10) the four heroes of light 0:36 9) black sigil blade of the exiled 1:43 8) etrian odyssey 3 the drowned city 2:56 7) rune factory 3 a fantasy harvest moon 4:10 6) nostalgia 5:24 5) the world ends with you 6:23 4) dragon quest monsters - joker 7:16 3) mario and luigi bowser's inside story 8:31 2) dragon quest IX 9:24 1) radiant historia 10:29
Nintendo DS might honestly be one of the best consoles ever made. Surely the most underrated game library. It allowed for so many niche games to come to fruition before the age of indie games truly took hold.
strongly disagree. The touchscreen gimmick dates most of its games terribly. The DS Zeldas, for example, are terrible games and inferior to those on the gba.
@@cmwarrilow3991 It more than makes up for it with the games that WERE possible only due to the DS's abilities, I feel like it only dates them terribly when you attempt to emulate them, when you play them on actual software the touchscreen is never a game ender, there's a lot of games that used the touch screen well, and in some cases these games were only possible on the DS family of systems.
It's like the 2nd highest selling console of all time and has some of the highest selling games. I don't know if I'd call that an "underrated game library"
Like this page and what I do here? Consider supporting me on patreon! www.patreon.com/davidvinc [0:37] - 10) Final Fantasy: The Four Heroes of Light [1:44] - 9) Black Sigil: Blade of the Exiled [2:56] - 8) Etrian Odyssey 3: The Drowned City [4:11] - 7) Rune Factory 3 [5:24] - 6) Nostalgia [6:23] - 5) The World Ends with You [7:16] - 4) Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker [8:30] - 3) Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story [9:24] - 2) Dragon Quest IX [10:29] - 1) Radiant Historia
No chrono trigger? Nvm, not ds original like your rules Everyone here like Golden Sun, but my ds cant read golden sun somehow. I have copied other version (other languange) still fail to read. Just blank. Im so dissapointed 😓
Never heard about Nostalgia so that's definitely something to check out. As usual, your Top 10 lists are easily the best in the JRPG community because you seemingly really *have* played everything under the sun and you speak from extensive experience as a result. Much appreciated.
I'm a big fan of the franchise, right from the beginning. But I feel the peak is still Rune Factory Frontier on Wii, although Rune Factory 5 looks promising.
Im a big fan of harvest moon and rpg game. So im gonna play Rune Factory next. I hope it is as i expected (never try before, gonna start from Rune Factory 1)
Must play games:Shin Megami Tensei Strange Journey,Shin Megami Tensei Devil Survivor 1&2.Radiant Historia is one the best jrpgs ever for me and with Strange Journey,DQIX,Devil Survivor 1&2,The World End With You the main reason to own a ds(or 3ds).Also both Zelda games are great too.
Would it be great if they ported the game on the Switch? With Wi-Fi no longer existed, this will be an great opportunity to have DQ9 with an Switch online.
"I had that kind of time when I was 15, but now I'm 37!" Literally to the age the situation I find myself in, which has lead to a shelf full of RPG's that is growing at an exponentially faster rate than I can keep up with.
most of the DS RPGs I've played are in fact ports and remakes :D Dragon Quest IX however is one of my favorite games of all time. It introduced me to Dragon Quest and turn-based JRPGs in general and I dearly love it for that.
I remember picking it up as a kid and telling my friends about this game that was like Pokémon, but instead of catching monsters you just had a team that you stuck with.
I need to play the game someday. I was hoping it'll come to the Switch since Wi-Fi is shut down on the DS & Wii and this would be an great opportunity to come on the Switch with Online mode. Of course, I know I don't need Wi-Fi or any internet surface to enjoy DQ9. But still.
I’ve got another that may be missed. 7th Dragon. Sure, it has an Etrian Odyssey-ish or old DQ battle system where you can’t see your units bobbling while taking turns but this game balances fun and challenge because the random encounters are so drastically different compared to the bosses. That and certain class synergies across the board and (this is a personal one) tickles the inner weeb because it has _cat girls_ well, not exactly but they’re half-breeds. Also, Sands of Destruction. It’s fun, the combo system is super satisfying and provides decent hours of gameplay because you’d want to complete the game 100%.
I love Suikoden series, but Tierkreis kinda dissapoint me for unknown reason. I dont know why. Maybe bcs it just lacked Suikoden feeling. Or i just dont like the dub (they talk too fast, especially the hero. And with kinda same tone for every emotions. so i mute it, but still cant get rid the annoying dub in my head)
I enjoyed Tierkreis, good story, good characters... but the amount of dialogue was unbelievable, even for an JRPG, it felt more like a visual novel. Either way I still listen to the soundtrack from time to time, just live the feelings.
The World Ends With You was amazing. The music, the gameplay, the bond and difference of gameplay with your partner on the top screen, it was just so good. Did I mention the music was awesome too?
are the characters in that game the same as the characters in dream drop distance? the main boy and girl looks exactly like the boy sora meets early in the game and the girl looks exactly like his game partner. i swear it's them but i've never seen anyone else mention it.
I absolutely love valkyrie profile covenant of the plume. The story and combat are so good to me. Being able to combo and being required to get an overkill in certain places really appealed to me.
Yeah, it's great to see an RPG hero who is exceptionally competent, and can use multiple timelines and time travel to fix any impossible situations he encounters. "Oh what's that, I lost a major battle due to BS out of my control? No problem, now I know what to look out for, time to rewind to yesterday and prevent any of that from happening, no big deal". XD
Love your channel, same age here, (37) and i felt identified with your taste. I don't like dungeon crawlers or harvest RPG either, well, maybe because something you said. Time. I rather play some RPGs that have great battle system combined with a great story. I'm looking for some retro games that i missed back in the day and there's a lot to dig in. Subscribed!
My favorite of all times: Master of the Monster Lair or Dungeon Maker Is a simpke game, simple rpg and has a good twist: you play a rpg dungeon, yes, but YOU build that dungeon as a trap for the monsters. Has a good system for upgrade the characters, good and sarcastic humor, and you can either farm items or just keep going the story
ayyy, dragon quest monsters joker. i never see this game on any lists, and its one of my favorites of all time. its a shame the 3rd one never came out in north america dragon quest 9 too, amazing game
4 Heroes of Light! Absolutely loved that game and I never see anyone talk about it either... best experience I had with it was playing through the whole game in co-op mode with my brother!
I remember being hyped for Nostalgia in 2008/9, then just never hearing about it again. I'll consider tracking down a North American copy, as it was never released here in the UK. I generally agree with this list, but there are a few surprising omissions. I personally consider Pokemon Black/White 2 the series' peak, so I expected to see them here. SMT Strange Journey is brutal, but also a must have RPG for the DS, so would appear on my list. I've also never got round to playing my copy, but I expected Suikoden Tierkreis to feature on this list too. Not to mention the DS' original SRPGs (SMT Devil Survivor, FFT A2, etc).
you have the same favorite as mine, SMT series are the best RPG's that made it to English. The best DS RPG in Super Robot Taisen and the Zoids game only had Japan version
Glad I held out for Radiant Historia on 3DS. Incidentally, my favorite RPG for DS was Knights in the Nightmare, a strategy / shooter hybrid. Definitely not a game for everyone (it's REALLY hard) but once you get the hang of the combat system it can be extremely addicting.
I absolutely adore Knights in the Nightmare, I never finished it (or at least not yet, I tend to take long breaks with RPG's a LOT and i beat about a fourth of the game a few months ago), but the gameplay style is so unbelievably unique I'd love to see it return in some form, its not really impossible to bring it back using mouse controls imo
Thank you!! I fell in love with DQ11 on the switch, and when I discovered that there were other DQ games on the DS I went and blew the ancient dust off mine! I then heard that it was a console with loads of really great RPGs, but somehow I never played any of them as a kid (except Pokemon, of course)?? Thanks for the help in finding new great stuff to play!
Great list! The only one I would begrudge is Black Sigil. I am definitely among those that give it a bad rap haha. As a DS collector, I loved watching this. Your top 10 videos are great, David, even when I don’t always agree. Some other games I would recommend, if you haven’t played them yet, are: Summon Night Twin Age, the Crystal Chronicles games, Blue Dragon Awakened Shadow, Custom Robo Arena and especially Soma Bringer. I really enjoyed those. It’s a testament to how great the DS’s RPG library is!
Did he just say he wasnt a fan of the Paper Mario Games?!?!?!? 👀👀👀 Yeah IDK David you lost me after u said that. Paper Mario on the N64 and Gamecube are classics and easily 10/10.
I love “The World Ends With You”. So good!! It’s my favorite RPG that I’ve played recently. It’s so unique and an interesting story that has much better theme work than a lot of JRPG’s.
Radiant Historia is such an amazing game, definitely in my top 5 rpgs list if I’m being honest. I really recommend checking out Infinite Space for the DS. It’s definitely not for everyone but it’s very ambitious and takes some risks and I love the hell out of it.
I know right? Sure, the gameplay may be repetitive, but it has one hell of an amazing story and soundtrack. And till this day, it is the only 3D rendered title of the DS that can run at a full 60FPS all the time.
(Heavy sigh of nostalgic happiness) _Bowser's Inside Story... Where do I even begin man?_ This was my second favorite DS game I ever had the joy of playing & I can't even begin to count how many times I reset my 2nd save file just to play it again. I'm certain I've played at least a couple hundred hours on it alone. With fantastic music that you *_KNOW_* the very second you hear it, that it's gonna be one of those songs you hear & just remember your childhood. The battle system is very nice & I liked how the music changed depending on if you were playing as Bowser, The Mario Bros., or the Mario Bros. while inside of Bowser. It has a very memorable cast of characters like Starlow, the Bloque guy (can't remember his exact name), his dog Broggy, the Sage on the Mountain, & the various Globin inside of Bowser. But of course, you can't have a hero without a villain, & Fawful's return was phenomenal. Every moment he was on-screen & *_THAT THEME OF HIS NbHNdkMMzkJamj_* was playing left me with the stupidest grin on my face. But then we get the _true_ antagonist of this game... _The Dark Star_ &, one of the best things to ever happen in the Mario & Luigi series... the subsequent *_Dark Bowser._* I couldn't even try & count how many times I replayed that _Grand Finale_ of a Final Boss Battle, _just to listen to that _*_GLORIOUS SOUNDTRACK._* But despite how much I loved _Bowser's Inside Story,_ it would only ever be my #2. "So what was #1?" *_BUUUUUH BUDDA BUBA BAAAAA! (DA-NA-NA-NA! DA-NA-NA-NA!) BUH BUM BUH BUUUUH BUM BUM BUH BAA NAAAAA!_* _Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies._ (Will finish later, battery is low & I have shit to do)
Brace yourself, I wrote a fair bit. 10) Final Fantasy: The Four Heroes of Light - Never really got into it. Played it for a very short time, but never finished it. It simply did not grab my attention, and from what little I remember it annoyed me. 9) Black Sigil: Blade of the Exiled - I couldn't get past the encounter rate. It absolutely drove me nuts. 8) Etrian Odyssey 3: The Drowned City - One of my favorite series on the DS. I love every game in this series. I love the gameplay, the art style, the retro chiptune soundtrack and the story, as despite it being a first person dungeon crawler, the town has enough colorful characters and story to keep things interesting. I'm still a little bummed that this one didn't get a 3DS remake like the first(Etrian Odyssey Untold: The Millenium Girl) and second(Etrian Odyssey Untold 2: The Fafnir Knight) games. 7) Rune Factory 3 - I don't think I've ever played this one. I've played a Rune Factory game before, but I'm not a big fan of the Harvest Moon gameplay that I once was, back in the days of the SNES. 6) Nostalgia - I never did finish this one, but I enjoyed it quite a bit when I did play it. The title might be non-indicative of the gameplay, but it definitely fits the overall tone of the game, being a throwback to old-school RPGs. 5) The World Ends with You - Played it briefly, didn't get into it. 4) Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker - Again, I've played it briefly, but didn't really get into it. 3) Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story - I love the Mario and Luigi series of RPGs. Paper Mario was off to a great start, but that series lost its way after the second game 2) Dragon Quest IX - Played this quite a bit. Never finished it due to my short attention span, but I enjoyed it when I did, all the same. 1) Radiant Historia - Only played it briefly. Found it intriguing, but kept losing interest. Since there's an enhanced remake on the Switch, I might just have to check it out. As for games not on the list, in no particular order... It's a shame you didn't include remakes/ports, because the "Zenithian Trilogy" remakes of IV(Chapters of the Chosen), V(Hand of the Heavenly Bride), and VI(Realms of Reverie) are among the best RPGs on the system 7th Dragon never did get an official English release, but it did get a fan-translation. It's also rather divorced from the other games in the series, taking place in a fantasy world, rather than in the future on Earth. The gameplay feels and looks like a cross between Dragon Quest's dungeons and towns, with Etrian Odyssey's party, skill, and quest management. Avalon Code is another interesting one, an action RPG with similar elements to Radiant Historia, but instead changing the future by reliving history, you're changing things by rewriting it. You're tasked with saving as much as you can in the book to be used to rebuild the world, and you're given a fair bit of ability to re-write reality, to cure the sick, or to weaken monsters. I'm a bit surprised Golden Sun: Dark Dawn didn't get a mention. It's one of the DS RPGs that kept my attention long enough for me to finish it(though I hope some day that world is revisited). Another great pair of RPGs is are the Izuna games, especially Izuna 2: The Unemployed Ninja Returns, which greatly expands the gameplay of the first game, with more playable characters, more characters in general and more dungeons(In fact, I think by the time you reach the end game, every single boss from both games is playable). Sands of Destruction is another I think I have to go back and give another shot. So many RPGs.... Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey: this one is a must if you enjoy any of the hardcore dungeon crawlers the SMT series started as, or if you enjoyed Etrian Odyssey. It feels very much like a mix of those two. Suikoden Tierkreis: I love this game, except for the voice acting. I swear, the MC sounds like whoever voices him had an IV drip of pure caffeine in the sound booth. But I have yet to play a Suikoden game I didn't like(even liked III, though a lot less than I liked the rest of the series). Tales of Innocence: Yet another RPG that did not get an official release, but did receive a fan translation. Any fan of the Tales series of games should check this out.
As an aside, I'm a bit surprised Pokemon didn't merit a mention on the list. Or that I didn't mention it either. I haven't actually played a Pokemon for any appreciable length of time since the GBA, but there was Black and White, and their sequels, on the DS.
i love that it's out there as it was a blue print for Bravely Default, one of my favorite 3DS games. 4HoL had some cool ideas, but many things were just tedious
@@DeniosTheGamer Bravely Default and Bravely Second are probably two of my favorites on the 3DS. I liked the Spell Fencer Asterisk and wish Khint appeared in Second as well, though with how he fights for his daughter, having a reason to fight him for his asterisk would probably be awful.
Surprised theres not a single SMT game here. While I understand your dislike for first person dungeon crawlers, strange journey is a great JRPG that has an extremely dark tone and twisted world. The story is great with 3 endings (each extended depending on actions in the 3ds remake) definitely worth a shot
The 4 Heroes of Light, Radiant Historia and Dragon Quest are the BEST RPG games for the DS in my opinion, Radiant Historia is a bit boring though if you progress through the game more it will become fun, I love the simplicity art on The 4 Heroes of Light, thanks to this video i now have The 4 Heroes of Light and Dragon Quest :)
Imo final fantasy echoes of time is really underrated. It's one of those games that's more fun playing online, plus it was one of the first online final fantasy games and you can play on the go. I was a kid when I played it but I remember enjoying the story at the time too
Alright, this game is for 3ds, but it's fantastic. Bravely Default. Might be a bit overrated, but in my opinion, it is one of the best rpgs I've ever played, with a very nice job and combat system, wonderful cast, and voice acting that's top notch. This game isn't your average "save the crystals" rpg. In fact, the twists you'll encounter... will make you question your very motives.
I just Completed Rune Factory 3 yesterday and it's my 1st Rune factory game I really liked it's marriage system and Married to Raven I was really so Happy
@@kylefreeburg9353 that's not what I heard. I heard it was a spiritual successor, but etrian itself is done. Still gunna play and enjoy nexus til then though.
I am SO eager to see where they take the series, now that it's going to have to evolve due to a lack of a secondary screen. I have faith that they'll do something awesome with it.
I don't know if you have played it but... magical starsign is a hidden gem, nice characters, a fun battle system and in my opinion great animations for a ds
I think The World Ends With You is the best RPG ever made because of its characters, story, and (on the DS version mostly) gameplay. Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker would be the 2nd one on the console. Then between Dragon Quest IX and Nostalgia... I think I would choose Dragon Quest IX because it's A LITTLE less grinding based.
“Etrian Odyssey III” was my first game in the EO series and I loved it! I don’t mind first-person dungeon crawlers and this is one of my favorites. (Along with Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey”).
I really like The World Ends With You. I have yet to find a game that utilizes the DS touchscreen in as unique a way as TWEWY. Plus, its story is really good and has very interesting themes. Also, its soundtrack is AMAZING. Devil Survivor beats it by just a tad for me, but it’s still a great game.
I'm still mad Soma Bringer didn't get an NA release. Being a huge Diablo fan, this was the closest thing to a portable version I could ask for at the time. Luckily there was a translation patch, and my sister & I would play coop. ^_^ Also DQIX FINALLY got me into the series, and I would've grinded the hell out of Disgaea if the port was easier to digest (the zoomed in camera killed it for me).
Nick Hemming - SOMA BRINGER? A dungeon crawler? I’ll have to look into that! I was and actually still am upset that ASH, an RPG that is on the biggest sized Nintendo Game Card, was never released outside Japan. I purchased a Japanese copy just to have, but that was criminal not to bring it over.
@@NYCJoeBlack Yeah man, it's pretty decent too. It's got an anime aesthetic but otherwise it's a straight-up dungeon crawler with bunch of classes, skills, loot, and multiplayer. A bit simplistic but great fun!
Rune Factory 3 was the one I managed to play the most, before I played Tides of Destiny, but I managed to miss the mission board or bulletin board missions from the game until like winter or the second year hahhahahaha the worst is that I remember being able to advance a lot in the game, but then I needed to have finished something related to the mission board to be able to do something related to Mid or End Game content. Anyway, I still remember having a good time with that game.
i consider myself a DS expert and i never heard of #9 before xd DQ 9 is one of the best rpgs ever made and is much better than radian historia, i really hope that Square Enix surprise us tomorrow at E3 with DQ 12 game almost indentical to 9 in every aspect but with better graphics ofc.
The world ends with you is probably my favourite game ever, i also love the Mario and Luigi games. Devil Survivor games are pretty good too! Need to replay Radiant Historia...
He just complains about the game it does indeed seem really crappy. Not sure why it even made the list when he could have put the Devil Survivor games on there, etc
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10) the four heroes of light 0:36
9) black sigil blade of the exiled 1:43
8) etrian odyssey 3 the drowned city 2:56
7) rune factory 3 a fantasy harvest moon 4:10
6) nostalgia 5:24
5) the world ends with you 6:23
4) dragon quest monsters - joker 7:16
3) mario and luigi bowser's inside story 8:31
2) dragon quest IX 9:24
1) radiant historia 10:29
Nintendo DS might honestly be one of the best consoles ever made. Surely the most underrated game library. It allowed for so many niche games to come to fruition before the age of indie games truly took hold.
strongly disagree. The touchscreen gimmick dates most of its games terribly. The DS Zeldas, for example, are terrible games and inferior to those on the gba.
@@cmwarrilow3991that's kinda subjective though, wouldn't you say?
@@cmwarrilow3991 It more than makes up for it with the games that WERE possible only due to the DS's abilities, I feel like it only dates them terribly when you attempt to emulate them, when you play them on actual software the touchscreen is never a game ender, there's a lot of games that used the touch screen well, and in some cases these games were only possible on the DS family of systems.
It's like the 2nd highest selling console of all time and has some of the highest selling games. I don't know if I'd call that an "underrated game library"
@@KingC89Just further proof of how underrated it is.
I fell in love with Radiant Historia almost immediately. It's one of my favorite RPGs that I've played this millennium.
J Marx me Too I love Radiant historia I am playing the 3ds versión
@@memphistennese6033 I wish I could play the 3ds version
I fell in love with Radiant Historia the second I heard the music.
I’m in looooove with game !! I play the game every year in my birthday.
You barely fight in that game so no
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[0:37] - 10) Final Fantasy: The Four Heroes of Light
[1:44] - 9) Black Sigil: Blade of the Exiled
[2:56] - 8) Etrian Odyssey 3: The Drowned City
[4:11] - 7) Rune Factory 3
[5:24] - 6) Nostalgia
[6:23] - 5) The World Ends with You
[7:16] - 4) Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker
[8:30] - 3) Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
[9:24] - 2) Dragon Quest IX
[10:29] - 1) Radiant Historia
drastic games?? right?
no golden sun? dissapointed..
Yeah golden sun even not as good as first 2 is a gem in ds compared to most of the games of this list
Thanks for the time
No chrono trigger? Nvm, not ds original like your rules
Everyone here like Golden Sun, but my ds cant read golden sun somehow. I have copied other version (other languange) still fail to read. Just blank. Im so dissapointed 😓
Never heard about Nostalgia so that's definitely something to check out. As usual, your Top 10 lists are easily the best in the JRPG community because you seemingly really *have* played everything under the sun and you speak from extensive experience as a result. Much appreciated.
I've got Nostalgia DS Brand New Sealed Physicsl Copy Very Rare & Exspensive👍
Nostalgia is one of the best DS games I have ever played
Nostalgia seems right up my alley. I've always found airships very cool.
@MBTMcongrats. is it same story of skies of arcadia?
@MBTM thanks for the respond. I must play this as well.
Glad to see a Rune Factory game make the list!
Agree since rune factory is harvest moon/story of seasons with fantasy theme i love that game too❤👍
I'm a big fan of the franchise, right from the beginning. But I feel the peak is still Rune Factory Frontier on Wii, although Rune Factory 5 looks promising.
Im a big fan of harvest moon and rpg game. So im gonna play Rune Factory next. I hope it is as i expected (never try before, gonna start from Rune Factory 1)
rune factory 3 is great, definitely one of my favorites in the series
Yeahhh
Must play games:Shin Megami Tensei Strange Journey,Shin Megami Tensei Devil Survivor 1&2.Radiant Historia is one the best jrpgs ever for me and with Strange Journey,DQIX,Devil Survivor 1&2,The World End With You the main reason to own a ds(or 3ds).Also both Zelda games are great too.
Mega Ten
The Zelda series aren’t RPG’s but adventure games !
Yeah, we definitely need a Radiant Historia 2, same timetraveling concept, but a new world. This game is one of the better RPG's I have ever played.
I wish they'd port it to the switch
Dragon quest 9 is my all time favorite game on the DS, I absolutely adore that game
My words
Would it be great if they ported the game on the Switch? With Wi-Fi no longer existed, this will be an great opportunity to have DQ9 with an Switch online.
@@jjc4924 d&d has already Making that (Not That accurate)
"I had that kind of time when I was 15, but now I'm 37!" Literally to the age the situation I find myself in, which has lead to a shelf full of RPG's that is growing at an exponentially faster rate than I can keep up with.
most of the DS RPGs I've played are in fact ports and remakes :D
Dragon Quest IX however is one of my favorite games of all time. It introduced me to Dragon Quest and turn-based JRPGs in general and I dearly love it for that.
Yeah, it's just PERFECT, my favourite game EVER
U r so right💪👌
I remember picking it up as a kid and telling my friends about this game that was like Pokémon, but instead of catching monsters you just had a team that you stuck with.
I need to play the game someday. I was hoping it'll come to the Switch since Wi-Fi is shut down on the DS & Wii and this would be an great opportunity to come on the Switch with Online mode. Of course, I know I don't need Wi-Fi or any internet surface to enjoy DQ9. But still.
I’ve got another that may be missed.
7th Dragon. Sure, it has an Etrian Odyssey-ish or old DQ battle system where you can’t see your units bobbling while taking turns but this game balances fun and challenge because the random encounters are so drastically different compared to the bosses. That and certain class synergies across the board and (this is a personal one) tickles the inner weeb because it has _cat girls_
well, not exactly but they’re half-breeds.
Also, Sands of Destruction. It’s fun, the combo system is super satisfying and provides decent hours of gameplay because you’d want to complete the game 100%.
Suikoden Tierkreis is far my favorite NDS RPG game.
I love Suikoden series, but Tierkreis kinda dissapoint me for unknown reason. I dont know why. Maybe bcs it just lacked Suikoden feeling. Or i just dont like the dub (they talk too fast, especially the hero. And with kinda same tone for every emotions. so i mute it, but still cant get rid the annoying dub in my head)
I enjoyed Tierkreis, good story, good characters... but the amount of dialogue was unbelievable, even for an JRPG, it felt more like a visual novel. Either way I still listen to the soundtrack from time to time, just live the feelings.
I play Tierkreis 10x😂
@@gustavo33413 is tiektris a long game?
The World Ends With You was amazing.
The music, the gameplay, the bond and difference of gameplay with your partner on the top screen, it was just so good.
Did I mention the music was awesome too?
No your forgot the music was awesome
are the characters in that game the same as the characters in dream drop distance? the main boy and girl looks exactly like the boy sora meets early in the game and the girl looks exactly like his game partner. i swear it's them but i've never seen anyone else mention it.
I thought it was really overrated.
Since the 3DS is pretty much done
Why not make a top 10 3DS RPGs
Plot twist
Rune factory 4 will be in that video XD
It better have that Shin Megooomi Tensay.
3ds doest have emulators
@MBTM89 not anymore
I absolutely love valkyrie profile covenant of the plume. The story and combat are so good to me. Being able to combo and being required to get an overkill in certain places really appealed to me.
Got through Radiant Historia and I have to agree with you there, what a great game. The OST in this one is amazing. Still holds up today.
The real best part of radiant historia is how competent stock is so everything that happens isn’t progressed by bullshit.
Yeah, it's great to see an RPG hero who is exceptionally competent, and can use multiple timelines and time travel to fix any impossible situations he encounters. "Oh what's that, I lost a major battle due to BS out of my control? No problem, now I know what to look out for, time to rewind to yesterday and prevent any of that from happening, no big deal". XD
@@AegixDrakan we need more rpg heroes that isn't naive incompetent prick
Love your channel, same age here, (37) and i felt identified with your taste. I don't like dungeon crawlers or harvest RPG either, well, maybe because something you said. Time.
I rather play some RPGs that have great battle system combined with a great story. I'm looking for some retro games that i missed back in the day and there's a lot to dig in.
Subscribed!
My favorite of all times:
Master of the Monster Lair or Dungeon Maker
Is a simpke game, simple rpg and has a good twist: you play a rpg dungeon, yes, but YOU build that dungeon as a trap for the monsters. Has a good system for upgrade the characters, good and sarcastic humor, and you can either farm items or just keep going the story
ayyy, dragon quest monsters joker. i never see this game on any lists, and its one of my favorites of all time. its a shame the 3rd one never came out in north america
dragon quest 9 too, amazing game
4 Heroes of Light! Absolutely loved that game and I never see anyone talk about it either... best experience I had with it was playing through the whole game in co-op mode with my brother!
So glad RF 3 appeared in the top, but The World End With You deserves first place.
Soma Bringer is a hidden gem which I recommend, unfortunately the game never released outside of Japan but there are a 99% completed fan translation.
Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology is amazing
I’m a simple man: I see a new RPG Best of List from David, I watch, I buy the top three.
Radiant Historia has a remaster on 3DS which adds a lot
You're recommending a game I've never heard of as a spiritual successor to Skies of Arcadia?! I must play!!
Now you gotta make a top 10 3ds, Wii, Wii u and switch RPGs. I'll be waiting on your future videos
the feeling, the battles, the story , the characters, the MUSIC! Radiant Historia one of the most memorable games i ve ever played
I think your list lacks the smt games, Strange journey is one of the best rpgs I've ever played
I agree 100%!
I remember being hyped for Nostalgia in 2008/9, then just never hearing about it again. I'll consider tracking down a North American copy, as it was never released here in the UK.
I generally agree with this list, but there are a few surprising omissions. I personally consider Pokemon Black/White 2 the series' peak, so I expected to see them here. SMT Strange Journey is brutal, but also a must have RPG for the DS, so would appear on my list. I've also never got round to playing my copy, but I expected Suikoden Tierkreis to feature on this list too. Not to mention the DS' original SRPGs (SMT Devil Survivor, FFT A2, etc).
you have the same favorite as mine, SMT series are the best RPG's that made it to English. The best DS RPG in Super Robot Taisen and the Zoids game only had Japan version
Of course for far, dragon quest ix... one of my favorite ones
This is basically the best kind of top 10 list idea anyone can have. AWESOME
Glad I held out for Radiant Historia on 3DS.
Incidentally, my favorite RPG for DS was Knights in the Nightmare, a strategy / shooter hybrid. Definitely not a game for everyone (it's REALLY hard) but once you get the hang of the combat system it can be extremely addicting.
I absolutely adore Knights in the Nightmare, I never finished it (or at least not yet, I tend to take long breaks with RPG's a LOT and i beat about a fourth of the game a few months ago), but the gameplay style is so unbelievably unique I'd love to see it return in some form, its not really impossible to bring it back using mouse controls imo
Similar taste in games to me.
Dragon quest 9 is still my favorite game to this day, and that will never change
Thank you!! I fell in love with DQ11 on the switch, and when I discovered that there were other DQ games on the DS I went and blew the ancient dust off mine! I then heard that it was a console with loads of really great RPGs, but somehow I never played any of them as a kid (except Pokemon, of course)?? Thanks for the help in finding new great stuff to play!
For RPG fans, the DS and 3DS family of consoles are godsends. Even excluding remakes and ports, you can't go wrong with one even in 2022.
This video is on point as I was redoing some of my all time favorite games.
Great list! The only one I would begrudge is Black Sigil. I am definitely among those that give it a bad rap haha. As a DS collector, I loved watching this. Your top 10 videos are great, David, even when I don’t always agree.
Some other games I would recommend, if you haven’t played them yet, are: Summon Night Twin Age, the Crystal Chronicles games, Blue Dragon Awakened Shadow, Custom Robo Arena and especially Soma Bringer. I really enjoyed those. It’s a testament to how great the DS’s RPG library is!
Did he just say he wasnt a fan of the Paper Mario Games?!?!?!?
👀👀👀
Yeah IDK David you lost me after u said that. Paper Mario on the N64 and Gamecube are classics and easily 10/10.
I love “The World Ends With You”. So good!! It’s my favorite RPG that I’ve played recently. It’s so unique and an interesting story that has much better theme work than a lot of JRPG’s.
I LOVE RUNE FACTORY 3 AND RADIANT HISTORIA
Radiant Historia is such an amazing game, definitely in my top 5 rpgs list if I’m being honest.
I really recommend checking out Infinite Space for the DS. It’s definitely not for everyone but it’s very ambitious and takes some risks and I love the hell out of it.
It's great to watch a video like this in present days, makes me feel nostalgic!! Btw, great video!!
No shin megami tensei strange journey or devil survivor. Damn
strange journey I can understand, that game was a visual mess in it's original incarnation, but devil survivor but should be here.
stranger journey is boring trash. devil survivor sucks
Both are not exclusives. Both have 3DS ports.
Its called hidden gem.
@@franciscobutte so does Radiant Historia
Sooo, I'm counting Atlus JRPG.....1...............2.....
(3 Strange Journey)
And thats all, good job Atlus. Thanks for your translations!
Great list David, you are my go-to guy for the relaxing chill Jrpgs!
I'm a man that doesn't play RPG's once, but after playing rune factory 3 it got me into it
Raven best girl
Raven best girl.
Pia best fish girl
yo boi the crow no pia best girl
No pia 2nd best girl Raven number 1
RAVEN THE BEST GIRL
You have great taste in games, glad to have found your channel.
What about Solatorobo: Red the Hunter? Its the spiritual sucessor of Tail Concerto.
I know right? Sure, the gameplay may be repetitive, but it has one hell of an amazing story and soundtrack. And till this day, it is the only 3D rendered title of the DS that can run at a full 60FPS all the time.
I wouldn't really count Solatorobo as an RPG. Yes you can improve your mech a little bit but it's more a platformer with brawler elements.
(Heavy sigh of nostalgic happiness)
_Bowser's Inside Story... Where do I even begin man?_ This was my second favorite DS game I ever had the joy of playing & I can't even begin to count how many times I reset my 2nd save file just to play it again. I'm certain I've played at least a couple hundred hours on it alone.
With fantastic music that you *_KNOW_* the very second you hear it, that it's gonna be one of those songs you hear & just remember your childhood. The battle system is very nice & I liked how the music changed depending on if you were playing as Bowser, The Mario Bros., or the Mario Bros. while inside of Bowser.
It has a very memorable cast of characters like Starlow, the Bloque guy (can't remember his exact name), his dog Broggy, the Sage on the Mountain, & the various Globin inside of Bowser.
But of course, you can't have a hero without a villain, & Fawful's return was phenomenal. Every moment he was on-screen & *_THAT THEME OF HIS NbHNdkMMzkJamj_* was playing left me with the stupidest grin on my face. But then we get the _true_ antagonist of this game... _The Dark Star_ &, one of the best things to ever happen in the Mario & Luigi series... the subsequent *_Dark Bowser._*
I couldn't even try & count how many times I replayed that _Grand Finale_ of a Final Boss Battle, _just to listen to that _*_GLORIOUS SOUNDTRACK._*
But despite how much I loved _Bowser's Inside Story,_ it would only ever be my #2. "So what was #1?"
*_BUUUUUH BUDDA BUBA BAAAAA! (DA-NA-NA-NA! DA-NA-NA-NA!) BUH BUM BUH BUUUUH BUM BUM BUH BAA NAAAAA!_*
_Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies._
(Will finish later, battery is low & I have shit to do)
Brace yourself, I wrote a fair bit.
10) Final Fantasy: The Four Heroes of Light - Never really got into it. Played it for a very short time, but never finished it. It simply did not grab my attention, and from what little I remember it annoyed me.
9) Black Sigil: Blade of the Exiled - I couldn't get past the encounter rate. It absolutely drove me nuts.
8) Etrian Odyssey 3: The Drowned City - One of my favorite series on the DS. I love every game in this series. I love the gameplay, the art style, the retro chiptune soundtrack and the story, as despite it being a first person dungeon crawler, the town has enough colorful characters and story to keep things interesting. I'm still a little bummed that this one didn't get a 3DS remake like the first(Etrian Odyssey Untold: The Millenium Girl) and second(Etrian Odyssey Untold 2: The Fafnir Knight) games.
7) Rune Factory 3 - I don't think I've ever played this one. I've played a Rune Factory game before, but I'm not a big fan of the Harvest Moon gameplay that I once was, back in the days of the SNES.
6) Nostalgia - I never did finish this one, but I enjoyed it quite a bit when I did play it. The title might be non-indicative of the gameplay, but it definitely fits the overall tone of the game, being a throwback to old-school RPGs.
5) The World Ends with You - Played it briefly, didn't get into it.
4) Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker - Again, I've played it briefly, but didn't really get into it.
3) Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story - I love the Mario and Luigi series of RPGs. Paper Mario was off to a great start, but that series lost its way after the second game
2) Dragon Quest IX - Played this quite a bit. Never finished it due to my short attention span, but I enjoyed it when I did, all the same.
1) Radiant Historia - Only played it briefly. Found it intriguing, but kept losing interest. Since there's an enhanced remake on the Switch, I might just have to check it out.
As for games not on the list, in no particular order...
It's a shame you didn't include remakes/ports, because the "Zenithian Trilogy" remakes of IV(Chapters of the Chosen), V(Hand of the Heavenly Bride), and VI(Realms of Reverie) are among the best RPGs on the system
7th Dragon never did get an official English release, but it did get a fan-translation. It's also rather divorced from the other games in the series, taking place in a fantasy world, rather than in the future on Earth. The gameplay feels and looks like a cross between Dragon Quest's dungeons and towns, with Etrian Odyssey's party, skill, and quest management.
Avalon Code is another interesting one, an action RPG with similar elements to Radiant Historia, but instead changing the future by reliving history, you're changing things by rewriting it. You're tasked with saving as much as you can in the book to be used to rebuild the world, and you're given a fair bit of ability to re-write reality, to cure the sick, or to weaken monsters.
I'm a bit surprised Golden Sun: Dark Dawn didn't get a mention. It's one of the DS RPGs that kept my attention long enough for me to finish it(though I hope some day that world is revisited).
Another great pair of RPGs is are the Izuna games, especially Izuna 2: The Unemployed Ninja Returns, which greatly expands the gameplay of the first game, with more playable characters, more characters in general and more dungeons(In fact, I think by the time you reach the end game, every single boss from both games is playable).
Sands of Destruction is another I think I have to go back and give another shot. So many RPGs....
Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey: this one is a must if you enjoy any of the hardcore dungeon crawlers the SMT series started as, or if you enjoyed Etrian Odyssey. It feels very much like a mix of those two.
Suikoden Tierkreis: I love this game, except for the voice acting. I swear, the MC sounds like whoever voices him had an IV drip of pure caffeine in the sound booth. But I have yet to play a Suikoden game I didn't like(even liked III, though a lot less than I liked the rest of the series).
Tales of Innocence: Yet another RPG that did not get an official release, but did receive a fan translation. Any fan of the Tales series of games should check this out.
As an aside, I'm a bit surprised Pokemon didn't merit a mention on the list. Or that I didn't mention it either. I haven't actually played a Pokemon for any appreciable length of time since the GBA, but there was Black and White, and their sequels, on the DS.
I loved 4 Heroes of Light, despite it's flaws
i love that it's out there as it was a blue print for Bravely Default, one of my favorite 3DS games. 4HoL had some cool ideas, but many things were just tedious
@@DeniosTheGamer Bravely Default and Bravely Second are probably two of my favorites on the 3DS. I liked the Spell Fencer Asterisk and wish Khint appeared in Second as well, though with how he fights for his daughter, having a reason to fight him for his asterisk would probably be awful.
Surprised theres not a single SMT game here. While I understand your dislike for first person dungeon crawlers, strange journey is a great JRPG that has an extremely dark tone and twisted world. The story is great with 3 endings (each extended depending on actions in the 3ds remake) definitely worth a shot
I'm currently playing Radiant Historia Perfect Chronology and can't seem to put it down!
The best part of this video for me is that I was literally just looking for this. I completely overlooked black sigil.
One of the best top 10 lists as it seemed you have played and formed a concise opinion on each of these games.
Also really felt 4:36 as a 37-year-old.
The 4 Heroes of Light, Radiant Historia and Dragon Quest are the BEST RPG games for the DS in my opinion, Radiant Historia is a bit boring though if you progress through the game more it will become fun, I love the simplicity art on The 4 Heroes of Light, thanks to this video i now have The 4 Heroes of Light and Dragon Quest :)
Imo final fantasy echoes of time is really underrated. It's one of those games that's more fun playing online, plus it was one of the first online final fantasy games and you can play on the go. I was a kid when I played it but I remember enjoying the story at the time too
Dragon quest 9 for me is the best game of nds, the world, the customization and the variety of itens just are awesome
Prefer Chapters of the Chosen.
@@broken1394 why dragon quest 8 have better than dragon quest 9?
Alright, this game is for 3ds, but it's fantastic. Bravely Default. Might be a bit overrated, but in my opinion, it is one of the best rpgs I've ever played, with a very nice job and combat system, wonderful cast, and voice acting that's top notch. This game isn't your average "save the crystals" rpg. In fact, the twists you'll encounter... will make you question your very motives.
When I saw this video on my recomendations and just decided to click on it I wasn't expecting to hear Lufia Rise of the Sinistrals' OST.
10/10
Wow! You have a real talent, I wanna play all these RPGs now haha. Another excellent video!
Loved hearing the Lufia 2 overworld at the beginning!
I just Completed Rune Factory 3 yesterday and it's my 1st Rune factory game I really liked it's marriage system and Married to Raven
I was really so Happy
This randomly was just recommended to me, and I really enjoyed the video! Subbed!
Etrian odyssey... that series will be missed, I hope the successor can live up to its legacy.
They are making another for switch
@@kylefreeburg9353 that's not what I heard. I heard it was a spiritual successor, but etrian itself is done. Still gunna play and enjoy nexus til then though.
VulcanFaux You might want to try PersonaQ, it’s Etrian crossed with Persona! Lotta fun and very challenging.
I am SO eager to see where they take the series, now that it's going to have to evolve due to a lack of a secondary screen. I have faith that they'll do something awesome with it.
I don't know if you have played it but... magical starsign is a hidden gem, nice characters, a fun battle system and in my opinion great animations for a ds
Its good to see people do nds games in 2019
First dragon quest I ever played was the 4th on I can't believe how it's evolved over the years
Nostalgia is one one the most criminally underrated JRPGs ever made.
I think The World Ends With You is the best RPG ever made because of its characters, story, and (on the DS version mostly) gameplay.
Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker would be the 2nd one on the console.
Then between Dragon Quest IX and Nostalgia... I think I would choose Dragon Quest IX because it's A LITTLE less grinding based.
I ADORED skies of Arcadia and i wish they made a sequel! I'm gonna have to check out Nostalgia
It sounds like FF: The Four Heroes of Light and Dragon Quest IX deserve remakes.
Knew your #1 choice as soon as I read the video title. It's just that good!
Radiant historia was very surprising, amazing game.
Lost Magic is really nice, one of my most played RPG's on the DS.
“Etrian Odyssey III” was my first game in the EO series and I loved it! I don’t mind first-person dungeon crawlers and this is one of my favorites. (Along with Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey”).
Gratifying to see the 4 Heroes of light on the list, been jonesing for that a lot recently
For my money, The World Ends With You is the best game on the system of any genre
I really like The World Ends With You. I have yet to find a game that utilizes the DS touchscreen in as unique a way as TWEWY. Plus, its story is really good and has very interesting themes. Also, its soundtrack is AMAZING. Devil Survivor beats it by just a tad for me, but it’s still a great game.
I'm gonna take your word for it and give them all a go.
This is the coolest top i've seen
What about Golden sun: dark dawn? Played the hell out of that one.
OMG. I LOVE THE STYLE OF FF FOUR HEROES OF LIGHT. I LOVE THE WORLD CONCEPT OF THAT GAME.
I'm still mad Soma Bringer didn't get an NA release. Being a huge Diablo fan, this was the closest thing to a portable version I could ask for at the time. Luckily there was a translation patch, and my sister & I would play coop. ^_^
Also DQIX FINALLY got me into the series, and I would've grinded the hell out of Disgaea if the port was easier to digest (the zoomed in camera killed it for me).
Nick Hemming - SOMA BRINGER? A dungeon crawler? I’ll have to look into that! I was and actually still am upset that ASH, an RPG that is on the biggest sized Nintendo Game Card, was never released outside Japan. I purchased a Japanese copy just to have, but that was criminal not to bring it over.
@@NYCJoeBlack Yeah man, it's pretty decent too.
It's got an anime aesthetic but otherwise it's a straight-up dungeon crawler with bunch of classes, skills, loot, and multiplayer. A bit simplistic but great fun!
A good amount of stuff here that I definitely gotta check out now
Rune Factory 3 was the one I managed to play the most, before I played Tides of Destiny, but I managed to miss the mission board or bulletin board missions from the game until like winter or the second year hahhahahaha the worst is that I remember being able to advance a lot in the game, but then I needed to have finished something related to the mission board to be able to do something related to Mid or End Game content. Anyway, I still remember having a good time with that game.
i consider myself a DS expert and i never heard of #9 before xd
DQ 9 is one of the best rpgs ever made and is much better than radian historia, i really hope that Square Enix surprise us tomorrow at E3 with DQ 12 game almost indentical to 9 in every aspect but with better graphics ofc.
Nostalgia is very interesting! It makes me think of the Skies of Arcadia on the Dreamcast!
Man I love your videos, keep up!
Nice list David. Haven't heard of some of these and they look really fun.
Love the Black Sigil....nice!
The world ends with you is probably my favourite game ever, i also love the Mario and Luigi games.
Devil Survivor games are pretty good too! Need to replay Radiant Historia...
1:32 "ThAT ReLLy SuCkS" I don't know why that mad me laugh.
He just complains about the game it does indeed seem really crappy. Not sure why it even made the list when he could have put the Devil Survivor games on there, etc
THIS VIDEO ISS NECESSARY THANK YOU UA-camR PERSON!
So happy you mentioned skies of arcadia. Its my favorite jrpg ever.
This nostalgia game looks great too. Maybe ill have to get a dsi to play it. Lol
Amazing video ty so much, I just got a DSi XL (had 2 DS Lites ages ago) so this list is just what I need :)