RPG that hooks you right away?

[jay_red]

Persona 4, immediately very interesting even though it took a bit before I got into combat. TBH the combat is pretty boring and basic, but oh man dat story and dat music!

I watched my Wife play most of Persona 4, very fun game and you are right the music is awesome. Since I have seen most of the game though, I dont think I would want to play it through since I know most of the plot twists and such.

[Ack]

Ha, most of the ones I would have suggested have already been suggested. Nice work, fellas.

Final Fantasy VI is the one that got me into the genre. I was blown away by how amazing the intro is, and the game just took off from there. While some of the mechanics are unveiled over time, it more has to do with new characters than actual gameplay tweaks. You get the benefit of starting as a powerhouse, and despite losing the magitek armor relatively soon, you'll already have a grasp of the basics of combat.

In my opinion, Lufia II is also one that is easy to get into. It has easy to understand mechanics, wonderful music, and an art style that is easy on the eyes. The cast is likable, the combat system quick to pick up, and the puzzles interesting. Just be wary of the gut punch ending and don't look up the first game if you don't want the surprise ruined.

[jay_red]

Thanks for all the suggestions guys, I have decided to try out Phantasy Star IV. I loaded it up and played for a little bit and so far I like it, it moves at a fast pace, the graphics are very nice to look at and the dialogue scenes are engaging. This game seems to have almost universal praise from what I have read so hopefully I stick with it.

A quick question for anyone that has played it, does the game ever take the time to explain the battle system in depth at all, or explain the Macro system? It just kind of throws you into it and I am figuring it out, but I want to make sure Im not missing some important mechanics. I can look up a guide, but wanted to know if I needed to or if the game would help me out, or maybe this is a game that expects me to read the manual?

[pierrot]

Blew my balls off the first time I played it back in 1994. I still can't find them.

I have so many questions right now, but I don't think I want the answers.

Suikoden 2 might also be a good one for that, but I don't know since I haven't played it yet. A lot of people seem to enjoy it though.

I would highly recommend that you play Suikoden 2 ASAP (and make sure to import your save file from the first game). Then play 3, because it's also fantastic. After that, forget about the series forever (unless you want to play the visual novels), because everything after that bears no consequence, and the story will never be fully realized.

[Xeogred]

I thought Suikoden 5 was awesome...

Suikoden 1 is a case of where there's a lot to love about its simplicity. The best intro portion by far, it's shorter and pretty linear, but always focused and awesome. Maybe the best OST too.

Suikoden 2 has the best story and scope to me, but is 2-3x longer than the first game. It does drag at times though, but it hits the series highest peaks and Luca Blight is one of the best villains ever.

Suikoden 3 can be very awkward, but I finally warmed up to it after giving it another chance last summer (after replaying the first two when 2 hit the PSN). But if you can sink into 3, I ended up thinking it has the best characters by far. So many amazing and fully developed characters. Expect different, but definitely give a chance.

Haven't played 4 or Tactics yet. I'll check 4 out sometime for myself someday, lol.

[pierrot]

There's a reason all the of games after Suikoden 3 were either prequels, or set in parallel universes, and that's because the story is a product of Murayama Yoshitaka's, and his alone. Suikoden 5 is full of the most derivative, bull crap, animu characters; I hate it so much; Let's never speak of it again.

I didn't find Suikoden IV to be completely terrible, but it's also the only numbered Suikoden that I've only played once. (Great OST, though.)

Suikoden III is like that. I was disappointed by it, at release, but years later, it really clicked. I think it's the best in the series, personally.

[BoneSnapDeez]

A quick question for anyone that has played it, does the game ever take the time to explain the battle system in depth at all, or explain the Macro system? It just kind of throws you into it and I am figuring it out, but I want to make sure Im not missing some important mechanics. I can look up a guide, but wanted to know if I needed to or if the game would help me out, or maybe this is a game that expects me to read the manual?

That's the combo system, correct?

Someone with a better memory than I possess should answer this, but I believe if you have several characters cast specific spells sequentially they will combine into a super spell. Thus, it's a bit more complicated than the combo spells used in Chrono Trigger, where they are chosen from a menu. Also, I found that I had to utilize these combo spells quite a bit to get through PSIV, as opposed to Chrono Trigger where they felt completely optional.

Here's a list of 'em:
http://www.phantasy-star.net/psiv/combos.html

[Violent By Design]

Final Fantasy V is my pick. I think it is probably the best SNES game, and it has the most interesting combat system of all the Final Fantasies (and most turn based RPGs, despite it being quite old).

Hey guys, I want to get into RPG's more and have been reading through lists like crazy. There are plenty of titles that pop up over and over that I am sure are great, my question though, is which RPG has a great start that hooks you and keeps you going? Most of the time it seems that they need a bit of time to get setup. I don't have a ton of time to sink into games at the moment so I would like something with a little more "instant gratification" I feel if I can become invested in the story early on, it will be easier to keep going.

Platform is not specific, anything from Dreamcast and back would be cool since I can emulate that on my handheld (which is preferable) but im open to hear what you guys think.

What handheld do you have that can emulate Dreamcast?

[TheSSNintendo]

Final Fantasy IV.

[ElkinFencer10]

My answer will always be Chrono Trigger.

Ordered this today, actually.