My Personal Top 10 JRPGs *OF ALL TIME*
Gadies, lentlemen, and NBs: I lost a bet.
The first week of November, I guest starred on Westen aka BigNerdGaming’s podcast and we each predicted the nominees for a bunch of categories in this year’s The Game Awards (aka The Keighleys TM).
And alas, Westen outdid me – guessing 76% of the nominees correctly to my paltry 68%. We had tentatively put a wager on the outcome of who could predict more right – and I am a woman of my word, so here we are. He, the nerd who puts the KING in ranKINGs and me, allergic to decision making and ranked lists now saddled with the task of posting my personal top 10 JRPGs of all time.
Anyone who knows me knows that JRPGs are my number one genre. I’ve often described my play habits as “90% JRPGs and random assorted indies” (with the final 10% mostly consisting of things like big first party exclusives from Sony and Nintendo).
So, when I told Westen to name the list he wanted me to rank, it came as little surprise that it would be my top JRPGs.
Now, some ground rules:
#1: This is an emotional, vibes based, super subjective list determined by what I’ve played and loved over the years. Which means that I’m right and all objections can be submitted to butmommmm@idgaf.com.
(Also based on who I am and what I care about most in a game, that means character and story tends to tip the scales slightly over gameplay when it comes down to which games make the top 10 vs. those that are just outside it.)
#2: I have something I mentally dub the “recency bias blast zone.” To most people, recency bias means being biased towards the thing you just played. But to me, it goes the opposite way – and I’ll tend not to even consider games for top 10 lists let alone all timers until they’ve sat with me for a few months. How I ultimately end up rating a game includes how it stands the “test of time” effect, factoring in how it sits with me and if that emotional resonance deepens.
(This means that games like Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles and Dragon Quest I&II HD2D won’t make the top 10 today since I just played those this Fall.)
#3: What is a JRPG? Well today – it is what I say it is because this is MY list and MY article so no one gets to tell me I’m wrong. And to me, a JRPG is a *style of RPG that originated in Japan.* (I bet some of you can see where this is going…)
It can be turn-based or action or both. JRPGs often focus on a party and character classes or builds and stat progression. They’re less likely than their Western cousins to emphasize player choice in the narrative, favoring more linear story structures. The *styles* of RPG are distinguished by their features… and the not solely by the country of origin of their developer.
#4: I’ve personally decided to limit the top 10 to one main entry per franchise with ONE exception… and again, for those of you who know me, that exception should be pretty obvious.
BUT!
Don’t just skip to the end to confirm your suspicions. To keep things extra interesting, I may have hidden a secret message within each of the top 10 entries…
No more stalling now…
Okay well technically one last bit of stalling. Before we get into the real meat and fried potatoes (iykyk), I want to start by dropping some honorable mentions for games/franchises that didn’t quite make the top 10 here today. I still love these games and they’re all contenders for my top 50 games *of all time*, JRPGs or otherwise.
Honorable Mentions: Valiant Contenders
Gallery: Triangle Strategy, Metaphor Refantazio, Trails through Daybreak, Bravely Default 2, Ys VIII, Tales of Arise, I am Setsuna
Honorable Mentions: Just off the Podium
Gallery: Octopath Traveler (II), Valkyria Chronicles (4), Kingdom Hearts (II), Unicorn Overlord, Star Ocean Second Story R
And now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for…
THE TOP 10
10: Sea of Stars (Sabotage Studio)
Am I starting my top JRPGs of all time with an indie RPG made in Quebec? OUI OUI. We like our fries spicy in this house. And will this pick also bother Westen? Oh yes, yes it will (IF you know you know).
Jokes aside, Sea of Stars takes explicit inspiration from 90s SNES JRPGs – up to and including the great Chrono Trigger. From its time-spanning narrative to its Super Mario RPG-like turn-based QTE combat mechanics, this pixel art adventure is everything my classic JRPG-loving heart needed, all married together with Sabotage’s signature style and humor.
The characters are endearing, the gameplay is simple but satisfying – especially with the new Throes of the Watchmaker DLC, the music is a staple of my personal playlists… and also, this game always seems to come into my life when I need it most. From when I first played it to when I’ve replayed it, it always seems fated to be there when I’m scared or anxious or grieving and has become an invaluable source of comfort in my life. Sea of Stars is a special game for me that I will love for as long as I live.
9: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive)
Second up on my list of top 10 FRPGs… just kidding – but am I seriously giving another spot to an RPG of suspiciously more French-than-Japanese origins on a top 10 JRPGs of all time list? YOU bet your sweet ass I am.
If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, then it’s – you guessed it – a friggin JRPG! This game is heavily inspired by classic JRPGs and even has explicit Easter eggs pointing to those roots (none of which I’ll be spoiling here today). Its core structure is the party-based epic adventure that we all know and love – but brought to new heights with innovations that meaningfully push the genre forward.
That isn’t to say it’s the first turn-based game ever to add real-time elements into its turn-based combat. (Hell it’s not even the first one on this list to do that… see also: game #10.) But it took the concept and cranked it up to 100. Rather than just timing a button press to mitigate incoming damage or increase damage dealt, Expedition 33 lets you dodge and even parry enemy attacks.
It’s a truly skill-based system that mitigates the old school JRPG need to simply “make number go up,” relying solely on levels and stats to determine combat outcomes. You can attempt boss fights you are supremely underleveled for, and if you’re skilled and practiced enough, potentially emerge victorious.
What’s more, the character customization and party composition possibilities are off the charts with the depth of the Pictos and Lumina systems, on top of each character’s specialized “job class” mechanics that make them feel distinctly unique to play, learn, and master.
Oh and did I mention it has one of the best soundtracks of the year, playing behind one of the most well-written, nuanced stories and set of character arcs that I’ve seen in any game… ever? The writing is impeccable, the characters have real discussions that beat the JRPG exposition allegations, and I ugly cried multiple times. Expedition 33 is my 2025 GOTY and at this point, I’m already comfortable putting it here in this top 10 list.
8: Fire Emblem: Three Houses (Intelligent Systems)
Finally – a Japanese JRPG… okay well SRPG but close enough, most of the naysayers CAN relax now. Although for many old school Fire Emblem fans, this pick may still be a tad controversial since it moves away from and/or updates a lot of the franchise’s systems.
But I didn’t grow up playing a lot of the classic Fire Emblem games and so this series is one that I have been (and still am) playing catch-up with to this day. Three Houses was the first I got to play at launch, and to this day it is my single most played game on Nintendo Switch with hundreds of hours logged across multiple playthroughs.
I did two of those playthroughs at launch in 2019 (both Black Eagle routes). But I’ve since returned over the years to do the other routes and still have the urge to go back yet again – especially with the next mainline entry on the horizon, bubbling up the hype all over again.
What I loved about Three Houses is twofold: the battles, of course. They’re massive and complex and varied and encourage you to explore the different ways you can grow your characters, mixing and matching unit types to find the best ways to crack open the systems and exploit all that they have to offer.
And then there’s the characters themselves. This cast is massive with the three different houses to align with along with all the side characters you can try to recruit to your cause. Their personal and combined stories are something that I apparently never grew tired of since I would happily do it all over again.
7: Dragon Quest XI S (Square Enix)
Franchise HM: Dragon Quest III HD2D
If you’ve ever READ one of my Dragon Quest posts on BlueSky, you may have already seen that I call DQ: “Smile, the video game.” What I mean by that is these games are pure joy, inside and out. There is zero chance that I’m playing a Dragon Quest game and not smiling til my face hurts.
That’s not to say the story is all sunshine and rainbows – don’t let the puns and goooofy monster names fool you, these games are full of tragedies and world-ending events that leave whole civilizations swallowed up in darkness. Even if one of those civilizations has a place called Snifleheim.
But that’s exactly what I mean – Dragon Quest has the same balance of comedy and tragedy that makes me love stories like One Piece so much. And DQXI stands at the pinnacle of what the franchise has to offer. The characters are vibrant one and all – especially with the likes of Veronica and Sylvando on the crew. The world is colorful and primed for adventure – whether across land, sea, or even the skies.
What’s more, it’s a shining example of how a classic, turn-based JRPG can still land like a meteor in this modern day and age. It’s an accessible genre entry point that is a true joy to play (at least twice in my case, across multiple consoles and the vanilla vs. S versions of DQXI).
6: Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (Monolith Soft)
Franchise HM: Xenoblade Chronicles 3
Now THIS might be one of my (even more) controversial picks for the top 10. Most people – myself included – will likely give the nod to Xenoblade Chronicles 3 as the objective best game in the franchise (mechanically, technically, and maybe even narratively).
But XC2 is an incredibly special game to me… and my personal number one Switch game of all time. It was my first Xenoblade game, so call me biased – but I can explain why this wonderfully flawed mess of a masterpiece is my undisputed favorite.
Simply put: it’s the characters. At the heart of it all, I love this damn cast – janky English dub and all! Rex, Pyra, Mythra, Nia, Morag – I’ll stop naming them because I could quite frankly name them all. Even the villains – from base XC2 to the Torna DLC – the villains in this entry are the franchise’s best in my opinion and it’s not even close.
On top of that, the story broke my heart and put it back together again – all before I even learned how it connects to what came before and had my mind blown to smithereens. And then also the music goes insanely hard. And then also also the combat system – while not tutorialized well… like at all… – is stupidly fun to master in the late game. XC3 just about matches it in the combat (my “number go UP” gamer brain was fully engaged for both games), but something about the Blades system still sticks with me to this day.
One final thing – Xenoblade being on this list period is an achievement. Anyone who knows me knows I’ll take a linear game over an open world any day of the week. It takes an incredibly rare exception to overcome my OCD and fear of massive open world checklists to break down my walls and make me not only play it, but love it for life.
5: Chrono Trigger (Square Enix)
Okay, starting off the top 5 here we have entered serious territory – while 10-6 were tough for me to debate and place at times, these top 5 were an immediate lock when sitting down to outline this article. YOU best believe that every game from here on out is a certified banger.
It goes without saying but I’ll say it anyway: Chrono Trigger is one of the greatest games of all time. It’s not just hype, it really is that good and what’s more it stands the test of time. It’s been just over a year since I last played it and while the most readily available version (aka mobile/PC port of the mobile version) isn’t what I’d ideally want, the core game itself is – pardon the pun – timeless.
Chrono Trigger embodies everything I’d want in a near-perfect JRPG. It has a great cast of characters each with their own stories to tell and unique gameplay mechanics to contribute to the party. The dual/triple tech system capitalizes on that and adds to both strategy and fun-factor alike for the turn-based battles.
The story is full of adventure and offers great replayability all while respecting the player’s time – this tight, all-time classic narrative can be completed in 25 hours no problem and it doesn’t feel like it’s lacking for content in the least. This is the definition of all killer no filler. And all of that is without mentioning the iconic soundtrack or Akira Toriyama’s unforgettable character designs. I cannot recommend this game enough; it is a must-play in my books full stop period.
4: Persona 5 (Atlus)
Franchise HMs: Persona 4 Golden, Persona 3 Reload
I have loved all the Persona games I’ve played – 5, 5 Royal, 4 Golden, 3 Reload, and even spinoffs like Persona 5 Strikers and Tactica. But when it came down to which one makes this top 10 list, there ARE really only two (or even technically one) options for me: P5 or P5R.
And while Royal is the version I would easily recommend to anyone who hasn’t already played Persona 5, I’m going with the vanilla version for my personal pick. I’ve played both versions – for over 120 hours each… but the original experience is the one I fell in love with and it became my undisputed JRPG of the entire PS4 generation.
Persona 5 set the world on fire with its stylish presentation. It didn’t matter that that character models were PS3 level – the damn MENUS were so sexy that even social media Gamers didn’t care. Its music – from lo-fi beats to peak hype battle themes – became iconic and immortal almost overnight. The gameplay took the Persona and SMT formula to a whole new stratosphere with a snappy press turn system that felt responsive, tactical, and flashy AF.
And yet again, here is an example of a cast of characters that have permanently tattooed themselves on my heart. I loved them at launch and somehow I love them even more now. Their personalities, their heartbreaks, their bonds, their dumb jokes – no shade to the parties of 3 or 4, but this is the crew that I would choose to adventure with over and over and over again.
Not to mention the in media res start to the banger of a mystery plot that compels you through dozens of hours of dungeon delving gameplay… and yeah. Persona 5 is one of the greatest games of all time.
3: NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139... (Square Enix)
Franchise HM: NieR Automata
This was the single hardest decision for me to make on this list. Not whether A NieR game would be here, but rather which.
Some context: for my history with the series – I never actually played the Drakengard games (of which NieR is a spin-off), and I started with Automata. Leading into its launch back in 2017, there was a ton of hype and buzz and despite not knowing much about it, I dove right in.
I fell in love instantly.
To this day, Keiichi Okabe’s NieR soundtracks are, at least to me, the best in gaming history – standing shoulder to shoulder with the greatest works of Nobuo Uematsu of Final Fantasy fame. The gameplay was fun and fast and bizarre and varied – shifting from character action hack n’ slash to all out bullet hell, changing perspectives from freely rotating 3D cameras to a fixed side-on POV. The characters had cool designs and even more intriguing personal arcs – 2B, Nines, and later A2 but also Pascal, Emil, and more.
Automata quickly became one of my favorite games of all time, and it was the first game I ever platinumed. Even after 26 different endings, I needed more so – in the absence of ever owning a PS3/Xbox 360 gen console – I turned to YouTube to watch let’s plays of the first game, NieR Gestalt. And what I found there… were characters that dug even deeper into my heart.
I am damn near ready to start crying right now as I try to write about this. Characters like Kaine and Emil are among my favorite in all media ever – video game or otherwise. The writing in both of these games is just astounding and provocative and deeply emotional. Yoko Taro left a radical stamp on the history of the medium with how he brought these characters to life in a game that isn’t afraid to randomly yeet you out of the action JRPG and into an entire Silent Hill reference or 80s era text adventure.
So when the Replicant remake finally dropped worldwide… I was elated. Not only did it improve upon the original janky gameplay by taking lessons from Automata, but it added a whole new level of beauty and even more stories to this already incredible game. And I got to play it. And I will never, ever forget it. It is a game of all goddamn time. Now pass me the friggin tissues.
2: Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (+VII) (Square Enix)
Franchise HMs: FFIX, FFXII, FFVI
All right. Here we go. The BIG leagues: Final Fantasy is finally making its debut on this list. And we’re starting with FFVII Rebirth.
I have to give an honorable mention to the original VII because without that monumental foundation, these characters and this world and their story wouldn’t exist. But every single bit of it is at its most alive and fleshed out and fully realized in Rebirth. These characters especially reach beyond the screen – they are whole and human and flawed and I cannot stress how much I love them.
Square has poured every single ounce of love in the universe into bringing this remake/reimagining/resequel to life. And while it was great in FFVII Remake, it somehow got even better in Rebirth. It may not be the one-to-one remake a lot of classic fans wanted, but it is a revolutionary piece of media that is doing things no other video game has ever done by recreating and also continuing the story of the thing it is remaking in the first place.
Plus it somehow made FFVIIR’s combat even freaking better. I love turn-based. And maybe the only thing I love more is the ongoing evolution of turn-based, especially in hybrid combat systems that introduce real-time elements of reactivity and strategy. And FFVIIR did that by honoring its ATB roots while adding in real-time action. And then Rebirth went hey – what about dual techs though? And my little gamer heart exploded.
AND THEN QUEEN’S BLOOD SIMPLY EXISTS.
Also, I already mentioned FF’s music in the previous entry about NieR, but what I didn’t say is that FFVII’s OST is specifically my favorite in the franchise – which is saying a lot since this is my favorite franchise of all time across JRPGs, video games, and all media period. Imma start crying again.
I’ll wrap this up by saying that FFVII Rebirth is this high on the list, even over other games I deeply love like FFIX, because it is the one and only game in the past two decades to ever make me question if it could be my new number one video game of all time. But while it did make me stop and think for the first time in my adult life… there is still a number one. And now it’s time to talk about it.
1: Final Fantasy X (Square Enix)
The whole reason we’re here today, and the number one game responsible for why I’m a big ass NERD yapping about JRPGs on the internet and not just someone who sometimes plays video games, is none other than: Final Fantasy X.
I can still remember the moment when it all clicked for me. The “aha” moment of my gaming life. Or rather, a series of moments.
At first it started with a simple line, “Listen to my story…”
And then it really hit me with that scene in Kilika where Yuna performs the sending on the water by the village. You know the one. That scene made me sit up, pause, and realize I wasn’t just playing a game. I was witnessing art.
But then believe it or not, it really sank in a little while later, on the Mi’ihen Highroad by the inn on the knoll at twilight. Where Tidus and Yuna have a seemingly simple, and innocuous conversation. I don’t know if I truly knew why – but that was the first time I ever cried while playing a video game.
And I shit you not, I’m crying a bit now.
This game changed my life. It sparked a passion in me that has only gotten stronger every year since. It showed me how transformative and powerful these experiences can be – not ones where we just watch the story unfold, but participate in it and share it, not only with the characters but with other gamers who get it too (looking at you, person who’s bothered to make it this far in a top 10 list that written by anyone else would not be pushing 4,000 friggin words).
FFX solidified my love of turn-based, it ignited my passion for JRPGs, and it took my passive consumption of games as a cool thing to do on Saturday afternoons and transformed it into an active need to learn and discuss and share more about these incredible works of art and software that still find ways to surprise us all these decades later.
So there you have it. My top 10 JRPGs of all time. My favorite franchise of all time. And my number one game of all time.
Feel free to chime in with how you feel about any of the games I listed here today or even add your own! There is never too much love for these video games that move and shape us.
(P.S. bonus points to anyone who bothered with finding the secret message…)
