Skyrim, Chrono Trigger Rank #1 on Game Informer and IGN's Top-100 RPG Lists

Megalith

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Game Informer and IGN have both, coincidentally, published a listing of their greatest RPGs of all time, and Skyrim and Chrono Trigger topped each respectively. These beat out other classic titles that include Final Fantasy VI, Deus Ex, Diablo II, and Star Wars: Knights of the Republic. Would you have ranked things differently?

For some peculiar coincidence, two big names in the gaming press have simultaneously (sort of) decided to go ahead and publish a Top 100 RPG of all time chart. Of course, these charts are always subjective to a degree. Still, quite a few RPG fans may be irked in seeing The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim at the very top. …there’s a lot of criticism within the core RPG community towards the latest main entry in the Elder Scrolls franchise, mostly aimed at the very foundation of the game’s roleplaying mechanics.
 
I never got the massive love for Chrono Trigger. I thought it was good (maybe even great) but it's a favorite game of all time for a lot of people.
If I were to make a list it would probably include Baldur's Gate 2, Daggerfall, Oblivion, Dark Souls (all of them), Final Fantasy 6 and 7, Witcher 3, Lunar, Dragon Age, Mass Effect 2, and Fallout 3.
 
A lot of good games in there and also a bunch I would not consider an RPG unless you count a lot more games which then aren't included and should be.

I did have a lot of fun with Chrono trigger back in the day and even my mom enjoyed it a couple years when I got it got her on the DS. Seeing fallout 3 score higher then new vegas does not really make sence to me.
 
I think I have chrono trigger on my ps vita. Maybe give it a whirl. I was a genesis guy so missed out on a lot the great snes games unfortunately. Eventually picked up the rehashed snes and played most but never diid chrono
 
A lot of good games in there and also a bunch I would not consider an RPG unless you count a lot more games which then aren't included and should be.

I did have a lot of fun with Chrono trigger back in the day and even my mom enjoyed it a couple years when I got it got her on the DS. Seeing fallout 3 score higher then new vegas does not really make sence to me.
A part of me feels you have to put 3 ahead of new vegas just due to the fact it created that play style. I enjoyed new vegas more, but 3 was pretty ground breaking
 
A part of me feels you have to put 3 ahead of new vegas just due to the fact it created that play style. I enjoyed new vegas more, but 3 was pretty ground breaking

F3 really wasn't anything new. Bethesda just took their TES model and added guns into it. Then they decided to add infinite, 100% freeze-time, VATS which doesn't fit into real-time, first person shooter at all and if anything, ruined the whole experience.

IMO they should've either made F3 isometric (but fully 3D) like F1 and 2 which would allow them to make vastly larger world, or make a proper first person shooter/RPG out of it like Borderlands. They went with a weird hybrid that felt like heavily modded Oblivion.

New Vegas was a Godsend.

On Topic:

There are far too many RPGs I think deserve to be on such lists it would be painful for me to name them all. Never was the person that could single out a certain title as "the best" but if I had to then I'd say Diablo II. It may not be the best example of RPG title, and may be dated by today's standards but that was by far the RPG I enjoyed the most. Also, not sure whether Roguelikes count under RPG, but I'd also mention ADOM.
 
Chrono Trigger ranks as high as it does because it did many things perfectly, and those things haven't been done better in other games even today. It's one of the few turn based RPGs where you don't need to grind at points to level up your characters; they are always strong enough to take on bosses. Also, it's one of the few games where decisions you make in the past alter the future. Final Fantasy 13-2 attempted this as well, but fell flat on its face. It's one of the few RPGs that has multiple characters for your party but no single character is a crap character no one uses, you can make a case for any of the playable characters to be in the party. It also doesn't overstay its welcome, being a turn based RPG that can be completed in around 25 hours, instead of 40, 50, 60, etc.
 
Chrono Trigger ranks as high as it does because it did many things perfectly, and those things haven't been done better in other games even today. It's one of the few turn based RPGs where you don't need to grind at points to level up your characters; they are always strong enough to take on bosses. Also, it's one of the few games where decisions you make in the past alter the future. Final Fantasy 13-2 attempted this as well, but fell flat on its face. It's one of the few RPGs that has multiple characters for your party but no single character is a crap character no one uses, you can make a case for any of the playable characters to be in the party. It also doesn't overstay its welcome, being a turn based RPG that can be completed in around 25 hours, instead of 40, 50, 60, etc.

Well said. I believe it was also one of the first games to introduce actual side-quests (that have an actual story and can even affect the ending). 16 endings for a game in the 90's was unheard of AFAIK.

My favorite aspect is the way it plays with time, and brings you back to places that you have been before but now take on a whole new dimension as a result of what you have done.
 
There's some noticeable missing entries in both lists, mainly the first Phantasy Star and any title from the Legend of Heroes series.
 
I never got the massive love for Chrono Trigger. I thought it was good (maybe even great) but it's a favorite game of all time for a lot of people.
If I were to make a list it would probably include Baldur's Gate 2, Daggerfall, Oblivion, Dark Souls (all of them), Final Fantasy 6 and 7, Witcher 3, Lunar, Dragon Age, Mass Effect 2, and Fallout 3.

Lots of People had Nintendos?

I love RPGs, but can't stand any JRPGs. The kiddie art style and big hair just annoys me before I get started.

My List would be full of Bioware/Black Isle titles, plus Witcher, and Fallout versions.
 
Neither list included Wasteland2 and yet IGN put XCOM: Enemy Unknown which is a strategy game and not an RPG. Well, Wasteland2 goes on my top 100 RPG list anyway.
 
Morrowind for me. But i can't complain about the games on the top five.
 
lulz, Skyrim's story was shit. Oblivion was way better. Witcher 3 is hands down the best RPG ever. If you disagree, you are wrong.
 
Step 1: Define (computer-based) RPG ;)

Unfortunately, this really is a very big problem - that even if we can agree on a set of ingredients, not all of them should either a) have anything to do with 'role-playing' or b) have anything whatsoever to do with the definition of (any type of) game itself - which is also affected in a bad way. Which is why matters are being pulled all over the place without realizing the problems it causes.

E.g. Plot/narrative (and even things like 'characterization' etc.) have nothing whatsoever to do with games, only art, and unlike specific works of art (e.g. pictures) that can be used to enable a game, plot/narrative only replaces it, if only for a moment, even if it adds context.

(EDIT: I was sure I had an older account here - the username is taken - but I'm darned if I know which email account it was registered with - oh well...)
 
I agree with Chrono Trigger being the best RPG to date, but I don't consider Skyrim to even be an RPG, but an action-adventure game. I also don't think of Skyrim as a great, or even good game.

I would have Gothic 2 as #2, after Chrono Trigger. Strangely, Gothic 1 and 2 are absent from these lists.
 
I agree with Chrono Trigger being the best RPG to date, but I don't consider Skyrim to even be an RPG, but an action-adventure game. I also don't think of Skyrim as a great, or even good game.

I would have Gothic 2 as #2, after Chrono Trigger. Strangely, Gothic 1 and 2 are absent from these lists.

Gothic 2 was pretty awesome, I loved that game.
 
Personally play RPGs mainly for story...Xenogears is at the top of that list by far for me.

loved xenogears, bought the import and domestic versions back in the day

i hated how you couldn't speed up the dialog prompts
 
Skyrim is so popular because of its moddability. If you have a problem with some aspect in the game, chances are some modder has already fixed it. Otherwise I'd take Witcher 3 over it any day. And Chrono Trigger is the best JRPG ever made. If there is a game that needs a proper remake its that game, and hopefully revitalize the serie in the process. Chrono Cross, while not exactly bad, fell on its face and hard compared to Trigger.
 
Skyrim is so popular because of its moddability. If you have a problem with some aspect in the game, chances are some modder has already fixed it.
Well, unless that problem is:

Weirdly unsatisfying combat feel
Stability
Poor animations
Poor Main Storyline
 
The fact that Gothic 1 or 2 isn't on a list of the 100 best rpgs, yet both Morrowind and Skyrim are is an insult to rpgs.

Gothic did a lot of what Bethesda "attempted" to do with the elder scrolls games but failed (IE Radiant ai, etc).

I'll never forget playing Gothic 1 after importing it thx to gogamer (rip) and being amazed at how "alive" it's world felt compared to Morrowind. Npc's actually did things and didn't just stand in one little spot like a robot. The animals actually hunted other animals, etc.

This isn't to say Morrowind was a bad game by any means, just that in terms of an rpg Gothic 's story/characters were better and the mechanics behind thie AI and world felt more realized, even compared to Oblivion.

Gothic 2: Night of hte Raven definitely deserves a spot within the top 30 at least imo.
 
Skyrim is so popular because of its moddability. If you have a problem with some aspect in the game, chances are some modder has already fixed it. Otherwise I'd take Witcher 3 over it any day. And Chrono Trigger is the best JRPG ever made. If there is a game that needs a proper remake its that game, and hopefully revitalize the serie in the process. Chrono Cross, while not exactly bad, fell on its face and hard compared to Trigger.

There was an attempt at someone remaking CT in a completely different engine, but it got C&D'ed so it got shutdown.

A lot of fan-made remakes have also been C&D'ed, Castlevania is one such title I am aware of.
 
Well, unless that problem is:

Weirdly unsatisfying combat feel
Stability
Poor animations
Poor Main Storyline
Unofficial patches fixes a lot of stability issues, AFAIK, the LE also dramatically improved stability.

Unofficial patches of any moddable game are usually my favourite sort of patch, they usually fix a lot of scripting related problems.
 
There was an attempt at someone remaking CT in a completely different engine, but it got C&D'ed so it got shutdown.

A lot of fan-made remakes have also been C&D'ed, Castlevania is one such title I am aware of.

Yes I remember. They had quite a lot of work done but Squeenix C&D them. I was pretty pissed. :( I'm glad AM2R managed to finish theirs before Nintendo got a wind of it.
 
Unofficial patches fixes a lot of stability issues, AFAIK, the LE also dramatically improved stability.

Unofficial patches of any moddable game are usually my favourite sort of patch, they usually fix a lot of scripting related problems.
The game is still far from rock solid even with the unofficial patches.

Also the basic game engine has horribly flawed animation support and the terrible combat feel hasn't been resolved by any mod I've yet tried.

Then again, I absolutely *HATED* the game. The only fun I ever got out of it, was trying to mod it to the point of absurdity. I installed 140 different independent mods on top of each other, with the sole purpose of making the game more stupid.

It worked. Game was much more fun that way.
 
I know I am in th minority but I find Elder Scrolls games and the newer Fallout games to be meh at best. I don't get the hype and love for the. I loved Chrono trigger and Witcher 3 needs to be in the top 3. Xenosaga over Xenogears is bs too.
 
Though not my absolute favorite, Chrono Trigger and Super Mario RPG are great RPG's which I have replayed many times. Skyrim I played once. I greatly enjoyed, but that was about a year ago.
I noticed in the comments of the original article that many people seemed to lose it because their favorites were not in a position they believe it deserved. I have not played FF6. FF4 is my favorite. I did not like Witcher 3. Just wasn't my type.
Though not an RPG, my favorite video game of all time is Star Control 2 (1992). Many game sites and review publishers recognize it's greatness, as one of the best 100 of all time. But I don't throw a hissy fit because they do not mark it in the top 10.
 
CT was spectacularly...solid. That's why there aren't many people I find that really hate the game. They might be neutral towards it, but rarely does anyone dislike it.

I still don't get tired of it, and I've probably gone through the game about 6 times since I first played it back in 2000.
 
I'm going to disagree with Everquest being on that list. I say that as someone with very fond memories and a stupid amount of time playing that game. EQ wasn't an RPG, it was an MMORPG. I would never put it in the same category as Chrono trigger/Final fantasy.

Edit: Just realized I read the list backwards because they put the #1 and then jumped to #100. Comments about EQ remain the same, include WoW in there as well. Also if you are going to include MMO's and Ultima online not be on the list then fuck you kid. Ultima Online is the only reason why games like EQ and WoW exist. Also Chrono Cross is way too low in the list, there are at least 30 games above it that shouldn't be. Final Fantasy 7, 9, 6, 12 and no 8? Come on...8 was easily better and more coherent than all of those. That said, there are just too many garbage games in this list that are basically filler to make 100 games. I would have rather seen a top 25-50 and it be filled with good and influential RPGs instead of games that barely qualify as RPG's or straight up weren't good.
 
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Earthbound is far and away my favorite RPG of all time.

I never played Chrono Trigger as a kid (though I did watch my cousin play it) so I don't really have any nostalgia for it.
 
As other people stated, Chrono Trigger was overall a solid JRPG. No real weak points. I wouldn't call it the best RPG ever, but it was good. And it had an amazing soundtrack.

For me, Ultima VII is the best RPG I've ever played. It predates Gothic, Divinity Original Sin, and The Elder Scroll series, and pretty much incorporates everything in those 3 games into one game. The world is interactive, the characters are unique and have a semi decent AI (they eat, they sleep, they work, care about the weather), the game makes sense (no TARDIS dungeons), etc. You can blow up doors with cannons, bake bread, steal, kill anyone, beat the game in an hour if you want, or take 40 hours, and all this in 1992. RPGs since then have regressed terribly.

And another of my favorites, Betrayal at Krondor, isn't on that list. All this goes to show is why I don't trust these types of lists.
 
It's impossible to really pick 1. Just looking at the NES/SNES/Genesis/PS1 era of RPGs, there are dozens of games that could easily fit that #1 position. I think Final Fantasy 7 edges out Chrono Trigger for me, but by a fraction of a percent at most.
 
Despite playing it when it came out and slogging through it a 2nd time a year ago, I can't for the life of me remember any Chrono Tigger character's name or wth the plot is about.
 
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars is seriously underrated, I played it years after its release when a college roommate brought in his old SNES to the dorm. Skyrim is seriously overrated at #1, had fun with it but I'm not even sure you can call it the best of TES series of games
 
Love Chrono Trigger but can't get over the fact that my favorite of all time Final Fantasy VII is so far down on the list!
 
I've played atleast 90% of the games on both those lists and while many of the included names belong somewhere on the list, the actual order of them is FUBAR. Skyrim being even in a top 10 of an rpg list is appalling.
 
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