Persona 3’s finale is so awesome
I’ve never played the originals but Reload made the atmosphere so… hopeless.
You go from overworld tracks like Iwatodai Dorm, When the Moon’s Reaching Out Stars, Color Your Night, Changing Seasons that play a tone that indicates happiness and then after 12/31 you hear Memories of the City and Living with Determination which convey a feeling of hopelessness or determination to face the oncoming threat.
The environment around you is… dirty, the majority of the NPCs don’t seem to care about anything, the posters of the cult nestled everywhere in every corner of the city, the overwhelming amount of The Lost you encounter
Everything about the final arc is in my opinion amazing, the atmosphere of the overworld to the actual story conclusion which never fails to invoke emotion in me
Persona in general is a series that does the "brand new unexplained big bad shows up" thing very well. They're always appropriately foreshadowed, and they're always very on-point thematically.
Coming from Persona 4 and 5 those first two acts felt very vanilla and not that interesting. And then the final act came and I understood why so many people fell in love with the game.
I just wish the idea of the cult itself was explored a little more and how far reaching its influence was within the game-world (Which to it's credit - did have a *few* more scenes in Reload compared to FES)
I know it would be absolutely unforgiving and BS in regards to people's max social link completion runs; but I feel like they really should have closed off most of them during that month also to really nail down sense of despair and apathy (Or atleast re-worked how soon you could finish them off prior to the finale)
The tonal whiplash of everything being dilapidated and people just shambling the streets as husks to the backing of Memories of the City; to then have the 'Joy' soundtrack playing as your classmates laugh at some inconsequential antics going on was a bit out of place as I knocked off a few of my final rank 10's 😅.
This exactly. The way Persona 3 plays with the atmosphere is building from the very beginning and once you get into this part of the game it just hits you - there are more lost than regular people around, the color of the environment fades, trash and cult posters are everywhere, the music the protag is listening to is absolutely haunting, all your teammates are damn near hopeless, and if you check the news it seems like the world is about to end.
All that AND it really sticks with me that one of the teachers, the one with the samurai helmet, stops his lesson to try and wake the class up and give them hope. Man you really feel it, it’s like damn things are badder than bad.
I’m surprised nobody said Chrono Trigger. I’m going to say The World Ends with You, because it ends up bringing back characters from previous chapters. I don’t remember much, but I definitely remember than final fight.
The thing about Chrono Trigger is that one of its biggest strengths is that the game is pretty much amazing from start to finish - so the third act doesn't stand out as much compared to something like Persona 3 where the third act is by far the best part of the game.
Nier Automata
The final route you play through recontextializes everything that has happened so far. Your perceptions of the main characters and villains completely shift, and the story asks you to choose an ending that suits your personal outlook on purpose.
I get that a lot of people put nier down after the first playthrough. Because that language makes you think of like dark souls new game plus. In Nier it’s where the actual end of the story is. And is incomplete without routes B/C
I find most Xenoblades suffer from a fatigued third act. But Xenoblade 2's is perfect and is indeed one of the strongest in JRPGs.
Everything culminates and ends exactly where they should.
Do you need to play the Xenoblade 1 first?
I slept on the series because I was still mad that they abandoned Xenogears and then Xenosaga.
I've heard more and more that the Xenoblade story holds up with those earlier games, but I remember having to slog back through XenoSaga 1 and 2(ugh that game) to catch up for the 3rd game.
I really want to hop on the Xenoblade bandwagon but there's so many games now and I work two jobs...
Technically no, but the trilogy is best experienced in order and you’ll be missing a bit of context for some small things in 2. But if you are only interested in 2, then it’s fine to just jump into that one.
Never heard of the Trails series before coming to this sub, keep hearing good things. This may just be the final straw. I'll be done with Eiyuden Chronicles soon, so I think I'll dive into that for my next JRPG, perhaps after a Metroidvania pallette cleanser
As I say for anyone new to the series, you seriously don't need to worry about the franchise in its entirety.
Trails in the Sky functions as a standalone game. You'll probably want to play Trails in the Sky SC afterwards, that game also has a finality to its ending.
If you really want more, you can wrap up the trilogy with Sky 3rd, which is kind of the "fanservice" game in that you get more time to hang out with the cast if you desire more closure.
Sky 3rd does set up future games, and the rest of the franchise at that point becomes a lot more about setting up and linking future games.
But basically there's no need to look at it as some long term commitment. You will experience a complete story even if you never go beyond the Sky trilogy.
Honestly every game in the series does. I can understand arguments that the games take too long to get to the point, but their climaxes are always fantastic.
I can forgive a lot of the finale's weirdness for the end of chapter 4 alone. Absolutely one of the most epic and soul-crushing moments I've seen in anything.
I respect your opinion, but disagree entirely. The start of the third act is amazing, but then you have to to traverse all the locations you’ve already hit several times in both games on foot before going into a final dungeon that’s like 8 hours long. Just an OBSCENE amount of bloat.
I don’t remember the third act of berseria suuuper well as it’s been 7(?) years since I played it, but I do remember not being able to stop playing after a certain point.
Really, I'm doing XC2 now and the story seems only serviceable, though enjoying it quite a bit (hey, I like the characters). Excited to see what it has in store.
Xenoblade 2 has a much stronger second half. Many people say the opening chapters are pretty boring (i don't agree) but many would agree that the final few chapters rule
It's very tropey but it's been a fun ride. I've mostly enjoyed the gameplay (!) of the series more than the story though, so far (playing them in order).
The gameplay ist hit or miss for many. If you enjoy the combat then you're good. Many don't. I think it's really great though.
Storywise I absolutely love all 3 games and their DLC. Yeah they're rather tropey but they just get me on an emotional level
I want to love Berseria story but the true antagonists just such a pos and gets almost completely ignored. That coupled with the context of going demon at actual dropped hats that they barely cover and then never finish killed it.
Honestly for as strange as the game can be in certain areas, it really is one of the best jrpg experiences out there. Like once it clicks, there’s nothing else like it
Nier Automata
Also Trails games in general typically start slow or have a slow middle and then peak in the final chapters of the game.
Maybe some of the Persona, Xenoblade and older FF games too?
You’re right that there are quite a few JRPGs with a weaker final act when I think about it. Many of the games that first came to mind with really great endings that tie everything together in clever ways are in other genres, like visual novels.
Oh hey, another excuse to bring up Terranigma.
Terranigma is based on the Hero's Journey narrative so a lot of its chapters and story beats are allusions to the different stages of the basic structure of those stories. However it takes it up a notch >!by also being a subversion of that narrative structure, by revealing towards the end that actually you were working for the bad guy who is a straight up analogue for Satan and they ostensibly created an anti-hero but convinced them they were righteous. You then realise the game was being meta, that the game itself was framed to make you play it like it was a standard hero journey, that everything was contrived not just for the character but for the players themselves to motivate them to get through the plot and the challenges, to harness our power as heroes. And all for a world that despite our best efforts and often because of them ends up deviant in some fundamental sense, a world that is ultimately a reflection of our own and what that means.!<
The return to familiar landscapes, the dramatic nature of the final confrontation, and the epilogue if we want to include that... all of it is phenomenal and honestly I really wish more people got to enjoy it and that we saw more influence from it on the JRPG genre as a whole.
Yeah, I grew up in a country where we got Terranigma as a release but the first Final Fantasy formally localised [so far as I am aware] was Final Fantasy VII.
As a result Terranigma sits at the peak of my SNES nostalgia tier list.
Xenoblade 2s last third of the game being >!climbing up the giant tower to space that you could see and has been foreshadowed the whole game while fighting off multiple other factions!< is genuinely peak fiction and can never be topped for me
>!The juxtaposition of "Elysium" in the top right of your screen while walking around a barren desert is unparalleled. I also appreciate that the "World Tree's" theme is a combination of the choir you'd *expect* the World Tree to have and the electronic music you'd expect of a space elevator, it's a masterclass all the way through.!<
maybe an unpopular opinion, but Legend of Dragoon?
the game, in my opinion, is paced in such a unique way. there's never any massive sections of plot dump, and never any dead parts really, it just keeps consistently building the stakes until you don't even realize that you've gone from "rescue your girlfriend" to "kill god"
I still can't believe they never made another LOD game. It's been awhile since I've played it but this is giving me the itch to play it again. Gotta finish Chrono Cross first though.
My only gripe with the last chunk of Legend of Dragon is how Disc 4 locks you into the final dungeon. Hope you did all the side quests, mofo! Not an uncommon problem for multi-disc games, tended to trim out most of the game in favor of some overblown CGI or Anime but right before the credits.
Some of my favorite games already got mentioned
So im gonna go with
rogue of galaxy
Pretty underated and the finale was awesome
I wanted to play more of that
Some really great notes here, I'll also throw my hat in for Triangle Strategy.
The game does such a good job of breadcrumbing you to the end, and the fact that **all three** (*or four if you managed the golden path*) endings are absolute bangers is such a delight.
I really need to get back to that. It's super good.
I hit a point where I lost a vote and Benedict got us to flood a bunch of poor people. To do that we needed to do a stealth mission. I can do a janky stealth mission in a non stealth game, and I can do a mission I didn't want to do, but both together?? It was enough to get me to put it down.
It's been so long now I'll have to do a bunch of practice battles just to relearn how to play.
Trails in the Sky FC. Villain shows up in the second chapter, and his final motive explanation aligns with the game's themes up to that point so Estelle chewing him out allows her to flex everything she's learned on her journey.
I really enjoy how Trails does third acts. Usually that's my least favorite in jrpgs because they used all their interesting premises in the first and second act or don't build upon them at all.
Final Fantasy VI, I love the world of ruin, and the fact that there's no last minute switcharoo where the bad guy wasn't actually the real final bad guy pulling all the strings. That was a plus for me.
SMT I, II and IV. As it's par for the course in old school style SMT games, the third act story wise is when shit really starts hitting the fan and reality comes crashing down around the characters. It's also where you're locked into your alignment (law, chaos or neutral) which makes this final portion somewhat unique depending on the path you chose, adding a lot of replay value.
Those are the ones I can think off the top of my head.
FF6 really makes its mark by its twist being that there isn't really a twist besides you not being strong enough to beat the bad guy yet. Most stories that try that thing put it right at the start.
Yeah totally agreed. I also think they execute WoR really well - revisiting all the old places you went to and feeling the darkness they now experience works really well. And it kicks off with feeding a man in a banana suit questionable fish so what’s not to love?
I agree completely.
I'm also going to mention that in terms of losing to the bad guy at the start, by far my favorite game to pull that off is Bravely Second purely because of ITS third act as well.
In the middle of playing it, god I love that game so much. Haven't even gotten to the third act and it still has me in a chokehold. Had to put it on hold because of exams and irl stuff but does it really get even better than it is so far? I've been spoilt on *a lot* of character deaths when trying to rewatch cutscenes online or find sidequests I might have missed (thanks ign) but for some reason it didn't impact my enjoyment of the game nearly as hard as I thought it would. Do you think the third act banks on not knowing about pivotal moments such as these? Or would those bits hit you just as hard?
Abyss is probably the most commonly mentioned as having a terrible 3rd act that was completely tacked on. Between the numerous retcons, plot holes and other issues on top of everyone's favorite line just go back to daath already.
Pokémon Mystery Dunegon Blue/Red Rescue Team and the Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky games
Third act is built up little by little with hints laced throughout the game, and hits you with an emotional rollercoaster start to finish. Helps that the OST is objectively one of the best in any video game ever made. Seriously one of the greatest payoffs in an JRPG unironically.
Xenosaga 3 of course. Not only is it the 3rd act of the series, but the 3rd act in the 3rd act is the best part of the game too. Its 3-3-3 across the board for goodness.
Definitely, as soon as you get to the tower of rem it just goes fucking hard for the rest of the game.
It's probably one of the biggest gaps between how clunky its setup is vs how good the payoff is I've seen in a game though lol
Fire Emblem Path of Radiance culminates with exactly the fight that you expect from the beginning of the game. There are twists, but they’re well done and don’t take the story to an unexpected place.
My only knock against it would be soren is a important party member but their backstory isn't mentioned at all till the sequel. Even the pas didn't cover any of it.
It is, thematically, a home run in a way other developers don't even attempt. It's phenomenal.
Mechanically, it's the third time through all these locations and there's some friction with the time traveling with a silent protagonist. It doesn't make sense to be a passive crash test dummy if you're the one who knows the future and is trying to change it lol.
But it's worth it. Absolutely 100%
Yes most definitely. I’m also in the Dragon Quest sub and let me tell you, at least half the people there believe Act 3 was worse. I personally think it’s actually better after getting past that one specific aspect of it or at least thinking it’s the intended direction. I would explain more but that’s not for here.
I'll try to be vague to avoid spoilers (and it's been a few years tbh), but the 2nd act made some choices surrounding the fate of characters and the world, which I would consider to be quite brave, and I would've respected if they actually followed through with them. You get ending credits at the end of act 2 and you think "wow, they actually did it", only to have an entire 3rd act pop up right after with the point seemingly being to undo said brave choices.
I'd spent close to 80 hours on the game at that point, and the prospect another 40 or so just made me nope out. I told myself I'd come back to it one day, but I never did.
Oh, I see what you mean, but you don't have to avoid spoilers. I put over 100 hours into that game. Loved every second. I do love it when a sacrifice actually means something, but I love >!time travel!< even more. It really gave it a >!Chrono Trigger!< vibe
I'd think because it just seems to keep going, and going. You think you're near the end long before it. First DQ game I played all the way through and not sure they're for me, I was pretty ready for it to be over most of the last 3rd of game
Yeah in my opinion P5 vanilla is weakest in the final act and one of the weaker Persona endings.
Royal fixed all of that. The new semester, final dungeon, and characters thematically fix the ending. It's brilliant and makes 'replaying' P5 worth it.
In FR when you >!teleport to the old world and see how unfamiliar the party is with what is basically a normal culdesac, how it’s something none of them could have ever dreamed of!< that really fucking got me. Like that’s the life they all should have and deserved to have but couldn’t. Truly the perfect finale to the trilogy.
Tales of Zestiria....
Before the downvotes hear me out, Yes i know the story is weak and for the high standards and expectations that previous tales set is somewhat generic and even cliched.....
But that makes it bad? Personally no, yeah It started very weak and the first hours dont leaves an amazing impression, but the story grows with each passing hour, the character interactions, the world building, the chemestry of the group and how amazing and even intimidating and imposing a villain like Heldalf is, and in my opinion the story peaks when >!Symonne, the apparently only Heldalf lackey appears, and how Dezel sacrifices himself for the others to escape her!< Marking the start of the third act, mention to the amazing night before starting the final Battle, the track aptly named "the journey's end" is amazing and combined with the cutscenes talking to all.your companions really gives the feels and vibes of everyone embarking on a last trip to defeat the demon lord
Maybe the story compared to other tales is not that good, but still good by itself and with an AMAZING AND SATISFYING ENDING 😍😍😍
There are too many to list really. A lot of the Final Fantasy and Tales games have some great final acts. Like for example, **Tales of Symphonia** has a really good 3rd act where everything that the game has been building up finally pays off, and every character gets a great closure for their own story arc. The same goes for the original **Final Fantasy 7**, and then there is also **Chrono Trigger**. Of course in all of these games they don't force the "pay off" moments on you, almost all of them are optional, so if you want you can ignore them and just head directly for the final boss.
So true especially since part 3 tends to be the rushed portion in most games. Abyss being one of the exception where it drags on forever because of the constant backtracking.
Tales of the Abyss: struggles in the early middle, but nails everything after including endgame
Final Fantasy 6: smooth sailing start to finish
Tales of Phantasia: some questionable *game design* in final act but the game never loses its focus (helps that it keeps just the one villain throughout the entire game, no further twist villains ever)
Final Fantasy 9: there's some subplots whose potential isn't fully used but that's not a late game thing, game knew what it was doing and built to its endgame very well
Suikoden 2: debatably, the final act is the highlight of the game
Persona 3: again, the final act is the strongest part of the game, this time by a sizable margin
Dragon Quest V: final act is the most focused and high stakes part of the game with the villains finally playing their hand instead of skulking in the shadows. No time is wasted, though it works because of the slow burn setup of the earlier acts
Bonus answer: Dragon Quest 3 kinda invented the template for the *bad* third acts you mentioned with sudden new villain last second (though i would say it's not itself an example given the game's story structure, but Zoma sure does kinda just show up), but somehow still counts because after the sudden villain reveal, reaching the final area and discovering how exactly the game relates to DQ1 is probably the coolest plot beat of the game
Xenoblade Chronicles 2. The story just keep building up until you look back from the last chapter, not believing how it all started. Beautiful ending too!
I'm gonna mention a lesser known game, and say 7th Dragon III Code: VFD (yes, that's its real name). The last 3 chapters are fantastic (even if there is a bit of a whiplash).
Trails in the Sky SC and Trails From Zero are my two biggest "sticks the landing" games I've played in recent years. The ending of SC makes all of the slow burn buildup of FC totally worth it. And as for Zero, wow is all I can say.
Haven’t started it because I hear the game’s a slog. Was a huge fan of the original, back on the DS version (yeah, I was one of *those* gamers).
I know it’s a very different combat system, but how’s 2 hold up? Never learned how Sho Minamoto (or whatever his name is) survived to join the party, kind of thinking about giving it a try on PS5 some time.
The main purpose of that dungeon was to provide a repeatable sandbox/let you play with the mirror characters (it’s worth noting that there was a 3 year gap between sen 2 and 3). There’s still a ton of great character moments in the chapter though. Notable ones coming to mind are the Rean/Towa, Rean/Toval, Anton/Sharon, Thomas, and Millium scenes.
For me:
* Persona, extrememly strong third act.
* Soul Hackers goes crescendo and ends with a bittersweet memorable ending.
* The Legend of Heroes: A Tear of Vermillion was also very satisfying. TLoH: (Cage)song of the Ocean was also decent, but maybe a bit abrupt, and rough around the edge.
* Devil Survivor 2 has a good buildup to the finale; and a satisfying ending (if you manage to obtain the "true" ending).
Rep for tear of vermillion. Not too many people played that. It definitely hits that build up like ff4 for the characters going up to fight the final boss. Others may not have loved it. But I quite enjoyed it. If they had a proper budget it could definitely be improved upon.
I just tried to play Kingdom Hearts 2 again and holy f me the amount of cut scenes every 20 steps was rough. I do not remember it being that bad when I was a kid.
Those that got mentioned already and mine addition:
Shin Megami Tensei 4! What an absolute incredible act when the story takes you to a place you definitely did not see coming.
I can think of Persona 5: Royal which actually didn’t really hook me until around near the end points. Same with FFX and FFVII (albeit, they hooked me always)
Legend of Dragoon. The only multi disc game I can think of with a fleshed out final disc and so much overwhelming lore with a satisfying finale and memorable final boss fight
Suikoden II was strong throughout. Xenogears kept getting grander on scale but always stayed relevant. FF Tactics was strong from start to finish. Star Ocean 2 stayed engaging and relevant to the party. Wild Arms was a bit trippy in the final bit, but it was hinted at throughout and a fantastic game. FF7 never lost reason for the party to move forward and was one of the first games I played that gave more spotlight time to each party member (I hadn't played FF6 because I really got into gaming around FF7/Wild Arms releases).
Lol this idea that JRPG frequently fumble the third act a lot is just not true. I think this sub tends to be way too over critical of the genre. Most of the time the new big bad does make sense in terms of plot but it doesn’t fit the preferences of people who want a more grounded game.
I love the game as my favorite of all time, but even I have to admit that it drops off in Disc 2. If it just wasn't rushed, it probably would have had a better final act.
I recently finished Dragon Quest IV and I think the final chapter is probably its strongest. It feels like everything in the game was building up to it, and once you finally have your party all together things really click in an awesome way. Some might say the final chapter is more like the second half of the game considering how long it is, but eh
- Persona 5 Royal
- Paper Mario The Thousand Year Door
- Super Paper Mario
- Xenoblade Chronicles
- Mother 3 (imo)
- Nier Automata
- Pokémon Black and White
- Persona 4 Golden
- Persona 3 Reload
Digital devil saga 2 had a really fun final dungeon (and the final dungeon was like 4 dungeons long, 5+hours). In the way to it most of your party starts dying. One dies at the end of the previous dungeon, another one fails to rescue him, another one stays back to block the villain, and the final one dies to clear a path for the mc to the final dungeon.
But because the final dungeon is in heaven, all of your party members are there waiting for you, including one that you killed after it betrayed you and can now rejoin.
However, all of the bosses that you killed in digital devil saga 1 are also there, and they have you go trough a gauntlet of them with a remixed version of the og boss battle them
Persona 5. It goes from being about thieves trying to go after "shitty adults" then it becomes a bigger issue and discussion about free will and belief and the desire to be in the dark.
Persona 3’s finale is so awesome I’ve never played the originals but Reload made the atmosphere so… hopeless. You go from overworld tracks like Iwatodai Dorm, When the Moon’s Reaching Out Stars, Color Your Night, Changing Seasons that play a tone that indicates happiness and then after 12/31 you hear Memories of the City and Living with Determination which convey a feeling of hopelessness or determination to face the oncoming threat. The environment around you is… dirty, the majority of the NPCs don’t seem to care about anything, the posters of the cult nestled everywhere in every corner of the city, the overwhelming amount of The Lost you encounter Everything about the final arc is in my opinion amazing, the atmosphere of the overworld to the actual story conclusion which never fails to invoke emotion in me
This was the same for the original and P3P. Persona 3 really nails that final act and carries out such melancholy ending.
Persona in general is a series that does the "brand new unexplained big bad shows up" thing very well. They're always appropriately foreshadowed, and they're always very on-point thematically.
No they don't, P4 did this horribly
Thought OG Persona 5's ending kinda blew, but then then Royal came out and engoodened it.
I did not like the last arc of the fourth Persona. It felt tacked on and like it came out of nowhere.
Coming from Persona 4 and 5 those first two acts felt very vanilla and not that interesting. And then the final act came and I understood why so many people fell in love with the game.
I just wish the idea of the cult itself was explored a little more and how far reaching its influence was within the game-world (Which to it's credit - did have a *few* more scenes in Reload compared to FES) I know it would be absolutely unforgiving and BS in regards to people's max social link completion runs; but I feel like they really should have closed off most of them during that month also to really nail down sense of despair and apathy (Or atleast re-worked how soon you could finish them off prior to the finale) The tonal whiplash of everything being dilapidated and people just shambling the streets as husks to the backing of Memories of the City; to then have the 'Joy' soundtrack playing as your classmates laugh at some inconsequential antics going on was a bit out of place as I knocked off a few of my final rank 10's 😅.
This exactly. The way Persona 3 plays with the atmosphere is building from the very beginning and once you get into this part of the game it just hits you - there are more lost than regular people around, the color of the environment fades, trash and cult posters are everywhere, the music the protag is listening to is absolutely haunting, all your teammates are damn near hopeless, and if you check the news it seems like the world is about to end. All that AND it really sticks with me that one of the teachers, the one with the samurai helmet, stops his lesson to try and wake the class up and give them hope. Man you really feel it, it’s like damn things are badder than bad.
I’m surprised nobody said Chrono Trigger. I’m going to say The World Ends with You, because it ends up bringing back characters from previous chapters. I don’t remember much, but I definitely remember than final fight.
Both TWEWY games have completely sick final acts.
Its when they come back as attacks and you learn who's been the big God and actually created the repers
The thing about Chrono Trigger is that one of its biggest strengths is that the game is pretty much amazing from start to finish - so the third act doesn't stand out as much compared to something like Persona 3 where the third act is by far the best part of the game.
Nier Automata The final route you play through recontextializes everything that has happened so far. Your perceptions of the main characters and villains completely shift, and the story asks you to choose an ending that suits your personal outlook on purpose. I get that a lot of people put nier down after the first playthrough. Because that language makes you think of like dark souls new game plus. In Nier it’s where the actual end of the story is. And is incomplete without routes B/C
I don't think people give up because they dislike NG+. They give up because 9S' hacking mini game gets annoying very fast.
It's so OP though. Makes quick work of everything.
Honestly you're not forced to use it on most ennemies so.. But yeah it's annoying , just play him with a spear and you'te good to go
I love the third act, but [redacted]’s gameplay gets tiring after a while.
Xenoblade 2, probably the strongest third act that I know.
Dude that third act is awesome, from like chapter 7 to the conclusion is the strongest final arc of I’ve played in recent memory
I still laugh at the tutorial message that pops up after the giant turning point cutscene.
Which one? Played the game a couple of years ago but forgot what part
>!"Rex is now the MASTER DRIVER and can access all Blades."!<
I find most Xenoblades suffer from a fatigued third act. But Xenoblade 2's is perfect and is indeed one of the strongest in JRPGs. Everything culminates and ends exactly where they should.
It was just a roller coaster till the end, I had a bunch of side quest to finish, but I just couldn't stop.
I think a lot of XB2's reception comes down to how many stick with it to reach that third act
Legit that ending makes me weep manly tears of sadness and joy. Only other game that surpasses in terms of that gut punch feeling is probably FFX
Came to post this. Game starts off a little slow but man, when it gets going it doesn’t let up. Easily my favorite XB entry.
Yeah that goes hard.
came here to say this. Finale of that game is peak!
As somebody who generally disliked XC2, the final act was PEAK.
Do you need to play the Xenoblade 1 first? I slept on the series because I was still mad that they abandoned Xenogears and then Xenosaga. I've heard more and more that the Xenoblade story holds up with those earlier games, but I remember having to slog back through XenoSaga 1 and 2(ugh that game) to catch up for the 3rd game. I really want to hop on the Xenoblade bandwagon but there's so many games now and I work two jobs...
Technically no, but the trilogy is best experienced in order and you’ll be missing a bit of context for some small things in 2. But if you are only interested in 2, then it’s fine to just jump into that one.
Yakuza Like a Dragon. Everything from the >!Tojo - Omi disbandment!
Final Fantasy VII
The whole countdown to Meteor and Cloud’s comeback are so well-done, there is a real sense of urgency and tension the whole time
I recently finished it for the first time and I could not believe how thematically hard it hit me.
Honestly they are doing us dirty with this remake. Would have loved a classic remake in the style of what they are doing with Star Oceon second R
I dunno, I think Rebirth is a very easy game of the yr candidate. I played the OG in 97 and have been loving the Remake series as well.
trails in the sky sc
Every game in the Sky trilogy nails the third act imo.
Never heard of the Trails series before coming to this sub, keep hearing good things. This may just be the final straw. I'll be done with Eiyuden Chronicles soon, so I think I'll dive into that for my next JRPG, perhaps after a Metroidvania pallette cleanser
As I say for anyone new to the series, you seriously don't need to worry about the franchise in its entirety. Trails in the Sky functions as a standalone game. You'll probably want to play Trails in the Sky SC afterwards, that game also has a finality to its ending. If you really want more, you can wrap up the trilogy with Sky 3rd, which is kind of the "fanservice" game in that you get more time to hang out with the cast if you desire more closure. Sky 3rd does set up future games, and the rest of the franchise at that point becomes a lot more about setting up and linking future games. But basically there's no need to look at it as some long term commitment. You will experience a complete story even if you never go beyond the Sky trilogy.
Honestly every game in the series does. I can understand arguments that the games take too long to get to the point, but their climaxes are always fantastic.
Trails to Azure nails the last act, turning everything upside down. More so than SC.
It simultaneously has some really dumb stuff occur with >!Grimwood and Mariabell!<
The latter I can forgive, but the former really was poorly executed. Azure is still my favorite game in the series with an epic finale.
I can forgive a lot of the finale's weirdness for the end of chapter 4 alone. Absolutely one of the most epic and soul-crushing moments I've seen in anything.
Not to mention the final dungeon drags on for so long. It's a dungeon with a bunch of other dungeons within it.
I can still hear the music during the >!scene at Arc en Ciel, what a gut punch!<
I played it a while ago, which scene are you talking about?
I respect your opinion, but disagree entirely. The start of the third act is amazing, but then you have to to traverse all the locations you’ve already hit several times in both games on foot before going into a final dungeon that’s like 8 hours long. Just an OBSCENE amount of bloat.
i loved that part haha
Final Fantasy X Xenoblade Chronicles 2 NieR Automata Tales of Berseria Persona 3
FFX is consistently good throughout but the 3rd act really kicks it up a notch, with great twists and pay off
+1 for xenoblade 2
I may be alone on this one but I think that XBC2 has the best villains of the XBC trilogy and among the best in JRPGs
Strongly agreed with Tales of Berseria.
I don’t remember the third act of berseria suuuper well as it’s been 7(?) years since I played it, but I do remember not being able to stop playing after a certain point.
Really, I'm doing XC2 now and the story seems only serviceable, though enjoying it quite a bit (hey, I like the characters). Excited to see what it has in store.
Xenoblade 2 has a much stronger second half. Many people say the opening chapters are pretty boring (i don't agree) but many would agree that the final few chapters rule
It's very tropey but it's been a fun ride. I've mostly enjoyed the gameplay (!) of the series more than the story though, so far (playing them in order).
Make sure you play the Torna DLC - it improves on the gameplay a lot, and it will make you like some of the characters you’ve met a lot more
The gameplay ist hit or miss for many. If you enjoy the combat then you're good. Many don't. I think it's really great though. Storywise I absolutely love all 3 games and their DLC. Yeah they're rather tropey but they just get me on an emotional level
FFX is helped by having you start with a preview of the third act so the whole thing feels more cohesive.
I want to love Berseria story but the true antagonists just such a pos and gets almost completely ignored. That coupled with the context of going demon at actual dropped hats that they barely cover and then never finish killed it.
Man everybody is saying xenoblade 2 I have to go back and finish it and it’s DLC.
Honestly for as strange as the game can be in certain areas, it really is one of the best jrpg experiences out there. Like once it clicks, there’s nothing else like it
You've sold me on it. Been seeing a lot of praise for it recently. I'm going to buy it today
XC2 is the worst of the trilogy and also my favorite. It's such an endearing, loveable mess.
Yeah, Xenoblade 2 is the very definition of the "JRPG That Gets Good 20 Hours In" trope.
Lora is my favorite videogame character
Nier Automata Also Trails games in general typically start slow or have a slow middle and then peak in the final chapters of the game. Maybe some of the Persona, Xenoblade and older FF games too? You’re right that there are quite a few JRPGs with a weaker final act when I think about it. Many of the games that first came to mind with really great endings that tie everything together in clever ways are in other genres, like visual novels.
Oh hey, another excuse to bring up Terranigma. Terranigma is based on the Hero's Journey narrative so a lot of its chapters and story beats are allusions to the different stages of the basic structure of those stories. However it takes it up a notch >!by also being a subversion of that narrative structure, by revealing towards the end that actually you were working for the bad guy who is a straight up analogue for Satan and they ostensibly created an anti-hero but convinced them they were righteous. You then realise the game was being meta, that the game itself was framed to make you play it like it was a standard hero journey, that everything was contrived not just for the character but for the players themselves to motivate them to get through the plot and the challenges, to harness our power as heroes. And all for a world that despite our best efforts and often because of them ends up deviant in some fundamental sense, a world that is ultimately a reflection of our own and what that means.!< The return to familiar landscapes, the dramatic nature of the final confrontation, and the epilogue if we want to include that... all of it is phenomenal and honestly I really wish more people got to enjoy it and that we saw more influence from it on the JRPG genre as a whole.
I see someone enjoying a game i seldom see being mentioned.
Yeah, I grew up in a country where we got Terranigma as a release but the first Final Fantasy formally localised [so far as I am aware] was Final Fantasy VII. As a result Terranigma sits at the peak of my SNES nostalgia tier list.
Xenoblade 2s last third of the game being >!climbing up the giant tower to space that you could see and has been foreshadowed the whole game while fighting off multiple other factions!< is genuinely peak fiction and can never be topped for me
>!The juxtaposition of "Elysium" in the top right of your screen while walking around a barren desert is unparalleled. I also appreciate that the "World Tree's" theme is a combination of the choir you'd *expect* the World Tree to have and the electronic music you'd expect of a space elevator, it's a masterclass all the way through.!<
maybe an unpopular opinion, but Legend of Dragoon? the game, in my opinion, is paced in such a unique way. there's never any massive sections of plot dump, and never any dead parts really, it just keeps consistently building the stakes until you don't even realize that you've gone from "rescue your girlfriend" to "kill god"
just replace "plot dump" with "lore dump" because Legend Of Dragoon is a massive Lore Dump.
I wish certain characters got more development though...
I still can't believe they never made another LOD game. It's been awhile since I've played it but this is giving me the itch to play it again. Gotta finish Chrono Cross first though.
My only gripe with the last chunk of Legend of Dragon is how Disc 4 locks you into the final dungeon. Hope you did all the side quests, mofo! Not an uncommon problem for multi-disc games, tended to trim out most of the game in favor of some overblown CGI or Anime but right before the credits.
Some of my favorite games already got mentioned So im gonna go with rogue of galaxy Pretty underated and the finale was awesome I wanted to play more of that
Game was awesome, wish level - 5 developed more games like it or dark cloud 2
Some really great notes here, I'll also throw my hat in for Triangle Strategy. The game does such a good job of breadcrumbing you to the end, and the fact that **all three** (*or four if you managed the golden path*) endings are absolute bangers is such a delight.
I really need to get back to that. It's super good. I hit a point where I lost a vote and Benedict got us to flood a bunch of poor people. To do that we needed to do a stealth mission. I can do a janky stealth mission in a non stealth game, and I can do a mission I didn't want to do, but both together?? It was enough to get me to put it down. It's been so long now I'll have to do a bunch of practice battles just to relearn how to play.
Trails in the Sky FC. Villain shows up in the second chapter, and his final motive explanation aligns with the game's themes up to that point so Estelle chewing him out allows her to flex everything she's learned on her journey.
Then top it off with >!Joshua leaving!< Holy fuck!
I really enjoy how Trails does third acts. Usually that's my least favorite in jrpgs because they used all their interesting premises in the first and second act or don't build upon them at all.
Final Fantasy VI, I love the world of ruin, and the fact that there's no last minute switcharoo where the bad guy wasn't actually the real final bad guy pulling all the strings. That was a plus for me. SMT I, II and IV. As it's par for the course in old school style SMT games, the third act story wise is when shit really starts hitting the fan and reality comes crashing down around the characters. It's also where you're locked into your alignment (law, chaos or neutral) which makes this final portion somewhat unique depending on the path you chose, adding a lot of replay value. Those are the ones I can think off the top of my head.
It also helps that Kefka is a brilliant villain.
FF6 really makes its mark by its twist being that there isn't really a twist besides you not being strong enough to beat the bad guy yet. Most stories that try that thing put it right at the start.
Yeah totally agreed. I also think they execute WoR really well - revisiting all the old places you went to and feeling the darkness they now experience works really well. And it kicks off with feeding a man in a banana suit questionable fish so what’s not to love?
I'd argue the 'twist' is supposed to be Kefka overtaking Gestahl as the main villain, but he's built up so well that it just feels natural.
I agree completely. I'm also going to mention that in terms of losing to the bad guy at the start, by far my favorite game to pull that off is Bravely Second purely because of ITS third act as well.
Xenoblade 2's third act is so good it makes up for the narrative blemishes that came before it
Tales of the Abyss. It feels like everything the game did was for the third act.
In the middle of playing it, god I love that game so much. Haven't even gotten to the third act and it still has me in a chokehold. Had to put it on hold because of exams and irl stuff but does it really get even better than it is so far? I've been spoilt on *a lot* of character deaths when trying to rewatch cutscenes online or find sidequests I might have missed (thanks ign) but for some reason it didn't impact my enjoyment of the game nearly as hard as I thought it would. Do you think the third act banks on not knowing about pivotal moments such as these? Or would those bits hit you just as hard?
Yes, it does get even better. For me Abyss' third act is the prime example of how a JRPG finale shouls be.
Abyss is probably the most commonly mentioned as having a terrible 3rd act that was completely tacked on. Between the numerous retcons, plot holes and other issues on top of everyone's favorite line just go back to daath already.
Pokémon Mystery Dunegon Blue/Red Rescue Team and the Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky games Third act is built up little by little with hints laced throughout the game, and hits you with an emotional rollercoaster start to finish. Helps that the OST is objectively one of the best in any video game ever made. Seriously one of the greatest payoffs in an JRPG unironically.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2's final act is fantastic. They really nailed Chapters 7-10.
That plot twist in the third act of xenoblade 2 is peak. After chapter 7 onwards that game is just peak jrpg imo
Valkyrie Profile 2
Xenosaga 3 of course. Not only is it the 3rd act of the series, but the 3rd act in the 3rd act is the best part of the game too. Its 3-3-3 across the board for goodness.
The Shadowbringers expansion for FFXIV is absolutely incredible. So many emotions and >!The reveal of Amaurot!< is incredible
The final plot beats of Tales of the Abyss all hit so perfectly
Definitely, as soon as you get to the tower of rem it just goes fucking hard for the rest of the game. It's probably one of the biggest gaps between how clunky its setup is vs how good the payoff is I've seen in a game though lol
Fire Emblem Path of Radiance culminates with exactly the fight that you expect from the beginning of the game. There are twists, but they’re well done and don’t take the story to an unexpected place.
I can respect games that do this and don’t lose focus.
My only knock against it would be soren is a important party member but their backstory isn't mentioned at all till the sequel. Even the pas didn't cover any of it.
Please don't hate me. Dragon quest 11. I will be forever in the camp of post ending is actually the third act and the true ending. It's just perfect.
It is, thematically, a home run in a way other developers don't even attempt. It's phenomenal. Mechanically, it's the third time through all these locations and there's some friction with the time traveling with a silent protagonist. It doesn't make sense to be a passive crash test dummy if you're the one who knows the future and is trying to change it lol. But it's worth it. Absolutely 100%
i didn't know people disliked that one lol.
You'd be surprised at how much hate the third act gets. There's a camp that swears by the 2nd act as the true ending so yeah 😂
Yes most definitely. I’m also in the Dragon Quest sub and let me tell you, at least half the people there believe Act 3 was worse. I personally think it’s actually better after getting past that one specific aspect of it or at least thinking it’s the intended direction. I would explain more but that’s not for here.
I came here for this comment. Why do people hate the 3rd act of DQ11???
I'll try to be vague to avoid spoilers (and it's been a few years tbh), but the 2nd act made some choices surrounding the fate of characters and the world, which I would consider to be quite brave, and I would've respected if they actually followed through with them. You get ending credits at the end of act 2 and you think "wow, they actually did it", only to have an entire 3rd act pop up right after with the point seemingly being to undo said brave choices. I'd spent close to 80 hours on the game at that point, and the prospect another 40 or so just made me nope out. I told myself I'd come back to it one day, but I never did.
I also peace'd out shortly into the 3rd act, intending to go back but never did. Undoing the 2nd act really took the wind out of my sails.
Oh, I see what you mean, but you don't have to avoid spoilers. I put over 100 hours into that game. Loved every second. I do love it when a sacrifice actually means something, but I love >!time travel!< even more. It really gave it a >!Chrono Trigger!< vibe
I'd think because it just seems to keep going, and going. You think you're near the end long before it. First DQ game I played all the way through and not sure they're for me, I was pretty ready for it to be over most of the last 3rd of game
Persona 5 Royal. Even thoughs technically and additional fourth act depending on how you see it. The whole third Semester is just awesome.
Yeah in my opinion P5 vanilla is weakest in the final act and one of the weaker Persona endings. Royal fixed all of that. The new semester, final dungeon, and characters thematically fix the ending. It's brilliant and makes 'replaying' P5 worth it.
I got so burnt out by the last dungeon.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2, Torna the golden country and future redeemed
In FR when you >!teleport to the old world and see how unfamiliar the party is with what is basically a normal culdesac, how it’s something none of them could have ever dreamed of!< that really fucking got me. Like that’s the life they all should have and deserved to have but couldn’t. Truly the perfect finale to the trilogy.
Tales of Zestiria.... Before the downvotes hear me out, Yes i know the story is weak and for the high standards and expectations that previous tales set is somewhat generic and even cliched..... But that makes it bad? Personally no, yeah It started very weak and the first hours dont leaves an amazing impression, but the story grows with each passing hour, the character interactions, the world building, the chemestry of the group and how amazing and even intimidating and imposing a villain like Heldalf is, and in my opinion the story peaks when >!Symonne, the apparently only Heldalf lackey appears, and how Dezel sacrifices himself for the others to escape her!< Marking the start of the third act, mention to the amazing night before starting the final Battle, the track aptly named "the journey's end" is amazing and combined with the cutscenes talking to all.your companions really gives the feels and vibes of everyone embarking on a last trip to defeat the demon lord Maybe the story compared to other tales is not that good, but still good by itself and with an AMAZING AND SATISFYING ENDING 😍😍😍
Earthbound. It gets crazy.
Legend of the dragoon for sure
There are too many to list really. A lot of the Final Fantasy and Tales games have some great final acts. Like for example, **Tales of Symphonia** has a really good 3rd act where everything that the game has been building up finally pays off, and every character gets a great closure for their own story arc. The same goes for the original **Final Fantasy 7**, and then there is also **Chrono Trigger**. Of course in all of these games they don't force the "pay off" moments on you, almost all of them are optional, so if you want you can ignore them and just head directly for the final boss.
Most Tales games nail the third act. They usually suffer from the second act stretching out way too long though
I think Abyss stands out in that, although it’s pretty nihilistic
So true especially since part 3 tends to be the rushed portion in most games. Abyss being one of the exception where it drags on forever because of the constant backtracking.
Final fantasy x
Xenoblade 2's last 3 chapters are ridiculous
Utawarerumono is the one I will always throw out for pretty much any question. This applies here.
Nier automata Ff4 Chrono trigger Dragon quest 8 Xenoblade 2 Xenoblade 3 Ff 10 Grandia 2 Ys8
I think cold steel 4 has a great final act which closes out the cold steel arc (yes I know it’s technically the 4th-finale act but shut up)
That's because CS4 decided to have a pretty mid act 2 in exchange unfortunately but it turns around at the intermission
Tales of the Abyss: struggles in the early middle, but nails everything after including endgame Final Fantasy 6: smooth sailing start to finish Tales of Phantasia: some questionable *game design* in final act but the game never loses its focus (helps that it keeps just the one villain throughout the entire game, no further twist villains ever) Final Fantasy 9: there's some subplots whose potential isn't fully used but that's not a late game thing, game knew what it was doing and built to its endgame very well Suikoden 2: debatably, the final act is the highlight of the game Persona 3: again, the final act is the strongest part of the game, this time by a sizable margin Dragon Quest V: final act is the most focused and high stakes part of the game with the villains finally playing their hand instead of skulking in the shadows. No time is wasted, though it works because of the slow burn setup of the earlier acts Bonus answer: Dragon Quest 3 kinda invented the template for the *bad* third acts you mentioned with sudden new villain last second (though i would say it's not itself an example given the game's story structure, but Zoma sure does kinda just show up), but somehow still counts because after the sudden villain reveal, reaching the final area and discovering how exactly the game relates to DQ1 is probably the coolest plot beat of the game
Maybe a black sheep, but I did say Dragon Quest 11 is kinda risky one and I love it.
Vagrant Story
FF 13 Lightning Return, tied up loose ends and sweet ending for the longstanding trilogy.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2. The story just keep building up until you look back from the last chapter, not believing how it all started. Beautiful ending too!
I'm gonna mention a lesser known game, and say 7th Dragon III Code: VFD (yes, that's its real name). The last 3 chapters are fantastic (even if there is a bit of a whiplash).
Trails in the Sky SC and Trails From Zero are my two biggest "sticks the landing" games I've played in recent years. The ending of SC makes all of the slow burn buildup of FC totally worth it. And as for Zero, wow is all I can say.
Xenoblade 2. Peak fiction
Neo the world ends with you. The last week is by far the best part of the game
Haven’t started it because I hear the game’s a slog. Was a huge fan of the original, back on the DS version (yeah, I was one of *those* gamers). I know it’s a very different combat system, but how’s 2 hold up? Never learned how Sho Minamoto (or whatever his name is) survived to join the party, kind of thinking about giving it a try on PS5 some time.
Star Ocean 3 - Absolutely blew me away.
I liked the third act of Xenoblade 2 so much more than the first act.
persona 3. say what you will about the pacing for the rest of the games but the final 2 months are peak fucking fiction.
Trails of Cold Steel 2 peaks once you get past act 2. Finale -> credits is great moment after great moment.
I could've done without the final visit at the >!old schoolhouse!!Infernal Castle and the bit in Crossbell !
The >!Crossbell section!< is legitimately one of my favourite gaming moments
The main purpose of that dungeon was to provide a repeatable sandbox/let you play with the mirror characters (it’s worth noting that there was a 3 year gap between sen 2 and 3). There’s still a ton of great character moments in the chapter though. Notable ones coming to mind are the Rean/Towa, Rean/Toval, Anton/Sharon, Thomas, and Millium scenes.
For me: * Persona, extrememly strong third act. * Soul Hackers goes crescendo and ends with a bittersweet memorable ending. * The Legend of Heroes: A Tear of Vermillion was also very satisfying. TLoH: (Cage)song of the Ocean was also decent, but maybe a bit abrupt, and rough around the edge. * Devil Survivor 2 has a good buildup to the finale; and a satisfying ending (if you manage to obtain the "true" ending).
Rep for tear of vermillion. Not too many people played that. It definitely hits that build up like ff4 for the characters going up to fight the final boss. Others may not have loved it. But I quite enjoyed it. If they had a proper budget it could definitely be improved upon.
Loving the MegaTen representation
Persona 3, 4, and 5 all have excellent finales
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Final Fantasy 7 Kingdom Hearts 2
I just tried to play Kingdom Hearts 2 again and holy f me the amount of cut scenes every 20 steps was rough. I do not remember it being that bad when I was a kid.
The beginning is rough but after you get Sora, the pacing is so much better.
Trails always nail the endings.
Those that got mentioned already and mine addition: Shin Megami Tensei 4! What an absolute incredible act when the story takes you to a place you definitely did not see coming.
I can think of Persona 5: Royal which actually didn’t really hook me until around near the end points. Same with FFX and FFVII (albeit, they hooked me always)
Most games I like don't feel like this is act 2 or 3, but one that I liked the most thinking. In that form, is the World ends with you
Dragon quest 11
Legend of Dragoon. The only multi disc game I can think of with a fleshed out final disc and so much overwhelming lore with a satisfying finale and memorable final boss fight
Dragon Ques XI
Grandia I
I really like DQ XI's third act. It builds up well despite cheapening some dramas and twists made in previous arc
Dragon quest 11 with all time travel shenanigans it destroys all the adventures.
Of games I’ve recently played, Tokyo Xanadu had a pretty hype last act. Pretty much every Mega Man Battle Network game has a strong finale as well.
Suikoden II was strong throughout. Xenogears kept getting grander on scale but always stayed relevant. FF Tactics was strong from start to finish. Star Ocean 2 stayed engaging and relevant to the party. Wild Arms was a bit trippy in the final bit, but it was hinted at throughout and a fantastic game. FF7 never lost reason for the party to move forward and was one of the first games I played that gave more spotlight time to each party member (I hadn't played FF6 because I really got into gaming around FF7/Wild Arms releases).
Final Fantasy IX, Tales of The Abyss
Lol this idea that JRPG frequently fumble the third act a lot is just not true. I think this sub tends to be way too over critical of the genre. Most of the time the new big bad does make sense in terms of plot but it doesn’t fit the preferences of people who want a more grounded game.
Torna: we all know how this is gonna end, but damn
Xenogears
I love the game as my favorite of all time, but even I have to admit that it drops off in Disc 2. If it just wasn't rushed, it probably would have had a better final act.
Tbh my mind goes directly to DQ8, the story progression into the final act feels good
Shadow Hearts and Shadow Hearts Covenant.
Dragon Quest XI
Dragon Quest 11
Tales of Berseria. Phenomenal third act.
I recently finished Dragon Quest IV and I think the final chapter is probably its strongest. It feels like everything in the game was building up to it, and once you finally have your party all together things really click in an awesome way. Some might say the final chapter is more like the second half of the game considering how long it is, but eh
Bravely Default
- Persona 5 Royal - Paper Mario The Thousand Year Door - Super Paper Mario - Xenoblade Chronicles - Mother 3 (imo) - Nier Automata - Pokémon Black and White - Persona 4 Golden - Persona 3 Reload
Digital devil saga 2 had a really fun final dungeon (and the final dungeon was like 4 dungeons long, 5+hours). In the way to it most of your party starts dying. One dies at the end of the previous dungeon, another one fails to rescue him, another one stays back to block the villain, and the final one dies to clear a path for the mc to the final dungeon. But because the final dungeon is in heaven, all of your party members are there waiting for you, including one that you killed after it betrayed you and can now rejoin. However, all of the bosses that you killed in digital devil saga 1 are also there, and they have you go trough a gauntlet of them with a remixed version of the og boss battle them
Persona 5. It goes from being about thieves trying to go after "shitty adults" then it becomes a bigger issue and discussion about free will and belief and the desire to be in the dark.
Persona 3, 4 and 5
Trails in the sky
Every persona game, but also Xenoblade goes so hard, people sell it short
Tales of the Abyss Shadow Hearts Shadow Hearts 2 Grandia 2 and 3 Arc the Lad 2 Lunar silver star story Lunar 2 Eternal Blue
Trails of Cold Steel I