Console WRPG with a JRPG feel/aesthetic?

[Galbalan]

So I have to admit, while I enjoy RPGs, I've sampled a few WRPGs -- from Bethesda and Bioware -- and I couldn't get into them because of several factors, mainly how I felt they were TOO open-ended. Sure, nonlinearity is nice, but sometimes they give you too much freedom, IMO...

Anyway, are there any good console-based WRPGs that have a tighter quest focus, a la JRPGs? Or other similar factors? Recommendations welcome, hope to hear some good ones.

 

[OManoghue]

There's always the option to just follow the main quest. There's very light RPGs like Borderlands, or if you wanna play something linear with a bit of RPG flavour try out BioShock.

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

lost odyssey


its an amazing game, 4 discs though so watch out.

it was made by a wrpg company (microsoft studios i believe?)

it is only for the 360 though so if you dont have that then sorry =\

 

[twistedheat15]

Could try Dragon age, It's a Bioware game but it's pretty linear. You still get the freedom to decide the outcomes of important quest, but for the most part you still have to go to the same areas lined up for you to progress. The game lets you pick which doors you wanna go through first, and which of the 2 sides you want to pick, and side quest are simple "go here, kill him; go there, talk to them". No giant lands to run around while you look for new areas, just a map with area markers, and random encounters as you travel to them.

 

[warm slurm]

There aren't really, no. Most of them can be made linear, though. Just follow the main quest-line.

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

lost odyssey


its an amazing game, 4 discs though so watch out.

it was made by a wrpg company (microsoft studios i believe?)

it is only for the 360 though so if you dont have that then sorry =\

Uh no. It was made by Mistwalker, a company founded by Hironobu Sakaguchi (creator of Final Fantasy) and the company is based in Japan I believe. Lost Odyssey is a JRPG through and through.

alright my bad. just trying to help the OP out. and he was asking for a linear game which that is, thats why i suggested it in the first place.

 

[sveisen]

you could just go for jrpgs, or are pure jrpgs not to your liking?

 

[Neverhoodian]

Lord of the Rings: The Third Age.

For some reason, I really enjoy this game. The story sounds like something out of a bad LotR fanfic (a group of second-rate Fellowship wannabes follow the real Fellowship), but the gameplay is solid. The battle system *ahem* "borrowed" a few elements from another game...

Spoiler

If anyone hasn't played Final Fantasy X and doesn't want spoilers, stay away.

Spoiler

 

[Ordinaryundone]

Lord of the Rings: The Third Age.

For some reason, I really enjoy this game. The story sounds like something out of a bad LotR fanfic (a group of second-rate Fellowship wannabes follow the real Fellowship), but the gameplay is solid. The battle system *ahem* "borrowed" a few elements from another game...

Spoiler

If anyone hasn't played Final Fantasy X and doesn't want spoilers, stay away.

Spoiler

I think you'd be hard pressed to call LOTR: The Third Age a WRPG. Its got a WRPG setting, maybe, but the gameplay and style is JRPG through and through.

Honestly, you should give Mass Effect a try. It comes across like a pretty typical WRPG, but its very linear. Especially ME2.

 

[Olrod]

It seems to me that a larger proportion of western RPGs are released while still in Beta, or at least still requiring extensive patching.

I've been burned by unfinished western RPGs too many times to trust any western RPG developer any more.

 

[Au Naturel.]

NiER is a great game! It is a JRPG with emphasis on hack and slashin' without that wait your turn jazz. It's really a blast, and the story is genuinely touching and sad (I haven't finished yet). There are plenty of sidequests, but there is always a giant red 'X' on your map that marks the main quest.

 

[Neuromaster]

I'm not really sure this meets your requirements but...

Valkyria Chronicles was a really great game with both Western and Japanese elements. Probably the biggest problem is that it'd be a bit of a stretch to call it a RPG.

I enjoyed it. The Escapist's resident celebrity Yahtzee weighs in here [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/724-Valkyria-Chronicles].

If I remember correctly there's a free demo on the PSN. If not, you should be able to find it used for ~$20 or if it's not your thing, go ahead & disregard.