So which RPG will grace your TV this year?

I have to say the winter months are making me yearn for an RPG, even though I don't know if I have the time commitment to complete it. Any titles to recommend?

Right now I'm chipping away at Star Ocean: The Last Hope.  I've always dug the series minus SO3, so I couldn't stay away from SO4 despite the negative reports I saw around the net.  I'm desperately trying to enjoy it and get through the 200+hrs worth of play needed for the achievement points so that I can be freed up when Two Worlds 2 drops.  

Two Worlds was the most fun I've had in an RPG this gen, so I'm definitely looking forward to the much improved TW2. 

I've also got Magna Carta 2 waiting in the wings...

I wish I would have started SO4 earlier.  It's a completionists dream come true.

@ Chris, if you want all the adventure without all of the committment, try out Just Cause 2.  That way you can dive as deep or as shallow into the game as you like and still complete it. 

JC2 is everything folks said it was.  I was shocked when I played it because I thought it wouldn't improve much over the first one.  But it did.

As far as RPGs go, there's always Risen.  You can probably rock thru that in 15hrs if you are not an achievement junkie like I am. 

Admin note.  I see that the image linked is broken.  The crappy connection I have at the moment won't allow me to fix it.  I'll adjust it when I get back to the crib. 

You didn't like Star Ocean 3? I played that game to death in high school. Aiming Device combos all day. I bought Star Ocean 2 used but my PS2 was having trouble running it for some reason. I had to choose between Star Ocean 4 and Street Fighter 4 last year but never got to playing SO4. My friends did but they didn't seem to like it. 

Thanks for the suggestion. I was also wondering about Final Fantasy 13. I like having a mix of speed and strategy (10 would probably be my favorite of the series) but the game got a mixed reception. Would you recommend it?

I think my dislike for SO3 was more because I couldn't invest the time to play it at a very busy time when I was in a new job and working alotta hours.  SO4 so far is really great for me.  But I think that's more because I'm a completionist and an achievement junkie.  I also like that the Synthesis system actually works.

FF13 is tough to recommend.  I respect it and will say that the developers did what they set out to do.  Their goal was to make a game that forced the player to constantly adapt to changing combat circumstances.  And is exactly what you will do.  Change paradigms - debuff the enemy - change paradigms - buff your team - change paradigms - attack - change paradigms - repeat last 3 steps...

Now that's overly generalized, but that is what it felt like for me to play the game.  Some non-boss battles could last upwards of 5 minutes even with my characters maxed out and good tactics.  That's way too long for me.

Many folks say FF13 is great for strategists.  I disagree with that..  It's more about puzzle solving than strategy.  If you enjoy trial and error type puzzles, FF13 is right up your alley.  Especially if you go after the more difficult bosses and the super boss sidequests. 

I didn't hate FF13, but it would be at the end of the line of FFs I'd actually ever replay.  Just above FF1, FF2 and FF3.  lol

I think, like I heard about FF13, Star Ocean 3 is really tedious until 20 hours in and the plot finally gets back to why everyone wanted Fayt. I don't get why a series called Star Ocean would spend half a game on a medieval planet. Even though the changing battle conditions sounds interesting (even if its over the top like you said) FF13 seems like something I should rent first.

Hey, er, B.

I just wanted to let you know that I removed the word "mollywop" from this post. Technically, it's a pretty ugly slur that refers to beating up gays (with "mollys" being homosexuals). It's similar to the name of the game "Smear the Queer." I assume you didn't know that, but I thought I'd let you know in case you'd be interested in dropping it from your vocab in day-to-day usage.

Great article, by the way. Lots of fun!

(Here's a wiki link that should help make more clear why I deleted the term: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molly_house )

WOW!!!!  I never knew that.  I actually don't say it much in real life.  Interestingly enough, the ONLY place I've ever heard the term was on an Episode of Fresh Prince of Bel Air.  LOL. 

Definitely apologize if I offended anyone with that.  It was absolutely unintentional.  ;)

And thanks for the heads up.  I'll definitely strike that from any further communication whether virtual or actual.  And thanks for covering me by removing it and for fixing my pic.  

@ Chris...  Yeah.  Definitely rent FF13 before buying it.  It's funny, the things that frustrated most people about the game never really bothered me.  The linearity and initial leash-style gaming has become normal with the series to a certain extent, so it didn't bother me.  

Overall it was a decent game.  Just not as good to me as others.

Keep in mind while you read my comments that FF12 is my favorite FF of all time...  And primarily so because of the gambit system (the reason why many people hated it)

Thanks for the advice. I wasn't really concerned about the linearity issues since FF10 was pretty straight-forward as well. I haven't played 12 though.

Happy to be of service!

"...still puts 'From Santa'..."

So you mean to tell me... OH THE DECEPTION!

Just kidding, great article by the way!

hahaha.  Thanks Doug!

Great article! Brings back some good gaming memories.

Great post! Winter break in particular means much the same things to me. Favorites include playing FF Tactics Advanced with my brother while simultaneously watching Lord of the Rings, and the extra 2 weeks vacation I spent playing A Link to the Past when a huge ice storm shut down city power for almost a month!

This year it looks like DQIX with my little bro--not sure what else just yet.

What up Patrick!?!?!?!  Good to see you on this side my man. 

This article does bring back some fond memories of my high-school days.  I definitely miss the "back-in-the-day" times that I talked about in this article.  I really miss being back in school and having Christmas break to hang out and play games.