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Forums - Gaming - Are console JRPGs a dying breed, or will they make a comeback next gen?

 

Console JRPGs will....

Come back and kick some candy backside :) 55 63.95%
 
Die a slow and horrifying death :( 19 22.09%
 
Assault yo mama :| 12 13.95%
 
Total:86
NobleTeam360 on 14 March 2013
007BondAgent said:
Persona 5
finalfantasy XIV
finalfantasy 14
ni no kuni 2
Tales of ??
kingdom hearts 3

this alone will make the next generation great


Wow Can't wait for all of those games PS4 FTW next gen if all those came out witing two to three years. 



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outlawauron on 14 March 2013
Soriku said:
Dodece said:
Unfortunately this genre of gaming is becoming increasingly niche on console. Western audiences are increasingly moving away from the genre. As they become more sophisticated, edgier, and more mature. While Japanese audiences seem to still be attracted to lighthearted fare in their games. Story telling used to be this genres saving grace, but it has become increasingly apparent. That the better story telling is actually to be found in other genres now. That is a really big problem for Japanese Role Playing games.

Outside of story telling the rest of the mechanics involved in the genre are pretty weak by the standards of today. Turn based combat, arena based combat, and instanced encounters. Simply aren't as thrilling as the more dynamic combat that can be found in their Western counterparts. Along with the associated greater freedom that players have to customize their characters, and exploit the worlds those characters inhabit.

The genre may not be doomed, but it seems to be relegated to niche. Unless the Japanese audience for the games suddenly starts to align itself more favorably with Western audiences. Who are obviously craving something more then PG rated fare. If the story is what has to carry the genre. Then the stories need to be really good. They cannot expressly come out of Saturday morning cartoons. They need to have more elements more mature gamers might find appealing.

Anyway I just don't really see that happening. The divide in tastes seems to be too great. I just find it kind of ironic that a game like Halo is beating Final Fantasy in the story department hands down. Japanese developers really need to up their game seriously in the writing department.


Why do people still pretend that turn based combat and random encounters are still a standard?

Look who you're responding to. I'm not sure why people pretend that other genres tell better stories. It certainly isn't WRPGs who have thrown away story telling and character development in favor with a ton of choices and more action oriented gameplay. There's nothing wrong with that, though.

While most of the JRPGs that come to the West do end up selling better in the West (outside of a few), it's clear that maturity really doesn't affect anything. Pokemon is still huge among all age groups and hasn't stopped college aged and older males from buying them.

I think the problem in terms of Western success goes far beyond just being more mature or an art style. JRPGs now have a stigma that they're somehow lost and stuck in the past despite several JRPGs doing a ton of new stuff and others bringing great mixes of innovation and refinement.



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007BondAgent on 14 March 2013
Soriku said:
Otakumegane said:
They will gravitate towards handhelds.

We will see some console JRPGs but mostly from big 3rd parties like Square, Capcom, or 1st parties like Monolith Soft. (Are there Sony 1st party JRPG devs?)

The smaller ones like the Tales guys/Mistwalker might just move on to handhelds once they get powerful enough, or when the dev costs just become too high.


No way Namco is moving to handhelds only with Tales. Look how much Xillia and Xillia 2 sold. I don't see Mistwalker moving either but Mistwalker isn't doing much now in general. They did express interest in the Wii U though.

007BondAgent said:
Persona 5
finalfantasy XIV
finalfantasy 14
ni no kuni 2
Tales of ??
kingdom hearts 3

this alone will make the next generation great


P5 will be current gen. Catherine was their test game to get used to HD hardware and P5 will be on PS3 and possibly 360. Also you listed FF 14 twice :P

Dodece said:
Unfortunately this genre of gaming is becoming increasingly niche on console. Western audiences are increasingly moving away from the genre. As they become more sophisticated, edgier, and more mature. While Japanese audiences seem to still be attracted to lighthearted fare in their games. Story telling used to be this genres saving grace, but it has become increasingly apparent. That the better story telling is actually to be found in other genres now. That is a really big problem for Japanese Role Playing games.

Outside of story telling the rest of the mechanics involved in the genre are pretty weak by the standards of today. Turn based combat, arena based combat, and instanced encounters. Simply aren't as thrilling as the more dynamic combat that can be found in their Western counterparts. Along with the associated greater freedom that players have to customize their characters, and exploit the worlds those characters inhabit.

The genre may not be doomed, but it seems to be relegated to niche. Unless the Japanese audience for the games suddenly starts to align itself more favorably with Western audiences. Who are obviously craving something more then PG rated fare. If the story is what has to carry the genre. Then the stories need to be really good. They cannot expressly come out of Saturday morning cartoons. They need to have more elements more mature gamers might find appealing.

Anyway I just don't really see that happening. The divide in tastes seems to be too great. I just find it kind of ironic that a game like Halo is beating Final Fantasy in the story department hands down. Japanese developers really need to up their game seriously in the writing department.


Why do people still pretend that turn based combat and random encounters are still a standard?


meant  xv aha

don't think persona will be on the 360 though



007BondAgent on 14 March 2013
NobleTeam360 said:
007BondAgent said:
Persona 5
finalfantasy XIV
finalfantasy 14
ni no kuni 2
Tales of ??
kingdom hearts 3

this alone will make the next generation great


Wow Can't wait for all of those games PS4 FTW next gen if all those came out witing two to three years. 


hopefully versus comes out also XD



ethomaz on 14 March 2013
Soriku said:


Now come back to reality.

I think the number of JRPG on PS3 is close to FPS... so what reality?

UltimateUnknown said:

I wish I could live in this world you live in...

Just this past week was announced two new JRPG releases to PS3... dude we have a ton of JRPGs to play in PS3.

BasilZero said:

Not in the west...

I agree but the OP means the JRPGs are dying and it is not the case... just the west not receive the games... in Japan the release of JRPG continue strong like ever... how can the genre dying?

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ethomaz on 14 March 2013

To finish this question look at the list of RPG here in VGC... there are more than 150 JRPGs released to PS3... I will not be surprised if there is more JRPG games than other genres.

http://www.vgchartz.com/gamedb/?name=&publisher=&platform=PS3&genre=Role-Playing&minSales=0&results=200


And just in 2013 there is more 20 JRPGs releasing to PS3... last week two more announced to 2013 release. And I'm not counting the released only in PSN.

Dead?

PS. I'm happy that I played more than 20 JRPGs from that list... I bought NiER last moth and I need to buy Ni no Kuni... that's the reality and world that I live .



ethomaz on 14 March 2013

Maybe the best question for this thread is "Why the JRPGs are not coming to west???".



richardhutnik on 14 March 2013
ethomaz said:
To finish this question look at the list of RPG here in VGC... there are more than 150 JRPGs released to PS3... I will not be surprised if there is more JRPG games than other genres.

http://www.vgchartz.com/gamedb/?name=&publisher=&platform=PS3&genre=Role-Playing&minSales=0&results=200


And just in 2013 there is more 20 JRPGs releasing to PS3... last week two more announced to 2013 release. And I'm not counting the released only in PSN.

Dead?

PS. I'm happy that I played more than 20 JRPGs from that list... I bought NiER last moth and I need to buy Ni no Kuni... that's the reality and world that I live .

Would you consider JRPGs a major genre which generates lots of sales?  I bet if you look into sales numbers, you aren't going to see them as really driving console sales at this point.  Western style RPGs have taken over in this regard.  And I would predict on the AAA side you will see more open world RPGs.



ethomaz on 14 March 2013

richardhutnik said:

Would you consider JRPGs a major genre which generates lots of sales?  I bet if you look into sales numbers, you aren't going to see them as really driving console sales at this point.  Western style RPGs have taken over in this regard.  And I would predict on the AAA side you will see more open world RPGs.

So what was changed from the previous gen to claim the JPRGs are dying? The sales of the JRPJs are fine.



ethomaz on 14 March 2013

For you guys that like JRPG (like me) and didn't play the games in original language (not like me)... I will make a JRPG list in English for 2013... be happy all these titles:

* Click in the title for see the YouTube video *

That's my list for 2013... there are more games coming too.