So just picked up a used ps3 and opened up a gamefly account. looking for good RPGs to rent and possibly buy. What is considered to be the best/better RPGs on the PS3? I am more into the non open world good story RPGs as opposed to the open world lots of stuff to do but no real story morrowind type rpgs. Favorite console RPGs for me are the Persona series. Computer I play things like Civilization, Saints Row, and Pillars of Eternity. Attempted to look for a list of best ps3 rpgs but couldn't find a way to search lists on the site ...

Going by exclusives, I'd probably say Demon's Souls, Resonance of Fate and maybe Nier?

There are plenty of others, but most of them are also available on PC by now (and Dragon's Dogma will be next year).

If you want something incredibly anime, there's also the Atelier and Disgaea games.

Valkyria Chronicles

I know it gets it's share of love, but I still think it's a somewhat under appreciated game. It's one of my overall favorite PS3 games.

Resonance of Fate is cool and weird as fuck. I didn't get very far, but mostly because I was coming hot off Lost Odyssey(which I also never finished) and I get RPG fatigue.

A little less of what you're looking for. But if you want good story, check out Nier. Ignore the side stuff. The game becomes much more tolerable once you get a phoenix weapon

Resonance of fate is great, though I only got about halfway through.

Ni No Kuni is beautifully nostalgic in its presentation.

I haven't played it in forever, but Eternal Sonata was pretty good from what I remember.

Alpha Protocol isn't exclusive to PS3, but is pretty good if you want a cheap western Bioware-seque spy RPG.

I second Valkyria Chronicles. I'd say that is the PS3's secret best game.

Later in the system's life cycle, you had a few games from the Tales series come over. Games like Tales of Graces F and Tales of Xillia and Tales of Xillia 2. I never finished Xillia, mainly because I didn't want to play PS3 games anymore (in a span of a year I got a new gaming PC and a PS4), but I enjoyed what I played of it. Tales of Graces F on the other hand....Oh boy. That was a rabbit hole I was not expecting. At some point I ended up going for the platinum trophy, which required me to do a ton of extra side content and starting a new game plus. It took me 150 hours, but I got it. (The game itself is not extremely long. Maybe 40 to 50 hours or so. I just spent too much time with that game.)

Tales of Graces F isn't the best game ever, but I loved the combat system so much. It was just a fun playing RPG.

You should also check out Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch. I didn't finish that game, but liked what I saw of it. Maybe somebody else can talk more about how the game holds up past the beginning section?

@yi_orange: Valkyria Chronicles is one of those games I really wanted to like, and I got really far into the campaign, but I just couldn't get into it. In some of the later levels random shit just happens that you couldn't possibly see coming, so you'll lose, and then you have to replay the mission again, knowing what to use to beat it properly. There's also the worthless maps you're able to view prior to each battle that tell you jack shit, so you'll have to load the map, look at the terrain, and then leave again to know what you'll be playing against... Ugh... (Also scouts are ridiculously overpowered).

Looking through my own collection, arguably one of the better JRPGs I have is Tales of Graces F. The story is really cliche and dumb at times, and REALLY drags out near the end, but the gameplay is probably the best I've played in an RPG in a long time.

The Atelier series is fun, but they don't really have epic stories or anything. Furthermore, some of the games involve moe-idiot girls being dumb, but if that's your cup of tea, then the game's pretty good. If you do decide to try these ones out, then unless if you're a completionist, skip Rorona, and go straight for Totori.

The only RPGs I have that I don't have much bad to say about is Final Fantasy 10 and 6. People love to hate on 10, but I freaking love the game play in it, and I actually like Titus and feel like he's justified in a lot of his reactions. Final Fantasy 6 though is AMAZING, if you want a REALLY GOOD JRPG, and can handle non-3D graphics, then definitely do yourself a favor and check it out.

And NO MATTER WHAT ANYONE SAYS, avoid the Agarest War series like the god damn plague, unless if you like tedious gameplay and ridiculous time limits you need a guide to overcome. Time and Eternity is also horrible (I nominate it as the worst JRPG I've ever played). I also recommend avoiding the Hyperdimension Neptunia series as well, especially if you hate overplayed anime tropes and tedious so-easy-it's-boring gameplay.

Honestly, I've played way more bad JRPGs on the console than good, so I'd be better off writing a list of the awful games to avoid, haha.