Like many genres of games, there are plenty of JRPGs out there that pride themselves on challenging players. Whether through gruesome dungeon-crawling segments,intense boss fights, or a true ending hidden behind many obscure mechanics, JRPGs that give players a challenge are almost a sub-genre in their own right, distinct from their slower-paced or narrative-focused counterparts within the same field.
Some JRPGs don’t wait for the challenge to come through enemies or boss fights, however. Some games have the challenge start right from the combat menu onwards, with labyrinthine UIs or strange combat mechanics that can seem completely bizarre to the average player. Some games offer highly tactical combat options forenhanced strategy in fights, or to help immerse players in a particular role, but there are some JRPGs that simply have too much going on in the combat department. These games in particular offer some genuinely rewarding gameplay, though only once players have wrapped their head around the Byzantine combat system.
Developed by Tri-Ace Studios, who are known for their innovative titles,Resonance of Fatecertainly brings a lot of new features to the table, and it’s the perfect example of a game that’s “hard to learn and hard to master” - with the upside being that once combat does click, players will be hard-pressed to find a game that has even a remotely similar combat style.
Mastering a variety of firearms, players will have to learn the difference between True Damage and Scratch Damage, as well as the effects of targeting different enemy body parts, andthenget the hang of how the two different damage types differently impact the different targeted body parts on different enemies.Resonancetakes a board-game approach to its gameplay, where the best way to learn is to simply do it.
Players that do some digging can find a direct thruline from Quest Studios, toMarch of the Black Queen, to Square Studios, then Square Enix, andfinally FF-adjacent gameslikeFinal Fantasy TacticsandTactics Ogre. It’s a bizarre rabbit hole to travel down, which is also how many would describe the combat in this classic JRPG.
This game was surprisingly ahead of its time, with a reactive open world map to traverse that had a day/night cycle, unit composition mechanics that would remain virtually unchanged through this title’s spiritual successors, and a dense combination of roles, weaknesses and resistances that turn every battle into a precarious, but satisfying, balancing act.
Like a lot of long-running series, newer entries in theDisgaeafranchise have come with a handful of quality-of-life changes and modern optimizations that have kept the core of the game the same, if a little streamlined.Disgaeain particular, with its emphasis on reaching damage ofwell over a millionand stat levels of up to 999,999, has thankfully been free from too much simplification of its core components.
That doesn’t stopDisgaea 1from being incredibly overwhelming to players at first. Managing characters with such stupendously high stats is already tricky, but then traversing mini dungeons to upgrade weapons? Entering some characters into a new game plus mode but not all characters, while still in the first game? It certainly adds to the charm, but there are some tricky combat mechanics to master in this game.
Many times over, players will stumble upon an unfamiliar game on Steam that seems right up their alley, only to find it has mixed or negative reviews, with players complaining about a suboptimal port from older devices to PC. Yggdra Union is an example of aport done right, with plenty of amazing QoL features implemented to a game that’s practically bursting with passion and creative flare.
That flare continues into the title’s combat, which is incredibly complex, but not to the point of detracting from the game, and certainly with enough depth to keep JRPG fans satisfied once they’ve figured out how the multi-attack system, which lets up to five units synergize their moves, functions practically.
Originally released on the Nintendo DS and PSP, with the PSP version being the one that aged better, the best way to give a sense of howKnights in the Nightmarefunctions is to tell you that it’s a three-screen game operating on a two-or-one-screen system. Shuffling between tactics, party management, and the battlefield is quite daunting, but once players get the hang of it, it’s a pleasantly engaging experience.
There is a Switch port of this title, which unfortunately released only in Japan, signaling that the game’s obscurity might have hindered it from getting an international release. The graphics, despite the overall theme of the game and the complex combat, actually lend thetitle a cozy feeling, something almost storybook-like in its nature.
Many players might not realize just how influential theSaGaseries is, with its games helping to promote many of the JRPG tropes that have become mainstays in more recent years. The combat and leveling system is quite challenging, even in the game’s most recent remake, but not without its rewards.
Leveling up in individual skills instead of character levels with set stat enhancements is a far cry from what most players expect to see in a JRPG, evoking a style of game closer toThe Elder Scrolls, but navigating the difficult combat encounters with this unorthodox system can lead to some incredible character builds.
Square Enix are known for their blendof sci-fi and fantasy titles, creating some of the most compelling and renowned JRPGs that the genre has ever seen.The Last Remnant, unfortunately, is not one of these, with the game having fallen somewhat into obscurity (though a Switch port does currently exist!).
The combat system was unique, and for 2008, maybe even ahead of its time, with multiple metrics for players to track and a blend of real-time and turn-based elements that would come to define many later Square Enix titles. Certainly something that takes getting used to, this game’s combat system lacks the polish ofOctopath TravelerorBravely Default, but is still immensely rewarding all the same.
Finishing off this list with another hidden gem of a Square Enix title,Vagrant Storyhas a battle mode that looks more like a rendering software for early 3D animation, and is about as complicated as one too, but no other game provides an experience quite like this one.
The subtler style of storytelling and the detailed, complex character work would make up for a clunky system in its own right - but keep playing, and you’ll find that clunkiness start to disappear form the real-time, omnidirectional targeting system as it starts to become a cohesive extension of the protagonist and the overall experience. Few games are as daunting to fresh JRPG players as this one, but get over the initial discomfort with the combat system, and there’s a brilliant gem hiding out here.
