Summary
Nintendo delivered unique games on the DS thanks to its two screens. For action JRPG fans,The World Ends With Youwas a standout. Instead of going the gimmicky route for their first handheld, Sony decided to make thePSPas close to a home console experience as possible.
It too received a bunch of great action games, fromMetal Gear Solid: Peace WalkertoGod of War: Chains of Olympus,but those aren’t JRPGs akin to the DS’The World Ends With You. The following games are more traditional action JRPGs, and some even became so popular that they were remastered or ported straight to other consoles. Let’s dive into this forgottenhandheld’s JRPG library.
8Tales Of The Heroes: Twin Brave
A Mashup Worthy Of Omega Force
Tales of the Heroes: Twin Braveis one of the bestDynasty Warriorsgames that Omega Force never produced. It’s a crossover between many entries in theTalesof series, which includes characters like Lloyd fromTales of Symphoniaalong with Milla fromTales of Xillia.
Players would go into maps,Dynasty Warriors-style, and hack through hordes of enemies. It ran very well on the PSP, and even though it never arrived in the West officially, fans have patched some English into the game. It’s at least easier now to get through menus, which there are a lot of.
Phantasy Star Onlinewas huge on the GameCube and the other platforms it landed on in the West.Phantasy Star Portablewas chasing that high for fans of the action gameplay. While it didn’t quite reach the levels of success that its predecessor had,Phantasy Star Portablestill made a valiant effort, and it’s often underrated.
Players could still customize a character, equip a variety of melee and ranged weapons, and go on missions alone or with friends. The sequel allowed for some data to transfer over too, so it became a solid series of multiplayer JRPGs on the PSP.
The 3rd Birthdayis a soft reboot ofParasite Eve, following licensing troubles within Square Enix. Aya Brea is still the heroine, but instead ofResident Evil-style survival horror gameplay, it’s more action-oriented. Also, players will not control Aya in her natural state much.
Players can go back in time to try and prevent New York City, and the world, from plunging into chaos. Aya can do this by inhabiting NPCs and gaining their weapons. It’s not necessarily what fans expected from a sequel, but it still made for a solid shooter on the PSP.
Star Ocean: Second Evolutionis an enhanced version of the PS1 original. It has some updated features in the menu system along, with the requisite bug fixes. The definitive edition is now on consoles like the PS5 viaStar Ocean: The Second Story R,but this PSP version is still good.
Overall, the game is simply one of the best in the series on any platform, as it managed to combine sci-fi and fantasy tropes very well. Claude and the other heroes are compelling, and the action gameplay has a lot to offer.
4Ys: The Oath In Felghana
A More Advanced Zelda-Like
Ys: The Oath in Felghanais technically the third game in the series, although the timeline jumps around between sequels. It doesn’t genuinely matter, as they are all self-contained adventures, for the most part, starring a young red-headed adventurer, Adol. It’s a lot likeaZeldagamebut with fewer puzzles, more action, and RPG elements.
Players fight enemies, level up, and get equipment upgrades through trade. Even though the series had existed since 1987, this might have been the first game to gain popularity in the West even if it was still within a niche crowd.
Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleepis the game that is furthest back chronilogically in the series. Players can assume the role of three heroes who are all trying to become Keyblade Masters. The three campaigns are short, and completing them all will unlock new perspectives in the story between Aqua, Terra, and Ventus.
The gameplay is mostly the same as the console games, wherein players can hack and slash away at enemies infamiliar Disney WorldslikeSleeping BeautyandPeter Pan. The biggest difference is that there is a fusion ability system that is fun to experiment with.
2The Legend Of Nayuta: Boundless Trails
A Decade In The Making
The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trailswas released for the PSP in Japan in 2012. It got a fan patch in English along the way to an official 2023 release in North America. The remaster adds a lot of bonuses from smoother graphics to load times, so that is the way most players should experience this RPG.
This PSP original is still worth highlighting, as it was almost a forgotten gem inThe Legend of Heroesseries.The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trailsplays a lot likeYs: The Oath In Felghana,except that it is level-based with a big interconnected map as its hub world.
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7is one of many prequels that Square Enix released to celebrate the legacy of the original. Thisone starred Zack, the man Cloud based his life around due to trauma. Players got to see how Zack met Cloud and rose through the ranks of Shinra and SOLDIER.
Unlike the turn-based original, players got to directly control the action while still utilizing a Materia system. LikeKingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep, there was a fusion system at play for Materia. Zack was a more empathetic character overall, and showed his emotions often, which may be why some fans prefer him over Cloud. There was a recent remaster too calledCrisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion.
