The best JRPGs that break traditional genre conventions

Key things

• Star Ocean The Second Story R defies fantasy conventions with a sci-fi twist, offering 99 endings.
• Radiant Historia disrupts JRPG linearity with distinct timelines in Perfect Chronology.
• Triangle Strategy presents a political story with deep moral decisions and human characters.

JRPGs have been setting the standard for video game stories and mechanics for years. These titles' deep lore, strong character work, and unique gameplay loops have made JRPGs one of the best genres for gamers around the world, but with such a strong library of titles, it's only natural that certain conventions and tropes start to emerge. .

So how does a JRPG break convention? Which rules should be followed and which should be broken? Should the story change the classic high fantasy setting, or should the turn-based combat that helped define the genre in the 1980s and 1990s be remade? These games in particular break away from traditional JRPG conventions to great effect.

5 Star Ocean The Second Story R

It defies fantasy conventions with a sci-fi flare

One of many games from Square Enix that strays away from pure fantasy and offers a healthy dose of sci-fi, Star Ocean The Second Story R is a tremendous turn-based game that players won't want to miss, especially if they like to influence the narrative with their choices. From the very beginning, choosing one of two protagonists to guide you through the story sets players on a path to one of 99 endings, further influenced by how they interact with the multitude of companions at their disposal.

This game manages to bask in all the things fans love about the classic high-fantasy setting, while defying many aesthetic tropes. The presence of high-tech, futuristic technology places the environment The second story by R as the only planet in an epic of galactic proportions. It's a great way to show how the framing of the environment is vital to its standing in the genre.

4 Brilliant history

It gets rid of JRPG linearity in a fascinating way

Many JRPGs are known for their strong but linear stories. This is already a convention that a few titles have broken, but in general, especially in older games, the agency a player has in the world of many JRPGs is limited to things like party composition and possibly what sidequests to take. , as opposed to influencing how the story turns out.

Brilliant historyspecifically Perfect chronology remastered on the 3DS, is a perfect example of a game that defies linear storytelling in interesting ways. Stocke must use the White Chronicle to explore two distinct timelines that diverge from his own possibilities, jumping between them to find answers to problems found in only one timeline, and saving both in the process.

3 Triangle strategy

An epic story about politics without a big villain

Not the most famous of Square Enix's titles, but definitely an underrated success with an incredible morality mechanic, Triangle strategy has an incredible branching story that takes players in directions all over the continent of Norzelia. In a genre that, frankly, is full of evil wizards and tyrannical dark knights with comically oversized horns on their helmets, Triangle strategy departs from this with a surprising level of political realism and real human characters while giving players and a twisted, brutal story that you will enjoy.

Balancing three main beliefs and having a story determined by companions as much as the player is already an innovative enough departure from the JRPG mold, but it's compounded by an incredibly engaging narrative that shows how characters change, grow, and even realize when something is too challenging or not worth it to risk it.

2 Resonance of fate

Incredible battle system and new environment

Resonance of fate is one of the most popular JRPGs to this day, celebrated for its dazzling combat system that surpasses JRPG standards in several ways. This “three-attack battle system” allows players to move freely during their turn in combat, limited by their action points. They can then attack the opponent from advantageous angles, and at the same time they can attack one attack not just once, but several times.

The game's setting takes a bold, futuristic dystopia and mixes it with the iconic steampunk style, making it an incredibly fresh aesthetic and one of the best post-apocalyptic JRPGs players can get their hands on today.

1 Shin Megami Tensei 5: Revenge

Battle is only one option in SMT

Shin Megami Tenseione of Atlus' flagship series, it's constantly breaking down the barriers of what JRPG combat should be, but Shin Megami Tensei 5: Revenge it gets a mention here for being an incredibly polished title worthy of bringing the legacy of the series to the Switch. Complicated stories aren't necessarily groundbreaking in this genre, but SMTDiscussing Law and Chaos as the opposite of good and evil is always a wonderful subversion of the more binary narratives that JRPGs can have.

Demons can be talked to instead of fought in almost all non-boss battle encounters SMT. IN Revengeplayers will want to talk to demons and try to recruit them to their party through sweet talk, bribery, or intimidation. However, they can also extort them for items, frighten them from battle, or exchange them for their essence, depending on what additional skills were taken.