It’s time for another list of the best of the best, friends. Previous SwitchArcade Special Editions have brought you our favorite fighting games and our favorite 3D platformers on the Switch. We’re moving along to another popular genre this time, and one very near and dear to this writer’s heart: JRPGs, or Japanese Role-Playing Games. Before we get into it, a little clarification: by ‘JRPG’ we’re referring to the game design and mechanics that collectively inform the sub-genre rather than simply RPGs from Japan. The Nintendo Switch has a great selection of games in this genre, so picking just ten certainly wasn’t easy. In no particular order, here are our picks for the best of the bunch.
Dragon Quest XI S: Definitive Edition ($59.99)
The latest in the series that basically codified the JRPG genre, Dragon Quest XI marries gorgeous production values with classic gameplay to create an unforgettable adventure. With lots of side-quests, extra content, and a huge world to explore, you’ll be busy with this game for quite a while. At the core of it all is a rather well-told tale of heroism and human nature that will keep you mowing down slimes to see what happens next. In the gameplay sense this is pure comfort food, perhaps playing it safer than any other game on this list. But when the formula works as well as this one does, you don’t really need to mess around with it that much.
SaGa: Scarlet Grace – Ambitions ($29.99)...