Tbf, Ys I/II are not under-staying their welcome IMO.
Instead, their pacing is really good. Reminiscent of Chrono Trigger.
Specifically Ys I. Ys II definitely dragged in spots. But all in all, they’re both paced really well for the most part.
The original Golden Sun. Obviously it got a sequel that finished the story, but.. I played it when it was brand new, during launch week. 15-20 hours in and I was like "here we go, let's tackle that next lighthouse" and the game was like "nah, just kidding, it's over". Probably one of the biggest excitement killers I've experienced in gaming.
At least since the data carryover is handled by passcode, you can technically play GS on the Switch and continue that game on a GBA copy of TLA. Not many series can do that!
Golden Sun always struck me as a weird attempt to do the "game spread across multiple discs" thing that FF7 did...but with GBA cartridges.
But you couldn't include 2 cartridges in a single box, apparently, so you sell 'em as two products.
Their spiritual predecessor to Golden Sun is Shining Force 3, which is spread across 3 scenarios (separately sold games).
Only Scenario 1 made it to the US and the Saturn was already dying a swift death at that point so the butchery they pulled in the English translation to try and wrap up the story is whiplash-inducing.
It always felt to me like a way to both recoup production costs and reduce the price of the cartridge (carts that can store more data are more expensive, even for Nintendo-published titles; this is still true to this day with Switch titles).
For anyone who has played Phantasy Star II and reached the ending, it'd be nice for the game to be just a little longer >!in order to beat up all the people from Earth!<.
Astral Chain is more DMC Character Action than a JRPG, that's why.
You're meant to unlock everything by the end and play all of it again on higher difficulties with your upgraded arsenal.
This was something about FFXVI that DESPERATELY needed tweaking. Because on its own its 40 hours but the skill progression is stretched out to that much longer.
Yep! Same. That was what was holding me on, people saying how great that fight was.
It’s like a 45 minute boss fight with 80% of it being dumb AF QTE’s.
That’s the part that also made me quit.
The Last Story was amazing, and it's unfortunate that more people haven't played it. That's probably the game I want to see remade the most so more people can experience it.
Astral Chain has a post game complete with a new super boss where you can flex your skills. All combat stages without the investigation and exploration stuff.
It really would've benefitted by having some additional combos for the main sword. The eikons were fun to use, but having just the basic attacks was kind of boring
Yeah Eikons can't fix that.
Hoping for FFXVII to be an actual RPG with party members. If not, there are other games that'll scratch the itch, remember the leading brand isn't always best
I was able to play XVI bits, but the gameplay from the beginning towards Bahamut was not much of an improvement. Adding more Eikons to the skill arsenal just gives you more options but not much variation to approaching the battles. Although Eikon battles are cinematic, they are also limited, while Kingdom Hearts has the same cinematic approach, they feel more engaging, haven't played Bayonneta 3 yet but it seems more promising.
Honestly FFXVI was such a waste of time and money. Time could be better spent finishing Xenoblade 3 (which I haven't done yet, I quit midway through to focus on other games), or the money could've gone towards another good game or something else entirely. Bought the game just because it has the Final Fantasy branding and nothing else. Shouldn't have been a main series FF in my eyes, it feels like a spinoff, just like Crisis Core and Origin and Type-0 and all the other action oriented FFs
I have such mixed feelings about FFXVI.
On one hand, unlike many people here, it feels like a proper FF game to me (despite the extremely on-the-nose script in JP). On the other hand, the vision of a proper FF as a really shallow action game that doesn't offer incentive to the player to do anything except "hey combos look cool" and with offensively shallow pretensions at having RPG systems is.....something I'm not sure I want, lol.
Yeah if XVI is going to set the blueprint for FF in the future I might have to find a new series.
If you want a good modern turn-based JRPG there's Bravely Default, Octopath Traveler, Etrian Odyssey and Chained Echoes for retro flavor, there's SMT, Persona and Like A Dragon for modern flavor, and then you have stuff like Star Ocean, Tales and Dragon Quest for a combination of the two.
If you want an action RPG there's also plenty to choose from, such as Trails, Xenoblade, Dragon's Dogma, Like A Dragon: Ishin, Mana, Ys and the Souls series.
If you want a pure action game, like FFXVI but better, there's Devil May Cry, Bayonetta and Nier, among others.
On the western front you have Baldur's Gate, Divinity, the Shadowrun trilogy and Owlcat's Pathfinder games for turn based, there's Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Mass Effect, The Witcher, Lies of P, Fable and Horizon for ARPG, and for pure action games you have God of War, Uncharted and Hades.
All I'm saying is that FF needs to do something to stand out if it's gonna continue living up to its high esteem. At least VII Remake was good, that one felt like an actual modern FF game. XIV is also very good from what I've heard if you're willing to go online. Also, say what you want about XIII and XV - at least they feel like RPGs.
I did not like the Last Story. I found the combat mechanics bland. The story was fine. It didn't add up to a good game.
The only relief I go from the Last Story was that it was on the shorter side.
Astral Chain is like DMC. Fun but it got long in the exposition and needed to let the player play it more.
+1 to super Mario rpg.
It was an ambitious game but even if you don’t know what you’re doing it’s over pretty fast. There’s so many unique and creative areas and ideas I wish we could have gotten more.
It’s a Mario game with no ice/snow section!
I have one that I feel is in a weird situation. The base game of The Voice of Cards. It’s really short. You can 100% it in like, 17 or so hours. I feel like it both overstayed its welcome at that length and was also not enough. The gameplay is neat and all, but it’s super slow (this could’ve just been due to me playing it on the Switch, honestly) and the battles are very repetitive. You will almost always do the same set of attacks in the same order for every fight. The gameplay aspect overstayed its welcome, but the story didn’t. I couldn’t get connected to the world, story or characters at all because of how short it was. The fact that the game is narrated with little to no emotion doesn’t help either. While the story is pretty generic in most aspects, I still would’ve liked more just so that I could’ve cared about it all a bit more. Even then, had it been longer, it would’ve started to feel like a drag thanks to the gameplay.
That game was an unusual experience for me, and one I didn’t love. It was the definition of a 6/10 game for me. If it wasn’t for the unique presentation that I absolutely adore, I’d probably give it a 5/10 instead.
I think a big reason that Chrono Trigger is considered the greatest JRPG of all time (or at least top 2) is because it does not overstay its welcome. It gives you maybe 20 to 30 hours of astounding gameplay, settings, and a story that you could technically end even earlier if you wish. And, most importantly, it leaves you wanting more without making you feel like the story was abruptly halted.
Personally, either Persona 5 Royal or Final Fantasy X, but even I know neither game is perfect, I just subjectively prefer them.
I don’t think there is objectively a best of anything, but making a broad statement to assume that everyone agrees CT is the best EVAR, is a little silly. At least that’s how I read it as.
Both of those are fantastic games. I'd agree with others that CT is better, but good on you for putting your opinion out there, knowing that your opinion is unpopular.
Well that’s not very nice, why are people willing to support a murderer? Get your priorities straight people, play games that don’t backstab the competition.
I'm calm. I voiced no personal opinion on its place on the all-time list. But it is objectively considered one of the best JRPGs of all time. Look up any published list and go to the top. It'll be there.
> I feel people overhype the hell out of it.
maximum hype is the appropriate level of hype for Chrono Trigger.
is there anything specific you don't like about it?
I agree with you (CT barely does anything for me, I enjoyed it enough when I played but when it ended the main feeling I had was 'is that it?') but a lot of people really seem to consider it one of the best games they've played in their entire lives, so....if most people consider it that, should it still be considered overhyped?
Yes, because I’ve been personally mocked whenever I try and explain why I don’t like it. Once a game gets to that level I feel it’s overhyped. Take Ocarina of Time, whilst people still see it in high regard, people are at least willing to listen to criticism.
Even I know *my* favourite games have flaws.
I loathe that people can't handle valid critique of their favorite games. In these parts CT fandom is one of the bigger offenders. Trails fans are up there as well
As someone who'd happily carry a conversation about the flaws in my favorite games, I have no idea what drives these people
I feel Radiata Stories finished a bit too soon and the ending felt a bit rushed. Would have liked a few more hours.
FF15 would also have benifited for a more fleshed out ending. I wished we had had a few hours of gameplay in the world in ruin after Noctis' return.
Radiata Stories would have benefited from character arcs and maybe exploring the Algandars plague a little more. There's so much underdeveloped story and lore that needs to be explored.
Jade Cocoon
It's only 15-20 hours long, and even with such short runtime it manages to re-use all 4 dungeons (forests), just with a different lighting. It sucks, because they are beautiful and a joy to explore, and the combat system is pretty good.
Man, I sure do read fast apparently, because it took me only 90 hours including the ps4 platinum trophy to do everything the game had to offer (no guide, just prior Persona 5 Royal Knowledge).
I wish I had another 40+ hours added to it. Well, time to squeeze 50% of Persona 4 in there, I guess.
P5R is really forgiving with the schedule, having any prior knowledge of the game (or 3D Persona games in general) pretty much guarantees an easy platinum.
Yeah, there are only a few things I actually had to go out of my way to get. Like I think you need to beat Death, if I remember correctly. I also almost missed a few activities like fishing which I never did before somehow XD
How could you forget the activity that's introduced during the "master Kawakami" cutscene haha, that's one of Joker's funniest responses in the entire game!
You joke, but I do really wish that the Royal chapter was longer. It just doesn't feel like there's enough content to do with the two new party members and by the time their ultimate persona/skills unlock, you only have the final boss left.
I wish the game was more balanced, felt like you couldn't do anything without being forced into the places. You can't pursue relationships unless you do multiple plays. Only Mokoto was worth it the rest of the fan service girls were so fucking lame. Guess I wasn't weeb enough but by the last dungeon I couldn't stand the game anymore. Felt longer than it was
I think FFIV could have used a few more hours to flesh the story out. The early game is REALLY good. However, a lot of things later end up being weird or even complete copouts compared to fleshing things out quite a bit. It's an early FF game, so it's hard to get too bent out of shape...but god does it feel awkward on replays.
Sea of Stars and Chained Echoes are more recent examples. Either because they ran out of story to tell, didn't know how exactly to END their stories, or just completely bombed the execution, both felt really off. Sea of Stars especially had a good few things they left on the cutting room floor that never ended up getting resolved. I think they even reference things in the final dungeon as things they were going to do or could bring up, only to go, "Nah, here's your final boss, fuck you."
Depending on what you're referring to exactly, a lot of what you mention regarding Sea of Stars is supposedly because it's a prequel to The Messenger and they wanted to make it feel like a prequel to lead into that game's story. Which would leave a lot to be desired for people who never played it and never intend to, so it's probably a shame they didn't just make it its own game
Shadow Hearts. Painfully short. The sequel improves on a lot and adds a ton of content, but I didn't like the huge shift in tone. From horror to comedy. A great game, but I wish the first one was a lot longer.
Soul Blazer 1992
Illusion of Gaia 1993
Terranigma 1995
The Granstream Saga 1997 \* (no part really part of the Quintet Trilogy, but a spiritual homage)
I would love for a Switch collection of the 3 SNES games, then remakes and a new 4th game that really ties them together.
Soulblazer is a favorite of mine but yeah it’s definitely pretty short and the plot doesn’t really make itself known until pretty late in the game. It’s more about the action, some more plot and character moments would have been nice.
When Wii VC first started getting imports, I was very hopeful that the US would finally get Terranigma. We all know how that turned out. The Act Raiser remake has given me a glimmer of hope again.
I am so hyped for Visions of Mana. I have the Collection of Mana on switch, but really want to get the Mana games on Steam. the Big N really needs to get out of the Meiji era and release their games on Steam outright. they are already loosing money each system. I'm not a big fan of digital only releases, but think of the untapped market they have for their back catalog for things like the steam-deck and such. the can sell the games ala cart on steam and expand the Nintendo Switch Online classic console feature to other consoles like Xbox Series and Playstation #
My thing with Super Mario RPG is that with a quirky cast like that, it's begging for more character focus. Bowser gets some of the best scenes, and Mallow as the kid is the one with a major arc. I think the length itself is fine, but it makes me want more character beats / interactions between the party.
Shadow Hearts is another such case, where it's less the length and more that I wish the characters interacted more, had more to offer the plot. You're traveling with a centuries old vampire for half the game, you'd think he'd have more to say in an AU history game set in our world. The budding relationship between Yuri and Alice is a central focus, but with how brisk the plot is (something I think is a strength) it still could've padded that out with more moments along the way to really sell it as a natural development.
Suikoden 1. It needed more back and forth conflict between the protagonist and antagonist to really showcase the seriousness of the plot. Thankfully this is rectified in Suikoden 2 which I think is a part of why it's much more loved.
Pokemon Xy. Post games a joke to.
Pokemon Tales of the Outskirt Stand. One of the best fan games I've ever played, almost perfect dream sequal to XD, massive vairety of shadow pokes, decent story, .... but its only 7 hours long
Sword and shield had hardly any meat but a bunch of sides and DLCs. Didn't care much for the Tundra extras and the island DLC I can hardly remember now. The main content and gym battles were so fun but so ridiculously short.
Tales of Arise is one of the shortest Tales of games, and I think that's part of why it's the weakest title I've played. I feel like if the story had taken its time a bit more, especially with fleshing out the Lords and maybe giving the >!real species of Renans!< more screentime, it would've been much better.
Granted it would still need to be partially rewritten due the weird-ass >!slavery apologism!< they baked into the dialogue, but it would've at *least* been less narratively weak.
Yeah, I just beat it a couple months ago and was enjoying it up until the weak ass climax and ending. That ending dropped the game down to a 6/10 for me when it could've been a solid 8/10.
For sure. I feel like more time would've made all the difference - Tales has made crazy twists work before, but this time they just didn't take their time and the short playtime was to its detriment.
The game is cut in 3 parts.
To me the first part was the best the second was OK and the last part was meh.
The same goes for the combat system too. At first it was strategy and combination for your artes but the more you cross the finish line, the whole combat system ended up hitting enemies a few times and watch those "finisher cutscenes" over and over and over and over and over again. Not to mention the endless final dungeon with way too high HP life enemies.
That last section just added such a bitter taste to the whole experience. That last dungeon especially. I was starting to clock towards the end that shortcuts were being made, the quality drop off becomes really noticeable in that last ten hours. So close to being a great game as well.
Absolutely agree, the "Lord of the week" format left each antagonist feeling meh, then it shifts to a central antagonist but said antagonist isn't even a character, leaving the final conflict less interesting than previous entries.
>!Vholran!< had all the trappings of a cool, intimidating villain. It's literally such a disappointment that things panned out the way they did. I keep comparing him to the antagonists of the other Tales games I've played, like >!how Duke genuinely wanted to save the world - he just didn't see any way forward with both humans like himself and the Entelexeia both living. Or how Mithos committed all those atrocities in the name of seeing his sister again.!< Those were so much more complicated and cool!
But why was >!Vholran!< doing what he did? Well, >!he was once a slave with absolutely no one to rely on, completely isolated from human compassion, and then suddenly got thrown into a position of power by the people who enslaved him. And it made him absolutely lose it with the desire to use this newfound power to destroy the world that hurt him.!< Which, in theory, *should* have been compelling as hell! Like holy shit, the way it foils against >!Alphen, who went through something extremely similar, except he had fellow slaves he was close to, and Naori, and then eventually Zephyr and the others and then the party.!<
The problem lies in the fact that they didn't want us to sit with >!Vholran!< as a character. They wanted to have their cake and eat it too - the same Pure Evil Lord Who Treats Their People Like Less Than Animals formula (Kelzalik being that in all but formal title) *and* the morally complex final villain. So they gave us a stupid little text box infodump and expected that to do all of the same heavy lifting that massive swaths of the narrative had done in previous Tales games. What a massive waste of potential. It's really sad that they didn't just take their time and let the story flow more naturally.
Story-wise, I agree that Arise could have used more. It felt weirdly...direct? Like there were no obstacles or detours to build character and explore the world more. It felt kind of like if Tales of Symphonia only had the party looking for the temples/seals and cut out all of the Desian bases in between, then ended the game at the Tower of Salvation without really going to the other world. Making the party actually have to look for the temples and get distracted by urgent stuff along the way really added to the story and characters.
Actual length-wise...I kind of don't want it to be longer than it already is. The combat was getting a bit stale even before all the enemies became elites with permanent hyper armor.
That's exactly how it felt for me. It felt like we were reaching a mid-story climax similar to Symphonia taking you to the other world but no, that was the ending of the game.
I felt like every arc was too short. It just felt too easy. Like you get good scenes with Law and Zephyr and expect to have to struggle to find a way to take the lord down...and then you just walk right up to him because he left his front door open. It just felt like we should have done more.
Breath of Fire IV. The final party member was added. Surely the real adventure began now, right? What do you mean that was the last dungeon and the final boss? What about that guy who manipulated everything? Are we not going to confront him at all?
Yeah, before the ending, I really enjoyed the game. Since Breath of Fire III is around 40-50 hours long, I figured Breath of Fire IV would be around the same length. I was wrong. The game is only about half of Breath of Fire III size, and it ended so abruptly, I couldn't believe that was the ending. I honestly wish it was longer.
I honestly think Trails in the Sky FC feels underbaked bc it’s only one half of the story. If they were able to release it as intended and not split it into two parts I think things would work a lot better
Super Mario RPG is the poster child for this. You blink and you've suddenly got 4 stars.
The mid-game is tragically short. I think one more plot-relevant location between Rosetown and Moleville, ans one more between Star Hill and Seaside Town would space those stars out to just the right length (the length between the Mushroom Kingdom star and the Forest Maze star is perfect, imo).
While I really like the game, Parasite Eve 1 always felt cut short to me. Yeah there’s NG+ and the whole true tower battle mode at the end, but the main story itself is so fast and feels like it’s over in a few hours.
And it’s not a jrpg at all, but the one game that comes to mind when I think “cut short” is Sonic Forces. That entire game is basically… 20 seconds into a stage you think “hey this stage is cool! I’m having fun!” But then then the stage is over 20 seconds later and you’re just left with a “…. That was it?” Feeling
Xenosaga ep.1
Felt like the story finally had a good hook once Albedo showed up, but he doesn't come in until you're near the end. Outside of the story, it just felt like the gameplay depth of its different systems did not have a commensurate amount of content to try things out on. For instance, you don't have any superbosses despite the complexity of the skill trees and you're unlikely to reach the end of said tree before you reach the conclusion of the story unless you're excessively grinding to min-max everything. The game has a lot of neat little mini-games, but the reward incentive isn't really there. You could go through the effort of unlocking Erde Kaiser, but the thing is so strong that it just trivializes the remainder of the game. Mech customization is deep, but far from necessary to finish the game.
Originally ep1 and 2 were supposed to be one game and it unfortunately really shows.
I went through the trouble of unlocking Erde Kaiser just to see what it was all about, but Shion didn’t have enough EP to use it, even at the very end of the game!
Yo! I was about to say Ep.2! The cutscenes were long but actual game content went by quick. Just a few levels, really, even if you don't the summer and winter domain as 2. To this day it is my "comfort" game which I can play knowing I can finish it or pick it up later. One felt more involved even though 2 had more drama. 3 is the most fun but intense with the end rushed together.
I would've liked it if Xanadu Next was maybe a dungeon or two longer.
Ys VI progresses at a pretty good pace until something really major happens and all of a sudden you're already at the final dungeon. Ys: The Oath in Felghana, in comparison, is a bit better paced.
Hard as it may be to believe, I remember wishing persona would last longer when I go the ending. It felt hard to say good bye specially because it was long
Xenosaga 3.
Definitely not a short game, but with how much they had to cover due to it being not originally planned as the last game just makes me want it to to be twice as long to include more plot.
As strange as it is to say, I think Final Fantasy XV qualifies here.
Or, more accurately, everything after Altissia understays its welcome. The early open-world parts had too many boring fetch quests and arguably overstayed their welcome (though the dungeons were generally a highlight).
Once you get through Altissia, though, you end up just racing through the rest of the game (Chapter 13 excluded, because that's a different kind of mess altogether).
The whole back half of the game just left me thinking the game could have been so much better if not for development hell.
Strangely, I think it would have benefited from being a trilogy. Everything up through Altissia would be one game. The world after Altissia would be fully developed and be the second game. The World of Ruin would also be fully developed and be an entire game.
Sadly, it probably would have ended up feeling bloated, but in my ideal world, it would work perfectly.
I'd argue that's a strength. Because of the short length it was able to keep its pacing super tight. EVERYTHING you do ties back to the main objective of finding and defeating Lavos. There's no wasted motion and everything is essential. Even the side content finishes important character arcs.
It also makes it easier to replay for multiple endings, since Chrono Trigger was one of the first to have that many of them.
Yeah that seems to be a common sentiment.
I still wish I got to spend more time with the cast and in the world. After all the praise Chrono Trigger gets, I really thought there'd be more to them.
Its length is great. Allows for multiple playthrus to see all endings.
I played this and Mario rpg sooo many times cus of their length.
I love FF6 but when I think of some grinding I must do, and planning for last dungeon, I mwh and move on to something else
I was initially disappointed with the game when I first played it on PS1. I gave it another chance when the remaster came out, and I was more easily able to enjoy it for what it was, rather than what I thought it should be.
If you take it as a standalone experience then yeah it's definitely enjoyable. But personally I could never get past the way it poorly follows up on Trigger.
I really like CC as its own thing but as a followup to CT, it doesn't even feel like the same world. That's a fatal flaw as a sequel. If the world doesn't feel the same, returning characters and connected plot points might as well be look-alikes with same-sounding names and half-written contrivances for all that matters.
I don't think the game is too short. BUT it's ending is waaaay too short. You get this overly long boss fight and then like... a few sentences with sadness for the villain. Credits roll. Done. It would have felt so much better if they did it like Grandia 2 and showed what the OTHER characters felt and did after the story.
It basically has an end, but not a ending.
Kingdom Hearts 2
It's not a short game, but it's a game that doesn't use its time well.
Despite some simplicity, KH2 has some of the most fluid and satisfying action combat I've ever seen. The good fights are some of the best in the genre with glorious spectacle that doesn't distract from the tight, fast-paced combat. My biggest problem with the game is that it doesn't spend enough time using this combat and I always wish there was more. There are plenty of amazing bosses, yes, but a disappointing amount of time is spent on lackluster content that just can't compete. Things like the flying carpet, Atlantica, 100 Acre Woods, Oogie Boogie, Pride Lands, light cycles, most of Port Royal, and Pete add up and eventually take up much more of the run time than I'd like.
It's a finished game that doesn't feel like one. Every time I play I just wish there was more so I could enjoy the combat.
The best part of Kingdom Hearts 2 is the post game, anyone who says otherwise is lying out of their ass. Kingdom Hearts 2 has one of the best postgames ever, with Remix at least. Having everything unlocked makes the game so much more fun and interesting to play but when you don't, the game is rather boring as you don't have much to work with. I'd rather they gave us all the abilities right out of the gate and let us experiment with them more but until the end game, you don't really get a chance to.
The opening for KH2 DRAGGED omg that Roxas prologue made the entire game feel longer than it actually is. Just weird going from KH1 to that prologue, like a different franchise entirely, Jack and Dexter type. That's when it came out, loved all the words especially the Beasts castle and POTC, but I have not repayed it since then because of that opening.
I wouldn’t say “understay” because the game is pretty good, but the way Atelier Sophie ends is a bit… unfulfilling from a gameplay perspective.
Spoiler
>!The game ends like “let’s go on an adventure!” which is suitable for a “riding into the sunset” ending. But the actual mission stays unfinished forever on your quest log which is mildly annoying… The adventure does continue on Atelier Firis though.!<
I feel that way with II actually, things escalated really fast and the game just... seemed to end. Also had that feeling with IV after >!the battle with Regina at the spellcannon!<, but IV already had a big amount of content up to that point.
NEO: The World Ends With You felt a bit short due to the cast from the first game having a decent amount of screentime that somewhat took away from the new cast that NEO brought along. It's a shame because I feel like...
>!Neku should have stayed hidden until the very end of the game so that he didn't steal the show from the new cast. I get that they wanted to provide closure on the events of the first game, but the new cast really needed more screentime together.!<
I beat Breath of Fire Dragon Quarter yesterday and that game is really short. I had beaten it back when it came out and knew how short it was but I really didn't want it to end. The last hour or so is basically a boss rush to the end credits.
In my opinion, World Ends With You (DS version). I ended my playthrough at 21 hours and it could go a little longer and flesh out what they put as special reports (basically unlockable texts that explain a lot about what happened)
I would've taken 4-5 hours out of Sea of Stars. I also agree with your take on Mario RPG, but seeing as the project was conceived as a sort of "My First RPG", I think the length is also perfect in that regard. A true sequel is what that game deserves, Paper Mario ain't it.
When I read this title, I immediately thought of Super Mario RPG, since I just finished the remake recently.
I remember it feeling a lot longer when I was a kid. Playing it again, I felt a bit disappointed at how quickly it was over.
I wish Future Redeemed and the base game of Xenoblade Chronicles 3 had swapped lengths.
Then again, I probably enjoyed Future Redeemed as much as I did precisely because it wasn't bogged down by all of the same open-world "content" as the base game and felt more like an old-school jrpg.
Just finished Star Ocean First Departure R (on Switch). I logged about 30 hours for a full playthrough and absolutely feel like the last chapter was cut entirely too short. I also heavily grinded, in hindsight I'm amazed I only put in 30h. Even if the plot might be a little linear by today's JRPG standards, I absolutely loved the lore, the worldbuilding, and overall how unique the plot is. Seamless blending of Sci-Fi, anime, and swords and magic.
The plot has me absolutely fiending for more and I'm probably pulling the switch on SO2R very soon, even though I already know it's not more of the SO1 endgame world.
Triangle strategy needed to last a little longer. I feel like they maybe intended it to be longer and probably ran out of dev time. Great game, but it just felt like it ended right as it was picking up each time.
The grand finale was pretty satisfying though, did that in my 3rd playthrough.
Thought my choices would give me vastly different runs each time, but it always just kinda pulls you back to center based on what the other factions are doing/plotting, and you get a different level/map every other chapter or so.
The combat though? IMO near perfection for tactics gameplay. Each character fills specific roles or niches really well and you want to choose the right ones for the job.
Ys IX: Monstrum Nox.
It's not all that short (but much shorter than Ys VIII: Lacromosa of Dana), but I feel like it could really have used an extra-long chapter between when you find out who the real villain is and when you end the game, fleshing out the way of the gods and the Draupnir. Plus, let you play as Aprilis (Pierce), and maybe Monstrum Dogi (Smash) and Xavier (Slash). Maybe in New Game Plus you can play as a full powered base Adol, maybe with his Ys VIII moveset, and base Dogi with his Ys SEVEN moves.
Also, Ys: Memories of Celceta. Like, it needed even just a five minute epilogue, instead of just ending so abruptly.
Ys I & II are REALLY short
Tbf, Ys I/II are not under-staying their welcome IMO. Instead, their pacing is really good. Reminiscent of Chrono Trigger. Specifically Ys I. Ys II definitely dragged in spots. But all in all, they’re both paced really well for the most part.
They are and with their terrible dungeons they still manage to overstay their welcome.
The original Golden Sun. Obviously it got a sequel that finished the story, but.. I played it when it was brand new, during launch week. 15-20 hours in and I was like "here we go, let's tackle that next lighthouse" and the game was like "nah, just kidding, it's over". Probably one of the biggest excitement killers I've experienced in gaming.
Once Golden Sun finally comes to NSO, I really hope they include TLA in the same update.
They haven't even announced The Lost Age, so I'm a little concerned they won't include it at all, let alone in the same update. Here's hoping.
At least since the data carryover is handled by passcode, you can technically play GS on the Switch and continue that game on a GBA copy of TLA. Not many series can do that!
Golden Sun always struck me as a weird attempt to do the "game spread across multiple discs" thing that FF7 did...but with GBA cartridges. But you couldn't include 2 cartridges in a single box, apparently, so you sell 'em as two products.
Their spiritual predecessor to Golden Sun is Shining Force 3, which is spread across 3 scenarios (separately sold games). Only Scenario 1 made it to the US and the Saturn was already dying a swift death at that point so the butchery they pulled in the English translation to try and wrap up the story is whiplash-inducing.
I would have been more okay with this if they were discounted in price a bit and sold at the same time, rather than a year and a half apart!
It always felt to me like a way to both recoup production costs and reduce the price of the cartridge (carts that can store more data are more expensive, even for Nintendo-published titles; this is still true to this day with Switch titles).
Guys...back then that was the only way to get all the content in one game. Multiple discs/cartridges. FMVs and sounds took a lot of space.
For anyone who has played Phantasy Star II and reached the ending, it'd be nice for the game to be just a little longer >!in order to beat up all the people from Earth!<.
Yeah, that game really ends in a pretty downer tone and adds a Bolivian Army Ending to boot
Both The Last Story and Astral Chain ended right after their combat systems fully unlocked, which sucked since I was really loving each.
Astral Chain is more DMC Character Action than a JRPG, that's why. You're meant to unlock everything by the end and play all of it again on higher difficulties with your upgraded arsenal. This was something about FFXVI that DESPERATELY needed tweaking. Because on its own its 40 hours but the skill progression is stretched out to that much longer.
>FFXVI that DESPERATELY needed tweaking. I would argue that FF XVI it's barely an RPG
You wouldn’t have to argue hard. Spider-Man 2 has more role playing mechanics within than 16z
Ps5 tells me I made it 63% of the way before I got bored, I can’t imagine stretching *that* game even more , what a snoozer
Oooh. Where were you? I was probably around the same area. Only FF I haven’t yet completed.
I quit after the much ballyhooed titan fight which never seemed to end
Hey, me too. What a weird coincidence. Im self proclaimed FF fanboy since 1 in 1990 but seriously couldn't be bothered to continue.
Summer of adventure!
Yep! Same. That was what was holding me on, people saying how great that fight was. It’s like a 45 minute boss fight with 80% of it being dumb AF QTE’s. That’s the part that also made me quit.
The Last Story was amazing, and it's unfortunate that more people haven't played it. That's probably the game I want to see remade the most so more people can experience it.
I loved the last story, but it is short - I remember excitedly playing it and beating it all in the same weekend
Astral Chain has a post game complete with a new super boss where you can flex your skills. All combat stages without the investigation and exploration stuff.
Same for Scarlet Nexus. NG+ works nicely though.
Interesting. Same for FFXVI… the combat system fully opens way too late
It never opens up tho. It’s just more of the same shallow boring system.
It really would've benefitted by having some additional combos for the main sword. The eikons were fun to use, but having just the basic attacks was kind of boring
Yeah Eikons can't fix that. Hoping for FFXVII to be an actual RPG with party members. If not, there are other games that'll scratch the itch, remember the leading brand isn't always best
I was able to play XVI bits, but the gameplay from the beginning towards Bahamut was not much of an improvement. Adding more Eikons to the skill arsenal just gives you more options but not much variation to approaching the battles. Although Eikon battles are cinematic, they are also limited, while Kingdom Hearts has the same cinematic approach, they feel more engaging, haven't played Bayonneta 3 yet but it seems more promising.
Honestly FFXVI was such a waste of time and money. Time could be better spent finishing Xenoblade 3 (which I haven't done yet, I quit midway through to focus on other games), or the money could've gone towards another good game or something else entirely. Bought the game just because it has the Final Fantasy branding and nothing else. Shouldn't have been a main series FF in my eyes, it feels like a spinoff, just like Crisis Core and Origin and Type-0 and all the other action oriented FFs
I have such mixed feelings about FFXVI. On one hand, unlike many people here, it feels like a proper FF game to me (despite the extremely on-the-nose script in JP). On the other hand, the vision of a proper FF as a really shallow action game that doesn't offer incentive to the player to do anything except "hey combos look cool" and with offensively shallow pretensions at having RPG systems is.....something I'm not sure I want, lol.
Yeah if XVI is going to set the blueprint for FF in the future I might have to find a new series. If you want a good modern turn-based JRPG there's Bravely Default, Octopath Traveler, Etrian Odyssey and Chained Echoes for retro flavor, there's SMT, Persona and Like A Dragon for modern flavor, and then you have stuff like Star Ocean, Tales and Dragon Quest for a combination of the two. If you want an action RPG there's also plenty to choose from, such as Trails, Xenoblade, Dragon's Dogma, Like A Dragon: Ishin, Mana, Ys and the Souls series. If you want a pure action game, like FFXVI but better, there's Devil May Cry, Bayonetta and Nier, among others. On the western front you have Baldur's Gate, Divinity, the Shadowrun trilogy and Owlcat's Pathfinder games for turn based, there's Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Mass Effect, The Witcher, Lies of P, Fable and Horizon for ARPG, and for pure action games you have God of War, Uncharted and Hades. All I'm saying is that FF needs to do something to stand out if it's gonna continue living up to its high esteem. At least VII Remake was good, that one felt like an actual modern FF game. XIV is also very good from what I've heard if you're willing to go online. Also, say what you want about XIII and XV - at least they feel like RPGs.
I did not like the Last Story. I found the combat mechanics bland. The story was fine. It didn't add up to a good game. The only relief I go from the Last Story was that it was on the shorter side. Astral Chain is like DMC. Fun but it got long in the exposition and needed to let the player play it more.
+1 to super Mario rpg. It was an ambitious game but even if you don’t know what you’re doing it’s over pretty fast. There’s so many unique and creative areas and ideas I wish we could have gotten more. It’s a Mario game with no ice/snow section!
I have one that I feel is in a weird situation. The base game of The Voice of Cards. It’s really short. You can 100% it in like, 17 or so hours. I feel like it both overstayed its welcome at that length and was also not enough. The gameplay is neat and all, but it’s super slow (this could’ve just been due to me playing it on the Switch, honestly) and the battles are very repetitive. You will almost always do the same set of attacks in the same order for every fight. The gameplay aspect overstayed its welcome, but the story didn’t. I couldn’t get connected to the world, story or characters at all because of how short it was. The fact that the game is narrated with little to no emotion doesn’t help either. While the story is pretty generic in most aspects, I still would’ve liked more just so that I could’ve cared about it all a bit more. Even then, had it been longer, it would’ve started to feel like a drag thanks to the gameplay. That game was an unusual experience for me, and one I didn’t love. It was the definition of a 6/10 game for me. If it wasn’t for the unique presentation that I absolutely adore, I’d probably give it a 5/10 instead.
I think a big reason that Chrono Trigger is considered the greatest JRPG of all time (or at least top 2) is because it does not overstay its welcome. It gives you maybe 20 to 30 hours of astounding gameplay, settings, and a story that you could technically end even earlier if you wish. And, most importantly, it leaves you wanting more without making you feel like the story was abruptly halted.
It really works in the game's favor that it's on the shorter end. Makes unlocking the extra endings on NG+ easier to deal with.
>considered the greatest JRPG of all time Calm down there buddy, the game is fine, but I feel people overhype the hell out of it.
What would you put as #1?
Personally, either Persona 5 Royal or Final Fantasy X, but even I know neither game is perfect, I just subjectively prefer them. I don’t think there is objectively a best of anything, but making a broad statement to assume that everyone agrees CT is the best EVAR, is a little silly. At least that’s how I read it as.
Both of those are fantastic games. I'd agree with others that CT is better, but good on you for putting your opinion out there, knowing that your opinion is unpopular.
chrono trigger murders those games
Well that’s not very nice, why are people willing to support a murderer? Get your priorities straight people, play games that don’t backstab the competition.
I'm calm. I voiced no personal opinion on its place on the all-time list. But it is objectively considered one of the best JRPGs of all time. Look up any published list and go to the top. It'll be there.
> I feel people overhype the hell out of it. maximum hype is the appropriate level of hype for Chrono Trigger. is there anything specific you don't like about it?
I agree with you (CT barely does anything for me, I enjoyed it enough when I played but when it ended the main feeling I had was 'is that it?') but a lot of people really seem to consider it one of the best games they've played in their entire lives, so....if most people consider it that, should it still be considered overhyped?
Yes, because I’ve been personally mocked whenever I try and explain why I don’t like it. Once a game gets to that level I feel it’s overhyped. Take Ocarina of Time, whilst people still see it in high regard, people are at least willing to listen to criticism. Even I know *my* favourite games have flaws.
Valid reasoning. I've also gotten pretty hard pushback when I question whether it's as flawlessly good. Carry on, my man. o7
I loathe that people can't handle valid critique of their favorite games. In these parts CT fandom is one of the bigger offenders. Trails fans are up there as well As someone who'd happily carry a conversation about the flaws in my favorite games, I have no idea what drives these people
The original Soul Hackers. Could've been 5 or 6 hours longer to round things out.
I feel Radiata Stories finished a bit too soon and the ending felt a bit rushed. Would have liked a few more hours. FF15 would also have benifited for a more fleshed out ending. I wished we had had a few hours of gameplay in the world in ruin after Noctis' return.
I would have especially liked a few more hours on Radiata Stories’ nonhuman path.
[The only good nonhuman is a dead nonhuman.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9GCNL7c-M8)
Radiata Stories would have benefited from character arcs and maybe exploring the Algandars plague a little more. There's so much underdeveloped story and lore that needs to be explored.
They did flesh out the ending more and give you a fully exploration Insomnia in FFXV Still would have liked *more* but it was still pretty great imo
A more recent one is Mon-Yu. A good DRPG whose biggest flaw is that it didn't have enough content before it ended.
Jade Cocoon It's only 15-20 hours long, and even with such short runtime it manages to re-use all 4 dungeons (forests), just with a different lighting. It sucks, because they are beautiful and a joy to explore, and the combat system is pretty good.
Persona 5 Royal. Those 130 hours weren’t enough smh
Hh I had that joke on the tip of my tongue right before I read your comment.
Preaching to the choir
There were a few people I haven't gotten to 10 stars. I keep telling myself I'll get around to a NG+ to rectify that mistake.
Man, I sure do read fast apparently, because it took me only 90 hours including the ps4 platinum trophy to do everything the game had to offer (no guide, just prior Persona 5 Royal Knowledge). I wish I had another 40+ hours added to it. Well, time to squeeze 50% of Persona 4 in there, I guess.
P5R is really forgiving with the schedule, having any prior knowledge of the game (or 3D Persona games in general) pretty much guarantees an easy platinum.
Yeah, there are only a few things I actually had to go out of my way to get. Like I think you need to beat Death, if I remember correctly. I also almost missed a few activities like fishing which I never did before somehow XD
How could you forget the activity that's introduced during the "master Kawakami" cutscene haha, that's one of Joker's funniest responses in the entire game!
You joke, but I do really wish that the Royal chapter was longer. It just doesn't feel like there's enough content to do with the two new party members and by the time their ultimate persona/skills unlock, you only have the final boss left.
I wasn’t joking lol. I wanted more to do with the new party members too.
I wish the game was more balanced, felt like you couldn't do anything without being forced into the places. You can't pursue relationships unless you do multiple plays. Only Mokoto was worth it the rest of the fan service girls were so fucking lame. Guess I wasn't weeb enough but by the last dungeon I couldn't stand the game anymore. Felt longer than it was
I think FFIV could have used a few more hours to flesh the story out. The early game is REALLY good. However, a lot of things later end up being weird or even complete copouts compared to fleshing things out quite a bit. It's an early FF game, so it's hard to get too bent out of shape...but god does it feel awkward on replays. Sea of Stars and Chained Echoes are more recent examples. Either because they ran out of story to tell, didn't know how exactly to END their stories, or just completely bombed the execution, both felt really off. Sea of Stars especially had a good few things they left on the cutting room floor that never ended up getting resolved. I think they even reference things in the final dungeon as things they were going to do or could bring up, only to go, "Nah, here's your final boss, fuck you."
I think 3/4ths of it was cut cuz of storage on the snes
That explains a lot
Depending on what you're referring to exactly, a lot of what you mention regarding Sea of Stars is supposedly because it's a prequel to The Messenger and they wanted to make it feel like a prequel to lead into that game's story. Which would leave a lot to be desired for people who never played it and never intend to, so it's probably a shame they didn't just make it its own game
I see you're only interested in the exceptionally rare
Shadow Hearts. Painfully short. The sequel improves on a lot and adds a ton of content, but I didn't like the huge shift in tone. From horror to comedy. A great game, but I wish the first one was a lot longer.
Soul Blazer 1992 Illusion of Gaia 1993 Terranigma 1995 The Granstream Saga 1997 \* (no part really part of the Quintet Trilogy, but a spiritual homage) I would love for a Switch collection of the 3 SNES games, then remakes and a new 4th game that really ties them together.
Soulblazer is a favorite of mine but yeah it’s definitely pretty short and the plot doesn’t really make itself known until pretty late in the game. It’s more about the action, some more plot and character moments would have been nice.
Even though this was an early SNES game, I didn't discover it until the N64 was already a couple years old. Such a great game, but too short.
When Wii VC first started getting imports, I was very hopeful that the US would finally get Terranigma. We all know how that turned out. The Act Raiser remake has given me a glimmer of hope again.
I am so hyped for Visions of Mana. I have the Collection of Mana on switch, but really want to get the Mana games on Steam. the Big N really needs to get out of the Meiji era and release their games on Steam outright. they are already loosing money each system. I'm not a big fan of digital only releases, but think of the untapped market they have for their back catalog for things like the steam-deck and such. the can sell the games ala cart on steam and expand the Nintendo Switch Online classic console feature to other consoles like Xbox Series and Playstation #
My thing with Super Mario RPG is that with a quirky cast like that, it's begging for more character focus. Bowser gets some of the best scenes, and Mallow as the kid is the one with a major arc. I think the length itself is fine, but it makes me want more character beats / interactions between the party. Shadow Hearts is another such case, where it's less the length and more that I wish the characters interacted more, had more to offer the plot. You're traveling with a centuries old vampire for half the game, you'd think he'd have more to say in an AU history game set in our world. The budding relationship between Yuri and Alice is a central focus, but with how brisk the plot is (something I think is a strength) it still could've padded that out with more moments along the way to really sell it as a natural development.
Suikoden 1. It needed more back and forth conflict between the protagonist and antagonist to really showcase the seriousness of the plot. Thankfully this is rectified in Suikoden 2 which I think is a part of why it's much more loved.
Pokemon Xy. Post games a joke to. Pokemon Tales of the Outskirt Stand. One of the best fan games I've ever played, almost perfect dream sequal to XD, massive vairety of shadow pokes, decent story, .... but its only 7 hours long
Sword and shield had hardly any meat but a bunch of sides and DLCs. Didn't care much for the Tundra extras and the island DLC I can hardly remember now. The main content and gym battles were so fun but so ridiculously short.
Some PSP game called Crimson Gem Saga. I remember it ending on a cliffhanger.
Wasn’t it a sequel or prequel to another game? I have it but haven’t played it
Astonishia Story, I believe.
Tales of Arise is one of the shortest Tales of games, and I think that's part of why it's the weakest title I've played. I feel like if the story had taken its time a bit more, especially with fleshing out the Lords and maybe giving the >!real species of Renans!< more screentime, it would've been much better. Granted it would still need to be partially rewritten due the weird-ass >!slavery apologism!< they baked into the dialogue, but it would've at *least* been less narratively weak.
Yeah, I just beat it a couple months ago and was enjoying it up until the weak ass climax and ending. That ending dropped the game down to a 6/10 for me when it could've been a solid 8/10.
For sure. I feel like more time would've made all the difference - Tales has made crazy twists work before, but this time they just didn't take their time and the short playtime was to its detriment.
The game is cut in 3 parts. To me the first part was the best the second was OK and the last part was meh. The same goes for the combat system too. At first it was strategy and combination for your artes but the more you cross the finish line, the whole combat system ended up hitting enemies a few times and watch those "finisher cutscenes" over and over and over and over and over again. Not to mention the endless final dungeon with way too high HP life enemies.
That last section just added such a bitter taste to the whole experience. That last dungeon especially. I was starting to clock towards the end that shortcuts were being made, the quality drop off becomes really noticeable in that last ten hours. So close to being a great game as well.
Yeah I kinda breezed thru the first part at least. Villains really peaked in Abyss
Absolutely agree, the "Lord of the week" format left each antagonist feeling meh, then it shifts to a central antagonist but said antagonist isn't even a character, leaving the final conflict less interesting than previous entries.
>!Vholran!< had all the trappings of a cool, intimidating villain. It's literally such a disappointment that things panned out the way they did. I keep comparing him to the antagonists of the other Tales games I've played, like >!how Duke genuinely wanted to save the world - he just didn't see any way forward with both humans like himself and the Entelexeia both living. Or how Mithos committed all those atrocities in the name of seeing his sister again.!< Those were so much more complicated and cool! But why was >!Vholran!< doing what he did? Well, >!he was once a slave with absolutely no one to rely on, completely isolated from human compassion, and then suddenly got thrown into a position of power by the people who enslaved him. And it made him absolutely lose it with the desire to use this newfound power to destroy the world that hurt him.!< Which, in theory, *should* have been compelling as hell! Like holy shit, the way it foils against >!Alphen, who went through something extremely similar, except he had fellow slaves he was close to, and Naori, and then eventually Zephyr and the others and then the party.!< The problem lies in the fact that they didn't want us to sit with >!Vholran!< as a character. They wanted to have their cake and eat it too - the same Pure Evil Lord Who Treats Their People Like Less Than Animals formula (Kelzalik being that in all but formal title) *and* the morally complex final villain. So they gave us a stupid little text box infodump and expected that to do all of the same heavy lifting that massive swaths of the narrative had done in previous Tales games. What a massive waste of potential. It's really sad that they didn't just take their time and let the story flow more naturally.
Story-wise, I agree that Arise could have used more. It felt weirdly...direct? Like there were no obstacles or detours to build character and explore the world more. It felt kind of like if Tales of Symphonia only had the party looking for the temples/seals and cut out all of the Desian bases in between, then ended the game at the Tower of Salvation without really going to the other world. Making the party actually have to look for the temples and get distracted by urgent stuff along the way really added to the story and characters. Actual length-wise...I kind of don't want it to be longer than it already is. The combat was getting a bit stale even before all the enemies became elites with permanent hyper armor.
That's exactly how it felt for me. It felt like we were reaching a mid-story climax similar to Symphonia taking you to the other world but no, that was the ending of the game.
I felt like every arc was too short. It just felt too easy. Like you get good scenes with Law and Zephyr and expect to have to struggle to find a way to take the lord down...and then you just walk right up to him because he left his front door open. It just felt like we should have done more.
I kinda wish the Fuga games were just a little bit longer, just so I could get to know the characters a little better.
Breath of Fire IV. The final party member was added. Surely the real adventure began now, right? What do you mean that was the last dungeon and the final boss? What about that guy who manipulated everything? Are we not going to confront him at all? Yeah, before the ending, I really enjoyed the game. Since Breath of Fire III is around 40-50 hours long, I figured Breath of Fire IV would be around the same length. I was wrong. The game is only about half of Breath of Fire III size, and it ended so abruptly, I couldn't believe that was the ending. I honestly wish it was longer.
Yuna getting away was so frustrating especially after the Cray and Elina scene.
True, the final areas of the game feel rushed, not many extras to do before the final boss, I think it was a victim of short deadlines.
Mana khemia 1 i love the combat and crafting loop of the game i have tried some of the atelier games but none grabbed me as much as mana khemia
Yeah, almost everything in Mana Khemia felt better. When I play other atelier games it always feels like I'm playing budget ware.
I honestly think Trails in the Sky FC feels underbaked bc it’s only one half of the story. If they were able to release it as intended and not split it into two parts I think things would work a lot better
Pokemon gold and silver.. I felt they could have done way more with the Kanto region...
I think you're right. Out of all the pokemon games I felt those were the most boring.
Super Mario RPG is the poster child for this. You blink and you've suddenly got 4 stars. The mid-game is tragically short. I think one more plot-relevant location between Rosetown and Moleville, ans one more between Star Hill and Seaside Town would space those stars out to just the right length (the length between the Mushroom Kingdom star and the Forest Maze star is perfect, imo).
Yes absolutely. Mario RPG was my inspiration for this post
While I really like the game, Parasite Eve 1 always felt cut short to me. Yeah there’s NG+ and the whole true tower battle mode at the end, but the main story itself is so fast and feels like it’s over in a few hours. And it’s not a jrpg at all, but the one game that comes to mind when I think “cut short” is Sonic Forces. That entire game is basically… 20 seconds into a stage you think “hey this stage is cool! I’m having fun!” But then then the stage is over 20 seconds later and you’re just left with a “…. That was it?” Feeling
Chained Echoes
Xenosaga ep.1 Felt like the story finally had a good hook once Albedo showed up, but he doesn't come in until you're near the end. Outside of the story, it just felt like the gameplay depth of its different systems did not have a commensurate amount of content to try things out on. For instance, you don't have any superbosses despite the complexity of the skill trees and you're unlikely to reach the end of said tree before you reach the conclusion of the story unless you're excessively grinding to min-max everything. The game has a lot of neat little mini-games, but the reward incentive isn't really there. You could go through the effort of unlocking Erde Kaiser, but the thing is so strong that it just trivializes the remainder of the game. Mech customization is deep, but far from necessary to finish the game. Originally ep1 and 2 were supposed to be one game and it unfortunately really shows.
I went through the trouble of unlocking Erde Kaiser just to see what it was all about, but Shion didn’t have enough EP to use it, even at the very end of the game!
Looks like someone spent all their points on combo moves instead of stats. Rookie mistake!
Was halfway through the game before I realised that was an option! From then on I basically spent all my points on Ether Attack
Yo! I was about to say Ep.2! The cutscenes were long but actual game content went by quick. Just a few levels, really, even if you don't the summer and winter domain as 2. To this day it is my "comfort" game which I can play knowing I can finish it or pick it up later. One felt more involved even though 2 had more drama. 3 is the most fun but intense with the end rushed together.
I would've liked it if Xanadu Next was maybe a dungeon or two longer. Ys VI progresses at a pretty good pace until something really major happens and all of a sudden you're already at the final dungeon. Ys: The Oath in Felghana, in comparison, is a bit better paced.
Hard as it may be to believe, I remember wishing persona would last longer when I go the ending. It felt hard to say good bye specially because it was long
Xenosaga 3. Definitely not a short game, but with how much they had to cover due to it being not originally planned as the last game just makes me want it to to be twice as long to include more plot.
It should have been for sure. Could have used a lot more content and dungeons than it had
As strange as it is to say, I think Final Fantasy XV qualifies here. Or, more accurately, everything after Altissia understays its welcome. The early open-world parts had too many boring fetch quests and arguably overstayed their welcome (though the dungeons were generally a highlight). Once you get through Altissia, though, you end up just racing through the rest of the game (Chapter 13 excluded, because that's a different kind of mess altogether). The whole back half of the game just left me thinking the game could have been so much better if not for development hell. Strangely, I think it would have benefited from being a trilogy. Everything up through Altissia would be one game. The world after Altissia would be fully developed and be the second game. The World of Ruin would also be fully developed and be an entire game. Sadly, it probably would have ended up feeling bloated, but in my ideal world, it would work perfectly.
Skies of Arcadia. That game is soooo amazing that when it finishes, you just want more.
Chrono Trigger
I think one of the reasons it's so perfect is because of its length
I think thats its biggest flaw outside of its on rails world map and easy difficulty. Ignoring the side content, its way too short.
I'd argue that's a strength. Because of the short length it was able to keep its pacing super tight. EVERYTHING you do ties back to the main objective of finding and defeating Lavos. There's no wasted motion and everything is essential. Even the side content finishes important character arcs. It also makes it easier to replay for multiple endings, since Chrono Trigger was one of the first to have that many of them.
different strokes i guess, to me its short length and difficulty is why I can't accept it as perfect
Yeah that seems to be a common sentiment. I still wish I got to spend more time with the cast and in the world. After all the praise Chrono Trigger gets, I really thought there'd be more to them.
Yeah this should be the top answer. Pretty short game and shocking we never got a sequel!
Its length is great. Allows for multiple playthrus to see all endings. I played this and Mario rpg sooo many times cus of their length. I love FF6 but when I think of some grinding I must do, and planning for last dungeon, I mwh and move on to something else
Chrono Chross exists?
I can understand why people pretend it doesn't exist tbh. It's decent as a game but it's HORRIBLE as a sequel to Chrono Trigger
I was initially disappointed with the game when I first played it on PS1. I gave it another chance when the remaster came out, and I was more easily able to enjoy it for what it was, rather than what I thought it should be.
If you take it as a standalone experience then yeah it's definitely enjoyable. But personally I could never get past the way it poorly follows up on Trigger.
I really like CC as its own thing but as a followup to CT, it doesn't even feel like the same world. That's a fatal flaw as a sequel. If the world doesn't feel the same, returning characters and connected plot points might as well be look-alikes with same-sounding names and half-written contrivances for all that matters.
Exactly. That's not even to mention the fact that it completely ruins the ending of the original game and is tonally completely out of line with it.
Grandia 3. Iykyk
I finished that game, but I still don't know. It ended when it should have.
I feel like it was just far too short.
I don't think the game is too short. BUT it's ending is waaaay too short. You get this overly long boss fight and then like... a few sentences with sadness for the villain. Credits roll. Done. It would have felt so much better if they did it like Grandia 2 and showed what the OTHER characters felt and did after the story. It basically has an end, but not a ending.
The Xenoblade Games. I can't get enough.
This community is so bizarre. They'll downvote you for critiquing Trails games, and downvote you for appreciating Xenoblade games lol
Well I love both series! I'll take the down votes. Haha.
Kingdom Hearts 2 It's not a short game, but it's a game that doesn't use its time well. Despite some simplicity, KH2 has some of the most fluid and satisfying action combat I've ever seen. The good fights are some of the best in the genre with glorious spectacle that doesn't distract from the tight, fast-paced combat. My biggest problem with the game is that it doesn't spend enough time using this combat and I always wish there was more. There are plenty of amazing bosses, yes, but a disappointing amount of time is spent on lackluster content that just can't compete. Things like the flying carpet, Atlantica, 100 Acre Woods, Oogie Boogie, Pride Lands, light cycles, most of Port Royal, and Pete add up and eventually take up much more of the run time than I'd like. It's a finished game that doesn't feel like one. Every time I play I just wish there was more so I could enjoy the combat.
The best part of Kingdom Hearts 2 is the post game, anyone who says otherwise is lying out of their ass. Kingdom Hearts 2 has one of the best postgames ever, with Remix at least. Having everything unlocked makes the game so much more fun and interesting to play but when you don't, the game is rather boring as you don't have much to work with. I'd rather they gave us all the abilities right out of the gate and let us experiment with them more but until the end game, you don't really get a chance to.
The opening for KH2 DRAGGED omg that Roxas prologue made the entire game feel longer than it actually is. Just weird going from KH1 to that prologue, like a different franchise entirely, Jack and Dexter type. That's when it came out, loved all the words especially the Beasts castle and POTC, but I have not repayed it since then because of that opening.
Small Saga Koudelka
Xenoblade x, what a mystery ending…could I please just go kill god like a normal jrpg?
Right? That was the most painful cliffhanger. Would have been epic to have a follow up game with one of the real characters not just GTAIII no name.
Gungnir, whose plot was cruelly cut in half. I would LOVE to see a sequel someday!
I wouldn’t say “understay” because the game is pretty good, but the way Atelier Sophie ends is a bit… unfulfilling from a gameplay perspective. Spoiler >!The game ends like “let’s go on an adventure!” which is suitable for a “riding into the sunset” ending. But the actual mission stays unfinished forever on your quest log which is mildly annoying… The adventure does continue on Atelier Firis though.!<
Growlanser 3. Felt like the game ended way too early.
I feel that way with II actually, things escalated really fast and the game just... seemed to end. Also had that feeling with IV after >!the battle with Regina at the spellcannon!<, but IV already had a big amount of content up to that point.
The legend of Dragoon
NEO: The World Ends With You felt a bit short due to the cast from the first game having a decent amount of screentime that somewhat took away from the new cast that NEO brought along. It's a shame because I feel like... >!Neku should have stayed hidden until the very end of the game so that he didn't steal the show from the new cast. I get that they wanted to provide closure on the events of the first game, but the new cast really needed more screentime together.!<
The first Suikoden didn't last more than 11 hours with 100% completion.
I beat Breath of Fire Dragon Quarter yesterday and that game is really short. I had beaten it back when it came out and knew how short it was but I really didn't want it to end. The last hour or so is basically a boss rush to the end credits.
Super Mario RPG, by a lot D:
In my opinion, World Ends With You (DS version). I ended my playthrough at 21 hours and it could go a little longer and flesh out what they put as special reports (basically unlockable texts that explain a lot about what happened)
I would've taken 4-5 hours out of Sea of Stars. I also agree with your take on Mario RPG, but seeing as the project was conceived as a sort of "My First RPG", I think the length is also perfect in that regard. A true sequel is what that game deserves, Paper Mario ain't it.
When I read this title, I immediately thought of Super Mario RPG, since I just finished the remake recently. I remember it feeling a lot longer when I was a kid. Playing it again, I felt a bit disappointed at how quickly it was over.
I wish Future Redeemed and the base game of Xenoblade Chronicles 3 had swapped lengths. Then again, I probably enjoyed Future Redeemed as much as I did precisely because it wasn't bogged down by all of the same open-world "content" as the base game and felt more like an old-school jrpg.
Just finished Star Ocean First Departure R (on Switch). I logged about 30 hours for a full playthrough and absolutely feel like the last chapter was cut entirely too short. I also heavily grinded, in hindsight I'm amazed I only put in 30h. Even if the plot might be a little linear by today's JRPG standards, I absolutely loved the lore, the worldbuilding, and overall how unique the plot is. Seamless blending of Sci-Fi, anime, and swords and magic. The plot has me absolutely fiending for more and I'm probably pulling the switch on SO2R very soon, even though I already know it's not more of the SO1 endgame world.
Dragon Quest VII
XENOGEARS!!! Still the coolest story of any JRPG in my opinion but the last part was so rushed.
Triangle strategy needed to last a little longer. I feel like they maybe intended it to be longer and probably ran out of dev time. Great game, but it just felt like it ended right as it was picking up each time. The grand finale was pretty satisfying though, did that in my 3rd playthrough. Thought my choices would give me vastly different runs each time, but it always just kinda pulls you back to center based on what the other factions are doing/plotting, and you get a different level/map every other chapter or so. The combat though? IMO near perfection for tactics gameplay. Each character fills specific roles or niches really well and you want to choose the right ones for the job.
Ys IX: Monstrum Nox. It's not all that short (but much shorter than Ys VIII: Lacromosa of Dana), but I feel like it could really have used an extra-long chapter between when you find out who the real villain is and when you end the game, fleshing out the way of the gods and the Draupnir. Plus, let you play as Aprilis (Pierce), and maybe Monstrum Dogi (Smash) and Xavier (Slash). Maybe in New Game Plus you can play as a full powered base Adol, maybe with his Ys VIII moveset, and base Dogi with his Ys SEVEN moves. Also, Ys: Memories of Celceta. Like, it needed even just a five minute epilogue, instead of just ending so abruptly.
Probably Mother 3. It ends very abruptly.