SAGE Review: Top SNES RPG's

[Lakonthegreat]

Guess which one tops the list?

http://thatguywiththeglasses.com/videolinks/bt/the-sage/sage-review/8944-topsnesrpg

I also liked seeing Final fantasy IV so high on the list, as it's my second favorite game ever.

[V_Translanka]

Could someone just post the list? That site is full of ads and junk that's just murder for my 56k and I doubt I'd be able to get the full effect of the vids anyhow...

[ZaichikArky]

It was ok, but ff6 is no where on that list, so it fails >_>.

[Samopoznanie]

It was ok, but ff6 is no where on that list, so it fails >_>.

^^^ What she said. Mind-numbing that you can have FFIV but no FFVI.

The list:

#10 Terranigma (cool little novelty, I didn't know about it for years... wish the font was different)
#9 Illusion of Gaia (Meh... liked the graphics, found the game generic. And didn't like the font)
#8 Breath of Fire (I found it forgettable, apparently. I know that I played it, but have no outstanding affections for the series.)
#7 Secret of Evermore (Not great, but I've got a soft spot for it)
#6 Super Mario RPG (Fantastic. Should've been higher on the list, if anything. A real gem, especially considering how late in the SNES' lifespan it came out.)
#5 Ogre Battle: MotBQ (Definitely top 10 for me; not sure that I'd agree with it having 'the deepest gameplay of any game on the SNES.)
#4 Secret of Mana (Awesome. A favourite of mine. Wish it were on the DS. The mediocre sequels don't cut it.)
#3 Earthbound (Great stuff, probably would've placed it lower)
#2 FFIV (Why not FF VI?! 'The most underrated RPG of all time?' I don't think so...)
#1 Chrono Trigger (at least he got this right!)

[ZaichikArky]

Yeah, it was interesting because I knew about all these games and played half of them. Really, it's just some guy saying what his favorite games are and I guess he didn't like FFVI 0_o. The list would have been pretty much perfect if he put FF IV later on in the list, and then put FFVI at FF IV's spot, but that's just my opinion.

I remember playing Secret of Evermore waaaay back in the day... it was a nice game and was a little challenging but I got really far in it. It had a pretty unique battle system with alchemy.

I never played Breath of Fire and I think instead it would have been more appropriate to put a Dragon Quest game in it's place. Also, he neglected to mention Fire Emblem, which I guess he never played anyway because it hadn't come out in his region, but Fire Emblem is a really, really great series and it had some really nice titles on the SNES...

[Shee]

It was ok, but ff6 is no where on that list, so it fails >_>.

^^^ What she said. Mind-numbing that you can have FFIV but no FFVI.

The list:

#10 Terranigma (cool little novelty, I didn't know about it for years... wish the font was different)
#9 Illusion of Gaia (Meh... liked the graphics, found the game generic. And didn't like the font)
#8 Breath of Fire (I found it forgettable, apparently. I know that I played it, but have no outstanding affections for the series.)
#7 Secret of Evermore (Not great, but I've got a soft spot for it)
#6 Super Mario RPG (Fantastic. Should've been higher on the list, if anything. A real gem, especially considering how late in the SNES' lifespan it came out.)
#5 Ogre Battle: MotBQ (Definitely top 10 for me; not sure that I'd agree with it having 'the deepest gameplay of any game on the SNES.)
#4 Secret of Mana (Awesome. A favourite of mine. Wish it were on the DS. The mediocre sequels don't cut it.)
#3 Earthbound (Great stuff, probably would've placed it lower)
#2 FFIV (Why not FF VI?! 'The most underrated RPG of all time?' I don't think so...)
#1 Chrono Trigger (at least he got this right!)

Switch FFVI for FFIV...switch Ogre Battle and Secret of Mana...then pull Mana behind Mario.  Get rid of  Evermore from the list altogether.  I never played Terranigma  or Gaia or Breath of Fire....so no comment there.  Replace Secret of Evermore with Lufia II, at least for me.

[V_Translanka]

No Final Fantasy VI (FFVI>FFIV). No Breath of Fire II (BoF2>BoF). No Seiken Densetsu III (SD3>SD2/Secret of Mana). No Star Ocean (top tier). No Dragon Quest (definite snub). No Tales of Phantasia (better than half their list). No Lufia (I can never separate the two since they flow into one another). Secret of Evermore and BOTH Terranigma and Illusion of Gaia? wtf kind of half-assed list is this?? This guy needs to play more RPGs (or else get his head out of his ass or something) before deciding on a Top 10.

[Truthordeal]

No Final Fantasy VI (FFVI>FFIV). No Breath of Fire II (BoF2>BoF). No Seiken Densetsu III (SD3>SD2/Secret of Mana). No Star Ocean (top tier). No Dragon Quest (definite snub). No Tales of Phantasia (better than half their list). No Lufia (I can never separate the two since they flow into one another). Secret of Evermore and BOTH Terranigma and Illusion of Gaia? wtf kind of half-assed list is this?? This guy needs to play more RPGs (or else get his head out of his ass or something) before deciding on a Top 10.

Harsh. Remember, the greatness of most video games is subjective.

#10 Terranigma
Never heard of it.

#9 Illusion of Gaia
Played it, didn't really like it.

#8 Breath of Fire
I got stuck in it, so I just played Breath of Fire 2 instead. I liked 2, for what that's worth.

#7 Secret of Evermore
Never played it.

#6 Super Mario RPG
Awesome game. I probably would've put it at #3.

#5 Ogre Battle: MotBQ
Never heard of it.

#4 Secret of Mana
I played Sword of Mana for the GBA a while back. It was the most mediocre piece of donkey turd that ever disgraced my game system. Still, I suppose I shouldn't judge this one for its, bleh, "sequel."

#3 Earthbound
Good game. Not enough emphasis on characters though.

#2 FFIV
This is probably one of my least favorite FF games. 10 sucked, 10-2 was abhorrent, 11 was just plain mean, and by those standards 4 is actually pretty good. 6 was better though. Heck, 5 was better. It just lacked a decent story.

#1 Chrono Trigger
'Nuff said.

[GenesisOne]

The list:

#10 Terranigma (cool little novelty, I didn't know about it for years... wish the font was different)
#9 Illusion of Gaia (Meh... liked the graphics, found the game generic. And didn't like the font)
#8 Breath of Fire (I found it forgettable, apparently. I know that I played it, but have no outstanding affections for the series.)
#7 Secret of Evermore (Not great, but I've got a soft spot for it)
#6 Super Mario RPG (Fantastic. Should've been higher on the list, if anything. A real gem, especially considering how late in the SNES' lifespan it came out.)
#5 Ogre Battle: MotBQ (Definitely top 10 for me; not sure that I'd agree with it having 'the deepest gameplay of any game on the SNES.)
#4 Secret of Mana (Awesome. A favourite of mine. Wish it were on the DS. The mediocre sequels don't cut it.)
#3 Earthbound (Great stuff, probably would've placed it lower)
#2 FFIV (Why not FF VI?! 'The most underrated RPG of all time?' I don't think so...)
#1 Chrono Trigger (at least he got this right!)

What?  No Tales of Phantasia, the first RPG to utilize the Linear Motion Battle System as opposed to the dated CTB System?  The very game which spawned an anime series and has 9 direct sequels (whichever one you liked best)?

As a disclaimer before I continue, I personally rate RPGs based on their originality, innovation, and the legacy they leave behind.

Secrets of Mana was all right, and it did spawn a manga series.  

I'm really glad Earthbound made the list.  Earthbound, however, had one of the saddest legacies with a horrible commercial release in America , a scrapped N64 release, and a sequel or GBA in Japan only.  The only thing to its name is NESS with his perfect Super Smash Bros. attendance.  That doesn't mean the game stunk overall.

I thought FF3 would've made the list seeing how it has the most playable characters out of any in the core series.  On the other hand, the official title is FF6.  It even got a PlayStation makeover with added cut-scenes.

Super Mario RPG should've been higher on the list with its pre-rendered 3D graphics in the vein of Donkey Kong Country.  It got spun off into the highly praised Paper Mario series and the Mario & Luigi series.

And naturally, Chrono Trigger got the #1 spot.  No surprise here.  Unfortunately, it's legacy is equal to Earthbound.  Aside from Chrono Cross and some text-based adventures in Japan, there really is nothing new in the works as of late.

[V_Translanka]

#8 Breath of Fire
I got stuck in it, so I just played Breath of Fire 2 instead. I liked 2, for what that's worth.

Really? I don't remember BoF being difficult enough to get stuck in...>_>

#4 Secret of Mana
I played Sword of Mana for the GBA a while back. It was the most mediocre piece of donkey turd that ever disgraced my game system. Still, I suppose I shouldn't judge this one for its, bleh, "sequel."

Actually, Sword of Mana is a remake of the first of the series. Seiken Densetsu II/Secret of Mana is the sequel (obviously). And if you look at the original Seiken Densetsu (aka Final Fantasy Adventure), Sword is an amazing leap forward...but the 3rd is better than either of them.

[ZaichikArky]

The list:

#10 Terranigma (cool little novelty, I didn't know about it for years... wish the font was different)
#9 Illusion of Gaia (Meh... liked the graphics, found the game generic. And didn't like the font)
#8 Breath of Fire (I found it forgettable, apparently. I know that I played it, but have no outstanding affections for the series.)
#7 Secret of Evermore (Not great, but I've got a soft spot for it)
#6 Super Mario RPG (Fantastic. Should've been higher on the list, if anything. A real gem, especially considering how late in the SNES' lifespan it came out.)
#5 Ogre Battle: MotBQ (Definitely top 10 for me; not sure that I'd agree with it having 'the deepest gameplay of any game on the SNES.)
#4 Secret of Mana (Awesome. A favourite of mine. Wish it were on the DS. The mediocre sequels don't cut it.)
#3 Earthbound (Great stuff, probably would've placed it lower)
#2 FFIV (Why not FF VI?! 'The most underrated RPG of all time?' I don't think so...)
#1 Chrono Trigger (at least he got this right!)

What?  No Tales of Phantasia, the first RPG to utilize the Linear Motion Battle System as opposed to the dated CTB System?  The very game which spawned an anime series and has 9 direct sequels (whichever one you liked best)?

As a disclaimer before I continue, I personally rate RPGs based on their originality, innovation, and the legacy they leave behind.

Secrets of Mana was all right, and it did spawn a manga series. 

I'm really glad Earthbound made the list.  Earthbound, however, had one of the saddest legacies with a horrible commercial release in America , a scrapped N64 release, and a sequel or GBA in Japan only.  The only thing to its name is NESS with his perfect Super Smash Bros. attendance.  That doesn't mean the game stunk overall.

I thought FF3 would've made the list seeing how it has the most playable characters out of any in the core series.  On the other hand, the official title is FF6.  It even got a PlayStation makeover with added cut-scenes.

Super Mario RPG should've been higher on the list with its pre-rendered 3D graphics in the vein of Donkey Kong Country.  It got spun off into the highly praised Paper Mario series and the Mario & Luigi series.

And naturally, Chrono Trigger got the #1 spot.  No surprise here.  Unfortunately, it's legacy is equal to Earthbound.  Aside from Chrono Cross and some text-based adventures in Japan, there really is nothing new in the works as of late.

Yeah, I totally forgot about Tales. Another game I played way back in the day and I replayed somewhat recently due to it being ported to the GBA... it's nice it was finally released in the US. Tales had a pretty unique battle system that utilized some aspects of fighting games, the story and characters were really well-thought out, and I swear out of ALL of these games, it looked the nicest.

Super Mario RPG was very very fun. It was simple as far as RPGs go, but the characters actually did have some depth and the pre-rendered (fake) 3D graphics looked a lot nicer than most of the early PSX and N64 shitty-gons games. That and DKC... some of the under water levels just look really breathtaking, and for those days it was quite a gem. Look at hot hideous FF VII looks for example... That's one reason I didn't get so far in that one, the game itself just looked really terrible. It's like they were trying to replicate the traditional 2d cartoony look and ended up with crap that looks really laughable... at least they didn't repeat the mistake for 8, but I guess they worked with what they had at the time... it still looks like crap, though.

Anyway, we could make this thread into about 200 pages of arguing about what was the top 10 rpgs on just the SNES. It's just some guy's opinion... there was no poll taken, and even if there were, fanboys would be complaining about how their favorite game got number 5 instead of number 2 or something.

[Boo the Gentleman Caller]

Terranigma is truly a jewel of the 16-bit era.  It was never released stateside and often gets overlooked... I highly recommend it to those who want an engaging and heartfelt plot.  It's the only SNES-era video game to make me cry, in fact.

[Truthordeal]

Terranigma is truly a jewel of the 16-bit era.  It was never released stateside and often gets overlooked... I highly recommend it to those who want an engaging and heartfelt plot.  It's the only SNES-era video game to make me cry, in fact.

Is there an English translation patch of it, or am I gonna have to learn Japanese?

[Acacia Sgt]

It did had an European release. Go for that one.

[Truthordeal]

European is in English and will play on ZSNES right?

German I can handle, but the rest of Europe is all Greek to me.

Haha, I'm funny.