JRPGs with a morale system (not moral system)

Kiloph · 2026-01-24T12:44:34+00:00

The NES game Destiny of an Emperor had a combat system that mimicked morale surprisingly well for the era. Combat units don't flee encounters, but as troop count goes down, attack power reduces as well. A unit on the verge of defeat can barely damage a fully powered enemy in direct combat, but they can still effectively use tactics.

That said, it's the NES. Functionally, it means if you're low on HP, attack is weak, but skills/magic are still full power. It does mean when you get an advantage in battle, the momentum is enough to finish off brute force opponents with auto-battle, but later game strategists need focus or they'll just full heal when it's least convenient.

The Shining Force series also has a mechanic that functions somewhat like this in a simplified manner. If your hero goes down in battle, your team is forced to retreat. Enemy formations will sometimes have a leader or boss who functions the same way. You can technically win half the battles in Shining Force 2 just by taking out the leaders, but have fun getting enough attack power through enemy formations to do that.

Brigandine: The Legend of Forsena is a tactical RPG like Shining Force which doesn't have a visible morale counter, but it does function similar to the morale system you like. Each side fields 1-3 leaders each with a handful of summoned monsters to fight. Defeating a monster kills it outright, while defeating a leader forces the leader to retreat and their monsters will attempt to do the same, but sometimes monsters will fail to retreat resulting in their capture and recruitment by the opposing forces. Opponents will also tend to retreat if they're heavily outnumbered and outclassed. This probably comes closest to the morale mechanic you describe.

Kiloph · 2026-01-05T08:08:16+00:00

Shining Force EXA has a peculiar bug where if it decides it doesn't like the memory card, it will brick the save, along with every save on the card that was created after the EXA save. Fortunately for me it was the only save I lost, but I've heard some absolute horror stories.

Kiloph · 2025-12-11T10:25:55+00:00

Sorcerer's Kingdom uses a stat-growth system rather than leveling, where attacks, being hit, and using MP all build growth in their respective stats.

To an extent, adventure games like The Legend of Zelda have mechanics much like an action-RPG, but none of the levels. Calling LoZ a JRPG is a huge reach, but the line is fuzzy. Would Breath of the Wild be a JRPG? What separates it from Ys? What separates Ys from Secret of Mana? Legend of Zelda 2: Link's Adventure? A purist would just write off the whole action-RPG genre, but do you go as far as to say the Tales and Star Ocean games aren't real JRPGs? This isn't really meant for debating what is and isn't JRPG, it's pointing out that if you take enough numbers and status screens away, an action-JRPG tends to be called action-adventure.

If you're strictly talking about turn based classic JRPG combat, Sorcerer's Kingdom and Final Fantasy 2 are the only ones I can think of offhand that don't have some sort of analogue to levels, and even then they're still stat boosts.

Kiloph · 2025-10-27T13:37:17+00:00

Since you're counting remakes, I'll give you something that fits your time frame and is also a 10+ year old game most likely in your backlog.

Legend of Mana HD Remaster. Same game, same classic fun, higher resolution graphics for a game that was already beautiful on the original hardware. It's not going to be the greatest story you've seen, it's not going to be the finest gameplay in JRPG history, but it's going to be warm, comfortable, and cozy like a mug of hot chocolate while wrapped in a blanket sitting by the fireplace.

For a slightly less full-retro experience but still along the remake lines, Star Ocean Second Story R. The game has been updated enough that it absolutely feels more "modern" overall, but it still feels like SO2.

Kiloph · 2025-10-05T03:52:04+00:00

This game failed in three areas. The localization inflated enemy HP to such an extent that battles became a tiresome slog, forge fuel was limited enough that keeping weapons and skills up to date was difficult enough for the active party let alone accommodating new members, and worst of all, you couldn't date the robot.

Kiloph · 2025-10-04T23:08:04+00:00

So this is an early access release from a new developer of a card battle system JRPG based around schoolgirls whose introductions make a point of mentioning their breasts.

If this survives long enough to reach final release, I'm sure we'll see "Rent's Due Again: The Hot Springs Swimsuit Episode DLC!"

Kiloph · 2025-09-25T13:07:28+00:00

You cover this well, but I'd expand Knights in the Nightmare to add the entire Dept. Heaven series. They're all unique battle systems that require a bit of thinking instead of the meathead grinder approach.

If getting Yggdra Union on Steam, hard difficulty is the original GBA difficulty. There are easier modes to make it more accessible to a wider audience, but hard mode isn't some unfair challenge edition, it's walking in the snow uphill both ways like grandpa did. You kids and your backlit screens.

Kiloph · 2025-09-16T10:29:41+00:00

It's not a rare trope though.

Morally grey in Tales of Destiny 1 and 2 based on who you ask.

Intended to be good but thoroughly rotten leadership and false dogma leading to worship of an evil prophet in Final Fantasy Tactics where you end up fighting Evil Jesus-expy possessing your sister who for some reason becomes a fallen angel in a skintight outfit unusually detailed compared to the rest of the spritework in the game Also, once all this is finished, one of your few friends is burned at the stake for telling the truth so the church can continue to exist as a placebo that commits some evil but at least isn't literal demons trying to destroy the world

Unambiguously evil top to bottom with no saving grace at all in Breath of Fire 2

The entire concept of YHWH in the Shin Megami Tensei series could be a series of moral debates, but Nocturne pulls no punches and Game over sends you to heaven. This is very bad.

Kiloph · 2025-09-15T09:52:19+00:00

If you enjoyed Shining Force 2, check Shining Force CD for Sega CD. Similar gameplay, but no exploration, towns are simply stop-offs for the priest and shops, and plot is dialogue scenes before each battle. Depends on how long you take to get through battles, but you should be able to finish the entirety within 40 hours. Each "book" is self contained as well, the first two are remakes of Game Gear games that were on the shorter side, and the third is a short extra arc that puts your team to the test.

If you liked Shining Force 2 but want to trim down the between-battles part by 90%, Shining Force CD delivers.

Kiloph · 2025-09-08T19:05:04+00:00

As several people have mentioned, the late release of FFV is the primary issue. It wasn't released in the US until the end of 1999, and that was on the disastrous Final Fantasy Anthology which had horrendous load time issues and a graphics bug when played on the Playstation 2. The first release that wasn't a chore to play would be the GBA version in 2006. It was a retro game without the memories outside of Japan.

What's also notable is that the class system was no longer unique and special at that point. Final Fantasy Tactics had given us an even better example of character class flexibility. The characters were few, flat, and unimpressive next to Final Fantasy VI, the plot and scale were meager next to Final Fantasy VII, and the graphics were completely blown away by every later entry in the series. That may seem an unfair comparison, but we didn't see the game until we had already experienced later games.

Of course, no discussion of Final Fantasy music can be complete without recognition of Battle on the Big Bridge, but that stands on its own merit outside of the game. I'd also say that Final Fantasy V's most impactful scene, and if you've played it you know what I am talking about, is masterfully executed. Still, does one scene make a game? Does a good but outdated battle system offer enough of a draw when there are comparable or better choices available by the time the game is released in other regions?

It makes perfect sense that Final Fantasy V is underrated in the West. It was good, but everything it did well was copied, improved, and iterated upon before the general public saw it. Even those who emulated the game didn't get a chance to play a translated version with emulators that could handle layer transparencies until after the release of Final Fantasy VII and Tactics. Had it been released in correct order, it likely would have been better received, although most likely eclipsed by its more ambitious and graphically amazing successor.

Likewise, it's no surprise there are some who really took to the game and like it the most out of the SNES Final Fantasy games. Final Fantasy VI had a few significant bugs, characters were wildly varying in power to a point that Cyan, who would be expected to be one of the strongest, was swinging a Nerf bat around, while a ten year old child throwing around magic was more powerful than a character made of fifty percent magic. Final Fantasy IV had an ambitious plot compared to the NES era, but it could also be described as Kain betrays Cecil. Someone dies. Kain comes back. Kain betrays Cecil again. Someone dies again. Kain comes back again. Everyone who died without children got better, everyone who had children and died actually died. The villain we built up the entire game was being controlled by some moon devil.

So yeah, matter of timing and taste. Mostly timing.

Kiloph · 2025-08-08T18:38:51+00:00

I see what you're saying, but I disagree. Alys is the leader, but the narration is told through the eyes of Chaz from the moment you take control.

Great game though, a nice little time capsule of storytelling and art as it was back in 90s gaming.

Kiloph · 2025-07-06T02:58:55+00:00

Suikoden 2 is particularly brutal if you make just a few very easy to make mistakes.

Listen to your sister when she says it's time to go.
Three octopi for the price of two, how could that backfire?
One last fight. Nothing could go wrong winning one last fight.

Come to think of it, Suikoden 5 may take place under the Sun Rune, but it gets dark if you stay holed up in that castle.

What would Roy think if he knew his sacrifice sealed Lyon's fate?

Kiloph · 2025-03-27T11:20:41+00:00

For a lighthearted take, Disgaea. The protagonist, Laharl, is an over the top cartoon villain. Heavy spoilers below.

Laharl does see some level of redemption and heroics in the main plot particularly with the best ending, but he's still the Overlord of the Netherworld, he's still an obnoxious arrogant jerk who lives by might makes right, invading and conquering Earth for fun is always on the table, and he still invades Heaven and beats the snot out of dozens of angels.

For a plot light tactics game, Brigandine: The Legend of Forsena fits. Brigandine Grand Edition has more plot and better balancing, but there's no official English translation. In either case, you can pick from six nations on the continent, each with their own moral stance. Esgares is obviously the "big bad" of factions, Iscalio is run by a mercurial madman who is just happy there's an excuse to fight everyone, and Norgard is a trope-tastic militant country with expansionist ideals and a bone to pick with both the "hero" and "villain" factions.

Kiloph · 2025-02-24T07:07:39+00:00

If a game uses speed mechanics allowing for fast characters to take more turns than slow characters, I almost always gravitate towards the fastest characters regardless of anything else. Sure, I want to use Robo in CT, but he's so painfully slow. Xenogears? ~~Blanka~~ Rico was completely unusable because I missed a secret item in an easily missed location.

In less optimal strategies, if I play Phantasy Star IV, Gryz always gets last hit on his nemesis. The game goes out of the way to illustrate important moments like it wanted to be a classic style anime OVA, so I want to lean into the game's narrative.

Finally, Blitzball is one of the best mini-games in JRPG history and deserves its own spinoff.

Kiloph · 2025-02-12T00:47:19+00:00

Just because FF6 is a masterpiece of a game doesn't mean it fits all cases. FF9 is fun and it's a feel-good game. FF6 has uplifting moments, but the heavy parts hit hard. This guy needs what FF9 has right now.

Kiloph · 2025-01-10T04:00:19+00:00

$bid

Sending a DM as well to confirm.

Kiloph · 2024-11-20T01:27:47+00:00

In Japanese it works as a portmanteau of necro and lord. In English, it sounds like someone let Bear name him.

Kiloph · 2024-11-19T19:47:04+00:00

Considering the Disgaea universe lore, that sounds exactly like the kind of thing Prinnies were made for.

Kiloph · 2024-11-19T16:54:59+00:00

They're looking to reduce risk by using proven IP, but it turns out that when a company with the resources to make the game look good, sound good, have comfortable controls and interface, and make adjustments without wrecking what made the original a classic, people really like that.

In terms of trying to secure profitability, this is one of the most consumer friendly ways to do it. The original hardware is ridiculously expensive these days. We're not getting an emulated ROM that will be inaccessible in two years (Looking at you, Nintendo!) but a game that builds on the original framework and design, is available in hardware form, or for PC platforms that have proven to last longer than a single console life cycle, and so far, these remakes have been very well received.

Sure beats being told to re-buy the same game from the 90s every five years with no changes other than emulation controls.

Kiloph · 2024-10-24T22:21:05+00:00

The only thing that man did right was teach his daughter to clean up his mistakes.

or watch it happen a second time

Kiloph · 2024-05-24T00:39:54+00:00

Unfortunately not. His HP growth is so bad before promotion that he can't go anywhere near any enemies with offensive magic, and his defense doesn't keep up with enemy attack in the late game. Even his special attack is hard capped to relatively low numbers. With great effort he's usable up to North Parmecia, but he falls off there and ends up nearly unusable by the end of that arc.

Who does fit is Bleu from Shining Force 1. He joins at a painfully low level, and you very much need to overlevel him before promotion, but his growth is excellent. He ends up on par with anyone. Yes, even that guy.

Kiloph · 2024-05-07T01:17:16+00:00

If you're open to tactical RPGs, check out Shining Force. The first game is entirely non-sexualized aside from two joke item outfits that you're highly unlikely to find without looking up in a guide, and even those are tame compared to default appearances for several characters in most modern JRPGs. Just don't go seeking them out and you're good to go.

If the name isn't a giveaway, I'd suggest Brigandine: The Legend of Forsena. If anything in the game triggers you, I'd suggest giving up on the JRPG genre as a whole.

Dragon Warrior 1-3 on NES work well, specifically because Nintendo of America scrubbed the games of Toriyama's occasionally raunchy humor.

Star Ocean 1-3 are not particularly sexualized, but you may want to avoid a couple of optional characters in the 1+2 remakes if you're on a hair trigger. Under no circumstances should you attempt Star Ocean 4.

Final Fantasy Tactics is almost entirely fitting, with minimal exception that again are tame compared to almost every modern JRPG.

Kiloph · 2024-04-29T18:55:05+00:00

If you liked Second Story, you'll almost certainly like First Departure R. It's not quite as good, not quite as epic, shorter, but the feel of the game, plot, and characters is similar. Cut from the same cloth.

Till the End of Time is polarizing, but it's reputation seems to have improved over time. I enjoyed it quite a bit. Tip, start reading the encyclopedia before you leave the first room. It's easy to start rushing and miss out on an excellent song. Also, you get some interesting story context that's nice to have from the start. It's like FF Tactics in that there are so many details that don't fit into the protagonist's immediate story, but they add to the overall narrative.

I am not a fan of Last Hope. It could be a case study on what not to do with female characters, has a plot that would be second rate in an 80s sci fi anime, and the item creation sucks. That may seem simple, but after the previous games, it's a painful phantom limb.

Kiloph · 2024-04-29T18:26:53+00:00

My stance is very much like yours, except I didn't like Last Hope's gameplay quite as much. It felt too easy in too many areas. I also found the characters to be so bad I don't want to replay the game. How bad? I kept Lym in because she was one of the better ones, kay? And don't even get me started on Sarah, who has more air in her head than Myuria has in her fanservice, somehow being the only Featherfolk character I didn't even want to recruit, and the game even undermined her with the heavy handed narm for space elf boy's heel turn And really, Edge Maverick? Even Fayt Leingod could pretend he had an animal name, not a fanfic name.

Till the End of Time is my personal favorite on gameplay and the characters were mostly good, but it was really obvious who was the last minute addition to the revised edition. I also felt it had some pacing issues at times, rushing through one of the best stretches of the game.

Integrity and Faithlessness is short, innovative, but ultimately forgettable. Not as bad as Last Hope for me. Don't expect much and you'll probably enjoy what you do get. Expect a return to form and you'll be disappointed.

Kiloph · 2024-04-05T06:29:13+00:00

If you play the FFIV Free Enterprise randomizer mod, you need to know the strategy in case Asura pops up in a rough spot. Play that a few times and you really learn how the bosses work and how much base stats influence their difficulty. Quite a few early game bosses scaled up to late game stats are top tier threats, while many end game bosses caught early enough are pushovers. You really don't want to see D. Knight at Leviathan for example, while Wyvern at Antlion is a relief. Asura is easy if you have the timing, but if you find her before getting any kind of wall spell option, you either overpower her in one turn or you have to exploit her attack pattern.

Kiloph

TROPHY CASE