@@grahfkarate1799 you skip to 4. 1 and 2 are pretty integral to eachother and setup the overall lore. 3 and 4 are only loosely connected to the previous games. (Self contained stories, set within the established worlds of 1 and 2)
Phantasy Star 3 was my introduction to the series, and I loved it. I remember playing through it over and over to see all of the different paths to take.
Phantasy Star 4 is a masterpiece. It deserves the love it gets and I was really impressed by it when I got it shortly after release. The only game I dont have/have not played is Crusader of Centy. I was going to buy a loose copy of that game for $50 back in 2014 at a convention and didnt. Little did I know I made an error in not doing so. That game is STUPID expensive now. Every game in this list deserves the praise, legitimately none of these titles are anywhere close to bad. Fantastic lineup, excellent video!
Hey Erick, I just want to say thank you for being a content creator. We didn't have a lot of money growing up so the Gameboy Colour was my only access to games for most of my childhood, and I only bought my first consoles (Switch and PS4) around 4 years ago. Hearing you talk so enthusiastically about these games and share your vast knowledge with us always puts a smile on my face and makes me excited to discover them for myself after missing out on them in my childhood. Your natural personality and passion shine through in your videos and it's refreshing to just hear you talk about your love of games without the need for super fancy or polished editing. Being a content creator must be very difficult sometimes but thank you for persisting, I'm sure many of us appreciate it more than you know.
I absolutely love what they did with that game. I hadn't played it at all until about 5 or 6 years ago and was shocked by how much fun I was having with it. I got the same vibes haha
The Tech grid and generation ideas were really cool, combat and gameplay just felt so slow and grindy, I couldn't get into it on my Genesis and only actually beat it when I could use a speed boost to make the game faster.
Great list. I just started playing through Phantasy Star IV via the Genesis Classics Collection. I'm loving it, and I'm excited to have the chance to finally play through this great game.
Phantasy Star 2. I've been using Rolf for my online usernames my entire life because of that game. EDIT: Also, have you tried Shining in the Darkness? A dungeon crawler? I spent a lot of time playing that one.
I also thought Shining in the Darkness was pretty awesome and had some cool mechanics for a dungeon crawler back in the day. The fight animations and some of the item that can be used in battle were pretty cool. However, I don't think that Sword of Vermilion was top 10 on the Genesis.
I love my Sega Mega Drive emulator nd thank god for the great games that was on them. Love the list Erick as always these games are pure legendary games especially Phantasy Star 4 and Landstalker 😁👌🏻
Phantasy Star 3 isn't half bad. It's got a lot of flaws but the biggest one is that simply...Final Fantasy IV wasn't released yet which properly introduced characters talking to each other throughout the game. Since Phantasy Star 3 has a generational system, having the characters properly converse with each other would've really done a lot for it. Maybe that way we could've been invested in all of these characters who join your party but only have a few sentences of dialogue when you first met them and it's silence afterwards. There's a great retranslation mod out there for Phantasy Star 3 which fixes a lot of things with the script, puts NPCs in all of those empty houses and other things. I really wish all RPGs had a "Talk" function like in Phantasy Star 4. It's a great way to see banter between party members but also a great reminder on what your current destination is especially when you head back into something that you've put down for a while.
I wish the translation were better, the dialogue was often clunky and emotional moments tended to fall flat for me. But for 1989 it was pretty great, it was the first RPG I ever played and I had no idea what I was getting myself into.
Might I suggest you try Togi Oh: King Colossus. An action RPG that got a fan translation not so long ago. Pretty neat top down perspective RPG gameplay kinda similar to Alundra with cool combat and great soundtrack. Keep up the good work Erick.
I beat Beyond Oasis not long ago. It was fun but it was a rather hard game to get through, especially with the mid game bosses. At one point I got frustrated because I was very lost and it took me an hour to retrace my steps to get where I needed to go. In the end it was a fun adventure but there were a fair amount of annoyances with it that I didn’t care for with its game design.
The awesome thing here is, unlike most of these lists, almost everything on this list is available on modern consoles in the Sega Genesis Classics Collection, with the exception of Crusader of Centy and Warsong, and as Eric said, Warsong, the first Langrisser, is remade in a combo pack with its sequel for Switch, PS4 and PC
Exile gets an honorable mention from me, just beat it recently for the first time. The beginning level is brutal but once you figure out how to beat it the rest of the game is pretty straight forward. It has a more mature story line than most genesis games and it honestly took me by surprise. give it a shot if you get a chance bro.
A hidden gem on Genesis is STARFLIGHT!!! It’s a bit of a stretch to call it RPG...but not much! There’s lots of dialogue and you create a custom party! Check it out blind if you’ve never played it and you’ll be blown away I guarantee.
Great video! These are all great selections! I've played all the shining force series games on Genesis, Game Gear and Sega CD, they are all great! I've also played all the Phantasy Star games too, they are all really good, each having their own differences that make each stand out but with the 4th game they tie it in to the previous games which was interesting! The 4th game is really great as a series finale, it's too bad other RPGs out there haven't used some of the things that make the game stand out, surprising because the game is really well done. I'm a retro gamer and it's always interesting to check out videos like what you have here, I think I'll subscribe to your channel.
Hi Erick, I watched many or your video, and I like what you do. I have 1 question : did you give your advice about Sword Art Online serie ? I couldn't find any
Perfect list. As a genesis rpg fan my list would look almost identical.. some people consider shadow run an rpgish game so I guess I would include that.. plus I'm a fan of shining in the darkness.. but still a perfectly solid list...
I don’t think it does, it lacks Phantsy Star 4 even, only has Phantsy Star 1, 2, and 3. I only get to play Phantsy Star 4 via Sega Genesis Classics for the Switch.
@@whitewolf3051 Yes, we all know know that PS 4 was sadly missing from the collection. What’s interesting though is that the PS 1 was on an 8 bit console, 2 and 3 on a 16 bit console, and the GBA was a 32 bit handheld released over a decade later. If we’re talking Switch, it has the Sega Ages Phantasy Star 1 version which is Definitive with a capital D.
@@modestyblaise4167 Yeah, I do have Sega Ages Phantasy Star 1 on my Switch despite having the GBA collection. Mainly because of the additions and improvements.
It's mostly for the rpgs that I really value the Sega compilations that have come out for PlayStation 2/3/4. I just wish the PS3 version wasn't the only one to have all 4 original Phantasy Star games.
It's alway nice to see how many intersting RPG's are out there, that I haven't played yet. But catching up to Erick is impossible ;) Thanks for creating these lists for us :D
I grew up with a Mega Drive. Beyond Oasis (here in Europe it retained it's original title The Story of Thor), Landstalker and Crusader od Centy (called Soleil in Europe) were my favourite games. I never owned the Phantasy Star and Shining Force games. I played Shining Force some years later and I loved it. I also think the first game was better than the second.
My favourites: Warsong Uncharted Waters New Horizons Shadowrun Phantasy Star 2 Phantasy Star 4 Langrisser 2 Shining Force Shining Force 2 Beyond Oasis Landstalker HMs: Crusader of Centy Light Crusader Phantasy Star 3 I suspect that Ys 3 would be somewhere had I played it. Warsong obviously has awesome music, as it's an Iwadare OST. It doesn't have multiple paths though. Only Langrisser 2 does.
@@Pimpjira87 Don't bother playing Uncharted Waters. It's a frustrating mess. Play Uncharted Waters 2: New Horizons on either a SNES or a Genesis emulator depending on which console's sound you prefer. The PC version isn't as good.
@@johnr4836 I guess so, but a lot of smaller studios and indie developers have certainly held up creatively I think. Hell, even bigger companies like nintendo have done a lot of innovation with games like Kid Icarus Uprising, Mario Kart... Hell, even Rocket leauge is still pretty unique creatively!
Great video. Never owned a genesis and never played any of these games. But this video is making me want to be a kid again and play these games for the first time. May 2024
Well, Crusaders of Centy.... That took a while back... Ive played it... ( Emulator,OC) if im not mistaken, for more than five times already....in the search of Tloz Substitutes....... Man, What a Game it is.... And yeah, In that game, ya can find a certain blue hedgehog somewhere in the beach there... 😁
I remember Beyond Oasis forgot the name though was a classic game I also remember the sequel can't remember if it was on the megadrive or the sega saturn?
most of Sega Gen RPG stories are dark and heavy as hell if compared to SNES RPGs like in phantasy star II, THERE'S A SUICIDAL SCENE!!! Alys death in PS IV also a heart breaking and a bit dark at the time, the woman that was being the main character the whole time and she just killed like that
it is top 6 , because phantasy star took too many slots. Landstalker was a great game for me, i really like how different from zelda , you get stronger without noticing , as you increase your vitality you will do more damage , i remember going to dungeon 1 killing slimes with 2 slash, and when i returned i was killing with just one, and did not got a new weapon! i liked to play sword of vermillion , might and magic was too confusing to count i guess .
I would add Shining in the Darness, Traysia and Sword of Vermillion as honorable mentions and would put Phantasy Star 3 over all those action-RPG's. When you really get into Phantasy Star 3 you discover how amazing and deep the game is and with 3 generations there is an amazing replay vallue. Wren and Rika are also in the game. Once you get the magic box in Shining in the Darkness there is almost no RPG that is as fun. A very deep and enthralling game!
One thing I can't wait to do when this pandemic is over is to finish the SF2 friend we started before it hit. We'd already gotten through the first game and wanted to see the second. Both games definitely get my seal of approval for awesome strategy games. And if I didn't have several other games I wanted to play this year...I'm itching for another run of PSIV. Such a wonderful RPG.
Shining Force 2 I really enjoyed as well. I remember playing it through and then after I beat it and turned the Genesis off I came across an article in a gaming magazine that said at the very end of the game after you beat it, wait for a couple minutes and then Sarah's text box will suddenly continue speaking saying "And more". Then you could play a secret final battle. The game just kept giving out greatness haha
Shining Force II will always be my favorite. It is THE game that got me into JRPGs. Kind of sad I've only ever beaten SF1 on the GBA. I need to return to the Genesis version.
It's Master System not Genesis so it wouldn't be on this list. Switch version of the game is great btw with the map and less grinding required. edit: durr on me, missed the last part of the comment.
The fact that most Genesis games are shorter than SNES games is saddening. I wish Phantasy Star 4 and Beyond Oasis were as long as FF4 or Link to the Past
I really enjoyed playing Shining Force. I actually skipped II to play Shining Force CD and ended up finishing it twice for some reason. I might also play PS4 directly as I havent played the old ones and want the best experience.
Luckily you can get the first 3 Shining Force games and Phantasy Star 1-4 for free on phones cuz they’re part of the SEGA forever line of games on IOS and Android.
You can tell how lacking the Mega Drive RPG library is when Phantasy Star 3 makes the top 10. Honestly these lists could use the inclusion of western RPGS, Warriors of the Eternal Sun, Rings of Power (That one's brutal) etc
Though I don't think there is a console with less controversy about the best RPG on it, maybe an exception being the Switch with Xenoblade Chronicles. Phantasy Star IV is just head and shoulders above the rest
I know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but Shining in the Darkness was my favorite as a kid. I just wanted to save that princess SO DAMN BAD! lmao But it was too hard back then. I couldn’t handle it. Recently beat it, but even now that I’m better at these games, I had to resort to save states to keep my sanity. lmao It really doesn’t hold your hand at ALL.
Shinning the Holy Ark is such an improvement on everything Shining in the Darkness did, its really hard for me to go back and play it after playing Ark. Check it out if you haven't alreday.
Genesis was my first console and despite it's flaws I love it to death. I still have it and it still works, though me and my brother covered it in stickers from Sonic: The Comic when we were about 8 and I can't get them off. I still have a number of rpgs for it that I still haven't finished much to my shame. Phantasy Star IV, Shining Force, Landstalker, Shining in the Darkness and Sword of Vermillion. probably won't ever finish Vermillion though. It's... not the best.
@@Pimpjira87 seems unlikely at this point. Sting have significantly dumbed the game down on switch though (a rewind feature, making items able to be equipped and unequipped freely etc) so perhaps not a huge loss... PSP version is probably the best, although the GBA original is probably the most brutal srpg I’ve played
@@sunekoo Ah I didn't know about that. Rewind feature would be optional of course but I don't recall how equipment changes would effect the game, been a long time since I played the six or so hours that I did. I only have a 16gb card for Vita and you can't download Yggdra Union directly from the Vita(one of those must be transferred from PC/PS3 games) so Switch would just be more convenient.
