Page 1 of Dragon Quest 8 and others.........treats for RPG fans.

Seems to be a good time for RPG fans at the moment.....especially ones with a PS2.

I`ve just been trying Dragon Quest 8 and it`s excellent.Imagine a classic 16 bit SNES RPG like Breath of Fire but in full 3-D.The fighting mechanics are fairly basic but the presentation and overall sense of quality is high.

Radiata Stories also looks good with real-time fighting and non-random battles.It`s also polished and well-done.

Wild Arms Alter Code is apparently a `reworking` of the original Wild Arms on the PS1.This was one of the top games on that console so I have high hopes for this version.

Magna Carta Tears of Blood.....I don`t know much about it but it`s recieved some decent reviews.

Culdcept 2.....the first Culdcept on the PS2 was a weird Monopoly meets card-battling game that was starngely excellent.This sequel could be great.

Fire Emblem on the Gamecube......this is really polished and plays like a better -looking version of the gameboy titles.For anyone who likes turn-based strategy this is great.

Grandia 3.....the jap version received an excellent response in an earlier thread and so the soon to be released English language version should be brill.

There is certainly many hours of enjoyment to be had for RPG`ers at the mo`
There still seem to be very few released on the X-box though for some reason.

Also there`s the small matter of Elder Scrolls 4 on the X-box360 which could be the best yet...........

Thought I`d bump this one up once.......as DQ8 is really one of the Top10 games u can get for the PS2.It`s extremely addictive with a huge.....`just another 10 minutes` factor.
There are a lot of features in it but all of them are very clearly laid out.It`s one of the least confusing RPGs out there.U always know where u should be going and the storyline is easy to follow with only a couple of different threads instead of the usual 28 in many RPGs.
The only ones who may not enjoy this title are experienced players who`ve tried many of the complicated RPGs and who like complex stories.Those who want a very polished, easy to follow title should look no further than this.

I`ve tried the Wild Arms title mentioned above and it`s truely terrible.Avoid!

This item was edited on Sunday, 4th December 2005, 13:11

Anyone playing this yet? :D

I`m about half way through and have just received a large boat in which to explore the world.Beware though.....don`t just land on any old island because some of the monsters will mash u quickly.

I have also seen reviewed in Games magazine a very similar game to this but set in space.It got 9/10 which is great for this mag.It`s one to look out for......although I seem to be the only one looking.... (:¦

This item was edited on Friday, 3rd March 2006, 00:24

The game coming out is called Rogue Galaxy.It`s already out it Japan.It returns to a Dark Cloud style of fighting, with real time battles.The graphics look great and you can jump,swim etc this time.
It certainly has the potential to be one of the Top 5 games released on the PS2.It will probably be like Conker,Paper Mario and Majoras Mask on the N64........released right at the end of the consoles life and left largely unplayed.Only later will it become a must have for `retro` gamers.

I`ve always fancied playing the Level 5 RPGs (like Rogue Galaxy), but don`t own a PS2 so so I`m nacked. The do look superb though.

Have you played any of the PSP RPGs that have come out recently ? I`ve just taken the plunge with Tales of Eternia, bit worried as it`s had mixed reviews.

Cheers for the reply Wad.
I am not lucky enough to have a PSP (although I do have a DS).There are no decent RPGs on the thing yet although I think there`s a game based on the Sword of Mana coming out soon.I just saw a copy of Sword of Mana for the SNES for £60 in gamestation!

The Level 5 type of games are one difference between the PS2 and X-box.The PS2 must have at least 20 decent ones whereas the X-box has.......em.......none really.

The games are like 3-D versions of the old-school SNES rpgs like Breath of Fire etc.The battle systems are not as complex as the Final Fantasy types but there is always something different to see and do and you don`t really get that `what the chuff do I do next` feeling.

U might have to consider a late PS2 purchase, now u can get the games for peanuts. :B

This item was edited on Saturday, 11th March 2006, 13:15

Aye, I`ve been eyeing up a PS2 for some time now - problem is I`ve a stack of Gamecube games that I`ve barely touched, not enough hours in the day. The Nippon Ichi games really appeal as well (I`ve played pretty much every tactics type game on the GBA) - have you played those ?

I`ve got a couple of those games......Phantom Brave and Disgaea......but never quite got round to giving them a proper go.I tried a while back but they have a fairly high learning curve......u are bombarded with rules etc straight off the bat.It shouldn`t be a problem if you`ve played loads of similar ones though (they`re a lot more complicated than the Fire Emblem games).

Then of course there`s the Shadow Heart games,Xenosagas,Arc the Lad,Digital Devil Sagas,Suikodens,Breath of Fires,Wild Arms`s etc etc.Drakan Ancients Gate is a very old but still good action RPG.

Wad, how you finding Tales of Eternia? Just started it, and tbh not too sure. I`m not sure I like the battle system, just seems a bit ergh...

Saying that, it`s still a bit more fun than Legend of Heroes.



Still Grinning ;) - August 15th 2006

Aye, I`m not too sure about the battle system either. Just started playing it last night, hoping as I get used to it things will improve but at the moment the battle system seems to just be button hammering.

They seem to have done a good job on keeping the loading times down thankfully.