Fallout 3 but with better graphics and no bugs would be my ultimate RPG. Plus maybe a few of the additions from New Vegas like ability to ADS and gun modifications.

Final Fantasy VI - everything I want in a RPG, great story, great battle system, great characters, great soundtrack, great graphical style. I'm really hoping for an FFIII and IV esque remake on the 3DS this gen, after V of course.

I can't decide between FF VII, FF X and FF XIII. They all have interesting characters and an impressing, emotional story.

Apart from Square-Enix I also had a great time playing Suikoden.

To be honest, most WRPGs are no real RPGs for me because they do not focus on characters and story. To me they feel more like Action/RPG or Action/Adventure with RPG-Elements because the focus lies in the battle system (=Action) and on exploration.

In my opinion JRPGs are better RPGs because they try to focus on how the various characters think, feel and react about the Situation. You, as a gamer, should try to think into the various roles of your characters and try to see the story through various point of views and thus get a better understanding of the whole dilemma.

For example, in Final Fantasy you have to face the opinions of Wakka und Rikku. Wakka thinks that the use of forbidden Machina is the reason for the Existence of Sin and he detests the Al Bhed. Rikku is an Al Bhed and thinks that the religion just tries to blame the technology for Sins existence.

So a good JRPGs is not about changing the World through decision "just as you like". A good JRPGs tries to change "The way you are thinking about a Dilemma" by making you by trying to make you understand the various points of view of the characters.

Thats why I prefer JRPGs over WRPGs. Story>gameplay. After finishing a good JRPG I may stop playing the game, but sometimes I just can't stop thinking about the game for a few days. Thats why each Final Fantasy is a totally different experience for me although they share many gameplay elements.

Thats also the reason why I just can't get into WRPGs like Oblivion. I just can't stand the fact that the side content should be more important than the main quest. It feels like the developers are saying "We just don't bother imagining a thrilling main quest. We just give you hours of side content and you just make up your own story..."

I do understand that there are fans of WRPGs. But I think that JRPGs and WRPGs are a totally different Genre. If you play JRPGs just for the deep fighting mechanics you may also like WRPGs or even like them better. But if you are fond of story and characters it is just hard to switch over to WRPGS.

Long time lurker, first time poster.

Just before WRPG turned to what they are today (action-RPGs for most part, not that I find that bad per se), there was golden era that lasted for quite some time of turned based cRPGs made by Western developers. From that era (I really don't want to go to "once upon a time in C64 and Amiga land" here) my absolute favorite (though both Baldur's Gate and Fallout 1 are close behind) is Planescape Torment - with rich story, memorable characters, interesting puzzles and pause based combat, this is something that kept me coming back to it for more than a decade.

Skies or Arcadia Legends. The only time I ever actually cared and was invested in the story.

It's funny, that I think JRPGs are not feel like real RPGs. I have a hard time to classify them as that. That's why I didn't mention Pandoras Tower here: It's a great game, but I don't think it's a RPG.

First, let be a bit more specific, what I mean with JRPG. I think it's not very clear. Most people don't classify Etrian Odyssey (that I mentioned) as JRPG, it plays like a great oldschool WRPG. Also Pokemon, Monster Hunter or Fire Emblem are seldom classified as JRPG. The defining thing for JRPG is in my opinion a RPG that is more defined by it's story than by developing the character or exploring. That makes sense, companies like Square, Enix (both separated at that time) and Nihon Falom created mainly Visual Novels back in the eighties.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_novel

That is basically a game, that has a story, but only very few interactivity. The player has sometimes multiple-choice-selection, but mostly he can only accept a chunk of text to get the next.

Now, why I think they are not 'real' RPGs? Computer/video-game RPGs all descend from Pen&Paper RPGs. Some computer-games had licenses from D&D or other popular RPG-franchises. You sit around a table with your friends, one of them is the game master (this role is taken by computer and game in computer-rpg). Every player controls a character, while the GM (game-master) controls monsters, NPCs and the world. But as a player I have total control over my character. I can decide everything for him. The job of the GM is to keep the story coherent, but the story is obviously strongly influenced by the decision of the player-characters. The GM adapt to this and a together the players create a story, the GM don't had in mind this way.

On computer that obviously don't work to that degree. You have to make concessions. But the strong story-driven JRPGs abandon much more of control over the character. Can you decide which other character your character falls in love with? Can you choose the side on which you're fighting? These choices are made for you from the game. That's funny, because the genre is called Role Playing Game. But you can't really play that role, that part is taken by the game. JRPGs for me often feel like a train - you can switch wagons, but you always stay on the rails. JRPGs are more like action-adventures (Zelda) - and there is nothing wrong with it, I like adventures.

I only had to say it, because you obviously feel different about it, you said that WRPGs are not real RPGs for you. Try playing Pen&Paper once, they defined the genre. Probably you would also feel, that they are not real RPGs.

Skyrim. But I have yet to finish FF13, and Fallout New Vegas is on my shelf on the waiting list, and I might get Xenoblade. We'll see how Skyrim holds up

Firstly, respect to the people who mentioned Lufia 2, FF6 & Suikoden, all amazing choices.

Its not going to be popular but my ultimate RPG was final fantasy XII, Sure it was long, the story was too suble & a lot of the time without the needed exposition a game story is expected to have (read beat you over the head obviousness) but I loved the game 100%, to this day it is my favourite game & the game that elevated the FF series over the Tomb Raider & Soul Reaver Series' as my favourite of all time. I loved everything about it The deep lore of the land, attention to detail in game, inventive races & intriguing characters bought in the best aspects of Jrpgs while the open world, world map & no random battles bought in the best aspects of Wrpgs (which I had largely gone off since planescape torment in 2001-2).

Plus it had a good amount of content, i've clocked in over 300 hours in a single run through the game, only game that can compare with that for me is monster hunter (freedom unite & portable 3rd, but MHFU is my favourite so on volume alone lets just consider that one).

I know the choice is possibly going to cause a wave of discontent, but honestly I prefer the newer FF's over the older ones (i've played them all many times) maybe its because i'm female & our brains are supposed to be wired differently & all that. On the flipside I do have a lot of background info on FF12 directly from some who worked on FF12 (& the international zodiac version with the extra content) so the game is probably a lot more potent for me than it is for most. I'm not saying everyone should love it but it IS my ultimate RPG.

Naughty Dogs master piece Rings Of Power.

Well of course I can say what my favorite rpg is, but how about what an rpg could be? Like, imagine a Pokemon MMO, holy acorns the possibilities...