JRPGs are being trounced on sales compared to WRPGs and MMORPGs.

A big problem for japanese developers is that JRPGs usually target japanese teens, whom are more likely to own a PS3 than a Wii/360. But since:
- PS3's sales are low in japan
- The western world is "dominated" by Xbox 360
- PS3 development is costly

That certainly forces J-devs to make their games on Xbox 360, but the truth is the 360 userbase doesn't seem to care much about JRPGs. So now J-devs are at an stand still: Make it for Wii or PS3/360.

The Wii:
- Big japanese userbase.
- Cheaper development.

The PS3/360:
- The target audience (teens).

DMJ. Do you start ANY threads that don't have an alterior motive these days? This thread wouldn't exist if the PS3 was the leading JRPG console. Unless I made it of course.

You seemed to think FFXIII had a whole lot more importance prior to it becoming multiplatform.

Exclusivity on the 360 is a horrible move financially. As a personal statement, I feel as though RPGs (JRPGs mostly) offer arguable the best bang for your buck since they offer extensive storylines and sidequests. Take final fantasy X for example. $50 for 100+ hours of entertainment is a good value. Other games can come out to be almost $10/hr of entertainment. So yes, they are important. Especially to JRPGboys like me :D

Dont have time to read...
But they are very important to Sony fans.Thats what we expect.Jprg:s.

FFX wasn't an anomaly, not any more than FFIX or FFXII is anyway. IX was done in a style unpopular to the west, as was XII (on top of it being nothing like a normal FF). FFXIII is looking more like something appealing to the west, so the sales should be closer to FFX rather than the lower selling two. Metacritic tells nothing about how the majority feels about the game, so it shouldn't be brought into a discussion about sales.

As for the emphasis on JRPG's, many people here (including me) are a big fan of them. The consoles' potential to sell JRPG's is important to us, because that determines where the JRPG's will go. It isn't about determining the 360vPS3 sales war (at least for me).

Also, like others have mentioned, you're confusing cause and effect. JRPG's just happened to always be on the leading console, because that's where they would make the most money. If I said something like, a best-selling FPS is the key to determining a losing console, wouldn't that sound ridiculous? Even if it may seem to be the case - Goldeneye (N64), Halo (Xbox), Halo3/CoD4 (PS360), the reasoning is flawed.

I think they have mostly moved to handhelds. Low development costs, large user base, and sufficient power for the core elements of the games makes them an ideal platform. I guess it is possible that I am wrong and they are fading, the same thing happened to a large number of old multi-sequel PC RPG franchises in the US-- see Zork, Ultima, Wizardry, and Bard's Tale. The thing is that I have no clue why this would be happening in Japan so I prefer the idea they are moving to handhelds as they seem to be there and selling well.

They are very important to me. I can't speak for anyone else. They are basically the reason I have a don't have a PS3 anymore.

I've bought all the good ones this gen, and I will buy Persona 4.

All my favorite posters on this forum love jrpgs.

So yeah, to me, Final Fantasy and Zelda are what matters. The rest is filler between those franchises.

Are JRPG's important?

Short answer: YES

Long answer: YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

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oh no, now we have to have a "Zelda is not an RPG" intervention.  We do it because we care Zen.

I wasn't saying Zelda was an rpg. I'm saying the only two franchises I really care about are Zelda and Final Fantasy. The rest are filler inbetween new itterations.

I'm sure my meaning would have been more clear if I said Halo and Final Fantasy, but no, the game was Zelda.

The "Zelda is not a rpg" bullcrap should be saved for another topic.