Current Events > Of these JRPG series I've never played, which one should I try?

(+) Yeah! (+)

Feel like playing a jrpg series Ive never played before

Trails is peak, but start with the Sky trilogy (as in the whole trilogy, no you should not skip Sky 3rd)

Trails! Trails!

Ys is great, too.

I've only ever played Tales of Berseria, and I liked it.

Curious about this topic, as Ive never played any of them as well

Trails.

I've never played them but the only one I have played (Tales) I wouldn't really recommend tbh.

I like Abyss and Vesperia, but Phantasia and Symphonia and Destiny all had among the worst pacing I've ever seen and all three of them I borderline gave up on halfway as a result.

Xenoblade

I can't say enough good things about the Ys series. Awesome gameplay, some of the best soundtracks ever, fantastic boss battles, and you can play the games in any order you like.

All 3 are great series with a bunch of games, but keep in mind that the Trails games need to be played in the right order to properly experience it. Where as Ys and Tales you can start with any game because they're all stand alone stories.

trails is amazing but all of the games are very long and text heavy so if that's a turnoff keep it in mind

ys is fun and has amazing music but if you're looking for plot you won't find much here

tales is probably the most bland and uninteresting of the long lasting jrpg flagship series, avoid

what about tales of symphonia

I think Trails is absolutely top tier but it is a really heavy investment where you really need to play all of them where as say Tales you can pretty much just get a stand alone game and cast much like Final Fantasy. Also much like Final Fantasy every game is so debated on which is the best, which is the worst. You never get a consensus on which game you should play. I love some Tales games, others not so much and my experience will be opposite someone else's.

I think Tales or Y's is your best bet that isn't such a monumental task.

Jagus posted...

Xenoblade

Ive never played this either, but ive already decided Im going to get it eventually too. The other 3 I'm still learning about.

And yes, I read about how the Trails series is basically a continuing story, and the best place to start is apparently either the Sky game or the Cold Steel games.

Trails. It took me about 4 months to play them all in order.

Tales only has like three games worth playing and even they're just kind of okay. Didn't play the other two series but picked Trails because I don't think I've ever heard anything bad about them.

Boombam99 posted...

Ive never played this either, but ive already decided Im going to get it eventually too. The other 3 I'm still learning about.

And yes, I read about how the Trails series is basically a continuing story, and the best place to start is apparently either the Sky game or the Cold Steel games.

Should note with regards to this, that the first Sky game at least (there are 3 of them in total) is getting a Remake pretty soon with updated graphics/a less dated battle system. So you could either start at Cold Steel and loop back to those, or if you already have the original 3 then you can run through those for systems parity.

Going with Trails. It's great, just play them in order.

Admittedly, I've only played Ys 8, but I loved it. Can't speak for the rest.

Tales is IMO the most inconsistent in terms of quality. There are some fantastic ones like Vesperia, Berseria, and the Xillias, but I kind of hated entries like Graces and Arise.

Ys for sure
Tales is a mediocre series overall but it has some good ones
the trails series praise has never been something I've understood, those games are ass

Trails is consistently great.

Tales of can be kind of hit or miss.

Aysander posted...

So you could either start at Cold Steel and loop back to those, or if you already have the original 3 then you can run through those for systems parity.

I'm not sure about this one, I've been told Cold Steel spoilers events from the Crossbell games and I would imagine it spoils events from Sky as well, but you really can't start with Trails from Zero (the first Crossbell game) because that's halfway to being Trails in the Sky 4, so (shrug).

Also Trails in the Sky SC and 3rd probably aren't getting remade anytime soon, so I think it's best to just suck it up and start with Trails in the Sky FC.

I dont want to play any Trails games until that series is completed. Its like One Piece theres just too much to jump in new and its all basically relevant.

I've yet to play Ys but I say Trails. It has the best world building I've seen in any media ever. I'm not exaggerating at all, it is that good and consistent.

Tales is very average overall.

CreekCo posted...

I dont want to play any Trails games until that series is completed.

The overall myth arc might not be complete but it's not like the series hasn't resolved anything.

With regards to the Trails games since everyone is saying to play them in order, are the only (legal) ways to play the first few games in the series on out-of-print PSP & PS3 games?

The_Popo posted...

With regards to the Trails games since everyone is saying to play them in order, are the only (legal) ways to play the first few games in the series on out-of-print PSP & PS3 games?

The entire series is available on Steam. You can also buy all of the games on any modern console, but Sky 1, 2, and 3 are stuck on PC, probably because of XSEED. CS1 and 2 never got released on Switch except in Japan either.

The_Popo posted...

With regards to the Trails games since everyone is saying to play them in order, are the only (legal) ways to play the first few games in the series on out-of-print PSP & PS3 games?

No the whole franchise is on steam and all new releases are also on steam at the same time as console.

Only exception is the mobile exclusive gacha

The Ys series is fantastic and I highly recommend it. (Though the series does have a few misses.)
The Tales series is all over the place, some great games and some poor ones, but in my experience they're all kind of long and exhausting.
I've never played Trials, but I've heard good things.

I have no experience with Ys, so I can't comment there.

For Trails, I've only played the Sky series. They're really, really good, but also an absolutely monstrous undertaking. 2nd in particular has one of the longest main stories in any JRPG I've ever played and a hefty pile of side quests, 1st and 3rd are no slouches in that regard either, and you really need to play at least both 1st and 2nd to wrap up the arc...except they also all set up some big questions for the Trails world at large. All that to say, I wouldn't call it a series you can just casually try. Well worth it if you're ready for the commitment, though~

As for Tales, I've been a Tales fangirl since Symphonia. And this one is a lot easier to just pick an entry and jump in. Some are direct sequels to others, some take place in the same world as others, but as a whole, the series is mostly unconnected outside of references and such. If I had to recommend a specific entry, I'd probably choose Tales of the Abyss. I'd say it has the strongest story of the Tales games I've played, and only Vesperia really beats it for gameplay (but loses hard on story).

SydnieStarlight posted...

For Trails, I've only played the Sky series. They're really, really good, but also an absolutely monstrous undertaking. 2nd in particular has one of the longest main stories in any JRPG I've ever played and a hefty pile of side quests, 1st and 3rd are no slouches in that regard either, and you really need to play at least both 1st and 2nd to wrap up the arc...except they also all set up some big questions for the Trails world at large. All that to say, I wouldn't call it a series you can just casually try. Well worth it if you're ready for the commitment, though~

Yeah, the commitment is the biggest obstacle to entry with Trails, but the fun of spotting continuity threads and foreshadowing established multiple games in advance is an absolute blast.

If you just wanna dip your toe into the water and see if it's worth it, probably just play Sky FC and SC. 3rd works as a stand-alone story, but it also dedicates a lot of material into building up events in later games.

Also it's such a relief to see somebody else who just wasn't enthused by Tales of Vesperia's writing.

Of those three series it's hard to go wrong, but I'm a sucker for the Tales of games.

Metal_Gear_Raxis posted...

Yeah, the commitment is the biggest obstacle to entry with Trails, but the fun of spotting continuity threads and foreshadowing established multiple games in advance is an absolute blast.

I flipped my shit honestly when Halle showed up in Daybreak.

I instantly recognized the outfit before they even said anything and was like "nah there's no way they remembered this bit that showed up for like 10 seconds 8 games ago" but it actually happened.

Tyranthraxus posted...

I flipped my shit honestly when Halle showed up in Daybreak.

I instantly recognized the outfit before they even said anything and was like "nah there's no way they remembered this bit that showed up for like 10 seconds 8 games ago" but it actually happened.

Now I just wished they'd knock it off with Anton. I've only suffered him in Zero and I hated every moment the big dope was on screen.

Tales.

All are great series regardless though.

I loved Symphonia, as well as Vesperia, Berseria, and Graces. I liked Abyss but found it was all over the place

Trails has some amazing titles, but it does have quite a few cliches the games themselves will acknowledge. Very dialogue heavy with lots of lore. Love the background NPCs progressing along with the story.

Ys is mainly action over story (which is still perfectly fine) and really prioritizes the "adventure" aspect among the three mentioned.

SydnieStarlight posted...

For Trails, I've only played the Sky series. They're really, really good, but also an absolutely monstrous undertaking. 2nd in particular has one of the longest main stories in any JRPG I've ever played and a hefty pile of side quests

SC has absolutely nothing on Reverie, which is about 120 hours, and it has no side quests at all.

Getting into Trails is one of the best gaming decisions I've ever made

You should play Ys if only so you can realize its not a JRPG in the slightest