Topic: PS Vita RPG Recommendations

Right, we all know that the Vita is an absolute blessing for RPG fans. Personally I love it because most of the time I just don't have the free time anymore to get the most out of a home console RPG, but with the Vita I can play while commuting or while my girlfriend is using the TV (anything to distract me from Don't Tell the Bride...) and it gives me that extra time I need to really get the most out of these games.

However, I have currently only played a very small number of the games on offer (FFX/X-2 HD, Freedom Wars, Persona 4: Golden, Rainbow Moon & Soul Sacrifice Delta). I had neglected my Vita for a lot of this year, but have really fallen in love with it again the last few months (when I've platinumed FFX-2 and stuck 60+ hours into going back to and finishing Persona 4, which I never would've done on a home console).

Having just finished P4G this morning (now my favorite game on the system, and right up there with the best games I've played full stop) I've got a real urge to keep going and devour all the Vita RPG goodness I can handle. The only problem is that there's so much out there I'm spoilt for choice, and can't decide where to begin! Which is where you all come in - I'm after recommendations from everyone for the best RPGs you've played on the Vita. Doesn't necessarily have to be traditional JRPGs, anything goes (although I am less inclined towards picking up a TRPG as I'm currently still working through FFTA2 on the DS), I'm open to all suggestions! I would add, though, that I tend to prefer titles with a strong story, and am not a huge fan of the more hardcore dungeon crawler side of things.

Hi Steve! A good rpg on the system is Ys, Memories of Celceta (more action rpg than P4G) and Tales of Heart R (good Japanese style story). Once you are done with FFTA2 you should take a look on Disgea 4 that I found even better than Fire Emblem, it got lot of contents and the story is so silly (you are a sardine-eater Vampire!!).

Even if it seems is not your cup of tea, I strongly recommend you Dragon Crown.... the graphic is breathtaking, the combat looks like a polished version of Golden Axe Warriors and the loot is randomly generated, so you can go on forever (Diablo style).

@arnoldlayne83: thanks for the tips! I was actually just looking at reviews for Ys after seeing it has been added to the summer sale, so I think I might go down that route simply as it's on offer I so nearly bought Tales of Hearts R when it was on sale recently, but ended up quite short on cash so decided to hold off until next time. I will definitely go back to the Disgaea series at some point, I really struggled with the first game on PSP, but I don't think I gave it enough of a chance. Would I be better to start with the earlier ones though, or am I ok to jump straight in to 4?

I do have Dragon's Crown from when it was on PS+. It's sitting there on the backlog, I've just not gotten around to it yet! I nearly started it once, but it was a toss up between that & Muramasa and I went for that instead. DC hasn't been on my memory card for a while, so I hadn't really thought about going back to it. How does it play, for some reason I have this idea in my head of it being a bit similar to Golden Axe sort of gameplay?

@SteveButler2210: Another game you can try is Persona 3 Portable. It's a PSP game, but it's a blast and the story is great. It's also on PS3 as a PS2 classic: Persona 3 FES. Both versions are a bit different, though they have the same story. P3 FES has a presentation more in line with P4 and P3P looks more like a visual novel with free roaming only on dungeons.

@SteveButler2210:

Disgaea: I felt in love with Fire Emblem on 3ds and never played a TRPG before on consoles. So when I heard about Disgaea 4, I simply got it and play it. I would say that you can jump in it without going through the earlier chapter and still enjoy it. You got an exhaustive tutorial and the story is well explained (through funny dialogues).

Dragon Crown: It plays exactly like that... or lets say it is strongly inspired by those old school hacks and slash. The combat is engaging, you have different classes (6) to explore with very different combat style. The more XP points you get, the more abilities you can assign to your character. The game pace is very fast, each quest lasts for no more than 5/10 minutes, so it is perfect for commuting. Think about a Golden Axe warrior (or also fantasy version of Final Fight) with all the GDR mechanics over it (character build and equipment upgrades). I am really enjoying it a lot actually, playing it now alternating it with Soul Sacrifice (which is still the closer to Dark Souls I've found around).

Uh... also Toukiden Kiwami... but it is closer to monster hunter..... ahhh Vita is really an amazing RPG playground!

Personally, I kinda got bored with Ys MoC pretty fast....combat is great, but the story is just kinda meh imo.

Tales of Hearts R is great! I was kinda scared I wouldn't like the Jap only voices because often times they are so annoying in JRPGs, but only one or two are dreadfull and hardly speak, so big relief. Main cast is great, loveable characters all.

But be warned; everything after P4G will be less...

@BlaBlaBla: haha yeah I'm realising that P4G might have spoiled me a bit here! It's just such a labour of love it's incredible, pretty much every facet of it (bar the terrible dungeon exploration) is excellent, and there's so much there even when you've finished! I just checked back in the "TV Listings" section after finishing the game, and was really impressed by the amount of extra features contained in there! I'll be going back for a second play through to get the plat at some point, but think I'll give something else a chance first.

@Jairo_MC: I will probably wait until P3P is on sale and pick that up then. I think I downloaded it years back on my old hacked PSP, but never got very far. But given how much I've enjoyed P4G, I think I owe it to myself to at least give it another go!

@SteveButler2210: If you used the same account you can download it again. If not, and you have a PS3, I kinda like P3 FES over PSP mostly thanks to the much better presentation. However, P3P is easier to play because you can control all your party member as opposed to P3 FES when you can only control the main character and ther other are AI controlled.
If you don't have any of them, waiting for a sale is the smartest choice as both games go on sales often.
If you also have a 3DS, I reccomend playing Persona Q and Shin MEgami Tensei IV. Both are from ATLUS and both are great! The story on SMT IV is fantastic and Persona Q is full of fanservice, specially if you played P3 and P4.

@Jairo_MC: unfortunately that's not an option, and I think I'd take P3P over FES purely for the additional control options - I don't mind party members being AI-controlled in action RPGs, but when it's turn-based I hate the thought of being stripped of full control, especially in a series so tactics heavy as Persona!

Yeah I've come close to grabbing SMT IV a few times, but always got distracted by other things. To be fair, if I was to buy anything on the 3DS it'd be Bravely Default, FE: Awakening or KH3D (yeah, I've got a bit of catching up to do on my 3DS gaming)! What is the gameplay like for Persona Q though, is it basically the same? I was unsure about it as it seemed like it was more of a pure dungeon crawl, with not a lot in between, but maybe I got that wrong.

@SteveButler2210: Don't worry. P3P is a very capable port of Persona 3 and it was actually the one I played and finished first. I got FES after on a sale and noticed the better presentation. I actually kinda wanted ATLUS to remake Persona 3 the same way it did with Persona 4, but I don't think that will happen anytime soon (plus, I REALLY want to get Persona 5 as soon as possible). The story in Persona 3 is darker than P4G as the main theme is Death as opposed to the Truth of P4. It's very interesting but the first few hours can be a little boring.
You DO have a lot of catching up to do with the 3DS RPGs. Kingdom Hearts 3D is really fun and more action oriented.
Bravely Default is more traditional and the battle system remembers those of old school Final Fantasy, but it's pretty good. You can make battles faster and you can reduce or turn off random encounters on the options menu, which is great. The second half can be a bit boring, as it recycles a lot, but, since you can turno off random encounters, it's not as bad as people say. The side quests are actually good but in the second half they don't provide too much reward, although they are a good challenge.
FE: Awakening is a great strategic RPG. I enjoyed the story a lot and it kinda remembers Persona a little since your characters can marry each other depending on how you put them together on the field. You can also play on a lower difficulty setting and turn off perma-death.
SMT IV also has a darker story, which I loved, and it has 4 endings depending on choices you make troughout the game. The battle system remembers a bit of Persona, and it's very tactical too. Some people were bothered by some of exploration on the maps, but it's not that bad.
Persona Q is a crossover between the characters of Persona 3 and 4, and the gameplay has a lot in common with the Etrian Odyssey series. The story puts the cast of Persona 3 and 4 together exploring another world and it's pretty awesome. Your enjoyment can vary depending on how familiar you are with the cast, but since you know at least the characters of Persona 4 it's pretty good to see them again on another situation. Exploration is key with it and you have to map the dungeons you explore (it has auto-map if you don't want to do it yourself). The dungeons are big and the battles frequent. The battle system also remembers that of the main Persona series, but all the characters can have a sub-persona, which helps a LOT. You have a lot of exploration to do, but the story IS good and I always kept coming back to see where it would lead. I had played Persona 3 and 4, which helped me enjoy it more.
If time is a thing to consider, I played only the main story of these games and did very few sidequests, but it took me 20 hour to beat KH3D, 35 hour with FE: Awakening, 63 with Bravely Default, 32 with SMT IV and 66 with Persona Q. I enjoyed all of them and they are very recommended.

if you don't mind a bit of fanservice I recommend the Neptunia Rebirth series

@Jairo_MC: If you had to pick between persona 3 for £7.50 and P4g for £17.50 which would you buy?

Keeping my eye on this need to play more vita.

@themcnoisy There is no real choice here. Get both!

I'd recommend Atelier Rorona Plus and Demon Gaze. They're both a bit niche (and Demon Gaze is REALLY difficult) but I had a good experience with them both.

@themcnoisy: I'd go with Persona 4 Golden because I like it a bit more than Persona 3, but they are both great choices, and for that price, you can get both.

Just started playing Dragon Crown- and I think it's pretty cool....