous a lot too, it makes fun of a lot of RPG conventions. It's pretty much a nod at all 8/16 bit RPGs, in the vein of 3D Dot Game Heroes. Definitely check it out. Crimson Gem Saga is a really good turn based RPG. Great characters, a new game this old school now a days is rare.

There are far too many RPGs...

[Dakinggamer87]

Some RPG's I would recommend:

PS2:

-Final Fantasy X,XII
-Xenosaga 1-3
-Tales of the Abyss
-Dark Cloud 1,2
-Rogue Galaxy
-Star Ocean 3: Till the End of Time


PS2 has such a huge library of RPG's.

[Hatta]

If you want lots of characters, check out Shining Force.

[MrPopo]

Every RPG in my Backloggery comes highly recommended.

[Rurouni_Fencer]

I liked Beyond the Beyond personally.. Not incredibly memorable, but a good (and decently priced) turn-based RPG that was released early on for the PS1.. Also, don't forget Dragon Quest VIII for the PS2, as it's arguably one of the best Dragon Quest/Warriors yet! Also, not sure if you have a Snes or not, but that system is home to some of the best RPGs ever made.. Get Lufia. NOW!

edit: If you want a good Ys game to check out, go with either the new Ys Seven (PSP), or Ys: The Ark of Napishtim (PSP or PS2). The story is pretty good, the combat plays out like Zelda, (unlike the Hydlide "run-and-bump" controls of the earlier games,) and they have some great music!

[avrame]

Also, not sure if you have a Snes or not, but that system is home to some of the best RPGs ever made.. Get Lufia. NOW!

Yay, another fellow Lufia lover

Time to make you cry a little if you haven't kept up with it recently, Lufia 2 'remake' for the DS: http://www.rpgamer.com/games/lufia/lufi ... lands.html

Makes the gamer in me laugh and the fanboy in me cry at the same time

[dlmvii]

Every RPG in my Backloggery comes highly recommended.

Mine's better, heathen.
I hear the ladies love the ps1 stuff, especially.

[Rurouni_Fencer]

Yay, another fellow Lufia lover

Time to make you cry a little if you haven't kept up with it recently, Lufia 2 'remake' for the DS: http://www.rpgamer.com/games/lufia/lufi ... lands.html

Makes the gamer in me laugh and the fanboy in me cry at the same time

I've heard very little about this, but I'm definitely interested in it! After seeing your link, this part made me feel a bit conflicted:
"This game switches out turn-based combat for 3D action."
I'm probably going to have to try it out first before I decide to buy it or not.

..then again, who am I kidding - it's a new Lufia release!

[Ack]

Hey CDink, long time no see.

Anyway, brunoafh mentioned quite a few RPGs for the PS1 well worth looking into. I do have a few suggestions to add to the list he's already provided, and while these might not all match up to some of those on his list in terms of quality, you will likely get some entertainment out of them:

Turn Based RPGs:

Final Fantasy series (obvious choice)
Chrono Cross
Saga Frontier
Saga Frontier 2

Strategy RPGs:

Final Fantasy Tactics (obvious choice)
Front Mission 3
Saiyuki: Journey West
Koudelka

Action RPGs:

Brave Fencer Musashi
Legend of Mana

Difficult for me to classify:

Star Ocean 2: The Second Story
Parasite Eve

This is just a small collection of RPGs compared to how many are on the PS1. There's also games like Jade Cocoon, Beyond the Beyond, Legend of Legaia, and many more to look into. I'll post again in a bit with a few titles on the PS2.