Bro you could make a 5 hour video of just you talking about random RPG’s and I would listen to the whole thing. Also I love how you have the adult swim like Interludes, they are awesome!
Haha love to hear it, maybe one day we’ll get out something that long. If these series get big enough we might combine all the parts and make one giant video eventually. And thanks dude! I’ve always really liked those and wanted to set similar vibes for the channel
Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals is one of my most beloved SNES games of ALL time. I really, really, really encourage everybody to play this game at least once. This story is truly amazing, the battle system is cool and unique, there are capsule monsters, the characters are outstanding, especially Dekar, it is a vibrant world and almost every aspect it tackles is done so in an extraordinary fashion. This videogame series should've gotten WAY more love and support
Lufia 2 was the first RPG I ever played and it instantly made me fall in love with the genre. At the time, I was quite disappointed that many of the big titles (e.g., Zelda - A link to the past, Secret of Mana) were not as enjoyable to me as Lufia 2. Still a masterpiece.
Lufia II got outshined by Square's RPGs at the time so many people didn't hear about it. Also against it was the fact that it came out late in the SNES lifecycle as people were already gearing up for the Playstation. On top of that RPGs weren't as popular before Final Fantasy VII blew up the market, so few Westerners were playing RPGs except for enthusiasts. I think Lufia II is a top 10 RPG on the SNES, but understand why it never broke into the mainstream.
I wish the Lufia series stuck around longer, it was too easy to put them off on SNES and GBA when they have so many JRPG's. Now the games are so expensive! But one day.....I will give it a shot.
So glad you gave some credit to Septerra Core!!! I played this as a kid so much, even if I had no idea what to do. No one ever knows what it is whenever I bring it up. It was such a vibe.
Radiata Stories was so underrated tbh. It was very fun different, not just the choices but the fact that you can fight ANYONE lol. Tales of Eternia at the time I played it was the best game I'd ever played.
Legends of legaia Was literally one of my favorite games of all time growing up. I had completely forgotten about it I can't believe you brought this up. As soon as the music hit I remembered it Immediately and a wave of nostalgia washed over me
I'm so glad to see Tales of Eternia in this list. I didn't mind the voice acting back then, and it's a shame that the current Tales fans haven't heard nor played this one.
Tales of Eternia is a Great game, the game is just pure fun, this game snatched some of the spot from Squaresoft or Capcom game for me. i can even say with confident that Eternia is better and more fleshed out than some PS2 Tales game, and slightly Win against Tales of Abyss because Eternia is just jam packed with Features, the world is more expansive and diverse compared to other more modern Tales game. tbh i feel like symphonia and Abyss are kinda step down from Eternia, but that's just my personal opinion, i like both game i like Tales of Arise, but even compared to Arise, Eternia is not obsolete i'm surprised to learn that many people sleep on this absolute gem, they don't know what they're missing out
The fact that you just mentioned 2 of my favorite hidden gems, radiata stories and septerra core, just bumped you to greatest person ever. Keep up the great content and keep up the awesomeness
Final Fantasy Tactica A2 (Advance 2) for DS. Great visual, fun tactical combat. Another one is Grandia X for PS2, one of the criteria I like about this game is random encounter could be visible and you have the option to be at ready position.
Those are some good picks. I remember at the time being disappointed with Grandia Xtreme because I wanted more of a traditional RPG, but I think if I were to play it nowadays I would be able to appreciate it more for what it tried to be. The battle system really is excellent
Takes of Eternia is one of my favorite games in the series. Especially love how summoning and magic work with building a loadout using the Craymel cages.
I want to give you a huge "thank you" aswell, your channel is my favorite when it comes to jrpgs, you make all of your videos feel cozy, but not pretentious, keep up the good work!
Ironically, as a PC gamer who was a college student in the late 90s, Septerra Core was almost the only game in your list I HAVE heard of. I loved that game. 😉 Great video! Gonna look some of these up, for sure.
I have so many fun memories with Lufia II. I've beaten it so many times yet I always enjoy going back to it from time to time when I'm getting that RPG itch. The puzzles were well done and the characters have their own charm to them.
Well some of these games have very little known about their development and we don't know what was all cut for time. As for Lunar 2 Eternal Blue Complete it's a port and the key word is Complete. Xenoblade Chronicles X it got DLC in Japan that was included on disc in the west, HB,Yelv,Alexa and Boze were not in in the base game and it looks like that story is never going to get a resolution.
And there alot of young people still defending this kind of practice these day in order to look lika a smartypants,usually they always bring Vanillaware dev since it somewhat has a cult following among those new gen
Xenogears and breath of fire 4 weren't really finished, so it also happened back then. But yeah, it seems to be a more cinical common practice nowadays.
I don't know. It wasn't like Lufia 2 etc didn't have product quality control issues. The whole idea that this is some kind of new thing and that old games weren't widely buggy and riddled with problems is a modern invention. Just look at most of your favorite classic JRPGs. Heck the FF series, AAA for its time, is rife with errors. If a lot of your favorite games were released today you would be screaming bloody murder about how they were released in an unfinished state out of greed and incompetence. I'm not defending companies releasing unfinished product. I'm just saying it is in no way a new problem.
Legend of the Legaia oddly was the JRP that got me hooked. I played a bit of Super Mario RPG, and FF6 but I think I was too young to give them a fair chance. It’s so awesome. I had the same experience with the game as you. Rented it and keep renting it over and over again. Combat is so fun and the story wasn’t Xenogears or anything but it did the job. The world setting.. l would love a anime in that world
My story with Legend of Legaia is kinda funny cause It also got me hooked but in a round about way. I first played a Demo of it, loved it but forgot the name and went looking for it with my mom in K-Mart. We found Final Fantasy 7, thought it was it cause I was like 8 and was convinced my mom was right (even though she didn't know the game I played) and though I booted it up and found out it wasn't I instantly fell in love with Final Fantasy 7 and so began my rabbit hole into JRPG's and RPG's in general. I never gave up looking though and came across Legend of Legaia about 5 years later, felt stupid I forgot the name, bought it and beat it. What a great game it was.
@malice5121 I remembered being so pumped for the 2nd one but was let down. Never got past the sewers. I know the main creator of Legaia had nothing to do with the second one.
WTF was that Intro bro that was incredible, you and your editor are so talented. I'm going through the comments and I'm shocked no one's mentioned it. It looks like it took a ton of time and effort to do. I just wanted to say I appreciated it bro, that was really something. Love your videos, hope you can continue it, of course as long as that's what you want, and continue to grow!
Thanks dude! Some people have mentioned it in the comments, we first featured it in the video before this. It was a combination of ideas the both of us had so we’re happy to see it being received so well. Appreciate you watching!
Dude you unlocked a core memory of mine when you talked about playing Legend of Legaia in the van. When my parents did a cross country road trip back in 1999 that took like 20+ hours I bought that game and played it beginning to end during that trip on that tiny van screen too!
Thanks for all the time and effort you put into these videos. I don't have time for many RPGs as an adult but it's awesome to watch these videos packed full of classics and you do a great job explaining the nuances of them all.
I am a hard-baked JRPG gamer, and was genuinely blown away by Septerra Core. Looks amazing and I have never seen it or heard of it! I must admit, this might be the first time I've felt stoked in over 12 years!
Hell yeah, hope you enjoy it! It’s far from perfect and has its flaws for sure but if you can look past those it offers a super creative and unique world to explore
Starting the list with Legend of Legaia, hell yeah! Love the game so much. It was one of my very first JRPGs and I remember how scared I was of the Berserker boss back then 😂
Dude...all of those beast were terrifying! I went through some of the seru to do a sort of a draw along....some of them are silent hill grade nasties when you really closely look at some of those areas of steel stone and exposed muscle. It would be nice to see at least a soul sequel that ties the two games together in an abstract way. I heard the rights to it expired though, so maybe a proper sequel could be made.
Radiata Stories is so much fun (I just having fun to spy the daily routine of the characters ahah). I would "kill" to have a Lunar 1&2 modern port like they did recenty with Grandia 1&2. :)
Omfg Legend of Legaia was one of my childhood favs I loved how the RaSeru worked so much. The combos were fun to find more out on my own even if I stuck to a few I really liked. xD
Starting this list off with a classic. Loved Legend of Legaia so much, that even to this day, I'll replay the two battle themes in my head while at work. If they ever remake that game& do it well, I'd start playing video games again.
Lufia II. One of the only games to bring a tear to my eye....that ending. Also, i believe the Destiny/Eternia name change was due to copyright naming issues.
Just found this channel and I’m loving your guys content. Your opening music is so nostalgic like I’m watching toonami as a child and they have those montages of shows. Love your content keep it up!
With the versatility of the Switch/Steamdeck, I think ports could sell really well. If Final Fantasy Legend 1-3 can get a port (Romancing Saga Collection), and Front Mission 1-3 getting remakes, what is stopping Lunar & Lufia from a comback? If not a port, maybe Nintendo Switch Online? I'd love more JRPG's there.
I still have my copy of Radiata Stories. One of the few ps2 games I still have and it's because it's definitely one of my favorites. I love games where you can recruit a lot possible party members. I like that you mentions Brave Fencer Musashi comparison as that game was one of my first ps1 games, it might have been my first. Now I love games with life sim-y elements.
The story of Xenoblade Chronicles X is about a city from earth (New LA) that lands on the alien planet called Mira, but there are limited supplies and energy, so you have to pick one of eight jobs to help ensure New LA not only survives, but that it thrives. There are a number of twists along the way, and because of the open world aspect, the story weaves out in many different directions. The story most certainly doesn’t suck, and I think it easily exceeds all the other games on your list.
my opinion on Lunar is that something was lost from the original Sega CD versions although ps1 etc versions were nice the stories were changed, Ghaleon was more sinister in Luanr 1 SegaCD and the architecture overlapped so you could visit places in Lunar 2 like in vane and see the buildings aged etc which gave the impression of continuity.
Games don't do this anymore. One reason I love Shining Force 3 is that you literally import your character from Scenario 1 into Scenario 2 & 3. (I only beat Lunar 1, so I needed to use a different example). What games do this now? Xenoblade 3 DLC has you return to Colony 9 from Xenoblade 1 and..... that's all I can come up with. Heck even Pokemon Gold/Silver let you return to Kanto.
Man, Radiata Stories! I LOVE this game. The story isn't SUPER great, but it's still okay. A great thing about it though is that it actually lets you go on 2 separate paths in the game, which lead to 2 totally different ways to experience the story. You basically side with either the humans (which makes every non human your enemy) or the non humans (which makes every human in the game your enemy), which affects which places you can go to in the game, etc. The graphics have this sort of anime esthetic. It's very charming and still look great to this day. The music is also great too. It's not anything epic like the Final Fantasy series or something like that, but it has this very homely feel to it, and still has me humming it even after I'm done playing. Gotta load it up on my Steam Deck. Can't wait to revisit this game
I loved the exploration and world in Xenoblade X too. As great as the Skells were, I preferred when the game forced me to be on foot and figure out how to get to that spot off in the distance rather than just fly to it.
RE: Xenoblade Chronicles X; my favorite aspect is the excellent and flexible class system. I love the different playing styles and elemental synergies. One of the most robust class/job systems I've encountered.😍 And yes, the open world is a gorgeous technical marvel, absolutely incredible. 👏
Legend of Legaia is my favorite RPG of all time! The story was great, the combat was amazing, the leveling, Ra Seru’s, the move combos, catching the monsters. Everything was perfect.
Love to see some love thrown Legend of Legaia’s way. The clear adoration for that game is what brought me to this awesome channel originally (and everything else made me stick around)
Dude, I started this up thinking, "please let there be Thousand Arms, please let there be Thousand Arms..."and there it was! My bro and I remind me a lot of you guys. We'd peruse the aisles of Sears looking for the next dope JRPG based solely on box art, and I remember 12 year old me choosing that one and LOVING it. Totally agree about the combat-I enjoyed it, but it was limited and basic. But the cutscenes are STILL quoted by me and my bro. The Nelsha scene as the Dress Master where her and ol' girl argue, then slap you if you try to butt in cracks me up just thinking about it. Super memorable and... YO, gladddd to see Legaia too! Haven't played any of the others, so I have lots of catching up to do. Another incredible video, fellas! Production value keeps growing too. Love what yall are doing.
Tales of Eternia is my favorite of all the Tales games I have played. I originally played it's PSP rerelease so I had the benefit of playing other greats before it but it hit at the perfect time in my life. It's so simply straightforward as a JRPG, has beautiful visuals and great characters and a serviceable story. It's the comfort food Tales game for me.
I actually have a lot of the Thousand Arms art in my background folder for decades... A lot of games from my childhood. My friend and I would take turns in the Lufia 2 100 floor dungeon to see who could get the farthest, since it is random. I managed to get a rom of FF5 and Tales of Phantasia in the late 90s. Loved Phantasia up until the fan translation ended. Made the game pretty impossible to beat.
I remember picking up Radiata Stories for like $10 at Staples when I was a teenager haha. I sadly always got distracted during my playthroughs and never finished it, but I really enjoyed the vibes and how lived-in the world was. It was just fun walking around the main city and following different characters through their daily lives.
I bought the bulk of my DC/PS1/PS2/DS JRPG's for $5-$20 used. You can't do that anymore, they get discontinued too fast now and then skyrocket to $100+ like Folklore did (also bought for sub $20).
@@michaelp4122 Dang you got lucky. Yeah, so many older games are expensive these days for sure. I expect 3DS stuff will be skyrocketing with eshop closure too. Some of them were kind of rare to begin with (Ever Oasis comes to mind -- started going up in price right after I bought it).
I am so glad Lunar 2 is on this list. I bought that game of playstation, I think it was 70 dollars? Maybe 80. That shit broke the bank for me. I was 12 and it was worth every penny.
Reminds me of myself when I bought the Arc the Lad collection around the same age, super glad I did in retrospect even though it was more expensive than your average game
One game I reccomend looking into is Azure Dreams, It's a playstation one RPG where you quest into a ever changing tower, Fighting your way up, Leaving the tower to rest and build up the town, Befriend NPC's, Do side quests and then delve into the tower again. Your level is reset every re-entry into the tower and the layout of the tower is new every time, But you can gain monster companions and I seem to recall your monsters levels not resetting upon re-entry. I never see anyone talk about Azure Dreams online so it seems very forgotten but I enjoyed it as a kid.
That whole lo-fi music intro before the vid started was literally perfection Also glad you highlighted Septerra Core. Flawed game for sure but i thought its setting and story was fascinating for the time.
Haha thanks! We just introduced that intro in our last video and are glad to see it being received so well. And yeah Septerra Core is far from a masterpiece mechanically but the atmosphere is just so cool and unique
What a banging list! I found Septerra Core in a six game PC bundle at like Best Buy one time. Of the six games, Septerra Core was the only one I actually enjoyed. Super unique compared to the usual fantasy setting most Rpgs of the time were set in. So its surprising to see someone else talk about this gem!
I played Xenoblade 1 and X last year, and surprising X was the game that stand out for me, actually is probably was the most memorable game experience I had in a while. As for underappreciated I would say the Utawarerumono games, they are more Visual novel than RPG, but the battle system while somewhat simple is super fun. Right now I'm mid way through the third game and while the first 2 were fine, this one is blowing my mind how good it is specially in the story department
I started X last year stopped early in. Really hoping for switch port because the switch pro controller would make it much easier. Just finished torna the other day. Getting psyched up for x3. I hope its as good as everyone says.
@@reyntime1950 X as a whole is a great experience, but not without its flaws, I would highly recommend that you emulate if you have the PC for that. I say emulate not because of resolution or playing at 60 FPS (though they are very welcome), but because the game is rely too much on grinding specially if your doing the side quest (which is a big part of the game, given that they overall are quite interesting), on Cemu you can change a bunch of parameters like how much exp you gain, money, etc. I played the first 40hs without using, and clocked around 130hs doing every side quest plus the story, if I havent modify a bunch of these parameters I wouls probably clocked over 300Hs which would be boring and in all honest I would have gave up; if they port to switch I doubt they will fix all this
Lufia 2 DS sold so horrifically that is the one franchise I can say for absolute certainly will NEVER come back. Sold less than 30K copies in Japan in the first month. FPS games on Xbox 360 were outselling it in Japan..i'm not being hyperbolic either. Sonic Xtreme,Final Fantasy Versus XIII,Halflife 3,Portal 3,Star Wars 1313,Silent Hills and Zone of the Enders 3 will happen before a new Lufia.
You NAILED this list! I'm in the same boat where I rented Legends of Legaia so many times and annoyed so many friends by incessantly talking about it lol. Lunar 1 and 2 were the same.
Lufia 2 is in my top 10 rpgs ever. The Zelda style dungeons, characters, graphics, music made it one of the best games ever. Still waiting on Lunar 3. Hurts that the franchise put out two masterpieces then some mediocre spinoffs then died. Reminds me of how Suikoden died.
It's always kind of funny to hear people rightfully talking about certain jrpgs as hidden gems when you're married to someone who's obsessed with some hidden gems and talks about them a whole lot. Love the video! Love the content.
Immediately won me over by starting with Legend of Legaia xD It blows my mind that it didn't blossom into a huge series that's still going. To me, it's iconic and synonymous with PSone RPGs the same way games like Breath of Fire III, Grandia and Xenogears are. I'm also really happy that you mentioned Thousand Arms. I lucked out and picked up at a decent price a few years ago and am glad I did. It's just pure energetic fun and has style and charm to spare! Lufia II is sadly one I don't have any experience with, aside from the very fun DS remake. Honestly, it's kind of a crime that neither Lufia is available for the SNES Switch Online app.
Some really good RPGs in this video! After several failed attempts at getting my sister into RPGs she somehow found Legend of Legaia and it just clicked for her. Xenoblade Chronicles X is criminally underrated. My favorite battlesystem of the Xenoblade series so far. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for an eventual port. Then there's Thousand Arms. I legit was thinking about that game during the Lunar segment, thinking that no one ever talk about that game. Glad that you proved me wrong! Hope to see more of these videos in the future!
I had 4 of these and agree for the most part. Other games to consider are Vandal Hearts series, Shadow Hearts series, Saga Frontier 2, Growlanser Generations and Langrisser 1 & 2
Definitely feel like Lunar 2 needs more love. It's one of my favorite JRPGs of all time, and it may not be a super-popular opinion, but I like it better than Lunar 1. It has a darker, more mature story, with most of the characters having some disturbing pasts, tied in with the religion based around Althena, which has now gone corrupt since the goddess is truly gone. Seeing things like Luna choosing to grow old and die as a mortal because of her love for Alex, watching Lucia go from being an emotionless robot to a real human with human feelings, seeing the party members overcome their many traumas and hang-ups, and of course that damn amazing epilogue... It really is the pinnacle of storytelling done right.
Replayed it a few years ago as an adult. Damn, it is *dark*. In a good way. Some really heavy scenarios and subjects. I didn't realize as a kid how mature the story is. And agree, better than Silver Star. Though love both.
Definite shame that Eternal Blue doesn't get more attention. It is definitely my favorite of the two Lunar games (and I do like the first one too). Edit: Tales of Destiny II/Tales of Eternia is legit. Definitely unfortunate that it hasn't be re-released or remade.
Another awesome list of great, underappreciated RPGs that deserve more recognition by my favorite great, underappreciated TH-cam channel that deserves more recognition!
Have played all of these and couldn't agree more. Legend of Legaia is a personal favorite of mine and really wish it'd get a remake as I think people would really love it.
I played the Lunar games on Sega CD, and was thrilled when they remade them for the PS1. Updated graphics, retold story, and cool collectibles packaged in with the game made them a no brainer to buy. Silver Star Story Complete is one of my all time favorites, and Eternal Blue is a close second.
@@GamingBroductions your welcome, I definitely love seeing chrono trigger, Yu Yu hakusho and Final Fantasy IX in your new intro for the channel it makes me happy seeing all 3 of these on here. But great video once again
Playing during your brothers baseball tournaments hit me in the feels cause my lil brother would play his gb advance SP during my games in the car, too lol good times
I’ve had Lufia II in my possession for about 20 years now and haven’t played it yet. A good friend I used to work with gave it to me to play and said it was one of the best games ever! Well I put it off as I wasn’t into gaming as much anymore at the time. He sadly ended up committing suicide and when I got back into gaming, I had a hard time deleting any of his save files so I could play it. But after watching this video, I know I just need to do it! I’d be doing him a disservice by not playing it since that was the reason he gave it to me in the first place. That cartridge is probably one of my most prized pieces in my collection, not because of its value, but rather the sentimental attachment.
I really gotta get on picking up Lufia 2... i played it about 20 years ago and loved it but never picked up the cart. i have the rest on this list, and cant believe someone else experienced Septera Core lol. I picked it up at Electronics Boutique sometime in '01 for $5. it hasn't changed at all.
Great video. I also enjoyed Lunar 1 to 2 when I played them but I kept wanting Hiro to turn into the dragon master and was super disappointed that he didn't. What comes from playing it as a teenager. Also the reason it was renamed tales of destiny 2 is because Eternia is copyrighted for HeMan, not because of name recognition.
I'm still waiting for the day they make spiritual sequel for Radiata Stories. Radiata Stories is on my list as one of the best game you never played. Edit: Thousand Arms and Tales of Eternia are amazing as well, my god people need to experience them.
Radiata Stories! I remember reviewing the Japanese version when it first came out! It's worth mentioning that it can display in progressive scan and had an aspect ratio option. How many other PS2 JRPGs can you say ran in 480p 16:9 wide-screen?! 🤩 A few days ago I actually fired it up for the first time since then, having dug my PS2 out of mothballs... I forgot just how funny it was. Just that opening scene with Jack shuffling out of his room half-asleep with his PJs on backwards and getting yelled at by his sister already had me laughing. And it's the surprisingly high visual fidelity which allows them to convey so much of the subtle humor and expressiveness of the characters. I'd forgotten just how well-made the game was, you're absolutely right that it's underappreciated. I _knew_ about it and still didn't totally clock just how well executed it was until now! I'm totally starting my game over again though... I couldn't even figure out how to attack before Ridley kicked Jack's ass, but in my original playthrough I held her at bay until she--as scripted I assume--definitively ended the fight with Wild Pitch. (And I actually have video of that, lol)
Much love for Legend of Legaia. It's the game that made me fall in love with JRPGs as a kid as well. Spot on about the music too. It's a real shame we'll likely never see a rerelease, as this is 1000% a game that truly deserves it
Never hear anyone talking about the Mana Khemia series. Till this day I still think its got one of the best turn base battle mechanics with a huge team
Nice list, I've played almost all of these (Septerracore and Thousand Arms being the exceptions), and I agree on all points. I recommend trying out "The Granstream Saga" and "Ephemeral Fantasia". Neither game is graphically impressive for their time, but in my opinion both games are underrated and pretty unique. Grandia 3 might fall into the underappreciated category since it's pretty good but not really talked about much. I might as well mention Threads of Fate as well, since I forgot to mention it back on your Cozy JRPGs video. One classic series I haven't really seen you talk about is the SaGa series. Some PS2 games I don't think you have brought up before: -(Dot)Hack Series -Dark Cloud 1 & 2/Chronicle -Mother 3 -MS Saga: A New Dawn (Not really very popular but I remember enjoying it) -Okami (not sure if it counts as a JRPG actually) -Phantom Brave (the more serious cousin of Disgaea) -Tales of the Abyss -Valkyrie Profile 2
Lot of great games you’ve mentioned here. A few of them do I plan on talking about in some upcoming videos actually. And yeah, the Saga series is one I don’t have as much experience with as others. I’ve tried out most of them but didn’t make it too far with many. I do want to revisit them though. We’ll be doing a poll for our Patreon members soon over what game we cover for our next retrospective and Saga Frontier will be one of the choices
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Bro you could make a 5 hour video of just you talking about random RPG’s and I would listen to the whole thing. Also I love how you have the adult swim like Interludes, they are awesome!
Haha love to hear it, maybe one day we’ll get out something that long. If these series get big enough we might combine all the parts and make one giant video eventually. And thanks dude! I’ve always really liked those and wanted to set similar vibes for the channel
Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals is one of my most beloved SNES games of ALL time. I really, really, really encourage everybody to play this game at least once. This story is truly amazing, the battle system is cool and unique, there are capsule monsters, the characters are outstanding, especially Dekar, it is a vibrant world and almost every aspect it tackles is done so in an extraordinary fashion.
This videogame series should've gotten WAY more love and support
Lufia 2 was the first RPG I ever played and it instantly made me fall in love with the genre. At the time, I was quite disappointed that many of the big titles (e.g., Zelda - A link to the past, Secret of Mana) were not as enjoyable to me as Lufia 2. Still a masterpiece.
Just beat it a week ago, it really is amazing. And god damn that ending ..
i love Lufia 2 so much, I replay it every few years.
Lufia II got outshined by Square's RPGs at the time so many people didn't hear about it. Also against it was the fact that it came out late in the SNES lifecycle as people were already gearing up for the Playstation. On top of that RPGs weren't as popular before Final Fantasy VII blew up the market, so few Westerners were playing RPGs except for enthusiasts. I think Lufia II is a top 10 RPG on the SNES, but understand why it never broke into the mainstream.
I wish the Lufia series stuck around longer, it was too easy to put them off on SNES and GBA when they have so many JRPG's.
Now the games are so expensive!
But one day.....I will give it a shot.
Its like my life flashing before my eyes here. Miss these type of games,, particularly LUNAR
So glad you gave some credit to Septerra Core!!! I played this as a kid so much, even if I had no idea what to do. No one ever knows what it is whenever I bring it up. It was such a vibe.
Radiata Stories was so underrated tbh. It was very fun different, not just the choices but the fact that you can fight ANYONE lol.
Tales of Eternia at the time I played it was the best game I'd ever played.
i'd love an HD remaster like Dark CLoud2 got
I don’t know if that intro is new, but yo it’s on some other shit! Great job editor brother
We first featured it in the video before this, thanks dude!
Legends of legaia Was literally one of my favorite games of all time growing up. I had completely forgotten about it I can't believe you brought this up. As soon as the music hit I remembered it Immediately and a wave of nostalgia washed over me
Love the new intro. The music, the old school filter with the anime, and shots of Japan. Definitely a vibe
Appreciate it dude! All about trying to set a vibe over here
Holy F*** that intro was amazing! Reminds me of those Toonami Quips between the commercials or Bumps i think they were called.
Thanks! Yeah that’s definitely the vibe we were going for so glad to hear it hit
Lunar 1 & 2 are some of my absolute favorite games! I wish more people knew about/remember them.
They absolutely need some modern ports! If Grandia can get it so can they
I beat Lunar on PSP. While I don't like it as much as you two do, I think I would enjoy a modern port.
@@michaelp4122 Is that the crappy one with RNG targetting?
I'm so glad to see Tales of Eternia in this list. I didn't mind the voice acting back then, and it's a shame that the current Tales fans haven't heard nor played this one.
Yeah it’s kinda been unfortunately forgotten about by Namco it seems. It could definitely find an audience if they ported it today I think
Agreed, I'd for one buy it again. I feel like it's timeless.
Tales of Eternia is a Great game, the game is just pure fun,
this game snatched some of the spot from Squaresoft or Capcom game for me.
i can even say with confident that Eternia is better and more fleshed out than some PS2 Tales game,
and slightly Win against Tales of Abyss because Eternia is just jam packed with Features,
the world is more expansive and diverse compared to other more modern Tales game.
tbh i feel like symphonia and Abyss are kinda step down from Eternia, but that's just my personal opinion, i like both game
i like Tales of Arise, but even compared to Arise, Eternia is not obsolete
i'm surprised to learn that many people sleep on this absolute gem, they don't know what they're missing out
The fact that you just mentioned 2 of my favorite hidden gems, radiata stories and septerra core, just bumped you to greatest person ever. Keep up the great content and keep up the awesomeness
Final Fantasy Tactica A2 (Advance 2) for DS. Great visual, fun tactical combat. Another one is Grandia X for PS2, one of the criteria I like about this game is random encounter could be visible and you have the option to be at ready position.
Those are some good picks. I remember at the time being disappointed with Grandia Xtreme because I wanted more of a traditional RPG, but I think if I were to play it nowadays I would be able to appreciate it more for what it tried to be. The battle system really is excellent
Takes of Eternia is one of my favorite games in the series. Especially love how summoning and magic work with building a loadout using the Craymel cages.
Love that system as well. The game all around just has a really great and cozy vibe
I want to give you a huge "thank you" aswell, your channel is my favorite when it comes to jrpgs, you make all of your videos feel cozy, but not pretentious, keep up the good work!
Really appreciate that, that means a lot. And no problem at all, I’m just glad to hear you enjoy the content so much!
@@GamingBroductions What he said, keep it up.
Ironically, as a PC gamer who was a college student in the late 90s, Septerra Core was almost the only game in your list I HAVE heard of. I loved that game. 😉 Great video! Gonna look some of these up, for sure.
I have so many fun memories with Lufia II. I've beaten it so many times yet I always enjoy going back to it from time to time when I'm getting that RPG itch. The puzzles were well done and the characters have their own charm to them.
Such a fantastic game. I had the cartridge in my younger days...good times.
such a shame most modern games dont even release in a finished state like some of these gems
Well some of these games have very little known about their development and we don't know what was all cut for time. As for Lunar 2 Eternal Blue Complete it's a port and the key word is Complete. Xenoblade Chronicles X it got DLC in Japan that was included on disc in the west, HB,Yelv,Alexa and Boze were not in in the base game and it looks like that story is never going to get a resolution.
And there alot of young people still defending this kind of practice these day in order to look lika a smartypants,usually they always bring Vanillaware dev since it somewhat has a cult following among those new gen
Xenogears and breath of fire 4 weren't really finished, so it also happened back then. But yeah, it seems to be a more cinical common practice nowadays.
Wrong. Unfinished games are actually the minority, not the majority.
I don't know. It wasn't like Lufia 2 etc didn't have product quality control issues. The whole idea that this is some kind of new thing and that old games weren't widely buggy and riddled with problems is a modern invention.
Just look at most of your favorite classic JRPGs. Heck the FF series, AAA for its time, is rife with errors. If a lot of your favorite games were released today you would be screaming bloody murder about how they were released in an unfinished state out of greed and incompetence.
I'm not defending companies releasing unfinished product. I'm just saying it is in no way a new problem.
Lunar 2: Eternal Blue Complete is my first JRPG and it made me a story-seeker type of gamer. Love that game.
Legend of the Legaia oddly was the JRP that got me hooked. I played a bit of Super Mario RPG, and FF6 but I think I was too young to give them a fair chance. It’s so awesome. I had the same experience with the game as you. Rented it and keep renting it over and over again. Combat is so fun and the story wasn’t Xenogears or anything but it did the job. The world setting.. l would love a anime in that world
My story with Legend of Legaia is kinda funny cause It also got me hooked but in a round about way. I first played a Demo of it, loved it but forgot the name and went looking for it with my mom in K-Mart. We found Final Fantasy 7, thought it was it cause I was like 8 and was convinced my mom was right (even though she didn't know the game I played) and though I booted it up and found out it wasn't I instantly fell in love with Final Fantasy 7 and so began my rabbit hole into JRPG's and RPG's in general. I never gave up looking though and came across Legend of Legaia about 5 years later, felt stupid I forgot the name, bought it and beat it. What a great game it was.
@@AresSG funny story!! 😂
@malice5121 I remembered being so pumped for the 2nd one but was let down. Never got past the sewers. I know the main creator of Legaia had nothing to do with the second one.
P
WTF was that Intro bro that was incredible, you and your editor are so talented. I'm going through the comments and I'm shocked no one's mentioned it. It looks like it took a ton of time and effort to do. I just wanted to say I appreciated it bro, that was really something. Love your videos, hope you can continue it, of course as long as that's what you want, and continue to grow!
Thanks dude! Some people have mentioned it in the comments, we first featured it in the video before this. It was a combination of ideas the both of us had so we’re happy to see it being received so well. Appreciate you watching!
@@GamingBroductions Gives me the old Toonami motivational video vibes, which I'm sure was likely an inspiration for you. Well done!
Dude you unlocked a core memory of mine when you talked about playing Legend of Legaia in the van. When my parents did a cross country road trip back in 1999 that took like 20+ hours I bought that game and played it beginning to end during that trip on that tiny van screen too!
I'm so happy you've included Septerra Core! I love that game so much and no one I know has heard about it
Great video as always gaming broductions!!!
I always love turning in to hear you talk about all the great and even less known RPG‘s!!!
Thanks for all the time and effort you put into these videos. I don't have time for many RPGs as an adult but it's awesome to watch these videos packed full of classics and you do a great job explaining the nuances of them all.
I am a hard-baked JRPG gamer, and was genuinely blown away by Septerra Core. Looks amazing and I have never seen it or heard of it! I must admit, this might be the first time I've felt stoked in over 12 years!
Hell yeah, hope you enjoy it! It’s far from perfect and has its flaws for sure but if you can look past those it offers a super creative and unique world to explore
Starting the list with Legend of Legaia, hell yeah! Love the game so much. It was one of my very first JRPGs and I remember how scared I was of the Berserker boss back then 😂
Dude...all of those beast were terrifying! I went through some of the seru to do a sort of a draw along....some of them are silent hill grade nasties when you really closely look at some of those areas of steel stone and exposed muscle. It would be nice to see at least a soul sequel that ties the two games together in an abstract way. I heard the rights to it expired though, so maybe a proper sequel could be made.
Radiata Stories is so much fun (I just having fun to spy the daily routine of the characters ahah). I would "kill" to have a Lunar 1&2 modern port like they did recenty with Grandia 1&2. :)
Omfg Legend of Legaia was one of my childhood favs I loved how the RaSeru worked so much. The combos were fun to find more out on my own even if I stuck to a few I really liked. xD
Starting this list off with a classic. Loved Legend of Legaia so much, that even to this day, I'll replay the two battle themes in my head while at work. If they ever remake that game& do it well, I'd start playing video games again.
Lufia II. One of the only games to bring a tear to my eye....that ending.
Also, i believe the Destiny/Eternia name change was due to copyright naming issues.
Just found this channel and I’m loving your guys content. Your opening music is so nostalgic like I’m watching toonami as a child and they have those montages of shows. Love your content keep it up!
I wish more older jrpgs were ported to modern platforms. Would love to play the Lunar series through Steam.
The first 2 Lunar games are in desperate need of modern ports
With the versatility of the Switch/Steamdeck, I think ports could sell really well.
If Final Fantasy Legend 1-3 can get a port (Romancing Saga Collection), and Front Mission 1-3 getting remakes, what is stopping Lunar & Lufia from a comback?
If not a port, maybe Nintendo Switch Online? I'd love more JRPG's there.
I still have my copy of Radiata Stories. One of the few ps2 games I still have and it's because it's definitely one of my favorites. I love games where you can recruit a lot possible party members. I like that you mentions Brave Fencer Musashi comparison as that game was one of my first ps1 games, it might have been my first. Now I love games with life sim-y elements.
The story of Xenoblade Chronicles X is about a city from earth (New LA) that lands on the alien planet called Mira, but there are limited supplies and energy, so you have to pick one of eight jobs to help ensure New LA not only survives, but that it thrives. There are a number of twists along the way, and because of the open world aspect, the story weaves out in many different directions.
The story most certainly doesn’t suck, and I think it easily exceeds all the other games on your list.
my opinion on Lunar is that something was lost from the original Sega CD versions although ps1 etc versions were nice the stories were changed, Ghaleon was more sinister in Luanr 1 SegaCD and the architecture overlapped so you could visit places in Lunar 2 like in vane and see the buildings aged etc which gave the impression of continuity.
Games don't do this anymore.
One reason I love Shining Force 3 is that you literally import your character from Scenario 1 into Scenario 2 & 3. (I only beat Lunar 1, so I needed to use a different example).
What games do this now? Xenoblade 3 DLC has you return to Colony 9 from Xenoblade 1 and..... that's all I can come up with.
Heck even Pokemon Gold/Silver let you return to Kanto.
Man, Radiata Stories! I LOVE this game.
The story isn't SUPER great, but it's still okay. A great thing about it though is that it actually lets you go on 2 separate paths in the game, which lead to 2 totally different ways to experience the story. You basically side with either the humans (which makes every non human your enemy) or the non humans (which makes every human in the game your enemy), which affects which places you can go to in the game, etc.
The graphics have this sort of anime esthetic. It's very charming and still look great to this day.
The music is also great too. It's not anything epic like the Final Fantasy series or something like that, but it has this very homely feel to it, and still has me humming it even after I'm done playing.
Gotta load it up on my Steam Deck. Can't wait to revisit this game
I loved the exploration and world in Xenoblade X too. As great as the Skells were, I preferred when the game forced me to be on foot and figure out how to get to that spot off in the distance rather than just fly to it.
RE: Xenoblade Chronicles X; my favorite aspect is the excellent and flexible class system. I love the different playing styles and elemental synergies. One of the most robust class/job systems I've encountered.😍
And yes, the open world is a gorgeous technical marvel, absolutely incredible. 👏
Love this list. My favorite PS1 RPG is Legend of Legaia and my favorite PS2 RPG is Radiata Stories, so I'm a bit biased. Great work Bro!
Thanks man! Those are some great RPGs for sure!
Legend of Legaia is my favorite RPG of all time! The story was great, the combat was amazing, the leveling, Ra Seru’s, the move combos, catching the monsters. Everything was perfect.
Love to see some love thrown Legend of Legaia’s way. The clear adoration for that game is what brought me to this awesome channel originally (and everything else made me stick around)
Dude, I started this up thinking, "please let there be Thousand Arms, please let there be Thousand Arms..."and there it was!
My bro and I remind me a lot of you guys. We'd peruse the aisles of Sears looking for the next dope JRPG based solely on box art, and I remember 12 year old me choosing that one and LOVING it.
Totally agree about the combat-I enjoyed it, but it was limited and basic.
But the cutscenes are STILL quoted by me and my bro. The Nelsha scene as the Dress Master where her and ol' girl argue, then slap you if you try to butt in cracks me up just thinking about it.
Super memorable and... YO, gladddd to see Legaia too!
Haven't played any of the others, so I have lots of catching up to do.
Another incredible video, fellas! Production value keeps growing too. Love what yall are doing.
Tales of Eternia is my favorite of all the Tales games I have played. I originally played it's PSP rerelease so I had the benefit of playing other greats before it but it hit at the perfect time in my life. It's so simply straightforward as a JRPG, has beautiful visuals and great characters and a serviceable story. It's the comfort food Tales game for me.
I actually have a lot of the Thousand Arms art in my background folder for decades... A lot of games from my childhood. My friend and I would take turns in the Lufia 2 100 floor dungeon to see who could get the farthest, since it is random. I managed to get a rom of FF5 and Tales of Phantasia in the late 90s. Loved Phantasia up until the fan translation ended. Made the game pretty impossible to beat.
I remember picking up Radiata Stories for like $10 at Staples when I was a teenager haha. I sadly always got distracted during my playthroughs and never finished it, but I really enjoyed the vibes and how lived-in the world was. It was just fun walking around the main city and following different characters through their daily lives.
I bought the bulk of my DC/PS1/PS2/DS JRPG's for $5-$20 used. You can't do that anymore, they get discontinued too fast now and then skyrocket to $100+ like Folklore did (also bought for sub $20).
@@michaelp4122 Dang you got lucky. Yeah, so many older games are expensive these days for sure. I expect 3DS stuff will be skyrocketing with eshop closure too. Some of them were kind of rare to begin with (Ever Oasis comes to mind -- started going up in price right after I bought it).
Really appreciate that you have timestamps!
I am so glad Lunar 2 is on this list. I bought that game of playstation, I think it was 70 dollars? Maybe 80. That shit broke the bank for me. I was 12 and it was worth every penny.
Reminds me of myself when I bought the Arc the Lad collection around the same age, super glad I did in retrospect even though it was more expensive than your average game
Ahh, so this is what the youth mean by, "this slaps", because that intro fucking SLAPS!
Only bangers over here!
One game I reccomend looking into is Azure Dreams, It's a playstation one RPG where you quest into a ever changing tower, Fighting your way up, Leaving the tower to rest and build up the town, Befriend NPC's, Do side quests and then delve into the tower again. Your level is reset every re-entry into the tower and the layout of the tower is new every time, But you can gain monster companions and I seem to recall your monsters levels not resetting upon re-entry.
I never see anyone talk about Azure Dreams online so it seems very forgotten but I enjoyed it as a kid.
Thousand arms looks dope, thanks for bringing it to our attention
No problem, mechanically it’s far from perfect but it’s undeniably charming and makes an impression on you
That whole lo-fi music intro before the vid started was literally perfection
Also glad you highlighted Septerra Core. Flawed game for sure but i thought its setting and story was fascinating for the time.
Haha thanks! We just introduced that intro in our last video and are glad to see it being received so well. And yeah Septerra Core is far from a masterpiece mechanically but the atmosphere is just so cool and unique
One of the best channels on youtube. Always feels like im just hanging out
Love to hear that, thanks man
What a banging list! I found Septerra Core in a six game PC bundle at like Best Buy one time. Of the six games, Septerra Core was the only one I actually enjoyed. Super unique compared to the usual fantasy setting most Rpgs of the time were set in. So its surprising to see someone else talk about this gem!
Every time you release a video, it's an event for me.
Now that’s the kind of excitement we love to hear
I played Xenoblade 1 and X last year, and surprising X was the game that stand out for me, actually is probably was the most memorable game experience I had in a while. As for underappreciated I would say the Utawarerumono games, they are more Visual novel than RPG, but the battle system while somewhat simple is super fun. Right now I'm mid way through the third game and while the first 2 were fine, this one is blowing my mind how good it is specially in the story department
I started X last year stopped early in. Really hoping for switch port because the switch pro controller would make it much easier. Just finished torna the other day. Getting psyched up for x3. I hope its as good as everyone says.
@@reyntime1950 X as a whole is a great experience, but not without its flaws, I would highly recommend that you emulate if you have the PC for that.
I say emulate not because of resolution or playing at 60 FPS (though they are very welcome), but because the game is rely too much on grinding specially if your doing the side quest (which is a big part of the game, given that they overall are quite interesting), on Cemu you can change a bunch of parameters like how much exp you gain, money, etc. I played the first 40hs without using, and clocked around 130hs doing every side quest plus the story, if I havent modify a bunch of these parameters I wouls probably clocked over 300Hs which would be boring and in all honest I would have gave up; if they port to switch I doubt they will fix all this
We will be seeing an X port to the next console soon
You guys produce the only JRPG vids that I could consistently consider art. Also, your list here looks like it is directly from DavidVinc's heart |-)
I was expecting to see him comment on this since it’s packed with his faves!
Wow that’s quite the compliment, thank you! David’s a cool guy with some good taste, I know he’s big on games like Lunar and Lufia :)
Lufia 2 DS sold so horrifically that is the one franchise I can say for absolute certainly will NEVER come back. Sold less than 30K copies in Japan in the first month. FPS games on Xbox 360 were outselling it in Japan..i'm not being hyperbolic either.
Sonic Xtreme,Final Fantasy Versus XIII,Halflife 3,Portal 3,Star Wars 1313,Silent Hills and Zone of the Enders 3 will happen before a new Lufia.
I liked as soon as I recognized the Zelda song at the start, good taste my friend.
Thanks my dude
You NAILED this list! I'm in the same boat where I rented Legends of Legaia so many times and annoyed so many friends by incessantly talking about it lol. Lunar 1 and 2 were the same.
Lufia 2 is in my top 10 rpgs ever. The Zelda style dungeons, characters, graphics, music made it one of the best games ever.
Still waiting on Lunar 3. Hurts that the franchise put out two masterpieces then some mediocre spinoffs then died. Reminds me of how Suikoden died.
i was gonna mention the kickstarter thats suikoden in all but name eiyuden chronicles i believe it is,also lunar 1 & 2 are some of my fave jrpgs :)
@@dustincieslik5397 yea been waiting for eiyuden chronicles for years now. Hope it lives up to the hype.
Played Legaia when I was a middle schooler 21 years ago. After watching your video I feel like to visit Legaia again
It's always kind of funny to hear people rightfully talking about certain jrpgs as hidden gems when you're married to someone who's obsessed with some hidden gems and talks about them a whole lot.
Love the video! Love the content.
Great intro, and I was so pumped to see legaia and septerra core on the same list. Love it.
Thanks for covering Septerra Core! I have wondered like 20 years what was that random game my friend played back then and it must have been this! 😁
Immediately won me over by starting with Legend of Legaia xD
It blows my mind that it didn't blossom into a huge series that's still going. To me, it's iconic and synonymous with PSone RPGs the same way games like Breath of Fire III, Grandia and Xenogears are.
I'm also really happy that you mentioned Thousand Arms. I lucked out and picked up at a decent price a few years ago and am glad I did. It's just pure energetic fun and has style and charm to spare!
Lufia II is sadly one I don't have any experience with, aside from the very fun DS remake. Honestly, it's kind of a crime that neither Lufia is available for the SNES Switch Online app.
Some really good RPGs in this video! After several failed attempts at getting my sister into RPGs she somehow found Legend of Legaia and it just clicked for her. Xenoblade Chronicles X is criminally underrated. My favorite battlesystem of the Xenoblade series so far. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for an eventual port. Then there's Thousand Arms. I legit was thinking about that game during the Lunar segment, thinking that no one ever talk about that game. Glad that you proved me wrong! Hope to see more of these videos in the future!
Lufia 2 was my absolute favorite rpg growing up I couldn’t believe people didn’t know it back then I was obsessed
I had 4 of these and agree for the most part.
Other games to consider are Vandal Hearts series, Shadow Hearts series, Saga Frontier 2, Growlanser Generations and Langrisser 1 & 2
Correction: Maxim is the ancestor of the hero from Lufia 1, which starts with the end of Lufia 2 basically.
Definitely feel like Lunar 2 needs more love. It's one of my favorite JRPGs of all time, and it may not be a super-popular opinion, but I like it better than Lunar 1. It has a darker, more mature story, with most of the characters having some disturbing pasts, tied in with the religion based around Althena, which has now gone corrupt since the goddess is truly gone. Seeing things like Luna choosing to grow old and die as a mortal because of her love for Alex, watching Lucia go from being an emotionless robot to a real human with human feelings, seeing the party members overcome their many traumas and hang-ups, and of course that damn amazing epilogue... It really is the pinnacle of storytelling done right.
Replayed it a few years ago as an adult. Damn, it is *dark*. In a good way. Some really heavy scenarios and subjects. I didn't realize as a kid how mature the story is. And agree, better than Silver Star. Though love both.
Definite shame that Eternal Blue doesn't get more attention. It is definitely my favorite of the two Lunar games (and I do like the first one too).
Edit: Tales of Destiny II/Tales of Eternia is legit. Definitely unfortunate that it hasn't be re-released or remade.
Another awesome list of great, underappreciated RPGs that deserve more recognition by my favorite great, underappreciated TH-cam channel that deserves more recognition!
Haha thanks dude! Appreciate you being here and always watching the content
My personal No. 1 Underappreciated RPGs is the Langrisser series! My favor RPG of all time!
Thanks so much for mentioning Radiata Stories! I was absolutely hooked on that game as a kid!
Thank you for letting me know Septerra Core is on Steam. One of my favorite games when I was a kid.
Have played all of these and couldn't agree more. Legend of Legaia is a personal favorite of mine and really wish it'd get a remake as I think people would really love it.
I played the Lunar games on Sega CD, and was thrilled when they remade them for the PS1. Updated graphics, retold story, and cool collectibles packaged in with the game made them a no brainer to buy. Silver Star Story Complete is one of my all time favorites, and Eternal Blue is a close second.
Such a great list especially seeing Xenoblade chronicles X also I love the new intro for the channel.
Thank you!
@@GamingBroductions your welcome, I definitely love seeing chrono trigger, Yu Yu hakusho and Final Fantasy IX in your new intro for the channel it makes me happy seeing all 3 of these on here.
But great video once again
That's a sick new intro
Thanks man
Radiata Stories was awesome. I also appreciated that armor you equip was also displayed on the character. "Join Me In Heaven."
Deep cut! I loved this game when I played through it. Did everything to 100% recall the end game weapons armor were OP.
Playing during your brothers baseball tournaments hit me in the feels cause my lil brother would play his gb advance SP during my games in the car, too lol good times
That’s awesome lol. I spent many hours playing Pokémon and other handheld games during all my brother’s various sports
Lufia II, Legend of Legaia, Lunar series, ToD2... CLASSICS!! Very solid list.
Thank you so much for this video.
Septerra Core and Thousand Arms are on the menu thanks to this video.
I’ve had Lufia II in my possession for about 20 years now and haven’t played it yet. A good friend I used to work with gave it to me to play and said it was one of the best games ever! Well I put it off as I wasn’t into gaming as much anymore at the time. He sadly ended up committing suicide and when I got back into gaming, I had a hard time deleting any of his save files so I could play it. But after watching this video, I know I just need to do it! I’d be doing him a disservice by not playing it since that was the reason he gave it to me in the first place. That cartridge is probably one of my most prized pieces in my collection, not because of its value, but rather the sentimental attachment.
Whenever Xenoblade X gets on a system that isn’t the Wii U I’m sure people will love it. The gameplay and exploration is the best in the series.
I really gotta get on picking up Lufia 2... i played it about 20 years ago and loved it but never picked up the cart. i have the rest on this list, and cant believe someone else experienced Septera Core lol. I picked it up at Electronics Boutique sometime in '01 for $5. it hasn't changed at all.
Great video. I also enjoyed Lunar 1 to 2 when I played them but I kept wanting Hiro to turn into the dragon master and was super disappointed that he didn't. What comes from playing it as a teenager.
Also the reason it was renamed tales of destiny 2 is because Eternia is copyrighted for HeMan, not because of name recognition.
I'm still waiting for the day they make spiritual sequel for Radiata Stories. Radiata Stories is on my list as one of the best game you never played.
Edit: Thousand Arms and Tales of Eternia are amazing as well, my god people need to experience them.
Radiata Stories! I remember reviewing the Japanese version when it first came out! It's worth mentioning that it can display in progressive scan and had an aspect ratio option. How many other PS2 JRPGs can you say ran in 480p 16:9 wide-screen?! 🤩
A few days ago I actually fired it up for the first time since then, having dug my PS2 out of mothballs... I forgot just how funny it was. Just that opening scene with Jack shuffling out of his room half-asleep with his PJs on backwards and getting yelled at by his sister already had me laughing. And it's the surprisingly high visual fidelity which allows them to convey so much of the subtle humor and expressiveness of the characters. I'd forgotten just how well-made the game was, you're absolutely right that it's underappreciated. I _knew_ about it and still didn't totally clock just how well executed it was until now!
I'm totally starting my game over again though... I couldn't even figure out how to attack before Ridley kicked Jack's ass, but in my original playthrough I held her at bay until she--as scripted I assume--definitively ended the fight with Wild Pitch. (And I actually have video of that, lol)
I'm impressed. I actually have never heard of Septerra Core until today. Solid list.
If you ever play it let us know what you think! Thanks for watching 🙌🏼
More games to add to the list to play. Great video!
Thanks! Lot of really fun experiences coming your way
Septerra core looks hella sic but also i definitely wasnt expecting a Shogo mention today!
Much love for Legend of Legaia. It's the game that made me fall in love with JRPGs as a kid as well. Spot on about the music too. It's a real shame we'll likely never see a rerelease, as this is 1000% a game that truly deserves it
Never hear anyone talking about the Mana Khemia series. Till this day I still think its got one of the best turn base battle mechanics with a huge team
Lufia 2 was my first introduction of RPG...tht game made me love rpg so much...itll always one of my beloved rpg of all times.❤❤
Nice list, I've played almost all of these (Septerracore and Thousand Arms being the exceptions), and I agree on all points.
I recommend trying out "The Granstream Saga" and "Ephemeral Fantasia". Neither game is graphically impressive for their time, but in my opinion both games are underrated and pretty unique.
Grandia 3 might fall into the underappreciated category since it's pretty good but not really talked about much. I might as well mention Threads of Fate as well, since I forgot to mention it back on your Cozy JRPGs video. One classic series I haven't really seen you talk about is the SaGa series.
Some PS2 games I don't think you have brought up before:
-(Dot)Hack Series
-Dark Cloud 1 & 2/Chronicle
-Mother 3
-MS Saga: A New Dawn (Not really very popular but I remember enjoying it)
-Okami (not sure if it counts as a JRPG actually)
-Phantom Brave (the more serious cousin of Disgaea)
-Tales of the Abyss
-Valkyrie Profile 2
Lot of great games you’ve mentioned here. A few of them do I plan on talking about in some upcoming videos actually.
And yeah, the Saga series is one I don’t have as much experience with as others. I’ve tried out most of them but didn’t make it too far with many. I do want to revisit them though. We’ll be doing a poll for our Patreon members soon over what game we cover for our next retrospective and Saga Frontier will be one of the choices
Septerra core was so much fun as a kid completely forgot it came with shogun thank you for the memories
Gotta say that I love the new opening theme and intro.
Thank you!