RPG's that I actually like
This is a spinoff of my other list where I, as an inexperienced RPG player, catch up with many, many RPG's I have never played before. Seeing as I'm playing a lot of retro RPG's at the moment, I get pretty picky about which ones I can actually recommend to other people, so if you're only looking for recommendations, browsing that list can get pretty time consuming. This list is here to briefly highlight just the recommendations for your convenience. Much like the other list, this one will continue to grow over time.
17 Games
A Super Famicom remake of the first two Dragon Quests. If you're historically curious, this is the better way to experience DQ1 than playing it on the NES. DQ2 still kinda sucks though and its fan translation is buggy, so you might just wanna skip that one
AKA Dragon Quest 3 for the NES. Helps to look at a world map online, and cross-reference the wiki for what do items do. But if you can deal with that, there's a very cozy gameplay loop here, and an impressive scope for its time
Easily the most accessible and well balanced of the NES Dragon Quest quintology. Although you could most likely get a better experience by playing one of the remakes, if you're looking for a more purist playthrough, the NES version holds up way better than I anticipated
The 2021 Pixel Remaster version of the first Final Fantasy. Haven't played most of the ports yet, but for the time being, this is my preferred way to experience the game.
The 2021 Pixel Remaster edition of Final Fantasy 4. The SNES version is not a bad choice either, though it goes without saying this version features a lot more QoL, while still faithfully preserving the tone of the original. Haven't played the rest of the ports yet, so this opinion might change down the road. But for now, this is my preferred way to play FF4.
Played using the Final Fantasy V Tweaks romhack. (https://www.romhacking.net/hacks/6789/) A great way to experience it for your first time, while still remaining balanced and challenging. I especially recommend FF5 for people who aren't experienced in creating their own character builds, and want an approachable yet satisfyingly complex way of getting into it.
A pretty decent palette cleanser if you're looking for something more obscure. Fast paced, and not overly demanding of your time
AKA the first game in the SaGa series. Only for freaks with a lot of patience. If you can get into it though, this one is fascinatingly unconventional and worth checking out at least once. Saga 2 & 3 weren't as good imo, and I'm still looking to check out the other SaGa games to figure out how do I feel about them.
Flawed in a lot of places, but has a heartfelt message and helped me get into the RPG genre. Suikoden allowed me to overcome a lot of my OCD about "having to see everything" in RPG's, by making it clear that the game wants you to focus on the build that works for you, while other builds can wait for future playthroughs.
A lot of Mario RPG's are worth getting into if you're looking for something beginner-friendly, but filled to the brim with charm and style.
The Free Space
Personally, I like the GameCube original more for its aesthetic and general game feel, but there's still a lot of love poured behind the Switch remake, in particular the little bits of QoL and its attention to detail.
