# Best rpg's you wouldn't know of



## ferdi-t (Jan 16, 2011)

I have been a big fan of rpg's across a great deal of platforms ever since the 16-bit era. Nowadays I feel like I have at least played every blockbuster around (the Dragon Quests, Final Fantasies, Tales-games, et cetera). 

So are there any rpg's that I wouldn't know of? Slightly obscure ones that are fun to play nevertheless? The platform on which they appeared is not particularly important (I do own most of them and if I don't the suggestion might be useful to somebody else).


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## Splych (Jan 16, 2011)

consider . . .
Star Ocean : The Last Hope [will remind you of a Tales of game, in terms of battles]
Resonance of Fate [gives you something different]
Nier [i've seen gameplay of it , and a few people recommended it . it looks pretty good]
Devil May Cry 4 [not technically a RPG, but it is a fun hack and slash 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





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## Amici (Jan 16, 2011)

Bahamut Lagoon for SNES, Nostalgia for DS, and an indie PC game called Battle of the Youstrass if you can find it 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 (I heard there was a remake for iDevice called Battle of the Youstrath but I haven't played that)


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## Rydian (Jan 16, 2011)

Breath of fire series?  Beware the first and second have terrible translations for different reasons.

Chrono Trigger.

Soul Blazer / Illusion Of Gaia / Terranigma are more action-oriented games, but not that well heard of and are nice.

Earthbound FTW for the love of god.

*Live A Live* (the second translation project is much better).

Super Mario RPG

Secret Of Mana 2 (Seiken Densetsu 3).

Tales of Phantasia.


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## Blaze163 (Jan 16, 2011)

Legend of the Dragoon on PS1 is pretty damn good. Plays on CFW, aside from occasional lock-ups after using Dragoon Magic. Worth a look but be warned, with it being a 4 disk epic it does take up a fair chunk of memory card.


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## rook2King (Jan 16, 2011)

Elder Scrolls: Arena? & all Elder Scrolls games.
First 2 elder scrolls can be run with dosbox on literally any computer, granted it's not like 60-100 years old.


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## Delta517 (Jan 16, 2011)

Ever played Grandia for PS1?


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## Law (Jan 16, 2011)

Barkley, Shut up and Jam: Gaiden


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## Blaze163 (Jan 16, 2011)

Dunno if you'd class it as an RPG as such, but Alundra on PS1 is also worth a look. It's like Zelda but with a slightly more adult storyline.


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## Potticus (Jan 16, 2011)

My favorite rpg of all time is Knights of the Old Republic, for Xbox or PC.
The second one is pretty good too.

Jade Empire was a fun play.

I'm currently playing Lost Odyssey and it's pretty good. 
Oblivion and Fallout are worth giving a try too.


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## Nujui (Jan 19, 2011)

Hmm...Good Rpgs. I can think of a few.

All Mario Rpgs.

Chrono Trigger.

Golden Sun

Kingdom Hearts.

And many others


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## 8BitWalugi (Jan 19, 2011)

EarthBound, EarthBound, Earth Bound Zero, EarthBound, Mother 3, Mother 3, and more EarthBound!!!


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## SinHarvest24 (Jan 19, 2011)

Blaze163 said:
			
		

> Legend of the Dragoon on PS1 is pretty damn good. Plays on CFW, aside from occasional lock-ups after using Dragoon Magic. Worth a look but be warned, with it being a 4 disk epic it does take up a fair chunk of memory card.


seconded

Etrion oddysey 3, Suikoden Tierkreis for DS


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## Hells Malice (Jan 20, 2011)

NIER
Ridiculously underrated.

Not much else I can think of that's underrated/unpopular but awesome.

Might take a look at my game collection later.


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## SmokeFox (Jan 20, 2011)

I think that Xenogears for PSX is kinda underrated, it is a great game. A classic.


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## Fudge (Jan 20, 2011)

Hells Malice said:
			
		

> NIER
> Ridiculously underrated.


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## godreborn (Jan 20, 2011)

shadow hearts 2 is awesome!  I mean u get gepetto on ur team!


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## SinHarvest24 (Jan 20, 2011)

SmokeFox said:
			
		

> I think that Xenogears for PSX is kinda underrated, it is a great game. A classic.


seconded 

i forgot about this 1...good challenge also


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## TornZero (Jan 20, 2011)

Haven't seen this one suggested yet: Quite literally any Shin Megami Tensei game.

Super Nintendo: Shin Megami Tensei, II, and if... (SMT and its sequel have English patched versions, and "if...", a game released after II but set between the first and second games is only in Japanese)

PS1/X: Persona and Persona 2 (Persona 2 comes in different parts, Eternal Punishment and Innocent Sin; Innocent Sin is the first Persona game released internationally)

On PS2: Nocturne (Europe version is Lucifer's Call; set in post-apocalyptic Tokyo, you're forced to turn into a half-demon to survive and decide the planet's fate through many choices; not recommended for the light-hearted or narrow-minded), Devil Summoner and Devil Summoner 2 (both are hack-and-slash with a large strategy element to it), and Persona 3 (and its added-on release FES, with an after-story of the original game) and 4 (simple battle system but it works very well, both being combinations of high school sims and organized strategy fighting).

PSP: Persona Portable (remake of the original Persona) and Persona 3 Portable (added-on version of Persona 3, with a new main character to choose from).

On the NDS: Devil Survivor (very well made, with many endings depending on your choices throughout the game, and the battle system plays similarly to turn-based strategy games like Fire Emblem), and Strange Journey (a more futuristic game and the most recent of the series, marked as the fourth game of the main series).

I don't recommend ANY of these games for religious persons, as they may find the continuous use of demons (in the Persona series, they're referred to as Personae instead) offensive or otherwise blasphemous. Persona 3 I don't recommend for anyone who doesn't like guns, suicide (who doesn't?), or any form of self-harm, because you need to shoot yourself to summon your Personae in this game (it's still very fun).


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## Elvarg (Jan 20, 2011)

runescape


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## monkat (Jan 20, 2011)

Sands of Destruction is a nice little gem that hasn't got much love since it released.


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## Hells Malice (Jan 20, 2011)

QUOTE said:
			
		

> Haven't seen this one suggested yet: Quite literally any Shin Megami Tensei game.



Probably because the SMT games are all very popular.


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## PeregrinFig (Jan 20, 2011)

Suikoden Tierkreis for DS is surprisingly good. For about the first third of the game the voice acting is almost unbearable, but if you can overlook that it's a great RPG.

It's a traditional turn-based RPG rather than a strategy game like the old Suikoden games, but you still get 108 characters, and about 80-90 of them can be put in your party. There's a lot of party customization since you have so many to choose from.


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## MrWily (Jan 20, 2011)

Yeah, I loved sands of destruction, the skills system and characters were awesome, but it was too short and too easy.  
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





If we're talking across all platforms and not only JRPG's, I would say that Fallout 1 and 2 are the best RPG's I've ever played. And since I've been quite the pc gamer growing up I would also recommend the Baldurs Gate and Icewind Dale series. Maybe Neverwinter Nights as well, it's got quite the cozy feel to it. And this game called "Silver" which I remember to be awesome, but haven't gotten a working copy of since I lost it years ago.


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## RoMee (Jan 20, 2011)

The shadow heart series was a great RPG


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## Juanmatron (Jan 20, 2011)

Baten Kaitos/Mother series.


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## Hells Malice (Jan 20, 2011)

PeregrinFig said:
			
		

> Suikoden Tierkreis for DS is surprisingly good. For about the first third of the game the voice acting is almost unbearable, but if you can overlook that it's a great RPG.
> 
> It's a traditional turn-based RPG rather than a strategy game like the old Suikoden games, but you still get 108 characters, and about 80-90 of them can be put in your party. There's a lot of party customization since you have so many to choose from.



Voice acting is pretty good throughout.
What's bad about it? If you say the main character talking too fast, i'll punch you in the face.


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## PeregrinFig (Jan 20, 2011)

Hells Malice said:
			
		

> PeregrinFig said:
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There were a few characters with horrible voice actors IMO. I forget his name, but I think it started with an M, and he controlled the second town until you found his stash of stolen goods in the local mine? He had some of the worst voice acting I have ever heard. There were a few others I couldn't stand either.


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## kupo3000 (Jan 20, 2011)

Xenosaga Trilogy
Earthbound & Mother 3
Chrono Trigger & Chrono Cross
Skies or Arcadia
Grandia 2 (If possible try the Dreamcast version. The PS2/PC ports are buggy)
Vagrant Story


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## PeregrinFig (Jan 20, 2011)

kupo3000 said:
			
		

> Xenosaga Trilogy
> Earthbound/Mother 3
> Chrono Trigger/Cross
> Skies or Arcadia
> Grandia 2 (If possible try the Dreamcast version. The PS2/PC ports are buggy)


Never played Xenosaga, but I highly recommend the rest. Grandia II can get mind-numbingly repetitive (and this is from someone who plays a TON of turn-based RPGs) but it's still a good game. Skies of Arcadia is one of my overall favorite games.


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## Hop2089 (Jan 20, 2011)

Rudra no Hihou (Treasure of the Rudras) Super Famicom

I still have the official cart too and it was the last SFC game I ever owned.

Magic Knight Rayearth (both the SFC and Saturn versions are good but only the Saturn version is in English although there's a translation for the SFC version)

Sailor Moon Another Story (Fans of the anime have long heard of this and most likely played it on a SNES/SFC emulator or official cart if they have it but for the rest I doubt they heard of it, it has a number of translations).

Metal Max series (Metal Max Returns for the SFC and Metal Saga for the PS2 are the best in the series, Metal Saga was localized but is close to being a bit rare these days and Returns has translations)


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## Guild McCommunist (Jan 20, 2011)

Can't think of anything super old but here's some...

- Lost Odyssey: Surprisingly very good. I was actually shocked when I kept playing it, being the typical JRPG hater that I am. Falls for a lot of cliches that JRPGs have in terms of plot and characters and battle system is rather old fashioned but I guess that kinda adds to the charm.

- Crimson Gem Saga: Nice PSP RPG if you want some nice, classic turn-based RPGing.

- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (on the GBC): Remembered playing this like all hell as a kid. Don't know how good it is now but it was fun as hell back then.

- Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood: I really don't see why so many people hate this game. I mean they did what they could with the limited plot possibilities of Sonic (although I'm sure the good cartoon, not the shitty one, would have some worthwhile material) and the battle system was pretty enjoyable to an extent.

- ASH: The translation isn't released yet but from what I played, it's pretty good. Great graphics for the DS and it can be rather challenging too. Once the translation hits the public you should definitely try.


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## Aeladya (Jan 20, 2011)

Try the Soul Blazer series or Crystalis.


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## xist (Jan 21, 2011)

Valkyrie Profile Silmeria on the PS2 is great
As are the Shadow Hearts games (if you only play one play the second Shadow Hearts Covenant)
Radiata Stories was ace especially with it's humour.
and maybe...
Magic Pengel The Quest for Colour?


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## Oveneise (Jan 21, 2011)

Would Beyond Good & Evil count?


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## Schlupi (Jan 21, 2011)

xist said:
			
		

> Valkyrie Profile Silmeria on the PS2 is great
> As are the Shadow Hearts games (if you only play one play the second Shadow Hearts Covenant)
> Radiata Stories was ace especially with it's humour.
> and maybe...
> Magic Pengel The Quest for Colour?



Oh man. I remember Magic Pengel... LOVED that game when I was younger. Reminded me of Persona and Pokemon...


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## Hells Malice (Jan 21, 2011)

Aeladya said:
			
		

> Try the Soul Blazer series or Crystalis.



Oh shit Crystalis!
I love that game.


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## zizer (Jan 21, 2011)

FF7
baldur's gate (sorry it is PC)


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## monkat (Jan 21, 2011)

A mod should really fix this title.

It irks me whenever I see it.


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## Hells Malice (Jan 21, 2011)

zizer said:
			
		

> FF7
> baldur's gate (sorry it is PC)



Yes FF7 is a very underrated and overly unknown RPG.


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## monkat (Jan 21, 2011)

Hells Malice said:
			
		

> zizer said:
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ILU!!!!


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## MelodieOctavia (Jan 21, 2011)

i don't know if it's been said yet, but Crystalis for the NES (imo) was one of the best RPGs for the platform, and nearly unheard of until a later GBC release, and still then it was obscured by larger titles.

EDIT: I SO DIDNT SEE THIS! GMTA!




			
				Aeladya said:
			
		

> Try the Soul Blazer series or Crystalis.


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## GundamXXX (Jan 21, 2011)

You might have played it but Knights of the Old Republic 2 has an unofficial expansion pack that creates alot more in the game that was cut out due to being short on time (damn you LucasArts) Niw some modders created the patch and it adds a few new areas, alot of new lines and conversations and even a new subplot/quests!


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## ferdi-t (Feb 6, 2011)

Thank you for all these replies. Some of the best games ever have been mentioned, and there's a ton of good suggestions to keep me playing for at least the next five years.

As there are bound to be people watching this thread to find out what to play, I'll throw in two suggestions myself..

- Shadowrun (snes)
- Lunar - Silver Star (originally sega CD, remake on PSP)


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## sputnix (Feb 7, 2011)

puzzle quest nuff siad


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## deathking (Feb 7, 2011)

Soul Blazer 
Illusion of Gaia 
Terranigma


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## kaputnik (Feb 7, 2011)

Most of my favorite underrated rpg:s has been accounted for already, but I haven't seen anyone mention Glory of Heracles for the DS.

The name gives away that the setting, characters and enemies got strong influences from the Greek mythology. The story might not be ground breaking, but it's still very solid. The mechanics are pretty old school, it's the classic turnbased rpg, with a twist in the form of an attack power boosting system that makes combat a bit more interesting than the regular one button mashing.

If you got a DS you should really give this one a go.



			
				GundamXXX said:
			
		

> You might have played it but Knights of the Old Republic 2 has an unofficial expansion pack that creates alot more in the game that was cut out due to being short on time (damn you LucasArts) Niw some modders created the patch and it adds a few new areas, alot of new lines and conversations and even a new subplot/quests!



You don't happen to have a url to that project?


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## Devante (Feb 7, 2011)

*NES*

*Home Sweet Home* (JP game with complete English translation patch) - Info Link
Considered the first survival horror games from which the likes of Parasite Eve, Silent Hill, and most famously Resident Evil derive.





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*Legacy of the Wizard* - Info Link





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*Battle of Olympus * - Info Link
Amazing action/adventure in the same vein as Zelda 2. Loosely based on Greek mythology.





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*Playstation*

*Valkyrie Profile *- Info Link
Unique RPG whose storyline is loosely based on Norse mythology. Great battle system.





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## Cyan (Feb 7, 2011)

•Battle of Olympus (NES) is very good plateform RPG 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



•Faxanadu (NES), another very good plateform RPG
•Simon's quest (NES), as we are in plateform RPG, let's add this one 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



•Shadow gate (NES/N64), but it's more a point and click adventure than a classic RPG.

I don't know how far is your rate for "less known" RPG, but here are some good one, maybe you already played them as some of them are from known series. 

Snes:
•The lord of the ring - book 1 (more adventure than RPG, but very good animations and music)
•Ranma 1/2
•Lufia 1 & 2
•SOS (I can only find a boat picture on the net, but I'm sure it's a classic RPG)
•Dark law
•Treasure hunter G
•shadowrun
•7th saga
•Bahamut Lagoon
•Paladin's quest (Lennus 1 & 2)
•Dual orb
•Elfaria 1 & 2 (I never played it, I don't know if it's good 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




)
•Emerald Dragon
•Feda - Emblem of justice
•Lodoss to senki (I don't remember if there's an english patch)
•Traverse Starlight & Prairie

PS1:
•Grandia
•Jade cocoon
•Hoshigami
•Koudelka (prequel to shadow hearts?)
•Legend of legaia
•Marle's kingdom series (Rhapsody, Little princess)
•Rurouni Kenshin Meiji Kenyaku Romantan (humm, I think it's japanese only. I played the beginning only but it was nice.)
•Thousand arms
•Vagrant Story
•Card Captor Sakura (really easy, japanese only, good for learning japanese, no kanji at all)
•Arc the Lad series
•brave fencer musashi den (more Advantage than RPG)
•Parasite Eve 1
•Shadow madness ... (wait, it's a real crappy one, don't play this one)
•Moon: Remix RPG Adventure (japanese only, anti-hero RPG)

PS2 :
•hack// series
•La pucelle (tactical RPG)

Saturn:
•Dragon force
•shining the holy ark  

mixed :
•Breath of fire (Snes, PS1, PS2)
•Landstalker (Genesis), Adventure.
•Wild arms series (PS1, PS2), RPG
•SaGa series (NES, Snes, PS1, PS2, DS)
•Ogre battle (Snes), real time strategy RPG
•Tactic Ogre (Snes, PS1, DS?), Tactical RPG
•Front missions series (Snes, PS1, DS), mixed action/RPG/tactical
•Lunar
•Atelier series
•Suikoden / Suikogaiden series
•Albert Odyssey (Snes/Saturn)
•Ys series (MSX to many new consoles)
•Hanjuku Hero (Egg Monster hero) (Snes, DS) (I thought there were a translation available)
•Tengai Makyou (Far east of eden) series (though, no English translation), parodies of other well known RPGs
•Phantasy Star series (Master system, genesis ?, other)
•Disgaea (Tactical)
•Sky of Arcadia
•Langrisser series (Snes, forgot if it's saturn too)
•Fire emblem series (Snes, gba, DS, and many other)
•Herakles no Eikou (Snes, DS) (Glory of heracles, on DS)
•Shining force (Master, Genesis .. I think), Tactical RPG (I played only the first one, I liked it)

And finally, almost all translation project from Gideon Zhi are unknown, obscure, but highly waited RPG:
•http://agtp.romhack.net/


You can also check the DS RPG list (it's somewhere on this forum).


I tried not to give the games already suggested previously.
Maybe there's duplicate, sorry 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



And I'm sure there are many more I forgot.

Some of them I never played (yet), so I hope they are good choice for you


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## Devante (Feb 7, 2011)

*Saturn*

*Legend of Oasis* - Info Link
Amazing action/adventure with a prequel on the Genesis called Beyond Oasis.






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By the way, sorry but I don't know how to do that "make large image smaller" thing where you can click the image to see it 100%.


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## Bitbyte (Feb 7, 2011)

sinharvest24 said:
			
		

> SmokeFox said:
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Look up "underrated" sometime. If there's only one game I could recommend, it would have to be Legend of Dragoon on PSX. Such a great game, very
addicting combat gameplay, a nice story and great cinematic storytelling.


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## taken (Feb 7, 2011)

Snes Rpg's  Robotrek. secret of evermore.


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## Goli (Feb 7, 2011)

I like your "template", Devante, so I shall use it too!
*SNES/SFC*

*Tactics Ogre: Let us Cling Together*
The precursor to Final Fantasy Tactics, and pretty much every Japanese SRPG!* (including the crap that Disgaea is)
Multiple choices that affect the ending!








Received a port to PS1, translated by Atlus. Aeon Genesis ported the PS1 version's scrpit to the SNES/SFC original, you can find it here.
Is also getting a super enhanced port on PSP, out already  in Japanese and coming out in English on the 15th of this month!
*Part of the Ogre Battle Saga, which includes Tactics Ogre: Knight of Lodis (GBA, SRPG), Ogre Battle: March of the Black Queen (SNES/SFC & PS1, RTS/RPG) and Ogre Battle 64 (N64 RTS/RPG). The Ogre Battle Saga is written by critically acclaimed game writer Yasumi Matsuno. Other works include Final Fantasy XII (PS2) and Famitsu perfect scoring game Vagrant Story (PS1, out now on EU PSN for PSP and PS3).

*DS*

*Magical Starsign*
RPG developed by Brownie Brown* sequel to the GBA cult favorite Magical Vacation (Japan only).
Has a strategic battle system, charming characters and cute sprites!








*Brownie Brown, a Japanese seocnd party Nintendo company formed by ex-Squaresoft employees. Developers of most of the latest Mana games, fan favorite Mother 3, and the full fledged RPG featured in Professor Layton 4! Everyone should play every game made by them.

*Wii*

*Opoona*
A charming RPG adventure like no other!
Developed by Artepiazza, this game features young Opoona, a boy that crashlands on the planet of Landroll!
With the help of the overly bureaucratic people of Landroll Opoona saves the world! 
The game is describes as a Lifestyle RPG, probably because of how well done the in game world is. It has a lot of the good things from real life... and the bad ones too.


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## The Catboy (Feb 7, 2011)

Sega CD:
Lunar: Eternal Blue
Lunar: The Silver Star 

Snes:
Breath of Fire 1-2
Final Fantasy - Mystic Quest
Robotrek
Ys III - Wanderers from Ys
Super Mario RPG

GBA:
Final Fantasy 1&2 Dawn of Souls
Final Fantasy 6
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon - Red Rescue Team
Phantasy Star Collection
Yggdra Union - We'll Never Fight Alone


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## ferdi-t (Feb 7, 2011)

Just something I though of. Back in 1996, the brilliant Zy Nichelson wrote a 5 page feature about rpg's on the snes for the equally brilliant magazine Super Play. I uploaded the scans from the magazine below. 

http://img64.imageshack.us/i/supplay4500039.jpg/
http://img717.imageshack.us/i/supplay4500040.jpg/
http://img25.imageshack.us/i/supplay4500041.jpg/
http://img823.imageshack.us/i/supplay4500042.jpg/
http://img543.imageshack.us/i/supplay4500043.jpg/
http://img716.imageshack.us/i/supplay4500044.jpg/
http://img828.imageshack.us/i/supplay4500045.jpg/

Some nice nostalgia to add to this thread. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




(I hope this posts is okay with the guidelines of the forum, seeing that these scans are from a 15 year old magazine which has long been out of print. If this falls under copyrighted material, please let me know and I'll edit).


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## Cuelhu (Feb 8, 2011)

Sailor Moon Another Story for SNES :3


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## Fear Zoa (Feb 8, 2011)

Dark cloud 1&2

Although its hard to play them cause ps2 emus dont run them good and a actual copy is hard to find

(to the person that said legend of dragoon +1 still have that game)


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## Vulpes Abnocto (Feb 8, 2011)

Aeladya said:
			
		

> Try the Soul Blazer series or Crystalis.
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And to think I came in here to make sure Crystalis got mentioned. 

I love you guys.


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## Cyan (Feb 8, 2011)

I don't know crystalis.
Thanks for the name, I'll try it when I can 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




I completed the Snes RPG I tried on my post above.
(of course I didn't list known RPG, like tales of, star ocean, FF, and some of them which were already suggested (live a live), etc.)


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## Vulpes Abnocto (Feb 8, 2011)

Cyan:
It's mentioned in one of the Retro Game Reviews, if you want to check it out.
http://gbatemp.net/index.php?showtopic=122121


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## dewback (Feb 9, 2011)

I was a Sega fan boy so
phantasy star 1 - 4
Shinning in the darkness
shinning force 1 and 2

Just got a PS3 and they are all on Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection


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