Topic: Universal Recommendations Thread

Thank you so much @Miss_Dark

Looks like we're getting a PS3 soon.

I'll admit I haven't been following this throughout much of the console's life but have certainly been hearing good stuff about it's exclusives and the PS+ service.

I need some recommendations apart from MGS4, Ni No Kuni & Pirate Warriors. Feeling in the mood for some good RPG's, perhaps you guys could point me towards some?

@Hunter-D
Note: This is a North American-compiled list
These are all exclusive (unless otherwise noted), vary in appropriate age audiences, and I'm probably gonna miss some, but...

• Resonance of Fate is a good RPG, but very weak on characters and story (Not exclusive, on 360 as well)
• Tales of Graces F is another one, but (now, I'm only 10 hours in mind you), the characters and story don't seem to be very good either.
• I've been told Valkyria (More of a strategy game with RPG in it), is good, but I haven't played it yet.
• Also, I've heard mostly positive on the Atelier PS3 games, but I don't know much about them, sorry.
• Another option is Star Ocean: The Last Hope, I haven't played it personally, but alot of people bash it though.
• Tales of Xillia isn't out yet, but looks very good
• Disgaea 3, an excellent SRPG (Enhanced port on Vita)
• Disgaea 4, another SRPG, but I've not played it, just heard good things
• More Nippon Ichi games are coming out somewhat soon I believe, not sure on the details
• Demon's Souls (very difficult action RPG-like game)
• Ar tonelico Qoga: Knell of Ar Ciel (By the same dev's as Atelier)

My non-RPG PS3 recommendations:
What I've played

• Infamous (Open worlds sandbox game)
• 3D Dot Game Heroes (Retro parody, hillarious, plays like 2D Zelda)
• Grand Turismo 5 (Great car sim, IMO, some people didn't think it was all that though)
• Uncharted (3rd person shooter)
• Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time (Hillarious platformer, Full Frontal Assault and All 4 One are spin-offs though)
• Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale (Like Smash Bros. but with Playstation characters, not quite Smash but very enjoyable)
• LittleBigPlanet 1 & 2(Extremely creative platformers, focus on user generated content)
• Jak and Daxter Collection (PS2 ports, but very high-quality nonetheless, and an extreme steal for the asking price (Less than $20), just ports though, so you definitely don't need it if you have them on PS3)

What I haven't played, but have heard is good

• Infamous 2
• Ratchet and Clank: Tools of Destruction
• Uncharted 2 and 3
• Sly Cooper (Stealth/platformer hybrid)
• LittleBigPlanet Karting (LittleBigPlanet meets Mario Kart)
• God of War (3D beat 'em up I believe, I haven't played the series)
• Killzone 1 and 2 (First person-shooters)
• Resistance Series (See above)
• Ico and Shadow of the Colossus (See Jak and Daxter Collection)
• Journey (Highly artistic, moving game)
• MotorStorm series (Racing series)
• Katamari Forever (Very unique, you'd have to look up videos)
• Yakuza series (Not sure, but I'm pretty sure it plays like Japanese GTA)

Didn't add multi-plats, but I'm sure the list would double or triple.
Anybody can feel free to add something or make corrections, thanks!

@Hunter-D I'm playing Tales of Graces f, and it's really good. You might want to keep an eye out for Tales of Xillia, though, which comes out this August, and is supposed to be the best in the series. Also, grab Demon's Souls while it's free. Or buy Dark Souls, since that's great, too, and easier to get into. Oh, and Valkyria Chonicles is a fantastic and unique SRPG.

I've heard good things about Nier. It's kinda love-or-meh, though. I thought it was meh, since it's gameplay was highly inconstistant, a lot like FFVI where they through in completely different gameplay styles every 5 minutes. I can't stand that, I was constantly learning something new, only to have what I learned become irrelevent for a lot of the game. Then there's, Star Ocean: The Last Hope - International Edition and Ar Tonelico Qoga, which a good if you can overlook absolutely terrible storytelling for great gameplay mechanics.

I'd also recommend Final Fantasy XIII and XIII-2 to some degree. FFXIII has a pretty good story, despite the press-x-to-win gameplay that lasts until the enormous difficulty spike around chapter 11 of 13. The characters especially are interesting to watch evolve - I found myself liking them more as the game went on instead of less (looking at you, FFX). But FFXIII-2 fixed all the gameplay-problems of FFXIII and was an absolute joy to play. Every facet of the gameplay was solid, with a lot of unique touches here and there. Sadly, its story was a complete mess as a consequence. In fact, if you just want good gameplay, I'd suggest just skipping the first one and going straight to the sequel. It'll save you some disappointment, and you'll be just as confused regardless (Plus, there's a summary of the first game in the main menu. Not sure how helpful it is, though).

And the rest are really niche otaku RPGs like Atelier and Disgaea that I really suggest researching heavily before deciding whether or not you want to play them. I've played a bunch, and the only one I personally enjoyed was Disgaea 4. The rest had stories that felt like cheap anime and gameplay that was too convoluted for me to get into, especially anything made by Compile Hearts and Idea Factory.

Thank you both very much. I've noted down the recommendations and I'm currently researching some other games.

Also thanks for the non-RPG recs too!

I'm going on a long car ride tomorrow morning, and I plan on getting either Mario Kart 7 or Fire Emblem: Awakening, which do ya'll think is better?
I haven't finished FE: The Sacred Stones yet (which I have on my 3DS), so I'm leaning towards MK, as, from what I've seen, FE:A and FE:TSS seem to have near-identical gameplay.

@FadingEuphoria: Mario Kart 7 isn't as good as Wii due to its average difficulty of easy, poor character selection, but if your leaning towards it, then, it has a neat vehicle modification system, online play, good controls and that stuff. I have never played Fire Emblem Awakening, so it would be awkward if I recommend a game I have not played. Wait, I've played the demo. I've heard great things about the game like it's strategic mechanics and great graphics. The gameplay is well made for Awakening too. I'm just gonna recommend Mario Kart 7 now, since I have not played the full version of Fire Emblem Awakening. Plus, I have more knowledge of Mario Kart 7. You may get bored after you finish things, but Mario Kart 7 is very fun, so I recommend it.

Easily recommend Fire Emblem: Awakening. Probably the best in the series and certainly the most accessible too.

The story is good, characters fantastic and their interactions superb. The main campaign is of a good length and not to mention the many side stories that will come about. The game was released on the 19th of April for Europe and I haven't changed the cartridge since I got it. I played over 100 hours (still not finished) and not once was I bored.

A solid kart racer like MK7 is suitable for a long journey but I think you'll get more consistent enjoyment out of Fire Emblem and you'll certainly be more engrossed into its gameplay. MK7 is better when you have others to play with locally or online which is another reason why Fire Emblem is my recommendation.

Fire Emblem awakening is a very good game but it's not the best in the series in terms of the core.

I'd still stick with Sacred Stones as the game that I will point new comers in the series to play.

Awakening is just accessible and characters feel more like individuals. But so far as how tactics are value in Sacred Stones and how the world and Story is consistent. I still place it at the top of the list followed by Awakening.

well yeah for 3ds. ACNL and FE:A are obvious choices for recommendation. Also Proj. X Zone for those who want a ton of fan service

I'm having a problem deciding whether to get a Wii U or PS4, It'll be a couple years before i could get the other one. They both have exclusives I want. I also have a gaming PC so third party games don't really matter to me unless they're exclusives. Which should I get? I'm also a big Nintendo fan. I also won't have PSN since i'm under 18 and don't want to lie or make a sub-account. I won't be able to get the other console for quite some time since i plan on buying an Oculus Rift when they release.

^PS4

Seriously, by the Time Zelda and all the other worthwhile Wii U games, 1st and 3rd Party, come out, you'll probably rrecovered from your expenses with the PS4. Might as well go for the console that's guaranteed a steady stream of content first.

@Schraffios You will get Zelda with the Wii U, but you will get a bunch of awesome first party support from Sony like you will with Nintendo on PS4. You will also get third party support with the PS4, which you won't be getting with the Wii U. I would have to go with PS4. There will be equally good games on PS4 and more of them aside from Zelda since you really love that.

Honestly I would go with the PS4. While the Wii U is nice I am afraid it seems that Nintendo doesn't know what to do with it. Also it seems that a lot of third party companies aren't interested in the Wii U. I am not sure which one has more first party games that you are interested in but it sounds like to me Zelda is the only thing you are interested on the Wii U, and that hasn't even been announced yet. More than likely it will be awhile till Zelda comes out so you will have nothing to lose by waiting to get the Wii U.

Go with the Playstation 4. Your going to getting good first party content alongside major third party releases. Nintendo has ind of bungled the Wii U thus far and i'm not so sure this holiday season will help the system recover. Id at least go with the safe bet that still has stuff that interests you than going with the wild card console.

Would you guys recommend the Zelda series to someone who didn't like Skyward Sword (SPOILERS: it's me) and are the other games in the Zelda series like Skyward Sword? Skyward Sword was the first Zelda game I ever played, and I didn't like it too much. The controls were horrific, and I absolutely despised the time trials. I also didn't like how I had to fight Demise several times, one time is enough. So I want to know, are the other games in the series similar? I'm considering getting another Zelda game to give the series another chance, but if the other games are like this one, then I don't even want to bother.

I did not like Skyward Sword, and I enjoyed nearly every other game in the series to some degree. I think those problems, and then some, don't really pop up in older entries in the series. I recommend either A Link to the Past or Ocarina of Time, if you want a better idea of how the series works.

Well if you dont like that one than I would suggest sticking with the older Zelda games. Like The Legend of Zelda or better yet A Link to the Past. If you have a 3DS maybe even give Link's Awakening a try.

I actually did buy Majora's Mask on the Wii VC, but I didn't get very far because as soon as I learned that saves from Wii VC titles couldn't be transferred to Wii U VC titles, I stopped playing. I want to upgrade to all Wii U VC titles. Also, my CCP stopped working. Back to the point, I enjoyed it. The time feature of the game didn't really bother me because I just slowed time and whenever I ran out of time I started over. It's not as constricting as the time trials in Skyward Sword. I HATE being constricted by a time limit.

I'm in the market for a new Mario game, the real question is.... 3d land or sticker star?!?!? I usually love the paper Mario games and I really enjoyed Mario galaxy's, so I'm wondering which should I get or should I be going out of my way for a different game ( I already have luigis mansion 2 I love it but I want a good game) as in going out of my way should I not get a mario, recommendations anyone?

One thing that I might like to add I heard 3d land is really short which is bad for me considering the day after I bought skyrim I was lvl 31 had beat the main storyline and had legendary destruction and restoration, and I went to bed at normal time(10:00 for me) so....

How did you feel about Super Paper Mario for the Wii?