Recommendations for games?; 3DS RPGS

[Togath]

I've been getting a craving recently for rpgs, so I figured I'd try asking around here, see if anyone had suggestions for 3DS/DS ones.
First off: I'm not a fan of pixel graphics, since I a: started gaming after the pixel era(so I don't have nostalgia for the style), and b: just don't like the look.

As for the sorts of game.. I'm open to most things, other than scifi-rpgs, and am open to DS rpgs, as long as they aren't 2d pixel graphic ones. I also dislike the battle system many final fantasy games use(the turn timer), since it just feels off compared to either a more turn based or more action based system.
I also dislike the Fire Emblem series, and similar tactics games.

For stuff I've played*(and liked*),there's: Golden Sun: Dark Dawn(ds), Dragonquest 9(ds), Pokemon X, and Pokemon Alpha Sapphire.

I've also heard of the following, but haven't played them, but have been curious about them(and an open to suggestions for others:smallsmile:);
Fantasy Life(3ds)
Bravely Default(3ds)
Tales of the Abyss(3ds and ps2)
Blue Dragon: Awakened Shadow(ds)
The Etrian Odyssey Series(ds and 3ds)

*not counting games for different platforms/old gamess(would only really add DQ 6 and 8, other Pokemon games, Epic Battle Fantasy 4, and Golden Sun to the list)

[Drasius]

Go and buy Fire Emblem Awakening right now. Right this very instant.

You can thank me later. Cash or Cheque will be fine.

[Sajiri]

Fantasy Life is pretty fun. The main storyline is pretty simplistic and easy (its designed to even be beat by non combat classes, if you want to play as a chef or tailor or something) but raising the various classes is fun, and the optional bosses you go out and find in the field can be pretty difficult. If you buy the Origin Island dlc with it and have other people to play with, its kind of like a mini mmo

Also not really a RPG (Aside from some of the things you mentioned in your already played games, I dont play a lot of RPGs on my 3ds) there's Harvest Moon games. Start off pretty slow but they are a fun relaxing way to pass time.

[Togath]

Go and buy Fire Emblem Awakening right now. Right this very instant.

You can thank me later. Cash or Cheque will be fine.

I should've included this in the op(sorry about forgetting);
I don't like Fire Emblem, or other similar games, just not my thing([no offense meant]I hadn't realized they might be considered rpgs, hence why I didn't include them in the op)


Fantasy Life is pretty fun. The main storyline is pretty simplistic and easy (its designed to even be beat by non combat classes, if you want to play as a chef or tailor or something) but raising the various classes is fun, and the optional bosses you go out and find in the field can be pretty difficult. If you buy the Origin Island dlc with it and have other people to play with, its kind of like a mini mmo


Might not be my thing then, at least currently.
What is game play like? Combat? Any puzzles? Or does it tend toward being more pasisve?


Also not really a RPG (Aside from some of the things you mentioned in your already played games, I dont play a lot of RPGs on my 3ds) there's Harvest Moon games. Start off pretty slow but they are a fun relaxing way to pass time.


As for Harvest Moon... The series is honestly too passive for me. While I haven't an issue with noncombat stuff in a traditional rpg, I wouldn't enjoy a game comprised primary of it.

[Zevox]

I would very highly recommend Tales of the Abyss. It's one of the two best games in its series in my opinion, and one of my personal favorite games of all time. If you like JRPGs (as you obviously do) and are fine with the combat being more action-oriented instead of turn-based, you should definitely give it a try.

I don't know how good the handheld game is, but I did play the original Blue Dragon on the X-Box 360, and it was pretty good. It's basically what you get when you let the creator of Final Fantasy make Dragon Quest - more Dragon Quest than Final Fantasy, but with some FF-style elements, and it works out. But again, I haven't tried Awakened Shadow myself, so I can't say for sure if that one is as good as the first.

Other good ones:
- The World Ends With You (DS). A very unique game in both the story, which I pretty much can't say anything about without going into spoilers, and the gameplay, which is a very touch-screen heavy action-oriented one, where you use powers given to you by special pins that are activated with different actions on the touch screen, such as tapping a point or swiping over an area. It's probably the last really great game made by Square-Enix themselves (as opposed to Level-5, whom made Dragon Quest 8 & 9 for them), at least of those I've played.
- Radiant Historia (DS), a time-travel based JRPG where you explore two alternate timelines throughout the game. Time-travel even plays into the combat as you're allowed to manipulate what order turns occur in.
- Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story and Dream Team (DS & 3DS respectively): Mario RPG titles, very light-hearted but very fun. If you've played the previous Mario & Luigi games you know what to expect, if you've played the first two Paper Mario games they're similar to those but sillier.


I should've included this in the op(sorry about forgetting);
I don't like Fire Emblem, or other similar games, just not my thing([no offense meant]I hadn't realized they might be considered rpgs, hence why I didn't include them in the op)
Yes, those are considered RPGs. Fire Emblem is the franchise that created the Tactical RPG sub-genre, in fact.

[RagingKrikkit]

I should've included this in the op(sorry about forgetting);
I don't like Fire Emblem, or other similar games, just not my thing([no offense meant]I hadn't realized they might be considered rpgs, hence why I didn't include them in the OP.

I think the technical term is Strategy/RPG. Anyway, I second the Mario & Luigi games (and grab Superstar Saga for the GBA if you can), and if you don't mind some crazy theology, Shin Megami Tensei 4 might interest you.

[Hunter Noventa]

Bravely Default(3ds)


Bravely Default is one of the best JRPGs to come out in a long time. Some part of the game (well, a good portion of the second half) is a bit of a slog, but that doesn't stop it from being enjoyable. It's got a purely turn-based battle system and changes it up with new elements and has a ton of job classes and very lovely graphics/art direction.

Not to mention the more copies of it actually sell over here, the more of a chance we'll see the sequel come over before hell freezes over.

I'd also suggest Persona Q, which is an Etrian Oddessy-like dungeon crawler, but you're not going to get as much out of it without playing Persona 3 and 4, the best versions of which sadly are only for PSP and PSVita.

[Togath]

What sort of slog?
And since I'm curious, what are encounters like? Are they visible on the map before battle? And what is the map like?
Also:can you backtrack? Are there any points where areas get locked off permanently?
I'm fine with spoilers(and encourage at least some in cases like this, so I have some idea of the tone of the plot, and if there are any major twists["tragic death"/notable character goes evil/village gets destroyed/etc])

[GloatingSwine]

Bosses in Bravely Default can be reasonably tough if you don't have the right abilities available, so you will sometimes be stopping to pump up a different job to make sure you have it available.

Nothing important becomes permanently unavailable because of reasons, but if optional classes (which are openly signposted on the map) aren't unlocked in the chapter they appear in then you have to wait some time before you can get them again.

[Togath]

Could you give more information of the optional classes and the chapters thing?

I also got curious about what the customization is like(do you play a set character, or do you decide their appearance? Do gear changes show?), and how classes work(it sounds like you can change and level different ones. How much carries over when you change?).

(sorry about having so many questions, I just tend to be curious, and I figure it'll give me a better idea of if I'll like the game)

So far it is sounding fairly interesting(tough bosses are fine:smallsmile: I honestly prefer them to too-easy ones, at least in jrpgs), and I did look up a few screenshots, and enjoyed the art style a lot.

[GloatingSwine]

The game is split into chapters, in the first four there are sidequests which end up with you getting an additional class (eg. in the first chapter you get the Thief and Merchant classes). If you don't get the classes in the chapter their sidequest appears in they are next available in chapter 5 (and all the rest I think) but you have to fight harder versions of the bosses to get them.

Your characters are set, there are four and you get them all pretty much right away. Weapons and shields show up on your character, their appearance otherwise is determined by their current job (or certain equippables).

Classes work the same as the job system in basically every Final Fantasy game it has appeared in.

[Togath]

I've never played a final fantasy game with it(and barely played the ones in that series that I've tried), so I'm not really sure what that means.

And how does the "chapters" thing work? Honest question.

[Starwulf]

As for Harvest Moon... The series is honestly too passive for me. While I haven't an issue with noncombat stuff in a traditional rpg, I wouldn't enjoy a game comprised primary of it.

Try out Rune Factory then(there is even a Rune Factory out for the 3DS itself right now, Rune Factory 4). It's a bit like Harvest Moon(it's more or less a spin-off) with the ability to grow crops, build a house and make relationships, but it also has a combat side that is tightly integrated into the storyline. It's a wonderful series of games, and I wish I had a 3DS to be able to play RF4.

[GloatingSwine]

I've never played a final fantasy game with it(and barely played the ones in that series that I've tried), so I'm not really sure what that means.

OK, the fundamentals of the job system is that you have a long list of classes (25 or so IIRC) which each have preferred weapons and equipment, and their own in-battle command set eg. Knight has a set of predominantly defensive moves and is good with most weapons and armour, black mage has the offensive spells but is only good with knives or rods, performer (bard, basically) has support buffs etc, and you can change your class at any time outside of battle. You earn experience on your jobs as well as for levelling up which unlocks more moves in battle and also passive support abilities (like resistance to status effects) which you can then equip to other jobs to customise them. (In Bravely Default you can equip one other job's command skill, so you can have a knight who also casts magic, but they'll do it on a knight's magic stats).

There's quite a lot of scope for customising characters, but because each job levels up seperately it takes a fair bit of grinding.


And how does the "chapters" thing work? Honest question.

They're just a way to split up major story events. In Bravely Default the overall quest is to reactivate a number of crystals which govern various elements, and each chapter (for the first four) has you working your way up to and reactivating one of them. When you end a chapter any sidequests not completed become unavailable until chapter 5 (where you have to do it all again because of Reasons and everything has reset but with harder versions and new plot). (Sidequests show up on your map so you can't miss knowing when they're available at least).

[Hunter Noventa]

There's quite a lot of scope for customising characters, but because each job levels up seperately it takes a fair bit of grinding.


There are some items that can alleviate this a little bit. You eventually can unlock the ability to buy accessories that increase your gain of money, JP (job points) or exp at the expense of the others.

You can also adjust the rate of random encounters. There aren't really any dungeons where say, getting into random encounters might break your concentration on a puzzle, but it's nice to be able to turn it off completely if you're in an area you've been in before, or crank it up if you feel like grinding.

The chapters after a certain point are technically optional, but you won't get the whole plot or see the True Ending if you don't do all the chapters.

There's also a neat mechanic where you can send attacks to your 'friends', that is, you select the option, and the next attack is sent out in your streetpass data, and someone else who gets it can use that attack in battle. You can also get a random smattering of these friends to attack with via the internet.

There's also a side mini-game sort of thing involving rebuilding a village that's destroyed early in the game. You can assign the people you get via internet and streetpass to clear obstacles and construct buildings to give you access to bonus abilities and equipment, and it counts down in real time, even when the 3DS is in sleep mode, but the game is on. You can also get bonus 'Nemesis' bosses that are very tough, require strategy to defeat, and give unique rewards.

There's also a demo available on the 3DS eShop, or at least there was before the game came out, should still be there. it doesn't have any story spoilers at all, it's completely separate from the story other than some locations, but it'll give you a good idea about some of the job classes and the battle mechanics.

Finally, the game has incredible music and you should listen to it.

[Togath]

I might find it interesting.
I'll try looking for the demo.

Changing genre a bit, anyone here tried the Professor Layton series?
I heard about it while looking around for other genres of ds/3ds games, and it sounded interesting.