A turn-based JRPG with the highest difficulty peaks

JRPGs from the 80s and 90s usually didn't have difficulty levels. To get better, players simply had to level up their characters, and some JRPGs were better than others when it came to balance. To improve these days, leveling up is still usually the way to get stronger, but many JRPGs now have difficulty levels as well, which helps bring in more players.

Even games that are better balanced or have difficulty levels can unexpectedly turn into an unfair area of ​​challenges. These are some of the best examples of games that aren't necessarily impossible to beat, but have spikes in difficulty that come out of nowhere.

Final Fantasy 10 HD

Beware of the Dark Aeons

original Final Fantasy 10 it had some spikes in difficulty, or at least there were areas and special bosses that were harder than others. Overall, he was one of the more balanced ones Final Fantasy games, but this balance has been changed in the HD version. In the later parts of the game, there may be random encounters in dungeons against Dark Aeons.

These super bosses are almost impossible to defeat or prepare for, which was an addition to the international version of the PS2 version in Japan. Players don't need to defeat them, but they can be destroyed in one turn before they can escape, which is a bit unfair and never warned.

Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth

Work is work

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth takes place in Hawaii and is a pretty normal game as long as players complete some side quests and don't avoid too many enemies. In combat, most experienced turn-based players can stick around.

About halfway through, there's a spike in difficulty that seemingly demands perfection from players as enemies receive level ups. They need to learn how to balance their quests and skills more in battle and grind to get money for the best gear, otherwise they'll be going through a lot of healing items.

Mario and Luigi: Brotherhood

Play the game again

Mario and Luigi: Brotherhood is the latest RPG starring Mario and his brother Luigi in a magical land outside the Mushroom Kingdom. Like most Mario and Luigi games, things are not too difficult if players learn to dodge and counter enemy attacks in time.

In what appears to be the last dungeon, players are subsequently told that they must replay certain areas in a limited capacity, as this is not the end. These revised areas feature stronger enemies that deal more damage, making EXP grinding more challenging and time-consuming.

Octopath Traveler

No shared EXP

Octopath Traveler allows players to choose one of eight characters to start with, but the other seven can be recruited later. A move party can consist of four members in battle, and players will naturally get used to the first four they recruit. They might trade one or two when they get four more members, but overall most players get too comfortable, which is a mistake.

It's a common trope in JRPGs, but it's a problem Octopath Traveler. The thing that makes the game harder than most is that EXP is not shared outside of battle. Each character has their own story arcs and MUST be in a group during their sections. Players will get spikes in difficulty when trying to complete the later part of each character's story, as they constantly need to catch up with the lower tier members.

Brave Default: Flying Fairy

The world again

Brave Default: Flying Fairy is a mostly straightforward JRPG experience that harkens back to the good old days Final Fantasy. Players only have four party members, but thanks to the Job system, they can evolve greatly.

With normal leveling, players should be able to get through the game without much hard grinding until the twist near what appears to be the end of the game. Without spoiling things, there will be a series of excessive backtracking and enemies and bosses will be much stronger from now on as if players were starting at level 1. This is also true in the Switch 2 remaster.

Xenosaga Episode 2: Jenseits Von Gut Und Bose

Learn mechanics or something else

First Xenosaga the game is not easy, but it is not impossible to complete or understand the combat system in the given time. Xenosaga Episode 2: Jenseits von Gut und Bose significantly increases the difficulty level and becomes harder as players progress.

While players learn how to perform combos in the complicated turn-based battle system and level up at a decent rate, there's a difficult jump about halfway through that almost mocks the player. The game is worth watching until the end, but patience is a must.

Brilliant history

time is a fickle thing

Brilliant history is a unique JRPG that offers time travel. The game is almost built on spikes in difficulty, as players will enter an area, find that the opponents are too strong, and then have to come up with a choice of dialogue or events to manipulate in order to make things easier with time travel.

Once solved, the difficulty levels decrease, but the up and down nature is almost constant, like a roller coaster. The final area will test everything players have learned from turn-based combat, and if they haven't absorbed everything perfectly, they'll be in for a rough time.

Ni no Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch

Not so cute anymore

Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch starts things off easily as a Pokemona game like game where players will be taken to another world full of adventure. During battle, players can perform skills as human characters or have familiars act for them.

The game is fairly well balanced until players get the third and final party member, Swaine, and then the game expects players to grind like crazy because the enemies are stronger. Also before this are mini-expressions of difficulty whenever players reach a boss in a dungeon, which is usually at least five times stronger than anything else in that dungeon.

Breath Of Fire: Dragon Quarter

It starts hard, worse

Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter is another PS2 like JRPG Xenosaga episode 2 it starts off hard and only gets harder as things go on. The tricky thing about the game is that the meter will increase with every action players take, from exploring dungeons to using actions in battle.

The main character Ryu can transform into dragons, which makes battles easier but increases the meter significantly. Eventually, the meter will become too unruly and players will have to restart using a feature like New Game+ and try to play through the game, hoping that it will be less challenging on the second, third, or even fourth try.

Lost Sphere

Mechs won't help you

Lost Sphere was the second game from Tokyo RPG Factory, a subsidiary of Square Enix that was founded to focus on creating more classic JRPGs such as those from the SNES and PS1 era. Much of the first hour is simple, with characters taking turns attacking or activating skills.

Things get complicated once the mechs called Vulcosuits are introduced, and by the ten hour mark, which is about a third of the way through, things get downright ugly. Players will need to rely on Vulcosuits, but they are not impenetrable, and without using them, enemies can take a lot of damage or take forever to kill. It's a big jump in difficulty for such a relatively early part of the game that doesn't let up until the end, and that's considering the game's actual difficulty levels.