Gaming Long RPG's Without the Crappy Pokemon/Dragonball Anime

[XDel]

Hello, I was inspired by the other thread about "grinding" within RPG's and thought I'd ask which RPG's on the GBA and NDS are worth checking into in regards to good game play that lasts more than 20 hours, has adult themes (and by adult I mean mature, not sex, violence, and foul language), and is not cursed with that God forbidden Pokemon/Dragonball type anime...

...OK, well Dragon Quest looks pretty cartoony, but it's Dragon Quest so we'll let that one slide.


Anyhow, the games suggested do not necessarily have to be strict RPG's. They can be hybrids with RPG elements too such as the Castlevania games (which sadly took on the caroony look for a while too), Zelda, or something along the lines of Shining Force.

Thankx in advance, death to post Akira/Vampire Hunter D Anime!

 

[weavile001]

final fantasy,golden sun,mario and luigi games,fire emblem,soma bringer,shin megami tensei games,the world ends with you and tales of innocence.

 

[Arras]

I kinda like Shining Soul 2 for the GBA. Not sure about the story though.

 

[.Chris]

I'd say the Mother series.

Greatest RPG I've ever played.

 

[Chary]

I don't see whats so bad about Pokemon/DBZ, but

Fire Emblem, Mario & Luigi, radiant historia, world ends with you.

 

[XDel]

final fantasy,golden sun,mario and luigi games,fire emblem,soma bringer,shin megami tensei games,the world ends with you and tales of innocence.

Those Mario and Luigi games crack me up! I've heard good things about Shin Megami Tensei, but have yet to dive in and check them out yet. As for Tales of Innocence...

...that the exactly the kind of look I am trying to avoid!

Are there any RPG's that look dark and sinister?

 

[Fishaman P]

DQIX is the best investment you'll ever make.

 

[weavile001]

Those Mario and Luigi games crack me up! I've heard good things about Shin Megami Tensei, but have yet to dive in and check them out yet. As for Tales of Innocence...

...that the exactly the kind of look I am trying to avoid!

Are there any RPG's that look dark and sinister?

No, these are the best and the only `good´ RPGs for the ds.

 

[XDel]

No, these are the best and the only `good´ RPGs for the ds.

But nobody mentioned Orcs and Elves. LOVE THAT GAME!

So what do you all think of The Dark Spire and the Etrian Odyssey series? Etrian looks like it is drawn for toddlers (yet again), but I heard that this series is really long and really deep. Have any of you played through any of them yet?

 

[chrisrlink]

the Chrono trigger remake/PSX port if you haven't played it before

 

[the_randomizer]

the Chrono trigger remake/DS port if you haven't played it before

Fixed that for ya, the DS version has the same features as the PSX version, only better loading times and better audio quality overall, plus the bonus dungeons and bosses. Just sayin'.

 

[Chary]

the Chrono trigger remake/PSX port if you haven't played it before

If someone hasn't played Chrono Trigger before, I feel sorry for them.

 

[Skelletonike]

But nobody mentioned Orcs and Elves. LOVE THAT GAME!

So what do you all think of The Dark Spire and the Etrian Odyssey series? Etrian looks like it is drawn for toddlers (yet again), but I heard that this series is really long and really deep. Have any of you played through any of them yet?

I don't see the problem with anime graphics and visuals... The targeted audience isn't children to begin with, in Japan anime styles are used in a lot of games...
Etrian Odyssey is quite a nice and complex game, to be fair, most of the games for the 3DS related to RPG have anime graphics, so you're in bad luck if you can't play games with them.

 

[weavile001]

But nobody mentioned Orcs and Elves. LOVE THAT GAME!

So what do you all think of The Dark Spire and the Etrian Odyssey series? Etrian looks like it is drawn for toddlers (yet again), but I heard that this series is really long and really deep. Have any of you played through any of them yet?

they are quite good, and etrian odyssey 4 is the best one.

 

[Sicklyboy]

If someone hasn't played Chrono Trigger before, I feel sorry for them.

+1 person to feel sorry for.

It's on my "to play" list

 

[pokefloote]

Those Mario and Luigi games crack me up! I've heard good things about Shin Megami Tensei, but have yet to dive in and check them out yet. As for Tales of Innocence...

...that the exactly the kind of look I am trying to avoid!

Are there any RPG's that look dark and sinister?

The SMT Devil Survivor games are quite different from the others in the series, they have the anime look but they are still dark at times and are grid-based. Strange Journey is closer to the main series and was almost named Shin Megami Tensei IV before it was released (but now SMT IV is almost out on 3DS). If you happen to have / get a PS2, check out Shin Megami Tensei III. It's dark, long, and challenging.

But on topic, check out SMT Strange Journey on the DS.

 

[weavile001]

+1 person to feel sorry for.

It's on my "to play" list

me too.

The SMT Devil Survivor games are quite different from the others in the series, they have the anime look and are grid-based. Strange Journey is closer to the main series and was almost named Shin Megami Tensei IV before it was released (but now SMT IV is almost out on 3DS). If you happen to have / get a PS2, check out Shin Megami Tensei III. It's dark, long, and challenging.

But on topic, check out SMT Strange Journey on the DS.

i think that devil survivor 1/2 is better,but these are good too.

 

[pokefloote]

me too.

i think that devil survivor 1/2 is better,but these are good too.

Oh I love them too, I was just saying that they have the anime look which the OP said he might not enjoy.

 

[XDel]

I don't see the problem with anime graphics and visuals... The targeted audience isn't children to begin with, in Japan anime styles are used in a lot of games...
Etrian Odyssey is quite a nice and complex game, to be fair, most of the games for the 3DS related to RPG have anime graphics, so you're in bad luck if you can't play games with them.

It's not Anime on a whole that I have a problem with, it's the anime trend that seemed to erupt after Dragonball and Pokemon became so huge near the end of the 90's and since. I just severely miss the days of old school Anime such as that seen in Akira, Vampire Hunter D, Ninja Scroll, Blood, and the like. Everything has become so pastel and cartoony since then and while it can not in any way effect the underlying game play of a title, it does effect the general feel that the art is mean to communicate.
Take Castlevania: Rhondo of Blood or Symphony of the Night as an example The art work in those games were dark and foreboding, which only served as a compliment to the general theme and story line behind that series. Then when Aria of Sorrow and Dawn of Sorrow released, they totally killed the foreboding feel of the game with bright eyed and bushy tailed looking animations. Mind you, the two Aria games are amongst my favorites in regards to the open ended RPG styled Castlevanias, but still I can not help but cringe at the art work.

That being said, the art work in the Shin Megami Tensei series does not offend me in the least, not if it looks like this:

Likewise, if all the DS has is a bunch of bass ass RPG's that happen to be coated in the Pokemon/Dragonball trend, then so be it, I will not totally dismiss them just because of their appearance, and again at least they are original titles and not an old title that I expect to look edgy and dark, but later get transformed to cute and cuddly like Castlevania, so there is less to be disappointed about in that regard.

EDIT: Another fine example of a long running series being thrashed due in part to animation alteration made to serve modern trends would be the Phantasy Star series. Those games used to be so dark and now they just look like a joke. I swear every other character in the new games looks like a freaking clown, and I really don't see how having clowns (or mimes for that matter) in my party is going to help intimidate the enemy in the long run.

 

[pokefloote]

Yeah the demons look sweet in all the games. I was talking more of the character art from the screenshot you posted:

Then strange journey: