I wrote in a previous post that I wished I hadn’t sold off my Dragon Age: Origins and now desperately wanting to buy a copy off of somebody. A lot of gamers of my age will never fault a decently good RPG and I would like to say that this statement is true, until this day. RPG is to me, undoubtedly, the best genre in a video game…….. ever……. in the world.

So, in this slightly longer than usual article (I believe short blogposts or microblogging as they call it nowadays – are rubbish excuse for laziness) I am going to list down some RPGs which have made my life as I was growing up, a lot better. You may not have played or seen any of these games as they were on a few different formats but a quick google would lead you straight to them. This is not a list of “Best RPGs ever etc etc”. It’s a personal list so bear with me if you please.

1. SILVER (PC)

Atari, Spiral House, 1999.

What a game this was! I played this game on my Pentium II 200 PC in my uni dorm room, circled by about 3 or 4 RPG enthusiasts. Silver was a unique PC RPG as it was one of the first RPG released exclusively on the PC, Dreamcast and Macintosh with strong Japanese RPG roots. It was released after FF7 got ported to the PC – Remember the 7 discs or something you had to install? I have to say, this is a great classic that a lot of people should play. Some great features of this game was the way you control the sword movements using your mouse, different slashes and clicks will perform different moves. Almost like a precursor to the wii! Except its wired lol.

Memorable moments: The amount of fun my friends and I had figuring out how to defeat each boss and cleaning the mouse tracking ball for smoother slashing moves. It was a game played by one, but enjoyed by many.

2. SOLEIL (SEGA Megadrive)

SEGA, 1994.

I got a Megadrive while I was living in England and envied my SNES owning friends to bits as I have always wanted one myself. My dad decided to pacify my gaming needs by buying the wrong console for my birthday (but don’t worry, later on I would eventually get a SNES). The thing about owning a SNES was the luxury of having a ton of RPGs to play. SEGA, however has a very limited number of RPGs at the time. Soleil is one of the game available on the cheap and since those days, you didn’t have the internet to check on reviews, I decided to get one. Fortunately, the game was a good one. It was unique and quirky. You control a hero who is aided by cute animals that would grant you special abilities (think cute GFs) as you play the game. Unfortunately, you can only control one hero throughout the game, so it is a little dull after a while. The storyline is simple but probably more suited to players around 13 years old. I was 14 at the time, so give or take.

Memorable moments: Getting stuck on a quest and having to restart the game all over again as it was a glitch. But persevered! It taught me that when you hit a dead end, retrace your steps and you’ll figure it out.

3. Chrono Cross (Playstation)

Square, 2000

Before Square was Square-Enix, they made great games. The original Final Fantasy series, the Mana series and ultimately the Chrono Series. Chrono Trigger on the SNES was one of the sought after JRPGs. It was even declared to be one of the best on the 16 bit system. I, unfortunately, never got the opportunity to play Chrono Trigger on the Playstation so I was thrilled when I heard about Chrono Cross. This is a really big game. The number of playable characters is massive and with each character the expansion of your quests keep growing bigger and bigger. It is impossible to enjoy this game to its fullest without a game book and I immediately bought one. It was my first strategy guide. With the trusty book at my side, I ploughed through each quest and collected almost all the hidden characters in the game. It was one of the most industrious times in my gaming life. Unfortunately, the main protagonist, Serge was a little lifeless and boring to play. He didn’t have the pull that some of the others have.

Memorable moments: The first fight tutorial and trying to understand the elements and the colours and the wtf! Taught me that if you that books will always matter even with us having the internet and everything. In the end, all the answers will still be in books.

4. Secret of Mana (SNES)

Square, 1993

This has to be the game that got me hooked to RPGs. Before owning this game, I often frequented to my neighbour’s house. He already had a copy and we continuously played the last level (you know the one before you go and meet the biggest boss) over and over again to level up. The key word here is: ‘WE’. Yes, this is probably the first ever Multiplayer co-op RPG. You should thank Square for your WoWs. In this game, you can link up to three players using a multi-tap converter. Each player controls one character on-screen and plays it independently. Previous Square games relied on the slow turn-based system, but for Secret of Mana, its all active combat. You see it, you slash it. Super moves are executed by charging the attack button up to level 8 which unleashes a very powerful attack. You can also cast buffs and debuffs on you characters. You collect magic by traveling to temples and palaces around the world and liberating tiny magical creatures called Elementals. This game is romantic and envisages Square’s ability to tell fantastic stories. Shame about what had happened in the last few years.

Memorable moments: Flying on a white dragon to reach parts of the map. First experience of 3D gaming for me! I learned never to underestimate the SNES.

Have to get back to work now.

To be continued...