Xenoblade for the Wii. If you own a console and are mildly interested in either JRPGs or WRPGs, do yourself a favour and buy this game. Think Final Fantasy 12 but on a much larger scale.
No other JRPG comes close to it in scale.. No linear dungeon progression to be had here. While the textures are low res and pretty cruddy, the environments are absolutely awe inspiring, more so than just about any game this generation, regardless of platform. Like Skyrim, the environment spans out before you and while they first look like background pieces, if you see it you can visit it. The environments make those in FF12 small and cramped by comparison.
An image of it being emulated in high res (yes, you can visit the peaks):
The battle system is again similar to FF12 in that it's real time but I found it more enjoyable. Each character controls vastly different from the next and while the AI can't be customised, they generally do a pretty good job. The equipment system is akin to that of FFVII, in that you can equip gems onto your weapons and armor for varying effects.
The story is epic but is revealed slowly, as what you thought were plot holes or weak story design make sense as you progress. It's got a quest system very similar to MMORPGs or WRPGs, but with an extra twist. While many are generic kill/fetch quests, there's more than a few that are multifaceted and rewarding. Completing quests changes the relationship between certain NPCs which leads to even more quests.
I don't mean this to be a review, only a strong recommendation for a game that most wouldn't even know existed.
It is the 10th highest rated RPG of all time (93.82%), in front of every single JRPG ever made except for the SNES Chrono Trigger (which sits at 95.1%).
No other JRPG comes close to it in scale.. No linear dungeon progression to be had here. While the textures are low res and pretty cruddy, the environments are absolutely awe inspiring, more so than just about any game this generation, regardless of platform. Like Skyrim, the environment spans out before you and while they first look like background pieces, if you see it you can visit it. The environments make those in FF12 small and cramped by comparison.
An image of it being emulated in high res (yes, you can visit the peaks):
The battle system is again similar to FF12 in that it's real time but I found it more enjoyable. Each character controls vastly different from the next and while the AI can't be customised, they generally do a pretty good job. The equipment system is akin to that of FFVII, in that you can equip gems onto your weapons and armor for varying effects.
The story is epic but is revealed slowly, as what you thought were plot holes or weak story design make sense as you progress. It's got a quest system very similar to MMORPGs or WRPGs, but with an extra twist. While many are generic kill/fetch quests, there's more than a few that are multifaceted and rewarding. Completing quests changes the relationship between certain NPCs which leads to even more quests.
I don't mean this to be a review, only a strong recommendation for a game that most wouldn't even know existed.
It is the 10th highest rated RPG of all time (93.82%), in front of every single JRPG ever made except for the SNES Chrono Trigger (which sits at 95.1%).
