Sky Render on 22 September 2008
For standard RPG, Chrono Cross. It really mixes things up, and though I don't like the way it uses random chance for attack accuracy, I do love the attack/Element system in essence. Having an actual balance between the value of melee and magic combat that's inherent in the system's design is just brilliant.
For action RPGs, I must admit that Star Ocean 2 was my darling for a long time. The combination of free-roam AND lock-on targeting was an irresistible lure to me. But it recently got taken out of that lofty position by Tales of the Abyss, which does it even better than SO2 and adds the ability to dodge spells (yeah, how many RPGs let you do THAT?).
Sky Render - Sanity is for the weak.
