27 Must Play JRPGs of 2023! | Backlog Battle 

Like what you see? Buy it here and support the channel! (in alphabetical order) Atelier Marie Remake Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-W27yG1-rfE0.html www.play-asia.com/atelier-marie-remake-the-alchemist-of-salburg-english/13/70g00h?tagid=5280617 greenmangaming.sjv.io/QyNqPP Atelier Ryza 3: The Alchemist of the End and The Secret Key Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-BRbbhZKgUC8.html amzn.to/3FxGVPF greenmangaming.sjv.io/2rOOGQ Baten Kaitos I & II HD Remaster amzn.to/3MNngzy Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ek8F8WHM5Iw.html amzn.to/3Go82i0 greenmangaming.sjv.io/WD1oxJ Crymachina Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-cShvibfZyiM.html www.greenmangaming.com/games/crymachina-pc/ www.fanatical.com/en/game/crymachina&ref=backlogbattle Dragon Quest Treasures Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-iMR6x8iouFk.html amzn.to/3UmvkZ5 Fate Samurai Remnant amzn.to/3QKmPal greenmangaming.sjv.io/Gm1NkE www.fanatical.com/en/game/fatesamurai-remnant Fire Emblem Engage Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-CWq-DndQbXI.html amzn.to/3FsVW5c Labyrinth of Galleria: The Moon Society Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Ii2YfAIcye0.html amzn.to/3YfoDKw greenmangaming.sjv.io/qnQPPO Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name www.fanatical.com/en/game/like-a-dragon-gaiden-the-man-who-erased-his-name&ref=backlogbattle Master Detective Archives: Rain Code Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-btGszNSoinU.html amzn.to/3IcIftA Nayuta: Boundless Trails Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-axbsIyDjsFo.html amzn.to/49DGvW7 greenmangaming.sjv.io/rQWPyG www.fanatical.com/en/game/the-legend-of-nayuta-boundless-trails&ref=backlogbattle Octopath Traveler 2 Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-CR4PIR08NX4.html amzn.to/3Fx9zAq greenmangaming.sjv.io/jWoN5e One Piece Odyssey Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-RjNgW4HylLo.html amzn.to/3DqGGEK greenmangaming.sjv.io/gb9KBX www.fanatical.com/en/game/one-piece-odyssey-deluxe-edition?ref=backlogbattle Rhapsody: Marl Kingdom Chronicles Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-oQsrsvbW7Bc.html amzn.to/3SO0jQu greenmangaming.sjv.io/zNOV5r www.fanatical.com/en/game/rhapsody-marl-kingdom-trilogy-deluxe-edition&ref=backlogbattle Silent Hope amzn.to/3MNdJZc Star Ocean: The Second Story R Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-frHScXxi0d8.html amzn.to/47gK4A0 greenmangaming.sjv.io/6ezNQq Super Mario RPG amzn.to/3swODak Theatrhythm Final Bar Line Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ZPPcYzanGJc.html amzn.to/3FTWceY Trails into Reverie Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-lk8Sr4b77Hs.html amzn.to/46llDQC www.greenmangaming.com/games/the-legend-of-heroes-trails-into-reverie-pc/ www.fanatical.com/en/game/the-legend-of-heroes-trails-into-reverie&ref=backlogbattle Trails to Azure Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-nzd-CVXvMXQ.html amzn.to/3PA4LyS greenmangaming.sjv.io/DK0k0d Trinity Trigger Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-W1GTD6wgh4w.html amzn.to/3sGKUXF

Thanks for putting this guide together Alex & asking me to take part! This year was a great one for JRPGs & there's so many titles I still need to catch up on :)

I love when you do collaborations. I enjoy hearing different perspectives and you seem like a great central person to coordinate everyone's choices into a cohesive presentation.

Always love seeing RPG RU-vid come together for big videos like this! 2023 has mostly been a backlog catch-up year for me, but I gotta say Star Ocean The Second Story R has brought me so much joy

Thanks for putting this together Alex. Lots of great games and creators featured! Man, it's really been a great year for RPGs! I only managed to pick up about 1/4 of these, and I don't think I've actually FINISHED any of those. I feel like we are definitely in a JRPG golden age; the amount of choices is nearly overwhelming.

Love this vid, hope we see more like this. I'm always looking for a new JRPG, and finding a bunch of niche ones I've never heard about is really cool to see!

Octopath Traveler 2, Sea of Stars, and Theatrhythm Final Bar Line all made my own GotY list. I highly recommend all of them to anyone who likes JRPGs, or who is a fan of Square Enix's work.

The Legend of Nayuta was such an awesome game I had no idea was even a thing. I had so much fun with it and hope more people check it out over time. Highly recommend!

Great video guys!! This is one I'll be rewatching several times until I at least try out all these games. So much to play!!!!

Thanks for having me along, mate!

I absolutely love these collab videos, great to hear soo many opinions and recommendations from all of you!

This is a great list. I have 5 of the games on the list, and I’m at different stages in each game, but I’m enjoying them all. I’m excited to check out the other games on the list. Thanks to all the contributors of the video for the awesome suggestions!

Very fun video. I subscribe to many of the other contributors' channels. I'm sure getting everyone together took some amount of effort, which is very much appreciated. Finally, there are a bunch of solid recommendations that will help me tackle my backlog. Thanks a bunch!

The fact that no-one mentioned Witchspring R saddens me... But then again, with the amount of great JRPGs this year there's bound to have some go under the radar

Amazing video Alex, and thanks for bringing all these awesome folks to talk about JRPGs

Funny enough, this is the one year where I haven't played any new JRPG's except for one (unless you count Xenoblade 3's story expansion). The one I did play, however, was the SRPG Redemption Reapers. I got it with my birthday money a couple of weeks back, and so far, I'm really enjoying it. The bleak world the game takes place in really adds to the high stakes of each fight, as the Ashen Hawk have to band together and survive the Mort hoard sweeping across the land (while also shouldering past burdens). The story does take a while for anything truly shocking to happen, but when it happens, it does a great job at reminding the player just how formidable their foe is. I also really love the item descriptions for memos that can be collected on each battlefield, which are used for world-building and painting a picture of what society used to be like before the Mort invasion. I knew this game was directed by the same man as Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance and the Shadow Dragon sequel, but I was still pleasantly surprised by how much influence Fire Emblem has over the combat. Turns aren't decided by individual units' speed, but rather segregated by Player and Enemy Phase. Weapons have durability and require maintenance, but can also be upgraded with enough money and materials. The game also takes pages from some other recent SRPG's with follow-up attacks, so positioning and what moves you perform play a big part in making the combat distinct from any one game. I wouldn't say my experience with the game has been perfect so far though. While I like the gritty dark-fantasy aesthetic, the character models aren't very expressive, and their animations are a bit stilted (which betrays the excellent voice acting). The motion blur during cutscenes was also off-putting, and it's a shame there's not an option to turn it off for the PS4 version. It's also disappointing that there are only five party members, and while each one gets a plethora of skills to unlock that make them distinct from one another, it would've been nice if we could get at least a few more. Lastly, I wish the game let position my units before the fight begins, because sometimes Urs has a hard time keeping up with everyone else due to his limited movement, and he's especially needed to lead the charge and tank hits. In spite of its flaws, I'd still recommend Redemption Reapers to any fans of turn-based strategy games, especially when it's on sale. It's impressive what a relatively small team like Adglobe managed to accomplish with this game, and with Ender Lilies also under their belt, I can't wait to see what they make next.

Awesome video, with so many amazing games. There's some in there that I really want to play now! Thanks for having me on the show!

What a fantastic video and so many great picks!!! Thanks again for having me be a part of it! :D

Thanks for putting more games on my backlog! Awesome video

What a cool video. So many great games and so many of my favourite RPGtubers in one place! Thanks for this, Alex! Happy Thanksgiving, if you're celebrating it!

This is a very solid list for what has been a truly great year. I would personally add WitchSpring R, which caught me totally by surprise with its very well-rounded story, characters and very engaging gameplay. Totally worth a try!

Great video! It really was a fantastic year for RPG’s. Looking forward to next year’s!

Nice list, I've played many of these and others are on the backlog pile. Another great year for JRPGs! I have some additional suggestions for games that didn't make this video. - Final Fantasy 16 is my goty in this crazy good year of big games, and I can only assume that it was left off this list on purpose for some reason ... but for many of us it is the #1 JRPG to play this year. For others, it's "not even a JRPG or a Final Fantasy game", but let's not get into that discussion again here, feels like a political argument or something LOL. The story and world of FF16 are still echoing in my memory months after playing... - This list mentioned some remakes/remasters/re-releases, but skipped four other good ones: Romancing SaGa Minstrel Song, Valkyrie Profile Lenneth port, Yggdra Union, GrimGrimoire Once More. - A few other new recommendations I have that are at the same level as some in this video (though I remember a couple of these getting negative reviews from Alex): Forspoken (just turn language away from English and turn banter slider to minimum to enjoy this game), Mato Anomalies, Labyrinth of Zangetsu, Fuga Melodies of Steel 2, Ravenlok, Redemption Reapers, Loop8, Monochrome Mobius, Mon-Yu, Wargroove 2, and the really fun Xenoblade Chronicles 3 & Tales of Arise DLC. All of these games are enjoyable for some JRPG players. Happy gaming, everyone!

Fantastic list with so many ‘must have titles’. RPG is my favourite genre with JRPG’s being at the top of the list :) Thanks guys 👍

One of the best years in jrpg gaming maybe ever. I own a good few of these already but I'm glad to have all these fantastic games in one video to reference for further purchases.

What a great list, I will be adding Rhapsody Saga and Octopath Traveler 2 to my ever-growing backlog. Too many great titles this year.

I LOVE the fact that this list has 3 Trails games in it! 😁 If you've been sleeping on the series, maybe you should reconsider!

Having Celine AND Throne in the thumbnail of this video is the best marketing strategy lol. I mean you can't get any better than 2 attractive women from separate RPG's. A pretty solid and thoughtful list Alex!

I started Rain Code recently and really didn't know what to expect but it's just so whacky that I couldn't stop playing it. Loving it so far

Thank you very much for the list of JRPG!!! 👍🏻😁

This year I was able to play 14 JRPGs, most from this year and some from the past that I gave either 9 or 10s to (while their average rating was a 9 from reviewers). I’m grateful for the fact that I may never have as good of a JRPG year like this ever again. Here’s to hoping we get an Octopath 3, more Star Ocean Remakes, Chained Echoes 2, and many more.

Thank you so much for having me on to gush about Sea of Stars and take a few jabs at the bigger studios too! I mean, if the indies can do it, why can’t the big boys? 😅😅😅

What a nice way to do a video, getting everyone together like that - Well done!! :)

I think this is my new fave video gaming channel. You're a legend mate.

Trails is a fantastic series that I stumbled on back in 2021, and man, what a ride it's been. So underrated, and I'm glad to see it getting the love the series deserves.

Purchasing a Steam Deck OLED has led me here. I’m catching up on classics and what feels like a JRPG renaissance. Fantastic video - so many games that weren’t on my radar and are now on my Steam wishlist.

Thank you so much Alex. Love ❤️ this video. Love seeing favorite creators and summary of years great games.

JRPGS has been my most anticipated games this year. I'm trying to finish Sea of stars right now and I'm I'm already looking forward to the next JRPG to play. So this is the perfect list for me to choose from. Thank you!!

Thanks for the JRPG recommendations! Only played Octopath Traveler 2, Honkai: Star Rail, LAD: Ishin, Trails to Azure, One Piece Odyssey, Persona 5 Tactica, and Fire Emblem: Engage this year. Honkai: Star Rail ate my time and wallet for other JRPGs.😅

This man stays delivering quality vids!

An amazing year for JRPGs and early next year is already stacked. Hope I could buy Nayuta before the year ends. Excited for Persona 3 Reload.

Thanks for having me once again Alex Its a pleasure as always 😄

Despite my ever growing backlog, I keep watching your videos and then keep buying games lol.

I love collabs like this and this might be the biggest one I’ve seen so far!

I’m loving the whole multiple youtubers collaborating for a video. It feels like I’m watching a legacy crossover episode of power rangers!

Really great video! With some awesome creators with just as awesome games! 😊

Love how you bring JRPG RU-vidrs together in these videos. I hope to see JRPG Jungle featured one day!

Thanks for the video, that was indeed another great year for JRPG. Among the games introduced in this video, I purchased and played Chained Echoes, Fire Emblem: Engage and Eternights. Trails to Azure and Sea of Stars have also been secured, but I've yet to play them. I'm playing Trails in the Sky SC right now, so I still have to finish him + 3rd and Zero before playing Azure. I'm also interested in Persona 5 Tactica, Octopath Traveler 2, FF7 Crisis Core and Trails into Reverie. Need to play Persona 5 Royal and Octopath Traveler first as they both interest me, I'm waiting for their price to decrease more (keyshop included). FF7 Crisis Core, I'm still hesitating over playing it or not. I never played the original FF7 but I've played FF7 Remake Intergrade that I really liked and I'll definitely play FF7 Rebirth (once it's available for PC gamers since I don't have a Playstation). As for Trails into Reverie, that will have to wait for me to finish the previous games before that including Cold Steels games that I've yet to buy. Some others titles interested me a bit but I can't play everything, especially since I'm not playing only JRPG. One needs to make choices, and I'm quite satisfied with mine. The games I purchased and the few on my wishlist are definitely the most interesting in my eyes.

Thanks for including thegamingshelf please more collabs!

Great video. Tons of appealing games on show here. Making me think I need a Switch... (must resist)

I'm really glad that Like a Dragon is on the list 🥰. What I'm missing is very underrated game Monochrome Mobius: Rights and Wrongs Forgotten, it's such a good game.

Star Ocean Second Story R is probably one of my top 5 games of the year. Honkai Star Rail has had me hooked too. But I will definitely give Octopath Traveler 2 a try!

Legend of Nayuta, Super Mario RPG Remake, Sea of Stars and Like a Dragon: Gaiden are some bangers for sure.

Theatrhythm Final Bar Line is SUCH a good game. Totally took me by surprise and one of my games of the year!

Great vid Alex. People should not miss out on The Final Fantasy rhythm game. It is not my genre at all, but it was a blast to play.

Thanks to you and the other authors for this excellent selection of games. 😁

Honkai Star Rail is amazing, I'm getting so much playtime out of it and I feel pretty strong in the game without spending a single cent on it.

Kisekinut and JustTheGems goated

Great video. Lots of stuff on here I recently picked up but unfortunately won't get to until 2024 and 2025. I was hoping to see Erick landon on this one. But still lots of great guests

Thanks for having me Alex 😁 Now everyone needs to go play Silent Hope 🎉

Amazing video! Funny to see Trinity Trigger since TheGamingShelf hated it but I am glad it made it along Crymachina!~

Wow, a lot of these actually look very fun!

Thank you for having me on Alex! So many amazing games everyone should add to their shopping lists ;)

Star Ocean 2nd Story R. A must play for JRPG lovers. There's no need to have played any of the other games.

I have always considered my first playthrough of Xenoblade Chronicles on the 3Ds the most magical and amazing gaming experience i have ever had. I got it on release and have played it more times than i can count. I idea of having that entire game on a handheld was bonkers to me. So when i say that playing Star Ocean Second Story R is the closest i have come to recapturing that sense of wonder from my childhood... Not a claim i make lightly... Holy shit...

The thumbnail shows my top 2 jrpgs for this year hands down

Awesome collaboration video! Alex u really outdid yourself putting this party together 🗡️ ✨ 🛡️

I love Crisis Core so much, I did the PS4 and PS5 Platinums of Reunion back to back. Unfortunately for Baten Kaitos, without English voices, I have no reason to get it as I still have my games and GameCube.

Bought Labyrinth of Galleria 2 weeks ago and have put in about 70 hrs so far... it's addicting.

Great vid everyone 😊😊😊

Galleria is my surprise for the year. I think more people should play it xP. I did play refrain but I had an even better time playing Galleria.

I don't even know why I am watching this. My backlog is already massive as it is without the need to add to it. lol

Fire Emblem Engage was a Phenomenal game!! Absolutely loved it! Like a Dragon Gaiden is an incredible game as well. Just finished it the other day on GamePass

Perfect timing cause I have some money burning a whole in my pocket.

Getting a little bored with the types of games I play, so this list is pretty useful. Im trying to find a good fun JRPG that brings me back to the ds 3ds days, but on my steam deck or switch

Great list! Only thing missing is Disgaea 7. After meh 6 part 7 is actually very good.

Great list

Unbelievable that no one talks about WitchSpring R! I found this game by accident and decided to try it out and it hooked me like no other JRPG did in in a long time. It looks kinda childish and casual but I assure you it goes really deep into mechanics and optimizing your character/combat. It does such a great job with the "adventuring" and Quality of Life aspects that I really miss other JRPGs I've played. The pacing is great, the art direction is really solid, cute characters and pets, incredibly enjoyable music and battle themes, I could go on foerver. I really want this game to blow up because is SUCH A HIDDEN GEM! If you're reading this, at least try it out and see for yourself, I'll keep spreading the word 😋

Anyone who likes labyrinth of Galleria i would recommend the first game in the series, I think its more fun but they're both awesome

Oh my... I'd definitely add Witch Spring R to this list

I turned away while doing the dishes as it switched from one game to the next. I get Ryan Reynolds' voice come on and got so surprised, then con fired and sad that he wasn't in your video lol

Does anyone know when/if Eternights is coming to the switch? What a fantastic list of jrpg’s, top man💎

Chained Echoes took more than a small amount of inspiration from Xenogears from the story to the skymechs whatever they are called.

7:22 Now granted, maybe this changed in the remake as I've only played the original way back in the day when it first came to the US on PS1, but yes it does matter story-wise who you choose. Because some characters you won't get access to pending which of the two you choose, and you'll be seeing and experiencing most everything in the story through the perspective of the character you choose, and their world views are quite different from one another. So unless all of that changed with the remake, narratively yes it does matter a fair bit. I get the sense that the guy chose Claude, saw they meet one another in the first 5 minutes of the game and figured everything is the same regardless of you choose, which to reiterate, unless it changed the remake--not really from certain story events to various characters that'll join your party throughout the game.

Labyrinth of the moon society is the greatest dungeon explorer ive ever played. Eventhough Etrian odissey is loveable laby story is just smth else lol, there are just too many twists that its just too fun. Also, the main plot can last up to what, 150 or 200h? Its just amazing

Santos? Is this congressman Santos' next identity?!?!?!? I jest. Great list.

Did you know that 2023 was an amazing/stellar/great year for jrpgs? Don't worry, you'll be told.

Bookending this video with Chained Echoes first and Sea of Stars last was perfect.

Not sure if it counts as a Jrpg but I like World of horror. Also the remake of Wizardry 1 came out recently.

I want to try Star Ocean the second story but I’m not willing to shell out $50 for it so I’ll wait on it. Hopefully they don’t have such limited stock that it becomes harder to find rather than cheaper.

Blend video games with musicals My brother in Chrono Trigger JRPG stands for that!

Dragon Quest Monsters 3 is so addictive, especially if you're into Shin Megami / Persona fusions.

For one piece odyssey I HAVE to say get the PC version specifically to mod the difficulty. It is abysmally easy and there's no options to change it. Modding it is as easy as going into the game folder and just copy pasting the difficulty mod of your choice. It drastically makes the game so much more fun. The changes ain't even crazy it just balances exp cause normally you get like a million exp per battle and then your overpowered the whole game which makes weaknesses and stuff irrelevant as you can just mash A to beat everybody.

Hey Alex, thanks for the list, I must say I even discover a new game I did not know about, thanks at @TheGamingShelf for the Silent Hope recommendation, I am quite interested for that one :)

i wouldn't call Rain Code rpg, more of adventure, but it's best game script of year. Masterful writing

HELL YEAH

there's some games in this list I play, but only 3 that I realy enjoy to play until the end & this : Octopath Traveler 2 Fate/Samurai Remnant Fire Emblem Engage if I must choose only 1, I will pick Octopath Traveler 2. I really curious about Sea of Stars, maybe I will try later

nice list

Hi Alex, I don't know if i missed it on the video. Has Enternights been released on the Switch?

Sea of stars is one of the best games ive playe not just this year, but ever.