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JRPG Characters Who Should Have Been Playable

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leon in kingdom hearts and groose from the legend of zelda skyward sword


Ever get into a JRPG and think how cool it would be to play as another character? For example, Noctis was the prime playable character in Final Fantasy 15 but he was assisted by AI partners. These AI partners, Gladiolus, Prompto, and Ignis all got their own DLC eventually. There was more DLC planned to include characters like Aranea but they were all canceled.

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These other JRPGs weren’t so lucky to get DLC or sequels that allowed fan-favorite characters to become playable. One never knows what the future holds, so maybe one day they can be. Some games and character choices are going to seem a little out there, but here they are in no particular order.

6

Jecht (Final Fantasy 10)

Where’s The Prequel?

Jecht in Final Fantasy 10

Jecht is the father of the hero in Final Fantasy 10, Tidus. Jecht was one of the companions, alongside Auron, who helped Lord Braska fight Sin decades ago. He helped bring the last Calm to Spira which was an era of peace before this whale-like monster, Sin, returned and had to be appeased by a new group of warriors.

Tidus is begrudgingly following in his “old man’s” footsteps who everyone seems to love but him. There are flashback sequences that show Auron, Jecht, and Lord Braska together, but there are never any playable moments. It’s a shame since Final Fantasy 8 did a similar sequence of flashbacks with Laguna who was playable though. Laguna is assumed to be the father of that game’s hero, Squall.

5

Groose (Hyrule Warriors)

He’s Got Muscles And Teeth For Days

Hyrule Warriors was one of the better spinoffs from Dynasty Warriors in the Musou genre. It was a celebration of every Zelda game that came before it and as each new version came out, ending with the Switch, new characters were added. Nintendo and Omega Force got pretty weird with some choices too like Marin from The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening and a female version of Link named Linkle.

The White Witch in Ni No Kuni and Mordegon in Dragon Quest 11

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However, there were plenty of snubs too who could have made killer characters. Groose from The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword has big himbo energy and could have decimated the battlefield with his muscles and smile. The Happy Mask Salesman from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time could have used his masks to dish out combos in various forms. And who needs Shovel Knight saving the day when Dampe the gravedigger, also from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, is around? Those are just three examples but the main point is Nintendo and Omega Force have to join forces to make a proper sequel and get some deep cuts in there.

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4

Leon (Kingdom Hearts)

Snubs To Square Enix Legends

Leon in Kingdom Hearts

Speaking of Final Fantasy 8, Squall appears in Kingdom Hearts as Leon along with several Final Fantasy characters from other games. While they have been supportive NPCs in the series, they have never been controllable in main scenarios or multiplayer modes. Most games are played through the perspective of Sora who has AI companions like Donald and Goofy help him in battle.

These characters cannot be swapped mid-battle unlike the Tales of series, but Donald and Goofy could be played in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days which was a multiplayer-focused game. Leon, Yuffie, Vivi, and other Final Fantasy heroes haven’t been made playable in this way much to the chagrin of fans. One could argue that these characters all have their own games already but it’s still a shame regardless of semantics.

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3

Yutaka Yamai (Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth)

This Villain Never Got A Gameplay Redemption

Yamai in Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is the second turn-based game in the series starring Ichiban. This time around, he goes to Hawaii to find his long-lost mom. Along the way, he of course runs into trouble with a local gang who has ties to the Yakuza back home. Yutaka Yamai is one of the leaders in this gang who follows and antagonizes Ichiban throughout the adventure.

One of the party members, Eric Tomizawa, used to be a member until he turned things around. The Yakuza series is infamous for seemingly evil characters eventually joining forces with the heroes. It’s a standard trope in anime as well like Vegeta becoming “good” in Dragon Ball Z. Unfortunately for fans of Yamai, he never joined Ichiban’s crew but there’s always the next game.

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2

Rhyme/Shiki (Neo: The World Ends With You)

The Females Get Sidelined

The World Ends With You puts players in the shoes of Neku who gained multiple companions throughout the game’s various scenarios. For example, Shiki was his first partner who used a stuffed cat to fight the Noise. While he didn’t partner with her, there was another female character in the Reaper Games, Rhyme, who partnered with her brother Beat.

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In Neo: The World Ends With You, players take on a whole new cast of characters with cameos from the previous cast. Beat and Neku can help the party in a limited capacity but they are there. Unfortunately, neither of the two female heroes from the first game, Rhyme and Shiki, are playable. They do appear in some key roles but that’s it which was a shame as they should have joined Neku and Beat on the frontlines.

1

Super Mario RPG: Legend Of The Seven Stars

The Brotherly Disrespect Echoes Through Time

Luigi getting a Luigi Logic inspiration in Mario & Luigi Brothership

Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars is one of the best RPGs on the SNES but there are weird things about it that have never made sense. For example, Luigi not being in the game at all beyond a message he left as a wish still stings decades later. In early screenshots, Luigi was planned to be in it in some capacity even if he wasn’t playable.

It’s just odd that Princess Peach and Bowser got to be party members but Luigi didn’t. At that point, it would have made more sense to go the Geno and Mallow route and just offer more original characters for Mario to hang with. In all fairness, Luigi eventually got his RPG dues with the Mario & Luigi series. That said, it’s equally disappointing Nintendo didn’t get Square Enix to sign off on allowing them to use Geno and Mallow more in other games.

Guan Yu and Sun Shangxiang in Dynasty Warriors Origins
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