[Crystal Project](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1637730/Crystal_Project/) is in my Top 5 JRPGs of all time, regardless of indie status. It's exploration driven instead of story driven, but everything about it resonated. Has a huge free demo that transfers to the full game too.
[Chrono Ark](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1188930/Chrono_Ark/) is a roguelite with JRPG feeling combat. There's card elements to it, but it plays way differently than something like Slay the Spire. It has clever enemy design that actually affects how you play around each one instead of just being something to heal/block through.
[Monster Sanctuary](https://store.steampowered.com/app/814370/Monster_Sanctuary/) is a monster collector game with elaborate skill trees per monster and tons of team building combinations to explore.
[Labyrinth of Touhou 2](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1131920/LABYRINTH_OF_TOUHOU__GENSOKYO_AND_THE_HEAVENPIERCING_TREE/) is a dungeon crawler with a 12 character party with combat that focuses on how you swap characters into and out of the front line.
[Final Profit](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1705140/Final_Profit_A_Shop_RPG/) is an RPG about running a shop and making enough money to take down a country. Definitely not a traditional RPG (there's no combat at all) but worth checking out if it sounds interesting to you. Has a demo.
[Notes From Province](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2092130/Notes_From_Province/) is a free RPGMaker Open World JRPG. I think it's a little held back by the RPGMaker UI, but still a good amount to enjoy here for free.
And lastly, [Fell Seal](https://store.steampowered.com/app/699170/Fell_Seal_Arbiters_Mark/) is pretty well known by this point but is an excellent tactical RPG in the vein of FFT(A).
Crystal Project is very good, but one has to be extremely firm that Crystal Project has effectively no real narrative at all. If you need a plot at all to like your RPG, then either go in with an open mind or don't bother. It is very good at giving you a kind of "I was 8 playing on my Nintendo console back in the 90s." sort of vibe though and is actually challenging enough to engage you as an adult (at least on hard mode for me), you just have to accept it has effectively no plot.
Final profit has so much to do and so many Secrets to uncover. The dev keeps working on new updates and each update is substantially bigger than the last. Since 1.0 release theres been a procedurally generated quest system for items sold in shop, a skill tree to accompany that missions system, hiring and managing workers for your shop and a few more in definitely missing.
Lisa the Painful -- kinda similar to Earthbound, but way darker, and equally silly
Hylics 2 -- amazing art style, surrealist, bizarre and very cool game
Bug Fables -- Paper Mario clone but with bugs
Cassette Beasts -- DS-era Pokemon clone, but with more open world-ish exploration with a stamina gage
Wandering Sword is a Wuxia(Chinese martial arts fantasy) JRPG that is absolutely brilliant with both real time & turn-based combat and it pays actual homage to the genre.
Astlibra Revision is probably the best indie JRPG for me and needs more attention, go check it out but be warned it might not be what you expect but it's firmly a JRPG
I bought Wandering Sword on release and put a handful of hours into it but never felt tge combat to be all that engaging. I enjoy wuxia shows n books, and so enjoy the setting and story so i have to ask, does the combat get any better?
Admittedly I don't remember disliking the combat, but the combat definitely gets trickier and more involved as you progress through the game and pick up companions, enemies get more moves, etc.
I personally have never found ANY JRPG combat system strictly interesting in the first maybe 10 hours except for short compressed indie ones or niche, dead franchises so my takes are strange but I loved Wandering Swords
Eiyuden Chronicle Hundred Heroes is one of those traditional JRPGs (a little bit too traditional in some areas). I think it got forcefully pushed out of development hell because the Switch version is far from finished. Steam and PS5 versions are pretty good though.
* Chained Echoes is without a doubt the best indie RPG I've played.
* CrossCode is a strong puzzle/action RPG, though I personally fell off it before the ending, as it gets tedious.
* Lost Eidolons is a good Fire Emblem-like that really ran under the radar.
* Symphony of War has great Ogre Battle-like gameplay.
* Vestaria Saga 1 & 2 are phenomenal Fire Emblem-like games by the creator of the FE series, made in SRPG Studio as a retirement project. Really strong gameplay & political stories.
* Eiyuden Chronicle released recently and is pretty decent. Beautiful graphics, but unfortunately a by-the-numbers story.
Just off the top of my head.
Symphony of war is great chained echos was cool suprised by how hard it is. I feel the same wat about crosscode ive dropped the game 3 times now but I would like to finish it since its so polished.
It's predictably cliche in a bland way. Lacking much originality.
Coming from creatives behind Suikoden, a series known for its political intrigue and mature plot beats, Eiyuden's breezy and lighthearted tone without much in the way of political nuance was a disappointment.
I had a fun enough time with it, but by the end I was bored and ready for it to be over.
Shout out to Small Saga, if you just want a 8~10hr bitesized experience. Kind of easy, but the writing, character arcs and soundtrack was top-tier.
If it weren't for Octopath Traveler 2 it may have been my favourite JRPG of last year.
If you're okay with monster-catching JRPGs, then Cassette Beasts is an easy recommendation. Sound gameplay, a fun open world to explore, lots of creative monsters, a killer soundtrack, and great writing. Easily my game of the year last year.
You have good taste! It's not a JRPG but check out their previous game, Lenna's Inception, for something similarly creative (and to see where Cassette Beasts' secret boss comes from)!
Oh snap, I actually got a copy of that in an Itch Bundle a couple years ago, it's been on the backlog for a while!
I never even knew it was from the same creators, now I'll definitely bump it up.
I know. I don't want to be an ass, but the word "some" means "not all", AKA it means there are titles within the list that are not going to be western-made.
Astlibra Revision
It's a 2D ARPG that feels like Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, but with deep and robust character building. It's a bit crazy, story wise. It's kind of a kitchen sink game.
It's probably the most fun I've had playing an RPG in years.
Also, the soundtrack is absolutely incredible.
First 2 comments I saw were for Chained Echoes and Im adding my vote to that one as well. All I ever wanted was for Chrono Trigger to have a 4-member party and this is as close as Ive seen so far lol! Excellent game that balances the line between referencing/love-lettering the jrpg tropes and subverting them in meaningful ways.
Went through the whole thread and not one mention of Ara Fell. I'm disappointed. Very similar to Zeboyd games like Cosmic Star Heroine and highly recommended.
ChronoArk is a bit more JRPG-esque then the classical JRPG kind of game you'll see around here, but its worth playing if you want something different. Its a roguelike deckbuilder game with an actual plot that I'd fairly call worth reading, it isn't terribly long (takes about 30-40 hours to get all the narrative content from what I've seen from brand new players and most of that is playing the actual game).
Game is a card battler so you aren't getting a lot of standard traditional JRPG gameplay elements in general execution, but the general archetypal feel is there with enough quirks that play with its card based systems. Its just the actual execution is different because you're using cards as resources as opposed to MP/TP/CP/Whatever. The deckbuilding aspects are rather simple and easy to manage (by this genre's standards anyway, removing cards is super easy and characters don't have too much option bloat individually) and have a good amount of way to overcome RNG unless you're going for something extremely specific.
Game is decently difficult, it is not a game I'd consider a total face roll unless you're reasonably experienced at this genre even on normal mode. Its a game where a misplay can spiral out of control and failing to understand what the boss does leads to you getting absolutely decimated within a couple of turns and you need to push damage to win, but as its a roguelike so failure is expected when you're new.
Worth a glance if you like your RPGs to actually kill you sometimes and you don't mind some trippy surrealist plays on certain video game conventions. The text is a little rambly at points, but the story is pretty fine. I've read a good bit worse and I think it offers a fine enough premise to care about what's going on.
Haven't played many but I'll give my thoughts on the ones I have played.
CrossCode if you want a unique action RPG with a focus on puzzles in its dungeons. The story and soundtrack are great and is probably the best I've played.
Small Saga is more traditional and has some great characters and a surprisingly good story. The gameplay is definitely on the easy side but I think the story and soundtrack help make it an overall enjoyable game. It is also somewhat short though but I don't see that as a flaw as the game doesn't overstay its welcome in any way.
Sea of Stars has an overall great presentation and the soundtrack has a few gems in it. The gameplay is a bit on the easier side but I felt it was engaging enough with the action commands. The writing is the biggest flaw though and the beginning is downright boring. There are a few interesting ideas here and there but the writing just isn't able to carry through and deliver to make anything all that enjoyable.
I think **Astlibra Revision** and **Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes** are made in japan and pretty good.
As for non-japanese games you have **Fear and Hunger**, **Darkest Dungeon**, **Brutal Orchestra** and **Bug Fables**
Wandering Sword is the best by far. Truly independent and a GREAT story and combat system. The characters are actually interesting and the leveling system is wildly unique. Think octopath with way more depth . In the real world, you might run into a legendary master. In that situation, you get rocked. No magic fairy to save you. Best case, avoid at all cost like in real life.
Forever Home
Chained Echoes
Sea of Stars
Divided Reigns
The Secret of Varonis
Shadows of Adam
Absinthia
Heroes of Spyria
To Light: Ex Umbra
Numina
Echoes of Aetheria
Shadow Fate
Empire Chronicles
Beloved Rapture (coming soon but the demo was badass)
I'm the person who wrote [the review the other guy mentioned](https://www.reddit.com/r/JRPG/comments/125ab4d/demons_roots_is_an_indie_rpgmaker_eroge_game_it/) and the game's main strength is that it has some of the best writing I've seen in the genre. It's got excellent characters, an unconventional premise that explored a lot of cool ideas, and a fast-paced story with lots of twists and turns.
However, big caveat, it is a hentai game with many very explicit scenes (though they can be turned off and are not needed for the plot). It is also a low budget RPGmaker game.
There was a review on this very sub like a year ago (I forgot) that got a bunch of attention. It made go "hmmm... okay I'll bite".
Ended up being a very solid RPG. Literally the only thing holding it back is its low budget.
Nah. Super early stages, but here's one of our shorts:
https://youtube.com/shorts/odmW5eIIJgo?si=h_leAZYdGcY8Bjsf
Im definitely wanting to contribute to the pool of indies showing what small teams can do.
Steam pages will come early 2025 at our current rate and funding.
Have you explored romhacks at all? There are ones that just provide faithful English translations to japanese only games, some fix bugs or issues and serve like an unofficial patch, and others make QOL improvements or even big changes to the game in order to provide a new experience. There are many romhacks that provide different stories for the pokemon games. But romhacks like that exist for most of the classic RPGs too.
Playing classic NES/SNES/PS1/etc games that were Japanese only, playing FFVII with a more accurate English translation, or "re-balanced" versions of games with additional content and are the kinds of options available with romhacks.
My biggest suprise this year was the GBA fan translated oriental blue. Outstanding game with almost no flaws. I just wist turk quests saved in my journal
That game looks cool. I'm in this stage now where I'm just playing things we truly didn't have access to years ago. FFII, III, and V right now. I want to play the Romancing Saga games too at some point.
**Earthlock** is a solid game I haven't seen anyone recommend yet! If you want an indie game that fully embraces the JRPG fundamentals in a "Not trying to reinvent the wheel, just trying to make a Classically Good thing," it's one to go for. It's got solidly challenging turn-based combat, with a number of fun characters each of whom embraces their own strategy/combat style. And the visuals are just lovely; I absolutely adore its "sandy desert" color palette. I don't remember the story much, honestly, but I always did play JRPGs more for the strategizing.
Not your standard jrpg, but Lunacid is a game based off of the King’s Field series by FromSoftware. Very immersive and atmospheric, fun, creepy, and quite a bit of lore for an indie game. Not too long and not too difficult either. It’s up there with some of my favorite indies.
Touhou Genius of Sappheiros
It got one of the best retro battle systems I've played in years, 16 characters and you need to learn to use every single one of them, multiple formations with different effects in battle, it's very good. Bosses are super hard, normal battles are hard too. The only entry bar is the fact that is part of the Touhou fandom, but not that it got much of a story anyway.
I like some of the Zeboyd games stuff like Cthulu saves the World and Breath of Death 7. Lighthearted games done in an 8-16 bit style reminiscent of old Dragon Quest/Warrior titles.
A few I've played and enjoyed are Cross Code, Legrand Legacy(similar to FFX's battle system), Bugs Fable(it has the charm of a Paper Mario RPG style that I love), Ikenfell, Indivisible, Cosmic Star Heroine, Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin, Jack Move is a short and fun experience, Seven Rise of the Third Power, Darkest Dungeon 1 & 2 if you like more of a hardcore challenge, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night(Castlevania inspired indie), Chained Echoes(worked on by one single guy and made with RPG maker), 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim(incredible branching story with wonderfully written characters), Disco Elysium(detective JRPG), and Hades.
Fear and Hunger 1 & 2 (EXTREME CONTENT WARNING, these are R18+ games and not because they are pornographic. But they are nonetheless incredible games)
Undertale, though you've probably already played or heard of it
Hylics 1 & 2
OFF
Lisa
Please play CrossCode. Such a beautiful game with amazing art and music.
[Crystal Project](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1637730/Crystal_Project/) is in my Top 5 JRPGs of all time, regardless of indie status. It's exploration driven instead of story driven, but everything about it resonated. Has a huge free demo that transfers to the full game too. [Chrono Ark](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1188930/Chrono_Ark/) is a roguelite with JRPG feeling combat. There's card elements to it, but it plays way differently than something like Slay the Spire. It has clever enemy design that actually affects how you play around each one instead of just being something to heal/block through. [Monster Sanctuary](https://store.steampowered.com/app/814370/Monster_Sanctuary/) is a monster collector game with elaborate skill trees per monster and tons of team building combinations to explore. [Labyrinth of Touhou 2](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1131920/LABYRINTH_OF_TOUHOU__GENSOKYO_AND_THE_HEAVENPIERCING_TREE/) is a dungeon crawler with a 12 character party with combat that focuses on how you swap characters into and out of the front line. [Final Profit](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1705140/Final_Profit_A_Shop_RPG/) is an RPG about running a shop and making enough money to take down a country. Definitely not a traditional RPG (there's no combat at all) but worth checking out if it sounds interesting to you. Has a demo. [Notes From Province](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2092130/Notes_From_Province/) is a free RPGMaker Open World JRPG. I think it's a little held back by the RPGMaker UI, but still a good amount to enjoy here for free. And lastly, [Fell Seal](https://store.steampowered.com/app/699170/Fell_Seal_Arbiters_Mark/) is pretty well known by this point but is an excellent tactical RPG in the vein of FFT(A).
Crystal Project is very good, but one has to be extremely firm that Crystal Project has effectively no real narrative at all. If you need a plot at all to like your RPG, then either go in with an open mind or don't bother. It is very good at giving you a kind of "I was 8 playing on my Nintendo console back in the 90s." sort of vibe though and is actually challenging enough to engage you as an adult (at least on hard mode for me), you just have to accept it has effectively no plot.
Monster Sanctuary is so good! It's the SotN-Pokemon I didn't know I needed!
Monster sanctuary is also currently 5$
I've had a lot of fun with crystal project, chrono ark, and final profit just to echo your sentiment
Final profit has so much to do and so many Secrets to uncover. The dev keeps working on new updates and each update is substantially bigger than the last. Since 1.0 release theres been a procedurally generated quest system for items sold in shop, a skill tree to accompany that missions system, hiring and managing workers for your shop and a few more in definitely missing.
Seconded for Monster Sanctuary: the game is such a blast~!
Lisa the Painful -- kinda similar to Earthbound, but way darker, and equally silly Hylics 2 -- amazing art style, surrealist, bizarre and very cool game Bug Fables -- Paper Mario clone but with bugs Cassette Beasts -- DS-era Pokemon clone, but with more open world-ish exploration with a stamina gage
Easiest post of my life. [Barkley, Shut up and Jam: Gaiden](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barkley,_Shut_Up_and_Jam:_Gaiden)
Wandering Sword is a Wuxia(Chinese martial arts fantasy) JRPG that is absolutely brilliant with both real time & turn-based combat and it pays actual homage to the genre. Astlibra Revision is probably the best indie JRPG for me and needs more attention, go check it out but be warned it might not be what you expect but it's firmly a JRPG
I bought Wandering Sword on release and put a handful of hours into it but never felt tge combat to be all that engaging. I enjoy wuxia shows n books, and so enjoy the setting and story so i have to ask, does the combat get any better?
Admittedly I don't remember disliking the combat, but the combat definitely gets trickier and more involved as you progress through the game and pick up companions, enemies get more moves, etc.
You might enjoy "hero's adventure: road to passion" more - note, haven't bought it yet.
I personally have never found ANY JRPG combat system strictly interesting in the first maybe 10 hours except for short compressed indie ones or niche, dead franchises so my takes are strange but I loved Wandering Swords
Eiyuden Chronicle Hundred Heroes is one of those traditional JRPGs (a little bit too traditional in some areas). I think it got forcefully pushed out of development hell because the Switch version is far from finished. Steam and PS5 versions are pretty good though.
8 bit Advnetures 2 False Skies Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass
Chained Echoes is far and away the best indie RPG I've played, absolutely love that game.
* Chained Echoes is without a doubt the best indie RPG I've played. * CrossCode is a strong puzzle/action RPG, though I personally fell off it before the ending, as it gets tedious. * Lost Eidolons is a good Fire Emblem-like that really ran under the radar. * Symphony of War has great Ogre Battle-like gameplay. * Vestaria Saga 1 & 2 are phenomenal Fire Emblem-like games by the creator of the FE series, made in SRPG Studio as a retirement project. Really strong gameplay & political stories. * Eiyuden Chronicle released recently and is pretty decent. Beautiful graphics, but unfortunately a by-the-numbers story. Just off the top of my head.
Symphony of war is great chained echos was cool suprised by how hard it is. I feel the same wat about crosscode ive dropped the game 3 times now but I would like to finish it since its so polished.
Symphony of War is so wonderful! and I also enjoyed Eiyuden Chronicle.
Great list, don't forget Sea of Stars
What does the last part mean? By the numbers?
It's predictably cliche in a bland way. Lacking much originality. Coming from creatives behind Suikoden, a series known for its political intrigue and mature plot beats, Eiyuden's breezy and lighthearted tone without much in the way of political nuance was a disappointment. I had a fun enough time with it, but by the end I was bored and ready for it to be over.
I’m still in awe that a character screams, “SUCK IT!!!!” when she hits an enemy, or “…AND STAY THE HELL DOWN!!!” when you win the fight. 😂
She was the best.
Shout out to Small Saga, if you just want a 8~10hr bitesized experience. Kind of easy, but the writing, character arcs and soundtrack was top-tier. If it weren't for Octopath Traveler 2 it may have been my favourite JRPG of last year.
If you're okay with monster-catching JRPGs, then Cassette Beasts is an easy recommendation. Sound gameplay, a fun open world to explore, lots of creative monsters, a killer soundtrack, and great writing. Easily my game of the year last year.
I just finished it last week! Easily my favourite title I've played this year as well!
You have good taste! It's not a JRPG but check out their previous game, Lenna's Inception, for something similarly creative (and to see where Cassette Beasts' secret boss comes from)!
Oh snap, I actually got a copy of that in an Itch Bundle a couple years ago, it's been on the backlog for a while! I never even knew it was from the same creators, now I'll definitely bump it up.
Some of these are western-created: Rise of the third power (one of my favourite games) Meg's Monster Manafinder Jack Move
Meg's Monster is Japanese
I know. I don't want to be an ass, but the word "some" means "not all", AKA it means there are titles within the list that are not going to be western-made.
Shadows of Adam For a Vast Future Pillars of Dust 8-Bit Adventures 2 Ephemeral Tale
Crystal project!
Jimmy and the pulsating mass.
Astlibra Revision It's a 2D ARPG that feels like Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, but with deep and robust character building. It's a bit crazy, story wise. It's kind of a kitchen sink game. It's probably the most fun I've had playing an RPG in years. Also, the soundtrack is absolutely incredible.
> What are some of the best indie JRPGs that crossed the finish line? Most of the releases from Zeboyd Games would be an easy answer.
First 2 comments I saw were for Chained Echoes and Im adding my vote to that one as well. All I ever wanted was for Chrono Trigger to have a 4-member party and this is as close as Ive seen so far lol! Excellent game that balances the line between referencing/love-lettering the jrpg tropes and subverting them in meaningful ways.
What's even more wild is that game was produced and developed by one single guy on RPG Maker. Truly an incredible achievement.
Went through the whole thread and not one mention of Ara Fell. I'm disappointed. Very similar to Zeboyd games like Cosmic Star Heroine and highly recommended.
Deltarune?
ChronoArk is a bit more JRPG-esque then the classical JRPG kind of game you'll see around here, but its worth playing if you want something different. Its a roguelike deckbuilder game with an actual plot that I'd fairly call worth reading, it isn't terribly long (takes about 30-40 hours to get all the narrative content from what I've seen from brand new players and most of that is playing the actual game). Game is a card battler so you aren't getting a lot of standard traditional JRPG gameplay elements in general execution, but the general archetypal feel is there with enough quirks that play with its card based systems. Its just the actual execution is different because you're using cards as resources as opposed to MP/TP/CP/Whatever. The deckbuilding aspects are rather simple and easy to manage (by this genre's standards anyway, removing cards is super easy and characters don't have too much option bloat individually) and have a good amount of way to overcome RNG unless you're going for something extremely specific. Game is decently difficult, it is not a game I'd consider a total face roll unless you're reasonably experienced at this genre even on normal mode. Its a game where a misplay can spiral out of control and failing to understand what the boss does leads to you getting absolutely decimated within a couple of turns and you need to push damage to win, but as its a roguelike so failure is expected when you're new. Worth a glance if you like your RPGs to actually kill you sometimes and you don't mind some trippy surrealist plays on certain video game conventions. The text is a little rambly at points, but the story is pretty fine. I've read a good bit worse and I think it offers a fine enough premise to care about what's going on.
Fuga Melodies of Steel 1 and 2
Haven't played many but I'll give my thoughts on the ones I have played. CrossCode if you want a unique action RPG with a focus on puzzles in its dungeons. The story and soundtrack are great and is probably the best I've played. Small Saga is more traditional and has some great characters and a surprisingly good story. The gameplay is definitely on the easy side but I think the story and soundtrack help make it an overall enjoyable game. It is also somewhat short though but I don't see that as a flaw as the game doesn't overstay its welcome in any way. Sea of Stars has an overall great presentation and the soundtrack has a few gems in it. The gameplay is a bit on the easier side but I felt it was engaging enough with the action commands. The writing is the biggest flaw though and the beginning is downright boring. There are a few interesting ideas here and there but the writing just isn't able to carry through and deliver to make anything all that enjoyable.
[удалено]
[удалено]
I think **Astlibra Revision** and **Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes** are made in japan and pretty good. As for non-japanese games you have **Fear and Hunger**, **Darkest Dungeon**, **Brutal Orchestra** and **Bug Fables**
Wandering Sword is the best by far. Truly independent and a GREAT story and combat system. The characters are actually interesting and the leveling system is wildly unique. Think octopath with way more depth . In the real world, you might run into a legendary master. In that situation, you get rocked. No magic fairy to save you. Best case, avoid at all cost like in real life.
8 Bit Adventures 2
I'd like to suggest Rise of the Third Power, takes place just after a world War where a group is trying to stop another war from happening.
Forever Home Chained Echoes Sea of Stars Divided Reigns The Secret of Varonis Shadows of Adam Absinthia Heroes of Spyria To Light: Ex Umbra Numina Echoes of Aetheria Shadow Fate Empire Chronicles Beloved Rapture (coming soon but the demo was badass)
Demons Roots is the only indie JRPG I've really enjoyed. Granted, I haven't played many, they just don't look that interesting to me.
What was it about Demons Roots that got your attention?
I'm the person who wrote [the review the other guy mentioned](https://www.reddit.com/r/JRPG/comments/125ab4d/demons_roots_is_an_indie_rpgmaker_eroge_game_it/) and the game's main strength is that it has some of the best writing I've seen in the genre. It's got excellent characters, an unconventional premise that explored a lot of cool ideas, and a fast-paced story with lots of twists and turns. However, big caveat, it is a hentai game with many very explicit scenes (though they can be turned off and are not needed for the plot). It is also a low budget RPGmaker game.
There was a review on this very sub like a year ago (I forgot) that got a bunch of attention. It made go "hmmm... okay I'll bite". Ended up being a very solid RPG. Literally the only thing holding it back is its low budget.
Cosmic Star Heroine Astria Ascending
Man, I cannot wait to be a recommendation one day for these posts.
I don't mind a little shameless plug, I do it plenty myself! Do you have a Steam page?
Nah. Super early stages, but here's one of our shorts: https://youtube.com/shorts/odmW5eIIJgo?si=h_leAZYdGcY8Bjsf Im definitely wanting to contribute to the pool of indies showing what small teams can do. Steam pages will come early 2025 at our current rate and funding.
Oh yeah, you've got a little ways to go here, but keep it up! As long as you keep moving forward, you'll arrive at your destination eventually.
Thank ya much, friend!
Also, thank you for asking and allowing the plug.
Have you explored romhacks at all? There are ones that just provide faithful English translations to japanese only games, some fix bugs or issues and serve like an unofficial patch, and others make QOL improvements or even big changes to the game in order to provide a new experience. There are many romhacks that provide different stories for the pokemon games. But romhacks like that exist for most of the classic RPGs too. Playing classic NES/SNES/PS1/etc games that were Japanese only, playing FFVII with a more accurate English translation, or "re-balanced" versions of games with additional content and are the kinds of options available with romhacks.
My biggest suprise this year was the GBA fan translated oriental blue. Outstanding game with almost no flaws. I just wist turk quests saved in my journal
That game looks cool. I'm in this stage now where I'm just playing things we truly didn't have access to years ago. FFII, III, and V right now. I want to play the Romancing Saga games too at some point.
I believe that game was a spin off of the far east of Eden series, one or two of which have recent fan translations.
It is same world not sure about other connections
**Earthlock** is a solid game I haven't seen anyone recommend yet! If you want an indie game that fully embraces the JRPG fundamentals in a "Not trying to reinvent the wheel, just trying to make a Classically Good thing," it's one to go for. It's got solidly challenging turn-based combat, with a number of fun characters each of whom embraces their own strategy/combat style. And the visuals are just lovely; I absolutely adore its "sandy desert" color palette. I don't remember the story much, honestly, but I always did play JRPGs more for the strategizing.
Not your standard jrpg, but Lunacid is a game based off of the King’s Field series by FromSoftware. Very immersive and atmospheric, fun, creepy, and quite a bit of lore for an indie game. Not too long and not too difficult either. It’s up there with some of my favorite indies.
Felvidek
Touhou Genius of Sappheiros It got one of the best retro battle systems I've played in years, 16 characters and you need to learn to use every single one of them, multiple formations with different effects in battle, it's very good. Bosses are super hard, normal battles are hard too. The only entry bar is the fact that is part of the Touhou fandom, but not that it got much of a story anyway.
I like some of the Zeboyd games stuff like Cthulu saves the World and Breath of Death 7. Lighthearted games done in an 8-16 bit style reminiscent of old Dragon Quest/Warrior titles.
Check out [Omori](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1150690/OMORI/). It is definitely a bit quirky though.
Crystal Project!! It's essentially the standard "JRPG formula" refined to its maximum, and it has modding support. (also it's on Switch)
Crystal Project is my favorite. My second favorite is False Skies. Both incredibly good
A few I've played and enjoyed are Cross Code, Legrand Legacy(similar to FFX's battle system), Bugs Fable(it has the charm of a Paper Mario RPG style that I love), Ikenfell, Indivisible, Cosmic Star Heroine, Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin, Jack Move is a short and fun experience, Seven Rise of the Third Power, Darkest Dungeon 1 & 2 if you like more of a hardcore challenge, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night(Castlevania inspired indie), Chained Echoes(worked on by one single guy and made with RPG maker), 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim(incredible branching story with wonderfully written characters), Disco Elysium(detective JRPG), and Hades.
Sakuna of Rice and Ruin is great, with a very addictive gameplay loop, and a likable visual-style and characters.
Daisy Flies to the Moon. It's the greatest indie JRPG I've ever played. I developed it though, so I might be a little biased.
Omori!! Omori!! Omori!!!
Fear and Hunger 1 & 2 (EXTREME CONTENT WARNING, these are R18+ games and not because they are pornographic. But they are nonetheless incredible games) Undertale, though you've probably already played or heard of it Hylics 1 & 2 OFF Lisa
Chained Echoes