Sure Persona 4 is the epitome of JRPG, but at least it cuts out of the mold of the usual. And its not like Western RPG's have their share of flaws. I'm kinda tired of hearing both sides bringing each other down.

I'm tired of the argument as well. It seems that JRPG and WRPG are almost becoming their own genres.

"I'm tired of the argument as well. It seems that JRPG and WRPG are almost becoming their own genres.

I do think however, you're wrong when you claim that Persona 4 is the "epitome of JRPG"

"

Its basically an outgrowth of console vs PC since most WRPGs and developers started on the PC side where JRPGs were mostly console based.  When Bioware esentially simplified (or "dumb-downed") BG2/ToB to get KOTOR things just got all thrown together.

RPGs are RPGs.

And then you've got games that blur the line, like STALKER.

"I do think however, you're wrong when you claim that Persona 4 is the "epitome of JRPG""

People like what they like as everyone has their own opinion. Personally I haven't given WRPGs a big enough chance but do plan to give Fallout 3 another go eventually and if I find that i can tolerate it a bit may give something else a chance most likely Mass Effect. Not everyone has to like the same genre of game you like or the same IPs. Just ignore the posts everyone has opinions just like everyone has an asshole.

Yes, Persona 4 is hella Japanese, but it still manages to be one of the most unique JRPGs I've played.

TooWalrus said:

"BoG said:

"I do think however, you're wrong when you claim that Persona 4 is the "epitome of JRPG""

I don't know man, it's pretty damn Japanese. If I wanted the ultimate stupid Japanese experience, what would you suggest?"

 the ultimate stupid Japanese experience hu? how about...errr....any Japanese game show ever?
also, although theres no denying persona's japaneseness, their are 2 words that say otherwise: "fo sho" 

Persona 4 is incredibly Japanese but its far from the standard JRPG that you can get.  FFX is the epitome of JRPGs

"RPGs are RPGs.And then you've got games that blur the line, like STALKER."

There's a war?

Must be a 'fanboy' war.

Which already invalidates any opinion on this 'war' of yours.

"RPGs are RPGs."

It is true that WRPGs and JRPGs are what they are, RPGs, but I believe they don't offer the same experience of an RPG. If I sit down and play Neverwinter Nights or Persona 4, it is so obvious how different they are. However, there will be those people that have "strong" opinions on both sides that don't accept the coexistance.

What war?  Why can't one enjoy both? Pretty silly stuff.

Oh, and Persona 4 is the best game ever made, not just RPG.  Let's not get crazy here folks. Keep things in perspective!

"Persona 4 is incredibly Japanese but its far from the standard JRPG that you can get.  FFX is the epitome of JRPGs"

BTW, how is that Blood Alone manga CT?

And yeah, maybe I shouldn't emphasized so much about P4 being the 'epitome' of it all.

"BTW, how is that Blood Alone manga CT?"

It's an issue that has been brewing for a long time. The detractors against JRPG's have been around for a while, but it hasn't been until recently that they have become obnoxiously vocal, discrediting years of history and making phenomenal absolute statements claiming that all JRPG's are not RPG's because there is no freedom of choice. As if PC RPG's have had massive freedom of choice since day one.

It should be reminded that when KOTOR made a big splash on the Xbox one of the major critical compliments was the games ability to incoperate a combination of what was considered at the time console RPG athestics and western RPG mechanics into a product of it's own. I don't think that WRPG's would have been as successful today if it wasnt for JRPG's.

The problem that I see regarding JRPG's today is broader problem regarding the state of Japanese game development in general: An inability to take risks, and branch out and try something new. (Something that we of course can't relate too at all....Right?....) But there is hope, as we see games such as Lost Odyssey and even Tales of Vesperia take traditional storylines of amnesia victims and fantasy empires and mix them up considerably. We also don't consider the fact, during all of our internet bickering that for Japanese gamers linear storylines are generally more in favor versus chose-your-own-adventure affairs.

The Megami Tensi series has strong connections to older WRPG's as all long running JRPG series do. The first two Persona's had first person dungon crawling for crying out loud. The best thing about Persona is that it shows risk taking, and an ability to show that certain WRPG mechanics can coexsist quite nicely with traditional JRPG gameplay.

i can't stand JRPGS

i can stand WRPGS slitghtly more

Yeahh, I dunno why people like arguing these things, trying to fit them as one being better than the other.  As a gamer, I've loved both JRPG's and WRPG's, and I've hated selections of both genre's.  When we start dismissing these games based on their J or W camps instead of the merits of what makes them fun or not fun really highlights gaming ignorance.

I was never aware that there were such a distinction between the two.