When I was six, my dad gave me a Super Nintendo with Super Metroid. My life changed. Since games were really expensive, every weekend we’d go to a local store to rent new titles like Mega Man X, Rock n’ Roll Racing, and many others.
One day, we rented a game with “Final Fantasy III” written on the cover (which was, in reality, Final Fantasy VI). My brother and I booted it up, and after a ton of incomprehensible Japanese dialogue, we got into a battle where we had to pick commands from a menu. We hated it.
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The shop owner, however, insisted and said, “Try renting an RPG in English instead.” That’s how we discovered Chrono Trigger, and my life changed all over again. From my youth to now, JRPGs have become my favorite genre, and it all started on a Nintendo console.
So today, as a tribute to both the genre and the creator of the Super Nintendo, I’m ranking the best JRPGs on every Nintendo console in a list mixed between my fellow critics’ scores and my own personal taste. Oh yeah, a disclaimer before we start: I don’t consider Zelda a JRPG.
I applied some criteria to this list:
• First, I used a combination of OpenCritic and Metacritic to select the highest-rated games per console, except for older systems like the SNES and Game Boy.
• Second, I ranked them according to my personal preference.
• I avoided ports, such as Final Fantasy VI on GBA.
• Lastly, no Switch 2 yet for obvious reasons.
12
Final Fantasy
The Best of the NES
There were no score aggregators back in the NES days, so I had to rely on my gut feeling and popular opinion on some titles, as provided by MobyGames. And while Dragon Quest deserves to be here for basically creating the JRPG genre, I still prefer Final Fantasy because I love parties and changing classes.
Nowadays, I only recommend Final Fantasy to those who have the Pixel Remaster version and want to see where the crystal franchise began. It’s an extremely simple game in every aspect, yet it’s full of heart and good intentions.
Most battles are solved in auto mode. Melee-based classes barely have variations between them, and going on an adventure without a White Mage is pretty much asking for a Game Over. All that to say, there’s not exactly a deep progression system in this JRPG.
The story, despite having a mildly interesting twist, has so few story beats that it could be summed up in one paragraph. Still, it’s a Final Fantasy, and the first one ever, so it deserves all our respect because it paved the way for Final Fantasy VII, the one that broke JRPG barriers worldwide.
11
Dragon Warrior Monsters 2
The Best of the Game Boy Color
Initially, I had placed Pokémon Gold and Silver here because the sequels are clearly an evolution of Pokémon Red. But to mix things up, I picked another title that’s also part of the exclusive monster-collecting club and just as good: Dragon Warrior Monsters 2 (or Dragon Quest Monsters 2).
Quick trivia: Dragon Quest V’s monster-capturing feature came before Pokémon, so technically Dragon Warrior Monsters isn’t a copy of Pikachu’s game – and I know Shin Megami preceded them all, but that’s not today’s topic. Plus, I’m here to honor them all and not pit them against each other in a ring of who’s the oldest.
In Dragon Warrior Monsters 2, we play either as Cobi or Tara in a quest to save our island. To do so, we recruit monsters with the world’s most efficient bribe, food, right after giving them a thrashing. There are over 300 monsters to collect, both a dream and a nightmare for completionists like me.
There’s also a breeding system, but instead of laying an egg, the parents must merge into cells to form new DNA, because, for some reason, they are lost after they mate. That’s some Basic Instinct plot right here.
10
Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story
The Best of the Nintendo DS
After the popular and critical success of Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, Nintendo doubled down on more RPGs for our mustachioed favorite hero, producing not only the Paper Mario series but also Mario & Luigi.
Overall, all the games are a joy to play and highly praised by critics, so Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story is, as you can see, one of the best JRPGs on the Nintendo DS. Much of that comes from the gameplay and the more humorous and well-written storyline.
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After the main villain, Fawful, tricks Bowser into eating a weird mushroom, the King Koopa starts swallowing everything around him, including Mario, Luigi, Peach, War Pipes, and whatnot.
This feature also impacts the combat, because we can control both Mario and Luigi, as well as Bowser. If Koopa inhales an enemy, it’s up to the brothers to jump them to extermination, bolstering the gameplay dynamics immensely with the use of the DS’s dual screen.
9
Golden Sun
The Best of the Game Boy Advance
One thing that still surprises me is that, now and then, some development wizards pop up who manage to create games that shouldn’t even run on Nintendo hardware. Monolith Soft is a current example, but even on the GBA we already had that, like Golden Sun.
If you look at a screenshot of this JRPG, you’d think: you’re crazy, Murillo. This looks hideous. But wait until you see an in-battle summon animation, or just a simple battle. It’s bonkers! And Golden Sun doesn’t just stand out for its beautiful graphics. The JRPG is one of the best on handhelds overall.
I had a GBA but not the game. But a friend of mine liked the cover and bought Golden Sun. He hadn’t played half an hour when he decided to lend it to me, saying I’d love it. I finished the game in a weekend, completely immersed in Isaac’s life and Psynergy powers.
Story and colorful cast a great JRPG make, but Golden Sun took it a step further, adding some of Nintendo’s flair (it was created by Camelot, but humour me). Every party member had a usable field action, such as reading NPCs’ minds or growing vines, which not only helped solve puzzles but also expanded the game’s worldbuilding.
I can’t stress enough how surprising it is that Golden Sun runs on the GBA, but it happened. Writing this reminded me that I still need to play the sequel, The Lost Age, available on Nintendo Switch Online, by the way.
8
Xenoblade Chronicles X
The Best of the Wii U
System sellers are games that encourage consumers to purchase a specific console. Back then, exclusives didn’t just mean Nintendo games, so system sellers really defined where we’d invest our money. For me, most Final Fantasy were system sellers, like FFXIII on the PS3, XV on the PS4, and XVI on the PS5.
After I played Xenoblade Chronicles on my Switch, I fell in love immediately and was determined to play all of them. Well, to my surprise, there was one title stuck on the Wii U, Xenoblade Chronicles X, whose definitive version still hadn’t been announced.
Obviously, I did what any sane person would do: I bought a Wii U just to play one game. I don’t regret it. Xenoblade Chronicles X isn’t as story-heavy as its cousins, but it still delivers a wonderful experience for JRPG lovers.
Takahashi says he wanted to push the Wii U hardware to the limit and made Xenoblade Chronicles X a technical marvel. The gigantic world of Mira could be explored and enjoyed on foot, with our Skells transformed into vehicles or even flying, all the while we faced the planet’s natural dangers and vengeful aliens.
If you enjoy the Xeno franchise and have never tried Xenoblade Chronicles X before because it felt like a spinoff or a far cry from other games, well, I beg to differ. Play the Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition, and you might be surprised by the end.
7
Paper Mario
The Best of the Nintendo 64
The Nintendo 64 has a limited JRPG catalog, possibly the most scarce among the main consoles on the market – and I’d say it’s even more restricted than the original Xbox. But if you dig deep enough, you can find one or two gems like Paper Mario.
Initially, Paper Mario was intended to be a sequel to Super Mario RPG; however, Nintendo decided to make it a standalone game, which later became a series. That’s why it follows many principles of Mario’s first RPG, such as a mix of turn-based battles and exploration with platforming elements.
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In battles, the timed inputs return, dealing more damage when possible or reducing damage taken. Instead of a party of three, Mario is now accompanied by just one ally at a time, who can be swapped seamlessly.
Together with these partners, Mario goes on an adventure to… come on, as if you didn’t know already?! Yes, he will save Peach from Bowser.
6
Pokémon Red & Blue
The Best of the Game Boy
I was one of the few kids in elementary school who had a Game Boy, so when Pokémon came out, it was an instant craze, and everyone wanted to know what all the buzz was about. I already liked RPGs, so I adapted quickly to the system.
Like any good Pokémon player, my goal wasn’t just to beat the gyms and become the Pokémon League champion. My challenge was to catch all 152 Pokémon (MissingNo included!) But, as I said, I was one of the few who had the games and had no one to give me a Vulpix.
Still, I think I never replayed a game as much as Pokémon Blue. Restarting my adventure, this time with a different starter, using a completely unusual team, beating the Elite Four with just a Raticate or any other possible variable was one of my greatest joys back then.
In hindsight, maybe it wasn’t the game itself that was so amazing (it was, it rocked!), but perhaps my memories of playing Pokémon Blue bring me back to a carefree age when I had all the time in the world with no bills to pay.
5
Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology
The Best of the Nintendo 3DS
The JRPG world is packed with Chrono Trigger-inspired games that never really feel like it outside of pixel graphics and turn-based combat. Enter Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology, a game that never tried to be Chrono Trigger, but hits all the notes for fans of the latter.
That’s because the main theme of Radiant Historia (Perfect Chronology is the 3DS version) is time-traveling. But instead of traveling only through ages, we travel through two different timelines. We hop in one, gather information, and use that newly found knowledge in the other timeline to shape the future. Rinse and repeat with deadly script precision.
I’ve always been a sucker for time-traveling plots, but it’s hard for a story to hit the mark and not fill itself with more plot holes than 50 Cent. That’s why I say loud and proud that Radiant Historia nailed it. Not only is the script extremely smart with realistic dialogue, but it never drops the ball with the time-hopping.
The grid-turn-based battles are good as well, but I’ll admit I eventually grew tired of the gameplay and switched to easy mode just to steamroll my enemies and see the ending. Still, Radiant Historia is one of the greatest JRPGs on the 3DS and one of the best games featuring time-traveling plots.
4
Tales of Symphonia
The Best of the GameCube
Although Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door has one point more than Tales of Symphonia according to critics, I wanted to mix things up because I just talked about cellulose Mario, and Symphonia is my favorite Tales of. So, well, sue me.
Be that as it is, Tales of Symphonia is a glorious JRPG, so much so that Bandai remastered it twice. Or was it thrice? Well, case in point.
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Symphonia brings everything I love about Tales of, such as quirky characters, the skits banter, finding the elusive Wonder Chef, and creative combat, paired with a progression system that really incentivizes us to keep growing.
Like any good JRPG, it tells a tight story from start to finish, but with plenty of plot twists that caught me totally off guard. Honestly, it’s rare to see a Tales of used as an example of a good plot, but if there’s one that deserves the spotlight in that regard, it’s Tales of
Symphonia.
3
Chrono Trigger
The Best of the SNES
There’s an eternal debate over whether Chrono Trigger or Final Fantasy VI is the best SNES JRPG. The thing is: it doesn’t matter. Both games are wonderful, and any fan of the genre should try them. But at the end of the day, Chrono Trigger seems to be more of the crowd favorite and pleases the masses more than FFVI.
There are plenty of good reasons for that. The most obvious is that Chrono Trigger came out later, so it benefited from all the experience Square had gained from developing FFVI.
Then, Trigger is much more friendly to newcomers to the genre, offering peerless quality-of-life features for its time, like removing random encounters and the need for grinding.
Mix that with groundbreaking SNES graphics, a soundtrack that could easily be a wedding playlist, and one of the best storytelling paces the JRPG world has ever seen, and you have a masterpiece. 30 freaking years later, and Chrono Trigger is still cited as inspiration for modern games and also one of the best JRPGs ever.
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