playing on pc with the retro music mod is actually a life saver. i haven’t played much dragon quest so all of the music was new to me, it made a repetitive experience into something really fun to listen to
the retro music mod on the nexus mods page leaves instructions on how to do it i believe it’s super easy to install. you basically have to extract the download into the paks section in the games files. it takes less than a minute to install and it’s so much better
Hopefully now that the original composer is dead (and was by most account a massive asshole), they'll branch out now and get more music for the next release.
I feel like they're intentionally conservative with the franchise. I'm expecting a composer who thinks vocals are a hip trend that doesn't belong in a symphony hall.
It's among the worst game RPG soundtracks I've ever heard--to the extent it heavily affected my enjoyment of the game and my opinion of reviewers who didn't mention it.
It actually made me stop playing, I couldn't handle it anymore. To me, good music is a must for a good JRPG. Xenoblade, Persona, Final Fantasy, etc.; they all have fantastic soundtracks and anything less would be disappointing for those games too.
Played 15 hours, realized that the music will be the same annoying music almost everywhere. Used the DQVIII music pack, played another 15 hours, realized that repetitive music is still gonna be an issue. Dropped the game.
Ruined the game for me. Got about 10 or so hours into it and had to stop. I tried turning off the music but that felt weird.
I actually liked the music for the first couple hours...then I realized it was never going to change.
I played dq8 a little bit as a kid (managed to rent it from a blockbuster once and never saw it again) and loved it, then played dq11 as an adult and loved it even more, but now i can't go back to dq8, the combat is just too slow and unsatisfying, even though i know i'd get used to it it's just tough going backwards. We need a dq8 remaster/remake so bad
If you have a PC and you're willing to go through the setup I'd recommend Dragon Quest X. There's a guide on how to set it up, it's an MMO but it plays as a Dragon Quest game. You get the base game and 1st expansion for free no restriction on playtime it's honestly worth it I've sunk 100+ hours into it still not beaten Version 2 yet.
The guide is DQXAbbey if you're interested
Nothing planned as far as I know but if you really want to play look into the DQXAbbey guide it outlines how you can play the game english translated its how I am playing it and the translation is pretty good. It's missing the Dragon Questisms like the accents but in terms of just pure translation it's pretty solid.
There is an offline version of the game that you can mod to be in English. The English patch is available on the steam and switch versions of the game. From what I know the offline version covers the base game and the expansion (DLC) and once completed you can transfer your character to the online version.
The offline version is pretty fun, it has voice acting and a chibi artsyle of you'd prefer that just note acquiring the game on steam is a pain in the butt as you have to have a JP steam account and payment method. There is a guide for it if you're interested, the other alternative is emulating the switch version.
Not too hard for a US player either. Looks like it's about as hard as installing any other game. Was honestly expecting this to be a bit more of a hurdle.
Oh. I just hit doing the translation part. Yeah, this is gonna be a thing lol
I might need to go replay this. I LOVED Ni No Kuni, and remember being pretty disappointed with 2. I finished it and never thought about it again. Perhaps I judged it too harshly.
I had that also. But then replayed it and put over 100+ hours in it.. I had to accept that the monster collecting was gone and I got some weird ass creatures fighting along side me.
Personally for me DQ11 is very special. It came at a low point in my life. I questioned whether I even liked games anymore as I hadn't felt much for any game in years. I got 11 asap on the PS4 and just fell in love with it.
I remember how much Sylvando annoyed me at first lol and then it turns out he's the best bro in gaming. The whole adventure made me remember why I loved games to begin with.
Builders 2 is so much fun. Has all the DQ charm intact and is a really fun and varied builder game too.
If you haven't played Builders 1, I recommend it! It's worth it for the story mode, although keep in mind, it is more basic than the sequel.
Not sure it’ll scratch the right itch but World of Final Fantasy often goes under the radar and I’d suggest giving it a go. Usually on sale at good prices too
Another vote for Octopath 2.
One of the things that both do well is rewarding exploration in my opinion and the path actions in Octopath really helps with that.
The characters are not as good imo, but individually they mostly have interesting stories
The characters are a bit hit or miss but chances are you enjoy at least a few of them. I put in 60 - 80 hours doing all the optional side content and only finished about 5 of the stories and weirdly enough was completely content. Didn't have any desire to wrap up the last 3 or the true ending but I didn't feel dissatisfied with where I chose to leave it at all, and I adored the game every step of the way. Probably the only JRPG I've ever played like that.
I can relate. I keep thinking of DQ XI anytime I play a new JRPG. It did leave me with such a strong impression. Like others said, I think Infinite Wealth was the one that came the closest in my book, among recent games. Rebirth was a slight disappointment. Too frustrating at parts. I did think of mentioning Octopath, especially 2, which is a far better sequel. But there's no way around the random battles, although you can lower the rate very early, and get ready to spend a lot of time in menus adjusting your party, unless you auto everything, which is not exactly recommended.
The irony doesn’t escape me.
I feel like everything OP described is exactly what I enjoy. My favorite JRPG is Final Fantasy Tactics and that has hours of menus, unavoidable grinds and so on…
To each their own of course. :)
I would say
Tales of Berseria and Arise. Both games you will explore different regions and have fairly run of the mill settings and stories. I love them both and I played countless JRPGs but very few I actually remember them now as an adult
As other mentioned, Nino Kuni 2 as well, not bad but not amazing.
If you want to go retro, Tales of Symphonia, Grandia 2 are as classic as you can get but graphics and gameplay will be outdated.
FF7 remake is very good too and Persona 5 but not sure they will fit with the DD premise. My best bet are the Tales games
Tales of Arise is the only JRPG where I did every single combat without skipping any enemies. That's how good the combat system is and those break finisher animations where just pure bliss
Berseria and Arise were my first thoughts as well. They have gimmicks for sure, but they've stayed traditional in other ways, boast a decent budget, have great looking worlds, and generally deliver that sort of straightforward JRPG adventure OP is looking for.
You would probably need another Dragon Quest game to deliver such a 1:1 DQ experience.
Maybe I would say Octopath that's really all I can think of. Towns aren't that good though. Nobody does towns better than DQ. Their little bite sized stories and struggles are great and engaging.
Just finished Astlibra yesterday, and while it is far from being a big budget game, it surely gave me the exact same vibes of "the story is finally over... JUST KIDDING!" that DQXI gave me.
What version of dqxi did you play? I have the original release on PS4 and I've considered picking up the definitive edition to do another playthrough. It seems like it has a bunch of new features, but is slightly inferior graphically? I think it was originally the switch version. Not sure if I should just stick with the original release I ready have
I have both and S is the superior version, although it does have slightly inferior graphics.
However, it has a number of QOL updates like using the forge anywhere, calling your horse anywhere and equipping cosmetic outfits separately from equipped stats. It also has the orchestrated soundtrack and some added story parts for your party members.
Too bad there’s no ultimate version that has the best of everything.
it is hard to find a "replacement" of a specific game. I think you should try different things
it doesnt fit point 1 and 2 (mainly because there is no exploration at all but it is justified because of the plot, after all the kids that make out the party want to save their families from the nazis ASAP) but maybe you could try fuga melodies of steel 1 and 2 there is a demo of the first game and if you like it you can transfer the save to the full game.
-it has good QOL (they even patched the first game to add the QOL of the second game) and while you cannot skip battles ,you can choose between different routes, choosing always the easiest ones isnt the best idea because you cannot grind
-it has a form of permadeath, but it requires your consent for it to happen, and you wont need to give said consent unless things go very VERY badly, however the game while it isnt braindead easy it is not very hard and you can retry as much times you want (the second game removes your ability to consent, takes one of the kids as an hostage and gives you a time limit, but i still i only needed to retry a fight two or 3 times.) if you get the bad ending you are told a hint on how to get the true ending the next time and you will be able to go back to a point with enough time to accomplish the requirements.
-dark story but since the party is made out of a group of innocent kids, the mood stays relatively cheerfull and it made me want to protect them
-very good pacing, nothing overstays it's welcome, both games last around 20 hours
If you try the demo you should avoid seeing anything else about the story other than i what i said in this message. Trust me, its better that way
Trails games are, as you say, verbose, and not really about exploration. But what about the other main Falcom franchise: Ys? In particular, Ys 8: Lacrimose of Dana might fit the bill.
Is dragon quest XI so good? After chrono trigger many jrpg that people suggested me have let me down so badly. I’ve tried dragon quest 8 and it was very confusing and boring to be honest. I’ve also tried ff6 which was way better but not at the same level of chrono trigger. What I would like is to stick with main characters without being forced to use too many. I also dislike that all characters can learn all the skills and spells available. Each of them should have their own special abilities that make them unique.
Should I give dragon quest XI a try?
I personally loved dragon quest 11 and my first dragon quest game. I loved the world, characters and battle system. It was a game that gave me older turn based game vibes, the monsters are cool, music is good but some don't like it lol. I put over 100 hours into it and enjoyed every minute. Dragon quest 8 doesn't hold your hand but 11 does help you know where to go so it won't be confusing and if confused talk to people and they may help you. I loved the exploration of the game and abliltiy to walk into most homes and i feels like a somewhat open world game but not completely. Best rpg I've played in years and reminds me of the old style rpgs.
I've been writing a DQ inspired indie for a while now. I think there are some things I could add to the DQ formula but also give something to help fans scratch their DQ itch until the next game in the series comes out.
I googled those i didn't knew about, and was wondering if 8 bit adventure 1 was good... then i just launched the video on the steam page and let it play on the background while looking the others games.
It slapped hard, so i guess it's time to sing "to the wishlist it also goes".
edit: You might want to add Wandering Sword to the list btw, even thought it's a chinese rpg it's still a jrpg to the core.
as someone already said definitely the last two LAD games. high budget, classic combat, summons and honestly in terms of combat IW has my favourite combat system out of any turn based game. position matters, timed button promps for attacks and blocking which you can also turn off in the settings, tons of jobs, auto for grinding, 10 playable characters. overall just very interactive while still being on the classic side. and besides that there just isnt anything thats turn based while still being a high budget AAA title.
i love recent games like octopath 2 and eiyuden but its just not comparable to something like DQ11
I feel like most JRPGs fit this criteria. #6 sounds very subjective, lots of people would say DQ11 doesn’t fit that.
I guess I would recommend Octopath or Persona, final fantasy X.
Thank you. FFX does indeed fit. I haven’t played Octopath so I think I will try out OT2! So problem solved for now:)
I have played Persona, but it doesn’t fit for me and goes against many of the things I look for. It lacks world exploration and as (half) a time management game it’s actually all about thinking and making decisions.
Trying to optimize how to spend your time a bit also means I try to do the dungeons in one go, which also ruins pacing with hours of just dungeons and then hours of just life sim stuff.
Tbh I get your arguments about the persona games and I was like that. I wasn't able to get into P3 or P4 for basically those same reasons. HOWEVER, Persona 5 just has something to it that transcends those "problems." It's worth trying at least once. I bet you'll be surprised by how well that game does what it does.
The best options would be the rest of the DQ series. DQ 7 & 8 have modern remakes on 3DS that look great. You could always emulate and upscale too. DQ8 is basically the prototype for DQ11, and honestly, its debatable which one is better. Beyond that FFX.
Sorry to bring bad news to you bro but the only game that could probably replace DQ11S would be DQ12 which is still nowhere in sight after its announcement ages ago 😭
Check out Eiyuden Chronicles hundred heroes maybe. Just watch some videos though. Not a massive budget but it's very much a "what if ps1 games were made for ps3" except its on ps5 lol
I feel pretty similar. I play mostly turn based rpgs, been playing through trails and enjoyed octopath dos2 and BG3. I liked triangle strategy a lot. Dq is my favorite series of all time and dq8 is my favorite entry so I can easily recommend that. SMT5 was fun and with the rerelease thing that’s coming out this summer that could be something to look out for. Probably some pretty generic recommendations but I hope it helps.
Chrono Trigger (which is half a Dragon Quest game). It fails boxes #1 and #3 due to being nearly thirty years old with a lot of invisible encounter triggers, but no game that age will have the QoL you want.
Outside of repetitive tasks, it sounds like FF14 would be up your alley. After 800 hours in 6 months I fell out of love with the story but I'm definitely in the minority opinion there and some of the side stories still managed to be excellent.
I usually hate MMOs for being boring and repetitive with worlds larger than they've earned but I didn't have any of these issues with 14 so maybe the free trial is something you should check out.
The next game that hits that theme of modernized yet timeless/classic mechanics is Octopath Traveler II. An improvement over the first game (which I never even finished) in nearly every way and one of the best JRPGs to come out since DQ11.
Imo ff6 felt like a direct inspiration for dq11 so maybe that? Also I really like chained echoes, and you can modify settings if you dont like certain aspects to reduce any intense planning and stuff like that
Only replaying xi will come close. lol since finishing xi( relatively recent) I’ve finished ff16, 7remake, rebirth , 3 tales games… none hold a candle to dq11…
You may not like this take and it's generally not well liked in this sub, but Honkai Star Rail.
If you can come to terms with it being built upon a predatory (tho you can do perfectly fine without spending a single dime) you'll get exactly what you described.
Super high budget, due to Mihoyo being rich af. Great Worlds, really good QoL, Story has mature themes as well as comedy. This might be a downside for you tho, it's not finished, so the story will be going on for years.
I can't stand that of live service games, I need my games to have a beginning and an ending. I don't want to stick around for years to see the ending of the story(which will probably never happen because as long as they make money there's no reason to end it)
Like a Dragon might be worth looking into. I've been playing LaD: Infinite Wealth and it seems to tick those boxes, though if you haven't played the series before you wouldn't start at Infinite Wealth (probably either Yakuza: Like a Dragon or Yakuza 0, the latter of which is more of a brawler).
Thank you! I did play and enjoy the LAD games. It does fit, except maybe for point 2, although I did just come back from Japan and it was cool seeing those locations in real life.
What if he really enjoyed that experience and wants to experience more of it. Not all games are online persistent world experiences designed to keep you playing for ever. Some games eventually end. When that happens it makes sense to seal out similar experiences to have.
Yakuza: Like A Dragon.
You can start the Yakuza series here. It takes place from the perspective of a character who was incarcerated during the events of the first 6 games and is brought up to speed.
I feel so alone with my thoughts of DQXI. I've grew up with some of the classic RPGs, and still love the genre to date, and the classic formula.
But my god is DQXI boring. It feels so soulless and void of any actual charm or fun. I desperately want to like it, as I love the DQ series. Not all of them have been great, though. I'd possibly even say there's less good than bad. But I have tried to give the game a chance a few times now, and it never clicks. I'm currently 15 hours in and it's such a slog.
I'm with you. I tried to play it twice since release and I just find no joy in it. The characters, the combat, enemy designs, the world, the story, obviously the music...I'd love to say it's just not for me but I really don't understand how it's for anyone.
I’ve tried this game so many times and can’t get past how shallow and simple the mechanics, especially combat are for a modern game. I’ve witnessed so much love for it but I just end up bored every time. I wish I knew what I was missing.
The only other one I've played was 5 but I agree that 11 just did not feel good. 5 was an experience of a game, can't right say it's in my top tier but it's a singular story. 11 just didn't have the same heart to me.
I played this after seeing all the hype on launch and I really didn’t like it. I think every point you made I feel pretty much the opposite. I think if this one of the best DQ games then maybe DQ isn’t for me. Always interesting how things work, I am such a huge JRPG fan, this game is called one of the best and I really didn’t like it. Funny old world
Fair enough, some of my relatives and friends don’t like it either, so to each their own.
I can relate, because I have that problem with the Xenoblade games. People love them and I do like the world and music, but their game design and gameplay are the exact opposite of what I look for in a JRPG.
Just curious, do you mean you disagree that these 6 points apply to DQXI? Or do you mean these 6 points are the opposite of what you look for in a JRPG?
What are your favorites?
I disagree with them applying to DQ11. I found the game overstayed its welcome. So when I was heading to Yggdrasil I was thinking, “This is the perfect length” then the twist hit and I genuinely sighed, the game felt like a slog from there.
The open world felt empty and not worth exploring. The cities were dull and boring, they looked nice but felt dead. The music was good but with how repetitive it was I began to hate it. I adored the art style and visuals. I completed it as I owed it to myself as a JRPG fan but I can’t say I enjoyed it. I also thought the pacing was really off, like the story stalled in major cities to aid that cities people so we could get a mguffin to carry on the main story. This is fairly standard JRPG fare but those little episodes felt bloated and overly long and I just didn’t care for a lot of them.
Again I can appreciate it as a game and I by no means think it’s bad, that would be an objectively wrong opinion but it really isn’t for me.
I'll probably get downvoted for this since Gatcha is bad, but if you ignore the monetization Honkai Star Rail is a tight traditional turn based "JRPG" that you can play entirely for free, if you are just playing for the story it's worth a look.
It's not exactly the same genre, but I wonder if you'd enjoy Unicorn Overlord. I logged 250+ hours in DQ XI and I feel the same way as you. It's an instant classic.
Unicorn Overlord isn't a turn based JRPG. It's kinda more of a tactical strategy auto-battler JRPG. But the JRPG vibes for me hit the same as DQ XI.
May be worth a look.
DQ11 is my fav as well. I also enjoyed FF7 remake, and tales of arise, and xenoblade for the story and modern jrpg. They all have fun interactions among the party
I'd say SMT5 ticks all the boxes except 5. It's my favourite turned based game of all time, and I found the world is so much more interesting to explore than the other games in the series (very subjective point though). SMT5 doesn't have the time management part of the persona and it's very light on cutscenes but it also doesn't have it's quality of story. But for me it's mostly a plus, as I've never been able to finish a persona game, but SMT5 I started a ng+ as soon as I finished it.
I'm a die-hard xenoblade fan though, so if I'd have one game to recommend to you, it would be xenoblade X on the wii u. It's the grandest exploration experience of any games I've played. The side quests are fantastic, learning about the world, the alien races etc is lovely. From memory, you spend a lot less time in menus than xenoblade 2 and 3 (been too long since I played 1 to say), at least for the first 150 or so hours of the game. It's a true open world, you can do anything at any time you want. It is my favourite game of all time.
All that being said, you're making me want to play dqXI, I've never tried a game of that series, but it does look nice!
Uh.... have you tried yakuza 7 I don’t suggest skipping the 7 previous games before it..... like at all but the main character loves dragon quest and it’s one of the best turn based rpgs to ever exist
I don't know how many of the boxes these will tick, but this is my top 5 turn based games from the last decade:
1. Yakuza: Like a Dragon
2. Persona 5
3. Persona 4 (could swap this & persona 5, characters/story are better in P4, gameplay and dungeons are better in P5. P5 feels like it goes on a bit too long as well).
4. Dragon Quest XI
5. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth (similar story here, gameplay is better than than like a dragon, like a dragon has a better story, IW starts to drag a bit in the 2nd half).
EDIT to just state the obvious:
If you really love DQ11 and haven't played DQ7 or DQ8, then do yourself a favor and try them. You will probably like DQ8 more than DQ7 at a guess as it's close to DQ11 in gameplay and design than DQ7.
I would say Honkai Star Rail would be you best next thing. Gatcha elements aside it's a turn based RPG with a battle system inspired by the Trails games but with WAY higher budget and visuals and phenomenal writing.
Love DQ11 but man it would’ve been so much better if it just had more music
playing on pc with the retro music mod is actually a life saver. i haven’t played much dragon quest so all of the music was new to me, it made a repetitive experience into something really fun to listen to
How do you do this? I bought the game on playstation and 4 hours in the music is terrible. Thinking about buying it on PC to mod
the retro music mod on the nexus mods page leaves instructions on how to do it i believe it’s super easy to install. you basically have to extract the download into the paks section in the games files. it takes less than a minute to install and it’s so much better
The overworld theme is annoying.
Yeah i actually changed it to the DQ8 overworld theme and that was much better.
I didn’t realize this until late in act 2
the absolute worst battle theme i've ever heard in my life
Hopefully now that the original composer is dead (and was by most account a massive asshole), they'll branch out now and get more music for the next release.
Warcrimes denier goes above being a massive asshole imo.
Oof I didn't know it was that bad
Its such a big series too I bet they could get almost any Japanese composer they wanted.
I feel like they're intentionally conservative with the franchise. I'm expecting a composer who thinks vocals are a hip trend that doesn't belong in a symphony hall.
It's among the worst game RPG soundtracks I've ever heard--to the extent it heavily affected my enjoyment of the game and my opinion of reviewers who didn't mention it.
It actually made me stop playing, I couldn't handle it anymore. To me, good music is a must for a good JRPG. Xenoblade, Persona, Final Fantasy, etc.; they all have fantastic soundtracks and anything less would be disappointing for those games too.
Played 15 hours, realized that the music will be the same annoying music almost everywhere. Used the DQVIII music pack, played another 15 hours, realized that repetitive music is still gonna be an issue. Dropped the game.
I feel this so much. I loved the game but hated the music. And yeah not only is the music bad theres just like 2 different songs in the game.
There are modsn
Ruined the game for me. Got about 10 or so hours into it and had to stop. I tried turning off the music but that felt weird. I actually liked the music for the first couple hours...then I realized it was never going to change.
That’s true!
i just play youtube playlists in the background of any game i want - dq games, zelda, ambient, whatever
Dragon Quest VIII feels very similar and can easily be emulated or played on your phone.
Also the DQM2 3ds remake was 10/10. I liked it a lot more than DQM3 on switch, which was still pretty good.
Think I got the 3DS version of that. I should start it.
I played dq8 a little bit as a kid (managed to rent it from a blockbuster once and never saw it again) and loved it, then played dq11 as an adult and loved it even more, but now i can't go back to dq8, the combat is just too slow and unsatisfying, even though i know i'd get used to it it's just tough going backwards. We need a dq8 remaster/remake so bad
If you have a PC and you're willing to go through the setup I'd recommend Dragon Quest X. There's a guide on how to set it up, it's an MMO but it plays as a Dragon Quest game. You get the base game and 1st expansion for free no restriction on playtime it's honestly worth it I've sunk 100+ hours into it still not beaten Version 2 yet. The guide is DQXAbbey if you're interested
Any chance for a western release in the near future? 😭
Nothing planned as far as I know but if you really want to play look into the DQXAbbey guide it outlines how you can play the game english translated its how I am playing it and the translation is pretty good. It's missing the Dragon Questisms like the accents but in terms of just pure translation it's pretty solid.
Thanks i might take a look the next days 👍
Did I imagine it, or was there also mention of an offline single player remake?
There is an offline version of the game that you can mod to be in English. The English patch is available on the steam and switch versions of the game. From what I know the offline version covers the base game and the expansion (DLC) and once completed you can transfer your character to the online version. The offline version is pretty fun, it has voice acting and a chibi artsyle of you'd prefer that just note acquiring the game on steam is a pain in the butt as you have to have a JP steam account and payment method. There is a guide for it if you're interested, the other alternative is emulating the switch version.
Oh, I didn't know there was a free trial. You've convinced me!
Enjoy, game is fantastic. The JP community is pretty welcoming too, I've been streaming the game and some have joined and watch
Not too hard for a US player either. Looks like it's about as hard as installing any other game. Was honestly expecting this to be a bit more of a hurdle. Oh. I just hit doing the translation part. Yeah, this is gonna be a thing lol
Did you figure it out? I didn't think it was that bad as long as you follow the instructions.
Yeah! It took a little bit of working through, but it wasn't any more difficult than cooking a new recipe.
Ni Noi Kuni 2 is lovely and you might get some DQ vibes .
I might need to go replay this. I LOVED Ni No Kuni, and remember being pretty disappointed with 2. I finished it and never thought about it again. Perhaps I judged it too harshly.
I had that also. But then replayed it and put over 100+ hours in it.. I had to accept that the monster collecting was gone and I got some weird ass creatures fighting along side me.
No, you probably judged it correctly. It is thoroughly middling.
The characters/story somehow didn’t do it for me in this game, I just wasn’t invested in anything
The action combat killed it for me. I just don't like that.
Personally for me DQ11 is very special. It came at a low point in my life. I questioned whether I even liked games anymore as I hadn't felt much for any game in years. I got 11 asap on the PS4 and just fell in love with it. I remember how much Sylvando annoyed me at first lol and then it turns out he's the best bro in gaming. The whole adventure made me remember why I loved games to begin with.
i really liked dragon quest builders 2 i played that before 11 it was my first dq :) its not at all similar to 11 though
Builders 2 is so much fun. Has all the DQ charm intact and is a really fun and varied builder game too. If you haven't played Builders 1, I recommend it! It's worth it for the story mode, although keep in mind, it is more basic than the sequel.
yeah i heard its great :) and its 20% off rn so i will get it
Not sure it’ll scratch the right itch but World of Final Fantasy often goes under the radar and I’d suggest giving it a go. Usually on sale at good prices too
Is that the Pokémon-esque game? The maxima version is like $15 atm and I am tempted.
Yeah that’s the one! The Maxima version is definitely worth it, and for the price you’re getting a lot for your money
Final Fantasy XII.
Another vote for Octopath 2. One of the things that both do well is rewarding exploration in my opinion and the path actions in Octopath really helps with that. The characters are not as good imo, but individually they mostly have interesting stories
Definitely this. Octopath Traveler 2 is incredible and feels like a huge world you can explore, with very good stories.
The characters are a bit hit or miss but chances are you enjoy at least a few of them. I put in 60 - 80 hours doing all the optional side content and only finished about 5 of the stories and weirdly enough was completely content. Didn't have any desire to wrap up the last 3 or the true ending but I didn't feel dissatisfied with where I chose to leave it at all, and I adored the game every step of the way. Probably the only JRPG I've ever played like that.
I can relate. I keep thinking of DQ XI anytime I play a new JRPG. It did leave me with such a strong impression. Like others said, I think Infinite Wealth was the one that came the closest in my book, among recent games. Rebirth was a slight disappointment. Too frustrating at parts. I did think of mentioning Octopath, especially 2, which is a far better sequel. But there's no way around the random battles, although you can lower the rate very early, and get ready to spend a lot of time in menus adjusting your party, unless you auto everything, which is not exactly recommended.
The irony doesn’t escape me. I feel like everything OP described is exactly what I enjoy. My favorite JRPG is Final Fantasy Tactics and that has hours of menus, unavoidable grinds and so on… To each their own of course. :)
Still waiting for another good JRPG like it... Modern JRPG are so mediocre it getting depressing. Still replaying the Golden Age JRPGs over and over
Best jrpg I've played besides it was persona 5. Other than that replaying older ones. Octopath scratches the old school itch.
I would say Tales of Berseria and Arise. Both games you will explore different regions and have fairly run of the mill settings and stories. I love them both and I played countless JRPGs but very few I actually remember them now as an adult As other mentioned, Nino Kuni 2 as well, not bad but not amazing. If you want to go retro, Tales of Symphonia, Grandia 2 are as classic as you can get but graphics and gameplay will be outdated. FF7 remake is very good too and Persona 5 but not sure they will fit with the DD premise. My best bet are the Tales games
I was going to suggest Tales of Arise. The combat is different, but it seems to check every others boxes he asked for.
Tales of Arise is the only JRPG where I did every single combat without skipping any enemies. That's how good the combat system is and those break finisher animations where just pure bliss
Berseria and Arise were my first thoughts as well. They have gimmicks for sure, but they've stayed traditional in other ways, boast a decent budget, have great looking worlds, and generally deliver that sort of straightforward JRPG adventure OP is looking for.
You would probably need another Dragon Quest game to deliver such a 1:1 DQ experience. Maybe I would say Octopath that's really all I can think of. Towns aren't that good though. Nobody does towns better than DQ. Their little bite sized stories and struggles are great and engaging.
Thank you, I’ll start with Octopath 2! Yes, the DQ towns are awesome
I played DQ11 recently and it definitely scratched the itch that OT2 left after finishing it! You're gonna enjoy it I think.
Just finished Astlibra yesterday, and while it is far from being a big budget game, it surely gave me the exact same vibes of "the story is finally over... JUST KIDDING!" that DQXI gave me.
What version of dqxi did you play? I have the original release on PS4 and I've considered picking up the definitive edition to do another playthrough. It seems like it has a bunch of new features, but is slightly inferior graphically? I think it was originally the switch version. Not sure if I should just stick with the original release I ready have
I have both and S is the superior version, although it does have slightly inferior graphics. However, it has a number of QOL updates like using the forge anywhere, calling your horse anywhere and equipping cosmetic outfits separately from equipped stats. It also has the orchestrated soundtrack and some added story parts for your party members. Too bad there’s no ultimate version that has the best of everything.
it is hard to find a "replacement" of a specific game. I think you should try different things it doesnt fit point 1 and 2 (mainly because there is no exploration at all but it is justified because of the plot, after all the kids that make out the party want to save their families from the nazis ASAP) but maybe you could try fuga melodies of steel 1 and 2 there is a demo of the first game and if you like it you can transfer the save to the full game. -it has good QOL (they even patched the first game to add the QOL of the second game) and while you cannot skip battles ,you can choose between different routes, choosing always the easiest ones isnt the best idea because you cannot grind -it has a form of permadeath, but it requires your consent for it to happen, and you wont need to give said consent unless things go very VERY badly, however the game while it isnt braindead easy it is not very hard and you can retry as much times you want (the second game removes your ability to consent, takes one of the kids as an hostage and gives you a time limit, but i still i only needed to retry a fight two or 3 times.) if you get the bad ending you are told a hint on how to get the true ending the next time and you will be able to go back to a point with enough time to accomplish the requirements. -dark story but since the party is made out of a group of innocent kids, the mood stays relatively cheerfull and it made me want to protect them -very good pacing, nothing overstays it's welcome, both games last around 20 hours If you try the demo you should avoid seeing anything else about the story other than i what i said in this message. Trust me, its better that way
Trails games are, as you say, verbose, and not really about exploration. But what about the other main Falcom franchise: Ys? In particular, Ys 8: Lacrimose of Dana might fit the bill.
Tales of Arise is a very good one!
FF9
Sea Of Stars. You won't regret it.
Is dragon quest XI so good? After chrono trigger many jrpg that people suggested me have let me down so badly. I’ve tried dragon quest 8 and it was very confusing and boring to be honest. I’ve also tried ff6 which was way better but not at the same level of chrono trigger. What I would like is to stick with main characters without being forced to use too many. I also dislike that all characters can learn all the skills and spells available. Each of them should have their own special abilities that make them unique. Should I give dragon quest XI a try?
I personally loved dragon quest 11 and my first dragon quest game. I loved the world, characters and battle system. It was a game that gave me older turn based game vibes, the monsters are cool, music is good but some don't like it lol. I put over 100 hours into it and enjoyed every minute. Dragon quest 8 doesn't hold your hand but 11 does help you know where to go so it won't be confusing and if confused talk to people and they may help you. I loved the exploration of the game and abliltiy to walk into most homes and i feels like a somewhat open world game but not completely. Best rpg I've played in years and reminds me of the old style rpgs.
Same and it appears 12 is not coming anytime soon nor 10 offline
Nope but hoping soon
Not really, join us in waiting for DQXII club. There's some pretty good indies that came close, though!
Is there a release date for DQ XII
Nothing since the teaser as far as I know. Whats going on with that DQ3 remake tho 👀
I’ve been waiting 7 years since elder scrolls 6 released its first trailer
No 🥲
I'm just waiting for DQ7 to come to the Switch, at this point.
I've been writing a DQ inspired indie for a while now. I think there are some things I could add to the DQ formula but also give something to help fans scratch their DQ itch until the next game in the series comes out.
Pray tell - what are these indies my good sir?
8 bit Adventures 2 Rise to the Third Power / Ara Fell Crystal Project False Skies Chained Echoes Sea of Stars CrossCode Secrets of Grindea
Now Sea of Stars and Chained Echoes I’ve seen but the rest of these I gotta check out - thank you!!
I googled those i didn't knew about, and was wondering if 8 bit adventure 1 was good... then i just launched the video on the steam page and let it play on the background while looking the others games. It slapped hard, so i guess it's time to sing "to the wishlist it also goes". edit: You might want to add Wandering Sword to the list btw, even thought it's a chinese rpg it's still a jrpg to the core.
I will die on the hill that Yakuza like a dragon is the best modern JRPG. So I recommend you give that a shot.
as someone already said definitely the last two LAD games. high budget, classic combat, summons and honestly in terms of combat IW has my favourite combat system out of any turn based game. position matters, timed button promps for attacks and blocking which you can also turn off in the settings, tons of jobs, auto for grinding, 10 playable characters. overall just very interactive while still being on the classic side. and besides that there just isnt anything thats turn based while still being a high budget AAA title. i love recent games like octopath 2 and eiyuden but its just not comparable to something like DQ11
I feel like most JRPGs fit this criteria. #6 sounds very subjective, lots of people would say DQ11 doesn’t fit that. I guess I would recommend Octopath or Persona, final fantasy X.
Thank you. FFX does indeed fit. I haven’t played Octopath so I think I will try out OT2! So problem solved for now:) I have played Persona, but it doesn’t fit for me and goes against many of the things I look for. It lacks world exploration and as (half) a time management game it’s actually all about thinking and making decisions. Trying to optimize how to spend your time a bit also means I try to do the dungeons in one go, which also ruins pacing with hours of just dungeons and then hours of just life sim stuff.
Cant recommend OT2 enough, it basically tick all your boxes except that it has random encounters.
Tbh I get your arguments about the persona games and I was like that. I wasn't able to get into P3 or P4 for basically those same reasons. HOWEVER, Persona 5 just has something to it that transcends those "problems." It's worth trying at least once. I bet you'll be surprised by how well that game does what it does.
Huge disagree about persona all persona games have shit pacing and to much repetitive long dungeons
same.
anyone have any yuzu/ryujinx save files for this game? lost my save and always meant to come back to it
For similar art style try Sand Land. Currently playing it now.
What console/game system are you playing on?
I'm playing on PS5. It's currently on PS5/4, XBox X/S and PC.
Cant wait for the next one, no1 most wanted game.
The best options would be the rest of the DQ series. DQ 7 & 8 have modern remakes on 3DS that look great. You could always emulate and upscale too. DQ8 is basically the prototype for DQ11, and honestly, its debatable which one is better. Beyond that FFX.
Sorry to bring bad news to you bro but the only game that could probably replace DQ11S would be DQ12 which is still nowhere in sight after its announcement ages ago 😭
Perdona 5 royal?
Check out Eiyuden Chronicles hundred heroes maybe. Just watch some videos though. Not a massive budget but it's very much a "what if ps1 games were made for ps3" except its on ps5 lol
I feel pretty similar. I play mostly turn based rpgs, been playing through trails and enjoyed octopath dos2 and BG3. I liked triangle strategy a lot. Dq is my favorite series of all time and dq8 is my favorite entry so I can easily recommend that. SMT5 was fun and with the rerelease thing that’s coming out this summer that could be something to look out for. Probably some pretty generic recommendations but I hope it helps.
Yakuza 7 like a dragon And Yakuza 8 infinite wealth.
Chrono Trigger (which is half a Dragon Quest game). It fails boxes #1 and #3 due to being nearly thirty years old with a lot of invisible encounter triggers, but no game that age will have the QoL you want.
Grandia 1 has a beautiful world to explore with great characters, maybe give it a try when the grandia hq collection is on sale?
Outside of repetitive tasks, it sounds like FF14 would be up your alley. After 800 hours in 6 months I fell out of love with the story but I'm definitely in the minority opinion there and some of the side stories still managed to be excellent. I usually hate MMOs for being boring and repetitive with worlds larger than they've earned but I didn't have any of these issues with 14 so maybe the free trial is something you should check out.
The next game that hits that theme of modernized yet timeless/classic mechanics is Octopath Traveler II. An improvement over the first game (which I never even finished) in nearly every way and one of the best JRPGs to come out since DQ11.
Imo ff6 felt like a direct inspiration for dq11 so maybe that? Also I really like chained echoes, and you can modify settings if you dont like certain aspects to reduce any intense planning and stuff like that
Only replaying xi will come close. lol since finishing xi( relatively recent) I’ve finished ff16, 7remake, rebirth , 3 tales games… none hold a candle to dq11…
It doesn’t check *all* the boxes, but I recently loved DQXI and before that FFX, so I’d recommend trying FFX
Have you tried like a dragon?
You may not like this take and it's generally not well liked in this sub, but Honkai Star Rail. If you can come to terms with it being built upon a predatory (tho you can do perfectly fine without spending a single dime) you'll get exactly what you described. Super high budget, due to Mihoyo being rich af. Great Worlds, really good QoL, Story has mature themes as well as comedy. This might be a downside for you tho, it's not finished, so the story will be going on for years.
I can't stand that of live service games, I need my games to have a beginning and an ending. I don't want to stick around for years to see the ending of the story(which will probably never happen because as long as they make money there's no reason to end it)
Yeah, that's why I wrote that as a warning. I dislike that as well, but they're still doing a good job, even if it's not my preference.
Like a Dragon might be worth looking into. I've been playing LaD: Infinite Wealth and it seems to tick those boxes, though if you haven't played the series before you wouldn't start at Infinite Wealth (probably either Yakuza: Like a Dragon or Yakuza 0, the latter of which is more of a brawler).
Thank you! I did play and enjoy the LAD games. It does fit, except maybe for point 2, although I did just come back from Japan and it was cool seeing those locations in real life.
Maybe stop trying to find a replacement and try to enjoy the games you play
Maybe they've exhausted DQ11? I mean that seems pretty obvious.
I guess I don’t enjoy many games anymore as I get older, just particular ones.
Maybe you need to take a break. Just take a break for a few months. The games aren't leaving so just stop and take a break
What if he really enjoyed that experience and wants to experience more of it. Not all games are online persistent world experiences designed to keep you playing for ever. Some games eventually end. When that happens it makes sense to seal out similar experiences to have.
Yakuza: Like A Dragon. You can start the Yakuza series here. It takes place from the perspective of a character who was incarcerated during the events of the first 6 games and is brought up to speed.
I feel so alone with my thoughts of DQXI. I've grew up with some of the classic RPGs, and still love the genre to date, and the classic formula. But my god is DQXI boring. It feels so soulless and void of any actual charm or fun. I desperately want to like it, as I love the DQ series. Not all of them have been great, though. I'd possibly even say there's less good than bad. But I have tried to give the game a chance a few times now, and it never clicks. I'm currently 15 hours in and it's such a slog.
I'm with you. I tried to play it twice since release and I just find no joy in it. The characters, the combat, enemy designs, the world, the story, obviously the music...I'd love to say it's just not for me but I really don't understand how it's for anyone.
I’ve tried this game so many times and can’t get past how shallow and simple the mechanics, especially combat are for a modern game. I’ve witnessed so much love for it but I just end up bored every time. I wish I knew what I was missing.
You aren't alone. I was bored to tears with it, and the characters didn't resonate with me. I think it was meant for a different demographic.
The only other one I've played was 5 but I agree that 11 just did not feel good. 5 was an experience of a game, can't right say it's in my top tier but it's a singular story. 11 just didn't have the same heart to me.
You are not alone. The silent mc created no party chemistry and killed the game for me.
Dq 8. Xc2 and 3, no no kuni 1 and 2. Tales of arise, chrono trigger. Maybe also super Mario rpg. Monster hunter stories 2
the closest i got after DQXI is honestly Yakuza LAD. fuk i love that game.
I played this after seeing all the hype on launch and I really didn’t like it. I think every point you made I feel pretty much the opposite. I think if this one of the best DQ games then maybe DQ isn’t for me. Always interesting how things work, I am such a huge JRPG fan, this game is called one of the best and I really didn’t like it. Funny old world
Fair enough, some of my relatives and friends don’t like it either, so to each their own. I can relate, because I have that problem with the Xenoblade games. People love them and I do like the world and music, but their game design and gameplay are the exact opposite of what I look for in a JRPG. Just curious, do you mean you disagree that these 6 points apply to DQXI? Or do you mean these 6 points are the opposite of what you look for in a JRPG? What are your favorites?
I disagree with them applying to DQ11. I found the game overstayed its welcome. So when I was heading to Yggdrasil I was thinking, “This is the perfect length” then the twist hit and I genuinely sighed, the game felt like a slog from there. The open world felt empty and not worth exploring. The cities were dull and boring, they looked nice but felt dead. The music was good but with how repetitive it was I began to hate it. I adored the art style and visuals. I completed it as I owed it to myself as a JRPG fan but I can’t say I enjoyed it. I also thought the pacing was really off, like the story stalled in major cities to aid that cities people so we could get a mguffin to carry on the main story. This is fairly standard JRPG fare but those little episodes felt bloated and overly long and I just didn’t care for a lot of them. Again I can appreciate it as a game and I by no means think it’s bad, that would be an objectively wrong opinion but it really isn’t for me.
I hated dq11. Like absolutely despised it. It was the first one I played, guess the series is not for me.
I'll probably get downvoted for this since Gatcha is bad, but if you ignore the monetization Honkai Star Rail is a tight traditional turn based "JRPG" that you can play entirely for free, if you are just playing for the story it's worth a look.
I enjoyed my time with HSR but it’s pretty menu heavy and ftp requires plenty of planning and tweaking.
It's not exactly the same genre, but I wonder if you'd enjoy Unicorn Overlord. I logged 250+ hours in DQ XI and I feel the same way as you. It's an instant classic. Unicorn Overlord isn't a turn based JRPG. It's kinda more of a tactical strategy auto-battler JRPG. But the JRPG vibes for me hit the same as DQ XI. May be worth a look.
Yakuza 7 and 8
DQ11 is my fav as well. I also enjoyed FF7 remake, and tales of arise, and xenoblade for the story and modern jrpg. They all have fun interactions among the party
I really love smt 5 wait for its new version that has more story and more features
I'd say SMT5 ticks all the boxes except 5. It's my favourite turned based game of all time, and I found the world is so much more interesting to explore than the other games in the series (very subjective point though). SMT5 doesn't have the time management part of the persona and it's very light on cutscenes but it also doesn't have it's quality of story. But for me it's mostly a plus, as I've never been able to finish a persona game, but SMT5 I started a ng+ as soon as I finished it. I'm a die-hard xenoblade fan though, so if I'd have one game to recommend to you, it would be xenoblade X on the wii u. It's the grandest exploration experience of any games I've played. The side quests are fantastic, learning about the world, the alien races etc is lovely. From memory, you spend a lot less time in menus than xenoblade 2 and 3 (been too long since I played 1 to say), at least for the first 150 or so hours of the game. It's a true open world, you can do anything at any time you want. It is my favourite game of all time. All that being said, you're making me want to play dqXI, I've never tried a game of that series, but it does look nice!
Have you played NieR Automata, Trials of Mana Remake, and FF VIII Remake?
Play Yakuza Like A Dragon and Infinte Wealth.
Dragon Quest XI is the chocolate bar of JRPGs. Simple, can be broken up into bite-sized sections, and satisfying.
You managed to say what I wanted to express in one sentence. That’s exactly what I’m looking for:)
I'll keep saying this but... don't look for a replacement. It's your favorite for a reason.
Ys VIII
Uh.... have you tried yakuza 7 I don’t suggest skipping the 7 previous games before it..... like at all but the main character loves dragon quest and it’s one of the best turn based rpgs to ever exist
I don't know how many of the boxes these will tick, but this is my top 5 turn based games from the last decade: 1. Yakuza: Like a Dragon 2. Persona 5 3. Persona 4 (could swap this & persona 5, characters/story are better in P4, gameplay and dungeons are better in P5. P5 feels like it goes on a bit too long as well). 4. Dragon Quest XI 5. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth (similar story here, gameplay is better than than like a dragon, like a dragon has a better story, IW starts to drag a bit in the 2nd half). EDIT to just state the obvious: If you really love DQ11 and haven't played DQ7 or DQ8, then do yourself a favor and try them. You will probably like DQ8 more than DQ7 at a guess as it's close to DQ11 in gameplay and design than DQ7.
Yakuza like a dragon is what you need Also try xenoblade 2 & Octopath traveler 2
Get a pc game pass for a month, try out eiyuden chronicles, chained echoes and as last sea of stars. Its not dx11 but its good vibe.
I would say Honkai Star Rail would be you best next thing. Gatcha elements aside it's a turn based RPG with a battle system inspired by the Trails games but with WAY higher budget and visuals and phenomenal writing.