Games

The Best JRPGs With Multiple Endings

Published

3 weeks ago

November 1, 2024

Christoph Rediske

Key Takeaways

JRPGs offer in-depth stories, turn-based mechanics, and complex party systems.
Some JRPGs have multiple endings based on player actions, like
Suikoden 2
and
Disgaea 5.
Games like
Fire Emblem: Three Houses
and
Triangle Strategy
offer choices that impact the entire storyline.

One thing that unites almost all JRPGs, regardless of their aesthetic or mechanics, is their dedication to their story. JRPGs have been providing players with excellent narratives for decades, and as the capacity for bigger and better games continues to grow in the industry, so too has this genre attracted more fans than ever before. These days, anyone looking to experience an in-depth story, turn-based mechanics, and a complex but rewarding party system can turn to any number of JRPGs that hit all of these notes.

10 Best JRPGs With Low-Stakes Stories

These are some of the best JRPGs with stories that don’t have high stakes.

Some JRPGs, especially the older and more influential ones, keep players on a fairly narrow path with only a few opportunities to deviate from the story. While this is a fine way of conveying a narrative, many titles have broadened beyond this, allowing players to do a lot outside of the main story or, even better, allowing that main story’s ending to change based on their actions. There’s no better way to use the unique features of video games as a medium than by letting the player’s actions determine the story’s end, and these JRPGs showcase that fact flawlessly.

8 Suikoden 2

A Classic Gem Of A JRPG

Suikoden 2

Systems

Released: September 29, 1999

Suikoden 2 is an all-time classic JRPG, little known compared to some of the major titles within the genre, but nonetheless, one of the best experiences players looking for an expansive and in-depth JRPG can ask for.

The game has endings not only for the game itself, but endings for individual characters that can change based on the player’s actions, similar to Fallout: New Vegas and other choice-centric RPGs with an emphasis on narrative.

7 Disgaea 5

A Host Of Endings Based On Win And Loss Conditions

Disgaea 5 Complete

Developer(s): Nippon Ichi Software
OpenCritic Rating: Mighty

Few games let players get as overpowered as the Disgaea series, which lets characters reach stats up to a colossal ten million. This is a comical, lighthearted series of games that features some incredibly compelling characters and plot beats despite not taking itself too seriously.

There are plenty of endings in Disgaea 5 that players can begin working towards from the very beginning—although keep in mind that some of these endings are far from happy, and can happen if players lose key battles or fail to complete objectives.

6 Langrisser 1 & 2

A Sprawling Epic Spread Over Two Titles

Langrisser I & II

Released: February 7, 2019
Developer(s): Extreme , Chara-Ani
OpenCritic Rating: Strong

Langrisser 1 & 2 come together to make a JRPG of truly epic proportions, with an incredible number of endings to be had across both games. These games have an incredible mix of strategic gameplay and compelling narratives, coming together to make a wartime JRPG like no other.

Players will find a branching timeline where choices can shift entire chains of events. Sometimes these choices will eventually link up to the main path, but other times they will end in a unique conclusion to the story triggered by a single key moment in the story.

5 Chrono Trigger

There Are A Host Of Endings In This Classic JRPG

Few games can claim to have the prestige and weight that Chrono Trigger carries. This game is like no other in terms of its weighty, engaging story, which has been keeping players hooked for decades across a host of consoles.

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Players will find that their actions leading up to the final boss fight can have a range of consequences for the game’s ending, sending echoes that reverberate through both time and space. The open-ended time traveling nature of the game means that there are numerous ways to alter the game’s narrative, some of which aren’t immediately apparent until their effects are seen later in the story.

4 Tactics Ogre

A Square Enix Masterpiece

Tactics Ogre: Reborn

Released: November 11, 2022
OpenCritic Rating: Mighty

Square Enix is known for their extraordinary, often experimental titles. Tactics Ogre helped pioneer the strategy JRPG genre and did so with a continent-spanning story of war, resistance, intrigue, and difficult choices.

These difficult choices can shift players down one of several alignments, and in turn, these alignments and the allies players make during their journey will shape the ending they come towards by this lengthy classic’s conclusion.

3 Shin Megami Tensei 4: Apocalypse

Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse

Systems

Released: September 20, 2016
OpenCritic Rating: Mighty

Almost every title in the difficult Shin Megami Tensei series could take a spot on this list for being a truly fantastic, compelling game that rewards the player with one of several different endings. Apocalypse, in particular, gives players interesting early and late game options, each a spin on the typical law and chaos alignment that has come to define this series.

Players looking for an early New Game+ will be pleased to find some early-game decisions more closely linked to the previous title will end the game, while those who stick it out will be in for a theological and philosophical journey that even other SMT games struggle to match.

2 Fire Emblem: Three Houses

A Compelling Strategy JRPG With Few Equals

Systems

Released: July 26, 2019
OpenCritic Rating: Mighty

From the very beginning of Fire Emblem: Three Houses, players are making choices. These choices gradually expand and grow in their importance, ending with decisions that can shape the fate of the entire continent. This all occurs even if these decisions stem from one main choice: Which of the three houses players will take under their wing.

fire-emblem-engage-missing-three-houses-certification-exams

Future Fire Emblem Games Shouldn’t Forget Three Houses’ Most Immersive Schoolyard System After Engage

Fire Emblem Engage takes many mechanics from Fire Emblem: Three Houses, but despite the returning systems, one of its predecessor’s best is missing.

Playing as the teacher in a genre that often involves rising up from complete ineptitude is a refreshing change of pace, and players will be hard-pressed to find a game that grips them as easily as Three Houses manages to.

1 Triangle Strategy

A Strategy JRPG Marvel

Systems

Released: March 4, 2022
OpenCritic Rating: Strong

One of the best Nintendo Switch JRPGs available to date, Triangle Strategy is the perfect marriage of graphics, gameplay, and story They all come together to make a game that will leave an impression on players for years to come.

As Serenoa and his House grapple with their individual convictions, they democratically choose which path decides their fate in a number of different story junctions. Doing this allows players to experience a game where the ending is decided not just by themselves, but by the majority of the party.