Best RPGs of the 1990s

FPS games. Platformers. Cronenberg-type games. Basically every genre you can think of had their breakout decade in the 90s. But if there was any genre that really flourished more than Beanie Babies but just kept on growing and growing instead of becoming landfill, it was the RPG. Don’t believe us? Take a look at every year of the 90s for RPGs and realise that we all spent hundreds of hours of our lives in the best possible way. Let’s Ys into it.

 

1990

3rd. Ys I+II

2nd. Ultima VI

1st. Dragon Quest II

While the original Dragon Quest was a landmark release for RPGs, Enix wasn’t content to rest on their laurels. Released in 1987 in Japan and 1990 in the west, Dragon Quest II on the NES pushed the genre’s boundaries by introducing a party system, a bigger world, and more open-ended exploration.

Long after the events of Dragon Quest I, evil once again threatens the world, as Hargon, a wizard seeking to summon a demon, attacks Moonbroke Castle. Word spreads to the kingdom of Midenhall, and its prince, the protagonist, sets off to vanquish Hargon.

Though the Prince of Midenhall is eventually joined by his cousins from neighboring kingdoms, the journey won’t be an easy one, as Dragon Quest II in its original incarnation is one of the hardest games in the series. Enemies hit hard, and due to balancing issues late in the game, you’ll need to buckle down and grind a bit to get past some of the biggest roadblocks.

Its original versions haven’t aged well, but Dragon Quest II has an important legacy behind it, laying down the foundations for the series’ and genre’s futures. Also, separately, someone do something with Ultima please.

 

1991

3rd. Final Fantasy Adventure

2nd. Shining in the Darkness

1st. Final Fantasy IV (Final Fantasy II)

The SNES’s Final Fantasy IV — released in the west in 1991 as Final Fantasy II — is really the place where the series came into its own.

Rather than open on a thin justification to go save the world, Final Fantasy IV introduces us to brooding Dark Knight Cecil Harvey, who’s just returned from a campaign to steal Mysidia’s crystal. Cecil is a man torn between his personal morals and loyalty to his king, and this wavering of faith earns him a demotion and saddles him with a deadly delivery job that changes his life and sets him on the path to redemption.

Final Fantasy IV was where Square got serious about telling an epic story in its games, and it shows — though a bit simple by today’s standards, Final Fantasy IV’s narrative still holds up well with charming characters and solid pacing throughout.

The star of the show on the gameplay side of things, though, is the ATB system, with turns now playing out in real-time — meaning you’ve got to be both fast and tactical, because enemies can and will attack you while you’re shuffling through menus. Though it left behind the customizable job systems of Final Fantasy III, what Final Fantasy IV gave us in exchange has left a mark on the series that can still be felt today.

 

1992

3rd. Warsong (Langrisser)

2nd. Shin Megami Tensei

1st. Dragon Quest V

When discussing the best Dragon Quest games, chances are, if you’re not talking about Dragon Quests III, VIII, or XI, you’re probably talking about Dragon Quest V.

Though stories of chosen heroes setting off to defeat evil is nothing new for this series, Dragon Quest V stands out for its structure. Its story spans decades, following its hero’s life from childhood until the point where, together with his wife and kids, he finally slays the evil plaguing the world.

And while Dragon Quest games are generally linear, V also presents a rare instance of player choice: the hero has two potential brides to choose from (three in the DS remake). Though the overall story remains the same, each of the brides has different playstyles in combat, and what your children look like will also depend on your choice.

Dragon Quest V’s biggest innovation, however, is the ability to recruit monsters and have them fight alongside your party. After reaching adulthood and getting your hands on a wagon, monsters you beat in battle will randomly offer to join you if you’ve got the room. It’s a simple system, but one compelling enough to have spawned an entire spinoff series — Dragon Quest Monsters. Talk about a shining example, eh?

 

1993

3rd. Shining Force

2nd. Lunar: The Silver Star

1st. Secret of Mana

Though the Mana series began with Final Fantasy Adventure, a spin-off to Square’s primary money-printer, it quickly found its own identity with the release of Secret of Mana on the SNES. Set in a high fantasy world, Secret of Mana follows the journey of three nameable characters as they fight to stop an empire from reviving an ancient warship.

Unlike Square’s usual turn-based fare of the era, Secret of Mana is an action RPG that up to three players can play in co-op. Each of the characters, as you’d expect, have their own strengths and weaknesses to set them apart from one another. Combat features a couple of distinguishing mechanics: a ring menu that pauses the game to let you cast spells or access your inventory, and a power meter. After every strike, the power meter quickly refills, and attacking when it’s full deals the most damage.

As with many of Square’s other games from this era, Secret of Mana holds up well with lovely pixel art and the use of Mode 7 graphics. At the time, some even considered this game one of the high-water marks of the SNES library and action RPG genre. All the more unfortunate, then, that its 2018 remake fell flat on its face and then pretty much nobody played Visions of Mana. A lot of people probably didn’t even know it existed.

 

1994

3rd. Illusion of Gaia

2nd. Live A Live

1st. Final Fantasy VI

What a year.

With its gorgeous art direction, gameplay refinements, and a mature story that still holds up to this day, Final Fantasy VI is one of the games in the series that has aged the most gracefully. Everyone who’s experienced this masterpiece will never forget its ensemble cast, its delightfully insane main villain, and his actions that led to well…I won’t say, somehow just in case.

Kefka Palazzo remains one of the most iconic villains in the genre — and all of gaming — thanks to being a masterclass in just about everything, from character design, to writing, and especially gameplay.

Though dedicated and emotional storytelling in RPGs was gradually becoming the norm in this era, especially after Final Fantasy IV, the many analyses of Kefka floating around online today is a testament to the strength of Final Fantasy VI’s writing. It helps that he’s also got an absolute banger for a final boss theme, with Dancing Mad lasting nearly 18 minutes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6UgxJtHIVY

18 glorious minutes.

There are loads of good reasons to play Final Fantasy VI if you haven’t already, but if you need another excuse, do it just to see one of the greatest maniacs ever written by Square. You’re bound to enjoy it even today.

 

1995

3rd. Earthbound

2nd. Lunar: Eternal Blue

1st. Chrono Trigger

Every year from here on is absolutely beyond stacked.

Just when it seemed like Square had already perfected ATB combat with Final Fantasy VI, in comes Chrono Trigger to push things even further. Battles in this masterpiece are completely seamless, and while you’ve only got three characters at a time in the active party, everyone’s got combo techs that let them team up for specific attacks — so there’s still room to experiment with team building.

The story, meanwhile, is a tale of hope featuring bright-eyed youths who won’t hesitate to do the right thing — even if the problem in question has nothing to do with them and wouldn’t affect their lives if they ignored it. After a series of events sends them through multiple periods of history, Crono, Lucca, and Marle resolve to save the world from destruction at the hands of Lavos, knowing full well that said apocalypse happens well after the end of their lifetimes.

One of Chrono Trigger’s greatest strengths is its brisk pace and concise length — at around 20 hours per playthrough, this is a classic you’ll have no trouble coming back to time and time again. The simplicity of its mechanics makes for a breezy experience that even modern games could stand to learn a thing or two from.

 

1996

3rd. Super Mario RPG

2nd. Suikoden

1st. Diablo

While most of the other RPGs from this era were all about pushing the boundaries of storytelling and refining the JRPG template, Blizzard North were busy concocting a whole new genre.

Diablo, which released in 1996 (or 1997, depending on who you ask), asked players to do something different: rather than step into the shoes of a country bumpkin who embarks on a world-spanning quest, players would instead pick a class and dive into procedurally generated dungeons.

The name of the game here is loot. Diablo is all about killing monsters in action-based combat and helping yourself to the endless stream of random gear drops. Where other RPGs usually doled out stronger gear at a deliberate pace, Diablo’s random loot spiced things up by adding in various passive abilities, in addition to the many different stats each piece of equipment already had.

That meant it was no longer about just getting your grubby mitts on the strongest sword; now you had to carefully judge what was worth keeping, especially since you had limited inventory. Add in a multiplayer mode, and Diablo could keep you busy for hours on end.

Diablo may have had a tough development cycle (that included transitioning from turn-based gameplay to the action combat we all know and love today), but its legacy today is undeniable — looter games are all over the market, and the Diablo series itself is still going strong, although we really are ogre the live service stuff now.

 

1997

3rd. Tactics Ogre

2nd. Fallout

1st. Final Fantasy VII

The debate as to whether VI or VII is the better game will rage on until the end of time, but no one can deny the impact that Final Fantasy VII had on the genre when it was first released.

After the success of Final Fantasy VI and Chrono Trigger, Square was internally debating about where to take their games next. Rather than play it safe by continuing to use 2D visuals, they risked it all on 3D, and they dreamed big. So big, in fact, that there was no way the Nintendo 64 could handle their vision, leading to the famous jump to the PlayStation.

The PS1’s hardware capabilities and massive (for its time) storage capacity of CD-ROMs helped pave the way for a gigantic leap forward for Square’s franchise. Final Fantasy VII opened with a lavishly animated FMV, featured full 3D models for exploration and combat, and incredibly detailed pre-rendered backgrounds to fill out the world.

The ambition didn’t stop there, of course. Final Fantasy VII’s story, which went through multiple different iterations, quickly secured its place as one of gaming’s most iconic, with the first disc ending on a moment you’ll never forget — even if you’ve never actually played the game and only heard about it from others.

Love it or hate it, Final Fantasy VII was the game that made JRPGs cool. But if you want to swap in Tactics here for the Final Fantasy rep, that’s more than cool with us.

 

1998

3rd. Fallout 2

2nd. Baldur’s Gate

1st. Pokémon Red and Blue

1998 was such a brilliant year that we had to leave out games like Xenogears.

Pokémon’s really having a moment right now, hasn’t it? It prints an absurd amount of money, Pokopia brought the series’ spinoffs roaring back into the mainstream, and the trading card game has had such a ridiculous boom that people are literally devolving before our eyes. Just one set at retail. Please. [pause] A good set.

It’s easy to forget that there was once a time where Pokémon was the plucky challenger — a novel concept that struggled just to get off the ground. Development itself was a herculean effort, as the original Japanese Red and Green versions took six years to make, in an era where games usually took two at most. All three of the game’s programmers also quit partway through development, leaving Pokémon in a precarious position.

And yet Game Freak pulled through. The final product was infamously rough, with rather interesting Pokémon sprite designs and enough creepy bugs and glitches to fuel your nightmares. But the concept won over millions of players, and Game Freak quickly took to polishing up what they had created. The result was the Japanes  e Pokémon Blue, which was the basis for the Red and Blue versions we finally got in the west in 1998.

Pokémon had a wild journey from game pitch to final release, and it ought to serve as a reminder that no matter how many millions your game rakes in, every success comes from humble beginnings, with developers in the trenches pouring in blood, sweat, and tears to bring their vision to life. It’s not the most complex RPG ever, but it shouldn’t be a shock to see it here.

 

1999

3rd. Star Ocean: The Second Story

2nd. Planescape: Torment

1st. Suikoden II

Another crazy year in which bangers like FF8 failed to make it.

The 3D craze was still in full swing in the late 90s, and with the PlayStation 2 set to make a seismic impact in 2000, our pick for 1999’s best RPG was seen as antiquated in its day.

Inspired by Chinese literary classic Water Margin, the Suikoden series distinguishes itself from the rest of the genre by its grounded tone and focus on politics and the horrors of war. The first game, released in 1996, laid down a solid foundation with a story about rebelling against a corrupt empire. Suikoden II took that foundation and used it to create one of the best JRPGs of all time.

Leaving behind the first game’s simpler story about rebellion, Suikoden II follows the journey of youths caught up in a war between two nations. As with its predecessor and eventual successors, said journey will have you recruiting 108 Stars of Destiny — people who come to support the war effort in a number of ways, from running shops to joining you in live combat.

The expanded scope of Suikoden II’s story allows it to take a far more nuanced view on war and its inevitable tragedies, with more complex character morality than was featured in its predecessor. It’s a gripping tale that’s both grand and intimate, despite the original English localization having been completely botched.

For this and the 2D  graphics that critics at the time derided as outdated, Suikoden II has ultimately emerged as one of the shining stars of the 1990s that has aged like fine wine.

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