O dont get how JRPGs are nich gaming when they sell better then most WRPGs. The only WRPGs that I have ever heard of doing will are the Bioware ones. Bethesda's are off and on with certain ones getting press(oblivion). All others hardly ever get over 1million in sales. The top ten best selling franchises are mostly comprised of Japanese made games, toping the list with Pokemon at number 2, Final Fantasy at number 4. I dont even think a Western RPG is in the top ten at all. I remember a time when JRPGs were just called "RPGs", the change didn't happen till the flood of xbox WRPGs.

Americans like the Japanese games more then most give us credit for. And JRPGs are not "Niche" but actually the dominant RPG period in North America, why do you think the world goes crazy over the tiniest bit of info on a Final Fantasy?

so how would you define "niche" then? I thought it referred to an 'unpopular' genre. I just took his analogy on the "nicheness" of JRPGs in the west and applied it to Japan itself.

Since when do RPGs need a good story? Are the first 3 Final Fantasies not rpgs? They all have the same basic find the crystals storyline. Also where did you get the Puzzle from? I don't see too many puzzles in pokemon games. As for Adventure I will say again, is there much adventureing in pokemon games? More so than other rpgs?

A RPG doesn't need a good story but there atleast should be more effort in the story department than in the NES era

Well I remember using Strenght to move boulders and then move on.And some Ice boss-trainer there were floors which crumpled down when you step on it...

But most of all it doesnt feel like it.Thats it.

Now I go to sleep..But i think good explaniton at night..

Well in that case all NES rpgs aren't rpgs because they don't have good stories. I'm pretty sure that is wrong though. A RPG that is good most likely does have a decent story, but that doesn't mean a story is a requirement to be an rpg.

Which is what i'm saying... in Japan it has more million sellers then most other genres. 

Just because they all come from the same manufactuer doesn't mean it's niche.

Just that for some reason only S-E RPGs sell outside of pokemon.

Since DQ swords also performed well in JP, while LO, which is very similar to FF (even with the same creator) didn't perform well, can we say that only games branded S-E or Nintendo sell in Japan? In other words, other 3rd parties had best focus their efforts on some other market, which is what seems to be happening this gen.

JRPGs are kind of niche and at the same time kind of not. See, most JRPGs don't sell that well but there are one that do sell such as FF, DQ, Pokemon, and KH as well as, Star Ocean, Tales, and to some extent, Shin Megami Tensei. However, those are the exceptions rather than the ruler.