The Official PS2 RPG Thread

Krymner

Krymner

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Cause many of the great RPGs are on the PS2 it seems.

Almost finished with Xenosaga 2. Just got past the part where
that big-ass thing explodes from the planet.
That was pretty cool. I'm probably gonna skip all the sidequests, but I know I do need to grind a little for some skill points now.

Anyone know what kinds of things transfer over to Episode 3 from 2? I think the only thing that I got in this one that transferred from my Episode 1 save file was some swimsuits or something...
 
Can I make a suggestion? Re-watch the end of the ending (the part during the credits) of Episode I before you get to the ending of Episode II. Remembering certain lines from the first really makes it better.
 
PS2 has some of my favorites, I think we had a thread like this already actually.

My favorites:

Tales of the Abyss
Valkyrie Profile 2
SMT Nocturne

My favorites (widely disliked):

Radiata Stories
Breath of Fire V
 
Ive got Digital Devil Saga sitting on my shelf, im just too lazy to play it right now.

And i need to beat Final Fantasy XII, after not touching for almost a good 2 years. I cant tell you where im at right now, ive long forgotten...
 
Let's see, I've got a bunch of PS2 RPGs going. I tend to switch around a lot rather than play one game all the way through before starting the next one. Persona 3 FES and Wild ARMs 5 are getting most of my time recently. I'm also partway through Dragon Quest VIII, Final Fantasy X-2, and Xenosaga Episode I. I'd have to say that Final Fantasy XII is the best thing I've played on the system, and one of my favorite games of all time.
 
I played the shit out of FFX when it came out.
Been playing Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga and liking it a lot. Kinda more on the hard side of RPG's but I guess most the SMT games are like that. I like the story a lot though, and the mature rating makes it more interesting.
I still want to play through FFXII, but I still havent had time to pop it in.
 
I beat DDS2 this summer, it took me years. I got it back maybe 3 years ago and I played maybe for 17 hours at first. Then I grew bored, every couple of months I would try playing it again and get up to the next story part and after I would start the next 'dungeon' I would grow bored again. That game was hard as hell as far as far as RPGs go.

Anyway, over all I really liked it but damn, the grinding gets to you. Everything else is excellent.
 
I have only started back into RPGs this past year, and so far since June I have played thru:

Final Fantasy X -- it was good (but not my favorite FF)
Final Fantasy X2 -- loved the combat and class system
Xenosaga Ep 1 -- rather enjoyed it, despite the long cutscenes
Xenosaga Ep 2 -- not as good as Ep 1 but still enjoying it
Persona 3: FES (The Journey) -- loved it...still got The Answer to finish tho

Backlogged PS2 RPGs:

Xenosaga Ep 3
Final Fantasy XII
Dragon Quest VIII
SMT: Nocturne
Tales of the Abyss
Star Ocean: TtEoT
Breath of Fire V: DQ
 
Most of my own backlog is PS2 RPGs, though I've only played two of them this year - Disgaea 2 and Wild ARMs 5. The rest should last me a good long while:

- Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter
- Persona 3 FES
- Radiata Stories
- Rogue Galaxy
- Samurai Legend Musashi (thankfully, I hear this one's fairly short)
- SMT: Digital Devil Saga
- SMT: Digital Devil Saga 2
- SMT: Nocturne
- Soul Nomad & the World Eaters
- Suikoden V
- Tales of Legendia
- Tales of the Abyss
- Valkyrie Profile 2

As for the ones I have beat, I thought that gameplay-wise, Disgaea 2 was an improvement over the original Disgaea, but the story and characters didn't click with me nearly as well. Wild ARMs 5 was, I thought, severely flawed.

I also want to re-play Dragon Quest VIII at some point (which is probably my pick for best turn-based RPG on the system), but don't know when I'll find the time to do that.
 
[quote name='blueshinra']Wild ARMs 5 was, I thought, severely flawed.[/quote]
What don't you like about WA5? I'm having a lot of fun with it.
 
[quote name='blueshinra']Most of my own backlog is PS2 RPGs, though

- Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter
- Persona 3 FES
- Radiata Stories
- Rogue Galaxy
- Samurai Legend Musashi (thankfully, I hear this one's fairly short)
- SMT: Digital Devil Saga
- SMT: Digital Devil Saga 2
- SMT: Nocturne
- Soul Nomad & the World Eaters
- Suikoden V
- Tales of Legendia
- Tales of the Abyss
- Valkyrie Profile 2
[/quote]

That's quite a backlog, Blue. Almost overwhelming. And here I thought my own RPG backlog was bad.

My goal is to get thru at least 2 more PS2 RPGs from my backlog finished up by the end of the year. One of those 2 will be Xenosaga Ep 3, but I still haven't decided which other one yet.
 
[quote name='Ryuukishi']What don't you like about WA5? I'm having a lot of fun with it.[/QUOTE]
I thought it was just really, really mediocre for an RPG made when it was. The story was pretty cliched, which I would expect, but a lot of the dialogue I found to be badly worded or redundant. The dungeons were repetitive, the world map graphics were muddy, the platforming bits were fiddly, and the music was bland. I did like the battle system, though, and the character and monster designs weren't bad.

It was okay, but it had the potential to be so much more.

[quote name='Krymner']That's quite a backlog, Blue. Almost overwhelming. And here I thought my own RPG backlog was bad.

My goal is to get thru at least 2 more PS2 RPGs from my backlog finished up by the end of the year. One of those 2 will be Xenosaga Ep 3, but I still haven't decided which other one yet.[/QUOTE]
I stocked up earlier this year >_>; Got quite a few good suggestions from fellow CAGs, too. Most of the work I do is freelance, so RPGs are a good way to pass the time when I'm not working.

Don't know if I'll play any more of these for the rest of the year, though if I do, I'm currently leaning towards Tales of Legendia or BoF: Dragon Quarter.
 
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[quote name='blueshinra']

- Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter
- Persona 3 FES
- Radiata Stories
- Rogue Galaxy
- Samurai Legend Musashi (thankfully, I hear this one's fairly short)
- SMT: Digital Devil Saga
- SMT: Digital Devil Saga 2
- SMT: Nocturne
- Soul Nomad & the World Eaters
- Suikoden V
- Tales of Legendia
- Tales of the Abyss
- Valkyrie Profile 2

[/quote]

Looking at your list reminds me of a few games I still need to buy. Anyone have an opinion on Soul Nomad?
 
[quote name='mlisette23']Looking at your list reminds me of a few games I still need to buy. Anyone have an opinion on Soul Nomad?[/quote]


I liked it. Not quite as deep or challenging as Disgaea, but pretty similar. Its a lot easier to become insanely powerful.
 
I started playing thru Persona 3 FES: The Answer, and don't get me wrong, I love the game, its just I think its been too soon since I played The Journey and its kinda hard for me to get into now. I'll give it a couple more days to see if my motivation holds.

Anyone get Eternal Sonata for PS3 yet? I'm really hoping that there will be a price drop on this after the holidays. I want to support JRPGs on the triple. I've already got Valkyria Chronicles pre-ordered, so I'll definatly pick that one up day 1.
 
[quote name='Krymner']That's quite a backlog, Blue. Almost overwhelming. And here I thought my own RPG backlog was bad.

My goal is to get thru at least 2 more PS2 RPGs from my backlog finished up by the end of the year. One of those 2 will be Xenosaga Ep 3, but I still haven't decided which other one yet.[/quote]

You think that backlog is bad, I've got like 40+ PS2 RPGs in my backlog. I think I added about 20 of them over the summer using Gamestop credit. I'm pretty overwhelmed by my backlog, but I'm comforted by the fact that the games all averaged under $10, and many of them I didn't even spend cash on.
 
Damn, Rave Child. That's a crapload of RPGs to play. It would take me years to go thru 40+ RPGs, unless I quit my job and ignored my girlfriend.
Two things I've given at least some thought to, btw. ;)

But I'm almost done with Persona 3: The Answer. I've just got 2 more doors to go thru.

Playing thru it has really gotten me more hyped for Persona 4, which still seems to be the last great PS2 RPG. Or does anyone else think there will be more RPGs coming? P4 and Ar Tonelico 2 are the last ones as far as I can tell.
 
Beat Dark Cloud 2, Drakan, and Dragon Quest 8 in the past few months. All solid titles and very much enjoyed! Currently playiing Yakuza... :cold:
 
Valkyrie Profile 2 is the first RPG i have picked up in 3 years and I have fallen back in love with RPGs.

I've found now that I have a very stressful job that they seem to take me out of my crap world unlike other game types. First time my 360 has been cold for over 2 weeks since i bought it.
 
[quote name='Krymner']Damn, Rave Child. That's a crapload of RPGs to play. It would take me years to go thru 40+ RPGs, unless I quit my job and ignored my girlfriend.
Two things I've given at least some thought to, btw. ;)

But I'm almost done with Persona 3: The Answer. I've just got 2 more doors to go thru.

Playing thru it has really gotten me more hyped for Persona 4, which still seems to be the last great PS2 RPG. Or does anyone else think there will be more RPGs coming? P4 and Ar Tonelico 2 are the last ones as far as I can tell.[/quote]

I know, I'm pretty sure I'll never get to them all, but I do split my collection with my brother, so I'll be happy if at least one of us can get to them. Plus I don't have any current gen consoles (or a girlfriend) to slow me down. Now if only it weren't for this pesky job...

I think my real problem is that I bought all/most of these this summer expecting them to become pretty tough to find in the future as places carry fewer and fewer PS2 games. So I'll stockpile, but then I'll get into a rut where I don't play anything for like a month, when I could be knocking off 2-3 games in that time. I just finished up a busier season, though, so I'm going to finally finish up FFXII this week, then tackle Persona 3: FES before playing Persona 4.
 
[quote name='Krymner']Playing thru it has really gotten me more hyped for Persona 4, which still seems to be the last great PS2 RPG. Or does anyone else think there will be more RPGs coming? P4 and Ar Tonelico 2 are the last ones as far as I can tell.[/quote]
Persona 4 will be the last (relatively) big-name, (relatively) big-budget JRPG for the PS2, I'd agree with that. But the low-budget, super-niche stuff (think Eternal Poison and Chaos Wars) will continue to be pumped out for quite some time, and I think that Atlus and NISA will keep bringing them over here as long as there's even a small profit to be made. I'll be surprised if we don't get Mana Khemia 2 and even the just-announced Sacred Blaze.
 
yea there are tons of JRPG that are already out in Japan that NISA or Atlus could bring over. Seeing how there arent that many Xbox 360 or PS3 games to localize, i could see them releasing a few more PS2 RPG.
 
Especially since Atlus has been smacked down every time they've localized an Xbox 360 game, while their PS2 titles are mostly successful. I'll bet they are realizing that while the overall gaming world has moved on to the next generation, their specific audience is still pretty happy on the PS2.
 
Sacred Blaze looks sweet, Ryuukishi. I hope that does come over here.

I'm kinda surprised that no one is porting some of those unlocalized PS2 JRPGs to the Wii. While I think they would still sell good on the PS2, there's no denying that the Wii is really hurting for RPGs, and I think the market is there for them. Maybe Atlus and some of the others will take a closer look after Tales of Symphonia 2 is released over here and providing it sells really well.

Besides that, I think you're right about those niche RPGs, especially now since the PS2 is an open platform to develop for, but I just don't see many of them coming stateside. Maybe if they sell really well overseas, but even then its probably gonna be a toss-up.


[quote name='Rave Child']
I think my real problem is that I bought all/most of these this summer expecting them to become pretty tough to find in the future as places carry fewer and fewer PS2 games. So I'll stockpile, but then I'll get into a rut where I don't play anything for like a month, when I could be knocking off 2-3 games in that time. I just finished up a busier season, though, so I'm going to finally finish up FFXII this week, then tackle Persona 3: FES before playing Persona 4.[/quote]

I agree that some of the PS2 RPGs will start getting harder to locate, especially new. I'm trying to get a collection together myself, focusing mainly on the ones that are already somewhat difficult-to-find.
 
[quote name='Krymner']
I agree that some of the PS2 RPGs will start getting harder to locate, especially new. I'm trying to get a collection together myself, focusing mainly on the ones that are already somewhat difficult-to-find.[/QUOTE]

I use to do that but then after getting a decent collection going I realized that I would never have time to play all of them and sold them here on and on ebay. Now if I get the desire to play a PS2 RPG I just go search for it and pay a higher price if needed...seems better than it just sitting on my shelf unused (IMO). :)
 
[quote name='Krymner']I agree that some of the PS2 RPGs will start getting harder to locate, especially new. I'm trying to get a collection together myself, focusing mainly on the ones that are already somewhat difficult-to-find.[/quote]
Care to collaborate on a list? I've been basically doing the same thing, and I'd be curious to see what you've got that I may have missed.

"Somewhat difficult to find new" PS2 RPGs

Ar tonelico: Melody of Elemia [limited edition w/ artbook]
.hack//MUTATION
.hack//QUARANTINE
Magna Carta
Shadow Hearts
Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga [limited edition deluxe box]
Stella Deus

I guess it depends on exactly what we mean by difficult to find. I'd define it as a game that's either hard to find at all, or not hard to find but you'd have to pay significantly more than the original MSRP. Anything else you'd add?
 
[quote name='Ryuukishi']Care to collaborate on a list? I've been basically doing the same thing, and I'd be curious to see what you've got that I may have missed.

"Somewhat difficult to find new" PS2 RPGs

Ar tonelico: Melody of Elemia [limited edition w/ artbook]
.hack//MUTATION
.hack//QUARANTINE
Magna Carta
Shadow Hearts
Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga [limited edition deluxe box]
Stella Deus

I guess it depends on exactly what we mean by difficult to find. I'd define it as a game that's either hard to find at all, or not hard to find but you'd have to pay significantly more than the original MSRP. Anything else you'd add?[/QUOTE]

I got all those games factory sealed :)

but if you dont mind a used copy they are not too hard to find.
 
its practically impossible to find a brand new sealed Persona 3 or growlanser generation, and hitting up ebay is too painful
 
[quote name='mowmow']its practically impossible to find a brand new sealed Persona 3 or growlanser generation, and hitting up ebay is too painful[/quote]
GameQuestDirect sells Growlanser Generations for $50, and since the release of FES, the price of Persona 3 on eBay has gone down quite a bit, even for sealed copies. You could probably get one shipped for around $65 pretty easy-- more than MSRP but not outrageous.
 
GameQuestDirect is a great source for several hard-to-find PS2 RPGs.

AND

It looks like there's gonna be some reprints on a few hard-to-find Atlus titles coming up soon. GQD is taking pre-orders for several now for a Nov. 25 release:

SMT: Digital Devil Saga Deluxe Box Set $69.99
SMT: Nocturne $59.99
Disgaea 2 $54.99
Makai Kingdom $39.99

These all seem a bit overpriced IMO. I'm hoping there will be a CAG deal like GQD sometimes does for us with reprints. Getting the DDS boxed set for about $40 would be sweet, even if it is a reprint.
 
Does anyone anticipate the new Kingdom Hearts game being rare or hard to find at all? One the one hand, KH and KH2 became Greatest Hits and are still easily available in the $15-20 range. On the other hand, the PS2's life is winding down and print runs are going to be smaller, plus this is more of a spinoff than a main series game so Square may be anticipating a smaller audience. I'm not sure if I should put it on the backburner and wait for a price drop, or just go ahead and pick it up for $30 when I have the chance.
 
[quote name='depascal22']I'm thinking P4 will be the last great PS2 RPG. Atlus and NIS might release more but I don't know if any of them will be good.[/QUOTE]

we said the same thing a year ago about persona 3. Hopefully something will surprise us
 
It would be great if some new developer came out of left field and blew us away with a great RPG. It looks like Sony is really allowing the PS2 to become an indie dev's dream.
 
Hmm damn guys if you really wanan know my collection of PS2 RPGS....
Xenosaga 1-3
VAlkyrie Profile 2
All the ratchet and clanks(sort of RPG-ish right?)
suikoden 3 and 5
Shadow Hearts 2
Disqaea 1
Odin Sphere
FF X
FF XII
DQ 8
Roque Galaxy
and I'm thinking about getting the Dark Cloud series
and probably most likely the Kingdom Hearts Series.
 
Are the Shadow Hearts series of RPGs really that good? The third one can still be found new for cheap, but 1 and 2 seem to be holding some value, even used.
 
I did not love the SH's like everyone else did. I thought the side quests were very well done, though.

Anyway Krymner, what'd you think of the end of Xeno 2?
 
The end of Xeno 2 was good. I did like Xeno 1 ending a little more because there was more action and suspense, whereas Xeno 2 had a more drama-intensive ending. I'm really looking forward to playing Xenosaga 3, but I probably won't get around to it until after Persona 4.
 
I did not like Xeno 1 at all. I liked the idea behind KOS-MOS but I lost interest after the first couple hours of viewing, I mean playing.
 
[quote name='depascal22']I did not like Xeno 1 at all. I liked the idea behind KOS-MOS but I lost interest after the first couple hours of viewing, I mean playing.[/quote]

:lol:
 
[quote name='depascal22']I did not like Xeno 1 at all. I liked the idea behind KOS-MOS but I lost interest after the first couple hours of viewing, I mean playing.[/QUOTE]
I ended up playing Xeno 1 through to the end, but feel much the same way. Thirty minute cutscenes are one thing, but they also felt even longer than that and were way too frequent in general, plus the gameplay, while decent, wasn't good enough to make up for it.
 
[quote name='pete5883']I did not love the SH's like everyone else did.

[/quote]

SACRILEGE!

Easily one of the best RPG series on the PS2 in my opinion. Namely because you can't just mindlessly hit X thoughout the game. You actually have to stay awake to play.
 
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