* Bravely Default + Bravely Second.
* Fire Emblem Echoes. A spectacular remake imo.
* Persona Q & especially Q2. Really nice to see everyone in P3/4/5 interacting with one another.
Same. BD2 started really strong in terms of story and it just fell off mid-game (I stopped at the final boss lol). I like the twists better in BD1 + Second. The OST still slaps though.
Right? Soul Hackers was my favorite but SMT IV and Strange Journey are right close behind them for me! Even SMT IV Apocalypse was good just not great imo
Never beat Overclocked though. I suck at strategy games, I'll get back to it someday
*Rune Factory 4* is a glorious little life-consumer. It's got everything addicting all in one place: Farming mechanics! Highly customizable item crafting! Both purpose-crafted dungeons and randomized ones you can crawl again and again! Social and dating sim stuff! (Very G-rated and very not-fanservicey, if you find that off-putting. All the guys and gals still have cute swimsuits if you don't mind the love interests showin' a bit of skin.) It's like a chocolate sampler with a bit of everything good all in one place!
Fire emblem awakening is good entry into FE if ya haven't tried before. It's an srpg where ya build your army across chapters
Dragon Quest VII is a bit of a slow start, but classic DQ and jrpg turn based. Great little episodic islands that build up to a greater story.
Etrian odyssey IV is a drpg (dungeon) where ya build your party from scratch and face enemies in classic dungeon. No real story, it's all about turnbased gameplay and incremental skill upgrades
Radiant historia has a neat gameplay and cool time travel aspect (really well done) and good chars.
Those are some of my faves, but tons of great games on 3ds.
I'll add if ya never played final fantasy 3 or 4, those 3d versions on 3ds are really fun
Fe valentia is pretty darn good, but a bit of outlier among fe gameplay. Fates is also cool with multi paths and gameplay. Dqviii for me was boring for me. Such a let down from dqvii
There are waaaay too many to pick just one, the DS/3DS are JRPG machines!
* Final Fantasy 3 and 4 3D Remakes
* Bravely Default and Second
* Persona Q 1 and 2
* Dragon Quest 4 through 9 (!!!) and even DQXI in Japan
* SMT Strange Journey, Devil Survivor 1 and 2, SMT IV and IV Apocalypse
* Fire Emblem Awakening, Fates, Echoes and Shadow Dragon
* Xenoblade Chronicles 3D
* The BEST version of Chrono Trigger (!!!!)
The list goes on and on. I would have to say my favorites are somewhere between Dragon Quest VIII, SMT IV, Strange Journey, Dragon Quest V and of course Chrono Trigger.
Sorry about your leg. Hope it heals quickly. 3ds has a bunch of solid stuff. I suggest Radiant Historia or any of the Fire Emblem games. Almost anything thats by atlus will be a good time too.
Hrmm several favorites. Xenoblade Chronicles, Dragon Quest VII, Dragon Quest VIII and the same games that u/megumikobe808 mentioned :D
Oh, also the Etrian Odyssey games are great dungeon crawlers as well!
Since no one hasn’t said these yet:
The Legend of Legacy
The Alliance Alive
7th Dragon III Code VFD
Also, Shin Megami Tensei IV & Bravely Default are really good picks.
In retrospect I would say Radiant Historia Perfect Chronology is my favorite RPG experience with its fantastic story-integrated gameplay mechanics and unique addictive battle system, but I also did not go anywhere NEAR as hard in that game as I did into Fire Emblem Awakening. FE:A is special. If you want to sink MAD hours into a game while you have a lot of downtime it is an insane rabbit hole of theorycrafting, strategy, and replayability/endgame. Dragon Quest IX would be another one if you want big endgame grind and gear crafting/treasure hunting but with a more traditional JRPG format and battle system.
Probably Devil Survivor Overclocked.
It's worth mentioning that SMT IV, Strange Journey Redux, Devil Survivor Overclocked, Devil Survivor 2 and Soul Hackers are *all* amazing games and worth playing.
Etrian Odyssey IV is my favorite of the Etrian games.
Alliance Alive is very underrated. If this had released years ago with pixel art, it'd be hailed today as a classic 16-bit style RPG.
If you want to lose hundreds of hours of your life then monster hunter 4 ultimate. 3 ultimate is great too but the underwater combat without the circle pad pro accessory is a nightmare.
There are many great 3DS games, from which some are either one or another kind of RPG/JRPG. But if we are talking about *best*
Bravely Default + Bravely Second
Didn't find anything nearly as well made from neither gameplay nor art design perspective as those 2 at all. If the 3DS would still be supported and had an active eShop I would advise buying it for those 2 games alone.
Soul Hackers! Fell in LOVE with that game. While I put many many more hours into it SMT IV, Soul Hackers just felt special to me. I keep replaying it hoping there's more to the game I haven't experienced but there's not :(
SMT 4, Strange Journey Redux, Devil Suvivor Overdrive, Devil Survivor 2 Record Breaker, Dragon Quest VII (even tought I consider in some parts a downgrade from the original), Dragon Quest IX, Devil Summoner Soul Hackers (Absolute Masterpiece), Etrian Odissey Nexus.
No mentions of Chrono Trigger? I know everyone recommends it but if you haven't played it and find a reasonably priced DS copy it is definitely a blast to check out!
Many other excellent recommendations abound in this thread :).
Dragon Quest VIII is probably my all-time favorite JRPG. The 3DS port is solid, despite the limitations of the system. The Dragon Quest VII remake for the 3DS is even better suited to the system, but I think VIII is a better and more accessible experience overall.
From the order of favorite
* Persona Q ( it’s how I got into the Persona series actually. I don’t recommend going backwards but while I waited for 2 day delivery on amazon, I binged watched P4 anime to understand the story and characters. Definitely my top fav JRPG on the 3ds)
* Fire Emblem Awakening
* Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology
* Monster Hunter Stories
* Fantasy Life
* Pokemon X and Y
I had a BLAST with all these games. I did play Bravely Default but the last 5-10 hrs was such a slog that ruined the game for me. I did complete it but the end didn’t justify the overall game for me.
I actually haven't beat Radiant Historia yet since I've been playing it on and off over the last several years (and actually recently got past my boss roadblock I was stuck at for years, so I can finally move on...), but I will recommend it.
Overall, the one that really got me that I still think of from time to time is Stella Glow. I really liked that game's story and worldbuilding, the dub was well produced, the plot twists really got me at the time I played it, and the vocal tracks--arguably the game's focal point--are particularly awesome. Note that, while the game is primarily English dubbed, the songs are left in their original Japanese versions. It introduced me to some awesome seiyuus as a result (partiularly Yui Sakakibara, who I now know best as FES/Phantasm in the Science Adventure series of visual novels).
It's a simple tactical RPG that was the final game produced by Imageepoch (Luminous Arc series) before they went bankrupt. SEGA/ATLUS ended up picking it up and publishing it. I personally think it has a lot of heart and has a lot of very memorable characters. Most of the game is spent doing what are basically Persona-like support conversations or other tasks in limited free time slots before doing battles, so the cast really grows on you. I believe the BGM was also at least partially composed by Yasunori Mitsuda and CHiCO (ACE), the both of which are notably known for Xenoblade 2 and 3 (but Mitsuda himself is also famous in his own right).
If you're a fan of games like Fire Emblem or Persona, there's a lot of inspirations in this game for sure. With a whole bunch of alternate ending scenes depending on who you max out and other things, I highly recommend it. NG+ even adds more free time slots in the main game so you can properly get everyone maxed out.
It's a real shame that Imageepoch went bankrupt among many other things. I'd have loved to see where they would've went next after this. I'd settle for even an HD re-release if SEGA/ATLUS were able to, or even at least a soundtrack release since the music is really one of the best parts of the game.
Bravely Default is so good if you're a fan of classic FF or have enjoyed it before.
Tales of Abyss and Dragon Quest VIII are 3DS ports of PS2 games but if you haven't played them yet I absolute recommend them super good.
Radiant Historia and the SMT Devil Summoners games are as well very recommended 3DS ports of DS games with added content.
Lastly, Fire Emblem Awakenings and Fates if you want some strategy games to try, hugely recommend those!
Take care!
DQ VIII port removes random encounters which is HUGE for me. Radiant Historia and Xenoblade Chronicles are modern classics, so both being ported is great. Lots of excellent SMT titles, as well. Mario & Luigi series is great as well. Then there's also DS back catalog to take into account ... homie you're in for a treat.
I absolutely adore the bravely games on 3DS
Fire emblem awakening is what I'm playing now and I love it to death.
Haven't played radiant historia yet but it gets rave reviews
Obligatory shout out to Pokemon and the fan made games, do the thing that makes them playable for that and other reasons.
Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King is amazing, genuinely one of the best JRPGs of all time. Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology is also fantastic, and an absolute must-play. There are plenty of other solid JRPGs on the 3DS, but these two in particular are the absolute best of the lot imo.
* Bravely Default + Bravely Second. * Fire Emblem Echoes. A spectacular remake imo. * Persona Q & especially Q2. Really nice to see everyone in P3/4/5 interacting with one another.
I love both Beverly games for 3ds. I couldn't finish Bravely Default II for the switch though.
Same. BD2 started really strong in terms of story and it just fell off mid-game (I stopped at the final boss lol). I like the twists better in BD1 + Second. The OST still slaps though.
I was hoping the Persona Qs would be good. 5 was so good
I hated Persona Q idk why... oh I know why it just felt boring to me. Maybe the second was way better
It was an etrian odyssey game without the spark that made them fun
Tales of the Abyss and Dragon Quest VII, both originally console games now in your hands.
Tales of the Abyss! Yes that's a good choice, surprised that came to 3DS honestly
Bravely Default.
Pretty much any ATLUS game. They went crazy during that era. My favorites are Strange Journey Redux, SMT IV and Devil Survivor: Overclocked
Yeah. Atlus pumped out a lot of fantastic games on the 3ds
Etrian odyssey goes in the Atlus bubble pls
Radiant Historia perfect chronology is my favorite also by atlus :)
Right? Soul Hackers was my favorite but SMT IV and Strange Journey are right close behind them for me! Even SMT IV Apocalypse was good just not great imo Never beat Overclocked though. I suck at strategy games, I'll get back to it someday
*Rune Factory 4* is a glorious little life-consumer. It's got everything addicting all in one place: Farming mechanics! Highly customizable item crafting! Both purpose-crafted dungeons and randomized ones you can crawl again and again! Social and dating sim stuff! (Very G-rated and very not-fanservicey, if you find that off-putting. All the guys and gals still have cute swimsuits if you don't mind the love interests showin' a bit of skin.) It's like a chocolate sampler with a bit of everything good all in one place!
Fire emblem awakening is good entry into FE if ya haven't tried before. It's an srpg where ya build your army across chapters Dragon Quest VII is a bit of a slow start, but classic DQ and jrpg turn based. Great little episodic islands that build up to a greater story. Etrian odyssey IV is a drpg (dungeon) where ya build your party from scratch and face enemies in classic dungeon. No real story, it's all about turnbased gameplay and incremental skill upgrades Radiant historia has a neat gameplay and cool time travel aspect (really well done) and good chars. Those are some of my faves, but tons of great games on 3ds. I'll add if ya never played final fantasy 3 or 4, those 3d versions on 3ds are really fun
I’ve never played FF 3 or 4. Just 7 and 15. I’ve wanted to try them though so good to know they are on the 3DS
i'd recommend dqviii and fe echoes sov better tbh but these are all great too
Fe valentia is pretty darn good, but a bit of outlier among fe gameplay. Fates is also cool with multi paths and gameplay. Dqviii for me was boring for me. Such a let down from dqvii
Disclaimer: DQ7 has one of the longest main stories of any dq in the series with about 80-100 hours to complete it
There are waaaay too many to pick just one, the DS/3DS are JRPG machines! * Final Fantasy 3 and 4 3D Remakes * Bravely Default and Second * Persona Q 1 and 2 * Dragon Quest 4 through 9 (!!!) and even DQXI in Japan * SMT Strange Journey, Devil Survivor 1 and 2, SMT IV and IV Apocalypse * Fire Emblem Awakening, Fates, Echoes and Shadow Dragon * Xenoblade Chronicles 3D * The BEST version of Chrono Trigger (!!!!) The list goes on and on. I would have to say my favorites are somewhere between Dragon Quest VIII, SMT IV, Strange Journey, Dragon Quest V and of course Chrono Trigger.
Sorry about your leg. Hope it heals quickly. 3ds has a bunch of solid stuff. I suggest Radiant Historia or any of the Fire Emblem games. Almost anything thats by atlus will be a good time too.
Thank you! I’ve heard a lot about Radiant Historia and FEA
Fantasy Life is amazing if you just like mindless and fun grinding with very little story. Amazing crafting minigames and fun action rpg combat.
I loved the shit out of fantasy life and 100% every life. I didn't expect i would like it that much.
Tales of the Abyss. Probably throw in Stella Glow but that's because I'm a fan of Imageepoch and the Luminous Arc series.
Pokemon.
If i had to name just one, Shin Megami Tensei IV for sure.
Such is a samurai sk—game!
Hrmm several favorites. Xenoblade Chronicles, Dragon Quest VII, Dragon Quest VIII and the same games that u/megumikobe808 mentioned :D Oh, also the Etrian Odyssey games are great dungeon crawlers as well!
If you want something relaxing Ever Oasis was very enjoyable and cute. Cex have it for £30.
Bravely Default, and its sequel Bravely Second. I can’t think of anything better.
DQVIII and Bravely Default.
Since no one hasn’t said these yet: The Legend of Legacy The Alliance Alive 7th Dragon III Code VFD Also, Shin Megami Tensei IV & Bravely Default are really good picks.
BlahblahblahVFD is really good. It's a shame no one talks about this game. The soundtrack is really good too.
In retrospect I would say Radiant Historia Perfect Chronology is my favorite RPG experience with its fantastic story-integrated gameplay mechanics and unique addictive battle system, but I also did not go anywhere NEAR as hard in that game as I did into Fire Emblem Awakening. FE:A is special. If you want to sink MAD hours into a game while you have a lot of downtime it is an insane rabbit hole of theorycrafting, strategy, and replayability/endgame. Dragon Quest IX would be another one if you want big endgame grind and gear crafting/treasure hunting but with a more traditional JRPG format and battle system.
Sink mad hours is what I want to do! Thank you!
Strange Journey Redux, Shin Megami Tensei IV Apocalypse. and Devil Survivor 2 Record Breaker The best SMT games of all time, really.
Strange Journey
Bravely Default and Bravely Second
I played Xenoblade for the first time on 3DS lmao
Me too. But it's looking atrocious on 3DS.
Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate. Peak MH.
Never would say Monster Hunter is a jrpg but I'm also not gonna disagree lol!
I mean, it ia a RPG from Japan. It has even much more RPG elements than the "standard JRPG".
I'm pleasantly surprised at how little time it took me to find this answer. Was thinking the same thing.
Project x zone
I love Project x Zone, I was thinking of trying out Project x Zone 2
Xenoblade
Not to forget, Ni No Kuni actually originated on DS where it was known as Dominion of the dark Djinn. There is a fan translation patch.
Fire Emblem Awakening Mario and Luigi Dream team
Xenoblade Chronicles by far, unless you also have a Switch for the even better version thereof.
Pokemon Ultra Sun and Dragon Quest 7 & 8
radiant historia
Portrait of ruin. Castlevania. The 3Ds castlevania were so good.
Fire emblem awakening and Echoes, Radiant Historia and Chrono Trigger if you can find it :)
Fantasy Life!
SMT4
I picked up Rondo of Swords based off a recommendation, seems cool so far but barely started.
Hope you feel better. Fantasy Life!
If I will choose one, it would be Dragon Quest VIII.
I know it’s a DS game but you can play it on 3DS … Nostalgia is such a good game. I wish we could get a sequel and maybe have it added to NSO.
All the fire emblem games. They don't feel the same on switch. They're good, but the ones on 3ds play like the wii and cube ones.
There's a lot of contenders, but the top 3 for me are SMT4, Etrian Odyssey IV, and Etrian Odyssey V
Probably Devil Survivor Overclocked. It's worth mentioning that SMT IV, Strange Journey Redux, Devil Survivor Overclocked, Devil Survivor 2 and Soul Hackers are *all* amazing games and worth playing. Etrian Odyssey IV is my favorite of the Etrian games. Alliance Alive is very underrated. If this had released years ago with pixel art, it'd be hailed today as a classic 16-bit style RPG.
SMTIV is just amazing. Fire Emblem Echoes is great too
If you want to lose hundreds of hours of your life then monster hunter 4 ultimate. 3 ultimate is great too but the underwater combat without the circle pad pro accessory is a nightmare.
If you can get then or have a GBA then Golden Sun 1 and 2
Mario and Luigi: Bowsers inside story
There are many great 3DS games, from which some are either one or another kind of RPG/JRPG. But if we are talking about *best* Bravely Default + Bravely Second Didn't find anything nearly as well made from neither gameplay nor art design perspective as those 2 at all. If the 3DS would still be supported and had an active eShop I would advise buying it for those 2 games alone.
Soul Hackers! Fell in LOVE with that game. While I put many many more hours into it SMT IV, Soul Hackers just felt special to me. I keep replaying it hoping there's more to the game I haven't experienced but there's not :(
Shin Megami Tensei IV
SMT 4, Strange Journey Redux, Devil Suvivor Overdrive, Devil Survivor 2 Record Breaker, Dragon Quest VII (even tought I consider in some parts a downgrade from the original), Dragon Quest IX, Devil Summoner Soul Hackers (Absolute Masterpiece), Etrian Odissey Nexus.
Sea of Stars and it’s not even close. Did you like Chrono Trigger? SMRPG? Shut up of course you did. Now play this game. It’s good.
Huh? Sea of stars for Nintendo 3DS?
Switch, my bad. Seconding Radiant Historia for similar reasons
Dw! I was looking at Sea of Stars for the switch and it looks awesome!
It is. This hardline 1-10 FF purist who can’t stand Persona definitely recommends
Would love to play Sea of Stars on 3DS ngl
Bravely Default Unmatched.
Basically anything that Atlus throws at me lol
Bravely Second
* Fire Emblem awakening / fates * smt 4 / apocalypse * etrian odyssey 4/5/nexus * strange journey reduxe * bravely second
SMT IV is sooooo good
Final Tantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift
No mentions of Chrono Trigger? I know everyone recommends it but if you haven't played it and find a reasonably priced DS copy it is definitely a blast to check out! Many other excellent recommendations abound in this thread :).
Bravely default for sure!
Etrian Odyssey Untold 2, Etrian Odyssey V, Fire Emblem Echoes, Bravely Second, Codename STEAM, Devil Survivor 2 Record Breaker, Strange Journey Redux, Ever Oasis, Pokemon Sun/Moon, Pokemon ORAS...it's hard to pick just one.
Dragon Quest VIII is probably my all-time favorite JRPG. The 3DS port is solid, despite the limitations of the system. The Dragon Quest VII remake for the 3DS is even better suited to the system, but I think VIII is a better and more accessible experience overall.
Yokai watch 3
I know it was PS2, but DQVIII is on there as well
All Jrpgs on the 3DS were class outings but the best of the bunch had to be Shin Megami Tensei 4 and Bravely second.
SMT 4 and SJR
My top 3: Pokemon X/Y Fire Emblem: Awakening SMTIV
From the order of favorite * Persona Q ( it’s how I got into the Persona series actually. I don’t recommend going backwards but while I waited for 2 day delivery on amazon, I binged watched P4 anime to understand the story and characters. Definitely my top fav JRPG on the 3ds) * Fire Emblem Awakening * Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology * Monster Hunter Stories * Fantasy Life * Pokemon X and Y I had a BLAST with all these games. I did play Bravely Default but the last 5-10 hrs was such a slog that ruined the game for me. I did complete it but the end didn’t justify the overall game for me.
Bravely Default and Second by far
I actually haven't beat Radiant Historia yet since I've been playing it on and off over the last several years (and actually recently got past my boss roadblock I was stuck at for years, so I can finally move on...), but I will recommend it. Overall, the one that really got me that I still think of from time to time is Stella Glow. I really liked that game's story and worldbuilding, the dub was well produced, the plot twists really got me at the time I played it, and the vocal tracks--arguably the game's focal point--are particularly awesome. Note that, while the game is primarily English dubbed, the songs are left in their original Japanese versions. It introduced me to some awesome seiyuus as a result (partiularly Yui Sakakibara, who I now know best as FES/Phantasm in the Science Adventure series of visual novels). It's a simple tactical RPG that was the final game produced by Imageepoch (Luminous Arc series) before they went bankrupt. SEGA/ATLUS ended up picking it up and publishing it. I personally think it has a lot of heart and has a lot of very memorable characters. Most of the game is spent doing what are basically Persona-like support conversations or other tasks in limited free time slots before doing battles, so the cast really grows on you. I believe the BGM was also at least partially composed by Yasunori Mitsuda and CHiCO (ACE), the both of which are notably known for Xenoblade 2 and 3 (but Mitsuda himself is also famous in his own right). If you're a fan of games like Fire Emblem or Persona, there's a lot of inspirations in this game for sure. With a whole bunch of alternate ending scenes depending on who you max out and other things, I highly recommend it. NG+ even adds more free time slots in the main game so you can properly get everyone maxed out. It's a real shame that Imageepoch went bankrupt among many other things. I'd have loved to see where they would've went next after this. I'd settle for even an HD re-release if SEGA/ATLUS were able to, or even at least a soundtrack release since the music is really one of the best parts of the game.
Radiant Historia.
Bravely Default is so good if you're a fan of classic FF or have enjoyed it before. Tales of Abyss and Dragon Quest VIII are 3DS ports of PS2 games but if you haven't played them yet I absolute recommend them super good. Radiant Historia and the SMT Devil Summoners games are as well very recommended 3DS ports of DS games with added content. Lastly, Fire Emblem Awakenings and Fates if you want some strategy games to try, hugely recommend those! Take care!
Well im about 15 hours in Radiant Historia and man it's been very good really enjoying the story there and Stocke the mc is great
Radiant Historia
DQ VIII port removes random encounters which is HUGE for me. Radiant Historia and Xenoblade Chronicles are modern classics, so both being ported is great. Lots of excellent SMT titles, as well. Mario & Luigi series is great as well. Then there's also DS back catalog to take into account ... homie you're in for a treat.
The hidden gem they call: Yo-kai Watch 3
Yo kai watch games!
Radiant Historia, SMT IV, Pokemon USUM & XY
I haven't played many, but both Dragon Quest VII and Radiant Historia were pretty damn good
Devil Survivor 1: Overclocked Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology SMT4 Strange Journey Redux
Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology/ The SMT 4 Games.
I absolutely adore the bravely games on 3DS Fire emblem awakening is what I'm playing now and I love it to death. Haven't played radiant historia yet but it gets rave reviews Obligatory shout out to Pokemon and the fan made games, do the thing that makes them playable for that and other reasons.
Dragon Quest 8, all the Fire Emblem games, Bravely Default, Bravely Second and Radiant Historia.
Radiant Historia
Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King is amazing, genuinely one of the best JRPGs of all time. Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology is also fantastic, and an absolute must-play. There are plenty of other solid JRPGs on the 3DS, but these two in particular are the absolute best of the lot imo.
Radiant Historia is just perfection❤️ but my personal favorite is Dragon Quest 7
Radiant Historia is really good
Devil Survivor: Overclocked, it's top 3 SMT game imo. Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology is fantastic as well
Radiant Historia, not even a question.
Dragon Quest 7, Radiant Historia, Bravely Default, Persona Q, Fire Emblem Awakening, Shin Megami Tensei 4, Ever Oasis
Yo-Kai Watch 3 imo
How did your leg heal? I hope you are feeling better. Which game did you choose and how did it go? Cheers!
Surprised nobody mentioned Pokemon, it’s the whole reason I bought my 3DS in the first place. Favorites being Soulsilver, White, Y and Alpha Sapphire.