What are the best JRPGs? JRPGs are, nowadays, at least, subtly different from Western RPGs, and while the genre as a whole has evolved since the early days, JRPGs tend to keep things on the classic side. Think parties of interesting characters, deep, long stories, and lots of grinding.
Some of the newer JRPGs on this list abandon traditional fantasy in favor of a more realistic setting, but the classic style, at least when we think of JRPG, conjures up images of mages, ferocious monsters, and a top-down perspective. Either way, these JRPGs bring a different flavor than what you can expect from the best RPGs in the West and could be considered some of the best PC games to fans of the genre.
The best JRPGs on PC in 2024 are:
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
Take a trip with Kazuma Kiryu and Ichiban Kasuga to the series’ first outing outside of Japan, as they visit Hawaii. Ichiban is on a journey to find his birth mother, whereas Kiryu has received a mysterious mission from the Daidoji faction, a group made up of highly important Japanese politicians. Here’s what Harry Schofield had to say about the game in our Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth review: “Sprawling but never bloated, it remains captivating from beginning to end across both its main narrative and bountiful side adventures, almost never missing a beat”.
Sea of Stars
Now that you’ve seen two classic JRPGs on this list, it’s time to include a modern game that heavily borrows from them. It may have been overshadowed by another big RPG this year, but according to our Sea of Stars review, it improves on what makes those games special “by modernizing their magic through balanced and engaging turn-based combat wrapped up in an enthralling world to explore.”
This 30-hour adventure is one where you’ll want to visit every town, spelunk through every dungeon, and brawl against every monster just so you can look at its gorgeous pixel art. It helps that the story is one of the better ones in recent JRPG history, with relatable characters, even if their destinies don’t always align. Combat uses mechanics similar to those of Chrono Trigger and Paper Mario games, allowing you to interrupt enemy attacks. They’re all familiar concepts but work well together. This game was among the nominations for the best RPG at the Game Awards 2023, and it deserves to be here.
Genshin Impact
Genshin Impact is probably the closest game to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild that we’ll see on PC, with a vast open world to explore and various dungeons and quests to complete. Over time, the game has grown much larger, with each new update introducing new mechanics like gardening, houses, and character hangout quests – as well as a slew of new Genshin Impact characters.
With regular updates, it’s unlikely that Mihoyo’s RPG is slowing down anytime soon. This free game does use a gacha system for unlocking new characters, so you may want a bunch of Genshin Impact codes to get yourself some free primogems to spend on wishes.
Persona 3 Reload
The Persona series is renowned for being some of the best JRPGs on the planet, and it appears Atlus felt like it could improve on its previous work even further with the release of Persona 3 Reload. This version of Persona 3 has been rebuilt for the modern era with several quality-of-life tweaks borrowed from Persona 5, making it easy for P5 fans to enjoy this classic game. Take a look at our Persona 3 Reload review to see what makes this title stand out from the rest of the excellent games in the series.
Granblue Fantasy Relink
Taking place high above in the Sky Realm, you play as the captain of a skyfaring crew as you search for the fabled island of Estalucia. While your journey begins with Vyrn, a dragon, and Lyria, a powerful girl with mysterious abilities, you never quite know who you’ll meet. If you love JRPGs but hate turn-based combat, Granblue Fantasy Relink’s combat features a ‘Full Assist’ mode to give players of all skill levels a helping hand.
You’re going to have to search for the best Granblue Fantasy Relink weapons to strengthen your party on this adventure. The path ahead is filled with plenty of dangerous mythical creatures and evil humans who want nothing but to take you down. Speaking of mythical creatures, we also have a Granblue Fantasy Relink feathers guide if you’re fighting against griffins and you want to get your quests done quickly.
Final Fantasy XV
What begins as possibly the most boring stag any groom-to-be could ever imagine, Final Fantasy XV soon turns into an action-packed adventure that features a unique battle system. You play as Noctis, the crown prince of the kingdom of Lucis, as he uses his warp ability and striking greatsword to keep enemies at bay alongside his trusted allies and best pals Gladiolus, Ignis, and Prompto. In addition, you can indirectly control other allies in battle by performing certain actions or using chunks of the Tech Bar to command them.
It’s undoubtedly one of the best looking Final Fantasy games on PC, as you take to the road in the snazzy Regalia and explore the expanse of this open-world game – rustling up meals by the campfire or racing Chocobos through meadows and completing many elaborate side quests. Although your road trip takes a considerable detour and a dark turn, you’ll find yourself among friends who genuinely care for each other while at the same time mildly mocking each other, you know, as friends do. Although the beginning takes a while to get going, stick with it because it’s an unforgettable journey.
Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch remastered
If you are looking for a JRPG with the visual quality of a Studio Ghibli film, why not play the game that the renowned Japanese animation studio worked on? You take on the role of Oliver, a young boy transported to an alternative world that’s linked with our own via the idea of soulmates – how every person in one world has a counterpart in the other.
This JRPG has a mixture of various tried and tested battle mechanics; the active time battle system from some Final Fantasy games, real-time movement from more modern RPGs, and familiars you can send out to aid you in battle, in a remarkably similar nod to the Pokémon games. It all works together well, and even though this JRPG can be rather difficult at times, it’s worth persevering. The story is whimsical and well told, with capturing and managing your familiars scratching the same itch that the aforementioned Pokémon games do so well. It’s a hugely satisfying game that’ll keep you occupied for hours on end. Fair warning for when you begin Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch, we highly recommend having a box of tissues to hand.
Octopath Traveler 2
Octopath Traveler 2 took what made the original great and improved on it in nearly every way. Beautiful visuals, ingenious pixel artwork, a deep and rewarding combat system, and great writing. Not one story but a mesh of a few, you can approach Octopath Traveler 2 from many directions. Take the helm with your favorite character and pick up strays along the way, you’ll soon find yourself in a party full of nuanced and lovable characters.
You’ll find redemption around every corner as you fight for your character’s causes, and ultimately, your characters will fight together for friendship. The combat system rewards planning and a little bit of grind, but this isn’t the focus of Octopath Traveler 2; you’ll spend just as much time conversing with village people (not those), making ends meet, and having a bloody good time. Do yourself a favor and play this game.
Chrono Trigger
What begins with the disappearance of a young girl at a fairground soon becomes a saga about traveling through time to stop a monster from the future from ending the world. With the help of a wide variety of allies, from tech-savvy friends to robots and a frog knight, your job is to prevent the world from turning into a post-apocalyptic nightmare.
Combat is not dissimilar from other Square Enix games of the same era, but it sets itself apart by linking up special moves with other allies. When two compatible characters have their active time battle bar filled, you’ll get the option to combine their techniques for entirely different effects. For example, while Crono’s cyclone tech is primarily for hitting all enemies with regular damage, if Marle is in your party and has her bar filled, she can imbue him with healing magic to turn the cyclone into a powerful healing skill.
Part of the fun is discovering these powerful combinations to aid you in battle, all the while hopping through rifts in time. If you want the quintessential JRPG experience, we can’t think of a better game than this. If you’re looking for more retro greatness like Chrono Trigger, our list of the best classic PC games should be your next stop.
Grandia HD Remastered
Grandia is a hero’s tale about a young lad who answers the call to adventure after discovering a mysterious stone. Probably magical. Before long, he meets fellow adventurers and they all plow on to find out what the world has to offer. While the story is the hook, it’s the surprisingly well-thought-out combat that reels you in.
In a similar vein to Final Fantasy games of the era, Grandia has its take on an active battle system that’s a lot of fun to play. Depending on where the pips representing your characters are at any time, it’s possible to use certain attacks like the single-hit criticals to interrupt an enemy that’s about to use a high-damaging skill or heal themselves. Compared to other RPGs made in the era of 90s polygon backgrounds and 2D sprites, Grandia doesn’t age anywhere near as badly, and there is some rather laughably bad voice acting to enjoy. The second Grandia game is also on PC, but we think the first is still the best.
Tales of Arise
Arise makes the classic JRPG series feel genuinely new again with revamped visuals, a more fluid and intuitive combat system, and a mature story that carries you to its conclusion.
It’s made to embrace new players, and if you’ve ever been curious about the Tales games, then this is the best one to start with. However, that doesn’t mean that series veterans have been side-lined at all – it’s refined rather than dumbed down. And if you’re at all curious, then there’s a free demo on Steam, so you can try it before you buy.
We hope you enjoyed this list of the best JRPGs. If you did, how about browsing some of the best free MMORPGs on PC, which can offer a JRPG experience on a macro scale? We also have a list of the best story games if you’re looking to unspool an epic yarn, plus we’ve got all the most promising new JRPGs in our upcoming PC games list.