RPG's you once loved, and still do.

[Falco_Easts]

Pool of Radiance
Curse of the Azure Bonds
Secret of the Silver Blades
Pools of Darkness

I also really liked the original Bard's Tale. That 10' x 10' room with 396 Berzerkers (4 groups of 99) in it was awesome!

Ahhh, now you're talking. I loved them all. These are the games that got me into D&D. Or AD&D as it was at the time.

[MrCow]

Arcanum is one that hasn't been mentioned yet that I still enjoy thoroughly to this day.

[sirgog]

Best three, in order. All are from the SNES (early 90s console gaming system from Nintendo), all the games are early to mid 1990s releases (I think):


#3: Chrono Trigger
Excellent storyline (the only time I've ever seen time travel done well), solid combat system, lots of interesting side quests. Game's weaknesses are that it's a little too short, and there's only a medium amount of character customization.


#2: Final Fantasy 6 (FF3 in USA)
Utterly enormous game, well thought out storyline, compelling characters (best characterization I've seen in a game), fights that remain challenging and varied enough that the turn-based combat system stays fun, plus a bunch of truly epic optional sidequests that you can choose to do or not do. Excellent character customization (second only to DDO).
Main weakness is that one character option (learning and spamming the spells Ultima and Osmose) is so overpowered that once you get those two spells, you are practically unstoppable. Another weakness is that at times it's just not at all apparent what to do next.



And #1: Secret of Mana (Seiken Densetsu 2 in Japan)
Best combat system in any RPG save DDO, hands down. That alone would make this a quality game, but the game also has (IMO) the second best sound of any game of its era (only beaten by Metroid 3, which is a different type of game), it has an excellent storyline (if a bit similar in places to FF6), and the game's difficulty is almost perfectly tuned - experienced RPGers 'zerg' through the game, always behind on XP, spell/weapon levels and equipment, and find the combats tough; newer RPGers get lost, take it slowly, and as a result fight more monsters and become powerful enough that the game is an appropriate challenge for them too.
If you've never played this game, look for it online.

[vainangel]

Best = Most fun
for me as a Sony/Square *****...

So:
Chrono Cross and Chrono Trigger
I have not spent as much time playing any other game than these. The music in CC is very fun and the battle system is great to explore in both games.


Kingdom Hearts I + II
Seriously never had more fun with a game. The bonus weas having grown up with the movies and characters mentioned and used in the game. The variety alone [Areas+colour schemes+Character Appearance] makes the game stand above most others.


Final Fantasy VIII and Final Fantasy X
Before you yell at me, the story to both games is way above the story for VI and VII. VI had better gameplay over all but got stale fast and VII was just not that fun in battle for me.


Xenogears
Do I have to explain that the first 4 hours sucks? no. Do I have to tell you this is the best RPG for a console system of its time? I really hope not.


Vagrant Story
If you have not played it and beat it you have no place to comment. The battle system and reward system made me play that game for months after beating it.


Shadow Hearts
Nothing surprised me more than the system and story for this game. Having to action attack in a Turn based RPG was fun! The end was a let down but it was still a wonderful game to play very different from the standard RGP's.


There are many more I have played on the computer and other systems... but those are some of the best to me.

[Junts]

Final Fantasy Tactics (Best game ever IMO) Both versions for PS and PSP.

This

Also, Final fantasies 4 and 6, Chrono Trigger, Lufia 2: Rise of the Sinistrals, and Dragon Quests 4 and 6 have always brought me back for more.

[Borror0]

And #1: Secret of Mana (Seiken Densetsu 2 in Japan)
Best combat system in any RPG save DDO, hands down.

If I remember well, you controlled the main character and could have up to four (?) party members helping you. the combat happens in real time and does not happen in a different screen/dimension, like in most RPGs, but rather in the same world. (Which means that you can see monsters before hand.)

Do I remember correctly? It's been something like 7-8 years since I last played it.

Personally, the "best combat" award goes to the Tales series. I particularly liked it when they brought it in a 3D universe, like in Tales of Symphonia.

[Junts]

If I remember well, you controlled the main character and could have up to four (?) party members helping you. the combat happens in real time and does not happen in a different screen/dimension, like in most RPGs, but rather in the same world. (Which means that you can see monsters before hand.)

Do I remember correctly? It's been something like 7-8 years since I last played it.

Personally, the "best combat" award goes to the Tales series. I particularly liked it when they brought it in a 3D universe, like in Tales of Symphonia.

2 party members in secret of mana

The tales games are excellent, though I admit a fondness for Phantasia over the others, I've enjoyed every one I ever played, especially Destiny, which was the first I played.

[Borror0]

2 party members in secret of mana

Okay, that is what I first thought but it sounded too little.

When you say two, you mean the main character and another party member of your choice? Or, two and the main character? (Might have to play it again.)

[Junts]

Okay, that is what I first thought but it sounded too little.

When you say two, you mean the main character and another party member of your choice? Or, two and the main character?

Its a party of 3, the select button let you rotate through which of the protagonists (hero, girl and sprite) you actively controlled, the other two had a pretty basic customizable ai based on level of aggression and distance to approach, which you could customize by giving them longer-ranged weapons like the whip or javelin.

It was usually best to control the boy as he had no magic, and casting a spell from the character you were presently controlling locked out the menu until the animation was done, while ordering another to cast did not, so you could cast much more rapid-fire with both spellcasters by controlling the boy.

[FoggyKnight]

I loved Neverwinter Nights 1, but I liked the Hordes of the Underdark storyline a little better. And anything to do with Deekin ^^. Neverwinter Nights 2.

I liked going through the Super Smash Brothers games on the storyline mode, just to see how they introduced the characters to each other.

[Galtron]

Some of my favorites in no particular order...

Stonekeep. remember the noise Farley made while eating, and Wahooka the Great? ..gotta love it.
I just started playing this one again about a month ago. Still loads of fun 15 years later, or so.

Dungeon Master 2: Legend of Skullkeep. I remember you selecting your party from "pods" in the begining. Classic.

Eye of the Beholder series...although I remember two being my fav out of the three.

Ravenloft: Stone Prophet. I lost this one at some point in time, but I remember a mummy on the cover.

Pool of Radiance. I think this one was in the late 80's. I remember playing this several times.

Birthright. Not a popular one, but I liked the mix of Strategy and a RPG.

A few years later..Baldur's Gate 1+2 & Icewind dale 1+2
In my opinion BG2 takes the cake out of these.

Might & Magic series. I still play 6,7,8 now and again. Mainly for Arcomage, I just love that in game card game.
MM9 is garbage in my opinion.

Elder Scrolls series. I loved all of these games, and still play Oblivion.

Final Fantasy 10. I clocked in about 94 hours my first time through on PS2.

Kings Field 1 + 2. Graphics were pretty nice at the time on PS1.

...and NWN 1 + 2 of course.

[Tyndaleon]

Pool of Radiance
Curse of the Azure Bonds
Secret of the Silver Blades
Pools of Darkness

Hear, hear! Definitely agree, these top my list as they were my first foray into RPG (& D&D for that matter), and will always hold a special place above everything else. I played them all on my C64. Also back in that era, I got into an EA-published RPG called Legacy of the Ancients as well the 64.

As far as PC goes, all the Bioware spiritual successor stuff (Baldur's Gate and the Icewind Dale offshoot). And the aforementioned KOTOR.

Console: These have already been mentioned as well, but Final Fantasy VI (or III when it came out in the US) is at the top of the list. Period. Only thing that comes close is Chrono Trigger. Only thing that comes close to those 2 is Final Fantasy IV (II in the US). Also love pretty much any of the Dragon Warrior/Quest series I've played, particularly 4, 7 & 8. And I couldn't not throw in Grandia 2 in there as well.

vainangel: I certianly won't yell at you, but as far as I'm concerned.....you're nuts. If I ranked all the FF games I've played, VIII would be bottom of the list. X I liked to the extent I played it, but I never finished it. I think I would have liked it far more if not for all the blitzball cr@p. And it's the story and character depth that's precisely why VI is at the head of the class. Not to mention it has the best villan of all of them in Kefka.

[Tyndaleon]

Actually, now that I'm thinking back, I lied about Pool of Radiance and its sequels being my first CRPG experience. I totally forgot something before that even, and most of you probably have never even heard of it, unless you owned one of the old TRS-80 Color Computer/CoCo II's:

Dungeons of Daggorath.

It was a cartridge based and totally wire-frame graphical game, but it was very, very unique in that your character had a heartbeat sound that would quicken if you ran fast down a corridor or when things got dicy. You could also hear when monsters were nearby through the use of varying sound levels. And for being such a low-brow graphical game, it definitely got the adrenaline going. I never did beat the thing either....that freakin wizard a couple of levels down into the dungeon always ended up getting me. lol

[kingfisher]

all good games, but no one has mentioned the original bard's tale yet, which was imo a great and consuming game, even with shhiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiity graphics and and endless wall of text.

[Belwaar]

Baldur's Gate
Baldur's Gate II
Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal
Icewind Dale
Icewind Dale II
Neverwinter Nights (and all expansions)
Neverwinter Nights 2 (and all expansions)

[ehcsztein]

A grue should eat this thread for no mention of Zork.

But, the Dungeon Master and Bard Tale series were probably my favorites up until NWN came out.

[Tanka]

Nobody has mentioned Planescape: Torment?

You all fail at RPGs.

[Gorby]

Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss is my favorite CRPG of all time. That game brought some major innovation to the RPG world at the time and was fantastic in every aspect to a 15 year old with a 386.

Also, Pool of Radiance, Ultima VII and Baldurs Gate were outstanding.

[TreknaQudane]

Golden Sun. It's the best RPG, period.

There is a new Golden Sun game slated for the DS next year I believe, I'm looking forward to it as well. Not the most serious of game play but it had enough levity with clever combat and character customization to make it a keeper for me.

I've got to throw my other favorites in with the entire Fallout Series (1,2,3)

I used to play a ton of Morrowind, it unfortunately hasn't aged well in terms of graphics and performance.

And while the Quest for Glory series was an Adventure game by style, they featured character progression closer to RPGs, I'll have to add that to my list as well. I've fond memories of taking my Fighter with basic thief skills and slowly over the course of the five games training him to the way of the Paladin... Very fun indeed.

[Mistinarperadnacles]

Dungeon Master - back to 1987? good lord! thats a much longer time ago than I thought. I still remember the spellcasting: Mon Ful Ir, Zo Kath Ra and all that. Great 3D dungeon crawl stuff and the grandaddy of what was to come.

See also: Captive - Dungeon Master with prettier graphics and robots. Eye of the Beholder - Dungeon Master with prettier graphics and AD&D! Woot!

Pools of Radiance and Curse of the Azure Bonds - the SSI turn based AD&D games were simply brilliant.

See also: Neverwinter Nights - much better system and graphics than the SSI and Baldurs Gate, a fabulous game. Not so keen on NWN2 or Undrentide and all that, but the original blew me away when I got it.

Final Fantasy VII - IMO unbeatable as the best RPG ever.