If you ask JRPG fans to list their all-time favorite games, you’ll get countless different answers and endless arguments. Even when it’s a single console like the Nintendo Switch, there are too many options to choose from. No matter how big the list you make, you will definitely forget someone’s favorite. Still, we don’t want to shy away from a challenge, so here are our picks for the best JRPGs released for Switch.
The best JRPGs for Switch: our top 10 picks
Developers like Square Enix have given us classic JRPG titles dating back to the 1980s. However, Switch has given the genre one of its best homes, allowing players to seek out new loot and experience points whether on your TV or on the go. Some of them were originally released on other consoles and carried over to the Switch, while others remain exclusive to Nintendo’s console.
chained echoes
Picture via Deck13
The developers of Chained Echoes have set themselves a difficult task. They’ve created a game that feels modern and fresh while being a clear love letter to the classic JRPGs that came before it. Somehow they pulled it off and gave us one of the best JRPGs of 2022. With throwbacks to SNES-era titles mixed with wonderfully balanced combat and gripping music, Chained Echos makes excellent use of JRPG tropes to deliver a familiar yet unique story.
Final Fantasy XII: Age of the Zodiac
Picture via PlayStation Store
It would be hard not to include at least one Final Fantasy title on this list and Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age manages to improve the original game enough to take it from one of the worst Final Fantasy games to one of the best. JRPG. for Switch. The combat is tighter and more engaging. The soundtrack, always one of the highlights of the series, sounds bolder and grander. This new take is an average entry in the series and makes it easy to recommend to new and existing fans.
The Legend of Heroes: Traces of Cold Steel 3
Picture via Nintendo
The Trails of Cold Steel series began on PS Vita in 2013 and has spawned several sequels that connect to the larger Trails series. Trails of Cold Steel 3 sends the series protagonist back to school as a teacher following the events of the previous games. Combat in the series values unit placement over total power, which means you can defeat enemies stronger than you with careful planning. The story here is fantastic and deep and is perfectly at home here on Switch.
Related: The best JRPGS ever
live alive
Picture via Nintendo
When the new version of Live A Live was announced, JRPG fans fell into one of two categories. Either they were excited and foaming at the mouth, or they didn’t understand what the problem was. This classic SNES game never got an official localization in the West, which means many gamers have never heard of it before. Despite the pixel art style on display, Live A Live feels right at home on modern consoles. The story takes players through several time periods, with unexpected twists. With a new translation and voiceover, this is easily the definitive edition of this amazing game.
Neo: The world stops with you.
Image via Square Enix
The World Ends With You was one of the best games on the Nintendo DS, with brilliantly crafted characters and a tense plot that kept you guessing until the very end. It took 11 years before the sequel was released, but Square Enix made the wait worth it in every way. The combat is crisper, the visuals pop in both handheld and docked modes, and the music is gorgeous. Any Switch-powered JRPG fan should play this game right now, because it might be one of the best JRPGs of all time.
Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch
Image via Bandai Namco
Anime fans will recognize Studio Ghibli’s distinctive art style and charm the moment they load up this game. The famed film studio was heavily involved in the writing and character design of Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch and the game really benefits from it. Everything has a touch of fantasy, with charming and strange characters appearing seemingly out of nowhere. If you can get past some of the excessive grind requirements to complete the game, it’s a beautiful JRPG that looks and feels great on Switch.
Nier Automata: The End of the YoRHa Edition
Image via Platinum Games
If there was one game that no one thought would ever get a Switch port, it was Nier Automata. The beautiful animation with countless particle effects seemed too much for Nintendo’s best-selling but undeniably limited hardware. Somehow the developers pulled off the impossible and brought Yoko Taro’s jaw-dropping adventure to Switch, and it looks better here than it has any right to.
octopath traveler
Picture via Nintendo
Many of the best JRPGs feature set casts, but few games have made it a core feature like Octopath Traveler has. It’s risky trying to tell a story from multiple perspectives, but this game allowed everyone’s story to intertwine effortlessly. He was engaging and smart in a way we didn’t expect. Each of the game’s eight characters feels important to the story, which is incredibly difficult to achieve.
real person 5
Image via Atlus
Choosing which Persona games to include in this list was tough. Persona 3 and 4 set high standards for the series, but Persona 5 Royal tops them both with the perfect blend of style and substance. There are fantastic characters, an engaging take on the turn-based combat system, and one of the best stories in JRPG history. Each game will take close to 100 hours to complete, and you’ll probably still dive in to try again once that’s done.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus
Image via Pokemon Company
If there is a series that needed to get out of its own formula, it’s Pokémon. While we love how each entry in the series offers a whole new range of creatures to catch, the gameplay and plot generally don’t hold many surprises. That’s why Pokémon Legends: Arceus is so much fun. Set in an era before Pokémon Trainers, this game gave us new areas to explore and a plot that stood out from the rest of the series.
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