When thinking about great JRPGs to play in 2024, I wanted to look across the timeline – not just the classics, or the most modern titles. A blend of as much as possible, picking a nice, wide variety of role-playing games, and the platforms you can find them on.
These games deliver like no other, it comes to story, gameplay, and amount of time you can find yourselves enjoying them. This however, will not include games that are on the way out – only games you can play right now.
Whether you like turn-based, action, strategy, or something in between, there is an amazing glut of great JRPGs to play in 2024. It’s the genre that consistently keeps giving games dozens, if not hundreds of hours of content. From the tragic to the comical, and everything in between, here are some picks for you.
Classic JRPGs to play in 2024
1) EarthBound
Platforms: SNES, GBA, Wii, Wii-U, Switch
As far as great JRPGs to play in 2024 go, this one is going to top many lists. EarthBound has been hailed as a cult classic, and one of the greatest RPGs from the 90s era.
While it may have had an unfortunate advertising campaign, the title itself brings a story players won’t soon forget. Apart from cute, disarming visuals, EarthBound packs a story filled with deep, emotional moments.
Few games have managed to blend the surreal and serious like Shigesato Itoi’s masterpiece did. While it is a retro JRPG, and still one to play in 2024, be advised that there are moments of this game that are going to feel brutal and unfair.
Unless you do some serious grinding, there are boss encounters in EarthBound that can really shock and surprise people expecting a fun, easy game.
2) Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
Platforms: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PC
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is going to stand as one of the best JRPGs to play in 2024, if not one of the best games of the year.
While there are parts of the story that frustrate long-time fans, you can easily get 80-100 hours of incredible story beats, ridiculous fights, and hilarious sidequests.
Kasuga Ichiban’s quest to find his mother spirals wildly out of control swiftly, like any good Yakuza game does. Without spoiling anything, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is going to be a game that tugs on your heartstrings and tickles your funny bone.
This game improved on nearly every facet of the previous title, Yakuza: Like a Dragon. It also proves, if proof be needed, that Kasuga belongs as the new protagonist of the franchise.
3) Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Platform: Nintendo Switch
Although Fire Emblem: Engage was a fun trip through Fire Emblem’s past, but it didn’t cause me to spend hundreds of hours playing it like Fire Emblem: Three Houses did. It’s a JRPG I can come back to and play any time, especially now, in 2024.
There are plenty of ways to play the game, from the multiple endings, New Game+, the truly terrifying optional difficulties, and, of course, the emotional weight of the story. It picks up and runs with the trope of “Religion in JRPGs” quite nicely.
From a huge cast of characters to use, and tons of replayability, a JRPG collection without Fire Emblem: Three Houses is no collection at all.
4) Chrono Trigger
Platforms: SNES, PSX, DS, Mobile, PC
One of my all-time favorites, Chrono Trigger could not be left off the list. It’s more accessible than ever, thanks to Steam, so you don’t have to spend $300 on a copy from eBay.
The PC version has even been patched, to fix the unfortunate bugs and problems it launched with. Chrono being thrown headfirst into a wild, time-traveling adventure is one that sticks with 90s kids forever.
Chrono Trigger was developed by the Dream Team, which isn’t just a catch phrase. It featured Akira Toriyama (Dragon Ball), Nobuo Uematsu (Final Fantasy), Yuji Horii (Dragon Quest), Kazuhiko Aoki and Hironobu Sakaguchi (Final Fantasy).
It was a real who’s-who of game designers. This JRPG should be played in 2024 for its brilliant combat, emotional soundtrack, and stellar writing.
5) Super Mario RPG
Platforms: SNES, Nintendo Switch
Super Mario RPG wouldn’t have made the list originally, but the Nintendo Switch release changed my mind. It’s a fantastic game, but it hasn’t seen a lot of remakes, and was thus, pretty hard to come by.
The visuals are sharp, the gameplay is the same as it was before, only with several quality-of-life changes to make things more approachable.
Don’t worry though, that doesn’t mean the game is just going to be super easy all the way through – there are new superbosses you can tackle in the post-game, and they put Culex to shame.
This game proved Mario could so much more than be an action platforming character. The world of Mario turned out to be an incredible setting for a whole slew of RPGs.
The re-release came out in 2024, so instead of hunting down the first, get the new version of the JRPG instead.
As the year unfolds, and other interesting games come out, we’ll revisit this list and update it with the biggest and best role-playing offerings, so you know what deserves your time and money.
That concludes our list of the best JRPGs that you should be trying out in 2024. If you’re willing to explore a different set of titles, be sure to check out our guides on Palworld, and League of Legends.
