Summary
JRPGs have become so ubiquitous that it’s easy to forget they were considered fossilized relics of the 1990s not too long ago. How exactly did this written-off video game genre take back its spotlight, and why is it shining brighter than ever?
Why JRPGs Fell Off in the 2000s
In a time before video games could depict cinematic stories,JRPGs (Japanese roleplaying games)had no parallel. Their epic narratives, large maps, and complex combat offered them an air of believability that most genres didn’t even bother trying for.
However, as video games moved away from the abstract nature of 2D and early 3D graphics, this edge was dulled. Open-world action games and first-person shooters became showcases for new hardware for the rapidly growing Western market in which they were typically made. They provided asensation of realism, and chasing that golden goose became a goal of the games industry.
Meanwhile, JRPGs struggled to evolve alongside this. Fantasy wasn’t in vogue andturn-based combat was perceived as monotonous and stale. By the mid-2000s, they were already considered holdovers of the past by this new mainstream audience.Pokémonstayed ever stalwart andFinal Fantasyretained a reputation that inherently drew attention, but little else did outside of Japan.
Much of this had to do with publishers erroneously prioritizing graphics over gameplay evolution.Final Fantasy XIIIis the most notorious example of this, pouring its blank check budget into cutting-edge visuals in lieu of compelling combat and level design. Worse, its storytelling was seen as confusing, something that got categorized under the same bucket of“nonsensical” and “weird"that Western audiences associated with anime at the time. Whether the characterization was fair or not, it stuck.
While it may seem misguided to focus on Western audiences when the genre has “Japanese” in its title, there’s a good reason for that: that’s where the bulk of console players were. The move to HD meanthigher budgetsand longer development cycles, and if publishers wanted to make their money back, it was safer to bet on what the largest demographic of players was interested in.
The most damning evidence is that even Square Enix started publishing Western-made games in this period, and it was the only publisher with a high-selling JRPG (Final Fantasy XIII) during the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 generation.
Handhelds Save the Day
My doom and gloom so far has only told half the story. While JRPGs were losing favor on consoles, they were thriving on gaming handhelds, especially the Nintendo DS and 3DS.
Sprites and low-polygon 3D models were cheaper and faster to produce for the less powerful hardware. This meant games could be released at a steady rate, not unlike the 1990s golden age. This gave the genre’s fans exactly what they wanted and at the standardized lower price of $40, expanding the market of people willing to take a chance on a game. It didn’t hurt that you also hada captive audience ofPokémonfansseeking new games to fill the gaps in that franchise’s annual release schedule.
Handheld JRPGs also grew fandoms around developers that have since become household names. Atlus is the most consequential example of this. A relative unknown in the West beyond hardcore JRPG enthusiasts, the developer’s variousShin Megami Tenseireleases—especiallyPersona 3 PortableandPersona 4 Goldenon the PlayStation Portable and Vita—created the necessary brand recognition forPersona 5to become a worldwide phenomenon. Even the likes of Square Enix maintained interest in its franchises through smaller handheld releases until JRPG development on consoles became feasible again.
Persona 3 Portable
WHERE TO PLAY
A JRPG social simulator about high school kids living out their lives during by day and fighting demons by night.
Persona 4 Golden
A JRPG where high schoolers enter a TV to fight demons while living out their lives in a social simulator by day.
Persona 5 Royal
A JRPG where high schoolers change people’s hearts by entering distortion worlds they create.
Given the lower stakes, gaming handhelds were also a hotbed of creativity in a landscape where console development was becoming more risk-averse. JRPGs took the opportunity to experiment with tried-and-true turn-based combat mechanics. Highlights includedRadiant Historia’sgrid manipulation andBravely Default’sdeferrable action points mechanic (which was later refined in the popularOctopath Travelerseries). In other instances, developers took advantage of the unique properties of handhelds, like the chaotic dual-screen combat ofThe World Ends with You, something that didn’t translate as well to its tablet ports and console sequel.
The classics also found new life on handhelds. A new generation of gamers were introduced to the likes ofFinal FantasyandDragon Questthrough remakes and tidied-up ports. Many of these are still considered the best versions of these games, such asChrono Trigger,which received a new localization that properly portrayed the original tone of the script. I can speak to the impact of this particular port on a personal level since playing the game on an emulator in the mid-2000s blew open the doors of my love for JRPGs. Owning a physical copy of my own upon its DS re-release personalized that bond.
As great as this all was, JRPGs on gaming handhelds typically catered to niche audiences if they weren’t namedPokémon. The genre needed a springboard back into the mainstream, and after over a decade of obscurity, it found two.
The Rise of Anime
Theskyrocketing popularity of animein the mid-to-late 2010s completely changed the shape of pop culture. Cool Japan was cool again and bought cool tides that rose the ships of JRPGs—also known as anime you can play—alongside it.
People began seeking out this playable anime. It’s the reason a game likeNieR: Automatawas positioned to become an unexpected sensation. In most cases, the sequel to a spin-off of an alternate ending to another series’ first game would be an assured flop. Yet with anime now certifiably huge in the West, its flashy combat and flashier character designs were precisely what people were looking for.
Other franchises rode this wave into the spotlight, often using social simulation elements like those found inFire Emblem: Three Houses, thePersonagames, and, most recently,Metaphor: ReFantazio. This trend showed JRPGs adapting to the wants of players in ways they failed to in the transition to HD gaming. People wanted to meaningfully simulate their borderlineisekaifantasies of living in an anime, and they found that through slice-of-life interactions with characters. In these cases, gameplay often came second, but people were playing nonetheless with a likelihood that they’d later check out similar titles.
Anime adaptations of JRPGs were another critical way in which they attracted new players.PersonaandTaleswere two franchises that found success in cross-media, as wasCyberpunk: Edgerunners,which completelyrehabilitated the imageof the Western RPGCyberpunk 2077.We can even trace this back to 2005’sFinal Fantasy VII: Advent Children, which is still a means of bringing in newFinal Fantasy VIIfans to this day. It’s worth noting that visual novels also found new fans through anime adaptations, and that the JRPG-adjacent genre was previously as niche as niche gets.
The irony of all this is that a decade prior, “anime” was the pejorative used to dismiss JRPGs. There’s much to be said about how anime is increasingly being written to appeal to the narrative sensibilities of Western audiences, but whatever the reason, it’s quite the reversal.
The Nintendo Switch Makes JRPGs Better
If anime was the catalyst that sparked new interest in JRPGs, the Nintendo Switch was the platform thatenabled their resurgence.
Given that the genre is filled with games that can take upwards of 100 hours to beat, spending each one of those on your couch is a taxing ask. By making these experiences optionally portable, people became able to conveniently work JRPGs into their lives. Grinding a little bit on a commute or side-questing in bed reduces the sense of monotony, and if you want to watch big moments play out on a big screen, you can always dock it. I know I just described the general best-of-both-worlds concept of the Nintendo Switch, but that’s because it’s specifically perfect for this style of game.
There’s also never been a bigger audience for JRPGs. Not only is the Switch one of the all-time best-selling consoles, but its ease of use has fostered a culture of players willing to give anything a try. This had a snowball effect that soon had Switch owners begging for every JRPG under the sun to grace the system. It’s no coincidence that it feels like half the time of any given Nintendo Direct is spent on them, and that these announcements tend to attract viral responses.
For example, if you had told me even five years ago that an initially Switch-exclusive remake ofLIVE A LIVE—an obscure SNES game even by Japanese standards—would sell over 500,000 copies in its first few months, I would’ve considered you a radical dreamer. If LIVE A LIVE can do it, virtually anything can.
It helps that Nintendo has bolstered the market for JRPGs with its own output. The biggest success story of these, aside fromFire Emblem,is theXenoblade Chroniclesfranchise, of which every game is now available on the platform. Not only that, but it’s likely they’ve all surpassed two million copies sold (the just-releasedXenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Editionaside).
Remember that Nintendo almost didn’t release the original game on Wii in North America, given how JRPGs had bottomed out in popularity, and it took a monumental fan campaign to make it happen as a limited run. That it’s become a mainstay franchise for Nintendo is proof enough of just how popular the genre has become.
EvenDragon QuestIs Selling Well in the West
To me, the ultimate proof that JRPGs are back in business is howDragon Questfound its footing in the West.
Dragon Questis a franchise so big in Japan that it needs to be released on Sundays to prevent schoolkids and office workers alike from skirting their duties. Meanwhile, in the West, not even the iconicDragon Ballart style ofthe late Akira Toriyamacould boost its popularity. EvenDragon Quest VIII—the franchise’s once most popular entry—only sold 430,000 of its 4.9 million copies in North America, and the reason why many Westerners bought it at all was for theFinal Fantasy XIIdemo disc bundled inside.
These consistently middling overseas sales figures led to the conversation around every entry being whether it’d be “the one” to become a hit outside of Japan. It didn’t happen time after time, resulting in some entries not even being localized. Yet these fortunes changed with 2017’sDragon Quest XI, racking up two million sales across basically every platform imaginable. This led toHD-2D remakes of the first three gamesbecoming major releases overseas, to the point wherea recent Nintendo Direct used its prime opening slot to showcase them.
Dragon Quest XI’spopularityproved that turn-based combat, crude whimsy, hundred-hour stories, and even silent protagonists can be selling points. This was bolstered by the success of other JRPGs, sure, butDragon Quest XIfeatured everything publishers thought Westerners didn’t want. And it did so without releasing on the Switch from the outset, and with its 3DSdemakenever seeing an overseas release at all. I’m glad Akira Toriyama got to see this important part of his career celebrated worldwide.
The future is looking bright for JRPGs. Just last year,Final Fantasy VII RebirthandMetaphor: ReFantaziowon countless end-of-year awards. Ina handful of weeks, we’ll haveClair Obscur: Expedition 33, a French-made JRPG (FRPG?) inspired by a love for the classics. Yes, we’ve even reached the point where studios outside Japan are creating their own takes on the genre and those games are getting premiere advertising slots asClair Obscurhas. I’m not sure even fans in the 1990s felt they were eating this good.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
A French-made JRPG about fighting the imminent fate of characters in a world where everyone dies at age 33.
