Jrpg Jungle

When I began my tactical JRPG kick , Fire Emblem was one of the first series I wanted to try. As a fan of the Persona series and after enjoying the fun tactical smartphone JRPG  X-Tactics , Fire Emblem’s combination relationship and tactical mechanics sounded right up my alley. Fire Emblem Awakening may not be the most recent Fire Emblem game, but it doesn't take away from being a tactical JRPG triumph. With a well thought out and unique tactical battle system and twist-filled plot full of interesting characters, I was captivated with Fire Emblem Awakening from start to finish. Fire Emblem Awakening’s story begins in the midst of a war between nations as the amnesiac Avatar (the customisable playable character) awakens in a field and is found by the royal family of the Ylisse nation, consisting of the strong-willed prince Chrom, his loyal knight Frederick and the light-hearted princess Lissa. The tactically-skilled Avatar quickly joins the nation's army and becomes a key member...

PS Vita has been my favourite portable console for awhile. I've had some of my best gaming experiences on it, such as Persona 4 Golden bringing me hardcore back into gaming and JRPGs, playing Final Fantasy X HD as my first game experience in all Japanese, going deeper into the Final Fantasy series with Final Fantasy IX and getting heavily sucked into so many stories that had as much depth as that ones I play on home consoles. Because I was having so much fun on my Vita, I initially had a very low level of interest in the 3DS for a long time. The only thing I was missing without a 3DS was the childhood nostalgia of Pokemon games that I never truly felt like I was missing out because I still had a Gameboy Advance. What finally got me properly interested in the 3DS was when Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance came out, which I was initially annoyed about as it was the first Kingdom Hearts game I couldn't play on Playstation. As much as it annoyed me, when it happened again w...

I love most JRPGs that allow me to get to know the characters deeply, but I particularly love ones that have their own special systems to do this with. Some of my favourite JRPGs such as Persona 4 Golden and Ar nosurge feature brilliant systems based around Social Events and Interactions that raise the plot while giving an extra gameplay mechanic and I'm happy to say that Fire Emblem Awakening’s Support system is no different. While I’m definitely enjoying the tactical nature of Fire Emblem Awakening, its support system is done in a really meaningful way that closely ties itself to the core story. With well-written dialog featuring humour, friendship and romance, I haven’t unlocked a single scene I haven’t enjoyed yet and it’s become my favourite thing to look at after battles. Making Fire Emblem Awakening’s Story Even Better Photo Source:  JustOneGamr Fellow fans of fun and colourful characters will likely enjoy Fire Emblem Awakening’s Support system since all of the character ...

After spending most of the year so far playing console games on home consoles like PS3 and PS4, I was pretty surprised how much it felt like home when I started playing handheld consoles again. The simple convenience of playing through the deep, wide JRPG worlds I love while being able to lock the console and continue exactly where I left off later felt much more right to me than relying on save points, and having extra mechanics like touch screens and second screens was something I really appreciated after being without it for so long. In the spirit of rekindling my love of handheld consoles again, here a few of the reasons I think they're great, along with some of my favourite handheld JRPGs showing why. Unique Experiences Thanks To Hardware Features and Portability Modern handheld consoles like the PS Vita and 3DS boast extra features such as touchscreens and motion control, giving the consoles fun extra gameplay mechanics in certain games. It’s thanks to the PS Vita’s touchscre...