Best PS1 RPGs

[Pumpkin]

What are the best RPG's on the PS1 in your opinion? Add why if you want to. No limit, and doesn't have to be exclusive to the PS1, it just has to be playable on the PS1.

[Vyk]

Xenogears and Final Fantasy VII by far

Though Legend of Legaia was really awesome. And maybe Alundra

[Vasher]

FF VII and, as often occurs, this reminds me of a story...


'98, I had been out of gaming for at least a few years (parties, girls, beer, dirt bikes, school, etc), my brothers also, they pretty much followed my lead. The last time I remember "geeking out" was over Mario Cart on SNES with my brothers (had played through "FFII" & "III", but MC was the sh it). Finished school early (averaged 21 units per semester, plus summer/winter classes where available), so that summer was going to be awesome. My dad had sold a jet ski he "built", but after finishing the "mods", he didn't want us on it because it was too fast (he did that with cars, boats, bikes, he's just now starting to "slow down"). The young guy he sold it to was $100 short on cash, but offered his PS+ games to cover the difference. He took it, without knowing anything about the system and games, figuring that my brothers and I might get some use out of it. He showed me what he'd received. I don't recall any of the other games that were included, but FF VII caught my eye right away. That summer, in between parties/girls/beer/dirt bikes/lake/etc., I accomplished eveything in that game. No guide, bred the Gold Chocobo, KotRT, Ruby, Emerald, Vincent (he was a "hidden" character, if my memory serves me correctly), "maxed" materia, everything. My fathers barter for FFVII got me back into gaming.

[Laddy]

My Top 10

Breath of Fire IV
Chrono Cross
Dragon Quest VII
Final Fantasy VII
Final Fantasy IX
Grandia
Final Fantasy Tactics
Suikoden II
Vagrant Story
Xenogears

Honorable Mentions: Front Mission 3, Legend of Dragoon, Threads of Fate, Wild ARMs

[Fynn]

Yeah, I think Xenogears steals the show.

In general, I know this won't get me any fans but... I don't think the PS1 era was that good for RPGs, besides the cultural phenomenon that FFVII was

[Vyk]

I forgot about Lunar, Wild Arms, and Grandia

Also enjoyed some Parasite Eve. They weren't all gold. But it was a decent run

Persona 2 probably deserves a mention as well. It laid a lot of groundwork for the series

[Wolf Kanno]

My Fave PS1 Rpgs are:

Xenogears
Final Fantasy Tactics
Wild ARMS
Persona 2 Duology
Vagrant Story
Lunar Silver Star Story Complete
Breath of Fire III
Suikoden i and II

Though I also enjoyed Final Fantasy IX, Chrono Cross, Lunar 2, Breath of Fire IV, Threads of Fate, Brave Fencer Musashi, Front Mission 3, and Wild ARMS 2.

[Depression Moon]

Final Fantasy IX is the best. I think I've said plenty of times why, but to reiterate and make it short, it holds the best package of story, music, and world for me.

After FFIX I'll have to give it to Final Fantasy Chronicles because it's FFIV and Chrono Trigger, but if ports don't count I'll say Final Fantasy VIII and Threads of Fate because I really want a sequel.

[Del Murder]

I don't have much more to say that hasn't already been said in this thread. Obviously FF (and Square in general) was in its prime during this era and the Suikoden and BoF games are also good.

In the last couple years I've gone on a PS1 RPG retro tour to play some games I missed in its prime since I was too busy playing FF. Vagrant Story, Alundra, and Front Mission 3 have been very enjoyable and held up well for me. Still need to try Wild ARMS and Grandia.

[Pumpkin]

Alright, let's do this

Final Fantasy IX is best game ever
Final Fantasy VIII/Tactics
Suikoden I/II
Legend of Mana
Xenogears

I'm actually playing/will be playing a bunch of the classics so I am excited to probably add to this list soon~

[Depression Moon]

Valkyrie Profile has a very good battle system, but unfortunately not much else. There isn't much of an overarching plot and personal character stories are dragged down by terrible voice acting and there's nothing to do in most towns in the game.

[Rez09]

I can't really say best, but my top 5 favorites for the console are . . .

1) (Amusingly) Valkyrie Profile - I love exploring in the game, the extremely unique (and fitting) way you learn about the people that join you, the visual style, the combat, the item creation, the skill system, the different dungeons according to difficulty, the small mysteries you encounter in the world, and piecing together Lenneth's story on the 'true' ending path. It is both my favorite RPG on the system, and my favorite game Tri-Ace has released so far.

2) Tales of Phantasia - ToP has a relatively basic story, but it still ends up being my favorite story in the series thus far, and this is one of the few RPGs I've played where I really like ALL of the characters that join me, not to mention Dhaos is one of my favorite villains in the genre. The PS1 remake did great things for the game, adding in a new playable character, heavily updating another, VASTLY improving combat, putting in skits, and improving the visuals.

3) Suikoden - While I can't deny the improvements Suikoden II brings to the table, the original is still my favorite in the series. I prefer the areas in the first game, I prefer the watercolored look of the character art, I like the antagonists more, I like the father / son conflict more, I like crumbling empire more; it's just a long list of small things that push it ahead for me.

4) SaGa Frontier - SaGa Frontier is a wonderfully open game, where your characters can be whatever you want them to be and you can go wherever (almost) you want to go, something that was a hallmark of the series for a while. Back from the original SaGa games, Frontier reintroduces monsters, robots, and mystics to franchise, each with different properties that make them unique and fun to use, and new to the franchise are combos, where you can chain certain techs together for big damage. Additionally, most of the main characters are provided a stronger narrative than was provided in the previous Romancing SaGa series, which helps provide the player direction in what could be an otherwise seemingly aimless romp. Unfortunately, the game is also a bit on the unfinished side, and it certainly feels that way from time to time, but it doesn't drag down the overall experience that much.

5) Lunar: Eternal Blue - People really like Silver Star Story. Like, REALLY LIKE it, but, I dunno, it never did as much for me as the sequel. Both are great, don't get me wrong, but, just like Suikoden I, it's a long list of little things that make me like EB more than SS. And the epilogue.

[rhophiehalul78]

Suikoden 2 for the character recruitment, solid story, castle building mechanics and the sweet sprite arts.
Xenogears for the cool mechs and solid story.
Tales of Destiny for being the first proper RPG I played, having active combat system, colorful characters and cool puzzles.
FF8 for being the first FF I played, cool GFs, attractive main characters and a solid bestiary and setting.
FF 7, FF6 and FF9 for being solid entries to the final fantasy series, unforgettable characters, locations, sidequests and stories.
Legend of Legaia for capturing that feeling of dread and hopelessness trying to save the world from the mist.