Throughout gaming history, Nintendo has been a major part of the industry releasing impressive (and less so) consoles since the late 70s, and with its hardware, the company has developed games that have become pioneers in their genres with decade-defining experiences. Some of these titles are RPGs that offer tales of grand adventure, unique characters, and a journey the player must go on to see how the story ends.
There are many famous examples of RPGs in Nintendo's gaming annals from Pokemon to Fire Emblem to Xenoblade Chronicles and even spin-offs of their flagship series like the Super Mario RPG installments. However, some have fallen by the wayside for one reason or another, whether that was an unfortunate release window or flying under the radar with a less-than-impressive premise. However, it does not mean these games are not good in their own right, and they may receive better success if they are re-released or remade for modern gaming audiences.
10 Breath Of Fire
Capcom had a fantasy RPG that came to the SNES system back in 1993. Sure it did have releases on other platforms, but for handheld gaming, Nintendo still tends to stand out from the pack. This game would be a great addition to the RPGs on the Switch's hybrid system and the growing, but modest, collection of old-school-type games.
It may not add anything particularly groundbreaking in its gameplay, however, it's a solid RPG of its era that has an approximate run time of 25 hours. The last game to come west was Breath Of Fire 5 in 2005 on the PS2 with the sequel, and the last game of the series, being a Japanese exclusive.
9 Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and The Lost Ocean
Developed by Monolith Soft back in 2003 for the GameCube this RPG had a moral narrative to tell as players take on a guardian spirit ferrying the protagonist, Sagi, across the world. Sagi has a special gift to communicate with spirits and must go on a journey to stop the machination of society (think of an in-game interpretation of industrialization).
The game featured a dialogue tree for the player to communicate with the protagonist, plus an integrated card mechanic for the combat system. Magnus, the name given to the cards, absorbs the essence of objects in the world and can be stored in the inventory like items. There were over 1000 Magnus cards to collect with varying levels of usefulness depending on the circumstance.
8 Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor
A more recently released series with installments on the DS and the 3DS, these games were part of the Shin Megami Tensei universe and offered payers the chance to explore a death game where all participants were locked inside the train's Yamanote Circle train line and were plagued with waves of demons and countdown clock to humanity's doom.
With the influx and well-received Persona and SMT games, this portable turn-based JRPG would do well on the Nintendo Switch with maybe an HD-2D remake of the first two games in a single collectors package or even a sequel could do well too.
7 Earthbound (Mother Series)
Released in 1994 on the SNES, this adventure JRPG is lauded as a cult classic, however, it was poorly received in the west when players got their hands on it. With its satirical advertising, sub-par sales of the earlier series installments, and the phasing out of SNES, the game hardly had a leg to stand on.
Smash Bros. helped to promote Ness and Lucas in the west and people became more familiar with the games and the characters. The fact that modern audiences are open to less serious, whimsical RPGs could put this game in good standing for a remaster.
6 Lufia 1, 2 & 3
Developed by Neverland, the Lufia games were a series of RPGs where a team of warriors defeats the Sinistrals, the world's god-like beings. The player picks the game up years in the future where they play as the descendants of the said heroes and must take on the Sinistrals (again) who are vying to be reborn.
The latest installment of the series was back in 2010 for the DS and was a Japanese exclusive, never making its way to consoles outside the country. A collector's edition or remaster would do wonders for the game, even making it a digital exclusive or a package deal where the trilogy is sold as a collection could entice new players.
5 Soul Blazer, Illusion Of Gaia & Terranigma
Not an official series of games, but rather spiritual successors developed by Quintet. In Soul Blazer, the player takes control of The Master's Servant and must venture around the world dungeon-crawling and all the associated activities that come with it including monster-slaying and exploration.
Each dungeon, or monster lair, would release a soul that would reincarnate into something in the world. The soul could become different types of things from a human to an animal or a sentient flora. The second game landed on the SNES later in the same year and the last game in the series, Terranigma, never received a North American release with the recent success of Live-A-Live and unconventional premises, this may make a good candidate for a makeover.
4 Castlevania: Aria Of Sorrow
Castlevania is a staple in gaming with many successful iterations, pioneering a genre and releasing new games at a decent clip of a few years. However, some of the older versions of the game are heralded as platforming, side-scrolling classics such as Aria of Sorrow. Released on the GBA, the game was known for its beautiful pixel art style and light effects.
On a newer console, an HD-2D remake could bring some added texture and depth and improve on what it made great in the first place bringing some more expression and dynamic additions to an already great game. And there is clearly a market for it with Indies releasing in the same style over the years to great success such as Bloodstained: Ritual Of The Night and the forthcoming Dead Cells Return To Castlevania DLC.
3 Metroid
With a lack of a traditional leveling-up system, the term RPG may be loose with this entry and leaning towards more of an action-adventure title. However, a remake would still be a good move and with the announcement of Metroid Prime 4 (and the subsequent delay) plus the release of Metroid Dread, the player's need for a new game in the series was hardly fulfilled.
Remakes of the original games would satiate Nintendo's long-time fans, refresh some outdated graphics and introduce a new generation into the space-traversing series that inspired generations of side-scrollers to come.
2 Golden Sun
Developed by Camelot Software and published by Nintendo, the Golden Sun series was a cult classic with an RPG system that was unique and unconventional. The elemental attack and skill system may be found in other games, but the customization and the variability of each character was a refreshing change from other games in the genre. Plus, the way characters got access to these powers was intriguing too.
The Djinn are magical creatures found throughout the world and could be equipped to unlock new powers. Whatever Djinn the player equipped changed their class and their ability load out i.e. combining different types could result in a jack of all trades builds, or stacking one elemental Djinn made characters a master of one particular element. Golden Sun: Dark Dawn was the third game in the series released on the DS in 2010 with no sequel forthcoming in the future.
1 Chrono Trigger
The phrase if it ain't broke, don't fix it comes to mind. However, Chrono Trigger is exalted as one of the greatest JRPGs of all time and is one of the crowning achievements of Square Enix and the SNES. An HD-2D remake should be already in the works, not much needs to be done, only improving the graphical fidelity.
With time-traveling storylines, memorable characters, and a satisfying combat system, a remake would be at home on a newer console giving newcomers a chance to enjoy a great game and have older gamers relive the amazement of playing it all over again.