NZGamer.com - Top 10 PlayStation RPGs That Aren't Your PAL

10 RPGs that might be worth your while to import.

When it comes to localised RPGs we, in PAL land, are repeatedly left wanting. Other genres are well provided for, and they seldom, if ever, miss out on a game in a series. Yet RPGs seem to be measured differently and as a consequence we’re often given part two of a series but not part one, or else we get part one and nothing more. It’s more likely, however, that we’ll miss out altogether on games NTSC landers rave over. There are several reasons why a game isn’t converted to PAL and not being a big seller elsewhere is just one of them - licensing cost is an issue and because PAL territories include many non-english speaking countries several languages must be added - and the cost for that isn’t small. Sometimes there just isn’t enough interest in a game, so no publishers or distributors want it. But no matter what keeps us from getting the games, we usually wind up the loser.

10 - dotHack//G.U.
The first dotHack took a while to catch on, but when it did it quickly became a big seller. After all, who could resist playing an on-line game that’s not? dotHack//G.U. has kept the same core idea but tweaking streamlined the series; for instance, there are three medium-length games instead of four short ones. The combat system has been tinkered with and there’s now more to it than button mashing. You can charge your attacks, do combos, use skills, and there are some serious damage-dealing combos called Rengeki and Awakening performed with others. The much loved Grunties run the shops and guilds and this time your mode of transport is a Steam Bike which extra parts make go faster. I’m not sure if G.U. is better than the first dotHack, it’s just different, but it’s certainly worth taking a look at if you liked the first series.

9 - Grandia III
Grandia I, II and Extreme are good solid RPGs, but Grandia III brings the series up to date with gorgeous graphics and a new combat engine. Although there are few, if any, side quests, the main quest - and the stunning places you visit along the way - more than make up for it. It does mean, however, that GIII is short - too short. Combat is turn-based and revolves around two wheels. The first shows when it’s your character’s turn and the second, the Command Wheel, shows combat choices; attack, defend, item, magic, special move, etc. One character can also choose to combo with another and the resulting attack is truly spectacular. Along with ever-changing scenery, GIII has some of the best-looking bosses I’ve seen for a while. And they’re tough too.

8 - Suikoden III
Suikoden is a well-known and loved RPG series, and when you boot up a Suikoden you know you’re in for 100+ hours of excitement collecting the 108 Stars of Destiny and filling your castle with them. Suiko III’s a little different in that there are three heroes instead of the usual one, and as each tells his, or her, story it’s almost like playing three games at once. And as a consequence you often see the same event from all three ‘sides’. True to the series, Suiko III offers dozens of side quests and mini games, and three types of combat; party based, one-on-one duels and the group combat of armies. Unlike the other Suikos though, while accumulating your 108 Stars you need to use as many as possible and as often as possible in combat to keep them battle ready. Because if they’re not they’ll let you down in the worst possible way.

7 - Radiata Stories
Radiata Stories is like Suikoden, in that there are a large number of people to recruit to your cause, almost 200 in fact. Again, like Suikoden, you round out your party with them, although Jack Russell is the only character under your control. Combat is real-time slash and defend but with enough other attacks to lift it from a mere button mash. Although RS’s story has been done before, a fresh combination of kooky characters and colourful events will often have you laughing out loud. And RS isn’t ashamed to make itself the butt of jokes. Around ¾ of the way through you face the decision whether to fight on the side of the humans or the fairies, and both are interesting enough that a special game save at that point will allow you to play through both sides.

6 - Valkyrie Profile
Valkyrie Profile: Silmeria garnered many new fans last year and for some it was the first they’d heard of the series. But because Valkyrie Profile wasn’t released here they could be forgiven for that. VP created a storm on release, not only because of its stunning 2D graphics but also because of the intriguing story based on Norse mythology. VP’s story unfolds through eight ‘chapters’, each made up of twenty-four periods, during which you’re continually aware you’re ‘counting down’ to the battle of Ragnarok. VP’s combat is arranged so that each party member is assigned a button and a press results in the character attacking immediately, which means you’re able to micro-manage your characters’ attacks. Unfortunately VP lacks a tutorial, which makes the Skill and Transfer systems a bit of a headache until they’re figured out.

5 - Parasite Eve
Parasite Eve is based on a Japanese novel of the same name and precisely because of that the game is totally linear. The story is told through numerous cutscenes that are so beautiful and detailed it’s almost as though the book has been brought to life. PE spans six days and during that time there aren’t many people around, and those that are die quickly. PE’s real-time combat is more action than RPG oriented in that you keep your character – Aya – moving around the field while preparing her next attack. And unlike the majority of RPGs, guns are her only weapons. Customisation of weapons and armour is one of the most fun things to do, and with enough time and effort you can turn your favourite gun into a mega-weapon and your armour into a full-body flack jacket. One of the problems with PE is that it’s very short. 20 hours will see it done and dusted. But on the plus side, the much more difficult ‘EX’ mode is unlocked for a second play through.

4 - Xenogears
Xenogears almost didn’t get a US release because of ‘sensitive religious issues’, which criticise religion and questions who we are. Xenogears is a delightful looking game, with a mix of 2D and 3D combat animation – characters in 2D and Gears in 3D – and stunning anime cutscenes. The story, set in the future, is thought provoking, if a little convoluted, and somewhat hard to follow at times. There are two kinds of combat - with Gears and without. Gears are huge humanoid robots that the characters summon in battle and which cause large amounts of damage. ‘Normal’ combat has a couple of interesting features: the Active Time Gauge indicates when a character can attack, but in addition there is a combo system that lets your character put together a series of attacks until all the Action Points are used. Xenogears, although a fun game, is not for the faint hearted with its contentious content and 100+ gaming hours.

3 - Xenosaga
Xenosaga is turning into a saga itself. PAL land missed the first game of the series and although we got the second it looks as though the third won’t be released here either. It makes me wonder what was the point of giving us the second - even with the Special Edition that included a cinematic DVD of the first game. The Xenosaga series is an ambitious sci-fi series set in the future, and although there’s an ordinary RPG lurking in there somewhere it’s been drowned out by an overly detailed and dramatic story that’s conveyed in long histrionic cutscenes. That’s not to say they’re not stunning to look at - they are. It’s just that, like Xenogears, there’s a lot of religiously influenced information to ingest. With an RPG that’s this story-heavy, combat has taken a second place. Like Xenogears, most characters pilot a large robot type of vehicle, and while these can dish out huge amounts of damage they also need frequent upgrading to improve their basic stats.

2 - Chrono Cross
Chrono Cross was announced five years after Chrono Trigger (SNES) made its appearance and fans went ballistic. Though a series, Chrono Cross doesn’t actually follow on from Chrono Trigger; rather it expands the story. CC’s esoteric ideas - parallel worlds, fate and conservation - are wound into the story in such a way as to make them entirely plausible. And as all forty of the playable characters develop these ideas are reinforced and expanded through their actions. CC is rich in colour and alive with detail and there’s usually even something happening in the background that gives the feel of depth and life. Even the characters’ spells look as fabulous as they are deadly. Combat is turn-based and features physical action, using stamina points and tech skills, which focus the character’s ‘chi,’ and an elemental magic system that’s a little different from the norm and can be rather complicated - but it’s worth persevering with.

1 - Lunar
Actually there are two ‘Lunars’; Silver Star Story Complete and Eternal Blue Complete, and each is as good as the other. They were released by Working Designs, a wonderful little company – now, unfortunately, defunct - known for the exquisite presentation of its games. Both Lunars come in colourful little cardboard boxes that contain, along with the games and their soundtracks in their double cases, full colour, hard backed art book/manuals, full colour maps, a Lunar pendant and small character standees. The Lunars aren’t just superb on the outside, they’re superb games too. About 1,000 years separate the games so of course they have different characters, but the Lunar look and ‘feel’ is stamped on both. The graphics are bright and colourful, if not detailed, but the cutscenes is where these games shine. Fortunately there are a lot of cutscenes, and they’re worth watching just to glory in the cinematic experience as well as the story unfolding. In fact you can even sit back and just watch the turn-based battles play out too, because at the press of a button the AI will do it all for you. Or it will do some, or none. The choice is yours. While the Lunars don’t offer anything special in the combat department when taken as a whole, both the games are absolutely stunning.

So there you have it. 10 RPGs that you might like to import from the US, because unless you’re lucky enough to spot them on a local auction site, US eBay is about the only place you’ll find these gems. And of course you’ll have to make sure your PlayStation can play them once you’ve gone to the trouble of acquiring them. While I have a mod chip installed in my PS2 other gamers swear by the Swap Magic disc. But whatever you use to play these games, play them you must.