Summary
TheJRPGgenre is filled to the brim with tales of small heroes cutting at the toes of powerful beings, where the first quest might very well be finding a missing pet, and the final mission is to slay God himself. This out-of-a-meme trope has repeated itself to the point where most JRPG fans might feel the need for a more relaxed and laid-back experience.
That’s why we’ve come up with this list ofsome of the best JRPGswithLow-Stakes storiesto enjoy. Stories where players do not need to save the world run after evil villains planning to unleash an ancient evil, or prevent the Demon Lord from rising again. Games that are just small adventures, from common people, living the best with the cards they were given. Let’s take a look at them.
This list contains spoilers about past and current JRPG series. Read at your own discretion.
The Origin Of the Puyo-Puyo Series
Perhaps one of the very first of the JRPG genre where the story doesn’t revolve around slaying an ancient evil, and narrates the tale of Arle Nadja, a 5-year-old magic girl apprentice that has to go through her final exam to graduate from the initial course of magic: To go through the Tower Of Satan.
And even though the name sounds ominous, the game is not: It’s a cozy, relaxed, and laid-back experience with a low-stakes story where the most important thing is to have fun solving magic puzzles and advancing through the plot. Fear not the name of the place, though it is a little bit dangerous, and Arle needs to overcome certain obstacles, it’s not the end of the world. On that note, and mind the spoilers: Arle later becomes the protagonist of the famous series Puyo-Puyo, so we could say this is a prequel to the series.
9Secret of Evermore
A Boy And His Dog Are Isekai’d
Secret of Evermoreis a lost jewel from the past, made for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, as one of the first 16-bit JRPGs with full-scale exploration ever made. With beautiful art, and a cozy setting, narrates the story of a boy and his dog, transported to another world under mysterious circumstances.
It is also one of the first representations of the Isekai genre to ever be made into a game, and submerges the players into a action adventure where the only thing they need to do is explore and survive, no saving the world in the process. Roaming around primitive worlds, and many stages that represent Mankind’s history (with a twist), this game is one of theprecursors of open-world gamesmade by Squaresoft.
Set in a world where Magic, Steampunk technology, and High Tech merge together perfectly,Grandiatells a tale of coming of age, friendship, discovery, and mainly: the call for adventure. It’s a relaxed and laid-back experience, with no high stakes, no saving the world, only the occasional “thwarting the plans of an evil warlord,” andmany quirky characters to meet and greet.
Grandianarrates the story of Justin, a wannabe adventurer who remains a romantic in a world where technology is more valuable than anything. With the help of his childhood friend, and despite the reluctance of his mother, Justin embarks on a journey to follow in the footsteps of his late father. The game allows quite a lot of freedom for players to act, including a magic system that is very similar to more modern JRPGs, where players can switch between magic and weapons at will. We could say that Grandia is the precursor of many great series.
7Pokemon Red/Green/Blue/Yellow
The Origin Of Pokemon Games
If we’re talking about JRPGs with Low-Stakes Stories, thenthePokemonfranchise comes right to mind, especially on their first iterations. The journey to be the very bestPokemontrainer of the world, and win thePokemonIndigo league is splattered here and there with some fighting against a band of evil-doers who want to steal everyone’sPokemon, but it never becomes so serious as to: save the world from the return of a God-like being who is angry as hell, like in later games of the same franchise.
The earlierPokemongames were more cozy, and relaxed, and had lower stakes. LegendaryPokemonwere not there to destroy the world or punish mankind, they were just chilling in their Power Plants, or Crystal Caves, waiting to be discovered by the skilled players as they explored the world.
6Pokemon Gold/Silver
One Of The Best Low-Stakes RPGs Of All Times
In times whenPokemonwas still a relaxed adventure game,Pokemon Silver and Goldbecame the top hits of the rising franchise. With improved audio, an embellished scenario and creature design, and more colors to bootGold and Silvermarked a whole generation ofPokemontrainers.
The story was a little bit more mature, as if growing with the audience, with a darker rival, a more sinister Team Rocket, but still a low-stakes story that pushed players to complete the Gym Route and challenge thePokemonLeague on their own terms. There was no doomsday clock hanging over their heads, no critical mystery to be solved, and more importantly, no LegendaryPokemongoing on a rampage.
5Harvest Moon (Series)
A Cozy JRPG And Life Sim Experience
TheHarvest Moonseries, also known by its original titleBokujō Monogatari(Farm Stories) is one of the most critically acclaimed and beloved franchises in the history of the genre. With a relaxed experience, and definitely a low-stakes story, it narrates the tale of a character (named by the player) who inherits a farm and or is tasked with managing it for a period of time.
The saga also was one of the first life-sims to offer players the possibility of getting married and forming families, and players had a lot of romancing options for a game made more than 20 years ago. One of the finest examples is that JRPGs are not all about saving the world by killing your murderous half-clone brother who also killed your love interest.
Legend of Manais a game where players control their own destiny, and choose to explore and adventure on their own terms. There’s no clock ticking, no final boss to defeat, just a relaxed adventure time, with no critical problems of the world to be solved.
Focusing on an Isometric exploration system, with artifacts that can trigger changes in the world, and turn-basedcombat against classic mythical creatures, as well as monsters typical from the JRPG genre,Legend of Manais certainly a good example of a low-stakes story made into an interesting game. Thankfully, this masterpiece was recently Remastered for PC, so modern players can enjoy it leisurely without having to resort to emulation.
A coming-of-age tale of a girl and her friends learning how to be adults in a world of fantasy, which follows the misadventures of Ryza (the MC) as she leads her friends into an adventure, leaving behind a boring life in an abandoned village in the middle of nowhere. After being nearly killed by a monster, and saved by a renowned alchemist and his bodyguard, Ryza and friends become apprentices and begin to learn the basics of surviving in a fantasy world.
The game has plenty of JRPG mechanics, but it is mostly about managing, crafting, and a sort of life-sim experience, where each character undergoes personal training according to their respective interests (Ryza becomes Empell’s alchemy apprentice, while her friends pursue their own goals) and the story never diverts too much from there. Definitely, low-stakes, if players are looking for a laid-back and relaxed game, then this is their jam.
2Recettear: An Item Shop’s Tale
Store Management JRPG Where Debts Are The Main Enemy
Other than solving an impending family crisis and saving a family business, Recettear has a low-stakes story, where the main character Recette, is tasked with managing an Item Shop in a world of magic and fantasy. Nothing too troublesome, besides some smaller quests that pop up every now an then, players won’t have to destroy the Demon Lord in this game.
The game has quite a few followers, and it is similar to the Atelier series in various ways. It’s also quite unique in its art style, combining classic Isometric views with 2.5 anime-style visuals.
Eight Adventurers with different professions, all of them set on a journey, all of them meet in the path and become friends. A story about the journey, not the destination, where the power of friendship and working together/helping each other is the main stake of the story.
No impending doom, sans some minor foes to beat according to each character’s own storyline, and more importantly: No universal crisis that’s going to destroy the world if the BBEG gets the Orb from the pedestal, nor anything of the sort. It’s a game I personally love to play on Nintendo Switch, its the ideal JRPG to play on a couch and relax for a while, exploring,looking for items, beating monsters, uncovering the secrets of the world, and unlocking every profession for each of the characters. It also has a lot of replay value, turning it into a unique experience each time players go through it.
